Chapter 45: C-tier Holder Promotion (4)
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Undiscovered dungeon, Goblin Lair.
I don’t know much about this place. The dungeon was briefly mentioned as Hidden Piece, and there was little information in the guidebook. I came here only because I saw that most of the monsters in the dungeon were C-grade.
I thought this would be the most suitable dungeon for my current level. Plus, if the boss is B-grade, it could be worth a try. I looked at the opponent in front of me, the fierce-eyed Goblin Chieftain, trying to swing his axe at me.
He is the only B-grade monster in this dungeon. Usually, you need five C-grade Holders to hunt a B-grade monster properly, but that’s in a general sense. If the B-grade monster is a solitary individual and the Holder facing it is from the warrior class, the situation and variables can allow a C-grade Holder to take down a B-grade monster alone.
And I was a C-grade Holder with more ‘variables’ than anyone else.
-Kerr, ugh…!!
” His voice sounds the same as the rest of the brats.”
The Goblin Chieftain looked similar to the goblin warriors, holding a shield in one hand and a weapon in the other. The only difference was that the warriors carried swords, while the chieftain had an axe bigger than his forearm.
So, I clashed my sword directly against his. I immediately activated [Fiery Flame].
After hunting for a few hours, I knew that goblin warriors were extremely weak against magic attacks.
-Kerrugh!!
It worked quite well. The Goblin Chieftain, hit by the fiery magic attack, screamed and took a step back.
If it were a warrior-type B-grade monster, it would probably have higher physical attributes than me. It might be slow in terms of speed, but its strength and endurance would be high. In that case, I would use my physical resistance only as a tank and rely on magical attacks for dealing damage.
I was now a dealer who could use both physical and magical attacks effectively.
-Kek, kekeruh…!!
The Goblin Chieftain shouted again and charged at me. I didn’t need to engage in a direct confrontation if my physical strength was inferior to his. I could block his attack for a moment and counter with a magic attack.
Using the finesse of [Water Sword Technique], I tried to smoothly parry his axe.
But something was wrong.
“Huh?”
It backfired instantly. My sword, which was supposed to parry his axe diagonally and flow away, suddenly started rusting and corroding like an old blade.
It was a familiar sight, a situation I had experienced before. It was like the final exams back in the academy when Kim Hyo-won used [Corrosion Powder]…
“Crazy!”
There was no time to dodge or raise my shield. I immediately used [Hardening] on myself.
The corroded sword pierced through, and the Goblin Chieftain’s axe struck my body.
“Keeup…!!”
Even though I hardened myself, it still hurt. I managed to block one of his axe attacks, but I couldn’t prevent the blood from spurting out. I gritted my teeth and stepped back, enduring the pain.
‘It doesn’t seem like he used an item.’
It wasn’t something like [Corrosion Powder] that Kim Hyo-won used. The Goblin Chieftain had an axe and shield in both hands, and goblins weren’t intelligent enough to use items to such an extent. It was probably a [Simple Curse] used by goblin shamans. There was a high chance of a specific curse being imbued within it.
Considering the Goblin Chieftain’s name and the fact that he was a boss, it was natural to assume that he could use curses, and his level was probably quite high.
‘But corrosion debuffs aren’t all-powerful…’
[Corrosion Powder] or related runes couldn’t corrode all equipment. Otherwise, Holders would have used it as a necessary item regardless of the cost. With slightly higher-grade items, they wouldn’t be easily corroded, and there were more ways to counter it than one would think, depending on the Holder’s individual abilities.
But most of my equipment was normal grade, and there was no special method to prevent corrosion.
I was in a situation where I had to endure the shaman’s curse without any means to resist.
“However, there’s still a way.”
I poured a potion into my mouth and looked ahead.
I had experienced battles in such desperate situations many times. Every time I faced a critical situation, a solution would come to mind like a conditioned reflex.
“Hup!”
I threw four short knives at the Goblin Chieftain’s shield. At the same time, he raised his shield. My [Quarter Knives] were effortlessly blocked by his shield. It seems like his [Shield] rune level is also considerable.
But it was a kind of fake attack, meant to draw attention.
I took advantage of the opening.
Swiftly using [Agile Agility], I charged towards the Goblin Chieftain.
‘Combat won’t work.’
My physical strength was already lacking, and with my low level in [Combat] I couldn’t deal any damage to the Goblin Chieftain. I had to use my sword and magic somehow; that was the only way to deliver effective hits to him.
I sidestepped the Goblin Chieftain, who was holding a shield, and thrust my left-handed sword at him.
-Kerk!!
The Goblin Chieftain widened his eyes as he noticed my approach. He used another curse related to corrosion. The curse was fast and strong enough to instantly corrode my sword. It turned to dust in no time.
‘Caught me’. However, I had already sensed success. In my right hand was another sword, ready to be used.
-Kerk?
“I knew this would happen, so I prepared more than ten of them.” I immediately activated [Fiery Flame] pulling off the finesse of [Wave Sword Technique] when I thrust the sword.
My attack, skillfully blended with both physical and magical power, pierced through the Goblin Chieftain’s high toughness, dealing a significant blow.
-Kerkwack…!!
Momentarily stunned by the powerful strike, the Goblin Chieftain seemed to hesitate. I didn’t miss this chance and immediately used the derived skill from [Oppression] called [Declaration of Domination]. It was the debuff I had saved until now.
The Goblin Cheftain was hit with a debilitating curse for three seconds. Although my corroded sword was once again dissolving inside him, I remained calm.
“It’s a mass-produced sword, you son of a bitch.”
In my magic bag, I still had plenty more swords left, at least ten of them.
***
Ippotranslation
***
[You have won the duel! With the mysterious power of the Rune Hunter, you can duplicate one of the opponent’s runes. Please choose the rune to duplicate.]
[1. Simple Curse (not selectable) 2. Axe (not selectable) 3. Shield (not selectable) 4. Strength (not selectable) 5. Armor of Fortitude]
[You have chosen Armor of Fortitude. Since it is a level 5 normal rune, its level will decrease and be registered as level 3.]
[You have gained a new rune.]
[Due to the rune’s attributes, you gain +1 toughness.]
The Goblin Chieftain was defeated by my effective strikes. After the first successful hit, he kept trying to corrode my weapons, but my numerous weapons, crafted by Choi Yoo-min, were enough to end his life.
As expected, the rune he used was the [Simple Curse]. However, there was one shortcoming in his approach. He focused solely on corrosion, neglecting to utilize other spells such as ‘Frailty’ or ‘Slowness’, which were often used by previous goblin shamans.
If he had incorporated those spells in combat, the outcome might have been different.
“…Was it the same as before?” Actually, there probably wasn’t much difference.
Nevertheless, considering the high degree of corrosion, the Goblin Chieftain’s rune level was quite high. It was regrettable that I couldn’t select [Simple Curse] as it was already gained.
“But I got Armor of Fortitude, at least.” Though it was a pity, it didn’t mean I gained no rune at all.
A representative common rune among warrior-type Holders, [Armor of Fortitude] boosted toughness. It would complement [Lizard’s Scales], another rune I had.
Moreover, with this acquisition, my toughness reached 30. Now, all my primary physical attributes—strength, speed, and toughness—were above 30.
“Now let’s see… The rest room is…” I explored the Goblin Chieftain’s house after collecting all the by-products from the goblin warriors.
In every dungeon’s boss room, there was a rest room—a place to rest and gain rewards. Since this was still an undiscovered dungeon, I could monopolize the rewards from the rest room.
“….”
But something felt strange. I searched the Goblin Chieftain’s house for several minutes, but I couldn’t find the rest room, even after rubbing my eyes and searching again.
“A-Are you kidding me, really?” Trying to compose my trembling voice, I calmly searched the house again, starting from what looked like the master bedroom and living room.
I went through the kitchen, bathroom, and even the room with an unidentified purpose.
But still, nothing. There was no rest room.
“No way. Is this not an undiscovered dungeon?” Was it a dungeon that had already been cleared before I arrived? If my memory serves me right, it should have been an undiscovered dungeon… In a moment of mixed feelings of frustration and confusion…
-Kerk?
“….?”
In the boss room, where all the battles had already been fought, a single goblin appeared.
This goblin looked completely different from the typical ones. It didn’t carry any weapon like the warriors or look like a shaman. It seemed unprepared for battle.
“What is that?”
Most notably, its entire body was covered in a golden hue. It wore what looked like a treasure bag on its back. Its appearance was too lavish to be considered a regular goblin, and it idiotic eyes, blinked.
“….” It was a Golden goblin.
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TL NOTE: Sorry about late post, made a mistake with time.
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