BXBX NOVEL Chapter 289
Keeping on the move, Brance frowned as he heard Cynrik’s description of the Transmogrifier. The ability to transform another creature into a more powerful state made things difficult for him. If he wasn’t worried about going after the Perfect clear, even if the Hobgoblins had reached a higher Tier, Brance could have still dealt with them.
However, in going for a perfect clear, the assumption was that he would take ZERO combat damage, which eliminated his ability to fight the creatures on even ground. Without being able to engage in combat actively, Brance was only left with the options Cynrik had stated and a third not-so-Brance option. The two his brother had given were either run around dodging until the Hobgoblins reverted back to their original form or make a move on the Transmogrifier.
Snorting out through his nose, Brance lowered his body and cut a sharp turn, moving like a speed skater and stepping right over left as he ran with his shoulder nearly scraping the stone ground underfoot. Weaving between the three Hobgoblins, out speeding them and avoiding several wide-swinging punches.
With his eye flicking away from the nearby Hobgoblins, Brance locked onto the Mages protecting their Commander.
‘When I move too close, those two immediately set up row after row of shielding, too many to pierce through with how little Mana I’m pumping into my skills.’ Brance thought as he slid under the legs of one of the four-meter tall Hobgoblins and slashed its ankles as he passed, dropping it to its knees.
Unfortunately, before he could deal the finishing blow, the second and third enemies appeared on either side of their downed opponent, caught it by the shoulders, and flung the injured Hobgoblin out of Brance’s reach.
Chewing his bottom lip, Brance kicked off the ground and flipped out of the way as the closest of the two creatures clasped its hands together and smashed downward. Instead of hitting Brance, the creature struck both its hands into the stone flooring, creating a small impact crater and kicking up dust.
Shrugging off the pain and grunting, the same Hobgoblin smashed the ground two more times and charged at Brance like a pissed-off bull. Even its eyes were bloodshot as it shot steam from both nostrils. In response to the angered rush of its companion, the second Hobgoblin raced back to act as a defensive wall, protecting not only its injured ally but also the Mages and Transmogrifier.
Realizing that he was only being chased by one of the Hobgoblins, Brance smirked and activated [Vanish], causing the charging creature to lose sight of him and slam into the wall in its confusion.
By using his stealth skill, Brance had begun trying option three, the one he didn’t necessarily want to use. Unlike options one and two, which somewhat met his usual fight pattern, option three was what Brance nicknamed the Cynrik method. Circling around to the flank of the confused Hobgoblin, Brance stored his shield on his back and gripped his greatsword with both hands before rushing forward.
Lining up his blade parallel to the ground, Brance thrust forward, shifted his weight, and plunged his greatsword directly into the exposed ribcage of the hulking creature. He stabbed his sword with such strength and forward momentum that it entered the left side of the creature’s ribcage and escaped through the right, causing it to roar in pain.
Brance’s eyes suddenly widened in surprise as he removed his blade and was forced to rush back in order to escape a sweeping counter-attack from the Hobgoblin. Unlike what he expected, his attack seemed to have little effect on the creature, who spun around, lashing out the instant the sword bit into his flesh. What was even more shocking to Brance was that when he put a few meters distance between himself and his enemy, he could visibly see the massive jagged wound he had just caused to the creature’s ribs wiggling and closing within seconds.
[Cyn, what the hell kind of regeneration speed do these fuckers have? It’s like they’re trolls or something. I literally just skewered one, and as I drew back after my attack, the damn injury was practically healed.] In order to make his escape easier, while Brance was back-peddling, he launched several [Stone Spikes] with his left hand, targeting the same place that was in the midst of healing.
[I don’t think that’s routine healing, Brancie. It may be the work of the Transmogrifier. I told you not to try fighting them; you would need to go into a no holds barred slugfest just to put consistent damage on its body. Aside from the massive physical differences between a standard goblin and its evolved race, the Hobgoblin, they shouldn’t have an increased healing factor, only speed, and strength.] Watching his MP quickly replenishing now that he was out of battle, Cynrik smirked at how helpful the additional 30% boost from his new title was and gave his brother some more advice.
[I went with option three.] Calmly running back and forth, Brance’s eyes flicked between his status, where he was waiting for the cooldown on [Vanish] to end, and the pack of creatures on the opposite side of the room. By this point, the first enemy he had injured by slashing out its ankles was fully healed and standing beside the other one that had retreated to protect the support classes.
[Option three? Oh, for the love of! BRANCE, YOU AREN’T AN ASSASSIN! Your speed and stealth skill aren’t up to part for hit and runs. Not to mention your [Vanish] is completely flawed compared to my [Spectre Concealment], mainly because it allows me multiple attacks while staying hidden. Yours drops the instant you attack or are hit. There is no option three, especially now that you know the damn things heal too quickly. ATTACK THE SOURCE, OR RUN LIKE A BITCH! Those are the ONLY options.] Rolling his eyes and facepalming, Cynrik had to stop himself from going off and issuing a verbal attack on his brother.
[Yeah, well, NOW I know that tch. I was just trying it out to test the waters, and it failed. You need to realize, Cyn, there are THREE of these freaking monsters. Not only that, but the two mages are coordinating with the Hobgoblins, so I have to deal with their pot shots as well. When I injured one earlier, its buttbuddys threw it back to the Mages, with one rushing me down and the other retreating to go on defense.] Snorting his response, Brance narrowly avoided a wave of fire blasts trying to close out his escape path.
Luckily, by channeling Wind Mana into his greatsword and slashing out, Brance could break apart the incoming flames and clear a path for himself.
‘Cmon, Brance, think, how can you get in and out of the encirclement, avoiding all three hobbies and the Mages to execute a precision strike on the Transmogrifier.’ Jumping and counter-attacking another wave of spells, Brance hit the ground and rolled before bouncing back to his feet and continuing to run. However, the more time he spent on the run, the less favorable it was. This was because he had already noticed that the enemies were beginning to predict his movement patterns.
Overall the room wasn’t so significant to give Brance free range of movement, even if it was around 50 square meters. There was only so far he could run before being forced to turn in a different direction. After the fourth wave of spells, Brance noticed that these Goblins and Hobgoblins were constantly trying to guide him in such a way that he would be forced into conflict.
[Timecheck Cyn.] Feeling a little overwhelmed and uncomfortable with this battle style, Brance worriedly asked.
[Two minutes, eighteen seconds. You sound worried, little brother. Aren’t you just playing tag? Why so anxious?] Smirking at his own joke, Cynrik waved his hand and brought the timer he started after explaining the Transmogrifier closer to his face.
[WHAT, NOT EVEN THREE MINUTES YET! MOTHER FUCKER!] Brance shouted in reply as he pivoted on his lead foot, Spun, and slashed upward, severing the arm of the Hobgoblin, who stupidly tried yet another wide and easily predictable hook.
“GROOOOOAA,” The Hobgoblin screamed in rage as its arm separated and flew away from his body.
But Brance didn’t stop there, spotting a perfect opportunity; he planted his feet and, taking a baseball batter stance, whipped his greatsword forward and struck the severed arm, launching it directly at the nearby Transmogrifier and Mages. The sudden attack caught them off guard, and the arm plowed through all three, knocking them to the ground in a clustered heap of limbs.
Not wanting to lose out on this opportunity, Brance willed as much Light Mana as he could muster from his Codex, swiped out with his left hand, and activated [Swords Of Judgement.]
Instantly five massive light Constructs flew out of their summoning gates and surged forward, their target, the downed Mages and Transmogrifier.
Seeing the bright lights racing toward them, the Mages clamored over each other in an attempt to get back to their feet and cast a series of defensive spells, but it was too late. Before the Transmogrifier could even issue an order to the hobgoblins, he and the other two goblins were swept up by the swords and killed instantly.
|You have successfully Killed 3 Level 18, Tier-1 Virtual Goblins.|
|You have received 15 Obelisk Kill Points.|
|You have received 3 1000 Essence, XP Crystals.|
|You have received 9 Merit Points.|
The instant the Transmogrifier died, all three of the Hobgoblins shrunk down as if they were deflating balloons and shivered weakly. Not one to waste a meal, Brance whipped around and beheaded the one that had been chasing after him for the last couple of minutes.
|You have successfully Killed a Level 18, Tier-1 Virtual Goblin.|
|You have received 5 Obelisk Kill Points.|
|You have received a 1000 Essence, XP Crystal.|
|You have received 3 Merit Points.|
“RAHHHH!” Issuing his battle cry, Brance kicked off the ground and finished off the final two Goblins before collapsing onto the ground and rolling over on his back, facing the ceiling and panting heavily.
|You have successfully Killed 2 Level 18, Tier-1 Virtual Goblins.|
|You have received a Perfect Score for the Nineteenth Floor Trial.|
|You have received 10 Obelisk Kill Points.|
|You have received two 1000 Essence, XP Crystals.|
|You have received 6 Merit Points.|
|All rewards will be tallied and stored. You may access your balance from the Obelisk Market Place, which is open to you every five floors.|
| Congratulations, you have Cleared the Nineteenth Floor. Would you like to continue to the Twentieth Floor or Save and Exit?|
[Mother fucker, no more goblins, please, no more goblins.] Brance muttered as he tried to catch his breath and examined his resource stats.
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