"Kill the spawn of Satan!"
The priest, who emerged from the broken statue, raised his cross high above his head and shouted.
- Uwooo!
Simultaneously, the villagers charged at the goblins with torches and various farming tools.
"Kieeek!"
The goblins, not to be outdone, brandished clubs and wooden shields to fight back.
It was an intense battle, so fierce that it was impossible to tell who was stronger. Screams and groans echoed from all directions.
The adventurers who had to undergo the trial of this floor were thrown into chaos.
"What the heck is going on? Who are we supposed to help?"
"So, so, so should we help the goblins since it's a goblin village? No, wait. I'm a human, so should I help the humans?"
"Stop standing around like idiots and help anyone!"
Whose side should they take?
It was a difficult decision to make right away. Of course, there were those who had experienced trials before.
"Let's go."
Verdin hid on the roof with his party members.
They watched the fight quietly, not participating in the battle.
"Rox, watch closely how they fight. It's important to understand the flow of battle from now on."
"Okay."
"If you watch, you'll see how different it is to fight as a minority versus a majority."
"A minority and a majority..."
"Not only that, but you can also learn how to respond depending on the weapons they use and the abilities of the enemies."
"Got it. I'll watch closely."
There were many different races and professions of adventurers fighting here.
Even just observing the battle without participating was an opportunity to gain a lot of experience.
Clang, clang, clang!
The continuous fighting gradually wore down the adventurers' stamina.
Up close, it seemed like the fight would end quickly, but from a distance, it looked endless.
The humans and goblins here were like immortal beings; a straightforward fight would never end.
As time passed and the battle dragged on, the participants in the trial began to fall one by one.
Thud, thud, thud.
'It looks like they've reached their limit.'
Cynthia sighed as she watched them. She couldn't laugh, having experienced that fight herself.
As time went by, the adventurers were mostly taken care of, and the numbers of humans and goblins dwindled, leaving the village quieter.
Except for Cynthia, who was admiring beside me.
"What should we do with the goblins once they're all dead?"
"We don't deal with them."
"Don't deal with them?"
"Yes, today my goal is not to fight but to climb. There's no need to fight those guys."
Cynthia tilted her head in confusion.
"So you're saying we can go up without dealing with them?"
"That's right. There are two ways to climb this floor. The first is to cut off the head of that priest, the leader of the human group."
"The priest's head..."
"The second is to side with the humans and drive all the goblins out of the village."
Both sound easy.
But when you actually get into the fight, you realize how difficult it is.
The priest is a 'high-level mage' who can use advanced magic, and there are too many goblins to fight them all without every adventurer working together.
'Of course...'
I will climb in a way that no one knows about, so it doesn't matter.
"...No, if you knew how to climb, why didn't you tell us sooner?"
"You didn't ask."
"You didn't tell us because we didn't ask? Ha! So kind that it makes me want to cry!"
I heard that a lot in my past life.
She used to grumble that I was too kind to her.
"Do you have a complaint?"
"...Not really."
"Then, drive all the adventurers inside the village out with Rox."
"The adventurers?"
"Until I negotiate with the goblin champion. Make sure no one comes inside the village."
So they won't know how I climb the tower.
"W-wait a minute. You're going to face the goblin champion alone?"
"Yes."
"D-do you know how strong that guy is?"
"I know."
"You know? But you're still going to face the goblin champion alone?"
"Yes."
The 10th floor of the tower is practically a starting point for 'beginner-level' adventurers who have just begun climbing.
To face a champion-level monster there alone? No matter how renowned I am as Strange, it would seem like a reckless fight.
'Cynthia doesn't know my true abilities.'
She bit her lip and turned away.
"Do as you like. I won't take responsibility if you die."
"Okay."
Rox shrugged and gestured to Cynthia.
"Hurry up, don't dawdle."
"I'm going, I'm going!"
Cynthia walked briskly towards the village entrance.
Rox followed her, shaking his head.
"Why the temper? Hey, Verdin. We'll go ahead."
* * *
Whoosh!
The flames growing in various parts of the village started to grow larger.
I waited with my chin resting on my hand in front of the goblin champion's statue, which was slowly breaking.
I already knew how strong he was. An apostle with the power of a god could not be defeated by human strength alone.
But I am not an ordinary human. In my past life, I was given the title of Sword King and had enough skill to challenge a dragon.
'Of course, I'm weaker now than I was then.'
Crack, crack, crack, boom!
With a loud noise, the stones encasing the goblin champion's body flew off.
"Kraaaak!"
Now free, the goblin made a strange noise and moved his body around.
Even though he hadn't assumed a combat stance yet, I could feel a deadly aura emanating from him. It was so powerful that even my arms and legs, prepared for the encounter, trembled.
"Have you awakened?"
My small voice made his ears twitch.
"Human?"
"Yes, human."
He glanced at me and yawned, waving his hand dismissively as if he was looking at an insignificant creature.
"This is not a place for someone of your skill. I'll give you a chance to leave the tower now."
"What if I refuse?"
"You will die."
"Who will?"
"Who do you think?"
I answered the goblin champion with a smile on my face.
"Well, the weaker one will die, won't they?"
The conversation was short.
We glared at each other.
After taking a few breaths, our auras clashed in the air.
*Whoosh—*
The Goblin Champion swung his fist at me.
*Bang!*
The sound from his punch was as threatening as a gunshot.
'He's strong.'
If I tried to block it with the same aura, I would lose. The stronger force would certainly push me back.
"Mana Shield."
Instead of dodging, I spread mana on my palm to block his punch.
*Crack.*
The Goblin Champion's yellow aura collided violently with my blue mana, creating a storm-like force that shook the ground.
*Rumble.*
'I blocked it.'
A sigh of relief escaped me.
If I had failed, I would have taken significant damage. But my plan succeeded perfectly.
By colliding mana and aura of different properties, their power was reduced.
This method was commonly used by the Glaciers against us in my past life.
'To think I would use it now.'
Having blocked the Champion's attack, I infused aura into my other hand and swung my sword.
*Slash!*
I struck his shoulder precisely.
It felt as solid as hitting metal. His body was as tough as, if not tougher than, Rox's.
It was like hitting a diamond with a sword.
"Get lost, human."
He grabbed my sword blade with his bare hand, concentrated aura at his fingertips, and exploded it.
*Boom!*
The impact pushed my sword away, making me spin around.
The Goblin Champion didn't miss the chance and charged at me again.
*Tap, tap.*
'Not so fast.'
I used the rotational force of my spinning body to slash my sword upward.
*Swish!*
The Goblin Champion, unable to control his momentum, was hit by my sword.
*Thud.*
"Argh!"
If it were an ordinary monster, I would have severed its head instantly, but an Apostle's body was incredibly formidable.
Even though I swung with all my might, only the tip of the blade went in. Still, this level of toughness makes the fight worth it.
I continued to swing my sword, and the Goblin didn't care about his wounds, relentlessly charging at me.
*Clang, clang, clang, crack!*
Amazing. Despite landing numerous hits that should have cut him deeply, he didn't fall.
Of course, while I was slashing the Goblin Champion, he also managed to land a few punches on me.
His body had the strength and speed surpassing that of a beast, and his long arms and legs made him proficient in hand-to-hand combat.
But that didn't mean he could win against me.
After a prolonged fight, the decisive strike came.
"It's over."
*Thud.*
My sword pierced the Goblin Champion's chest.
I didn't use any extraordinary technique. I simply relied on the basics to stab his vital spot.
In my past life, I wouldn't have succeeded in such an attack.
But with Mistilteinn in this life, I gradually wore down his soul. When his mind crumbled, I exploited the same spot repeatedly.
'Of course, without Gregory noticing, I melted a tiny part of the blade.'
With a new blend of two powers, I managed to land the final blow.
"Gah."
I brought the Goblin Champion to his knees with an unexpected ability.
*Thud.*
Siegfried, who had been watching the fight, cheered.
"As expected, that's my disciple!"
Brunhild clapped her tiny hands.
*Clap, clap, clap!*
"Meow meow!"
It was a flawless strategy.
I sheathed my sword.
*Click.*
"That's it."
"Grr."
"I've proven I'm stronger than you. This fight is over."
"W-What? The trial isn't over yet."
"No, it's over."
"What! This fight only ends when one of us loses our head!"
*Whoosh—.*
A massive amount of aura erupted from the Goblin Champion's body.
The overwhelming force made me shiver.
'Impressive.'
If he fought with all his might, I wouldn't be able to win.
Gregory struggled to stand up.
"Let's finish this, human."
I shook my head lightly.
"I said, it's over."
My ultimate goal wasn't the Goblin Champion's head but the artifact hidden by the so-called gods in the tower.
By subduing the Goblin Champion, I fulfilled the conditions to obtain the hidden piece.
Now, it was time for 'Hysteria,' or rather 'Rox,' to activate the mechanism hidden in this floor.
"Gregory. It might be hard to understand with words, so I'll show you why the fight is over."
I raised my hand and shot a flare into the sky.
*Pew.*
*Fwoosh—.*
The flare soared through the air and exploded in a violet light.
The Goblin Champion looked at the sky, bewildered.
Soon, light footsteps approached from behind him.
*Tap, tap, tap.*
"Gregory, long time no see."