Leo tightened his grip on the rusty dagger.
"Alright," he muttered under his breath, "one ugly boss fight coming right up."
The Goblin Chieftain's yellow eyes snapped open.
They locked on him instantly.
"...Crap."
The creature rose from its throne in one slow, deliberate motion. It was massive — two heads taller than any goblin Leo had seen before, its corded muscles shifting under pale gray skin. Two jagged black horns curved forward like a charging bull's, and the chipped greatsword in its hand was the size of a small car door.
"Huuma… krrraaagh," it growled — low, guttural, and dripping with the kind of malice you couldn't mistake for anything else.
Leo tilted his head. "Yeah, I don't speak murder-goblin, but I'm guessing that's not 'Welcome to my home.'"
The Chieftain stepped forward, dragging its sword along the floor. Sparks lit the chamber.
Think, Leo. Sung wouldn't panic here. He'd calculate. He'd—
The Chieftain lunged without warning, sweeping its sword in a massive horizontal arc.
Leo dove back — not a second too soon.
The blade smashed into the wall behind him with an earth‑shaking thoom, sending chunks of stone flying.
Leo landed hard, wincing. "Okay… no one told me you were swinging for home runs."
The Chieftain advanced, swinging again, this time overhead. Leo rolled sideways, the sword missing his head by inches before exploding the floor in a shower of rock shards.
Ding!
──────────────
[HP: 72%]
──────────────
Leo gritted his teeth. Great, it grazed me. Already bleeding and we've barely started.
He moved toward one of the stone pillars, keeping it between them. "Alright, let's play tag."
The Chieftain slowed — deliberate now, watching him.
"You think you're scary?" Leo called out, forcing his voice steady. "I've seen school bullies scarier than you. Okay… maybe not with the teeth."
It stabbed forward, lightning fast for its size. Leo sidestepped and jammed his dagger into its forearm.
It didn't flinch.
Leo froze. "Oh. Well, that's… bad."
The backhand came before he could react. A wall of muscle and bone slammed into his ribs, and suddenly, Leo was airborne.
He hit the wall hard enough to see stars.
──────────────
[HP: 28% - Critical Status]
──────────────
His ribs screamed in protest as he coughed and staggered up.
The Chieftain roared and raised its sword for the killing blow.
"Move, idiot!" Leo's survival instincts shrieked.
He rolled aside just in time. The greatsword split the floor where he'd been, like it was made of wet clay.
Leo scrambled toward the corpses of the goblins he'd fought earlier. His hands groped blindly until he found something solid — the shaft of a crude spear.
He stood, leveling it at the Chieftain. "Alright… let's try this."
The Chieftain tilted its head — amused.
"You think I don't know I'm outmatched?" Leo asked, panting. "Yeah, but here's the thing — I'm not here to win fair."
It charged, sword raised.
Leo darted to a pillar. At the last second, he sidestepped, letting the Chieftain's swing bury its sword deep in the stone.
He rammed the spearpoint into the gap between its arm and chest, twisting hard.
The Chieftain bellowed in genuine pain.
──────────────
[Critical Hit!]
──────────────
Leo grinned through bloody teeth. "Finally! You do bleed green."
The triumph lasted exactly two seconds before the Chieftain snapped the spear like a twig.
Leo backed up. "Okay… Plan C. Don't suppose you want to grab lunch instead?"
No answer — just the steady, menacing drag of steel on stone.
Leo's gaze flicked to the cracked pillars. A thought sparked. Structure collapse. Just like Jinwoo's tricks.
"Yeah… that could work."
He taunted it again. "Come on, you overgrown lawn gnome!"
The Chieftain snarled and swung wildly.
Another pillar cracked.
The ceiling above groaned ominously.
Leo's heart raced. "Almost there…"
One last time — he baited the swing, stepped aside, and the sword bit deep into the final weak pillar.
The chamber's death rattle filled the air as the ceiling gave way.
With a roar, tons of stone came crashing down.
The Chieftain's defiant scream cut off instantly.
Dust swallowed the chamber.
Leo coughed, waving it away. He stared at the rubble, half expecting it to move.
Nothing.
Ding!
──────────────
[Goblin Chieftain Defeated]
+500 EXP
──────────────
Leo slumped against the wall, laughing weakly. "Holy… crap. I killed it."
His HP was still flashing red. His ribs were still broken. But he was alive.
And stronger.
──────────────
Level Up!
──────────────
He stared at the glowing notification, his lips curling into a shaky grin.
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A/N: 10 Chapters have been uploaded, please do let me know what you all think?