God Agent: All Hail The Great Kobold

Peng!

Grash gritted his teeth as he pressed his glowing blue battle axe against Kong’gong’s outstretched hand. The blade screamed against the salamander’s metallic palm, throwing sparks across the tunnel, yet no matter how much strength Grash poured into the weapon, he could not force it through. Kong’gong’s hand looked as though it had been forged from polished black steel, the metal surface refusing to bend beneath the axe.

Grash’s muscles bulged beneath his Mana Body as he pushed harder, his boots digging shallow trenches into the stone. Lightning crawled along his arms and spilled across his shoulders, but Kong’gong remained completely unmoved. The old salamander’s emerald eyes stared directly into Grash’s, carrying an unsettling calm that made the goblin’s instincts scream.

Kong’gong slowly raised his other hand and the palm hardened.

Within seconds, the entire hand had taken on the same thick metallic appearance as the first.

Grash’s pupils contracte and he immediately abandoned the clash and jumped backward.

Swoosh!

Kong’gong’s claws swept through the space where Grash’s head had been a fraction of a second earlier.

Bang!

The salamander’s hand smashed into the ground, shattering the stone beneath him and sending fragments of rock flying in every direction. Kong’gong remained bent over from the force of the missed strike, his claws embedded several inches into the cracked floor.

Grash landed several meters away. The moment his feet touched the ground, he stomped down.

"Vael Ryn."

Wind erupted beneath his feet.

Wind Magic: Wind Rush!

The compressed wind exploded backward, launching Grash forward with tremendous force. His body shot through the tunnel like an arrow, leaving behind a blue streak as the acceleration from the spell combined with the momentum of his charge.

Even Kong’gong’s emerald eyes widened slightly.

Too fast!

Grash reached him before the salamander could fully straighten. His battle axe came around in a brutal horizontal arc, carrying the combined force of his Mana Body, the acceleration of Wind Rush and the rotational power of his entire body.

Bang!

The axe connected and Kong’gong’s head snapped violently to the side. A shallow cut appeared across his neck and blood sprayed from the wound.

Grash’s eyes burned with renewed fighting spirit.

’It cut through!’

It was only a small wound, barely more than a line across Kong’gong’s thick scales, but that tiny stream of blood meant everything to Grash. For the first time since their battle began, he had proof that Kong’gong could be injured.

Mana Body alone was already pushing his body toward its limits. Maintaining the transformation constantly consumed his strength, and combining it with spells placed an even greater burden on his muscles and core. Every additional spell threatened to accelerate the exhaustion spreading through his body.

But Grash had never been someone who stopped because something was difficult.

If this was what it took to defeat Kong’gong and ensure his people survived, then he would burn through every ounce of strength in his body.

"Vael Mael!"

"Wind Magic: Wind Storm!"

Grash immediately began spinning.

Wind erupted around his body, feeding the rotation and allowing him to maintain his momentum without losing speed. He could not gather enough wind inside the tunnel to create the enormous hurricane he had summoned on the surface, but he did not need one.

The spell served another purpose. It kept him moving.

His battle axe became a continuous blue arc as he spun toward Kong’gong again and again, each strike carrying the accumulated force of his Mana Body and the wind surrounding him.

Bang!

Kong’gong blocked the first strike.

Bang!

The second struck his shoulder.

Bang!

The third slammed into his chest.

"Grrr!"

Kong’gong was forced backward.

His feet scraped across the stone as Grash continued attacking without allowing him even a moment to regain his balance. Every time Kong’gong tried to counterattack, another spinning strike came from a different angle.

The salamander retreated continuously. By the sixth retreat, the repeated strikes had already opened several wounds across his chest.

Kong’gong raised both hands to protect himself and Grash’s axe crashed against his forearm. The blade bit into the metallic scales and a deeper wound appeared.

Kong’gong’s expression tightened.

His arm was beginning to bear the brunt of the assault, and each consecutive strike deepened the existing wound. The metallic surface of his Elemental Body was strong enough to resist most attacks, but Grash was no ordinary opponent. His Mana Body had transformed his physical strength into something capable of challenging even Kong’gong’s enhanced form.

Swoosh!

Kong’gong’s tail suddenly swept in from the side and Grash’s spinning attack was interrupted.

The massive spiked end of the salamander’s tail slammed into him and sent both fighters staggering in opposite directions.

Grash caught himself before he fell, his battle axe scraping across the ground as he used it to stabilize his body.

"You damn lizard!"

Kong’gong straightened slowly.

"Kid, that’s no way to speak to your elders."

His voice carried a chuckle, but there was no amusement in his emerald eyes.

The salamander stomped his foot and the earth beneath Grash suddenly shifted.

Buzz!

Grash’s eyes widened as the ground beneath his feet began rising rapidly, carrying him upward on a growing platform of stone.

At the same time, spikes began forming along the ceiling above him. Kong’gong was trying to crush him between the two.

"Hmph!"

Grash immediately raised his battle axe. He did not wait for the earth to reach its full height. He brought the weapon down with every ounce of strength he possessed.

Krash!

The entire platform shattered beneath him.

Stone exploded outward as Grash dropped through the collapsing earth, while dust filled the tunnel and obscured both fighters from view.

Kong’gong had already taken advantage of the distraction. By the time Grash landed, the salamander had created several meters of distance between them.

Then Kong’gong raised one hand.

"Child..."

His voice carried through the dust.

"Let me show you the difference between a true magic beast and a fraud like you."

Grash’s eyes narrowed while trying to get on his feet.

Behind Kong’gong, something began forming. An enormous circular orange magic array appeared in the air.

Unlike the simple runes Grash was accustomed to carving into his weapons and body, the array contained multiple layers rotating around one another. Runes appeared across its surface one after another, followed by seals that connected together in intricate patterns.

Grash’s expression changed.

He had seen humans use magic arrays like this during his years as a young, adventurous goblin. But he had never seen a magic beast use one.

"Did you feel confident dealing with basic magic all this while?" Kong’gong sneered.

The earth surrounding him began peeling away from the ground. Each piece of stone compressed and sharpened in midair.

Grash’s eyes widened as earth spears began forming behind Kong’gong one after another until thirty hovered in perfect formation behind him.

The dust slowly cleared and Grash stood revealed on the other side of the tunnel, his expression no longer carrying the confidence it had moments earlier.

Kong’gong’s emerald eyes remained fixed on him.

"Foolish child. Your ignorance made you blind to the world around you. Now experience the power of a Tier One Magic."

The tunnel erupted.

"Tier One Earth Magic: Earth Spears!"

Swoosh!

All thirty earth spears shot forward simultaneously.

The confined space made the attack even more terrifying. There was nowhere to run. The tunnel was too narrow to dodge around them, and the spears filled nearly every possible escape route.

Grash gritted his teeth. His instincts screamed at him to move but there was nowhere to go.

He spun his body.

"Vael Mael!!!!!!!"

His battle axe became a blur of azure light as he desperately swung through the incoming barrage.

BOOOM!

The collision shook the entire cave.

Dust poured from the ceiling and stone fragments rained across the battlefield as the force of the impact reverberated through the tunnels.

The sheer difference between Tier Zero and Tier One Magic was not simply about complexity.

It was mana output.

A developed Silver Core possessed enough mana capacity and control to produce Tier One spells, something a Bronze Core simply could not accomplish. But possessing the necessary mana did not mean casting such a spell during combat was easy.

Tier One Magic required greater concentration, more mana, more control and most importantly, time.

When Kong’gong had still been an adventurer, he could never simply stand in the middle of a battle and begin preparing a Tier One spell. The vanguard existed partly for that reason. Warriors like Grash would stand between the mage and the enemy, buying those precious seconds necessary for the spell to be completed.

A mage could not normally create such a powerful spell while simultaneously defending against a warrior attacking them at close range.

Even Tud’or, despite his extraordinary talent, needed roughly a minute and a half to prepare a Tier One spell. That was why he had rarely attempted to use one during a direct confrontation.

But Kong’gong was different.

He was not merely capable of casting Tier One Magic. He had lived with magic for decades.

His experience had allowed him to refine the process until something that should have taken a considerable amount of preparation could be assembled in ten seconds.