Between a Hard Place

After all four goblin mages were eliminated, the Goblin King grew enraged and knocked aside his opponent to kill this second enemy. He had smashed the ground and sent a [Kinetic Quake] attack.

Seeing how Leo didn't die, just as he prepared to wave his club a second time, Alex had jumped back to intervene. Once again, the warrior was preoccupying the Goblin King's attention.

Sword and club clashed into each other, and both individuals were sent backwards from the exchange.

"Bastard..." the Goblin King growled after steadying his feet, "I'll make sure to have your companions suffer after they've been captured.

'I'll have your corpse defiled and mangled by my subordinates for pleasure, and make the women watch."

"Pui," Alex spat out some blood and spit, "You know, talking during combat is a sign of weakness."

"Heh. Only a primitive barbarian would lack the capacity to do two things at once!" the Goblin King retorted while brandishing his weapon again.

His swings started getting more erratic and fierce. Soon enough, a violent storm of attacks battered onto Alex.

Each hit left a mark on him, but Alex suddenly found that all his minor injuries were quickly healed. A white light was actually glowing around his body.

On the other side of the cavern, amidst a mob of goblins, Sarah had found an opportunity to cast an [Instant Recovery] spell on Alex.

While Judy was mainly taking care of the ordinary goblins, sending out several spells which covered a wide area, Sarah also had to support her so as to prevent both of them from being overtaken. Their enemies came from all directions, which busied Sarah from tending to her other companions. Now, however, the situation around Judy was stabilizing, finally giving her the chance to provide support for Alex.

"Push them back to the entrance!" the Goblin King ordered his kin after seeing his enemy recovering from his wounds. He did not underestimate his foes, and hoped to keep them from supporting each other as much as possible.

After the command was sent, the goblins began to move as a complete organism. They no longer chose to surround the two other adventurers, and instead gradually convened together in the middle of the cavern to separate them from their teammates.

In just a few moments, the two women found that they were facing all the goblins from their front. Behind them, was the entrance they came in from. Although this relieved some of their pressure, they could no longer get an inch closer to their allies.

"Hah!" the Goblin King cackled, "After I'm finished with you, your companions won't have any chance of escape.

"All the traps that were shut off will be reactivated again and I'll hunt them down throughout the entire ruin!"

'So he was the one...' thinking for a moment, Alex suddenly became confused, 'Did he shut off the magic formation at the front because he wanted us to come to this cave sooner? But if he was simply impatient, then why didn't he do it earlier?'

As the attacks of the Goblin King grew more intense, so did the pressure that Alex was experiencing. He forcefully strained his muscles to the limit in an attempt to keep up with the numerous exchanges.

'Ergh! It's getting... more difficult... But this might be my chance!'

As a warrior who has honed his skills through combat, how could he not see an opportunity that is about to present itself? Fighting aggressively can make your attacks wider than they have to, leading to openings that can be taken advantage of.

It appears that, although the Goblin King was much better physically, the giant creature still seems to lack the proper knowledge in facing foes who are on equal footing.

'But can I keep going?'

Without any more support, Alex was forced to receive new beatings even as he raised his shield to protect himself.

----------

Nearby, Leo was struggling to get his chest off the ground. In a short span of time, he had withstood two [Advanced Fireball]s and nearly got crushed by a [Kinetic Quake] from the Goblin King. Right now, his whole body was feeling extremely sore. It was even more unfortunate that he had previously been too far away from Sarah to receive any prior healing.

Feeling sluggish and dizzy, Leo suddenly recalled his healing potion. But he still didn't feel the need to use it just yet.

'Just... work through it.' He told himself while clenching his teeth.

Having undergone years of training by Gerald, this wasn't actually the first time Leo's muscles felt this sore. As a teacher, Gerald believed that, regardless if one was a warrior or a mage, everyone should maintain a certain level of fitness in their bodies. In combat, you must always try to be prepared to get physical.

Dragging his arms with his shoulders and elbows, Leo was able to place his palms flat on the ground before pushing himself up. Groaning and panting, his hearing slowly began to return to him. The sounds of fighting between Alex and the Goblin King spurned Leo to try harder.

Finally, after a moment of rest, Leo stood up with a huff and grabbed the short sword lying beside him.

Taking deep breaths, Leo used [Wind Boost] to move his body closer to his allies. After a moment of hesitation, he decided to support Alex first.

----------

The Goblin King was currently yelling furiously at his opponent while channeling his rage into his weapon.

Suddenly, both his legs and arms were encased in blocks of ice that reached up to their highest joint.

From five meters away, Leo used the Low level [Freeze] spell to hinder the goblin's movements.

Now that another ally had arrived, Alex finally got an opportunity to make a comeback. His warrior's aura surrounded his body and equipment, causing the air to shake slightly.

[Bravery Charge]!

[Glinting Stab]!

Alex's body rushed forwards as he built up his momentum. His sword was thrusted towards the Goblin King's chest in a flash of light. It was aimed for the monster's heart.

A moment before Alex activated his skill, the Goblin King broke through the ice with his limbs and twisted his torso to the side in an attempt to protect his vital organs. Although it prevented the human's sword from piercing his heart, it did manage to puncture one of the lungs.

A steel plate had been covering part of the chest area, but it was as useless as paper in front of Alex's newly enchanted weapon. Thanks to [Blitz Edge], the wounds it inflicts can now only be treated with Advanced level magic.

Blood spurted out of the Goblin King's mouth. He started choking as he felt his breathing becoming shallower.

"Aarrgghhhh!"

With a fierce roar, the eight-foot tall goblin's body released a powerful aura. It surged like a wave before slamming Alex and his weapon away from him. Soon, it spread to most of the cavern.

The mob of goblins felt an inexplicable sense of fear along with the humans.

This was [Warrior's Tenacity], a talent that could only be achieved by warriors who had managed to reach the Advanced level. In addition to intimidating those around them and knocking aside objects in their surroundings, it can also decrease the sense of pain and fear for the user. Although not very powerful once it's first learnt, this talent's abilities can constantly keep increasing in proportion to the growth of the warrior.

Alex himself had also achieved this ability.

The team of adventurers felt a sense of pressure bearing down on them, but the aura didn't affect them for long. This talent works best against individuals far weaker than the user. Being much higher level than a regular goblin, they all recovered fast.

Being one of the farthest away, Judy was the first to regain her senses.

[Inferno Pit]!

Seizing the chance to eliminate more goblins, Judy summoned a small pit of lava underneath part of their group. Before the unfortunate creatures even had time to scream, she unleashed yet another spell.

[Acidic Barrage]!

From her wand, Judy shot out a swarm of pellets made of purple acid. Each one hit their mark and was able to burn through the goblins' armors along with the rest of their bodies.

With more goblins killed, Sarah was also able to advance far enough ahead to provide healing to Alex and Leo.

[Mass Heal]

In a few seconds, both of the men found their injuries disappearing. Though they were still tired, at least their bodies no longer had to endure further pain.

The Goblin King wobbled on his feet as he stepped backwards to distance himself from the group. He seemed to be attempting to make a retreat.

Neither Leo nor Alex were going to give him the chance. They now each attacked with renewed intent to kill.

Without one of his lungs, the Goblin King's movements got more and more sluggish. Although he wasn't coughing any blood from his mouth anymore, anyone could see that his ferocity had severely decreased.

"Raarrrgghh." the Goblin King growled in fury as he wildly swung his spiked club again. It appeared that he was preparing his final stand.

The two adventurers responded in kind.

[Instant Slash]!

[Flame Arrows]!

As Alex left an enormous gash across the monster's chest, Leo shot several projectiles of fire towards different parts of the creature's body that were unprotected by armor.

The Goblin King continued to retreat to the back of the cavern as it was being constantly wounded. Several times, he tried to avoid the merciless attacks from the warrior and mage.

"Let's finish this quickly!" Alex shouted, charging forward to keep the pressure going. He did not want to give the goblin any chances.

'Something's a little off...' Looking at the Goblin King who appeared to be struggling, a sense of danger appeared in Leo's mind.

'He should realize he's in trouble, so why doesn't he call for help?'

The Goblin King had previously shown that it had very strong command over its kin. At the moment near death, why isn't it giving any new orders?

The thought of a trap suddenly formed in Leo's mind, and he immediately called for Alex.

"STOP! Move back!"

Based on the fact that the Goblin King was retreating deeper into the cavern, there could very well be a magic formation or some other type of trap that hadn't been revealed yet in the ruin.

As soon as Leo's words came out, Alex didn't hesitate to trust his teammate and halted his momentum. Unfortunately, he didn't have time to run back far enough before something unexpected occurred.

The Goblin King had both hands grasping the handle of his enormous club. He initially appeared to have been tightening his grip, however there was actually a concealed compartment within the handle of the club. It contained a magic item that was taken from a fallen mage who they had previously ambushed. This mage was a member of the first group of humans who had explored this strange ruin. They were the ones who'd been officially sent to investigate by the same minister that recently issued this quest.

The magic item was only the size of a small potion bottle. But once activated, it had a nasty effect on living beings in the surrounding area. The real reason why the Goblin King moved backwards was to prevent his fellow subordinates from being caught up in the spell.

After opening the compartment hidden near the bottom of the handle, the Goblin King immediately threw out the magic item onto the cavern's floor.

A strange phenomenon started to occur in the cavern, with the light darkening and the air becoming slightly murky. Alex, who had been retreating backwards, suddenly found his legs and arms becoming very sluggish; it felt as if he was moving through a thick ocean of tar.

Leo quickly tried to help his teammate, but as he attempted to take a step, he also found himself inside the area of the magic item.

Only the Goblin King was unaffected. Even more surprisingly, the Goblin King seemed to be getting physically healthier.

A white glow was surrounding his body, slowly recovering the first injuries caused by Alex's sword. Since the sword had been previously enchanted with [Blitz Edge], whatever was currently healing the goblin must have been of the Advanced level. It was most likely another magic item.

Taking a leisure glance towards Alex's desperate attempt at running back, the Goblin King laughed at his opponent's sign of helplessness.

Suddenly, sharp wind blades came into his direction which were soon immediately blocked by several swings of his club. They had been sent by Leo who was trying to make his way to protect Alex. Although the effect of the magic item had slowed down his body's movements, the speed of his spells were thankfully not hindered.

"Annoying bug." After saying that, the Goblin King sent another [Kinetic Quake] towards where Leo was standing.

This time, Leo was prepared and used [Wind Boost] to dodge far to the side while simultaneously moving closer towards Alex.

Not wanting to waste a single moment longer, the Goblin King decided to end the human warrior first. Raising his club, he activated his own [Bravery Charge].

But the Goblin King did not rush forward at his full speed. He was deliberately taking his time to build up enough momentum to strike at the opponent with his full force.

Leo cast a few more spells to attack and hinder him, but it was no use. The goblin either weaved around to dodge or used its club to smash aside anything Leo threw at him. This also conveniently allowed him to build up even more momentum.

Frustrated at the situation, Leo could only instinctively keep moving forward under the effect of the magic item. Alex also did not remain idle.

[Wind Boost]!

[Swift Slide]!

One person was trying to get closer while the other was trying to get away. But unfortunately, the effect of the magic item seemed to specifically lean towards targeting a warrior's skills over the spells of a mage.

Out of options, and knowing that he could not completely protect his ally, Leo started unwrapping the pouch around his waist.

The Goblin King only smirked at the sight of this futility as he finally arrived in front of Alex. He could still keep moving, but [Bravery Charge] had a limit over the amount of momentum that could be built.

Even if there were some protections placed next to his opponent, the Goblin King was confident that this would be the finishing blow.

As he thought of this, a half-formed [Mage Shield] suddenly appeared in his way as it pressed close towards the Goblin King's face.

It made no difference. The creature ignored it and simply angled his club to hit from the side.

[Crushing Mountain]!

In that split moment, Alex attempted to move his own shield in the direction of the incoming attack. A pouch also suddenly flew over with the buff from the [Wind Boost] spell. It was Leo, who had desperately tried his last resort.

After a moment of silent horror, crackling sounds stretched to everyone's ears in the cave. The spiked club had smashed into Alex's body and sent the warrior to the left wall of the cavern.

He crashed into it at a speed faster than the naked eye could follow. Although his armor and shield had been able to position themselves in the way of the attack, they were all shattered apart as soon as they made contact. Only his sword was not broken, as it was flung a few meters away in front of the left wall where Alex's broken body was pressed into.

As for the pouch, it had been squeezed into Alex's chest by the force of the attack.

A second later, the effect of the Goblin King's magic item finally wore off.