"Run!" Nora shouted, starting to back away.
"But Grant's still inside!" Hannah replied.
"Sh*t!" Alex immediately ran into the house.
"Let me get his attention." Elise took a fighting stance. Her eyes kept fixed on the big goblin. "You guys run."
"A-are you sure?" Hannah gulped. "You're seriously injured."
Nora held Hannah's arm. "Come on, Hannah. Out of us, she's probably the one who can fight the most!"
"B-but..." Hannah couldn't resist when she was pulled by Nora to run.
"Good luck…. Ah, I forgot your name!" Nora shouted.
"Elise. My name is Elise."
"Hope you can beat him, Alice!"
"It's Elise...." The young woman was stunned. The giant goblin now walked slowly instead of running. He grinned, looking at Elise's beautiful body up and down. The monster was clearly underestimating his opponent.
"So, you choose to fight?" Raymund gave his approval. "I'm proud of you, Elise. Thank you."
"You're welcome?" Elise wasn't sure about her own reply.
In truth, Elise herself was in shock that she was still there, even willing to offer herself to fend off the monster while the adventurers ran away.
No, Elise didn't hate those who ran away. It was their instinct to survive. If the opportunity arises, they have the right to do so, even if they have to leave Elise, the savior. Elise knew that she would probably do the same if she was in their position.
Elise tried to control her heavy breathing. Her urge to retreat was getting more intense as the monster drew closer. The pain she endured from cuts and bruises was unbearable. If even little goblins could make her tormented like this, what kind of pain would she receive from that gigantic monster?
However, Elise didn't want to be haunted by the guilt of not saving those people. Yes, as Raymund said.
"Please, hold on a little longer, Elise." The woman whispered to herself.
"Maybe I'll help you out a bit," Raymund said.
A flash from the sky struck the giant goblin's body, triggering a loud boom. The monster fell with most of its body charred and smoky, surrounded by several flames.
Instead of heaving a sigh of relief, Elise found it even more difficult to breathe. Her cold sweat began to pour out. Just as she took a step back, the huge goblin started to rise.
"Graaah!!!" The goblin's deafening, angry roar made Elise widen her eyes.
"Don't you dare to run away!" Raymund gave a warning. "This is your chance! Attack!"
"Arrrgggh!!!" Elise dashed forward, as did the goblin.
"Don't use Charging Thrust now! Wait for the right moment! We have to make sure that the goblin can't dodge it! Plus, you're tired and injured! We might only have one chance." Raymund's words were swift. "Attack his legs!"
Elise slightly shifted her track when she was close to her opponent. The goblin screamed again as Elise slashed at his thigh, splattering some blood. The protagonist was about to attack for a second time, but the enemy swung his mace.
The mace moved only inches away from Elise, who managed to dodge. However, some of the woman's hair was cut off and flying because of that attack.
Elise knew right away that she couldn't get hit by that huge weapon, or she would be finished.
The young woman continued to attack and dodge. The goblin's mace hasn't hit her yet. That weapon only hit houses that were instantly destroyed or thumping the ground with loud booms.
So far, Elise has managed to slash the monster in several parts of his body, although the wounds she inflicts aren't that deep, hardly making impacts. What's more, every single strike of the mace got closer to Elise every time. The monster didn't lose stamina but instead grew more agile. Perhaps it was triggered by his frustration at never being able to hit Elise.
And it's been a while since Elise's attacks haven't come through. She was too focused on avoiding attacks that were getting harder for the eyes to follow.
"You still can't use charging thrust now. He's already too fast." Raymund huffed in annoyance. With the current state, the goblin could definitely avoid that move with ease. "You'd better back off for a while..."
Raymund hadn't finished speaking, and the mace hit Elise hard in the stomach. The woman's body instantly flew away, hit the wooden wall of a house until it shattered, then rolled hard on the floor, hitting the furniture inside.
Elise's vision became blurry. The wooden ceiling look hazy to her eyes. Raymund's voice also sounded faint in her ears.
As she had expected, the pain in her body caused by the mace's impact was so excruciating. If possible, she would rather die than feel this pain. She wanted to scream because of that pain, but her mouth could only spit blood, filling her tongue with a bitter metallic taste.
"Elise! Wake up!" Raymund kept shouting. "You still have to fight!"
No, Elise didn't want to wake up. Enough. She's not a fighter. She had never hit anyone before, but there was a god asking her to fight monsters. It is clear that God's choice was wrong.
Elise's sight and hearing gradually returned to normal. And now, she could hear a sound other than Raymund's voice.
Her eyes widened as she realized what kind of sound it was. She forced her body to turned around, then started crawling.
"No… Please…. No…." The young woman groaned with tears in her eyes. "Help me... Please.... It hurts so much…."
That dreadful sound came from the heavy steps of the giant goblin.