Among the most prestigious underground labyrinths in the Lapps.
A small team of three adventurers was traveling through the dimly lit tunnel.
Here, the sun has been completely blocked.
The primary lighting magic that the adventurers had mastered could barely illuminate their outlines.
Catherine, the only female member of the group, mouthed the incantation.
Another Primary Illumination was renewed in the palm.
She glanced back at the guy in the back who was grinding away, making all sorts of marks on the wall, and prodded disgruntledly:
"Please! Ajussi, can you move faster? Illumination spells take stamina, too!"
The man called "Uncle" is Jack O'Shield.
He was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old.
With deep eyes and three-dimensional features.
Coupled with a majestic and robust muscular body.
Even at the age of an uncle, he's still a pretty flavorful one.
But the plain, somewhat cheap, full-coverage armor limited Jack's appeal.
Makes him seem a little flat.
Jack raised the torch in his hand and suggested sincerely:
"Illumination spells actually work better with torches if you have a lower level."
The voice came through the face armor and seemed a bit dull.
"Meh."
Catherine rolled her eyes dismissively.
"No way, no way? As a lower-level adventurer, are you actually using torches? Ajussi, you wouldn't even be able to come up with the money to buy a beginner's lighting spell, would you?"
Squeeze the crusty old uncle with words.
It was Catherine's newfound method of amusement along the way.
"Oh, sorry, I shouldn't have asked such an obvious question. I was so impressed with your information board when I was in the Adventurer's Guild's recruitment hall before, Uncle ..."
Catherine giggled.
"Shield Block, Shield Throw ... These old-fashioned skills can only be seen in you, Uncle."
"Cut the crap; it's also necessary behavior to leave a mark when venturing into a scene like a dungeon."
A young male voice rang out.
The speaker was Ian, who was walking alongside Catherine.
Ian was wearing shiny silver armor.
The matching helmet hangs at his waist, along with his crossword.
Deliberately showing off that lion-like blonde hair.
The combination of blonde hair and silver armor made Ian look heroic while setting off a bit of aristocratic temperament.
Selling alone absolutely crushes Uncle Jack.
"This is just a lower-level quest; with Ian's strength of you being close to an intermediate-level adventurer, completing the quest won't be a breeze."
When facing Ian, the silver-armored knight.
Catherine's tone softened noticeably.
She intentionally leaned her body next to Ian's.
While her voluptuous body touched the cold silver armor, Catherine could feel Ian's growing arousal inside.
Catherine had a look of adoration on her face.
But in my heart, I secretly sneered: Humph, hypocritical noble brat, when this mission is over, I'll see if you still won't give in.
Jack O'Shield, who was following at the end, was also watching the two temporary teammates.
Both of these young men had decent equipment and skills.
But the professionalism of being an adventurer is a real concern.
First up is Ian, who has a war job.
Not to mention, they did not wear the all-important helmet properly and did not even maintain basic tactical formation.
And that Catherine.
As a law girl specializing in healing.
Running off to walk alongside a warcaster, is that a fear of not dying fast enough?
This would have been on his old team.
The regimental commander would surely use his legendary quality belt to educate these two young men severely, right?
As he was thinking, Jack suddenly saw the darkness ahead.
There were several fiery red lines that were traveling rapidly through the air.
The two adventurers who were walking in front of them also noticed something strange in front of them at the same time.
Ian drew the crossed swords at his waist, pulling out a magnificent series of sword swipes in a smooth motion and confronting the thing in the darkness from a distance.
Catherine took a conscious step back.
For not worrying about the difficulty of an inferior mission.
Catherine didn't withdraw too far, merely hiding behind Ian.
There was a sudden wavering of the torch held by Jack.
The oxygen that supported the burning flames seemed to thin out instantly.
Jack's heart fluttered, and he warned loudly, "Get out of the way! It's fire magic!"
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Jack was already lunging to the side, tumbling against the wall.
Almost simultaneously, the spell was brewing in the darkness.
The crimson light instantly dispersed the darkness.
A fireball the size of a man's head came whistling.
With a reaction-inducing high speed, it crashed hard in front of Ian.
The moment the flames reached his body, the necklace Ian wore close to his body suddenly shattered.
At the same time, a light blue barrier unfolded to protect Ian.
Ian, who took the brunt of the attack, was unhurt thanks to the protection of the props.
Catherine, who was hiding behind him, was not so lucky.
Sparks of fire burned her skin in all directions, causing the adventuress to shriek out in pain.
The flames dispelled the darkness and reflected the appearance of the sneak attacker.
It was a humanoid creature less than three feet tall.
Pointed, large ears and a trademark long nose identify it - it's a kobold.
A fae kobold with fiery red lines on its skin.
The kobolds saw that the fireball spell didn't work, so they didn't dare to stay at that moment.
Turning, he ran off into the deeper darkness.
"Flame Goblin ... is the right target!"
Ian couldn't afford to feel sorry for the damaged props and went after them with his crossed swords upside down.
Catherine hastily cast a small healing spell on herself.
Also striding his long legs to follow Ian.
Jack still fell to the end of the line.
With his speed, it was possible to outrun Catherine and even Ian.
It's just that the tumbling just now made his back flash a bit.
It wasn't so much that Jack was physically weak.
Precisely because of his overwhelming muscular strength.
A jolt of power under a long absence of adventure.
Making himself a little uncontrollable in terms of force.
"Ugh, it's true that after not being on a mission for too long, your body still has some trouble adapting."
Covering his lower back, Jack struggled to keep up.
He didn't want to be a liability in the eyes of the youth.
Turning a corner, Ian had caught up with the kobold.
He was wielding a crossword in a fierce battle with his opponent.
Catherine, on the other hand, maintained a Primary Illumination spell with one hand to bring light to Ian.
While casting, gain spells such as Primary Strength and Primary Endurance for Ian.
"Ian, I'm here to help!"
Jack undid the straps and removed the wooden round shield from his left arm.
With the faint light of the Primary Illumination Technique.
Jack took a step, twisted his back, and sent his shoulders, his muscles bulging suddenly under his cheap gear.
The small round shield went away, with a whistling wind sound, fast into a blurred shadow!
Unfortunately, a sprained lower back affected his play.
Skews the accuracy of the throwing shield.
Bang!
The round shield of solid wood clad in iron slammed heavily into Ian's undershirt.
It directly knocked the blonde swordsman to the ground.
Even the shiny silver armor was dented.
Tricky foes who were fighting furiously one moment fell to the ground the next.
The flaming kobold also froze.
Then, he seized the opportunity and fled into a tunnel
Catherine rushed over to help Ian up and spoke angrily in the direction the round shield had flown from:
"Hey, hey, hey! What's wrong with you people? Not only did you contribute nothing along the way before, but now you're bashing your teammates?"
Jack apologized repeatedly, but he truly felt a little ashamed.
Catherine was unforgiving, "Apologizing works? Do you believe I'll go back and report you to the Adventurer's Guild!"
Ian's face is complicated as he presses Catherine's hand, pointing at Jack.
As a victim, Ian could best understand the weight of that shield throw just now.
In terms of battle power alone, this mediocre uncle definitely did not lose himself.
"Well, don't even say another word."
Ian picked up the small round shield and handed it back to Jack.
"Uncle O'Shield, since you are a shield guard, do what your profession requires, and Catherine and I will take care of the output chores."
Jack nodded repeatedly, "Ian, I'm really sorry about earlier."
Ian waved his hand and took the lead, chasing after the tunnel where the flaming kobold had fled.
Jack walked over to Catherine, a little embarrassed:
"That ... Kathryn, could you cast a healing spell on me?"
"Healing magic?" Catherine looked wary, "You didn't just break your foot!"
"No, no, I just twisted my back." Jack rushed to clarify.
"Oh God!" Catherine was freaking out a little.
"Don't learn to come out and take risks when you're older! I must have been blinded by the devil at the time to agree to let you into the team!"
That said, Catherine chanted the spell and cast Primary Heal on Jack.
She didn't want to risk her life while being distracted by taking care of a scrappy uncle!
After a few moments of chasing through the tunnel, the space ahead opened up.
It is a large fork in the road that connects seven or eight canals.
"Which way did that kobold go?"
Ian also held up a ball of primary lighting magic in his hand.
Trying to find traces of the flaming kobolds.
Phew-poof!
Suddenly, a short spear broke through the air from the darkness.
Before either Ian or Catherine could react.
Jack's small round shield had caught the short spear.
The spearhead was embedded into the solid wood shield, the end still quivering slightly.
Ian gave a slight sideways glance, somewhat surprised at Jack's speed of reaction.
Jack's ears twitched slightly, and he murmured, "Something is approaching in large numbers!"
It seemed to corroborate Jack's words.
A short figure rushed out of the tunnel.
Even the tunnel that Jack and the others had come through was stopped and blocked by these guys.
The sound of dense footsteps and strange cries that you can't tell if you're crying or laughing.
Bringing a fear of the unknown to the adventurers.
The faint light of the Primary Illumination Technique couldn't illuminate the figures at all.
It was only when Jack stepped forward with his torch held high that the things were dimly reflected.
It was a full ten kobolds!
The Flame Goblin, which was the target of the mission, was also listed!
In the light of the wavering fire.
The expression on the kobold's face looked more and more grotesque and hideous.
They carry short spears, stones, and various weapons scavenged from dead adventurers.
Fanning out to surround Jack and the others.
"Crap ..." Ian's heart flooded with fear the moment he saw the number of enemies.
Common Goblins have a lower hazard class than Flame Goblins, though.
But that was only because the latter had the ability to cast flame spells.
In terms of melee combat alone, the two aren't really that far apart.
Just now, just one Flame Goblin alone had put Ian in a fierce battle.
Now that the ten kobolds were all together, I'm afraid that only the best of the intermediate-level adventurers would be able to fight them alone!
"Ian ..." Catherine was startled by the ferocious look in the monsters' eyes as she hid behind Ian, "You can handle them, right?"
"I ..." Ian, the silver-armored swordsman, opened his mouth.
And yet, there was no way to say anything reassuring.
"Something's not right." Jack pulled his short spear out of his own small round shield.
These two young men were actual lower-level adventurers, even if their professionalism was poor.
The heart is never that weak.
Sight swept over the gradually approaching foes.
Jack's eyes finally landed on the flaming kobold.
If memory serves, certain fae kobolds can draw on the power of their own kind when acting in groups.
Performs the ability to cast a ranged aura.
Mentally, Jack had a moment of judgment and warned, "Ian, buck up, and don't let the fear aura get to you!"
"It won't work! There's no chance of winning if there are so many."
Ian's hand holding the hilt of his sword began to tremble slightly.
The aura of fear amplified the vulnerability within him.
It made him unable to bring up the courage to fight against it at all.
Jack frowned and said to the spell job girl, "Catherine, cast Courage Boost on Ian."
Jack's voice, coming through his faceplate, still seemed a little dull.
But to the ears of the panicked and confused team members, it carried an inexplicable sense of reliability.
Catherine did as he was told.
But because of fear and nervousness, the spells were frequently wrong.
How a simple beginner's courage can't be cast.
By this time, the kobolds on the opposite side had completed their siege.
Stones and short spears were hurled in droves, aimed straight at Catherine.
After a constant hunt and counter-hunt with humans.
The kobolds know that the kind of female humans that don't wear armor are the best to kill.
Also, the threat is greatest after giving the opponent enough time to cast the spell.
The short spear whistled, and Catherine let out a yelp of fright.
The spell that was about to be finished was interrupted again.
Bang!
Jack's round shield swung over the side, snapping the short spear in mid-air alive.
As for the flying stones that didn't hurt, Jack blocked them one by one with his own body.
"Feel free to cast the spell, and remember to apply a Courage boost to yourself as well."
Jack's lanky form was like the most solid of barriers, shielding the two team members in front of him.
Whether it was short spears or flying stones, he easily blocked them.
Catherine's heart was big, and she finished casting two consecutive Primary Courage.
In the faintly hazy light, Ian's hand no longer shook gently in his grip on the sword, and Catherine's mouth no longer trembled as she recited the spell.
In some cases, Primary Courage can be far more effective than other gain magic.
By this time, the kobolds had also exhausted their throwing weapons.
None of the attacks, however, managed to break through Jack's defense.
Dusting off the non-existent dust on his hands, Jack was making a statement about his own dependability by overpowering!
The kobolds wailed and groaned as the Shield Guard's taunt skill enraged them.
They either raised their short axes or dragged their wolfsbane sticks and swarmed toward Jack.