Chapter 4
Following the path straight ahead, the uphill slope changed back into flat ground.
There was something ahead.
Various types of weapons laid out on an elongated rock.
I approached and examined them.
Sword, spear, axe, mace, shield, bow, crossbow, whip... It had everything, just like a weapon shop.
Is it telling me to pick whatever I want?
“Why is it suddenly being so kind?”
I stared at the Passage continuing forward.
It gave me a single sword and made me roll around like that, but now it's suddenly giving away weapons?
I was actually more anxious about what it was trying to do.
For now, I picked out my weapons.
Isn't the sword and shield combination the best after all?
There was no reason to choose weapons I couldn't even handle properly.
I threw away the sword and spear I had brought with me and held a new sword and shield in both hands.
Tense with nerves, I moved forward again.
The Passage gradually widened.
At the end of it was a giant cavern, just like the first location.
However, the minerals embedded in the wall light-emitting had changed from white to red, filling the area with an ominous energy.
It was like a boss room in a game.
Something was standing blankly in the middle of the common area.
I used Time Stop and examined the guy.
As soon as I saw it, all I could do was sigh.
Fuck, what is that now...
A Knight armed with armor all over its body, holding a large mace in its hand.
After confirming that there was no one else but that guy, I used Time Release.
Kerreuk-
The guy let out the unpleasant cry unique to a goblin.
It was a goblin?
Its size is completely different from the others.
The Goblin Knight strode toward me.
The sound of its armor's steel boots rang out, clank clank, echoing in the cave.
I used Time Stop again.
Alright, let's think about this.
How do I deal with that?
An opponent covered entirely in armor.
Landing a hit with a sword was impossible.
I remembered the combat methods of medieval knights I once saw in a history documentary.
Taking an opponent armed with plate armor to the ground and stabbing the gaps in their armor with a knife, or something like that.
‘I don't think that will work at all.’
Seeing it up close, its size was much larger than I thought.
Its height looked to be well over two meters.
I'm supposed to roll around on the ground and wrestle with a monster like that?
That wasn't a combat method, it was a suicide method.
Still, it was true that the only way to deal damage was to attack the gaps in the armor.
I had no choice but to aim for them somehow.
“But where exactly are the gaps in the armor?”
The gaps in the helmet and the joints... places like that, right?
For now, I had to clash with it directly.
My strategy against it was simple.
Dodge or block unconditionally, then counterattack.
It was a method whose efficiency had already been proven while taking care of six goblins.
I used Time Release.
The Knight Goblin was walking over, then suddenly lunged with explosive speed.
“...!”
Having grown accustomed to the speed of the Goblins I had faced so far, I was caught off guard.
I split time.
It was already too late to dodge the mace striking down at my head, so I raised my shield.
Kwaang!
A massive shock transmitted to the arm holding the shield, along with its shattering.
For a moment, my breath caught.
Unable to handle the impact, I was helplessly thrown backward and rolled on the floor.
I hurriedly got up and used Time Stop.
“What kind of strength...!”
I immediately realized my judgment was wrong.
The wooden shield was shattered in a single attack.
It was a monstrous strength that shouldn't have been blocked.
I had to dodge unconditionally.
Using Time Release, I felt my entire body throbbing as I threw away the shield and ran.
My arm isn't broken, is it?
I felt considerable pain in my forearm and ribs, but it didn't seem like any bones were broken.
Kieee-!
The Goblin Knight let out a bizarre shriek and chased after me.
The thought that I would die if caught made my body move well, at least.
The guy was faster than I thought, and much stronger than I thought.
But just running away wasn't the answer.
I had to dodge and counterattack to take it down.
The distance gradually closed, and I boldly faced the Goblin Knight.
I split time again.
The Goblin Knight's arm went up slowly.
Looking at the angle, it was a diagonal downward strike.
I twisted my upper body to the left and leaned back, beginning my evasion.
The mace struck down along the expected path... but it was still fast.
Furthermore, the mace the guy was holding was a morning star, a round sphere studded with thick spikes.
It was bulkier than a sword, making it even harder to dodge.
Huung!
The wind whipped against my face.
I succeeded in narrowly dodging the attack.
I prepared a counterattack.
Various distracting thoughts crossed my mind, but no matter how I looked at it, there was only one clearly exposed weakness.
“I have to aim for the gap in the helmet.”
The gap in the helmet that allowed the guy to see.
I aimed my sword at the Knight Goblin's helmet and used Time Stop.
Just because I split time didn't mean I could minutely adjust the path of the sword once I started the stab, so aiming precisely for that narrow gap was a difficult task.
Still, I had to do it. Because this was the only way.
I focused my mind and stabbed my sword.
Kang!
The result was a failure.
The sword failed to pierce the gap in the helmet and scraped just above it.
It really wasn't easy.
I quickly pulled my body back.
The mace followed right after, swinging with enough force to crush my waist, so I had to retreat once more.
A spike on the mace caught my shirt, tearing it as it passed.
Damn it, there's no time to find my balance...
I kept stepping back, busy frantically dodging the Goblin Knight's attacks.
Even one Hit and it would be over.
The attacks grazed my hair and the tip of my earlobe.
The stinging sensation felt like my skin had been torn off, but it was better than my head being crushed.
After dodging five or six times and barely regaining my balance, I aimed for a counterattack once again.
I ducked my head to dodge the mace and dug into the Knight Goblin's inner guard.
Aiming my sword at the helmet, Time Stop.
I would try until I succeeded.
The distance between the tip of the sword and the gap in the helmet was closer than before, so the probability of success seemed higher.
I focused my mind and, at the same time as I used Time Release, I stabbed my sword with all my might.
With a feeling of the blade catching slightly, it slipped between the helmet and lodged deeply.
Kkieeeeek-!
A piercing shriek rang out.
I succeeded...! Fuck.
The fist the Knight Goblin swung in a seizure-like fit was heading straight for my head.
It was already too late to dodge, so I covered myself with my arms as much as possible to defend.
With a dizzying sensation that rattled my brain, my body went flying.
In the midst of it, did I think half-unconsciously that I needed to get away from the Knight Goblin?
I deliberately rolled over and over on the floor for a long time.
Piiiiii-
What is this. Tinnitus?
I stopped rolling and tried to get up, but a delayed, severe pain surged through my arm.
I looked down at my right arm and saw it was twisted. It was broken.
“...!”
It hurts. It fucking hurts...!
I bit down hard on my lip.
My left arm didn't have much strength either, but I barely managed to plant it on the floor and raise my upper body.
Gathering my senses, I looked at where the Knight Goblin was.
Fortunately, the guy didn't seem to be able to pay attention to me either.
Because it was stumbling around with the sword still stuck in its helmet.
Kuung.
Soon, the guy collapsed.
There was a feeling of it lodging deeply; did the sword reach its brain?
“Kkeu...”
I staggered to my feet, dripping with cold sweat.
Is it dead?
I approached the fallen Knight Goblin and examined it.
The guy wasn't moving an inch.
But the Clear Completion Message did not appear.
Wondering if it hadn't completely stopped breathing yet, I tried to pull out the sword stuck in its helmet with my relatively fine left hand.
Tung!
The sound that rang in my ears the moment I grabbed the sword.
At that eerie sound of a taut bowstring being released, I reflexively used Time Stop.
A little further ahead.
A goblin lying prone in the corner of the common area, aiming a large crossbow this way, belatedly entered my vision.
And the arrow floating to a halt right in front of my abdomen did so.
...What is that guy.
There was definitely only the Knight Goblin.
My thoughts stuttered for a moment.
A time-stopped state right before getting hit by the arrow.
I can't dodge it.
It was no different from already being hit.
Because at this distance, it was absolutely impossible to dodge.
Unless I could move my body at the speed of light, that is.
I definitely thought the Knight Goblin was the final boss, so what is this.
I was in a half-panicked state before I snapped out of it.
“What do I do?”
If I use Time Release like this, I'll take an arrow to the stomach.
...It'll hurt, right? Fuck, of course it'll fucking hurt.
It will probably be much more painful than a broken arm.
Pain is one thing, but I'll die. At this rate, I'll die.
There was only one path left.
*Killing that Crossbow Goblin before*