Narrowing his eyes and examining the Goblin in the center of the last line, Brance noticed its wooden staff was slightly different than the two standing on either side of it.
“Kwar,” The Healer grumbled in a guttural tone that resembled a language but didn’t register with Brance’s skill.
However, even if [Language Proficiency] couldn’t understand it, the other nine goblins could, as they closed ranks and advanced slowly, with the creatures at the front raising their spears and shaking them in an attempt to intimidate Brance.
[Interesting, they can communicate with each other, but it doesn’t seem to be an actual language.] Brance thought aloud in the mind link, half to get a theory from his brother and half to get the thought out there.
[Yeah, I picked up on that myself. These Nagas can give basic orders to each other, but that’s it. They lack the ability to use intelligent communication, yet what they can do is just enough to get the point across. I guess it would be easier to deal with goblin grunts than these annoying hisses I’m dealing with right now. The fucking sound triggers some kind of hidden Ptsd I have from that bastard Osarseph.] Cynrik stated as he jumped up, kicked a naga in the head, and used the attack to propel himself out of the way of another attack from a different enemy.
[Not to mention, these damn snakes are tanky enough that my STR stat doesn’t deal much damage when I kick or punch them, leaving me only to use Affinity skills. The only problem is I’m starting to run low on MP.] Flipping through the air, Cynrik slid on the ground, rolled, and bounced back to his feet.
[Hey, moron, didn’t you get some weapons during your climb. Pretty sure it was you who made a point to comment on the others using them, yet here you are going against your own advice.] Rolling his eyes, Brance pointed the tip of his Greatsword at the head of the Healer goblin and fired off a [Stone Spike] to test the defensive abilities of his enemy.
He was by no means underestimating them but was curious about how they would react.
As expected, before the spike could get within a few meters of its target, both Mages acted, raising up Mana Barriers while the warriors took turns striking at it with their weapons. Soon enough, by the time it impacted the quadruple layered Barrier, it was so far off course that the goblins didn’t even need to stop it anymore.
[EHHH, cmon Brancie, it defeats the whole purpose of working on my Affinity if I fall back on using those crappy shortswords I received. Did you not read all the notifications I sent you? My Fire is at Expert now, so I need to work on perfecting it so I can make lightning. THINK OF IT, BRANCIE, ZAPPYS FROM EVERY ANGLE!] Getting riled up by the thought of how close he was to finally, after all these years, close to harnessing lightning, Cynrik practically vibrated as he weaved in and out of the ten hulking Nagas, peppering them with small condensed and superheated [FireBalls].
[Are you fucking five years old? Why the hell are you acting so childish? Get over yourself and fight for real. Since when do you not utilize all the tools in your arsenal and slack off during battle?] Brance scoffed and inhaled slowly while plotting out his next course of action.
Seeing how quickly the goblins mounted their defense virtually wiped away any thoughts he had formulated about rushing forward and hacking his way through the goblin lines, making him re-evaluate his approach.
[OI, Fuck off! I’m not childish; YOU ARE!] Lashing out in rage, Cynrik equipt both of the poorly crafted weapons he received during his climb, a Tier-1 Bronze shortsword and a Bronze Dagger. Next, he lunged at the nearest Naga with a snarl and went on the offensive. With his dagger in his right hand and the sword in his left, he turned into an afterimage as he shot forward.
Jumping up and hacking off the head of the first creature, he used its headless body as a stepping stone and surged forward, shoulder ramming a second in the back before riding it to the ground and taking his frustrations out on its spine with his weapons.
|You have successfully Killed 2 Level 18, Tier-1 Virtual Toxiaga.|
|You have received 10 Obelisk Kill Points.|
|You have received 2 1000 Essence, XP Crystals.|
|You have received 6 Merit Points.|
Spinning both blades expertly, Cynrik kicked off the ground and started hacking down the Nagas until the last one fell, and he stood alone in the empty stone room, panting heavily.
Sheathing both weapons, Cynrik double-checked his surroundings to ensure there weren’t any random drops and took a moment to catch his breath. He had lost control for a second there and needed time to collect himself and allow his resource stats to replenish to an extent.
While Cynrik stalled out and took a break on the Cleared Nineteenth Floor, Brance was in the middle of a stalemate.
Whenever he took a step forward, the goblins went backward. If he cycled left, they went right. As annoying as it seemed, he could roughly judge their timing and movement speed just off these few little interactions.
Rolling his Greatsword around his right wrist, Brance propped it against his shoulder and suddenly launched forward. He charged directly through the front line of goblins with spears, knocked away their weapons with his shield, and began hacking through all of the goblin swordsmen. Once he beheaded the last of them, Brance jumped up and exited the group of enemies without allowing them to counter-attack.
Due to the fact that he was a little too slow, on the way out, he had to weave his way in and out of a hail of fire blasts raining down from above.
|You have successfully Killed 4 Level 18, Tier-1 Virtual Goblins.|
|You have received 20 Obelisk Kill Points.|
|You have received 4 1000 Essence, XP Crystals.|
|You have received 12 Merit Points.|
Narrowing his eyes as he ran, Brance slashed at the air with his Greatsword, manifesting over a dozen [Surging Earth Spikes], launching them all at the fast-moving fireballs. Each spike flew almost too fast to see and pierced through several balls, extinguishing them. After colliding with the ceiling, they continued on; instead of piercing through or shattering, they reflected off the stone, which acted as if it were rubber, and were deflected down toward the cluster of goblins.
Although it was unexpected and a pleasant surprise for Brance, it still threw the next step in his plan off course. Initially, he expected the spikes to embed themselves into the ceiling like stalactites. He would then head up into the air and, using the hanging spikes, move around above the goblins and attack from up high, versus going back into the huddle. At that distance, so long as he kept on the move and used his manifestations as cover, Brance would be able to mitigate the effectiveness of the Mage’s spells. However, that all changed in an instant.
Unfortunately, the goblin Healer was quick on his feet. Taking up the role of commander, it issued several barking orders, one of which was for the Mages to swiftly layer four Mana barriers each overhead, for a total of eight. When the spikes came down, they quickly shattered the first couple, but by the time they reached the fifth one, they had lost their momentum and slid off the dome-like constructs and crashed into the ground before shattering.
Waving its staff in the air, the Healer chanted in a strange language manifesting a greenish light which descended on the three goblin spearmen, who suddenly began bulking up, with their skin turning a dark pumpkin color.
[Uhhhh, hey Cyn…what do goblins evolve into?] Racing to the opposite end of the arena-sized room, Brance nervously asked his brother the question as he stared incredulously at the three beefed-up goblins who now towered over him in size and mass.
[Huh? Brancie ima need a little more info than that. Color, size, shape, weapons, facial structures, give me something, little brother.] Cocking his left eyebrow, Cynrik walked across the room and sat down against the wall with his left knee raised and his right leg extended.
[So, remember that Healer Goblin I told you about earlier?]
[Yeah, you said you could tell what kind of class it had; I’m assuming it has a staff or something that makes it stick out when compared to the Mages.]
[Yep, unlike the Mages who have a rock or some kind of tiny mineral atop their staff, this one just uses a plain old wooden one that has a curled head; well, it kind of just did a thing, and I’m not so sure it’s a Healer anymore.]
[Spit it out Brancie; I don’t have all day here; what do you mean it’s not a Healer….WAIT A MINUTE FUCK! BRANCE, KILL THAT THING NOW; THAT ISNT A HEALER; IT’S A TRANSMOGRIFIER!] Going wide-eyed as he put two and two together, Cynrik shouted into the mind link, startling Brance but forcing him into action.
[Quickly explain this Transawhodi Thing.] He said as he bolted around the room just in time to dodge a powerful gust of wind. One of the Changed goblins had suddenly teleported right next to where he was standing and swung its large arm like a baseball bat generating a powerful gust of wind that would have blasted Brance away.
[Transmogrifier, a support class that one can unlock if they have a pure INT build. Their primary focus is on temporarily increasing the inactive bloodlines a being carries, modifying it, and transforming that being into whatever the race that lies dormant in their genes is. Tell me, did it change the goblins into giant orange hulkish creatures that look like they could compete in the world’s strongest man competition?] Tapping his index finger against his chin as he ran through the possible race Brance was fighting, he came up with the most likely.
[Yeah, big, orange, lots of muscles, and absurdly fast, like way too fast to be at Tier-1. The way they move reminds me of that Tier-3 I fought.] Dodging another attack as he tried closing in on the Commanding Goblin, Brance responded to Cynrik’s question.
[Those are Hobgoblins, and what you are facing is definitely only at Tier-1, if it were Tier-2 or higher, they would have strangely discolored patterns all over their bodies. Regardless, you’re in some deep shit this time. You only have two options right now. If you still are aiming for a perfect clear, you either have to keep on the move until they return to their original form or kill that Transmogrifier as soon as possible.]
[Great, I fucked up big time. How long will these transformations last?]
[No clue, but it shouldn’t be longer than a couple of minutes. Goblins are innately weak; to begin with, their numbers are the problem, not their strength. And since that guy is only Tier-1, I don’t see him being able to sustain transforming another being for too long before his resource stats bottom out.]
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