Green Monster Epic

Chapter 10: A Minor Setback

Just as Allen, confident in his physical prowess, had taken a single breath of relief, Reges, returning with renewed ferocity, delivered a heavy blow.

During the life-or-death struggle with Clawed, Allen realized after the battle that his abilities, which had been stagnant for some time, seemed to have broken through a bottleneck and increased again. In the two months that followed, after taking half a month to recover from his injuries, Allen resumed his training regimen, leading a group of youngsters in energetic exercises every morning. At this point, Allen's strength was comparable to that of Clawed two months prior, and if Allen were to fight Clawed with his current physical abilities, it would likely be much easier.

In their second clash, Allen, prepared to suppress Reges with his strength, wielded his steel axe, striking Reges' greatsword with precision once again. Although Allen had only acquired the steel axe a little over a month ago, he had practiced diligently, achieving a level of skill that resembled Clawed's mastery.

However, this time, the exchange completely exceeded Allen's expectations. Not only did he fail to gain the upper hand in the collision, but he was almost sent flying ten feet away. Fortunately, he managed to jam the steel axe into the ground and quickly brace his feet, creating three deep grooves in the earth before coming to a halt. If Allen hadn't sensed something was wrong and forcibly unleashed the energy in his heart to strengthen his arms and legs at the last moment, the situation would have been even worse.

Reges was equally surprised. His 'Eagle Strike' skill had tripled the speed of his greatsword, naturally increasing the kinetic energy. Coupled with his rage-fueled attack, Reges had expected to severely injure his opponent, at least incapacitating him for a short period. But now, it seemed the opponent had not suffered much damage.

"Haa! Haa! Haa!"

"Thump! Thump!"

Allen's breathing was rapid, the massive energy expenditure requiring more oxygen. At the same time, the energy source in his heart erupted, causing it to beat even more violently. Without much thought, Allen slightly bent and exerted force in his right leg, moving out of Reges' attack range in a single step. Simultaneously, he raised the steel axe high, bringing a shadow down upon Reges' head. The skill he had named 'Burst,' after breaking through, had increased from 3 seconds to 6 seconds. If he couldn't make something happen during this time, then once the skill cooled down, it would be even harder to inflict damage on this powerful enemy.

"Damn, is this greenskin also an advanced combatant?"

Reges keenly sensed the surge of rage emanating from Allen. A thought flashed through his mind as he channeled his own rage into his arms, raising the greatsword from below to meet Allen's steel axe in a head-on collision. After the weapons rebounded, they were quickly brought under control, and both warriors swiftly adjusted their stances to launch another attack.

"Clang! Clang! Bang! Clang!"

During the 6 seconds, the two swift warriors exchanged over a dozen blows. When they paused to readjust, the webbing between the thumbs and forefingers of their weapon-wielding hands had split open, and trickles of blood seeped out.

Reges had a three-inch gash on his left leg from the axe's tip, while Allen had two wounds on his right shoulder and lower abdomen. However, due to the naturally thick and tough skin of a hobgoblin, the wounds didn't appear too serious.

During their intense exchange, the surrounding warriors were also fiercely fighting. However, the seven human mercenaries, who should have been at a numerical disadvantage, were holding their own against the twenty-odd hobgoblins. Allen, who had thought he was creating an excellent opportunity for his team by holding back the strongest opponent, couldn't help but curse his warriors as useless and incompetent.

Of course, the hobgoblins' lack of progress was also due to the fact that nearly ten of them, disregarding Allen's earlier instructions, were secretly rushing towards the opposing trade caravan, attempting to seize the opportunity created by their main force holding back the enemy mercenaries to plunder the caravan.

The hobgoblin tribe inherently lacked discipline. Everyone came to raid for wealth, and aside from Stone, who genuinely followed Allen's orders, everyone else had their own selfish motives, hoping to steal some food and spices to take back.

As for fighting to the death, only an idiot would do that!

This was truly karma. Allen had acted in this manner when he followed Clawed and the others on raids, and he had even felt smug at the time. It was only after he became the chieftain that he realized how troublesome it was to have subordinates who didn't listen.

Even the hobgoblins who remained by Allen's side, fighting the seven human mercenaries, seemed to be playing around, except for Stone, his loyal companion, who was fiercely attacking. The other dozen hobgoblin warriors were wielding their weapons high, but in reality, they were holding back, and had yet to seriously injure any of the human mercenaries.

Of course, the difference in strength between the two sides was also a factor. After all, humans had a well-developed civilization, and their martial arts system had clear guidance for training and advancement. Any human warrior above level 5 had learned one or two skills, fully utilizing the advantages of their weapons, and combined with their well-trained coordination and formations, they were able to persevere, albeit with some difficulty.

On the other hand, the hobgoblins, who relied entirely on their natural talents, could only unleash seven or eight tenths of their strength due to their selfishness and unwillingness to take risks. Furthermore, they lacked the skill enhancements of the human martial arts system, didn't know how to coordinate, and only charged at their targets in a swarm, stupidly swinging crude weapons like stone axes and spears. Additionally, they lacked unity, each hoping that others would hold back the enemy while they ran off to plunder valuable goods. How could they possibly unleash their full potential?

"What a bunch of useless trash! I'm going to find a few troublemakers to teach a lesson when we get back, so they know what's what!"

Having lost the 'Burst' skill, Allen no longer dared to clash head-on with Reges' brute strength. Instead, he leaped and dodged within the confined space, evading Reges' relentless attacks, waiting for the strange skill to end before engaging in a showdown.

This change caused the hobgoblin warriors around Allen to suffer. Reges, unable to find Allen and inflict a serious injury, intentionally struck at the hobgoblins who stood in his path. The hobgoblin warriors, already weaker than Allen, were caught off guard by Reges' angry strikes while trying to fend off the human warriors. Some had their weapons broken in half by a single blow, and even had a part of their body cleaved in two, barely clinging to life; the most unfortunate were instantly cleaved in two by Reges, dying on the spot.