Jahrakal, once towering at an impressive twenty feet, had now shrunk to Augustus' height. Even his axes had been reduced to size.
"Kwek!"
Suddenly, Jahrakal's body ignited in flames, along with his axes. But these were no ordinary flames - Augustus could feel their scorching heat from a distance of two meters.
Swoosh*
In a flash, Jahrakal materialized before Augustus, and the two clashed head-to-head. Augustus was surprised by the boss's speed and strength, which were on par with his own.
Augustus attempted to retreat, but Jahrakal gave chase, leaving Augustus scrambling to come up with a plan.
"I need to immobilize him."
Realizing he was in a tight spot, Augustus quickly set traps without Jahrakal's knowledge. After laying around ten or so, he lured the boss into them, successfully immobilizing him with a paralysis trap.
'Perfect! Now's my chance.' With the boss incapacitated, Augustus readied his ultimate skill. But before he does it, Augustus decided to cast Goblin Rally to distract the boss and created more openings.
"Goblin Rally!" Augustus yelled.
The commentator who had spoken earlier warned him, "KILL THE GOBLINS NOW! THEY'RE NOT YOUR ALLY."
What?
"KWEK!" Jahrakal grinned at the sight of the summoned goblins.
As soon as they heard the call from their king, the five goblins materialized from the Goblin Rally and started to attack Augustus without warning.
'Damn it! Why did I use goblins against the Goblin King?'
Augustus found himself in a tight spot, as the goblins he had summoned were much stronger than those he had faced before. He used every card he had, leading the goblins towards his traps and summoning distractions along the way.
'Slime!'
'Stealth Rat!'
Augustus knew that he had to act quickly. He summoned monsters that he could trust as distractions to take some of the heat off him while he laid down more traps.
Jahrakal was finally free from the paralysis and joined his goblin friends.
He was not one to be trifled with. He was strong, fast, and relentless in his pursuit. Augustus knew he had to be careful and plan his moves wisely.
Despite the intense battle, Augustus remained focused and laid down freeze and paralysis traps, which were the only ones that worked against Jahrakal.
As he ran around the battlefield, playing tag with the boss, Augustus filled the battlefield with his cleverly placed traps.
But he couldn't keep it up forever, as he would suffer from Mana Fatigue if he continued to cast spells.
His Slime and Stealth Rat were killed during the process of laying traps, but Augustus remained focused as they had done their part.
With his traps finally ready, he activated them and took control of the battlefield.
Jahrakal and the goblins fell into Augustus's traps one by one. This time, for sure, Augustus was able to cast his ultimate move: Frost Palace Domain.
The ice began to spread across the battlefield, causing Jahrakal to struggle even more as he was already caught in the Freeze trap.
The rest of the goblins couldn't even move as they slipped and fell on the ice.
Jahrakal fought back with all his might, unleashing a raging fire trying to melt the ice that trapped him. It also created a huge smoke cloud blocking Augustus' vision.
Using this oppurtunity, Jahrakal wanted to get out of Augustus' Domain.
But Augustus was not one to be deterred. With Qi Senses, he could easily sense Jahrakal's movements and track him down. He trapped Jahrakal in a corner by summoning Thick ice wall and cornered him, forcing him to face him head-on.
With his overwhelming Ice & Water Qi, Augustus dominated Jahrakal's fire and froze his axe upon clashing against it.
As they clashed, the effects of Augustus's Domain began to take hold. Jahrakal was losing his original firepower and capability, and Augustus knew he had the upper hand.
The frigid air of the Ice Domain made movement difficult for most creatures, but not for Augustus. He moved with a graceful swiftness.
Jahrakal flames flickering weakly as he persisted in his domain. Jahrakal desperately wanted to escape, but Augustus' ceaseless assaults prevented any such attempt.
The damage he had sustained was mounting, and the flames that once roared fiercely were now barely flickering. Even worse, some of Augustus' attacks had pierced his defenses, causing him to bleed.
Suddenly, a blinding light erupted from the Dawn Blade, startling Jahrakal. The attack also seemed to heal Augustus' fatigue, invigorating him to fight with renewed fervor.
With a swift slash, Augustus aimed for the neck, ending Jahrakal's movement. The frozen head of its rolled to the ground, its expression of shock forever frozen in place.
Despite winning the battle against it, Augustus knew that it had been far from easy as he have to went all out in the battle and that he had almost lost.
Either way, he emerged victorious, having defeated the Goblin King and cleared the tenth level.
['Goblin King, Jahrakal' slayed]
[You have cleared the 10th Level]
[Contribution 100%]
[Choose Three Rewards]
[1. Goblin's King Dual Axes]
[2. Goblin's King Skull Armor]
[3. Goblin's King Skull Helmet]
Augustus claimed all three rewards and was unable to choose anything else, as there were only three options available.
[Contribution Reward: Skill Book 'The King's Rage']
[Contribution Reward: Goblin's King Gem]
[Contribution Reward: Goblin's King Skull]
"Help us!" the man shouted, drawing Augustus' attention to a group of prisoners held captive by Jahrakal.
Without hesitation, Augustus deactivated his freezing domain and swiftly dispatched the remaining goblins before freeing the captives.
"Thank you!" the man exclaimed gratefully as Augustus freed him. As soon as he was released, he wasted no time in freeing the others.
Observing the man's behavior, Augustus grew skeptical as he noticed him only freeing the women from the cages. "What are you doing?" he asked.
"I'm rescuing only my friends," the man replied. "Most of them can't be saved. Especially, all of the men, they have been injected with Goblin's blood and poisoned severely. Their brains have probably already melted on the inside."
Augustus couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for the trapped men, but he knew there was nothing he could do to save them. "How come you are fine?"
"I have not yet been injected with the goblin's blood," the man explained.
"Remember my friend who was smashed into pulp? I entered with him not long ago before you came here. My comrades were... Anyway, I'm getting my friends out of here first. They need treatment."
The man carried two ragged women on his shoulders, and Augustus could only imagine the horrors they had endured while they are here. He watched as the man carried his friends away.
"Good luck," Augustus muttered under his breath as the man disappeared through the portal, knowing that he couldn't save everyone.
Augustus just realized that that man just abandoned him, leaving all the responsibility on him.
'That piece of sh*t,' Augustus muttered to himself. The man's actions were understandable, saving what he could and leaving, but Augustus couldn't help feeling annoyed at his blatant disregard for the lives of the others.
Suddenly, a weak voice called out to Augustus. "Please, end my suffering."
It was a pregnant woman, begging for mercy. "I don't want to give birth to a goblin."
Augustus was stunned when he saw the woman begging to end her own life.
Augustus was taken aback by the woman's desperate plea.
"Giving birth to a goblin is the same as dying," A young girl spoke, notifying Augustus the woman's suffering as she's lying down lifelessly on the ground.
Without hesitation, Augustus obliged the woman's request, channeling his Ice Qi and slowly freezing her to death. His heart ached as he realized the gravity of the situation.
"Thank you," the woman whispered as she closed her eyes. Augustus felt a sense of sadness as he realized the gravity of the situation.
"Can you help me out?" the girl said to Augustus as she watch Augustus ended the woman's life.
Augustus destroyed the cage cleanly and carried the girl on his shoulder. "Thank you, I'll repay you once we get out of here. Just leave me at the portal. I'll rest for a while, and I should be able to move on my own."
After a brief rest, Augustus helped carry the other women to the portal. Seeing the scene, one of the girls asked, "Are you going to save everyone?" as she leaned against the wall, trying to recover.
"No, but I'm going to try," Augustus replied determinedly as he continued to carry the women.
Augustus wanted to leave now, but seeing that there were more people, he felt guilty for leaving them behind.
'Seeing that the man just now left and didn't come back, it means it's only a one-way portal.'
"If you really want to help, there are five more," the girl pointed to the other pregnant women whose stomachs bulged out almost to the point of bursting.
"This is insane...I didn't sign up for this," Augustus muttered to himself, feeling overwhelmed by the horrific sight before him. But he knew he had to act quickly.
With a heavy heart, Augustus used his Frost Palace Domain to freeze the remaining women instantly, even though he knew it would cause him to suffer a backlash.
[The debuff 'Qi Fatigue' was applied]
[All stats decreased by 50% for 10 hours.]
Augustus felt his strength drain from his body as he collapsed to the ground, his energy depleted from the strain of overusing his Qi. But despite his fatigue, he didn't regret his decision to end the women's suffering quickly and mercifully.
Augustus rested for a while until he had recovered part of his strength. Then, he helped carry the other women and dropped them on the ground near the portal.
After Augustus gathered all of them together, he wanted to give it a go. 'Alright. Let's do it now.'
He then starting to piled up the women as much as he could, creating a layer of sheet with his aura and Qi to prevent them from lying on top of each other directly.
"I can only carry eight at most. I need some of them to wake up," Augustus said.
"I'll help. Do you have water or something? I just need to recover my strength to carry two," the girl offered.
As he thought about food, Augustus remembered that the Store System existed and he could spend points to buy various items. He carefully put the women back on the floor and opened the store.
After remembering that the Store System existed, Augustus carefully put the women back on the floor and opened the store.
The list went on, but Augustus only wanted to buy Health Potion and Antidote.
[12 'Health Potion I' obtained]
[12 'Antidote I' obtained]
'I hope some of them woke up, so there's less people I need to carry,' Augustus thought to himself.
He gave the potions to the girl first. "Here, HP potion and an antidote. Drink them."
The girl was stunned by Augustus's generosity. She had only asked for food, not potions or antidotes, which were extremely expensive. "What? Are you sure? I can't repay you that much," she asked, her voice laced with disbelief.
"It's fine. Drink it," Augustus reassured her, his conscience not allowing him to leave anyone behind.
The girl drank the potions, and her wounds instantly healed. "This potion… it didn't hurt at all?" she wondered aloud.
Augustus then handed half of the health potions and antidote to the girl to feed the others. He did his best to feed the ones who were unable to move.
Seeing Augustus casually handing over the potions and antidotes, the girl was left speechless with his kindness. She decided to help distribute the potions, "Fine," she said.
As everyone was fed the potion and antidote, some of them were able to move. The rest were still lying down, unconscious.
"Thank you!" All of them thanked Augustus fervently and for saving their lives and helping them escape the dungeon.
"No need, just help the ones that can't move and move them to the portal," Augustus instructed. He carried two women on his shoulder and signaled for the others to cross the portal.
All of them were happy to help and crossed the portal in a hurry, leaving Augustus and the girl behind.
"You too, go. I'll go last," Augustus said.
"Okay," the girl agreed, crossing the portal first. Finally, Augustus crossed too.
As he emerged from the portal, his senses were momentarily disoriented. He found himself outside of the portal, greeted by a sudden change of scenery.
The darkness was replaced by a bright-looking place filled with people.
"Hey! Help him! There are more survivors!" One of the people yelled as they saw Augustus emerge from the portal.
[You have fulfilled the requirement]
[Exonia' is now unlocked]
"I have treated their injuries. Just make sure everything is fine," Augustus said, handing the women over to the guards.
A knight then confronted him. "Are you the one that cleared the dungeon alone? We would like to thank you for what you have done."
Augustus sensed there was more to the knight's expression.