Climbing the Tower with Time-Stop Ability Chapter 3: Nightmare, 1st Floor (2)

In the frozen stillness, I stared at the goblin holding the bow.

Wait…

Can I even dodge that?

I had no sense for it.

It’s not like I’d ever tried to dodge an arrow in my life.

Just imagining it, it didn’t seem easy.

With a bow, it’s hard to even register the mont it’s fired.

A sword swung at close range, sure, you can read the windup and react to so degree.

But predicting the exact instant soone releases a drawn bowstring? That’s not humanly possible.

All they have to do is let go of their fingers and the arrow’s already in the air. How are you supposed to ti that?

In the end, the only option was to start Ti Slicing the mont it aid my way, toggling on and off until the shot ca.

…Still, couldn’t I manage sohow if I really tried?

‘The one with the shield is a problem too.’

A goblin carrying a wooden shield and a one-handed sword.

It felt twice as hard as the two swords and one spear from before.

This ti, I had to fight two of them while keeping one eye on incoming arrows.

Nothing to do but deal with it. Fail and I die.

After steeling myself, I released the ti stop.

The sword goblin and the shield goblin charged in.

Behind them, I could see the bow goblin nocking an arrow to its bowstring.

Take out the sword goblin first.

I ran at a diagonal angle, planning to use a similar strategy.

Positioning to open distance from the bow goblin while funneling the charging ones into a one-on-one.

Before long, the bow goblin drew its bowstring and took aim at .

The two charging goblins still had so distance to close.

I began Ti Slicing, bracing for the incoming arrow.

I needed to be ready to dodge the instant the shot was released.

If it was going to shoot, it would do so before the other two closed in on . Hard to aim when they’re in the way of a lee.

I focused every nerve I had.

“…!”

It fired.

Luckily, the timing didn’t fall apart on .

Coming straight on, the arrow looked like a dot.

A dot growing steadily closer.

…Wait, it’s even faster than I thought.

The realization hit .

Oh, this isn’t gonna work. Shit.

No matter how early I started dodging from the mont of release.

The human body was simply too slow compared to a flying arrow.

By the ti I tried to read the arrow’s trajectory and felt sothing was wrong, I was already twisting my upper body to the left. The best evasive attempt I could manage.

‘Nggghhhh…!’

Screaming internally, I wrenched my body aside with everything I had.

By the thinnest of margins.

The arrow grazed my right forearm.

If I’d started moving even a fraction of a second later, there was no way I would’ve dodged it.

I steadied myself.

Okay. Got it.

This isn’t sothing I can just “get good” at.

I imdiately regretted the cocky thought from monts ago. “Manage sohow,” my ass.

The distance that arrow just covered, what, 20 ters? Maybe 30?

At that range, the slightest misstep and there’s no dodging it.

And on top of that, one more problem I’d just realized.

Until the arrow got reasonably close, it was hard to tell exactly where it was heading.

But by the ti it got close enough to read, it was already too late to dodge.

No way out. Shit.

The sheer unfairness of ranged weapons hit in full force.

For now, I had to deal with the enemy right in front of .

I released the ti stop and recovered my balance from the awkward twist.

The sword goblin had closed in right to my face.

And, thankfully, it attacked recklessly again.

I toggled Ti Slicing to prepare for the strike.

A horizontal slash aid high.

I stepped back and leaned away to dodge it.

Far easier than dodging an arrow. I evaded the attack and imdiately counterattacked, driving my sword into the goblin’s neck.

Stopped ti again to take stock.

The bow goblin was just now nocking another arrow, and the shield goblin had fully closed the distance.

In terms of positioning, if I was facing twelve o’clock, the shield goblin was at one o’clock and the bow goblin was sniping from roughly two o’clock.

I confird the shield goblin was winding up for a thrust with its one-handed sword.

I quickly sidestepped clockwise and dodged the blade aid at my midsection.

Ghhk-

My sword was still buried in the other goblin’s neck.

That ant the dying goblin was wedged between and the shield goblin.

Better yet, with two goblins blocking the front, maintaining this angle drastically reduced the threat of arrows.

I could breathe for a second.

Things had gone well so far, so let freeze ti and think.

‘How do I deal with this one?’

The shield goblin.

That shield covering nearly its entire upper body was a serious nuisance.

No matter how many scenarios I ran in my head, a quick takedown seed unlikely.

Instead of going for the neck or upper body, I decided to aim low.

The instant I released ti, I kicked the goblin away and wrenched my sword free.

The shield goblin behind it stumbled from the impact, then thrust its sword at again.

I had to nail the timing.

I Ti Sliced to dodge the attack and grabbed the goblin’s sword wrist.

Simultaneously, my other hand drove the sword downward.

The shield goblin let out a shrill screech as the blade bit into the top of its foot.

I kept a death grip on my sword and an equally tight hold on the thing’s wrist.

The shield swung at my face.

Uh, can’t dodge this one.

Thwack!

I clenched my teeth and took it on the forehead. My skull rang.

We grappled, and the shield goblin toppled backward.

I lost my balance too and fell on top of it.

I jerked my head up just in ti to see an arrow whiz past overhead.

Holy sh-, almost got fked there…

I scrambled to grab my sword and moved to finish the shield goblin.

Pinned underneath , the thing’s upper body was completely exposed from the fall.

Before it could recover, I drove the blade up through its lower jaw.

Urk-

Sothing suddenly trickled down from my head, stinging my eyes.

Blood? Oh, my forehead must’ve split open.

I frantically snatched up the shield and raised it to cover the front.

I stopped ti, then took a mont to collect myself.

The bow goblin was already aiming this way again.

‘That son of a bitch.’

After nearly dying several tis over, my emotions were running hot.

More than just anger, it felt like adrenaline was flooding through my body.

Getting the shield was a win, at least.

Blocking an arrow with a shield was leagues easier than trying to dodge one.

Now only the bow goblin remained.

Having gathered my composure, I released the ti stop and got to my feet.

I held the shield up, covering as much of my upper body as I could.

Like this, even a small adjustnt of the shield could protect everything above the waist.

No more of that full-body contortion act just to dodge arrows.

“…”

I Ti Sliced in anticipation of an arrow that could fly at any mont.

But the bow goblin only kept its aim trained on . It didn’t shoot.

Yeah, scared too, aren’t you?

It seed to realize that one missed shot ant the end.

The second it loosed an arrow, I’d charge in and gut it with my sword.

Once I closed the gap, I’d win. That was a given.

The distance was short enough that I’d reach it before it could nock a second arrow.

I circled the bow goblin, shield thrust forward in my left hand, sword hanging loosely in my right.

The goblin never fired.

It eased the tension on its drawn bowstring and just kept tracking .

I clicked my tongue.

If it was going to play it like that, I couldn’t just rush in either.

This exact distance was the range where I was confident I could block.

Any closer and the pressure would be imnse, shield or not.

Even if I charged with my head and torso fully covered, a lucky shot to the leg could take out of the fight.

Of course, there was no guarantee it’d land every shot either, so the odds were fifty-fifty… no, probably still in my favor, but…

“Hey, you little shit! Scared?!”

I tried provoking it, sa as before.

I shouted, taunted, made mocking faces, but the bow goblin didn’t budge.

Stubborn bastard. Annoying.

RRRRRUMBLE-

Then, without warning, a deafening sound erupted.

A stone gate was descending over the passage the goblins had co from.

“Huh?”

What is that all of a sudden?

I stopped ti.

Don’t tell it’s sealing in?

The only way out of this space was that one straight corridor.

Once that stone gate ca all the way down, I’d be trapped.

I had no idea why it was suddenly trying to lock in, but it felt ominous as hell.

No, forget that, there’s still more? This isn’t the end?

‘Do I need to get out before it closes?’

Go through the corridor, or stay put.

There was no way to know which was the right call.

…I’m going. I decided to trust my gut.

But there was one problem.

The bow goblin was standing right in front of the corridor.

To get out, I’d have to go through it.

A crossroads where I had no choice but to take the risk.

Then take it.

I released the ti stop and charged straight at the bow goblin.

I raised the shield just high enough to maintain the barest line of sight, protecting my vitals.

The mont I saw the thing frantically drawing its bowstring, I started Ti Slicing.

At roughly ten ters out.

I caught the bow tilting slightly downward. It was aiming for my legs.

I dropped the shield low imdiately.

The arrow flew and embedded itself in the shield.

…Blocked! You’re dead.

Having closed to point-blank range, I drove my sword into the flank of the goblin as it scrambled to retreat.

No ti to finish it off for sure.

The stone gate had already closed more than halfway.

I ripped the sword free and sprinted into the corridor, leaving the fallen goblin behind.

BOOM!

The passage sealed shut.

Safe. I caught my breath.

“Haah… haah…”

I looked down at the arrow lodged in the shield.

It was stuck near the very edge of the rim.

A little further off and it would’ve hit my knee.

But in the end, I’d won.

Once the rush subsided, I surveyed my surroundings.

The stone gate was firmly closed behind , and up ahead, a gentle upward slope stretched out.

I narrowed my eyes when I spotted sothing.

On closer inspection, there was sothing at the top of the incline.

It was… a ball.

As my sense of perspective kicked in, I realized just how massive it was.

Thoom.

“…Huh.”

That enormous ball.

Had started rolling toward .

Its smooth surface glead silver, like an iron sphere.

Goosebumps erupted across my skin as I froze ti.

No, wait wait wait… hold on.

Th-this wasn’t the right answer?

Behind , sealed. Ahead, a ball.

A straight corridor completely filled by a rolling iron sphere, and nowhere to dodge.

The sickening feeling of having been played.

I realized I was well and truly fked.

‘…This is how I die?’

No, this can’t be right.

The gate closing back there was obviously telling to get out. You bastard!

Raging about it changed nothing.

Ti was frozen, but it was as good as a death sentence already handed down.

The mont I let ti flow, I’d be flattened like jerky and die horribly.

No. I don’t want to die like this.

I clawed my way out of the despair and panic, desperately searching for a way to survive.

So way to live… what’s that?

Sothing entered my field of vision.

Looking carefully, there was an indentation carved into the wall about halfway down the corridor.

An indentation just big enough for one person to fit into.

‘…!’

Feeling like I’d found an oasis in the desert, I released the ti stop.

I threw aside the sword and shield and broke into a dead sprint.

The rolling ball picked up speed, closing the distance at a terrifying rate.

Of course it was, I was running toward it.

“AAAAHHH!”

They say when a human feels absolute terror, they can’t even scream.

Apparently that didn’t apply to . Shit, save , please!

The instant before the iron sphere filled my entire vision, I squeezed into the indentation by a hair’s breadth.

A blast of wind slamd into my back.

The iron sphere thundered past, followed by another massive crash.

My legs gave out completely and I sank to the ground.

“Hh… hah…”

Wow.

I survived that.

For a mont, it felt like I’d dipped my toes in the River Styx and co back.

I staggered to my feet.

Too shaken to move right away, I waited a long while before stepping out of the alcove.

Looking down, the iron sphere had smashed the stone gate to pieces and rolled all the way inside.

I had to go back down to retrieve my discarded weapons.

When I made it back to the cave and saw what lay before , I was montarily speechless.

The entire floor was bristling with countless iron arrows, packed so densely there was barely any space between them.

What the hell is this?

Did a rain of arrows co pouring from the ceiling?

“…So getting out was the right call after all.”

If I hadn’t left, I would’ve ended up looking like a pincushion.

At this point, I was just dumbfounded.

No wonder everyone dies.

Is this difficulty even ant to be beatable?

I searched the area for weapons.

The shield had been crushed to pieces under the ball. I picked out an intact sword and took one. Maybe a spear too, just in case?

Sword in one hand, spear in the other, I headed back outside.

“…God, seriously.”

What scared most of all.

Even after all that, the clear ssage still hadn’t appeared.

I just stood there, recovering my stamina.

I half-expected more goblins or sothing to pop out from up ahead, but even after a long wait, nothing ca.

…So it wants to keep going. Is that it?

I dreaded what else might be waiting.

“Huuuu…”

Let’s go.

Sothing told this was nearing the end. Just a feeling.

I let out a long, heavy sigh and forced my leaden feet forward.