I found myself defying gravity, I couldn't feel the harsh ground. Instead, I felt an incredible sense of weightlessness and realized someone was cradling me.
Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at the shattered building below.
It was as if I were soaring, and I couldn't fathom how it was possible. Then, my gaze turned upward, and there he was – Matthias.
Carrying me like a character from a fairy tale, I couldn't help but let out an exasperated sigh.
"Can you lower me down? And why, oh why, did you choose to carry me like this?" I muttered in frustration.
With an eye roll and a hint of sarcasm, Matthias shot back, "A 'thank you' would be nice, you know. And by the way, you might want to ditch that bag; it's incredibly heavy. What on earth did you pack in there? A corpse?"
I responded, equally exasperated, "Shut it and get me down! This is getting seriously uncomfortable."
With a smirk, Matthias continued, "You need to witness my greatness first." His arrogance only fueled my irritation.
What was he thinking at a time like this? Didn't he see the horde of goblins eyeing us like hungry predators?
I even caught a glimpse of goblin shamans attempting to unleash their magical powers on us, hurling everything from fiery orbs to gusts of wind.
But our flying position kept us out of their reach, soaring high above their futile attempts.
He swiftly shifted his carrying style, now holding me like a sack of potatoes. While I was aware of the fact that I was a good five centimeters shorter and much lighter than him.
Worse yet, I couldn't see a thing, just the sight of Matthias' back—or maybe his ass, I couldn't quite tell. It left me feeling queasy.
Fuck you, Matthias!
Then, I heard Matthias incanting a spell, "Razorwind Strike," followed by a bluster of crushed objects and goblins wailing in pain.
With a touch of pride in his voice, he sought validation, "See, I'm really good!"
I couldn't hide my annoyance. "Yes, whatever. Could you put me down now if you're done with those goblins?"
His response was laced with disappointment, "Oh, you couldn't see anything, could you? What a shame."
He adjusted my position so I could finally see the devastation below. The ruined buildings and the scorched earth, with a clear path of destruction that resembled a laser's wake.
What the hell, how strong was he? How could the different powers between us be this different? What the fuck!
There were so many things in my head that I couldn't understand. I know Matthias has an SSR weapon, but I didn't know the difference between the rarity and power was this big!
Matthias, seeking praise, chimed in again, "I knew you'd be amazed. I told you I'm strong, didn't I?"
I rolled my eyes, I wonder how many times I rolled my eyes today. This man was the definition of OP MC if he shut the hell up!
Suddenly, a shimmering object hurtled towards us. Matthias skillfully dodged it – an axe thrown with deadly precision.
Below, I spotted the Goblin Lord, alive and well, alongside a few surviving goblins, desperately trying to reach us.
If one of them could fly, we'd be fucked.
"Damn it! Isn't that thing too powerful? What's wrong with the power system?" Matthias grumbled.
I couldn't help but think he should direct that question to himself, given our glaring difference in power.
Matthias finally set me down amid the ruins, and I frantically reached for my gun, only to find it missing. Panic surged through me.
Had that damn revolver been lost in the wreckage? Just when I thought the day couldn't get any worse, it spiraled into a nightmare.
And then, out of nowhere, the system chimed in, [You can materialize your weapon with your mind].
It caught me off guard, and I whispered, "Blaze Revolver." My gun materialized before my eyes.
Matthias wasted no time instructing, "Alright, you handle the smaller ones, and I'll take on the big one. Understand?"
I nodded in agreement. Clearly, my task was far simpler than his. Matthias moved closer to the Goblin Lord, his figure retreating into the distance.
I didn't particularly like the guy, but I found myself hoping he would make it out alive.
Now, I had to deal with the goblins. The smaller ones were easy; they couldn't match my speed.
The goblin shamans were irritating with their magical attacks, but their movements were sluggish.
The most troublesome were the goblin riders. Stronger and faster, they rode dire wolves.
Ah well, I thought. They were spread out. If I dealt with the regular goblins first, the other species wouldn't have caught on too quickly.
I threw my backpack away to ease my burden and sprinted toward the regular goblins, one of them spotting me and the rest following suit.
I needed to lead them away, so I lured them back toward the ruined building, fifteen of them hot on my heels.
Their spiked bolas whizzed past, nearly grazing my skull. Luckily, they missed.
Within the ruins, I found the perfect spot. As the goblins congregated below the almost collapsed building, I hid and slipped back outside.
The goblins seemed perplexed, searching for my presence. They had no idea I was already outside, poised for an ambush.
With my revolver aimed high, I intoned, "Inferno Blast." The gun's barrel pointed at the crumbling roof, which promptly gave way, burying all goblins beneath the debris.
I am glad they were so dumb to fall for that cheap trap.
The fourth rule in this apocalyptic world was straightforward: rely not just on your power, but also on your wit.
I couldn't help but smile as I looked at my ever-increasing killing points and attribute levels.
[Player name: Seth]
[LvL: 6]
[HP: 600]
[MP: 120 + 50]
[ATK: 95 + 170]
----------------------------------
[Class: Ranger]
[Attributes]
[Strength: 35, Agility: 45, Defense: 23, Stamina: 40, Intelligence: 60]
----------------------------------
[Killing Points: 860]
[Title: -]
Not a bad number, but still how the fuck I could score 10000 killing points to get an SSR-type weapon! What kind of monster do I need to defeat?
So far, the Goblin Champion was the highest scorer at 250 points, but taking one down was time-consuming. Except for Matthias, of course. He could defeat Goblin Champion easily.
Deep in thought about my next move, I failed to notice a group of Goblin riders closing in not far ahead. Armed with swords and the powerful jaws of dire wolves, they were a lethal combination.
Shit! I shouldn't think too much in this kind of scenario. I sprinted, desperately brainstorming a strategy to deal with them.
But before I could execute a plan, the cold, unrelenting edge of a sword slashed across my back. Agony shot through me, slowing my movements.
It was a living nightmare, a searing pain that left me gasping.
That shit hurt as fuck!
What the hell!
There were 100 ways to die in this apocalyptic world, one of them was to be stabbed and slashed by the goblin rider.
[Danger!]
[Your HP will decrease -5 by every minute because of excessive bleeding!]
Yep, that's it, it's official. I'm gonna die...