Joe sat languidly on an untainted patch of grass with a food bar in one hand and a bloody rag in the other. Non-stop fighting had left him with a ferocious appetite. To the point that he didn't mind eating while surrounded by so much death and decay.

Completing the 4th wave had given him several minutes of well-earned rest. It was the first time he had reached the final wave since his first attempt, and he honestly had no idea what to expect. He only knew the boss had to be weaker than a level 10 Ogre. Such a monster had been a struggle to face with over a hundred participants, let alone one. Joe stared at the clear blue sky and wondered how much time had passed on the outside. His respawn skill made it difficult to gauge time, but he doubted it had been more than a few weeks. He had tried searching for a watch from the store, but anything connected to Earth was noticeably absent. Who even knew if time existed in the Tower like it did back home.

Shaking himself awake from his musing, Joe took the last few bites of his food bar before dusting off the crumbs and standing up to gather his belongings. A final check of his weapon showed hairline fractures had formed on the blade from overuse. The quality of the sword wasn't anything to write home about. It had been one of the cheapest options available in the store but was still a step up from the weapons used by the goblins. Still, there wasn't much he could do except pick up a spare weapon littered around the field and look for a solid patch of ground to make his stand.

A quick glance at his exp gauge showed he had earned around 1500 EXP from the 4th wave. A paltry amount compared to the 8000 EXP he needed to reach level 9. Getting decent experience was becoming problematic now that he out-leveled the enemies on this floor. He knew it was time to move on.

'Ding.'

"Fourth wave completed. Fifth wave commencing."

The second the five-minute mark passed, the chimes of a bell could be heard, announcing the arrival of the 5th and last wave. A pool of light coalesced from the sky and shot towards a single point in front of him, reminiscent of last time.

Out of the light emerged the final boss, a giant goblin dressed in full regalia. It was twice the size of a regular goblin, reaching the height of a human male, and wore an impressive armor set, complete with a helmet and steel breastplate.

In its hand was a giant broadsword that looked like a butcher's blade. Specks of blood could be seen on its edge as if the goblin had been teleported directly from some brutal battlefield. Unlike the earlier goblins, this one didn't suffer from food deficiency. It was lean, with muscles that would put most professional athletes to shame.

Although the goblin looked imposing, Joe still released a pent-up sigh of relief. He couldn't see its level without an inspection skill, but anything was preferable to facing an Ogre. Joe knew he couldn't afford to underestimate this new opponent, but the adrenaline of facing the final foe made his blood boil with excitement. He had undergone repeated battles and suffered multiple defeats, all of which to help prepare him for this moment. As a result, he had been forged into something greater than the meek naive kid he was back before the Tower. He now felt assured, confident, ready. Only one more round, and he would finally escape this damn floor.

The battle commenced when the goblin released a guttural roar and charged toward him like a runaway train. Even with heavy gear, it was fast, far faster than any goblin he had faced before, but Joe didn’t flinch. He planted his feet and took a high guard while waiting for the goblin to make its move.

The goblin announced its arrival by jumping into the air and launching a downward swing with its sword. Its giant blade cleaved through the air, thundering down with enough force to cut a man in two. Joe responded by skirting to the side, barely in time to avoid getting bisected before following up with a counter of his own.

Joe executed a horizontal swing which the goblin dodged by jumping back. However, Joe refused to let it get away. He bolted forward at full speed, lunging with his sword's tip aimed at its neck.

The goblin reacted immediately, parrying the attack with a sideways swipe. Joe's eye's narrowed at how deftly the goblin used such an encumbered weapon. The blade was comically large, the inertia and size alone should have made it impossible to handle. But instead, the goblin wielded it adeptly. It went to show that this was no simple brute.

Soon, the two began to exchange a flurry of attacks as both sides tried to maim the other. Joe pulled out every technique he had learned. Lunges, swipes, deflections, feints. He refused to give the goblin a chance to set the pace, using his advantage in speed to attack the enemy's weak points. [Sword Mastery] worked overtime, showing him the best way to respond and alerting him to potentially dangerous attacks. With each exchange, his technique began to adapt and evolve to take advantage of the gaps in its armor.

The goblin, however, refused to let Joe set the pace. Its attacks became more ferocious as it began swinging its sword aggressively. Eventually, forcing Joe to backpedal to avoid getting skewered.

Not even his shield proved effective at defending him against the goblin's strikes. A single attack had left cracks in the wooden board, impairing its durability. In addition, Joe's lack of experience facing off against a stronger opponent was beginning to show. Wounds began accumulating over his body as the goblin struck with a level of ferocity he was unaccustomed to. Until now, he had focused on fighting groups of weak enemies instead of powerful opponents. An oversight that was finally catching up to him.

Eventually, the two collided with a clash of metal, sword met sword as the two locked weapons in mid-air, each trying to hold their ground while overpowering the other. 'Heavy' was all Joe could think as he gritted his teeth and tried to stop the goblin from gaining more ground. Their strength was near equal, but Joe could tell the goblin would overpower him with enough time. Its heavier weapon clearly outclassed his own.

Any hope he had of benefiting from a stat advantage was gone. He needed to regroup and come up with a better strategy. With a guttural roar, Joe pushed the goblin's sword to the side in an attempt to escape the deadlock. Yet it wasn't without ramification as one of the jagged edges caught him on the shoulder, tearing out a small piece of flesh. Joe yelled out in pain, but he couldn't let himself be distracted. He had experienced enough wounds to know one slip-up was all it took to suffer defeat.

Without a moment to lose, Joe jumped back while doing his best to ignore the throbbing pain in his shoulder. He had expected the goblin to follow up with another attack, but instead, it stood there cackling while licking its lips, clearly enjoying the expression of pain on Joe's face. Whether the goblin was real or not, this thing was bloodthirsty, bordering on sadistic.

The two stared at each other, each considering their next move. Joe knew that if he couldn't win in strength, he would need to prevail with tactics. He glanced down to inspect the status of his weapons. His sword had become fractured, with multiple cracks snaking their way over his blade. A result of trying to exchange blow for blow. He knew it wouldn't last much longer. What’s worse, the goblin's armor advantage made it nearly impossible to land a fatal hit.

The goblin, noticing his slight distraction, launched itself towards him with another giant swing. Joe, realizing his mistake too late, only managed to block the attack at the last minute by lifting his shield. The giant sword slammed into Joe with the weight of a wrecking ball, sending him reeling backward and destroying his shield completely.

With no other choice, Joe disengaged from the fight and sprinted away toward another patch of ground. The goblin roared and bounded after him, refusing to let its prey escape. Joe thought about using the kiting strategy to wear out the goblin, but he was already starting to reach his limits himself. Five waves of enemies had drained him of stamina, and he doubted he would be able to outlast this new opponent anyway.

If he couldn't find an opportunity, he would need to create one. He led the goblin to a muddy stretch of ground. The area had been the location of a fierce battle during the second wave. Muddy pools of blood littered the area, seeping into the earth, turning it into a thick viscous soup. The sleek surface made it impossible to maintain balance, making it the perfect place to fight an opponent who wore heavy armor.

Joe rushed through the muddy pits, careful to watch his footing. His choice of purchasing good-quality shoes after every respawn was finally paying off. He looked back, fearing the goblin would see through his ploy and refuse to follow. However, it didn't even flinch, following him like a crazed stalker.

Once Joe arrived in the worst patch of ground, he turned and began to give off the impression of fear and exhaustion. The goblin, falling for his ruse, reacted by thundering ahead and launching itself straight at him. Though this goblin was leagues above the ones he had faced before, it still suffered from the same poor intelligence that plagued its brethren.

Once again, swords clashed as the two exchanged more blows. The goblins' confidence grew with each assault, and it soon started to laugh in mockery as Joe appeared to get overwhelmed. Only when its prey looked to be on the edge of collapsing did it finally decide to end things by launching a finishing strike.

This moment was what Joe had waited for. He quickly responded with a burst of speed, jumping to the side just as the sword swung down, cutting several feet into the soft wet ground. Joe took advantage of the enemy's blind spot to attack it from the flank. The goblin tried to reposition itself by lifting its sword to deflect the attack but lost its balance on the slippery ground. Joe grasped the opportunity, plunging his sword straight into the undefended gap between its helmet and chest plate.

Sword met flesh as the blade pierced into the goblin's neck, ripping through skin and muscle until his blade tore all the way through, causing it to sputter and gag for breath. Unwilling to take a chance, Joe hacked down again and again until the goblins head was fully removed from its body. Only once the ping of a tower announcement notifying him of his victory did he relax. Joe dropped his sword and collapsed on the blood soaked ground. He had done it!

'Ding'

"Congratulations on passing floor 1, awarding quest achievements."

Floor Quest received:

Don't Die: Survive all 5 goblin waves. Reward: 5000 exp, 7000 DP - (COMPLETED) Solo Warrior: Defeat the floor solo. Reward 15,000 exp, 20,000 DP - (COMPLETED)

The announcement led to a rush of energy flooding his body, reinvigorating his weary mind and bringing him up two levels to reach level 10. The feeling was almost intoxicating as it helped recover some of his lost stamina.

With the completion of the floor quests, bell chimes rang out once more, followed by a portal appearing in the air in front of him. It looked similar to the one he had taken to the first floor, and he could only assume it led to the 2nd. Finally, he would be able to move on.

However, before anything else, Joe sat on the ground and dug out the last remaining bandages he had in his small pack. The adrenaline had worn off, leaving him wounded and exhausted. Blood still seeped from multiple injuries, and his shoulder stung where a chunk of flesh had been ripped off.

He cleaned and bandaged the worst of the wounds as much as possible, but he was now entirely out of medical supplies. He looked down at his shirt, which had become drenched in blood and dirt, and shook his head. He couldn't even use it as a makeshift bandage as it would only risk infection. Had he finally achieved his goal, only for his injuries to subdue him?

He sighed before he decided to focus on the positive. He opened up his notifications to see he had defeated a level 7 goblin champion. The EXP from the boss and the quest rewards had bumped him up two levels in one go, which meant he now had 10 free points to spend. He felt like he had won the lottery thanks to the solo warrior quest bonus.

Joe added 5 to strength to help him keep up with stronger enemies. The goblin champion had been a wake-up call. He needed to prepare for more powerful opponents he would inevitably face on the higher floors. From there, he added another 5 points to agility. It was quickly becoming his favorite stat apart from Will Power. It provided speed and improved his dexterity, balance, control, and hand-eye coordination. All essential to improving his proficiency with the sword.

After confirming his selection, Joe couldn't help but whistle out loud while admiring his new stats. He had made decent progress, but he couldn't afford to get complacent. The duel against the goblin champion had been a hard fight, and he technically out-leveled the boss. It went to show that level wasn't everything. Attributes, skills, and experience mattered as much, if not more, and Joe was still woefully inadequate in all those areas.

A day passed before Joe hefted himself up, ready to move on to the next floor. He wanted to rest longer but knew he couldn't stay. He had run out of water, and supplies were running low. He threw away his short sword and shield and picked up an ordinary goblin sword. His own weapons had become cracked and risked falling apart at any moment. He had considered taking the butcher blade used by the goblin champion, but the size made it too unwieldy to use with his injury. After picking up a few spare knives, Joe walked up to inspect the shimmering portal.

It glistened in the sunlight as though beckoning him through. Joe obliged, taking one last look at the green hills before entering. His surroundings flashed and the next moment, Joe found himself within a vast forest, surrounded by tree’s the size of a ten story building. He had finally made it to the 2nd floor!