Ding

Nathan’s eyelids fluttered open.

Boss - Hobgoblin Champion has been reset!

“I guess I overslept. Good thing Hobgoblins don’t go near the path.” Nathan mumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Gazing around, he noticed two other groups had formed a line behind him. In the Tower, days lasted longer, leaving the star above still glaringly bright. Nathan stood up swiftly, stretched his limbs, and made his way towards the Hobgoblin village. From what Nathan could recall, there were only around five regular Hobgoblins around the village, and then the Hobgoblin champion, who was surprisingly difficult to kill.

“I guess this would be a good place to try out the Berserkers Rage skill. I should at least know how it feels before I use it on the higher floors.” The mud houses of the village were fairly large, and in decent condition, only a few having large holes in them. This provided Nathan with plenty of shadows to enter. But he wouldn't be using that skill for the regular Hobgoblins.

“This won’t take long,” Nathan said, forming a shadow sword in his hand. Immediately, he sprinted toward the closest mud house and jumped on top of it, darting from rooftop to rooftop, searching for the Hobgoblins.

“Found them,” Nathan spotted the Hobgoblins in a group surrounding the entrance of the largest mud house of the village. Resembling a village chief's house, it was much more intricately made, much larger, and well-preserved than the others. Without hesitation, Nathan formed multiple shadow knives in his hand and threw them at the Hobgoblins. Due to the distance, only three struck their targets. One Hobgoblin was hit in its right arm and stomach, while another was hit in its right leg, “I need to work on my aim.” Nathan clicked his tongue but charged ahead. Reaching a rooftop directly above the Hobgoblins, he leaped down using Double Jump to close in on the most wounded one, slicing its head off before it could react.

The remaining Hobgoblins quickly entered a combative stance, readying themselves for battle. The Hobgoblin with a shadow knife still in its leg charged at Nathan, preparing an overhead strike. Nathan quickly parried the strike and stabbed the Hobgoblin in its chest. The other two hobgoblins, without hesitation charged at Nathan from both sides. Nathan rushed at the Hobgoblin coming from his right, gripping his shadow sword with both hands and with all of his strength, he swung with a downward slash.

The hobgoblin attempted to block with its old and rusty sword, but Nathan slashed through that sword and cleaved the Hobgoblin in two. Nathan’s eyes widened in surprise at his strength. However, he quickly reminded himself of his current stats, which were much higher than required for the second floor. Trying to return his concentration to the battle, Nathan turned his head and saw the Hobgoblin still charging at Nathan. Swiftly, Nathan blocked its stab and sliced its head off.

“I can’t get cocky, the higher floors won’t be this easy” Nathan took a deep breath, his recent thoughts reminding him that the third floor is next. Trying to clear his head, Nathan walked to the entrance of the mud house. The inside was dark, but some details could still be made out. Without wasting any time, Nathan walked inside, examining the darkness, trying to find the Hobgoblin champion. To Nathan's surprise, he could see fairly well in the dark room, but the Hobgoblin Champion was nowhere to be found, not even in its usual spot, the wooden throne at the end of the mud house. Assuming a combative stance, Nathan's eyes swept across the room, alert for any hint of movement.

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Yet, the mud house still seemed empty. Then it struck him.

“Above me,” He realized, his eyes shooting upward to the wooden supports just below the arched ceiling. Before Nathan had time to analyze the situation, the Hobgoblin Champion, a slightly more muscular hobgoblin clad in leather armor and a black robe, jumped down from the ceiling and swung its massive greatsword downwards at Nathan's head. Instinctively, Nathan raised his guard, his arms straining under the colossal weight of the descending blade. Using all his strength, Nathan pushed back, creating momentary distance between him and the Hobgoblin Champion. Seizing the opportunity, he lunged forward, his blade slashing through the air in a counterattack. But, the Champion skillfully evaded Nathan’s slash, whirling around, and in a blur of motion it struck Nathan squarely in the stomach with a devastating kick. The force was titanic, sending him crashing through multiple mud walls, his body tumbling across the ground in a maelstrom of dust and debris.

“I guess I underestimated it, but this is the perfect time to test out Berserker’s Rage.” With a simple thought, Nathan activated the skill. An overwhelming anger and urge to kill flooded his body, as his eyes began to glow a crimson red, and his veins began to bulge and throb with power. He unleashed a primal roar and began searching for the closest thing to kill. Nathan’s enraged eyes were set on the Hobgoblin Champion who was dashing through the wrecked mud houses with surprising speed.

Without a shred of hesitation, Nathan met the charge head-on. Their weapons clashed, each blow wringing out like a bell, and sending powerful gusts of wind in every direction. The Champion was relentless and incredibly skilled, its sword a storm of arcs and thrusts, but Nathan, empowered by Berserker's Rage, parried its attacks and took any he didn’t parry head-on. The Champion, formidable as it was, found itself being pushed back by the sheer ferocity of Nathan's assault. Its greatsword whistled through the air, seeking to wound Nathan, but he absorbed each blow, the pain only fueling his rage, healing almost as quickly as he was wounded. Dust and debris began swirling around them like a whirlwind as they continued their brutal battle, exchanging tens of blows. Quickly, Nathan began to drive the Champion back with his thunderous attacks.

The anger within Nathan began to grow, and with a roar, he dashed forward. The Champion, caught off-guard by the sudden ferocity, raised its greatsword in a last, desperate defense.

But it was too late.

With a thunderous impact, Nathan's blade struck. The Hobgoblin Champion staggered, creating an opening for Nathan. At that moment, Nathan summoned every ounce of his strength, every shred of his rage, and delivered the final, decisive blow.

The Champion fell to the ground with a thud, blood overflowing from the wound in its chest. Nathan stood amidst the chaos, his chest heaving, as his eyes returned to their normal color, and his veins shrank,

“What the fuck was that,” Nathan collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, his back hitting the dirt ground, “That bastard was not that strong before,” Nathan mumbled, gasping for air. Almost to answer his questions, a blue screen appeared in front of his eyes.

“Congratulations on killing the enhanced Hobgoblin Champion. Due to your incredible achievement on the first floor, the five floors after it, will all have a significantly stronger version of the boss, as long as you continue to fight alone. This will occur anytime you gain an achievement.”

“Acheivement: You are the first human to clear the second floor of the tower alone!”

“XP and loot quality greatly increased!”

“As a bonus for killing the enhanced version of the Hobgoblin Champion, your exhaustion will be reduced!”

“Skill: Slash has reached level 4”

“Skill: Dash has reached level 5”

“You couldn’t have told me that sooner?” A blue wave of energy enveloped Nathan and his exhaustion disappeared, “I better get some incredible loot.”