6 Chapter Six: Combat Assessment

Once again, a timer ticked away, but this time Fynn's heart wasn't pounding. Instead, an otherworldly cold washed over him, and emotions dimmed. Flynn wasn't sure just how much mana he had, but it seemed to be enough to at least activate Cold Detachment which had a cost of 30 mana. Flynn felt his mana pool dim as soon as he activated it, and until he dismissed the ability, he would be at a permanent 30 mana deficiency. Fortunately, this wasn't a problem for Flynn since he had no other abilities or magic.

The last of the countdown sounded, and a cyan light illuminated the world around Flynn. The now emotionless man watched as the light slowly shifted until a small green humanoid figure sat in the middle of the makeshift arena. Even if the beast's back hadn't been hunched over, it would only reach Flynn's waist.

If his magic ability hadn't been activated, Flynn would have died from embarrassment, but lucky, his suppressed emotions were much easier to handle. The goblin, on the other hand, let out a trill of enjoyment as he downed his treat. It returned its finger into the cave that was its nose to retrieve another morsel to snack upon.

In Flynn's first life, the goblin had beaten him bloody with the gnarled club it dragged behind it. Now looking at it again, the goblin was little more than a warm-up, and Flynn wondered just how he managed to survive the tutorial. He stepped forward, but to Flynn's surprise, the dimwitted goblin reacted.

The monster jumped before making a grunting noise as it lifted the gnarled club towards Flynn in a threatening manner. The club was almost the size of the goblin, and the entire thing amused Flynn. He watched as the goblin held the club directly in front of its face blocking its view of Flynn. He sighed, his cheeks turning a bit red despite his ability.

| Combat Assessment started; you have 10 minutes to defeat your enemy. You may surrender at any time by yelling Surrender.|

The system announced the timer's start, but this time rather than staring at the creature like a dimwit as he had done in his first life, Flynn moved. His body was slow, nowhere near the speed his mind wanted to go, but even still, he closed the gap between him and his opponent before the creature realized what was happening.

Flynn swept his leg, and the monster lifted its club in reaction to the sudden movement. However, it was too late, and with a swift lower kick, the goblin was sent sprawling. Flynn didn't give it a second to recover, and his foot slammed into flesh as tiny bones in the goblin's small beck cracked killing it instantly. Flynn ended the battle with two swift movements.

| Goblin Soldier Defeated. 100 XP earned! Time: 6 seconds. You are allotted a 30-second break to recover before the next monster appears.|

| Skill unlocked: Unarmed Combat! Note: The player's proficiency with this skill far outclasses their rank. Experience gained in this skill will be increased until its level matches its proficiency. |

Flynn reached down and grabbed the club feeling the weapon's weight. Flynn swung it through the air a few times as he got a feel for the crude weapon's reach. It wasn't ideal, and it took far more effort to swing it than Flynn wanted to expend, but unfortunately, it was all the makeshift warrior had. He would work with what was given. After all, a weapon was only as good as its wielder.

A few breaths passed before more blue light erupted from the arena spawning his next opponent. This time a howl and snarl escaped the monster's snout, and before the illumination even dissipated, a wolf the size of a mastiff was charging toward Flynn.

The beast was on him in a matter of moments, and powerful legs sent the monster into the air. Sharp fangs aimed for Flynn's neck as he crouched down in a batter's stance, swinging the gnarled club with all his might. Club met flesh with a meaty thud, and the sensation was only furthered by the aching pain of impact surging through his underdeveloped arm. It hurt like hell.

The club snapped and splintered. The blow was solid and the beast answered with whimpering cries from a mangled snout. The wolf sat dazed and in pain; it tried but failed to get up, staggering under the pain. Flynn calmly walked over to the creature. He raised the broken Club, which was little more than a crooked stick at this point. Jagged edges and splinters the size of fingers protruding out of it. With one swift movement, Flynn punctured the animal's heart.

Its last dying howl came out as a whimper, and Flynn watched the life leave its eyes. In another life, he would have mourned the death of such a beautiful creature; now, he looked down at it without words or remorse. He didn't have the time for such luxuries.

| Forest Prowler Defeated! 100 XP earned. Time: 16 seconds. You will be given a 30-second break..|

Flynn interrupted the prompt with a mental swipe, only for another to appear.

| Skill unlocked: Blunt Weapons! Note: The player's proficiency with this skill far outclasses ... |

Flynn read the standard text idly, wondering what the actual level of his skills was. He knew an estimation of where they were at during his time on the first floor, but he also knew instinctively that if given a sword, his skill would far outstrip his first-floor self. It was as if certain things, more important things such as the sword or loved ones, all but ignored his memory loss. The whole thing was strange, and he wondered how the system chose such things.

Once again, his musings were ripped away as light filled the night's air. A skeleton swordsman shambled its way out of the ethereal blue, and Flynn took the initiative, this time throwing the mostly useless stake at the swordsman. It was not a particularly fast or deadly throw, but the skeleton moved to deflect the blow with its sword anyway.

Unlike in modern media or games, skeleton warriors within the trials were not slow or clumsy. They were usually powered by a necromancer's magic and, without the restraint of muscles, could move in unorthodox ways. Skeletal warriors were a gatekeeper for many within the tutorial, and many surrendered at this stage; however, Flynn had no intention of giving up so easily. He would not live in mediocrity a second time.

The skeleton deflected the projectile, quickly knocking it away with the impact of a simple swipe; however, in the few moments it took to swing, Flynn moved, diving towards the skeleton with the full force of his body and strength behind his tackle. It was a gamble with his The skeleton realized too late what was happening and took the tackle straight on.

Flynn's strength was minimal at best, but due to the surprising nature and speed of his attack, it sent the two of them tumbling and knocked the sword from the warrior's hand. Flynn pinned the monster to the ground with his weight and gripped the skull with his free hand. The monster beat on Flynn's back with its boney fists, but Flynn paid no attention to the pain as he proceeded to bash the skull into the ground.

Smack… Thud… Smash...

Eventually, after a series of repeated and painful collisions, the skeleton went from punches to scratches. It raked its hands across Flynn's back. Blood and flesh were torn from his flank as the monster flailed and raddled. However, Flynn was a master blacksmith at work, and the smoke and flame that was pain wafted past him, dissipating as Flynn hammered the skull into the dirt. And then finally he heard it.

Crunch

Flynn slowly got up from the Skelton, retrieving the rusted sword the monster had been holding earlier as his prize. Blood trickled down his head and back as pain that had been suppressed flared to the surface. Flynn winced as he stretched despite his better judgment. All in all, Flynn's worst injury was his exhaustion, but he wasn't done yet.

Flynn Blackwater was still on his feet, and more importantly, he now had a sword.