Witnessing the scene for the second time, even the final boss was swiftly defeated. Xue Xia was utterly numb to it all. She even joked, wondering if the Goblin King was Lin's own son, generously handing out experience points.
Seeing the glow of leveling up around Lin, she exclaimed in disbelief, "You leveled up again? Reached level 15?"
Lin hummed in confirmation, indeed he had reached level 15.
Xue Xia pouted, feeling the gap between them widen as she was still 30% away from reaching level 13. The disparity was disheartening.
Seeing the loot drop notifications, she sighed, "Too bad it's not a staff."
"You're looking for a staff?" Lin inquired.
"Yeah," Xue Xia nodded, "The Goblin King's Staff is the best weapon for a mage before level 20. I could buy it from the exchange, but I'd have to ask my dad for money, and I don't want to do that."
Suddenly, a staff flew towards her. Instinctively, she caught it. It was the very staff she wanted, the Goblin King's Staff.
"It's yours," Lin said indifferently. To him, a staff was trivial.
Xue Xia was stunned, barely managing a "Thank you." Then she asked, puzzled, "Why aren't you using it yourself?"
Lin showed her the Goblin King's Magic Book. "I'm using this." While both items were mage weapons, most mages preferred staffs for their practicality in blocking and dealing physical attacks, unlike the book.
"But staffs are more practical," Xue Xia remarked.
"I just don't like staffs," Lin shrugged, a reason Xue Xia couldn't argue with.
Unbeknownst to Lin, Xue Xia was contemplating his indifference to the staff's bonus, likely finding it insignificant.
Lin reviewed his updated attributes, noting his progress to level 15, which greatly increased his chances of getting into Shangjing Academy. Even though reaching level 16 would be ideal, level 15 should suffice.
With Xue Xia's cooldown amulet, they could run the dungeon three more times quickly, plus two more runs after natural cooldowns, totaling five runs. Since he started this path with Xue Xia, he intended to continue, valuing their partnership.
"Five runs should be enough for me to reach level 16," Lin thought, apologizing to the Goblin King's corpse for the upcoming battles.
Xue Xia found Lin's behavior towards the boss both strange and endearing. "Why apologize to a boss?" she mused, finding Lin's sincerity oddly charming.
As they prepared to leave, Xue Xia chuckled, finding Lin both peculiar and unexpectedly sweet. Agreeing to continue, they set off for more runs, sharing a moment of camaraderie in the bizarre yet thrilling adventure of dungeon grinding.