Recruit’s Claymore [Greatsword]
Rank: C
Attack: 10
Asteriarite Slot: [EMPTY]
Asteriarite Slot: [EMPTY]
Requires: 30 Strength
“Junk,” Remy said and strode down the tunnel ahead. “The weapons Tempeste and I use are far stronger.”
Guy shrugged. “Whatever, I’ll take it.”
Obtained: Recruit’s Claymore
Obtained: Hypospray: MP x2
The four pressed deeper into the mine’s tunnels, encountering roaming Looting Goblins, wielding identical rusty swords. Those fights played out as the first one, this time without Remy trying to be some heroic tank. Guy opted to block and deflect slightly less to get the AP needed to use Provoke. Averyl was quite the healer. Guy’s HP never fell below 854. Once Guy got Provoke off, it was just a matter of casting Blinding Flash and Lay on Hands to piss the Looting Goblin off while Tempeste and Remy chopped up the bastards. Some dropped consumables like hyposprays and potions. The MP hyposprays put a massive smirk on Guy’s face.
This is easy, so he thought.
The four encountered their first real challenge as they passed an idle mining cart, a pack of three Looting Goblins chuckling at them. Like all the Looting Goblins they faced, they dropped their sacks, pulled out their rusty blades, and ran for the four.
“Three goblins,” Guy said as he assessed the situation. He faced Remy and Tempeste. “One for us each.”
Remy nodded and held out his twin blades to form a defense wall with Guy and Tempeste. “Make sure they do not attack Averyl.”
“Indeed,” Averyl said. “Three goblins will only interrupt my spell casting.”
“Meaning we don’t get any heals,” Guy added.
“Of course not,” Remy snorted. “Averyl would need to be the one receiving healing.”
Guy sighed. “What I meant was, if Averyl dies, then we all do. These things will cut through her cloth robe.”
The Looting Goblins made their attack. Guy struck one and kept its attention to him. Remy took another, leaving Tempeste with the last, and a three-on-three sword fight ensued.
And as Guy feared, Tempeste was losing her HP faster than the two, probably because of her Mage subclass. Tempeste was a Berserker rocking an MP and intelligence build, not defense like Remy. Tempeste’s only saving grace was her ability to shock and paralyze the Looting Goblin she fought, and the brief few seconds from Guy’s Blinding Flash as it took their vision away. Averyl spent a lot of MP to keep everyone standing.
I guess I’ll have to save my MP for Lay on Hands. This way, Averyl won’t have to heal me as much. But then, the others wouldn’t benefit from Blinding Flash.
Guy mixed up his strategy and raised Asteria’s Sword to repel the Looting Goblin’s strikes. It kept Guy’s HP at an acceptable number, though he built AP slowly. When he checked, the Looting Goblin he was fighting had the most HP, with 70 percent. Remy’s target was at 37 percent, and the one Tempeste battled was at 39.
Remy was dishing out the pain to his Goblin. It was up to Remy to hurry the fuck up and finish it, as he was wasting too much time hiding behind his blades.
All that changed when the trio got AP.
Tempeste used Whirling Slash, an AP skill that made her spin with her Spellsword Saber out. It was kind of like Storm Slash, only she idled in one spot, spinning. But that was fine since her Whirling Slash hit all three Goblins with her lightning-infused weapon. Three Looting Goblins lost HP and convulsed from a surge of lightning bolts dancing up and down their bodies. Remy followed up by using the same AP ability, killing his Looting Goblin, and then slashing the one Tempeste fought. Guy finished the battle using Storm Slash, slicing and knocking the two Goblins through the air and into the stone walls of the tunnel.
Slowly, the Looting Goblins groaned in pain, rubbing the back of their heads as they stood up. One went right back down as Guy slashed its throat open, sending a trickle of goblin blood to the ground. Remy and Tempeste pushed their blades into the final one.
Averyl has attained level 19!
“Oh my!” Averyl gasped.
“One level away from getting a subclass,” Guy said to her. Hmm, I’m getting close to that too.
He checked his experience points.
EXP: 2311/5054
Almost level 19. Damn, if we weren’t looking for Serzax, I’d say we rerun this dungeon.
Averyl stood in the middle and used Purifying Starlight, her area of effect healing spell. A burst of green and blue light brightened the dark tunnel. Once it faded, the magic mended the wounds of the four as they enjoyed the soothing pain relief.
A clear path through the mine’s long-abandoned tunnels laid ahead, and the four traversed it, keeping their weapons out and eyes searching for any more threats. The deeper they traveled, the more carts idling on the tracks Guy saw. Most of them were full of ore that never made it to the surface. Two had old rank C weapons in them, Recruit’s Dagger and a Recruit’s Pike. Guy kept them both since nobody was interested.
“So, I’m guessing the Goblins were added when the corruption hit?” Guy asked.
“Correct,” Tempeste said. “These mines were not always like this. The reality corruption created these monsters and forced the miners to abandon it.”
The four came to a stop at a soul crystal lying on the ground. Guy lowered himself to the crystal, picked it up, and viewed its tiny information screen.
Louis’s Soul Crystal
The crystallized soul of a land-elf named Louis.
Class: Gunner Level: 17 Rank: D
“Rest in peace,” Guy said, opened his Inventory screen, and placed the crystal inside. No need to leave them behind for the imperials to collect.
“Not all the miners escaped when the goblins appeared?” Averyl asked.
Remy shook his head as the four continued through the tunnel. “Unfortunately, many were killed,” he said. “Only adventurers seeking experience points, quest completion, and the treasures the final guardian yields enters the mines.”
Averyl gasped and held her fingers over her pink lips. “Such a strange thing, this corruption . . .”
“At this point,” Guy said. “I learned to stop asking how and why the corruption does things.”
After clearing several packs of Goblins, the four pushed to the tunnel’s end where they encountered a large crack in the wall. It was large enough for people to slip into if they walked sideways. Guy peeked through the gap and noted a small chamber at the other end.
“I guess Serzax went through here,” Guy said.
“I did not see any other tunnels or lifts,” Tempeste said. “If Serzax entered this dungeon, he had to have passed through this opening.”
“Then so do we,” Guy said and slithered sideways through the crack in the wall.
Guy had to sidestep to move through it and was glad he didn’t suffer from claustrophobia. It was a real tight squeeze. He felt his back grind against the wall behind and his chest to the wall ahead. Remy, Tempeste, and Averyl followed Guy, single file, of course.
He stepped out of the hole and jumped into an enormous cavern, its ceiling covered in long, jagged-shaped rocks. A single goblin stood within the cave’s central section. It was larger than the ones they fought and held a sharp and silver sword, unlike the Looting Goblins’ rusted ones.
Guy gave the large goblin a closer look.
Goblin Captain | LVL: 19 | Rank: A
And it turned instinctively to glare at the four.
The Goblin Captain was the leader, and it yelled something in the goblin language. Four lesser Goblins leaped out from various holes in the cave’s rock face, holding daggers with bows slung over their shoulders.
Goblin Underling | LVL: 19 | Rank: D
The Goblin Captain pointed at Guy’s party, and its underlings nodded and ran to them.
“I guess he’s the boss, and those are his minions,” Guy said.
Chapter Thirty-Five
The Goblin
Underlings moved in a straight line, past Guy, Tempeste, and Remy. They ended up running to the fae healer, standing in shock with her Flame Priestess’s Scepter held tight to her chest. They were quick, too. Guy didn’t even get the chance to unsheathe Asteria’s Sword.
“Averyl!” Guy shouted to her.
Remy struck the Goblin Captain with both blades. “I’ll keep him busy! Protect our healer!”
Guy and Tempeste ran after the Goblin Underlings pursuing Averyl, and put one to the sword, killing it. The remaining Goblin Underlings didn’t attack Guy or Tempeste. They just kept chasing Averyl around and around the cavern. Not even Provoke worked.
Damn it, it must be the special mechanic of this fight. The underlings attack who the boss orders them to, no matter what.
Guy glanced at the spiky ceiling. It was a good four stories high. “Averyl, fly up, so they can’t hit you!”
Averyl looked up and smiled. “Right!”
She blossomed her fairy wings and flew to the ceiling, and kept her head just shy of the large rock spikes above. Below, the Goblin Underlings pointed at the flying fae healer and replaced their daggers for bows. The Goblin Underlings fired a flurry of arrows up at Averyl.
Guy grimaced. “Well, that didn’t work . . .” Or did it?
The Goblin Underlings stood still as they shot Averyl with arrows. They were too focused on shooting at her. The underlings made little effort to defend themselves from Guy and Tempeste’s swinging swords. Goblin gore plastered the ground and walls when Guy and the elven woman at his side finished.
Averyl returned to the cave floor with the Goblin Underlings dead, cast Starlight Recovery once to mend her injuries, then once more on Remy, who battled the Goblin Captain solo. Guy and Tempeste dashed to the boss and stuck their blades into it. It was the guardian at the end of the dungeon, and the only way out was to finish it.
Later, three Goblin Underlings leaped out from holes in the wall, landed on their feet as their boss yelled more words in the Goblin language. The Goblin Captain pointed his right index finger at Guy.
The Goblin Underlings nodded, grabbed their daggers, and ran to Guy, poking him everywhere. Like the last batch, the underlings ignored everyone else in the party and made short work of Guy’s HP, despite Averyl’s efforts. Guy went from 1068 to 670 real quick, 794 when Starlight Recovery mended his wounds, only for his HP to fall to 701 a second later.
“Fuck’s sake!” Guy raged.
“It must be ordering its underlings to attack a specific target!” Tempeste said, as she guided the Spellsword Saber into the Goblin Captain’s torso.
“Get them away! Their cleaves are hitting me!” Remy parried a strike from the Goblin Captain and looked back at Guy, wincing.
Remy was right. Guy had fought with the Goblin Underlings so close; their weapons also hit him and Tempeste and probably stressed Averyl out.
“Good call,” Guy said and backed away, dragging the Goblin Underlings with him.
He went to the far end of the cavern and met the three dagger-wielding goblins alone. It was too much to handle. Guy’s HP was dropping fast. Not even holding Asteria’s Sword out to block attacks was enough. Guy would parry one dagger, only to get two others pushed into his thigh or gut. Lay on Hands kept him vertical briefly until Guy ran out of MP and MP hyposprays. Storm Slash knocked the three goblins back, only for them to leap to their feet and continue their unfair assault on the lone Paladin. They cut Guy’s HP down to 267—
That was until Averyl came in with a quick cast of Starlight Recovery, brought Guy back up to 391, and two seconds later 515. Averyl turned around to heal Tempeste and Remy, spun back to Guy again to throw him another Starlight Recovery, and got lucky with a critical heal, bringing Guy up to 732 HP. The wince on the fae princess’s face suggested the battle was stressing her out. Averyl’s wince intensified when Guy’s HP lowered, forcing her to abandon Tempeste and Remy, idle for two seconds, and use her magic to mend Guy’s wounds.
“Can you not heal yourself?” Averyl asked Guy.
“Out of MP,” Guy said. He blocked a dagger strike, then leaped aside to escape from two more. “Yeah, yeah, I know I keep forgetting to stock up on MP hypos.”
Averyl waved her Flame Priestess’s Scepter at Remy and made Starlight Recovery’s magic seal his red lacerations. “I would lend you my potions but . . .”
“Potions don’t work on us star-dwellers . . .” Guy said drily.
“Then I shall provide you my blade!”
That was Tempeste. She kicked and flipped off the Goblin Captain, somersaulted through the air, landed to face Guy, and ran with her Spellsword Saber aimed for the back of the underling with the lowest HP.
Remy scowled at Tempeste as she ran to assist Guy. “No, that will only delay us besting this goblin!”
“I cannot keep Guy and Remy standing like this,” Averyl said amidst her spell casting. “It is a major drain on my MP!”
“We’ll be back to help you kill the boss, Remy,” Guy assured him.
“Thing is.” Remy gestured to what lay behind the Goblin Captain. More Goblin Underlings arrived in the cavern. The Goblin Captain pointed his finger at a new target, Remy. “It will keep ordering its underlings to attack one of us unless we kill it fast!”
Remy was right. The corruption was spawning new Goblin Underlings over and over as the fight dragged on.
At the rate the underlings are respawning, they’ll fucking overrun us. The boss has to die fast. I’m strong, but my class isn’t suited for all-out damage. Not having a sub isn’t helping. I’m holding us back.
Tempeste arrived just in time to strike one Goblin Underling with her lightning Spellsword Saber, making it spasm. As it shook from the electrocution, Tempeste slashed a second goblin, shocking it. It took the pressure off of Guy, so he focused less on parrying and went to build the AP needed for Storm Slash.
Remy had become overwhelmed now, having to fight three underlings and the Goblin Captain. Four targets were stabbing Remy from all angles and spilling elven blood to the ground. Remy let out a roar of pain; his HP had fallen to a dangerously low number of 185.
“Heal me, you useless pixie!” Remy bellowed.
Averyl brandished her Flame Priestess’s Scepter, glowing brightly with astral energy, as she finished casting Starlight Recovery.
Blue and green healing light fell upon Guy to give him 124 HP.
“Ugh!”
A top-to-bottom stroke cut a crimson gash through Remy’s shoulder, straight through his chest and back. The cut damn near cut him in half. Guy glimpsed Remy’s still-beating heart, squirting red juices up before he collapsed to his knees, then stumbled forward.
Remy | HP: 0/977
“Remy!” Tempeste screamed, her trembling hand reaching for him.
Tempeste twisted away and fixed her eyes on Remy’s corpse and the red circle expanding across the ground. And in the middle of it all stood Averyl with a half-smile on her face. It almost looked like Averyl enjoyed watching Remy die. Guy checked his AP; it was at 100.
Perfect.
He used Storm Slash, knocking the three Goblin Underlings into the wall, cratering it. One never moved after getting hit—hard to without HP. Working together, Guy and Tempeste put down the last two underlings, and took a second to catch their breath. They returned to battle the Goblin Captain and take Remy’s place as the tank.
There was one problem. The Goblin Captain didn’t perceive Guy and Tempeste as a threat. The Goblin Captain rushed the one person it did, Averyl.
Averyl stepped backward, shaking her head. “Oh no!”
The Goblin Captain pushed Guy and Tempeste to the ground and snarled as it raced to the frightened fae princess.
“Averyl!” Guy called out to her. “Spread your wings and fly away!”
And that she did.
Averyl flew to the ceiling to escape the wrath of the Goblin Captain. The Goblin Captain pointed his finger at Averyl and muttered an order to the spawned Goblin Underlings to shoot her
with arrows. Averyl would not last long. With the Goblin Captain’s back to Guy, he thrusted Asteria’s Sword into it, made an upward cleave, followed by a left-to-right slash. Guy hit the boss with everything he had, got AP, then used Provoke.
The Goblin Captain twisted around to Guy with pure hatred burning in its eyes and erupted with rapid lunges. Behind, Tempeste struck the bow-shooting underlings, uncontested. The Goblin Underlings were too focused on shooting the flying fairy above to care.
“Help me with this, Tempeste,” Guy shouted to her. “We have until the next wave spawns to drop this fucker, or we’re dead.” Guy glanced at Remy’s dead body. “And we’re down his damage output.”
“But Averyl . . .” Tempeste said amidst the whacks of her blade striking the underlings.
Guy looked up again and noticed the long rocky spikes jaggedly hanging down from the ceiling like giant icicles. He pointed at the one nearest Averyl. “Averyl, fly behind that,” Guy said. “You should be able to use it as cover from their arrows.”
Averyl cast Starlight Recovery on Guy, then looked at the spike he spotted. She smiled. “Why, yes . . . yes, of course!”
She buzzed her wings and drifted behind the ceiling spike. Arrows flew up to her but hit the spike instead. Averyl had blocked the underlings’ line of sight to her, granting her the chance to use her magic to mend her wounds, and peek around the spike to top up Guy’s HP with another Starlight Recovery. Meanwhile, the underlings were too stupid to realize that they couldn’t shoot through rocks on the ceiling.
There was no point in Tempeste fighting those underlings. She disengaged, then joined Guy, cutting into the Goblin Captain, and stunning it with her Spellsword Saber as it glowed with lightning. Guy took advantage and went on the offensive to increase his AP gain. Three new Goblin Underlings spawned and waited for orders. The Goblin Captain recovered from its shock paralysis and extended his finger at the next target—
Zap.
Tempeste cast Spark, stunning the boss again. When it recovered, it just growled and resumed swinging its blade at Guy. He deflected one strike, then grinned at Tempeste. “Good thinking.”
Mirror Princess: A LitRPG Space Fantasy (Sword of Asteria Book 2) Page 27