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Chapter 103 The Girl's Waiting
Chapter 103 The Girl's Waiting
A group of kobolds, having caught the scent of the red dragon, moved their entire families and traveled thousands of miles to the perilous border forest.
They dared not venture deep into the forest, so they settled on the outskirts. After surveying many places, they finally found an excellent location.
Below the cliff, on the rock face, the cave entrance is invisible to those above, and surrounded by dense forest below, making it both secluded and safe.
This very place was first discovered by Cyrion's team, then found by adventurers from Danube City, and now it has welcomed more than ten uninvited guests.
They cannot escape this calamity no matter what.
Why is that?
Wilder touched the red dragon scales inside the pocket through the fabric, vaguely sensing that he had some connection to them.
As for what exactly their relationship is —
He couldn't figure it out, and now wasn't the time to think about it.
The kobold is dead.
They are now the kobolds in this cave, and potential targets for hunting.
"How much longer until they arrive?" Wilder asked.
"They're not far from us as the crow flies, but there are traps and mechanisms in the cave, so they can't move fast."
Geoffrey thought for a moment, "Half an hour, I guess."
Wilder pondered for a moment, then finally asked, "Which do you think is more dangerous: a team of ten or more people, or the possibility of encountering high-level monsters?"
"A ten-person team, please."
Without hesitation, Gru replied, "Humans are cunning, much more difficult to deal with than monsters."
"The squad will devise tactics to leverage the combat capabilities of more than ten people."
Lyle and Gru rarely reach an agreement.
"I have no idea."
Maeve is an honest girl. "I haven't faced either of these things—"
Joffrey didn't answer, still listening carefully to the footsteps coming from the tunnel.
Cyrion didn't answer either.
He noticed Wilder's gaze lingering on the rock face and seemed to guess what he was thinking.
"Um----"
The warrior, usually brimming with powerful energy, now spoke with a slightly trembling voice: "Wilder, you don't mean to say—"
"Um.
Wilder nodded to him and all his teammates. "I think we can get out of here through the second tunnel left by the kobolds."
"A second tunnel?"
Gru paused for a moment, then remembered where the tunnel led and yelled, "Damn it! Doesn't that lead to the heart of the forest?!"
"Yes, Little Ha wouldn't lie to me."
Wilder nodded. "That tunnel leads into the heart of the forest, and the exit should be very well hidden."
"Isn't that just sending them to their deaths? Those places are full of high-level monsters!"
Gru said subconsciously, but then he immediately remembered the multiple-choice question Wilder had just given them, and he had indeed chosen a high-level monster.
Thinking about it this way—
Is going into the heart of the forest actually the optimal solution?
He gritted his teeth, his mustache twitching, and said nothing more.
Joffrey and Lyle did not comment.
If they venture into the heart of the forest, their high agility actually makes them relatively safe.
The most dangerous person was actually Wilder, who made the suggestion.
He can't jump high, he can't run fast, and he has poor physical fitness.
They are the easiest to kill.
Maeve, who was equally dangerous, also remained silent.
Or rather, her opinion remained unchanged: she went with the flow, following wherever the team went.
"Captain, what do you think?" Wilder asked.
"This is the only way!"
Cyrion spoke these words in a low but powerful tone.
If you eliminate all impossible options, then what remains, no matter how impossible, is the best option.
Travel through the tunnel into the heart of the forest, then take a detour back to Ironweave Town.
That's the best option left.
Everyone nodded, agreeing with the decision.
"But before we leave, we have two things to do."
Cyrion continued, "Firstly, to destroy the body and cover up the evidence, so that no one will discover any clues later."
"Second, we'll destroy the tunnel entrance so they won't realize we've gone into the heart of the forest."
"Hurry up! Their footsteps are getting closer!" Joffrey urged.
The team immediately began operations.
Destroying the body and covering up the evidence was not difficult; thanks to Maeve's continuous efforts, Wilder had regained a considerable amount of his magic power.
In the storage room of the first tunnel, he used [Greasy Spell] in combination with [Burning Hand] to burn the corpses and belongings of four adventurers to ashes.
They then destroyed the entrance to the first tunnel to prevent the smoke from the fire from escaping.
Next, they returned to the central hall and destroyed the only tunnel entrance to this space.
As the rocks fell and buried the cave entrance, a loud noise echoed through the passage along the stone walls.
Hearing the sound, the dozen or so outsiders outside the tunnel would surely speed up their journey.
Cyrion's squad doesn't have much time left to evacuate.
They then crawled into the second tunnel in the rock face.
Lyle and Joffrey were in front, followed by Grow, Wilde, and Maeve, with Cyrion at the very back.
[Heavy Strike Thrust]
The warrior's one-handed sword pierced the cave ceiling behind him, causing rocks and dirt to fall and bury their escape route.
We've done everything we could.
"Set off!"
Cyrion's deep voice carried a hint of deliberate fervor.
It was as if they were not fleeing into the heart of the forest, but heading towards conquest.
The town of Tiewen, located dozens of miles away in the border forest, was peaceful and bustling at this moment.
-
The afternoon sun was intense and dazzling, reflecting a bright light on the stone pavement in the middle of the street. Pedestrians sought refuge in the shade under the eaves on both sides of the street, some gathered together drinking beer and chatting, while others haggled with vendors.
Adventurers' Guild Hall.
Martha was absentmindedly checking the ledgers at the counter when a pretty figure quietly approached her.
"Talia?"
She looked up, her tone friendly, "Did Wilder send you to collect the money?"
Talia paused, a look of confusion crossing her porcelain-white face: "What money?"
"A reward for providing information about forest fires."
As she spoke, Martha took out a prepared money pouch from the cabinet and handed it to her, "Ten gold coins in total."
"Thanks."
Talia took it and carefully put it in her pocket.
"Didn't Wilder send you?" Martha asked. "I told him to tell you."
"I haven't seen him for several days."
Talia shook her head, then asked, "Have you seen him?"
Martha then understood why she had come to find her.
"Yesterday afternoon, he and a few others, including Cyrion, received a mission to hunt kobolds and went to the border forest."
"Not back yet?"
"no."
Martha has been on duty these past two days. If they come back, they'll definitely be settling accounts at her counter.
"Just killing a few puppies —"
Martha sighed to herself, "They should have been back last night. What are they doing?"
"He might be back tonight."
Talia noticed her worry and responded somewhat awkwardly.
"Yes, I think so too."
Martha smiled at the girl whose beauty couldn't be hidden even by her tattered robe. "You're here too, right? Let's wait together."
"it is good."
Talia nodded.