1st Floor II

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I'm having trouble posting Ingrid's appearance. When I post it, it lets only me see it. But if I log out, the picture disappears. If any of you know how to fix it, please let me know. Nothing I can do at the moment. 

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On with the chapter!

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Five goblins leaped at Leandro, each of them armed with a blade. 

He stepped forward, left, right, ducked under a dagger, then pivoted on his foot, and with a broad swing of his sword, decapitated all the goblins. Calling it easy would have been an understatement. It wasn't the first ambush, and Leandro knew it wouldn't be the last one either.

'How long did it take that guy to clear the 1st Floor?'

Five hours? 

Leandro decided to do it in under one hour. 

A swath of arrows flew out of the trees. Archers this time, huh? Leandro calmly lifted his sword, and the row of arrows ricocheted off of the blade. Aura surged in his body, but it didn't do much to minimize some of the cuts that appeared in his arms and legs. 

Thankfully, on the 1st floor the number of goblins to be defeated was rather contained. 

Goblins were poor archers—it took them around five to six seconds to load, aim, and release an arrow. 

Enough time. 

Leandro bolted forward like an eagle diving for its prey. With a hop, he skillfully stepped on the bark of a tree and used it as a springboard to elevate himself further in the air. His eyes scampered left and right, searching for his enemies. 'Found one.'

Perched on the branch of the tree he had just climbed. Leandro's hand flicked. A downward slash easily dismembered the panicking creature. Three more arrows attempted to nail him to the tree, but a moving target is harder to hit, especially one as fast as Leandro.

Within a second of his kill, he was already making head stride for his next target. 

He tilted his head to the right, timely grabbing the arrow that flew by. And he responded by flinging the missile at the goblin that threw it at him. The arrow drilled through the creature's eye. 

It fell off the tree, splattering on the ground. 

The remaining ones retaliated with a storm of projectiles. 

Aura surged around Leandro in a very faint outline as he bolted from tree to tree, effectively dodging every arrow and beheading the sneaky archers. Heads rolled everywhere he went. The amount of arrows that targeted him diminished by the minute. 

Once more, Leandro leaped again. With his sword drawn, he pivoted mid-air, and in a flash he lopped off the head of the last goblin. The monster's eyes remained open, stuck in a moment of agony. 

Blood spurted out in rivulets. 

Gracefully landing on the ground, Leandro sheathed his sword. 

〔Agility +1〕

〔Strength +1〕

A good haul, overall. His stats were steadfastly improving. Getting his 2nd Star before reaching the next floor was a bit of a stretch, but it was a solid foundation. He reckoned he'd be able to advance his rank on the 5th floor, maybe a bit earlier depending on his performance. 'It's still a long road before I become a constellation…'

Up ahead, was the goblin's cave

They had the missing piece of the map. 

Of course, they wouldn't simply hand it to him if he asked nicely. The Monolith likely had a reward system for the monsters as well. 

As soon as Leandro stepped into the cave, he could see a multitude of red eyes peering at him from the darkness of their home. 'As if that would intimidate me.'

He scoffed, unsheathed his sword, and charged into the darkness. 

"Kiiiik!"

His sword blurred. Green blood spurted out everywhere. The stench of iron wafted. 

He might as well have been a heavenly demon to these creatures. Leandro weaved through their attacks as if they had choreographed it beforehand. Even in the darkness, he was at home. 

A goblin tried to tackle him from behind, but ended up coughing out blood when a perfect backward kick shattered its ribcage. Another one lunged at him from his flank. Leandro cracked its skull with the pommel of his sword before springing the momentum forward and stabbing another one. 

His marvelous mastery of the Aura enhanced his senses, his perception, his movements. 

An upward slash cleaved a goblin into halves. Leandro's body twirled like that of a ballerina's—arms, legs, sword—they all became an extension of him. They all moved with perfect synchronization; no stuttering or hesitation. One goblin after another was quickly slain. They all raised their weapons and shields, they all bared their teeth, they all let out ear-piercing shrieks.

Nothing.

Within seconds all the monsters died to him.

He approached the last one.

The leader—a wizened goblin, sickly, with thin arms and legs. It stared at Leandro with intelligent eyes. The language barrier made communication ineffective, but the intent was somehow conveyed. 

It raised a bony hand in his direction as it chanted.

"Ah, a shaman?"

A fireball the size of a goblin's head came into being, spinning and cracking. The goblin must have used its remaining lifeforce to feed the spell. The fire grew larger, yet the creature's body started wavering. 

With a yell, it sent the fireball careening forward. The cave, for a brief moment, was lit up, bathing the corpses of its previous inhabitants in warm light. 

Leandro simply raised a hand and grabbed the fire. His Aura flared out, completely overwhelming the spell structure and breaking it apart in his clenched fist. Embers drifted off the gaps of his fingers.

Within a second of contact, the fire had gone out. 

"Now then… oh, nevermind."

The leader was dead.

Though…

As Leandro looked around, he saw the bodies of the goblins he slayed turning into motes of light and ebbing away. Even their dismembered parts were covered in light. 

'I see… a holy spell masqueraded as fire one. Not bad.'

He felt a tinge of respect for the old goblin. Exhausting its lifeforce to bless its kin instead of stopping Leandro. Was that further evidence that those creatures were truly living and complex entities? 

Did you ever stop to think that the NPCs you killed could have some sort of higher intelligence? 

Ingrid was right. 

The Tower was real.

And so were the creatures inside it.

The Monolith would spawn another batch of goblins as soon as Leandro cleared the 1st floor, but those goblins would never be the same as the ones he slaughtered.

However, such philosophical thoughts no longer fazed him. He focused on the goal in front of him. 

Leandro sheathed his sword and continued forth. 

He skillfully navigated through the darkness before he reached the old goblin's resting area. You could hardly call it a resting area. If it wasn't for the various decorations and shamanistic relics strewn about, he'd be still looking around. 

'It's a good thing they didn't bother to hide it.'

The missing half of the map was in plain sight, neatly folded among a treasure lump in a corner. 

〔You have found the hidden piece.〕

〔The entrance to the 2nd floor will now be revealed.〕

As if by magic—and Leandro knew it was—the two halves of the map came back together as if they'd never been torn in the first place. A hidden path revealed itself. The dotted dashes led to the base of a mountain range. It wouldn't take long to get there. 

He looked around for one last time. There was nothing of particular value. 

Still…

A leather book caught Leandro's enhanced sight. It was hidden behind an outcrop. 

Driven by curiosity, he bent down to pick it up. 

〔You have discovered a book containing the insights of the Goblin Shaman, Ky'u.〕

Shamanistic magic. Worthless. However, just because he didn't have a use for it, didn't mean someone else wouldn't be a good fit for it. The major problem was that you needed the standard amount of 'Mind' to cast the spells. As far as Leandro remembered, it was around 15-20 points. 

To be fair, at this stage there was no one who met the requirement. It was much better to hold onto it for the time being. Maybe he could give it to either Hari or Nari? He could use it himself, but it would be more useful if either of his sisters learned it instead. There were extremely few magic spells in the Monolith that could hold handle a candle to his sword forms. 'I'll be able to use them soon...'

Leandro retraced his way out of the cave. The corpses of the goblins outside hadn't been blessed, and thus were still there. Tough luck for them. It was a low level spell, in the first place. 

Now…

He needed to head towards the entrance of the 2nd floor. The map had indicated its location at the base of the mountain range. Leandro didn't waste time and sped through the forest. Goblins made way for him; someone that fast would likely be strong as well.

At least they were not mindless creatures. 

Leandro was thankful for that.

With his aura-enhanced speed, it didn't take him long to reach the outskirts of the mountain. Even from a distance, he could see a stone archway—a massive structure, half-hidden by the creeping vines and moss that blanketed the mountainside. Ancient runes were carved into its surface, glowing faintly with an otherworldly light. 

"This is it, huh?"

It was deactivated. 

So, he approached it, placing a hand on its arch. A hum of energy pulsed through him, and the runes flared brightly, illuminating the surrounding area. As soon as he stepped back, he smiled when he saw a gelatinous substance emerge from the edges of the archway, weaving together to form a flimsy portal to the 2nd floor 

〔The entrance to the 2nd floor has been revealed.〕

〔According to the records of all Monoliths, the clearing of this floor has been the fastest across all worlds. Rewards will be distributed accordingly.〕

〔You have received 3 stat points to be freely distributed.〕

〔You have received: Minor Healing Potion x2〕

〔You have received: Standard Healing Potion x1〕

〔Aura +1〕

〔Physique +2〕

••••

•••

••

•

Ingrid saw real people die. 

It didn't happen fast, unlike a car accident, a plane crashing, or even a swift, painless death. She had seen real, breathing humans, be ganged up by goblins and stabbed to death. Maybe to these creatures there wasn't much of a difference where they stabbed. Maybe they didn't know that going for the throat would have granted them a more merciful end.

Maybe they knew, but decided to inflict more pain.

She didn't know.

But she did watch as a couple of men, too self-absorbed in some twisted superiority, scream, writhe, beg, and then bleed to death. Ingrid had barely managed to kill two goblins before a third one got in a hit, slicing her cheek open. 

The sharp, burning pain was real. As was the blood that ran down her face. 

"T-They're dead…"

"How… How did it happen?"

The pack of goblins was dealt with, but they suffered losses on their side too. Everyone was a bit shocked. Ingrid found herself wondering…

'If that guy was here, would these men still be alive?'

She didn't think Leandro was that strong until she saw men, bigger and stronger-looking than him, getting brutally mangled by those imps. The comparison wasn't even fair. Leandro was calm, elegant, and deadly.

Seventeen goblins lay dead around them. 

And it took the combined effort of—

Ingrid made a quick, mental headcount as she stared at the group.

—20 people. 22, if you counted the casualties as well. 

Casualties aside, the remaining survivors were badly wounded. Some people had their limbs hacked up in bloody stumps. Others had ugly wounds on the abdomen, and some, like Ingrid herself, had their faces slightly disfigured in a variety of manners.

She subconsciously raised a hand to her cheek.

Honestly, she was just glad to be alive.

Her heart was still beating. Her blood was still pumping. 

There would come a point in the future where she'd grow numb and disregard deaths, where she'd slaughter goblins like they're chicken nuggets and feel nothing. But not just yet. She had a long, long, way to go until she'd reach that sort of apathy.

Would she even reach that point? 

A sigh escaped her lips, and she just let herself slump on the ground. Her luscious, blonde hair was matted with grime and viscous, green ichor. The stench was awful. 

'Is he still alive?'

He must've been. No way that guy just went and got himself killed after walking away like some dramatic movie protagonist. She heaved a deep sigh, wondering if she should have run after him. Her eyes drifted to the sky. It sure was beautiful. 

"Hmm?"

Screens appeared in front of her. 

〔Congratulations, the hidden entrance to the 2nd floor has been found.〕

〔According to the records of all Monoliths, the clearing of this floor has been the fastest across all worlds. Rewards will be distributed accordingly.〕

Ingrid found herself staring, in utter shock, at the screens. And she wasn't the only one either. All they did was kill a bunch of goblins—they had yet to do any sort of exploration. In fact, that was one of the things they were just about to discuss. 

Yet…

It was already cleared.

It was indeed a little fast. 

〔You have received 1 stat points to be freely distributed.〕

〔You have received: Minor Healing Potion x1〕

"W-What…"

A fluttering of lights coalesced above Ingrid's hands. When they disappeared, a vial with a blue substance inside was left behind. She tentatively uncorked it, taking a sniff. 'Doesn't smell like anything…'

Drinking an unknown liquid wasn't a smart idea, but she liked to think that if the Monolith wanted to kill her, it could've done so anytime. 

Ingrid downed the potion in one gulp. 

A tingling sensation enveloped the left side of her face, where the goblin had amicably caressed it with the edge of a blade. Bastard. 

The throbbing pain abated until she couldn't feel anything. 

A probing touch of her hand only revealed smooth, uncut skin.

"Hah…"

'I haven't done much, yet this is what I got… then, what did that guy get?'

She laughed, a bitter one, as she swiped up and down with her finger.

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〔Ingrid Jansen〕

〔Rank: None〕

〔Title: None〕

〔Strength: 9〕

〔Agility: 10〕

〔Physique: 9〕

〔Mind: 12〕

〔Aura: 0〕

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