Chapter 15: You Again!!!!

Chapter Fifteen

"Skraaahhhh!" The pained screams of the goblins filled the air. The reason was none other than the fact that a certain someone was currently causing absolute havoc inside their cave.

Two goblins slowly stepped backward in unison, their trembling gazes locked onto the figure of a young human. His dark clothing was dripping with dark blood... the blood of their slain comrades.

The human had already slain five goblins, and only two remained. And the terrifying thing was how quickly it had happened.

Sharp, precise, the human attacked their vital points without wasting the slightest amount of time. It was almost as if the dungeon owed him some staggering debt, and he had come to collect every last bit of it.

"What...?" the first goblin asked. "Do we...?" The second goblin’s eyes were also filled with fear. It had no idea what to do.

Perhaps they could run, but that wouldn’t change anything. The cave was only so big, after all. There was nowhere to run.

"Fight."

The two goblins looked at each other before slowly turning their eyes toward the young man. The moment their gazes met Orion’s grey eyes... they shivered involuntarily.

Orion looked at the two goblins shaking in their boots and sighed softly.

"Sorry, guys." His voice was almost apologetic. "But I’ve got to end this fast." He glanced deeper into the cave.

"There’ll be more rounds to clear, after all."

The moment those words fell... Orion struck.

The two goblins didn’t even have the chance to react. Their terrified expressions froze as Orion’s attacks landed.

They were killed almost instantly. Unlike before, when Orion would deliberately lose himself in the thrill of battle, things were different now.

After seeing Iris’s worsening condition... he had made a decision. He needed to put in more effort. Double his effort, if possible. Triple it.

He had promised their father that he would protect this home. He had promised to protect his family, and Orion wouldn’t fail that promise.

Not now. Not ever.

Orion used the few seconds before the dungeon boss appeared to catch his breath. At the same time, he had already planned several ways to quickly end the upcoming battle.

No matter how skilled or powerful Orion was... he was still a Level 0. Taking down a Dungeon Boss who was at Level 2 wouldn’t be easy.

Soon... a large blue light shone. Orion’s System flashed before his eyes.

[Ding!]

[The Dungeon Boss has appeared!]

The familiar figure emerged: the Green Goblin King. Twice as large as the ordinary goblins, the Dungeon Boss wielded two massive clubs in his hands.

The moment its eyes landed on Orion, anger immediately appeared within them.

"You again..."

Orion looked at the Goblin King. A small smile appeared on his face. But then... the smile disappeared.

His expression became serious.

"Sorry, friend." Orion tightened his grip on his dagger. "I have to hasten things and go rough this time."

His grey eyes became cold.

"This might hurt more than usual."

The Goblin King’s eyes twitched. It didn’t know why... but the moment it saw the serious expression on this nightmare’s face, its mind went blank for a moment.

Wait... that hateful human is actually getting serious?

When he wasn’t serious, he was already a nightmare. And now... the Goblin King suddenly felt as if its life was in genuine danger.

It hurriedly tried to reason with Orion.

"Human..." The Goblin King swallowed. "We don’t need to fight."

A monster... a Dungeon Boss... was actually begging a human for a truce. Perhaps there was no greater humiliation for a Dungeon Boss than this.

But did the Goblin King still have any pride left?

Maybe. But whatever pride remained within it vanished the moment it saw that serious look in Orion’s eyes.

What remained... was simply fear. Fear of what would happen if this nightmare called a human child truly decided to take things seriously.

"We don’t need to fight," the Goblin King said again.

Orion shook his head.

"No." His dagger lowered slightly. "We do."

Before the Goblin King could say anything else... Orion attacked.

The battle was fierce. After all, no matter how weak the Goblin King might have looked while begging for a truce, it was still a Level 2 monster.

Its strength and speed were far beyond those of the ordinary goblins.

But even so... the battle didn’t last nearly as long as it had before. Because this time, Orion wasn’t allowing himself to become lost in the thrill of battle.

He wasn’t playing. He wasn’t enjoying himself. He was simply fighting.

And when Orion completely abandoned the thrill of battle and became serious... that was when he was at his most deadly.

His movements became ruthless. His attacks became precise. There was no unnecessary motion, no wasted strike, no hesitation.

Ten minutes later... a pained cry escaped from the throat of the Goblin King.

"Graaahhh!"

Orion’s dagger had pierced straight through its neck. The Goblin King staggered backward, barely able to remain standing.

Its massive body trembled. Its dying eyes stared at Orion’s cold expression, and it shivered.

Why... why does this human feel so different from the sunny one from before? They’re the same person, right?

And yet... the Goblin King suddenly realized something. It would much rather be killed by that sunny young man with the annoying bright smile... compared to this other side of him.

This cold... ruthless... terrifying version.

As the last bit of strength drained from its body, the Goblin King struggled to speak. Its voice was weak, barely audible.

"Please..." It trembled. "Please don’t come back again."

Then... its massive body collapsed. And the cave fell silent with that... the Goblin King died.

[Ding!]

[You have cleared the Basic Green Dungeon.]

[You have gained 0.2 EXP.]

The body of the Goblin King slowly faded away. In its place, a small white tooth appeared.

The tooth had a strange green tip.

[Ding!]

[You have received an item.]

[Item: Goblin Tooth]

[Value: Low]

Orion picked up the tooth and examined it. Then he shook his head.

Unlike the Magic Crystal he had obtained yesterday, which was worth around 1,000 points, this item wasn’t nearly as valuable.

The Goblin Tooth was only worth around 50 points.

Still... Orion didn’t suck at that. He simply put the tooth away and headed outside the dungeon.

This was a recurring dungeon. Based on the nature of such dungeons, it would remain unavailable for a while after being cleared.

The dungeon needed to gather enough energy to reform the creatures within it before it could be challenged again.

Which meant... the Goblin King’s final request was destined to remain unfulfilled.

After all, Orion intended to return and clear this dungeon two... or even more times in a single day.

Soon, Orion spotted Old Dian sitting at his camp. The old man was visibly surprised when he saw Orion.

He had arrived earlier than usual today.

"Good morning, Uncle Dian," Orion greeted.

The elderly man responded with a smile.

"Already done for the day?"

Orion shook his head.

"No."

He then explained his plan. He intended to clear the dungeon multiple times in a single day.

Old Dian’s expression immediately became alarmed.

"That would be pushing it too far!"

Clearing a dungeon once was already extremely taxing, not to mention doing it multiple times.

Old Dian immediately disagreed. But Orion didn’t back down.

He continued convincing the old man until, eventually, Dian finally learned about his little sister’s illness.

The old man’s expression softened. He wanted to help. He truly did.

But he was only a weak Level 2 Keeper assigned by the city to watch over a Level 1 dungeon. His earnings were meager at best.

There was simply no way he could raise enough points for Iris’s treatment.

In the end, Old Dian agreed... but only on one condition.

"If you feel that you can’t push forward anymore, you give up."

Orion nodded.

"Alright."

He sat down beside the old man. Based on the area they were in, the surrounding mana was actually of decent quality.

It fluctuated from time to time, but most of the time, the mana remained relatively strong. Because of this, the Basic Green Dungeon could recuperate within roughly three to four hours.

Before the dungeon recovered, Orion used the time to rest his sore muscles. He needed to return in the best condition possible.

If not his best... then at least a better condition than before.

No matter how skilled or powerful he was... Orion was still a weak Level 0. Clearing the dungeon once was already close to his limit.

But for the sake of his little sister... he had no choice. He had to push beyond that limit. He had to force himself further. He had to keep going.

"The dungeon is ready."

Old Dian’s voice suddenly reached Orion’s ears. His eyes snapped open.

Without wasting any time, Orion stood up and stepped into the dungeon once more.

This time... he was even more vicious toward the goblins. It wasn’t because Orion was venting his frustration on them.

No. He simply couldn’t afford to drag the battle out. So from the very beginning... he gave it everything he had.

Before the goblins could even come to terms with the fact that they were facing a completely different breed of monster... they began falling one after another.

One goblin had its hand dismembered before bleeding out. Another had its skull pierced through. Another had its neck crushed beneath a boulder.

It was truly a gruesome sight.

Yet throughout it all... Orion’s expression remained calm. Cold.

His muscles were already sore from the previous battle. His breathing was ragged. But he continued moving.

The battle against the seven goblins, which usually took him one to two hours, ended in barely forty minutes.

Of course... he wasn’t left unscathed. His left arm had been smashed badly by one of the terrified goblins.

It couldn’t be helped. By rushing to eliminate them as quickly as possible, Orion simply didn’t have the opportunity to dodge every single attack.

He endured the pain and continued. Soon, his gaze shifted toward the blue light descending from above.

His grey eyes shone with a cold light.

The light faded. And the Dungeon Boss appeared once more: the Green Goblin King.

But the moment its eyes locked onto Orion... its entire body froze.

Its face turned pale, It nearly cried.

"You again...?"