Chapter 39 The Room Bellow

Bill was in a desperate position, but he had no strength left. He was kneeling on the ground with a defeated Suzuka at his feet. She was in really bad shape, her eyes filled with tears as the goblin shaman cackled with glee. The shaman signaled to his minions to come out of hiding, relishing in the moment of victory. The air was thick with tension, as the goblin's triumphant laughter echoed through the air. It was a scene of utter defeat and misery, as Bill and the woman were overwhelmed by the goblin's cruel triumph.

Seven gobliman and five goblins emerged from hidden doors, their twisted faces contorted with glee as they reveled in their victory. However, they did not immediately rush to finish off Bill and the woman. Instead, they seemed content to let the shaman gloat over his triumph, savoring the moment of victory. The goblin shaman continued to laugh and signal to his minions, reveling in the power he held over the two humans. It was clear that he relished in their defeat and wanted to make the most of it before delivering the final blow.

The goblin shaman was clearly enjoying himself, holding his illusion staff over his head as he danced in a silly, mocking manner. He jeered and taunted Bill and the woman, relishing in their defeat and gloating over his victory. His twisted, cruel face was alight with glee as he reveled in their misery, clearly relishing the power he held over them. The shaman continued to dance and mock his opponents, clearly enjoying every moment of their defeat. It was a scene of utter contempt and ridicule, as the goblin shaman reveled in his triumph over the two of them.

"Hahaha! My fellow goblins... enjoy the sight! We bested yet another party of these cocky adventurers! Hahaha! No one can take us down! We even took down this forest's mighty minotaur! Hahaha!"

As the scene played out, the weather outside took a turn for the worse. A gentle rain began to fall, the drops pattering against the walls and roof. The air was heavy with the sound of rain, and gentle thunder could be heard in the distance. A blinding flash could be seen through tiny stronghold windows. The stormy weather seemed to reflect the mood of the scene, adding to the sense of despair and hopelessness. The gentle rain seemed to be a fitting backdrop to the defeat and misery of Bill and Suzuka, as they were left at the mercy of the cruel goblin shaman. The storm raged on, its low rumbling serving as a reminder of the dark circumstances that had befallen, and yet again, this world reminded them how cruel it is. 

As the storm raged on outside, lightning began to flash through the windows of the stronghold. The bright, electric bolts illuminated the scene, casting an eerie glow over the goblin shaman and his minions.

It was a good thing that the goblin shaman enjoyed himself and took his sweet time. That gave little time for Bill and Suzuka to recover. But unfortunately, the shaman wasn't a complete fool, he knew he had to finish them off now. 

While the goblin shaman had his sweet time gloating over his victory, Bill recover a tiny bit of strength. However, it was clear that he would not have enough strength to defeat the group of goblins on his own. Suzuka, meanwhile, was using all of her remaining mana to try and recover her broken body, but there was simply not enough time. The odds were stacked against them.

Finally, the time had come for the goblin shaman to deliver the final blow. He ordered his minions to finish off Bill and Suzuka, and they began to approach with caution. The minions did not rush in recklessly, but rather approached slowly and methodically, clearly wary of their opponents. It was clear that they did not take them lightly, and were taking care to ensure that they did not launch a surprise attack. The situation was dire, and it seemed that all hope was lost as the goblin minions closed in for the final attack.

As the goblin minions moved closer, Bill slowly turned his head to face them. He glared at them intensely, his eyes barely open, he is exhausted and maybe he could take one goblin out before they kill them. As the goblins drew closer, he suddenly heard the girl's voice. Suzuka was whispering a plan to him, her voice barely audible over the sound of the rain and the goblin's jeering. Bill listened intently, his eyes flickering as he heard her words.

"Bill... I will use... my magic box power. I will... collapse the roof. When I do... brake the flours... there is a room... beneath us."

 It was a risky plan, but it was their only chance. She would collapse the roof, causing the rubble to fall and kill all of the goblins. Bill, in turn, would use his strength to break the floor, creating a safe space for them to survive the collapse. It was their only chance. Bill nodded, his eyes burning with determination as he prepared to execute their desperate gambit. He turned to face the approaching goblins, ready to fight to the death.

As the goblins closed in, Suzuka extended her arm upwards as if she were reaching for the moon. She spoke a few words, her voice echoing through the room: "Gravity pull!" At that moment, a dark mist-like cloud began to swirl around the ceiling. The clouds seemed to pulse with dark energy, and the ceiling began to shake and collapse. The goblin minions looked up in shock as the roof caved in, caught off guard by the sudden turn of events. Bill used the opportunity to attack, using his strength to break through the floor.

As the rubble fell from the ceiling, Bill used all of his remaining strength to slam the rotten, cracked, and splintered floor with all of his might. The floors were in bad shape even before Bill and Suzuka fought, and after the fight, the floors were worn out even more making them easy to brake. The floor broke down under the force of his attack, creating a hole just big enough for them to escape through. In the nick of time, they fell into the room below, narrowly avoiding being crushed by the falling rubble. They landed with a thud, gasping for air as they tried to catch their breath.

After narrowly escaping the collapsing roof, Bill and Suzuka looked up at the hole through which they had fallen. They listened as the sound of cracking and screeching filled the air, fearing that the rest of the ceiling might come crashing down on top of them at any moment. They could hear the rubble shifting and settling above them. After a minute the horrifying sound stopped and silence to place. 

After what seemed like an eternity, the falling rubble finally came to a stop. The ceilings seemed to be holding, at least for the moment. Bill and Suzuka breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a momentary sense of safety. They knew that no goblin could have survived the collapse and that they were most likely buried under the rubble and dead.

Bill looked around the room, taking in their surroundings. They had landed in a goblin storage room, which was filled with useless junk and debris. Suzuka was in no shape to even stand up, let alone walk, and Bill was spent as well. He had no strength left and knew that they needed to find a way to rest and recover before they could continue on their journey. 

With great care and tenderness, Bill gently picked up Suzuka's broken body and carried her to a safer spot in the room. He found a corner that was free of debris and dust and lay her down on the ground on top of a cloth that was lying there. He sat down next to her, his eyes filled with concern as he watched over her. Finally, they had a moment to talk.

"Little girl... Are you alive?"

Suzuka was in great pain as she spoke to Bill, her voice barely above a whisper. She was clearly in a lot of distress, and Bill could see the pain etched on her face.

"Alive... hurts everything... but... I think... I will survive."

Bill could see that she was struggling, and he knew that she was in a lot of pain.

 He listened intently as she spoke, "I will need... a few hours... to recover... so I could at least walk. I might run low on mana... need to heal slowly."

Bill finally managed to crack a small smile as he listened to Suzuka speak. Despite the pain and suffering that she was enduring, her words were shoving a sign of her usual self. They were a reminder to Bill of how strong she was and of the many fights that they had over this time since she stumbled upon his cave.

"Heh! For injuries like that? Only a few hours of rest? You are a little monster, hahaha."

"Could we, please, talk less? It hurts to even... talk."

"Sure, little girl! Bill needs a good rest too. It looks safe for now, we can spend some time here. I will block the door with some of the junk that's laying here to be sure. Then Bill will take a nap, need to rest."

 Bill looked around the room for some junk to use to block the door, wanting to make sure that they were safe from any potential threats. Once he had secured the door, he lay down next to Suzuka and took a nap. Despite the pain and suffering that they had endured, they were both exhausted and in need of rest.

It was still raining outside, the storm showing no signs of abating. Water drops were falling from the cracked ceilings, creating a constant dripping sound. It was the middle of the day but because of returned rain clouds it looked like an almost dark time, and it had taken them half a day to clear the goblins' castle. They were battered and bruised, their bodies aching from the trials they had endured.

After some time, Bill fell asleep first. Suzuka was finally able to fall asleep as well, her body and mind exhausted from the trials of the day. They slept longer than expected, and by the time they woke up, it was already the middle of the night. A big water drop fell on Suzuka's face, waking her up with a startle. She looked around, her eyes adjusting to the darkness as she tried to orient herself. She could hear the sound of rain falling outside, and the distant rumble of thunder. She looked over at Bill, who was still sleeping peacefully beside her.

Her magic has recovered a great amount over this time. She focused every last bit of her mana on healing her broken bones. Within minutes her broken bones reattached themself back to places where they belong. All of her bruises and cuts started to vanish. Finally, she recovered, not to 100% but enough to be able to walk again. Suzuka stood up and looked around the room that she was in.

She didn't wake Bill, he was still sleeping sound. Suzuka checked the ceiling on how are they holding up, but the ceilings are still holding up fine and they still got time to rest, at least until Bill is up.