49 Hobgoblin Gang
Back on the first floor where Fate Points were too out of reach, Damian had constantly imagined a Den of Hobgoblins that could immediately push him to the next level. However… 'I didn't mean it in this way.'
It was just an afterthought, he didn't actually wish for one!
On the left of the starting room was a dead-end wall, and on the right, it was the start of the familiar ever-extending tunnel, but 8 Hobgoblins who rushed out of the Den were now blocking it.
'The difficulty spike doesn't cease to surprise me.'
As someone who could already wipe the floor with Goblins, Damian didn't expect to get an easy Goblin Den at the start, but he still thought that the difficulty would still be somewhat parallel.
Whatever the monster he was going to get, five or six of them were plenty enough to keep him busy already!
"Grawr!"
Each holding a stone club of their own, the originally menacing Hobgoblin now looked like a crazy biker gang ready to clobber Damian up.
'Blunt weapons really are intimidating.'
In front of the Hobgoblins' collection, the confidence-boosting shortswords quickly lost their effect. Nonetheless, Damian didn't flinch, he stood in place waiting for the Hobgoblins to make their first move.
'I can't just rush in like an idiot.'
Rather than a passive attitude, this was practically the only open he had, if he was the one to move out, he might hit his target, but in return, at least half of the Stone Clubs would turn him into a human patty.
"Grawn!"
A few seconds later, it seemed that the Hobgoblins were done measuring Damian up, taking hurried steps towards him, the sight itself was another nightmare on its own.
Damian could almost feel the ground shaking under him, but he could only steel his heart and brace for the impact.
Thud!
The first swing coming his way had naturally missed, hitting the ground instead. However, what followed made Damian seriously rethink his life choices!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
'Seriously?'
One club after the other rushed at him. They all still narrowly missed, but Damian's heart was beating like crazy.
'Coordinated attacks? For Hobgoblins?'
As monsters who usually spawned as mini-bosses among lesser mobs, Hobgoblins were known for their individuality. Even when it came to the reality patch, Damian confirmed matching behavior.
Nonetheless, these Hobgoblins knew more about teamwork than the Goblins he met before. Every swing they sent his way made use of the closed space created by their comrade's attack!
At first glance, this might seem like nothing to the person who had become capable of perfectly evading the Goblin King's attack. However, that was nothing but a misconception. After all, Damian was dealing with a completely different weight class!
Compared to the Goblin King's shortswords, the Hobgoblins' clubs occupied too much space. Once eight of them moved in the same second, there would almost be no room for Damian to evade!
Thankfully, the Hobgoblins' coordination wasn't perfect, but it was getting there as they got used to the specs of their opponent.
'Do I have to start from the beginning?'
Almost no room to evade meant even fewer openings to attack, so getting out of this deadlock wasn't going to be easy. Considering the information that he was now aware of. If Damian was to restart this battle…
'...No.'
Damian couldn't deny the vital role that respawns played, but it also kept encouraging him to throw the towel and take a different and easier approach.
No matter what, he couldn't let himself get used to death in that manner. Treating life cheaply was definitely destined to come and bite him in the back later!
'This is still doable.'
He didn't spend all that time getting tortured by the Goblin King just to take more deaths after death. It was all so he could face all possible opponents with a confident heart.
Besides, compared to the Goblin King, the Hobgoblin gang still lacked a very essential skill that made them very vulnerable!
'First, let's take one down.'
Having been already on the verge of a level-up, the greatest opening that Damian could create was to take that final step.
Deciding to take over the tempo of battle for himself, Damian suddenly initiated his own move, diving low to the ground before…
"Grawhhh!"
He stabbed his left shortsword into the foot of one of the Hobgoblins, creating the opening that he needed to lunge at the Hobgoblin right next to him!
Unlike the Goblin King whose evasion was just as masterful as his swings, the Hobgoblins barely had the ability to respond with their heavy bodies. Allowing Damian to take the lead with a simple unconventional strike.
"Greeeen!"
Of course, now that they saw that tactic, their already tight net of club swings would become even tighter by taking that into consideration, but a single opening was all that Damian needed.
With the shortsword covered in platinum Aura, Damian created a hole in the Hobgoblin's neck. After that, it didn't matter that his Aura was on cooldown.
[ You have defeated a Hobgoblin. FP+2 ]
All he had to do was consecutively stab that slit with the royal shortsword while the Hobgoblins have yet to recover from their surprise. Once the Aura cooldown came off, a large head dropped to the ground.
[ The Possessed Subject's Level has risen. ]
[ The Possessed Subject's Skill Learning Capacity has been slightly enhanced. ]
[ The Possessed Subject's Passive Talent Quality has been slightly enhanced. ]
[ You have obtained 2 Free Stat Points. ]
…and the long-awaited level-up quickly came in its tails!
'Perfect.'
[ Agility +1 ]
[ Agility +1 ]
Damian didn't even need to hesitate or ponder about it as this investment was something that he already thought of during his battle with the Goblin King.
Over a hundred consecutive deaths and a ton of effort might have greatly elevated his skills, but it left his body unable to completely keep up.
In order to truly realize the value of the training that he went through, Damian needed more speed, and now that he possessed it, the Hobgoblin Gang no longer looked so menacing.
- 2nd chapter of the day! Hope you enjoy it!
- Real speedrunning is just about to start!
LightningAsura
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