CLWU 06

Chapter 6

[Combat Ended.]

[Nine goblins defeated. Contribution: 40%.]

[You have gained experience.]

[Your level has increased.]

[You have gained 1 level-up point.]

“Yes!”

“W-Why are you so excited, Hyung!?”

“I leveled up!”

“Oh. That… Congratulations, Hyung!”

For natives, the level displayed by the system literally meant their level of ability.

The stronger someone was, the higher their level.

But Summoners were a little different.

Like in a game, they defeated monsters in the labyrinth and increased their numerical level through experience.

And what they gained from leveling up were level-up points.

Natives trained themselves to raise their level of ability along with their skills.

Summoners, on the other hand, gained experience, leveled up, and then used their level-up points to raise and evolve their stats and skills, increasing their combat ability.

That was why Summoners could grow stronger quickly.

But if they’re the same level, natives are usually stronger.

—Using level-up points to raise your stats is foolish. Skills, always skills.

—Who do you think is stronger? Someone who raised their skills with the system’s power, or someone who raised theirs through actual training?

—With your talent, you should be able to master ordinary skills on your own. So…

I need to save them.

That was why I had to conserve my skill points for now.

And there was something else I had realized for certain this time.

The spirits are more useful for scouting than I expected. Especially when I send them all in one direction.

The wind spirit could read the flow of air, while the earth spirit could sense vibrations in the ground.

The fire spirit could read contrasts in light and the warmth of enemies, while the water spirit could somewhat detect the moisture present in living beings.

Each sense was faint, as expected of lowest-grade spirits, but right now, my consciousness was inhabiting all four spirits.

Once all those senses were combined, I could detect the presence of enemies with incredible certainty even in places within fifty meters that were outside my normal field of vision.

Good. Very good.

It felt as if everything was going smoothly.

Ever since I obtained the Goblin Basket, it felt like this bleak world had started opening a path for me.

“Come on, let’s go again!”

“Again?”

“Yeah. What? Are you tired?”

“No, not really. Fine. Let’s go!”

Drunk on our sense of accomplishment, we went berserk exploring the first floor of the labyrinth.

In just half a day, we slaughtered hundreds of goblins and raised my level all the way to five, until goblins no longer gave me any experience.

“Hyung, we’ve already found six exits. Shouldn’t we stop and go back?”

Kirk finally tried to stop me with an exhausted expression.

“Hey. Don’t you want to get a Special Class?”

“What? Of course I do. But what does that have to do with this…?”

Kirk tilted his head.

Then, seeing my meaningful expression, he suddenly straightened up.

“Hyung, do you know something?”

“No. Well, I heard a rumor.”

“A rumor?”

“Yeah. I’m not certain, but there’s a good chance it’s true. So, do you want to go back?”

“No! Then we have to do it!”

I had successfully tempted innocent Kirk into getting caught up in my enthusiasm.

We continued slaughtering the goblins in their territory indiscriminately.

Until, at some point—

…We were surrounded.

Damn it.

“Run, Hyung!”

“I am running!”

Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!

“Kyaak! Kyaak!”

“Kyaruk!”

“Chwiit!”

A green tide chased us through the dark cave, accompanied by countless shrieks.

When did they start tracking us?

We had been having so much fun slaughtering them that, at some point, goblins had begun swarming toward us from almost every direction.

“So I told you! We should take it easy!”

“I didn’t know this would happen either!”

Thud-thud-thud-thud!

I thought, at most, a few dozen would come after us. I didn’t know there would be this many!

The only reason we could still talk while running was thanks to Jeric’s hellish training.

It also meant we still had some stamina left.

Which made the solution to this problem obvious.

Before we become completely exhausted from running, we have to settle this somehow.

The problem was that no matter which direction I looked, there seemed to be well over a hundred goblins.

Jeric had emphasized this countless times.

—Once you’re surrounded and the paralysis needles start flying, it’s over. You have to finish them before that happens.

—At your level… Hmm. Once there are more than thirty, it could get dangerous.

His warning was still vivid in my mind.

But—

“They’re herding us! Toward one place!”

“I know!”

It was obvious that letting ourselves be dragged around like this would only make things more dangerous.

Think. Think!

But no matter how much I thought, I could only come up with one viable option.

Which direction has the fewest of them…?

“Left! There are the fewest there!”

“What about the paralysis needles!? Should I use my ability!? The cooldown is way too long!”

“I’ll handle it somehow!”

“What!?”

“Trust me!”

It was dangerous, but there was no other choice.

“Damn it! Let’s go!”

Fortunately, Kirk listened to me and bravely charged toward the left.

Here we go!

Flash!

Just like before, I burst a flash of light in front of Kirk as he charged.

Then I followed right behind him.

Up to this point, everything was the same as before.

Except for one thing.

My spirits were observing the entire goblin force ahead of us.

Don’t miss a single one. Especially the paralysis needles.

With five different perspectives, including my own, watching the surroundings without blind spots, I could see attacks that would normally have been invisible.

In other words—

I have no blind spots in this state.

To the side!

Smack!

SHLUK!

I dodged a crude bone knife coming from the side and thrust my spear forward.

Two goblins were pierced on the spearhead at once, sending a heavy sensation through my hands.

The problem was that I wasn’t supposed to deal with only two goblins.

“Kyaak!”

“Kyaruk!”

“Chwik!”

One goblin leaped over its wounded comrade and swung its knife.

Another rolled in from the side and slashed at my ankle.

A third stabbed toward my ribs from another direction.

And one behind me was already pulling out a blowpipe.

Damn.

Whoosh.

Swish.

I used Advance-Retreat Step to take a large step backward, evading the attacks.

SHLUK!

Then I used Thrust again, piercing one goblin through the torso and bursting another’s body apart.

The power of Thrust had already reached Lv.3 despite me not investing any skill points into it.

Only an hour ago, I had been pleased with myself, thinking I was naturally good at actual combat.

Enough running away from reality!

In the meantime, a paralysis needle had been fired from farther away.

But—

Fwoosh.

“Kyaak!”

The spirit burned the eyes of the goblin holding the blowpipe, stopping it.

The same thing happened to another blowpipe aimed at Kirk, who was creating a bloody storm with his long spear right beside me.

Yeah. We can do this!

While watching the entire battlefield, my spirits stabbed the eyes of goblins attempting to fire paralysis needles or blocked their blowpipes.

My head was spinning and a headache was beginning to form, but it was still bearable.

“Hyah!”

KRRRUNCH!

Kirk swung his spear in a wide arc, crushing two or three goblins at once.

I fought beside him as well, repeatedly using Advance-Retreat Step and Thrust to steadily reduce the number of goblins by one or two at a time.

But—

“More are coming from behind. Break through!”

“Raaaargh!”

The problem was that more goblins were pouring in from other passages than we could kill.

We slaughtered our way through the goblins in one direction, desperately forcing open a path.

Slash!

“Urgh!”

I felt a burning sensation in my calf.

A goblin had stabbed through a gap in my armor with a crude knife.

“Hah!”

BAM!

I immediately smashed its skull, repaying the favor.

Only then did I realize that various parts of my entire body were burning with pain.

I seemed to have taken numerous shallow wounds without realizing it, though I had somehow managed to block the paralysis needles I could see.

Damn it. There has to be an exit in this direction.

I no longer thought about the Perfect Clear.

Surviving came first.

Or perhaps that was another distraction.

A burning sensation spread through my calf again.

Damn it!

SHLUK!

I killed the goblin immediately, but now both of my legs were tingling.

I should’ve borrowed money if I had to and worn plate armor. Damn it!

Maybe Kirk noticed.

“Hyung! Hang in there!”

Kirk, who had been furiously breaking through the front, turned around and shouted.

“Of course! I am! Break! Through! The front!”

BAM!

Puh-puh-puh!

From the moment my mind snapped back into focus, I stopped thinking about anything else.

I focused solely on killing the goblins in front of me.

[Thrust’s level has increased…]

[Advance-Retreat Step’s level has increased…]

I ignored even the system’s voice, focusing entirely on the battle as I swung my spear endlessly.

Using my spirits to monitor every direction, I stopped paralysis needles before they could be fired.

With their various perspectives, I searched for open spaces whenever possible, darting in and out with Advance-Retreat Step while steadily reducing the number of goblins.

And then—

Flash!

The bursts of light occasionally released by the fire spirit blinded the goblins and became a lifesaving move that allowed us to survive moments of desperate crisis.

Of course, the biggest reason was Kirk, who was slaughtering goblins like a madman right in front of me.

Whoa.

KRRRUNCH!

The word grinding them up was practically made for him.

Did this guy get even stronger?

If my registered skills were Thrust and Advance-Retreat Step, Kirk’s skill was probably something like Jeric’s Secret Spear Technique—Kirk Version, combining those two skills and more.

—Kirk is rated as Level 10 because he hasn’t obtained a Class. Once he gets a Class, he’ll shoot forward.

There was no way I could imitate his movements, but I looked for whatever small details I could learn from and moved my feet and swung my spear accordingly.

I, too, was slaughtering goblins as hard as I could, even if I couldn’t match Kirk.

[Thrust’s level has increased…]

[Advance-Retreat Step’s level has increased…]

I listened to the system’s voice with one ear and let it pass out the other as I continued fighting endlessly.

Then, at some point, there were no more goblins in front of us.

“We broke through!”

Kirk shouted before me.

It was an exhilarating cry announcing a change in our suffocating situation.

Unfortunately, however, what lay directly ahead of us was a dead-end wall.

Damn it.

I felt despair as well.

Kirk, meanwhile, lowered his spear with an almost vacant expression.

There were seven goblins behind him, firing paralysis needles at him.

This was the moment when we needed a blinding flash more than ever.

But I had just used the fire spirit, so there was a delay.

Damn it!

There was no choice.

Everything!

I unleashed everything at once.

The wind spirit disrupted the paralysis needles.

The water spirit stabbed at the goblins’ eyes and blocked their noses.

The earth spirit tripped them up.

But the moment the spirits exhausted themselves like that, I couldn’t stop two remaining goblins from firing another volley of paralysis needles.

Damn it. Stretch!

Clang!

I barely managed to thrust out my spear and knock one away.

Considering my ability, it was practically a miracle.

I watched helplessly as one paralysis needle I failed to deflect flew toward us.

Then—

Clang!

It caught on Kirk’s armor.

Only then could I let out a sigh of relief.

But the price for disrupting my stance was high.

Goblins that had pushed past the interference from my spirits were already swinging their weapons in front of me.

“Kyaak!”

“Chwik!”

Stab. Stab.

“Urgh!”

Crude knives were buried in my side and thigh.

My armor had already been reduced to rags and could no longer block or deflect even those crude blades.

“Damn!”

BAM!

I struck the goblins away with the shaft of my spear, though I couldn’t even swing it properly.

“Hyung!”

Kirk saw my predicament half a beat late and charged toward me like a madman, swinging his spear.

Puh-puh-puh-puh-puh!

BOOM!

Five thrusts in an instant, followed by a sweeping strike of the spear shaft.

Every single attack accurately pierced and smashed through the goblins.

As I thought that he seemed to have improved quite a bit during this battle, I tried to raise my spear.

It felt far too heavy.

“Hyung! Are you okay!?”

“I can… I can do it!”

I answered like that, but the hand holding my spear was trembling.

No.

My entire body was trembling.

Damn it.

The concentration that had allowed me to ignore everything else collapsed as the wounds finally caught up with me.

Every part of my body hurt far more severely than before.

I didn’t even know how many wounds I had.

My arms and legs were barely responding.

But—

“Hang in there, Hyung!”

I could clearly feel the concern in Kirk’s voice.

How could I simply collapse after hearing that?

“I can do it!”

I forced out a shout and drew up my mana.

I regulated my mana to stop the bleeding from my wounds.

I tightened my muscles, tried to reduce my fatigue, and used my mana to support my bones.

It was a level of precise mana manipulation that would have been impossible for me under normal circumstances.

Yet for some reason, my mana moved smoothly according to my will now.

At the same time—

[Vartus Body-Strengthening Technique’s level has increased.]

[Vartus Body-Strengthening Technique’s level has increased…]

Along with the system’s notifications ringing out repeatedly, some strength returned to my body.

Good!

Of course, it wasn’t a complete recovery.

What mattered was that I had gone from a state where I felt like I could collapse at any moment to one where I could still fight.

My mind also seemed a little clearer.

“To the side!”

SHLUK!

“Hyung!?”

I caught a goblin aiming for Kirk’s side, causing him to turn around.

“Watch the front, idiot!”

“Yes!”

I could hear the happiness in his response, and I naturally smiled.

Honestly, Kirk and I had been a little awkward with each other before entering the labyrinth.

But now, he almost felt like a brother.

“Let’s kill them all!”

“Yes!”

Right.

If there was nowhere to run, then all we had to do was kill every enemy that came toward us.

My mind began to rise again and immersed itself completely in the battle.

For some reason, the situation was still just as desperate as before, but I felt as though I wouldn’t fall easily.

Even the spirits’ vision seemed clearer somehow.

[Thrust’s level has increased…]

[Advance-Retreat Step’s level has increased…]

[Vartus Body-Strengthening Technique…]

At some point, I could no longer hear the system’s voice.

And just as the seemingly endless wave of goblins finally began to show signs of ending—

A strange roar snapped me out of my thoughtless state.

—GRAAAAAAAAH!

—THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!

The moment we heard the deafening roar, the goblins actually began retreating.

Then, appearing in our field of vision were dozens of muscular goblins at least a head taller than all the goblins we had seen so far.

And in front of them—

A single red-skinned goblin riding a wolf.

“A Hobgoblin!?”

“The Goblin Lord!?”

Our words were different, but the meaning was the same.

A variant that appeared when a goblin settlement grew beyond the scale of a mere tribe and reached the size of a small town.

It was unquestionably a monster far superior to an ordinary goblin.

The adventurer’s guide even explicitly stated that if a Novice encountered a Hobgoblin on the first floor, they should simply run.

But after enduring an endless goblin rush, our thoughts were a little different.

—A Hobgoblin’s greatest ability is controlling a horde.

—Goblins under a Hobgoblin’s control know no fear and will continue fighting endlessly.

The wave of goblins we had endured until now was actually the greatest ability of that monster.

No wonder they kept coming at us until the very end.

Put another way, now that most of the goblins were dead, it was merely a larger and stronger goblin.

“Looks like they were herding us toward those guys from the beginning.”

“Then if we take that thing down, it’s over?”

“That’s right.”

The thought that this exhausting battle finally had an end in sight was impossible to ignore.

Perhaps they sensed that we were underestimating them.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

The Hobgoblin roared, and the goblin warriors charged toward us first.

But—

“Let’s finish this!”

“Yes!”

Having finally found hope, we charged toward them without the slightest hesitation.

And then—

[You have defeated a Hobgoblin.]

[You have overcome an unprecedented monster wave on Labyrinth Floor 1.]

[An achievement has been created. You will receive a bonus when obtaining a Class.]

[Your level has increased.]

At last, we were able to end the battle.