Chapter 11 - First Boss Fight

Truthfully, Lucas's plan was rather straightforward. Knowing that the goblins were diligently constructing a throne for their king, they would most likely celebrate once it was complete.

This moment was what Lucas was aiming for. Since it was at this moment, the goblins would cluster together to revel in their achievement.

Therefore, the trio stationed themselves in the spectator stands, waiting for the right instance to launch an air raid. Once the chaos thinned the horde's number, they would charge in to deal with the remaining monsters.

Chloe and Samantha were tasked with neutralizing the smaller threats, the normal goblins and the wolf riders. Meanwhile, the man himself would take on the boss himself, head-on.

When the goblin king saw three humans darting toward it while slaying its minion mercilessly, it roared in fury.

Gripping its greatsword, the goblin king swung it at the human man nearest to it, aiming to cleave him in half.

However, Lucas was faster. He sidestepped the downward arc with a smirk, feeling the rush of wind brushing his face as the sword smashed into the dirt.

“Big guy's got some muscle,” he muttered, eyeing the uprooted earth.

Growling furiously, the massive goblin yanked the sword from the ground and swung it in a wide horizontal slash.

As predictable as the slash was, Lucas just ducked under the arc while the blade whistled inches above his head. Smirking, he pushed off the ground in a quick burst to close the distance.

But the goblin king wasn't slow either. For its massive size, it was able to shift its weight instantly, bringing the sword around for a counterattack.

Lucas reacted in a flash, raising his right-hand pipe to meet the incoming slash. The impact sent a sharp vibration through his arm, but Lucas gritted his teeth, deflecting the strike just enough to change its trajectory.

Seizing the opportunity, he lashed out his left pipe, slamming it into the goblin king's knee. The beast staggered, its knee buckling under the force.

Instantly, Lucas followed up with an upward strike with his right pipe. The jagged barbed wire of the pipe ripped through the goblin king's jaw as it stumbled backward while a low growl of pain rumbled from its throat.

Pressing on, he gripped both of his pipes tightly. “Take that!” Lucas snarled while twisting his body, he swung his pipes squarely at the side of the beast's temple for a devastating blow.

The barbed wires on Lucas's weapon tore into the goblin king's face, leaving deep, jagged lacerations. Blood was oozing profusely from the wounds as it let out an agonizing howl.

After dishing out a combo strike, Lucas felt a chill run down his spine. Without hesitation, he leaped back, distancing himself from the boss as it began to release a strange hissing steam from its body. Its greenish skin turned into an ominous, searing red with veins bulging grotesquely.

“It's activating a skill, huh?” Lucas muttered, clenching his weapons.

In an instant, the goblin king's figure burst forward at an insane speed. Caught off guard by the sudden increase in speed, Lucas cursed under his breath and hurriedly raised his pipes to block the attack.

A loud boom resonated throughout the stadium.

A metallic taste of blood began filling his mouth as Lucas felt his bones creaking under the beast's overwhelming pressure. His feet sank into the dirt beneath him.

Unhesitatingly, Lucas released his grip on the pipes and lunged forward.

The goblin king's sword immediately crushed the ground he was standing on a few moments ago, breaking his pipes. However, Lucas ignored his destroyed weapons. Pulling a kitchen knife strapped on his thigh, Lucas drove it into the beast's unprotected abdomen, twisting it for added measures.

Feeling the gut-wrenching pain assailing its body, the goblin king stumbled backward, howling in agony as it reflexively released its sword and held onto its abdomen.

“Time to end this,” Lucas muttered as pulled out a pipe bomb, igniting it. In the next moment, he circled behind the beast and stuffed the lit pipe bomb into an opening in its leather armor. Then, he hastily moved back, distancing himself from the boss.

Distracted by the pain, the beast failed to realize it was being put-pocketed.

However, by the time it noticed something was off, it was too late.

The explosive detonated, turning the goblin king into a bloody firework of gore. Flesh and bone fragments of the beast erupted in every direction, leaving only its feet intact. Even its sword was launched, clattering somewhere in the distance.

Lucas raised his arms instinctively, shielding his face from the warm spray of blood and gore as the remnants of the goblin long rained down around him.

Before he could take in the bloody aftermath he caused, several blue screens began flickering rapidly in his vision, filling his sight with glowing text.

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Contribution Ranking

* Lucas Kun (51.3%)

* Chloe Helens (25.6%)

* Samantha Moon (23.1%)

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You have received:

1) Uncommon Skill Book Selection x1

2) Uncommon Equipment Selection x1

3) Ravager (Uncommon)

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Samantha and Chloe hurriedly approached but slowed down when they saw the carnage Lucas had caused. Blood and bits of greenish flesh painted the field in a grotesque pattern while a faint smell of charred remains lingered in the air.

Both stared at the scene with a mixture of surprise and awe.

“You call throwing bombs around a plan?” Samantha questioned, gesturing to the smoldering mess with a wry smile.

Unfazed, Lucas raised his hand and replied, “Hey, as long as it works.”

“Also, art is an explosion,” Chloe chimed in with a giggle as she recited the infamous line.

Bursting into laughter, Lucas exclaimed, “See? She gets it!”

Samantha sighed deeply, pinching the bridge of her nose as she glanced between the couple's foolish antics. “Both of you are idiots,” she muttered, though a faint smile hung on her lips.

But before they could continue basking in their victory and the excitement of receiving rewards, a voice cut through the air, interrupting the moment.

“Over there! It's them!”

The trio turned toward the source of the voice, their expression varied when they saw a group of people approaching them from afar.

They were their surviving classmates, the same ones who had been trapped in the lecture hall during the massacre. Most of them looked battered and weary, but each of them had a form of weapon in their hands.

Looking at the approaching groups, Chloe's face was plastered with conflict while Samantha turned solemn. As for Lucas, he was nonchalant toward the group.

Leading the group of survivors was a familiar figure. It was the man who had attempted to stop Lucas and the girls from leaving the hall.

Interestingly, the number of people in the group was half of the number of survivors there were. The man probably wasn't lucky enough to roll a Nat 20 on his charisma to convince everyone to join his group.

Besides, Lucas didn't see his housemates amongst the group. He would just assume they went their separate ways.

While Lucas was entertaining his thoughts as he scanned the man, the man was doing the same. He looked at Lucas's group before at the crater-filled stadium field.

“Did you do all these? How did you clear the quest?” the man asked suspiciously, though the fluster in his tone betrayed his nerves.

Lucas raised an eyebrow at the man but said nothing. Instead, he leaned slightly to Chloe, nudging her gently. In a hushed tone, he asked, “Who's this guy?”

Chloe blinked, taken back by the question, before quickly leaning closer to whisper back, “Laurim Foster. He's our class rep.”

“We got someone for that?” Lucas seemed surprised at the notion of having a class rep for his class. “Aren’t all of us big boys and girls, so why a class rep?”

“Seriously? That's your main focus?” Samantha eyed Lucas speechlessly as she overheard the couple whispering.

Frustrated by being ignored by the trio, Laurim raised his voice, asking, “Hey! I'm asking whether or not you did this?!”

He wanted to walk over and choke Lucas, strangling an answer out of him. But the bloody carnage surrounding them, and the obvious higher-quality weapons in the girls’ hands made him abandon that thought. Instead, he could only stare at the trio, hoping for some kind of explanation.

“Nah, the prime minister sent an airplane and bombed this place. We're just here to clean up the mess,” Lucas replied nonchalantly when Laurim pressed him again.

Taken aback by the answer, Laurim asked in a flustered tone, “Wait, is this for real?”

“Can't you see the system notifications?” Lucas stared at the man's reaction with slight disbelief.

“Y-yeah, it says the three of you contribute the most,” Laurim stated, still suspicious.

Raising an eyebrow, Lucas quipped, “So what's the point of that question? As for how we did it?” He pointed at the girls’ weapons. “See those pointy things they are holding right now? That's how.”

Ignoring the man's stunned expression, Lucas added, “If you've got nothing to say, we're leaving.” He gestured for the girls to follow him.

Snapping back to reality, Laurim hastily shouted, “Wait! Can we go with you? Or at least, can you share some supplies with us? Food? Water? Anything?”

When Laurim asked that particular question, Lucas simply chuckled. “There’s food and water in the cafeteria. And sorry, my chapter progression hasn’t reached the point where I can have a third teammates, let alone fifteen of them.”

While muttering under his breath, Lucas rolled his eyes. “Cliché,” he said, then turned around to leave.

But before the trio could walk any further, the group of students began surrounding them. Their eyes gleamed with viciousness and desperation as they clenched their makeshift weapons tightly.

“Lucas, please don't make this hard for us. Just give us something valuable that can help,” Laurim pleaded earnestly, though his body language spoke otherwise.

Looking at the knife in Laurim's hand and the surrounding students, Lucas smiled kindly and reminded, “Are you sure that's how you want to do this? Most of you are just Level 1 or 2, maybe 3 at most. But each of us is almost reaching Level 10. There's a big gap, you know.”

“Don't be afraid!” Laurim shouted to his group, his voice filled with false confidence. “There are fifteen of us, only three of them! They can't win against us!”

“Huh. What a cliche sentence,” Lucas couldn’t resist snickering at Luarim’s words.

Chloe and Samantha exchanged a glance before Chloe nervously spoke up, “Do we have to do this? I don’t feel good about it.”

Before Lucas could answer, Samantha interjected harshly, “Chloe, we’re in a world where monsters are invading us. Of course, there are going to be a couple of idiots like him. The easiest way to make them smarter is to beat them up.”

“See? She gets it,” Lucas chimed in, clearly pleased with Samantha’s reply.

“But still, they’re our classmates,” Chloe said, her gaze lingering on the starving, desperate students surrounding them.

Seeing the trio whispering amongst themselves again, Laurim's face turned bright red, and he barked, “Go! Beat them up! Whoever takes them down gets a bigger share!”

In an instant, the group charged at them, yelling in unison.

“DIE!”

“I've always hated you all!”

“Just die already!”

A female student rushed toward Lucas, her voice frantic as she yelled, “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! But please!” With desperate eyes, she raised the makeshift stick in her hands high, ready to strike.

Looking at the girl, Lucas merely shrugged and delivered a swift palm strike to her gut. The force sent her flying, her body hitting the dirt with a thud, as she vomited stomach acid in a pathetic heap.

Chloe and Samantha were quick to act as well, though Chloe hesitated slightly, her face marked with reluctance as she struck. Samantha, on the other hand, was keen to hurt their classmates, as she showed no mercy to them.

Within seconds, the students were all sprawled across the field, groaning and moaning in pain. Only Laurim remained standing, frozen in place, paralyzed by fear.