Bully Lord

Part-216

He glanced down at the eight goblin ears he'd collected, picking one up and inspecting it closely. The sight was unpleasant, a bit gruesome, but he shrugged it off, thinking they might be useful. According to the system, selling these goblin ears to the dungeon's buying house would earn him 0.2 dollars for each one. Not much, but still something. He made a mental note to bring a backpack next time, thinking it would come in handy for larger hauls in future dungeon runs.

As he wiped some sweat off his brow, he quickly checked his EXP bar. The display showed 5650 EXP. Not bad, but still not enough to allocate any new stat points just yet. He would have to keep pushing if he wanted to hit the next level.

"Well, that was tougher than I thought," James muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. He knew that this was just the beginning. Level 2 was proving to be far more challenging than the first, and he would need to stay on his toes if he wanted to survive.

He glanced down at his wooden sword, a small smile forming on his lips. It wasn’t flashy, but it had gotten the job done. For now, he’d keep it close.

James stood at the entrance of the Level 2 Early Midsection, his heart racing in anticipation. He had barely caught his breath from defeating the goblins in the previous section, and now he was about to face an even greater challenge. The dungeon's eerie glow seemed to throb around him, as if the walls themselves were alive, feeding off his uncertainty. Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward.

In the dim light, James spotted the goblins almost immediately—ten of them in total. Five wielded rusted swords, while the other five stood farther back, armed with crude bows. The archers were positioned strategically, making it clear they had no intention of letting him get close without a fight. The goblins snarled in unison, their eyes gleaming with malice as they watched James approach.

Before he could even strategize or make his first move, the sharp twang of a bowstring echoed through the chamber. An arrow flew faster than he could react, striking him squarely in the neck. Pain erupted through his body like a lightning bolt. He staggered, gasping for air, as his vision blurred. Blood trickled down his neck, and his grip on his wooden sword weakened.

Stumbling back, James tried to activate **Sloth View**, but the pain made it difficult to concentrate. The world around him slowed, but his reaction time remained sluggish. Before he could fully recover, the sword-wielding goblins rushed him. They moved in tight formation, their jagged blades flashing in the dungeon's dim light. In seconds, four more arrows found their mark—two in his chest, one in his thigh, and another embedding itself painfully into his shoulder. James’s legs buckled under the assault, and his world faded to black.

When he regained consciousness, he was lying on the cold stone floor at the entrance of the Level 2 Early Section, exactly where he had respawned every other time he had been defeated. The dungeon's resurrection system had saved him once again, but not without cost.