~~~A few days earlier~~~
Alphonse hunkered down near an outcropping of rock and observed the wide expanse of the cavern. A number of paths extended from the walls, and webs of narrow suspension bridges crossed above to connect multiple ledges. Pairs of goblins stood watch with ranged weapons, waiting for any foolish adventurers to pass by.
He enhanced his 'perception' and noticed that most of the creatures had stubs for ears rather than the typical long, pointed ones. As luck would have it, the stubby ones stood on the platforms closest to his side of the area.
A series of connected fissures dotted the flat landscape leading to the opposite side that was his party's destination. A short tunnel led deeper into the dungeon. The fodder enemies avoided the area beyond due to a large reptilian creature known as a Migunne setting up house.
The leathery skin of this monster was excellent for crafting material used to carry liquid poisons and acids. It was a nice commodity for almost every class in this world. Maybe it wasn't especially helpful for a mage, but whatever portion he/she received from the loot sold for a decent price on the market. For Alphonse, being a scout specialist, this material worked well to complement his stealthy approach. Hitting a vital spot on an enemy made poison far more potent.
He counted the number of goblins on watch. They didn't need any sort of alarm to alert their fellow monsters. Just a shout was enough to echo throughout the dungeon. It wasn't the goblins themselves that worried him, but the ogres sleeping in an adjacent chamber.
And that's why his party decided to recruit him as a scout. Scouts were quiet, agile and disabled enemies with silent lethality.
Alphonse heard his comrades shift impatiently behind him.
He heard one of them whisper, "You sure about this guy?"
Another voice answered, "Trust me, he's good."
"We've been sitting here ten minutes."
A female voice interjected on the two, "There's no rush. We need to conserve our items for the monster."
The irritated man who spoke first spit at the ground. "Fine, whatever."
Alphonse felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned and saw it was his friend, Alex, not the disgruntled fellow disturbing his thought-process. He used the term loosely, but they'd been together since their first two dungeon explorations and a decent amount before entering Hovestile.
The other two members of their party were native adventurers, original denizens of Hovestile.
The big man gave him a curious look.
Alphonse decided to oblige him. "The types of goblins near us can't hear well. You can tell by their ears." He pointed at the patrols. "You three take the side path hugging the wall there. I'll sneak to the other side and deal with the ones that have better hearing."
The woman inched closer so she could hear the conversation. "Why don't we just ignore the goblins and use the fissures?" She pointed at the wide cracks stretching across in front of them.
Alphonse shook his head. "Those aren't natural. I guarantee there's a Mantis Worm sliding around down there. They aren't hostile, but their skin is toxic. I'm the only one with enough poison resistance to sit with them and sneak by."
The young man with his longbow smirked. "Heh, for an outworlder, you know your shit."
Alphonse gave him a thumbs up. "Well, I am the scout."
Alex ran a hand through his stubble of a beard as he considered the situation. "So we deal with the goblins that are hard of hearing, and you'll go to the opposite side and kill the other ones."
"Right, but wait for me to strike first."
They all nodded their assent.
With that last affirmation, Alphonse pressed himself against his cover and moved in a running crouch to another position. He held up his hand and observed the goblins wandering above. He waited until they broke line of sight and waved his party members forward. They rushed to the indicated path and went prone behind a short wall of stone. They proceeded to army crawl along the path.
Alphonse watched as the goblins continued their patrol away from him. The ones on the ledges didn't have a clear view in his direction. The monsters weren't all that bright and had poor vision. They probably expected anyone passing by to take the open, flat area. Surely no adventurer could survive the toxins emitted from the mantis worm in the fissure. In most cases, such an assumption would be correct. There were some unreliable alternatives like potions to deal with poison, but they were dealing with an adventurer who developed a natural resistance.
The scout dropped into the first fissure and landed on top of a hard, shifting shell. Thin, barely discernible openings in the plating secreted a gooey, purple substance with a light smoke of similar hue. The tube-shaped creature didn't seem to notice or mind that someone was hitching a ride on its body. Long fins extended from its sides at regular intervals and latched on to the walls of the wide crevice.
Alphonse patted the worm's tough exterior with his gloved hand. "Thanks, pal. Appreciate the ride," he whispered.
The worm let out a low rumble as if it understood.
It weaved through the connected cracks while carrying its occupant. When they reached the steep path on the other side, Alphonse jumped up and heaved himself over the edge. An overhang concealed his movements.
'Alright, so far so good,' he thought.
He glanced at the tunnel nearby. He found it amusing that he could technically leave right then and there. But it wasn't his style, and it defeated the whole purpose of being a scout. He also needed his party to help deal with the giant reptile. He was looking forward to crafting that pouch. Maybe there would be enough parts left over to sell so he could purchase a new dagger.
The path angled at a near-vertical incline and curved away from the cavern's center, all according to his plan. He patiently waited once again for an opening. Some goblins made their way back across the bridge after another few minutes. An opportunity presented itself when a pair of goblins on a ledge watched as the giant worm slid down a cliff. It eventually wrapped around and continued its lap through the fissure.
Alphonse climbed up, clamped a hand over a goblin's mouth and stabbed it through the chest with a dagger. The monster didn't struggle for long as its body submitted to death. He laid the body on the ground gently, pulled the second goblin that wandered too far ahead behind a boulder and finished it off in similar fashion.
He still wasn't entirely used to the whole idea of killing, but it was a necessity in this world. As an adventurer who specialized in assassination, the kills were quick, clean and mostly devoid of prolonged suffering. Sometimes, he equated it to his hunting trips on Earth, but it was a different experience when killing something humanoid. No doubt the goblins were nasty, vicious creatures in comparison, but it made Alphonse feel better all the same.
He started moving towards the next pair of watchers when he saw his party just outside his periphery. The goblins on their side still stood there, yawning and scratching their bellies, oblivious to what befell their fellow monsters. Alphonse's timing had been perfect. When he made his assigned killings, the goblins on the bridge reached the other side almost simultaneously.
He frowned when a few seconds passed with no activity. The goblins looked down at the mantis worm as it crawled up another side and broke a chunk off the cliff. The clatter of stones and low rumbling from the worm should've been a perfect sound cover.
'The hell?' Alphonse wondered what was taking his comrades so long.
His question was answered when he saw the tip of an arrow poking out between two tall slabs of rock. At first, he thought that something really was amiss. He noticed the direction of the arrow angle towards him. Alphonse looked to his side expecting an enemy ambush. He crouched down and lifted his dagger to deflect an incoming strike, but all he saw was the empty air.
He pivoted in his stance and checked the other side.
"Wait...what?" he breathed.
The faint twang of a bowstring reached his ears. The arrow embedded in the wall a few yards from him. Alphonse saw tiny flashes accompanied with dotted shadows. The sparks crawled towards the base of the arrowhead where a small cylinder was attached.
He realized what was happening at the last second.
The arrow exploded and splashed debris. The force threw him back. He grasped frantically, and his fingers brushed the rope railing for one of the suspension bridges. Two fingers managed to curl around, and his gloves protected him from the sharp bristles.
"Shit! Shit!"
He pulled himself up and fell into a roll as the sword of a goblin dug into a wooden support. He brought his dagger up and thrust it under the goblin's chin. A back kick sent another enemy careening over the railing to the ground far below.
During a brief respite, Alphonse saw his party members had broken cover and sprinted across the open area of the cavern. A pair of ogres emerged from the tunnel they'd recently left and began their pursuit.
But it wasn't the enemies that caught his attention. It was the look on the archer's face. He noticed Alphonse as he began to pull up his hood. The hint of a sneer crept along his face.
But what would sit with Alphonse forever was his friend's expression. He locked eyes with Alex for only a second, and Alphonse thought he caught a glimpse of an apology in the big man's eyes.
'Why...?' Alphonse thought.
Goblins poured from the openings at Alphonse's level. Most of the attention had been directed towards the explosion. And of course, he was the closest.
He made a break for the edge and drew his short sword. He parried a sloppy attack from his left and sliced the throat of another enemy to the right. He whirled about and finished off his first disoriented opponent with a stab through the stomach.
Alphonse was about to make his way down the steep path to regroup when he saw that the two ogres opted to abandon pursuit of the trio that disappeared into the tunnel. The lone scout was much easier prey.
Alphonse slid to a stop and planted his feet to backtrack. He barrelled through a group of goblins taunting him with spears and sliced a hand off one monster that lingered to the rear. A downward strike from a rusty sword barely missed him, and he stabbed through the mouth of its wielder.
Another bridge extended to a position far left of his original destination. Alphonse had no clue where it led, but he didn't see any other options. He sprinted across and jumped to another suspension bridge that intersected below when more monsters attempted to bar his way. This direction led to another tunnel near the adjacent wall.
He cut the ropes tied to the outcroppings of rock that held the bridge in place and disappeared into the dark. The path fell into a steep decline without warning after only a few steps into the tunnel. Alphonse lost his footing and let out a short cry before he tumbled down the last few feet to the flat ground.
He shook his head to clear his fogged vision and fell into a stumbling sprint. A faint, thin ray of light beckoned to him further in the dark, and it continued to expand as he drew closer.
Those remorseful eyes from his friend. That wicked sneer from the damned archer. He wouldn't forget either.