Hobgoblins were naturally far more imposing than standard goblins. They stood at a towering six feet tall, built with thick, hulking shoulders and long, powerful arms. There was no doubt that they possessed a cruel intelligence, too. They didn't just scramble forward like mindless beasts.
Arthur could count at least seven of them baring their fangs. They wore crude pieces of iron scrap armor strapped over their chests and carried heavy, serrated cleavers that looked entirely capable of splitting a man in half. The moment the torchlight caught them, their bloodshot eyes locked onto the intruders with instant, violent hostility.
"Ghlirrit Trase Kroman!!" the lead hobgoblin barked,its rasping voice echoing off the stone walls in its cruel tongue.
It pointed its rusted blade directly at Arthur. Instantly, the beasts flanking it unsheathed their weapons with a chorus of harsh screeches, kicking up dust from the cobblestones as they charged forward in a tight, coordinated formation.
Lady Arne moved with fluid, effortless grace. She didn't wait for them to close the distance. Stepping smoothly into the vanguard position, she intercepted the lead hobgoblin's savage, downward blow, catching the heavy iron weapon perfectly on the broad surface of her Sunsteel Tower Shield.
A deafening BANG rang out through the tunnel, sparks flying into the dark as she completely halted the monster's momentum without giving a single inch.
With a sharp, defensive twist of her arm, Lady Arne deflected the heavy cleaver away. In the same speed, she executed a rapid, blinding spin, channeling the momentum directly into her massive greatsword. The glowing blade caught the lead hobgoblin dead in the center, slicing clean through its torso. The cut was so incredibly sharp and precise that the monster's upper body slid completely off its hips, slamming onto the cobblestones before its legs even realized it was dead.
For a split second, Arthur thought a gruesome display like that would scare the remaining hobgoblins away. Instead, it did the exact opposite. The horrific sight of their shredded leader only fueled their primal rage.
The second hobgoblin lunged forward blindly, its serrated cleaver aiming for her neck. Lady Arne simply sidestepped the clumsy attack with a dancer's grace. She brought her greatsword upward in a swift, vicious arc, shearing the beast's entire right arm off at the shoulder. Before it could even scream, she violently slammed her Sunsteel Tower Shield directly into its skull, pinning it against the ancient stone wall.
A sickening crunch echoed through the tunnel. When she pulled the shield back, the hobgoblin slumped down to the floor, its brains thoroughly scrambled by the staggering impact of her raw strength.
"Two down. Five more to go," Arthur noted, his pulse pounding with a mix of awe and dark satisfaction.
"Kun Kal Frik Frik!" another hobgoblin roared angrily from the back. It beat its chest with a rusted weapon, desperately barking orders to encourage its remaining pals to advance, stubbornly ignoring the terrifying gap in power between them and the golden paladin.
Driven by raw, desperate fury, the remaining hobgoblins fanned out into the wider stretch of the tunnel, instantly surrounding Lady Arne in a ruthless pincer formation.
Arthur watched from the rear, his heart in his throat as the monsters launched a highly coordinated assault. They flooded the golden Paladin with a barrage of savage blows from all sides, their rusted cleavers tearing through the air in a blur of iron. But Lady Arne moved like a tempest. Every single strike was either completely deflected by her massive tower shield or effortlessly avoided with a tight, graceful dodge. The six of them simply couldn't match her overwhelming speed and combat instinct.
Spotting a gap in their reckless assault, Lady Arne stepped into the center of the fray. She brought her greatsword down in a low, sweeping arc, then violently swung it upward in a devastating, crescent-shaped slash. The glowing blade tore through the frontlines, cleaving two hobgoblin heads clean off their shoulders at once. The grotesque heads spun through the air, spraying dark blood across the ancient ceiling before their heavy bodies collapsed limply onto the cobblestones. This chapter was taken from novelping.com without permission.
Without missing a beat, she kept the momentum going. She pivoted on her heel, driving the heavy pommel of her sword directly into the chest of a third hobgoblin, crushing its ribs and sending it flying backward. Before it could even hit the ground, she lunged forward, executing a swift horizontal cross-slash. The razor-sharp edge sheared through the throats of both the staggering beast and a fourth hobgoblin trying to flank her from the left. A fountain of black blood erupted as they both crashed down into the pooling gore.
"Five down..." Arthur breathed, entirely transfixed by the beautiful, bloody choreography of her movements.
Another monster rushed her from behind, its cleaver raised high. Lady Arne didn't even turn around. She simply thrust her greatsword backward in a blind, reverse stab. The massive blade impaled the beast right through the stomach, the tip bursting out of its spine. With a cold, dismissive flick of her wrist, she ripped the weapon free, letting the corpse slide off into the dirt.
Six down. Only one left.
The devastating display finally broke the monsters' morale. The penultimate hobgoblin looked at the mangled corpses of its pack, then up at the blood-splattered, radiant golden warrior towering over them. Realizing it stood absolutely zero chance of survival against her, its cruel intelligence kicked in. Its bloodshot eyes snapped away from Lady Arne and locked directly onto Arthur, who was standing bare-footed and defenseless near the back of the tunnel holding a torch.
With a cowardly shriek, the beast bypassed the Paladin entirely, kicking off the cobblestones as it charged straight toward Arthur with its jagged cleaver raised to split him in two.
Instead of panicking, a sudden surge of adrenaline washed over Arthur. Utilizing his [Soul Link] skill, he established an instantaneous telepathic bridge to Lady Arne, sending a silent, absolute command directly into her mind: Stay back. Don't move.
The golden Paladin froze mid-stride, her eyes widening in surprise as she obeyed her master's mental tether.
Arthur closed his eyes for a fraction of a second, tapping into the raw spiritual reservoir within his soul core.
[You have activated active skill: Spirit Assimilation – Lv.1]
The ability flared to life. Instantly, fifty percent of Lady Arne's raw, god-tier physical attributes and holy energy flooded into Arthur's mortal frame. The sudden influx of power was intoxicating, making his muscles swell and his senses sharpen to a razor-sharp edge.
A blinding burst of radiant golden light erupted from Arthur's skin, the sheer pressure of the mana causing the rushing hobgoblin to flinch and momentarily pause its attack. Within that light, a manifestation of ethereal golden armor materialized over Arthur's body. Unlike Lady Arne's exposed design, this heavy, impenetrable plate armor encased him completely from head to toe, humming with protective runes. In his right hand, a massive, glowing greatsword coalesced from pure light, while his left hand gripped a towering vanguard shield.
The hobgoblin recovered from its shock and brought its heavy cleaver down with a desperate, savage screech. Arthur raised his left arm, catching the blow perfectly on the face of his newly manifested shield.
CLANG!
The impact didn't move him even a millimeter. Arthur absorbed the shock effortlessly, his reinforced muscles acting like solid iron.
"I really don't like your face, friend," Arthur grinned beneath his helm.
With a brutal surge of his assimilated strength, he drove his greatsword forward in a lightning-fast thrust. The tip of the blade pierced straight through the hobgoblin's open mouth, tearing through bone and muscle until the bloody steel burst clean out the back of its skull. This story is hosted at novelping dot com.
Arthur ruthlessly ripped the weapon free. The creature's eyes went dull, and it collapsed heavily onto the cobblestones, pooling dark blood at his bare, armor-clad feet.
System notifications chimed rapidly in his vision:
[Lady Arne Margadalen has slain 7 Hobgoblins.]
[You have slain 1 Hobgoblin.]
Arthur exhaled, feeling the intense spiritual drain of the assimilation, but his heart was soaring. He glanced over at Lady Arne, who was staring at him with a flushed face and trembling lips, her breath coming in heavy, shallow gasps.
"Did you honestly underestimate your Lord?" Arthur asked, a confident smirk playing on his lips as he casually stepped over the pile of mangled corpses.
"Not at all, my liege," Lady Arne whispered, her ocean-blue eyes practically burning with raw, untamed lust as she looked at his armored form. "It is just that... watching you wield such dominant power makes me incredibly wet."
Arthur let out a low chuckle, deliberately ignoring her shameless commentary for now. There would be plenty of time for dirty talk and rewarding her once they were safely back in his bedroom.
"The boss chamber should be just ahead," Arthur said, adjusting his grip on his sword as he signaled his vanguard to fall back into formation. "Let's keep moving."
They walked a few dozen paces further down the widening corridor until the damp stone path finally opened up. Standing before them were two colossal, weathered wooden doors, reinforced with rusted iron bands and carved with cryptic, ancient engravings.
Arthur looked up at the towering structure. "This must be it."
Lady Arne stepped forward, her hand tightening around the hilt of her blade as she glared at the threshold. "Should I cut these doors down, my liege?"
Arthur nodded, his eyes narrowing in anticipation. "Do the honors."
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