Prince walked onto the well-worn path. It didn't seem to lead too deep.
After a few minutes, Prince finally walked out onto a groove.
You have entered the boss lair for the Goblin King! As a result for fighting this dungeon boss on home turf, you can no longer leave until you kill it.
At the very edge of a grove, a tree stood. It was slightly smaller than the rest of the trees, its branches drooping. Blue leaves colored it while glowing fruits of the same color hung off of it. Prince immediately scanned the tree.
Essence Tree (E-Grade)
A tree containing fruits full of pure Essence. Eating them restores Essence and heals minor wounds.
The tree wasn't alone, however.
In front of it, a badly made wooden throne stood. Seated on it was a goblin, eyes closed. but not just any goblin; a colossus of a goblin, with compact muscles and full-on clothes made of fur. Prince scanned it as well.
Lesser Goblin - Level 19 (Dungeon Boss)
The evolved form of a Goblin. Virtually, they are better in every way. In larger societies, Lesser Goblins would be advisors of Major Goblins, but in smaller goblin tribes, they are usually the king. These Goblins are extremely intelligent.
The Goblin King snorted when it opened its eyes and noticed Prince. It stood, cracking its knuckles. "Human," It sneered. The Goblin King nearly reached Prince's height.
"A heavyweight?" Prince muttered to himself, raising his fists as well.
The Goblin King took a step. Then another. Its eyes bulged out of its head, brows furrowed. "Did you just... Call me heavy?"
Prince raised an eyebrow. "Huh-"
A flash of green. Prince raised his arms to guard his face, just barely blocking the fist that soared toward it.
Prince felt his forearms ache as the force of the Goblin King's punch sent him stumbling back a few feet. Prince regained his wits just in time to duck under a hook with some weight behind it.
The Goblin King released an enraged roar as his fist met only air. Prince pressed this opening, lunging forward in an attempt to tackle it.
He just met unmovable muscle. The Goblin King didn't even budge.
An elbow connected with Prince's back, planting him into the ground with enough force to knock the wind out of him. Prince rolled out of the way in time to see the Goblin King's foot stomp on where his head had been a moment ago.
Prince swore its foot sank a few inches into the ground.
Prince threw a handful of dirt to distract the Goblin King while he rolled away to recover.
This thing hits hard, He thought.
The Goblin King was coming for him again. It threw a straight. Powerful. Unstoppable.
But slow.
Prince ducked under the punch to get into the Goblin King's guard. Then he delivered an uppercut to the thing.
The Goblin King's head snapped upward, though it regained its senses half a moment later.
But by then, Prince was already planting a fist straight into its face.
The Goblin King stumbled back, clutching its face with its hand. It withdrew its hand, only sporting a speck of blood that dribbled down its nose. The Goblin King glared at Prince.
Prince had been feeling pretty good about himself. He'd just gotten off a pretty cheeky combo. Yet... The Goblin King didn't seem damaged at all, just enraged. Prince clenched his fists again.
This thing seemed to rely heavily on Strength and Endurance. In that case...
Speed!
The Goblin King threw a punch. And then another. And then another. Each one carrying devastating force. Prince knew that if the Goblin King caught him in a single clean hit, it would be over.
Prince ducked and weaved, dancing in between the fists with the grace of a ballerina. He launched punches and counterattacks of his own when he could, completely focusing on the Goblin King's nose.
At times, a punch grazed his cheek; drawing blood. Some times, he contorted his body to avoid punches that he otherwise shouldn't be able to avoid.
The Goblin King instead was stationary, punching at Prince endlessly.
The Goblin King roared in outrage. "STAY STILL!"
The Goblin King punched outward at the same time Prince did. Their fists met. Prince swore he could see the air ripple around them.
Must be my imagination.
Anyone else in his situation might have been gritting their teeth. Not Prince.
He grinned.
The Goblin King howled. It withdrew its fists, and suddenly, two hands were wrapped around his skull in a blink. Prince should've been able to dodge, but the forward momentum of his punch worked against him.
Shit.
The Goblin king began to squeeze.
By now, Prince's skull was as durable as a cow skull. Compared to a cow skull, a human skull was an eggshell. The fact that the Goblin King wanted to crush his skull, was confident that it could, meant that its strength was monstrous.
Prince gripped the Goblin King's wrists, but its strength was absolute.
Anyone else in his situation might have cried out. Maybe they would've cowered. Not Prince.
His skull began to creak.
He stared at the Goblin King, a maniacal grin on his face. The world seemed to darken, shrink, as if he was going through a funnel. Prince was beginning to feel pain, like the god of all headaches.
Prince pulled his hand back. He formed it into a fist. The Goblin King snorted at this pathetic last attempt. The battle was won.
Prince was knocking on death's door. In that last moment of clarity, he did something that he wasn't supposed to. Something that he shouldn't have been able to do.
Prince drew all his energy into his fist. Energy that had been foreign to him, something he had been unable to comprehend, unable to use. Now it welled up there, coursing through his veins, giving him strength. And then he punched.
His fist connected with the Goblin King's face. For a singular moment, Prince had punched with every ounce of power he had available, flattening the Goblin King's face. The already ruined nose stood no chance.
It fell, limp.
So did Prince, his knees buckling.
You have acquired the skill: Titan Fist (I) (Active)
[Normal] Titan Fist (I) (Active): Pour all your energy into one singular devastating strike. Add Essence to increase the power of the strike.
You have gained your second skill before Level 15!
You have accessed Essence before Level 15!
As a result, you have gained the following Subclass: Champion of Victorious Fighting!
Level-up! You are now Level 15.
Level-up! You are now Level 16.
Level-up! You are now Level 17.
Congratulations! You are one of the first 1,000 on your planet to reach Level 15. As a result, you have received the following title: Planetary Frontrunner (1000).
As a Level 15, you can now access the World Leaderboard.
World Leaderboard (Top Ten):
1. Dante King
2. Itzel Morales
3. Eric Walker
4. Ilyanna Carrera
5. Fukushima Takeo
6. Mose Ebrume
7. Malikov Luka Igorevich
8. Ku So-Yeon
9. David Walker
10. Tou He
Your Ranking: 89th
You can now choose your first class! Choose your class?
Note: This decision can only be postponed for 12 hours. (11:59:59)
The barrage of notifications, all vying for attention, only served to confuse Prince's cloudy mind even more.
He did, however, notice one notification among the rest:
Champion of Victorious Fighting, huh? Prince chuckled to himself. It resonated with him, as if it described him perfectly.
Prince was still feeling that satisfaction as he drifted into unconsciousness.
...
Nesting withing his prison at the heart of a supermassive blackhole, a particular monkey stirred from his meditative trance and cracked one eye.