Well, I'm not looking for a review swap or anything, but I do want to give some advice.
I went ahead and read the first two chapters, I know it's not a lot, but I noticed something pretty quick. You're writing is unmoored, you don't take the time to establish the settings of exactly where the person is, and consequently, it makes it look like you didn't put much thought in it either.
Like an above poster stated, setting the stakes. There was a throwaway line in the first chapter about being in an exam. A good chance to elaborate on the setting would have been the character dismissing the chest because it wasn't worth the bother, since it wouldn't earn any points. Whereas, the goblins would. That alone sets the stakes, specifically being, that the character needs points for the exam.
This could have been reiterated by the characters decision to engage with the goblins later on. Which you kinda did.
As for the setting, you need to engage the senses. Right now, it feels like you're just telling the reader what to see and not giving the reader time to process what is available and make inferences and judgements on their own. Like, at the end of the chapter there is a throwaway line that he's in a volcano dungeon, and yet nothing up to this point gave me the idea he was in anything other than a normal dungeon.
You could start the chapter with something like, The heat was oppressive. Pressing in from all sides, even just sneaking around was a chore as his sweat soaked into his clothes. His lips were constantly dry, and every breath made his tongue wither from the heat. Only constant sips of cool water that wet his tongue and throat kept him feeling alive.
Engage the senses. what does the dungeon smell like? If it's a volcano dungeon, does it smell like brimstone? Sulfur? Where is the light coming from? You said torches, but that isn't implied until you told us during the boss fight. At the time, with how dim it was, I thought the lighting was from lava that was running through the walls or something. Which would contribute to the heat and also would make for a good reason for why the lighting is so dim at times.
My biggest pet peeve was the fight scene, you made it obvious that targeting the big guy was the best option, but why? You never established the field of battle. There were three goblins, but what was their formation? Their equipment? How tall are they? All these add to the moment, and wouldn't they be hot too? Or they adapted to the heat?
A proper breakdown would have gone something like,
'There were three goblins. He knew he could take them, only how. One was trailing behind, the bigger of the trio. Clearly, they must have been the boss, or at least the one that gave orders among the three. The other two were further ahead, one had a spear, the other a sword and shield. As for armor? All they had were rags. Fighting them all at once would be trouble. Each was about half his size, so, he knew he could overpower them one on one, but he needed to avoid getting hurt to maximize his point gains. Which meant, he needed to whittle down their numbers.
In a matter of seconds, a plan formed and he moved, the answer was obvious. With a leap, his daggers punched into the rear goblin's back. The wet squelch of cold steel meeting hot flesh just loud enough to alert the pair ahead. By the time they turned, he'd already retrieved his daggers. Before either could move, he kicked the dying goblin into the sword and shield wielding goblin whom went down with an aborted squawk.
He didn't stop. The moment he kicked the dying goblin, his feet were already in motion. By the time the dying goblin hit, he was already before the spear wielding goblin. Terrified and shocked by his sudden motion, the goblin made a hasty thrust, the spear tip missing by a mile, and cold steel found its home in the goblin's throat.
With a twist, he retrieved the blade and rounded on the sword and shield wielding goblin, who had just barely managed to get out from under his now dead companion.
He grinned, the short burst of activity had him parched, and his brow was wet with sweat, but it was all worth it. With a jolt he went forward, the goblin swung wide with their sword, attempting to stop him, but he easily dodged and snuck in, his blade swung down, carving into the goblin's arm, the cold edge cutting along bone, not quite cutting through, but definitely disarmed the goblin.
Now disarmed, the goblin wasn't an issue. All too easily, he finished it off and looked over the battlefield. Taking an idle sip of his canteen, he couldn't wait for this exam to be done.'
Or, uh, something like that, it's not written well. Establish where they are, the stakes, and use it. The more established a scene is the more you can do with it, the more dynamic it can feel. The more an audience can anticipate what's happening during the fight. Which makes the fight more, fun.
As for the party members, I mean, yeah, they're not memorable, but have their banter revolve around the conditions of the dungeon. Have the girl complain about the heal, and possibly how its drying out her hair, making it frizz, or something. The tank has to be absolutely miserable, if he's wearing heavy armor in a hot setting, he's gotta be stewing in his sweat. I wouldn't wanna be around when he takes those boots off. Having him mention that and his wish to just get this done and over with would make sense, plus it would add to the setting. As for the final guy, honestly? No idea.
You should have established what the boss area looks like, you had a chance when the main character was scouting it out. A general idea of the numbers and what the leader is wielding, wearing, so on. Even the size and design of the area would have been nice to know. I was convinced the boss was an ogre or something, but they're a goblin boss and that, confused me. Like, how big is he? How could he be big enough to squash a grown man when a goblin is typically on the smaller side, unless otherwise stated. As for the fight itself, honestly, the whole boss fight I was just lost. I was just kind of along for the ride and that wasn't a good thing.
I had to admit, the main character has me interested. They seem to know what they are doing and clearly aren't shy about killing. A lot of those strikes he made weren't something just anyone could do, especially when knives can easily get caught on ribs or something like that. made me wonder where he got that kind of training, because there's no way he's just a random nobody.
Your first chapter could be a decent hook, but you need to actually hook people. Get them into the moment, let them feel what the main character is feeling in the moment. Establish the setting so people aren't just, floating in the wind and go from there.
I'm not sure how qualified I am to be giving advice like this, I've not been around as long as you. I've only got one completed story under my belt and it sucks, and though my currently posting story is leagues better, I don't think its that great. So, take my advice with a grain of salt. See how it works for you, and well, hopefully nothing I said offends.
If I overstepped at all, sorry. Otherwise, I do hope this helps.
