Chapter 33

Suddenly startled by the unexpected greeting, Thor quickly looked around and nodded in understanding.

The location where the hole had been made was, by chance, very close to Thor's boarding house.

No, perhaps it was because this area, with its rough walls, was more likely to be targeted in such situations, which was why the rent was cheaper.

Thor, who had been unexpectedly helped and thus escaped the crisis, soon noticed Yuri's unusual pallor.

Her skin, usually as white as snow, had now completely lost its color.

Even the tips of her elongated ears had turned pale, a clear sign of magic depletion.

Thor rushed over and quickly held Yuri, who had been leaning on the broom.

Indeed, even with the lower branch skill, facing over ten opponents at this depth was no small feat.

The amount of magic consumed must have been enormous.

Thor quickly searched Yuri's history with maximum magic and restored her entire body with <Restoration>.

Thor then shielded the woman with his back, drew his sword, and turned to face the monsters.

"Are you okay?"

"Oh? Is it thanks to you, Thor? Yes, even the pain in my back is gone."

"Can I ask for a little help?"

"Yes, if you trust me, you can rely on my back."

Hearing the reassuring response, Thor closed the distance in one swift motion and cut off the heads of the hobgoblins, who were still in a deep sleep, one after another.

The monsters, who were hunched over, were in the perfect position for decapitation.

By the time Thor had cut down more than half of them, the remaining ones woke up simultaneously, noticed their fallen comrades, and braced themselves.

However, the ice user was also waiting for their awakening.

"Fog, seal—<Ice Crystal>"

At the moment Thor heard the incantation, ice crystals that reflected light began to dance around the monsters.

The hobgoblins, who had a moment of confusion, continued to fight while growling.

Thor took in the six approaching monsters, slashed the wrist of the one he had drawn close, and struck the knee with the returning blade.

Taking advantage of the stumble of the subsequent ones as the leader bent down, he cut into the side.

While retreating, Thor deflected the sword of the third one from below and aimed for the jaw.

Focusing on not being surrounded, Thor continued to move, targeting the extremities of the monsters.

Normally, this would have been a situation where the odds of defeat were high, but for some reason, the movements of the monsters became sluggish and their breathing grew heavy.

The tiny ice particles that had been inhaled into their lungs had caused a large amount of bleeding that could not be healed in time.

Eventually, the hobgoblins' feet almost stopped moving.

At this point, it was Thor's show.

Thor thrust his sword into the eye of the sluggish one and calmly drove the blade into the mouth of the second.

He cut off the heads of the third and fourth, pierced the stomach of the fifth and kicked it away, and then brought his sword down straight onto the head of the sixth.

Thor and his companions, who had easily slaughtered the sixteen intruders, turned to face the group that had been pounding the wall fiercely.

"There are still some troublesome ones left. Can you lend a hand?"

"Yes, I would be happy to help if I can be of any use."

While feeling a bit of doubt at the unusually light tone, Thor restored the sharpness of his iron sword and his entire body with <Restoration> and approached the wall that was making a loud noise.

This left him with four uses of <Restoration> remaining.

Since the hole in the wall had been reopened, it was now down to three.

The moment the large hole was restored, the group of hobgoblins on the other side of the wall came into Thor's view.

In the background, a little further away, the figure of a large monster hiding among the trees caught his eye.

The monster had eyes that radiated hatred for all living beings, a mouth full of thick fangs that reached its ears, and a torso wrapped in animal fur that was about thirty percent larger than an average hobgoblin.

Its thick arms, like logs, held a long club made from a pig's bone.

Though it was Thor's first time seeing the real thing, the overwhelming presence made it clear that this was the leader of the hobgoblins, the Hobgoblin Chief.

The hobgoblins, surprised by the sudden opening of the hole, looked at each other.

The experienced magic user would not miss this opportunity.

"Swiftly, sleep—<Cold Sleep>"

Given the degree of magic depletion, this would likely be the end of Yuri's support.

Thor, amazed by the powerful magic, smoothly entered the group of monsters, who were now lowering their heads, and continued to cut off their heads with precise movements.

After disposing of all the hobgoblins, Thor quietly turned to face the last one.

The ground around it was littered with the corpses of the monsters that Thor and his companions had slain.

The Hobgoblin Chief, who had lost all fifty of its subordinates, snorted fiercely and struck a nearby tree with its bone club.

The monster, demonstrating the tree trunk breaking with a crack, approached Thor heavily.

The monster was only about two heads taller than Thor, but its build was significantly different.

Its body, in a slightly forward-leaning posture, was densely packed with muscle.

Furthermore, it was wrapped in sturdy pig fur, making it very difficult for even an iron sword to penetrate.

If Thor were to recklessly strike, there was a risk that the blade would get stuck.

Thor's only targets were the head or the extremities of the arms and legs.

The monster, now a few steps away, raised its bone club.

Considering the difference in arm length, the weapon's range was about two steps different.

With a thunderous sound, the club was brought down straight onto Thor's head.

If he were to block it, he would be crushed along with his sword.

If he were to dodge, the blade would surely warp.

The only correct choice was to evade.

By evading and stepping in, he could reach the face that had come down.

But that was exactly what the monster had intended.

The club, which seemed to be about to hit the ground, suddenly changed its trajectory due to the thick biceps.

The bone, rising from below, swept a wide area in front.

But Thor had already retreated out of range.

The Hobgoblin Chief, feeling the club's swing, let out a disgruntled breath.

Its face twisted slightly.

The monster, touching its own jaw with its free hand, realized that blood was flowing from it.

The monster's eyes overflowed with even more killing intent.

In that instant, Thor had actually moved forward.

Drawing out his maximum speed in the blink of an eye, he avoided the club and struck the monster's face.

Then, as the club changed its trajectory, he kicked off the ground and retreated.

The Hobgoblin Chief raised its bone club again.

The same attack and defense were repeated.

Once more.

The monster, adding more cuts to its face, stubbornly swung its ineffective weapon.

Thor, dodging it brilliantly, flashed his blade multiple times.

At first glance, it seemed that Thor had the advantage since he was the only one landing hits, but in reality, it was the opposite.

The Hobgoblin Chief, though bleeding profusely from its face, had most of its wounds already closing.

On the other hand, Thor, having moved at full speed for a short time, was gradually breathing harder.

Moreover, he had been cornered against the wall, making it difficult to retreat.

His physical limits were near.

The iron sword, which had been used to strike the jaw multiple times, was now severely dulled and covered in green blood.

It would take some time for Yuri's magic to recover.

Under normal circumstances, this monster, the master of the goblin cave, would be a red iron-level challenge, which could be barely defeated by five F-rank adventurers who were well-trained.

For a single lowest-rank adventurer to fight it was a tall order.

Thor, calmly assessing the situation, muttered to himself.

"Three consecutive slashes are still a bit out of reach. It feels like just a little more, though."

Perhaps mistaking Thor's sudden words for a plea for mercy, the Hobgoblin Chief let out a creepy sound.

Even if someone who understood the language had heard it, they would have been puzzled, not understanding the meaning.

It was impossible for anyone to know that Thor had been using this dangerous situation to practice with his iron sword to get used to it.

Thor suddenly turned and fled into the large hole in the wall.

The monster, which had been excited and injured, immediately gave chase.

Thor, who had reached the town first, touched the wall just as the Hobgoblin Chief was about to bring down its club.

A split second faster, the large hole was <Restored>.

Thor's aim was not to drive the dangerous monster outside the wall but to finish it off here.

The next moment, large stones rained down from above the Hobgoblin Chief's head.

The hole was indeed <Restored>, but the stage of the restoration was Thor's choice.

What Thor had restored was the moment right after the large hole had been opened.

The monster, defenseless, was struck on the head by a heavy stone and fell to the ground without a sound.

Thor immediately <Restored> the same moment again.

The falling stones hit the body of the fallen Hobgoblin Chief, and a dull sound echoed through the hole.

By the third time, no groans were heard, so Thor approached the monster buried in the stones and thrust his sword deep into the back of its eye, which could not move.

Thor, confirming that nothing was moving, slowly exhaled.

A calm and praising voice was directed at his back.

"Good job, Thor."

"Yes, thank you very much for your help—"

Thor, turning around, was momentarily speechless at the sight of the person before him.

Standing there was a woman with an otherworldly beauty.

Her straight white hair reached her waist, but her bangs were neatly cut.

Her sharp, cold features and her well-defined figure were in stark contrast.

She was a woman he had never seen before.

However, the attire and manner of speech of the person before him were unmistakably those of the landlord, Yuri.

Noticing Thor's intense gaze, the silver-haired beauty smiled softly.

"Hehe, is something wrong, Thor?"

As Thor, at a loss for words, stood there, the sound of a horn, signaling the end of the battle, echoed loudly.