Chapter 05: Raided!
«Five Level 6 goblins slain!»
«EXP: +50»
«Difference of 5 levels—Overkill!»
«Additional EXP: +50»
«You have level up!»
[Level: 02 (EXP: 00/200)]
«Free Stats: +5»
«Gained random F-rank skill: Heavy Swing!»
A warm energy surged within his body and Eldian felt all the pain vanishing. The arrow struck within the jaw vanished in thin air and the wound healed instantaneously. The spear in the ribs and the knife in the back all disappeared and so did the wounds they had inflicted.
"Kekekeke!" The goblins unaware of these changes approached their meal.
'Add all free stats to strength.' Eldian gave a mental command, grabbing the hilt of the trapped sword.
«F-rank skill: Heavy Swing activated!»
"Swish" Tearing through dead bodies, the sword neared the two warriors in front and sliced through, leaving an arc.
"Thud!" Blood gushed out and brain waste spilled across the walls, painting the cave green. Two bodies fell simultaneously, one headless and the other with half head gone.
The spearmen were caught off-guard. Their instincts kicked in as their spears pointed at the human.
A goblin stepped back to charge when a hand suddenly held its spear. It felt a pull and fell head-first... On the pointed tip of the sword.
"Crack" The cranium gave way as the sword penetrated through the brain and emerged from the other side. It didn't stop there, turning to the other side it met the temple of the last goblin. "Crack!" A similar scenario unfolded as the blade emerged from the other temple and dug into the wall, pinning both heads to it.
'That was close.' Eldian let go of the hilt slumping on the cold floor. He had taken many injuries before but this was the first time he took so many and so willingly.
———–––—[Skill]—————–
Name: Heavy Swing
Rank: F
Consumption: 1 Mana/Swing
Cooldown: 92/100 seconds
Effect: Swing the sword in a straight path ahead exerting a force equal to 110% of the base strength stat.
—————————————––
'Not the best F-rank skill I had, but it'll do.' He didn't have a choice, the skill reawakening was random after all, at least for low-level skills.
—————[Stats]———–——
Strength: 16
Agility: 13
Vitality: 7
Mana: 17/18 (Recovering: +1/min)
Soul: 00
——————————————
This was the real letdown. He expected the soul stat to increase after killing the goblins. This may have unlocked some useful class-related features.
Maybe slaying a high-level monster was required, or maybe killing a boss would do, or perhaps he was thinking all wrong and "Soul" referred to something entirely different.
'Only time will tell.' Eldian could only shake his head bitterly, getting rid of the distracting thoughts.
"Kekeke!" Another team of goblins was waiting for him in a tunnel on the other side.
Eldian appreciated this about low-level dungeons, monsters couldn't leave their respective area, giving the newbie hunters time to rest after each hunt.
"Let's end this quickly." He had to prepare lunch before the kids arrived from school.
Eldian pulled the sword out, and two lifeless bodies fell on the floor.
«Excellent Sword equipped!»
[Strength: 16 +5 ]
.
.
.
"Kiiiii!" The high-pitched roar of a goblin warrior echoed throughout the tunnel as a spear pierced its thigh, pinning the creature on the cave wall.
"Keee... Keee..." Whimpers of agony followed the scream as the glowing moss showed similar scenes across the cave.
Goblins covered in cuts and bruises wailed in pain as blood oozed from their wounds painting the walls green, all their bodies nailed to the wall by a piercing on the limb.
Unbothered by the sight, Eldian had his eyes locked on the elderly goblin seated on the throne of bones.
The goblin stared back, its chin resting on one hand while the other held a bone staff. Two goblins, a head taller than the rest, stood beside it, each with a sword in their hand.
«Boss: Goblin Shaman»
«Level: 10»
«Monster: Goblin Bodyguard»
«Level: 08»
'Three minutes at most.' They were exactly how he recalled them from the game.
As Eldian stepped into the boss room, the touches on the wall erupted in flames, deepening the wrinkles on the old shaman's face.
"Kekeke!" It chuckled like every other goblin, but it sounded distinct.
Eldian took off his half-torn shirt. His physique was a masterpiece of muscle and definition, with broad shoulders, chiselled abs, and powerful limbs. The flames highlighted the numerous scars on his body each conveying the marks of past struggles.
Dropping the fabric, he grabbed the sword with both his hands, and sprinted with full strength.
«F-rank skill: Quick Steps activated!»
The skill propelled his sprint 10% faster but it was still no match to the goblin bodyguards.
Eldian had barely covered any ground when two blades approached him from both sides.
The goblins had reached him way faster, slashing their swords at him from left and right, one aimed at his neck and the other at his hip. Eldian could not avoid both.
With a quick movement, Eldian ducked his head, bending his body left he aimed the sword at a goblin's neck.
The goblin's sword missed its mark, and a sword approached it at great speed. The goblin bent its head just in time and the sword pierced its shoulder.
"Agghhhh!!" Eldian however couldn't do the same as the other goblin's blade sliced through the flesh of his thigh, piercing inside with a sickening crunch it broke half of the thigh bone.
"Thud" The impact threw Eldian to the ground, his sword pinning the shoulder of the goblin below him, while a sword wedged midway between his thighs scraping at his bone marrow with each movement.
The goblin below was quivering in pain as Eldian dug the sword closer to its neck. The goblin above pulled at its sword as Eldian shook in pain.
'Not now!!' Gritting his teeth Eldian caught the side of the blade jutting out of his thigh.
"Ahhhh!" A soul-wrenching scream left his throat as the sharp blade dug into his palm but he preserved, grabbing it with all his strength he rotated the blade and... Dug it deeper into his flesh.
"AAAHHHHHH!!" One hand held the hilt of his sword inches away from slaying a goblin's throat, while the other held the blade of another goblin, digging it deeper in his thigh.
In the damp cave under the flickering flames of torches, three bodies were locked in a settlement while fresh blood painted the floor and guttural screams resounded the walls.
This unexpected sequence of events baffled the old shaman. What was the human doing? Why was he going to such lengths to self-harm himself? It despised nothing more than unexpected situations. It wanted the human dead!
"Kia kao kea Kuee..." The goblin shaman, its body adorned in tattered robes and arcane symbols, raised the bone staff to the sky, chanting ancient incantations that echoed through the dimly lit chamber.
With a sudden surge of energy, a flickering flame materialized above the staff, swirling and growing into a fiery orb of destructive power, ready to be unleashed upon the human.
"Keee!" With its shout, the fireball burst into life striking at the enemy with precision.
"AAAHHHH!" Another scream resounded the cave as Eldian experienced the heat pouring on his back. The searing heat licked at it, sending waves of agony coursing through his body as his skin blistered and charred, the acrid scent of burning flesh filling the air.
The goblin behind him had retreated, leaving behind the blade impaled deep in his thigh.
Eldian lowered his head, both his hands tightly grasped his sword positioning it directly above the goblin's throat.
"Keee!" The shaman gave another shout as its staff directed another fireball.
"Bam!" Another fireball struck his back. The flame bore deeper into the flesh, devouring it with merciless hunger, searing nerves and muscle with relentless intensity, leaving behind a trail of smouldering agony that seemed to penetrate to the very core of Eldian's being.
"NOT NOW!!" But he preserved yet again, now wasn't the right time.
The more the human screamed the more uneasy the shaman felt. It couldn't take it anymore! It would end this human's miserable life once and for all!!
The shaman's eyes blazed with fervour as it summoned every ounce of its mana, the bony staff trembled as it pointed to the sky. With a primal roar that reverberated through the cave, the shaman poured his essence into the incantation.
The flames left the torches drawing upon the staff they spun into a whirlpool of magic of unprecedented size and ferocity, a swirling inferno that dwarfed all before it, ready to unleash devastation upon its enemies.
"KEKEKEKE!" The shaman laughed in insanity as the flames burned the very walls of the cave.
"KEEE!" Following the shaman's command, the infernal vortex made its way towards the human.
"BOOM!" An explosion shook the cave as the spell met its target. The flames unleashed their swirling fervour of destruction and in the midst of it all, a barely audible mutter sounded... "Now..."
«A Level 8 goblins slain!»
«EXP: +15»
«Difference of 5 levels—Overkill!»
«Additional EXP: +15»
«You have level up!»
And suddenly it became quiet.
The flames were gone, extinguished as though they never existed.
A human walked out, clothes gone. His physique masterpiece, shoulders broad, abs chiselled, and limbs powerful. The darkness masked the numerous scars on his body each conveying struggles of the past.
His hand carried a red-hot sword. His steps—quick and precise—approached the shaman as though a harbinger of death and destruction.
"Keee!" The goblin bodyguard driven by instincts, charged at the human its jaws wide open intending to tear his flesh apart.
"Thud" The shaman dropped on its knees, it knew, resistance was furtile. Nothing could stop his path.
"Crack" The human didn't even spare the goblin a glance. The sword entered the jaws and penetrated out to the other side crushing the skull and burning the brain in the process.
Unhindered, the human reached before him, placing the hot iron on its throat. But the expected beheading never arrived.
Eldian saw something completely unexpected...
«Dungeon: Goblin's Cave Raided!»
«Boss: Goblin Shaman (GBSH628191) surrenders!»
«House the monster in Eldian's Dungeon?»
[Accept] [Decline]