Chapter 48 - The Test [5]
WHOOOOOSH!!!
Crystal summoned a wind vortex to trap the Hobgoblin in the middle of it.
The pressurized gale burst around the monster in an instant, spinning violently to lock its movements into place and pin it to the stone floor.
The whipping currents howled like a miniature hurricane, tearing at the stone around and sending loose gravel spiraling into the air while pinning the floor boss directly in its epicenter.
SLASH!
"...!"
But the floor monster just slashed through it using its bone sword covered with dark mana. It cleanly cleaving through the swirling currents of air with sheer physical force.
The pitch-black aura flared violently, splitting the compressed gale straight down the middle and causing the miniature storm to instantly collapse into scattered gusts.
But as the wind vortex disappeared—SWISH!
Zion appeared in front of the Hobgoblin with a smile on his face. His sword was already swung downwards!
He took full advantage of the tiny split-second distraction, dropping his weight into a lethal overhead strike that whistled through the air.
-KIAAAAAA!
THUD!
-KIEK?!
The Hobgoblin blocked the attack with the shield on its left arm, but the sheer force of the attack made the monster step back. The heavy impact shook the monster’s frame, its feet scraping backward against the damp cavern floor as small cracks spread across the wooden shield.
SWOOSH!
The Hobgoblin responded fast and countered with a horizontal slash, aiming at Zion’s head.
The dark bone blade swung across in a deadly arc, seeking to capitalize on Zion’s forward momentum before he could reset his stance.
The corrupted energy trailing off the blade whistled shrilly through the air, threatening to take off his head in a single brutal counter-swing.
But before it could even complete the swing— TWACK!
A dense stream of liquid shot forward from the side like a heavy iron chain, intercepting the swing midway with absolute precision.
-KIE...?!
A water whip slammed against the Hobgoblin’s bone sword, flinging it away from its hand!
The sudden loss of its primary weapon left the floor boss completely off-balance, its open right arm flailing uselessly in the empty air.
"Thanks, Cordelia!"
Zion exclaimed.
He didn’t miss a single beat, smoothly shifting his momentum forward into a heavy follow-up movement. He pivoted on his back foot, twisting his hips to convert his momentum into a devastating point-blank strike.
THUD!
Then he kicked the Hobgoblin straight on the stomach! The monster rolled off the ground a few times before coming to stop.
The creature crashed heavily against the cavern floor, tumbling over the rough stone before coming to a hard halt near the edge of the central platform.
-KIIEE...
It groaned as it tried to get up. The monster spat out dark blood, pushing its hands against the stone in a desperate bid to recover its combat footing.
But as it was just kneeling, before it could fully stand on its two feet--
FWIIIISH—!
Cindy suddenly appeared beside it from the shadows, her weapon already swung toward the head of the Hobgoblin!
She seemed to glide out from the ambient gloom of the room, striking like a ghost before the boss could even register her presence. Her movement was entirely soundless, her body dropping low to the stone floor as she thrust her twin weapons straight toward the creature’s neck.
PHUCK!
And this time, the mini boss wasn’t able to fully avoid the attack—Cindy’s sai stabbed on its left shoulder as it moved its head to the side at the last moment to avoid its certain death!
The metal weapon bit deep into muscle and bone, tearing open a nasty wound that sprayed dark liquid onto the arena floor.
The force of the strike drove the creature down onto one knee, its bone structure crunching sickeningly under the impact.
-KIAAA...!
The Hobgoblin screamed in pain, but after that—its eyes suddenly glowed redder.
The shrill howl echoed off the cavern walls, vibrating with an unnatural, violent pitch as the ambient mana in the air began to warp around it.
A crimson haze burst outward from its chest, pulsing in rapid, unstable waves that made the surrounding stone floor shudder.
Cindy noticed this, and she immediately rushed away from the monster. The group knows this scenery... It’s the second phase of the Hobgoblin.
She pushed off the floor with a swift backward vault, putting safe distance between herself and the escalating magic pressure in an instant.
She kicked off the monster’s bleeding shoulder, landing smoothly beside Zion and Cordelia several meters back.
[The Berserk Stage]
In this phase, the Hobgoblin will have its strength and mana multiplied—and in this state; it will lose all of its reason and attack mindlessly.
Its physical muscles expanded under its skin, veins bulging dark and thick as raw, unrefined aura erupted outward from its body. The terrifying spike in raw power was accompanied by a sickening sound of shifting muscle tissue and expanding bone structure.
This was the dangerous part during this.
The boss would disregard all defensive posture, throwing its enhanced body into reckless, high-speed strikes that could shatter standard shields in one hit. Its attack patterns would become completely unreadable, turning it into a frantic whirlwind of brute physical force and corrupted aura.
"Get ready!"
Crystal ordered. The others retreated and prepared for the attack.
She pulled back her staff, channeling defensive mana around the vanguard line as everyone assumed a firm counter-stance.
Zion braced his sword with both hands, Cordelia drew back her water whip to its maximum length, and Cindy lowered her stance to guard her vital areas.
And after this—
The ambient temperature in the room flickered as the monster pushed its physical limits past its normal ceiling. The oppressive pressure filling the boss room grew exponentially heavier with every passing second, making the very air feel thick and difficult to breathe.
-KIAAAAAAA!!!
The Hobgoblin let out a scream.
The deafening roar echoed through the massive chamber, carrying enough raw kinetic pressure to make the stone dust drop from the ceiling stalactites.
"..."
Crystal, Cordelia, Cindy, and Zion... The four of them backed away, slightly nervous.
They braced their boots against the stone, holding their weapons tightly as they watched the violent red mana expand around the raging monster.
Even with all their prior preparation and high-tier academy training, facing a fully enraged, phase-two floor boss head-on was a daunting pressure.
Though, at that moment, when the Hobgoblin was in the middle of going berserk...
SWAAAAAAASH!!!
A sudden wave of absolute zero temperature swept across the center of the room without warning. The air moisture in the entire arena froze instantly into fine glittering mist as a blinding flash of silver-blue mana erupted right beneath the monster.
Then ice suddenly erupted from the Hobgoblin’s body! It froze the monster from its feet all the way to its shoulders!
Thick, jagged pillars of blue frost surged upward in a flash, instantly locking the raging muscle and violent mana inside a solid, crystalline tomb. The raging red aura expanding from its skin was instantly snuffed out, trapped helplessly beneath several inches of dense, unyielding glacial ice.
"?!!"
-?!!
Everyone was surprised, even the Hobgoblin itself. It tried to break free from the ice, but it was just too hard to break.
Zion, Cindy, Cordelia, and Crystal all stopped in their tracks, staring in complete disbelief at the massive block of ice that had sealed the boss mid-transformation.
Their eyes went wide as they watched the floor boss get rendered completely immobile in less than a second.
The monster thrashed its head wildly, its red eyes bulging as it tried to force its mana outward to shatter the frozen shell, but the ice remained completely unmoved.
Its jaw snapped futilely against the cold enclosure, unable to produce even a single fracture in the dark blue frost binding its limbs.
And as it was trying to do that—
Tap-
Vael stepped out from the shadows behind the frozen platform, holding the slender rapier form of [Frost] with complete composure.
His boots clicked softly against the stone, the thin needle-blade of his weapon emitting a soft, lazy trail of cold vapor into the air.
"Well, I guess this was easier than I thought."
Vael, who had been watching the whole fight and waiting for an opportunity to land the last hit, appeared behind the restricted Hobgoblin.
He strolled up to the trapped floor boss with relaxed steps, taking his time to position [Frost] right at the vulnerable gap in its neck armor.
He looked down at the struggling Hobgoblin, Vael’s expression completely relaxed as he lined up the tip of his blade with surgical precision.
And without hesitation—
STAB!
He drove through the rapier straight behind the Hobgoblin’s name. It was a clean attack, and the sharp tip of [Frost] came out the other side of the monster’s neck.
The thin, frozen needle-blade entered effortlessly through the base of the skull, piercing through bone and muscle before extending out from its throat.
The intense cold radiating off [Frost] instantly froze its internal brain tissue upon contact, preventing any final death struggles or lingering mana discharges.
The bright red light in the Hobgoblin’s eyes instantly went dark, its thrashing body going completely limp inside the solid block of ice.
CRACK-
The thick glacial structure holding its body began to crack softly, turning into fine blue particles that slowly dissolved into the surrounding ambient air.
And just like that... The mini boss was killed.