Although it wasn't long before Zarek was running for his life, unknown to Alexander a lot had changed since then.
Few moments ago when Zarek was planning for a final push, he had decided to use the unassigned stat points to push his strength even further, so without wasting any time he had dumped all of his stat points on mana.
It wasn't a brainless decision but something that after careful consideration, as someone who had read hundreds of chapters of the world of "Beyond Good and Evil," Zarek knew just how difficult it was to increase mana.
Not everyone understood just how important this single stat was until it was too late. Mana was the only stat point which didn't give immediate boost in strength, but as time passed and warriors' levels continued to increase, and the need for large mana pools to cast many hunger skills arose.
Warriors finally realized the importance of investing in this stat.
Zarek however was already aware. However even then this was only one of the reasons. The second reason being... slowly his focus shifted to active summons.
His gut instinct told him it had something to do with his mana.
And indeed next moment his gamble finally paid off. As soon as he added all the points to mana, Zarek's vision became clearer, similar to someone when a person with eye problems used glasses for the first time. His thoughts becoming clear and crisp and the stage connection that he had with his summoned seemed to be further strengthened.
However Zarek's focus wasn't on all of these things but something else.
Active summons which was only at 2 suddenly jumped, going from 2 to directly 7.
Without even realizing, a grin had appeared on Zarek's face.
"Hehe... good, very good."
Zarek wanted to throw his head back and laugh out loud like a madman, and he did just that but the only sound that came out of his mouth was choking sound, as the restrictions imposed by the dungeon were still in effect.
Thankfully there was no Misery to watch this pitiful scene, otherwise it would have been interesting to see just how Zarek's behavior influenced the goblin.
...
Meanwhile back in the present.
Alexander's mouth was still opened wide. For a moment even the large horde guarding the entrance seemed to have felt the sudden change, and all the goblins present collectively turned their gaze toward the back.
The air was still rippling from the aftereffect of Zarek's command. The ten or so goblins who were chasing Misery rigidly turned their heads stiffly to look at six newly appeared warriors dressed in simple leather armor.
Indeed now that his active summons had increased, Zarek could summon seven miseries at once, each identical to the original.
However Zarek wasn't sure if they shared the same brain as well.
Before he could dwell deeper, he shook his head.
"Let's save that thought for later. For now he had to deal with these goblins first."
Zarek's eyes turned indifferent. Without a single ripple in his eyes he pointed his hand ahead and commanded like a general guiding his troops:
"Attack!"
This word had barely appeared in his mind, when all the six Misery looked at each other and started grinning and said in unison, "Eheh, let's have fun!"
Without wasting any time, the six of them charged toward the goblins. A battle immediately broke out.
The first Misery who was being chased by the group earlier let out a triumphant smile at the successful completion of his original mission and let out a loud battle cry, echoing throughout the cavern.
Soon the two groups clashed, fist striking against fist, sharp fangs tearing through flesh.
Unlike how one would expect them to attack given how professionally the Miseries were dressed, their fighting style was sharp and brutal, tearing through the bodies with raw strength.
Caught by surprise, the goblins weren't able to react in time and were immediately pushed backward.
Seeing the momentum was on their side, Zarek took the initiative and also jumped into the fray, his pupils automatically turning crystal white.
With him joining the fight, the battle turned even more bloody and intense.
One after the other, bodies started to fall on the ground, the smell of iron filling the cavern.
For a moment, Zarek's body paused mid-air, as the sound of notifications rang in his ear.
Thinking of something, a wide smile appeared on his face. However he didn't immediately check the status window, but focused on the goblins in front of him.
Zarek became a phantom moving through goblins, his moves swift and clean as if he had performed them thousands of times.
Each of his punches, every kick landed on the goblins' vitals, making them collapse on the ground.
Meanwhile Alexander's mouth was stretched to its limit, his mind was shaking, his thoughts had gone completely blank. Only a single question remained in his head: "Who is this guy?"
The battle ended after five minutes. Zarek took a deep breath and looked at all the corpses scattered on the ground, his eyes turning cold, even more colder with every passing moment.
Zarek didn't know what it was, maybe the effect of some strange aura. He couldn't tell, but all that he wanted to do now was to fight the horde of goblins at the front.
Just as the sensation was about to get hold of him, the sound of flesh being torn open caused him to regain his sanity.
"No, I am still not strong enough to defeat hundred plus goblins alone."
Around him Misery continued their search. Zarek looked at this scene and sighed.
"This guy sure is persistent."
After looking at this scene so many times, Zarek already had an idea what they were looking for.
So he couldn't help but shake his head. There was no way to find what Misery was looking for on this floor.
If he wasn't wrong, it must be the evolution crystals, a crystallization of life essence.