Shattered Hope

As Leo stood facing off against the Goblin Weapon Master, he heard Mors lightly say

 'Oh is Snakey dead? I kinda liked that lil guy' 

as if Horos' life meant absolutely nothing to him. 

'Don't scare Leo you bastard! He is still alive, barely. But we can't hold out hope that he can recover and help us!'

 Luna chastised Mors while she provided Leo with a bit of comfort that Horo was still alive, even if it was just him clinging to life. 

Leo let out a short sigh of relief as the boss glared at him. All he had to do was hold out long enough for Luna and Lily to make it back. 

He appraised the BOSS monster which unlike other goblins was dressed in short leather armour. There were a variety of weapons strapped to its back like swords, axes and a hammer. It was missing a spear but it had probably thrown its only one 

Goblin Weapon Master Gaponex [BOSS]

Level: 10

Class: Weapon Master

Health: 1250/1250

Mana: 200/200

Attack: 350

Defence: 150

Dodge: 20

Resistance: Poison Resistance (10%)

Note: The undisputed leader of the Goblin Horde, it has attained a basic mastery in every form of basic weaponry it has managed to get its hands on as well as a basic grasp of magic. It is on the cusp of evolving into a higher species. As you have defeated its army, it has decided to now face you head on to establish its dominance over its future kin. 

'Careful Boss. Its coming~'

 Mors warning came moments before the BOSS launched itself forward, swinging its massive sword with one hand. Unable to escape in time, Leo could only brace himself by raising his arms and engaging in the use of his shield. 

Despite that, the difference in strength and size made Leo slide back, his feet digging into the ground as he tried to stop himself. 

[-10] 

Leo was only able to stop when his back slammed into a tree. He grit his teeth to smother the groan of pain that threatened to leak out. 

 However he didn't have time to relax as the massive sword was coming for him again in a horizontal swing. Leo quickly ducked, successfully dodging the sword as it left a deep gouge in the tree in the place where Leos neck had been a mere moment before. 

From his kneeling position, Leo launched himself between the massive goblins legs, using the bladed edges to slice at its inner thigh.

[-27]

[-24]

The goblin let out a grunt of pain as the blades knicked its flesh but it instead calmly dropped its greatsword, abandoning the large but slow and heavy weapon, instead choosing to pull out 2 small swords to use against its small but agile opponent. 

"GRAHH!" 

A brutal battlecry shook the air as its swung its dual blades in a haphazard manner. While it lacked any form of technique, the vicious attacks forced Leo to backpedal, dodging and deflecting each and every potentially lethal blow. 

'Oh boss. You in trouble now~ Mors giggled with little to no concern as the monster stopped attacking for a moment to take a deep breath. 

'[DODGE!'

Astra scream caused Leo to take more distance than he originally planned, giving up on blocking and following up with a counter attack of his own. 

Not even a second later, the ground where Leo had stood shattered, a massive warhammer had come crashing down. If he had tried to block it, he would have been crushed!

The goblin looked disappointed that its surprise attack had missed. While it did carry around multiple weapons, the Goblin WeaponMaster was capable of using some simple magic and had used some of its mana to hold its swords in place while he quickly grabbed his hammer and slammed it down. 

"Fight like Warrior Tiny Furball!" 

The Goblin snarl almost caused Leo to stumble when he understood what he said. Instinctually, he shot back an angry retort

. "Who are you calling a Furball ya Bastard!" 

The goblin stopped for a moment, equally stunned for a second

 "You. You speak our language?". 

Leo frowned. He heard the Goblin loud and clear but didnt know why it assumed that he was speaking its language. 

'Oh about that. Since I ate that gobbie earlier. You can understand them now'

Leo was aghast as he realized that he had learned a monsters language because Mors had eaten it. What if he ate a chicken and could understand them going forward?!

'While that may be amusing. It doesn't happen all that often. Gobbie brains are just so simple it was easy~'

 Mors snickered in amusement at Leos distracted thoughts 

'But do you really have the leeway to be distracted like this?'

The goblin had quickly gotten over its surprise and renewed its assault on Leo. Each blow that he wasn't able to dodge or deflect caused shockwaves to reverberate throughout Leos body, leaving his arms aching and sore as if they would break if this continued. 

Taking a risk, Leo leaned to the side,barely dodging a downwards swing of a blade. He then swung his own arm, the bladed edge of the shield gauntlet slicing into the Bosses eye and partially blinding it. 

[-372!]

[Critical Strike!]

"Leo! We're here!"

 Lunas loud voice rang out from behind him. Without thinking he turned and called back in relief 

"Sis! Thank God you're he.."

'You shouldn't have looked away!' 

Mors morbid tone was alarming but it was too late to turn back as Leo felt a massive hand grab his head. 

Luna and Lily saw Leo from a distance fighting against a Giant goblin, the fight made Lunas hair stand on end in anxiety as she saw her brother barely dodge to land a devastating counter attack.

Unable to hold herself back, Luna called out to her brother, wanting to let him know that he wasn't alone any more and that he now had help. However when Leo looked back at them with relief on his face, her own expression became one of horror as the massive brute grabbed Leos head. 

Before she could even scream, Leos feet left the ground as he was hurled away like he was some sort of ragdoll. The brutal crack of his body breaking as it slammed into a tree was like a gunshot in her ears

[-125!]

[Paralyzed!]

[Maimed!]

"NOOOOOOOOOO"

Luna let out a heart wrenching scream when she saw her brothers limp motionless body. She felt despair sink in as she felt the hope that had blossomed in her heart slip through her fingers. She had come so close to getting her brother back only to lose him now. 

Lilys eyes were glued to Leos body as she could only stand there in horror. She saw that his neck was bent at a horribly twisted angle, a sign that it was horribly broken. The only sign that he wasnt dead was the single digit of his HP but with his current condition, even that wouldn't hold out for long. 

Lily could feel her heart sinking as the worst case scenario came to her mind:

' Would they fail here after coming all this way?'