“Do you have any experience in fighting these types of monsters?”


  “A little bit . We had a few opportunities to go deep into a labyrinth owned by someone at our company . ”


  Emily answered .

  “You are quite dependable . ”


  “No . Mr . Sungyoon is the dependable one . ”


  ‘Huh? She’s doing pretty good?’


  Tim, who was walking in the front, became surprised by the conversation going on behind him .

  After they both had dissolved the party with Sungyoon, Emily had been in a depressed mood . She had cried and laughed when Sungyoon occasionally contacted her . But now, she was doing pretty well in a conversation with him, and even gave him a compliment . Tim knew her personality, so he understood how much courage his sister was squeezing out right now .

  ‘Is she that desperate?’


  For a long time, she hadn’t been able to see the one she loved . But instead of eroding her love, time had poured fuel on the fire .

  ‘Well, do your best . ’


  The conversation was still sparse, but Tim just shut his mouth . He let his sister have her conversation .

  Tuh-buhk!

  The party finally stepped onto the 7th floor .

  Sungyoon and Emily started to talk about the monsters that might show up .

  “You said you’ve experienced fighting them . How dangerous are the other monsters?”


  “Mmm . It depends on the type of monsters . Some are like the Bigfoot, whom we fought before, and have high fighting power . Monsters weaker than the highest-ranked monsters of the Beginner’s Labyrinth also exist, but they are dangerous for different reasons . These weak monsters either form a mob, or they are very cunning . In some cases, monsters possessing both of these characteristics may also appear . ”


  Monsters that were cunning and capable of forming a party . Just the thought of them made Sungyoon’s head hurt .

  “At the very least, the monsters that appear after the monsters of the Beginner’s Labyrinth aren’t that dangerous . ”


  “That’s good to hear . ”


  “I’m sorry for interrupting your conversation . ”


  Tim, who had been silently walking, stopped in his tracks and raised his shield .

  “Enemies!”


  Sungyoon and Emily looked past Tim, trying to spot their enemies -

  Kee-reek! Kee-ree-ree-ree-reek!

  A sound appeared as if an old engine were running . The party could also hear loud sounds resembling the sound of metal hitting metal . Then there was the sound of several feet stomping on the floor . It was an irregular and jarring noise that rang out towards Sungyoon’s party .

  “These are monsters that form a group . ”


  Emily spoke as she stuck close to Sungyoon’s back .

  Five monsters had appeared before them .

  They possessed pointed ears and bumpy white skin . These bipedal monsters were around 150 cms tall . Their bodies were small, but powerful muscles belied their small stature . Since they were monsters, they had the terrifying red eyes .

  Surprisingly, these monsters were armed . Two of them held long spears, and the other three held short swords . Moreover, they had worn metallic defensive gear .

  Sungyoon became a bit baffled when he realized that these monsters were equipped better than most beginner Connectors .

  “They are Goblins . ”


  The name was very familiar . These monsters usually appeared in fantasy games, novels, and movies . They were considered weak, but it was an image created in fiction .

  “It is easy to think that the Goblins are not strong . But we aren’t in some fantasy world, and these aren’t the Goblins seen in fictional works . ”


  They were monsters of the labyrinth, but the name was given to them by humans . Humans had named these monsters Goblins because they resembled the Goblins from the books . However, these monsters weren’t like the Goblins imagined up by humans . If one fought the Goblins after gathering useless information from works of fiction, the fight would end in abject failure .

  “They are weaker than the strongest monsters in the Beginner’s Labyrinth, such as the Blue Mane Lion . However, they can use weapons and group-up with each other . Their cunningness makes them very dangerous, much more dangerous than the Blue Mane Lion . Since they are considered to be too much for beginner Connectors to handle, they are all killed in the cleanup of the Beginner’s Labyrinth . Please be careful . ”


  Emily kept informing Sungyoon . Although he knew this information, Emily had a way of organizing it for easy digestion, and his mind was uncluttered .

  “Thank you, Ms . Emily . ”


  As he spoke those words, Sungyoon pulled up next to Tim .

  “Which formation should we use?”


  “We’ll have to stick close to Emily in this fight . ”


  Tim, who had experience in fighting them, spoke up .

  Their priority had always been to protect Emily, so in the past, they used to position her a bit away from the battle . However, it was better to not do that now .

  “These cunning bastards group together in large numbers . If we put Emily alone in the distance, they’ll attack her first . ”


  Sungyoon thought about their previous fight against the Giant Snake as a party . At that time, they almost had received a heart attack when Emily was targeted . He immediately unsummoned his halberd and took out his ax and shield .

  “I’ll take the lead this time . ”


  Tim looked over Sungyoon’s equipment and nodded . If they had divided roles into attack and defense, Sungyoon should have been on offense since each of his attacks were devastating . However, both of them had to defend Emily . Since it was going to be a defensive battle, they would only attack at opportune moments .

  Sungyoon was the strongest amongst the party, so it would be best if he took point .

  Hoo-oong!

  He felt strength enter into his body . Emily had used her support magic . But after using the magic, she looked tensed as she raised her large shield .

  “I can block a few attacks . ”


  ‘She has matured a lot . ’


  Sungyoon looked her over . Even though Emily looked nervous, she wasn’t frozen in fear . She had maintained the right amount of tension needed in a battle . In the past, she had once fallen to the floor from the might displayed by the Bigfoot . Butthat version of her was nowhere to be seen now .

  “I’ll put my trust in you . ”


  Entrusting his back to her, Sungyoon glared at the Goblins . Tim had positioned himself diagonally to the back . He stood next to Emily as he raised his shield -

  Keek! Kee-kee-keek!

  The Goblins were making some sounds . By their looks, it seemed they were communicating with each other .

  ‘This is surprising . ’


  This was his first time seeing monsters capable of communicating with each other .

  For a brief moment, the Goblins let out bizarre sounds towards each other . Then, at the same time, they turned their heads, and five pairs of eyes looked at Sungyoon’s party -

  Kyaa-ahk!

  One of them screamed . It must have been an order to charge as all the Goblins charged forward at the same time . However, this charge was unlike the charges he had experienced before . They didn’t scream and charge in a straight line towards Sungyoon’s party .

  It was loose, but they kept a formation . The ones with the short swords stood in the front, and the ones with the spears lined up behind them . In their cunning eyes, one could see their thoughts churn -

  Koo-ahhhhhk!

  The one at the front let out a scream as it swung its short sword towards Sungyoon .

  Kah-ahng!

  The sound of metal clashing could be heard as the sword hit the shield .

  ‘As expected, there is some heft to their attack . ’


  The attack was very strong . It was almost unbelievable that such a small body could generate so much power . However, Sungyoon was someone that could face the Blue Mane Lion without much problem . It was as Emily had said . The Goblins were strong, but on an individual basis, they couldn’t be compared to the Blue Mane Lion .

  Sungyoon was about to bash the monster by habit . However, he quickly moved his shield to a different location .

  The other Goblin had tried to stab his thigh with the short sword .

  Kah-ahng!

  He once again deflected the Goblin’s weapon . Then he clicked his tongue .

  ‘These bastards are aiming for holes in my defense . ’


  They weren’t disciplined, but it wasn’t as if there was no strategy to their way of fighting . This could truly be called a battle .

  Ka-ahng!

  His shield moved once again, and he deflected a spear this time .

  ‘There are three . ’


  Sungyoon looked over the three monsters that were focusing their attacks on him . Then he took a glance at how the siblings were faring . He saw Tim deflect a spear and a short sword with his own spear . Emily stood behind him with her shield up, assessing the battle . She held her staff in order to use her support magic at any moment .

  ‘I have to get back to them quickly . ’


  They were dealing with fewer monsters than Sungyoon, but Tim had to protect Emily . He was probably under tremendous pressure -

  Keeeeek!-

  Keh-ehk!

  The ones with the short swords ran at him at the same time from both sides . He deflected the left short sword with his shield . The right Goblin rejoiced when he saw this, but then Sungyoon’s ax was swung at the short sword .

  Ggah-ah-ahng!

  A hair-raising sound rang out . Sungyoon had put a lot of strength behind his swing, and the short sword bounced off the ax . The Goblin lost its grip on it and was sent flying into the air . Sungyoon quickly took a step forward .

  Hweeng!

  Kwah-jeek!

  The sound of pure destruction followed . The ax obliterated the Goblin’s head, and blood erupted into the air . The Goblin crumpled to the ground and immediately died .

  The other Goblins didn’t get scared seeing their comrade die . They continued to attack Sungyoon, but he kept catching them looking to the side .

  ‘They are aiming for Emily . ’


  It was as he had predicted . The one with the spear stabbed towards Sungyoon, and he was able to easily deflect it . At that moment, the one with the short sword started running . It took a wide berth of Sungyoon, and dashed towards Emily .

  ‘I won’t let you do that . ’


  The one holding the spear had not recovered yet . It was still off-balance . Sungyoon unsummoned his ax and shield and brought out his halberd .

  Hoohng!

  He threw it . A frightening sound of destruction followed the airborne halberd . The weapon landed on the back of the Goblin who was running towards Emily -

  Kyahhhk!

  The sharp spear blade pierced through the back, exiting through the monster’s stomach . Moreover, the halberd hadn’t lost the force and momentum behind it .

  Ooh-dahng-tahng!

  The Goblin was carried forward for a distance .

  Sssk!

  The halberd disappeared . Blood erupted from the Goblin’s wound as it fell to the ground, and the weapon once again appeared in Sungyoon’s hand .

  Tuhk!

  He immediately took a step forward . The Goblin in front had barely avoided losing its spear, but it had now recovered to face Sungyoon, who swung his halberd . The Goblin desperately tried to defend itself by putting the spear in the ax’s path .

  The ax blade of the halberd impacted the shaft of the spear .

  Suh-guhk!

  But no sound of weapons clashing came . The ax blade had cut through the wooden shaft as if it were tofu .

  Kwah-jeek!

  Sungyoon immediately severed the head of the Goblin . He didn’t even watch the head roll across the floor . His gaze went to the Goblin’s body that remained unmoving on the floor . He threw his halberd once again to check if it was really dead .

  Poo-oohk!

  The halberd flew in an arc and pierced the Goblin once again . However, the monster only shook from the impact and showed no signs of moving .

  ‘It’s dead . ’


  After he unsummoned his halberd, Sungyoon took up his ax and shield once again . He turned to look at the siblings and caught sight of Tim pushing hard against two Goblins .

  “Do you need help?”


  “No, I’m fine!”


  Tim spoke as he deflected a spear . Sungyoon didn’t say anything as he gestured to Emily . Tim could fight more easily without the need to protect her .

  Emily quickly moved towards Sungyoon . A Goblin tried to attack her, but Tim blocked it with his shield .

  “No way!”


  Tim roughly pushed back, and the Goblin lost its balance . In this time, Emily had safely moved behind Sungyoon .

  “You bastards!”


  Tim didn’t need to protect his sister now . He could attack in earnest . It didn’t take him too long to create two cold Goblin corpses with his ax and shield .

  He placed his ax on his shoulder and approached his companions . He then looked at all the Goblins killed by Sungyoon .

  “Hoo-ooh! Mr . Sungyoon became really amazing . ”


  “At your level, you can easily clear this labyrinth by yourself . ”


  Tim and Emily alternated in complimenting him .

  “You praise me too much . ”


  Sungyoon shook his head from side to side in embarrassment . He really liked the two siblings, but he couldn’t get used to the admiration in their eyes . He actually might feel more comfortable with people who underestimated and ignored him .

  As a way to stop paying attention to the siblings’ words, he looked towards the dead Goblins . They moved similarly to humans, yet he didn’t feel the dirty emotions that he felt when he had killed a human . He picked up one of the Goblin’s spears from the floor . It was a spear with a pretty sharp point .

  ‘These are well-crafted weapons . ’


  These weapons were nothing like the ones used by Connectors . They weren’t Gems . However, these weapons were clearly manufactured .

  A light surrounded the corpses, and at the same time, the spear in his hand also became enveloped in light . Sungyoon flexed his empty hand as the corpses and the weapons of the Goblins were gone .