Chapter 79 - 77: Faulty Intelligence

Chapter 79: Chapter 77: Faulty Intelligence

Lu Wei’s challenge had an immediate effect.

His words must have struck a chord deep in the three little ones’ souls. In less than two seconds, two of them leapt to their feet with a SWISH, looking around in a daze.

The other one had already been slapped to death by Lu Wei.

"Gah?!"

"Gika! Gika!!"

Ignoring their still "sleeping" companion, the two Little Greenskins shrieked in a panic before finally noticing Lu Wei standing right in front of them.

They froze for a moment, then immediately charged, baring their fangs and claws, without any assessment of the power difference between them.

This was a classic goblin trait.

Unless they encountered a particularly large enemy, they would attack on sight.

Only fleeing after they realized they couldn’t win.

It was as if they couldn’t rest easy without at least trying their luck.

’They really are stupid.’

’But they’re faster than I expected.’

Taking a step back to dodge the attack, Lu Wei delivered a backhand strike with his sword, aiming to finish off the one on the left first.

Wielding his "Divine Martial," a sword worth 67 gold coins, he had expected this to be effortless.

But to his surprise, the goblin didn’t flinch at the sharp blade stabbing toward it. It stubbornly continued its charge, risking being pierced through the chest.

If it actually managed to pounce on him, Lu Wei would end up with a few new scratches at the very least.

’Holy shit, it’s a rabid dog!’

Startled, Lu Wei immediately retracted his sword and kicked out with his right foot, sending the goblin flying back.

His expression turned serious, his nonchalant attitude gone. He quickly swung his sword again, this time aiming straight for the neck of the goblin on the right.

PSHCHT!

The next second, blood gushed from the stump like a fountain as an ugly head flew high into the air. The headless body, carried by inertia, staggered forward a few more steps before collapsing with a THUD at Lu Wei’s feet.

A goblin’s bones were no match for the sharpness of Saracenic Steel. Severing its spine was as easy as cutting through a blade of grass.

Meanwhile, the goblin Lu Wei had kicked away had already scrambled back to its feet, its dark red pupils now filled with immense Fear.

"Gika!!"

It took a step back and let out a roar that was both angry and panicked. Then, without a second glance, it fled into the cave entrance, clearly going to get reinforcements.

Seeing this, Lu Wei remained calm. Not only did he not give chase, he actually backed away a little, his eyes fixed on the increasingly restless cave entrance. At the same time, he used his peripheral vision to confirm his escape route once more.

Based on what had just happened, he felt he could easily handle an attack from three or fewer Ordinary goblins at once.

Five might pose a risk of injury.

Anything more than six or seven, and his life could be in danger.

Of course, that was assuming he was ambushed. Otherwise, he could easily escape using Stealth.

But with such a high Perception, being ambushed was almost impossible.

’Besides, I still have a trump card up my sleeve...’

Hearing the howls from the cave growing closer, Lu Wei retreated a little more.

Then, like the doors of a subway car opening during rush hour, a swarm of goblins holding various weapons suddenly surged out, screaming.

The mass of green skin, combined with all sorts of disgusting slime and an overwhelming stench, was like a real-life scene of zombies being unleashed.

’Holy hell, how many of them are there??’

Lu Wei’s eyes widened. Just from a quick glance, he could see at least a dozen.

And there were definitely more behind them.

If he got surrounded, there would be no escape, even if he sprouted wings.

’About time. Retreat!’

He took a deep breath. When the foremost goblin was less than two meters away, Lu Wei didn’t hesitate. He turned and ran.

He sprinted for the first few steps. Seeing that the goblins couldn’t quite catch up, he slowed his pace slightly, maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

Under Mirana’s nervous gaze, he led the gaggle of green things into the forest and vanished from sight in less than half a minute.

...

...

Meanwhile, as soon as Lu Wei had led at least twenty goblins into the forest, Mirana quickly emerged from behind the large rock.

She glanced in the direction of the howling, a worried look in her eyes.

But the next moment, she was already running toward the cave entrance, not letting her concern for Lu Wei alter their plan.

Since she didn’t know that Confession could create a Force Field, from Mirana’s perspective, even the two of them together couldn’t handle so many goblins at once.

Therefore, the only viable plan was to use Lu Wei as a diversion, kill the leader first, and then slowly clear out the remaining Ordinary Level ones.

But this was all contingent on them being quick.

If the goblins Lu Wei was luring gave up the chase and returned while she was still inside the nest, she would be in extreme danger!

’I have to be fast!’

With that thought in mind, Mirana unhesitatingly ducked into the cave entrance.

Immediately, a crudely dug tunnel appeared before her, sloping down into the earth.

There was no light source, only some foul-smelling grease and bone fragments embedded in the dirt.

Lighting a prepared torch, Mirana held her sword in one hand and the torch in the other, advancing quickly into the depths of the cave.

In less than half a minute, she had traversed the tunnel, which was several dozen meters long, and could already faintly see a massive cavern at the end.

She hadn’t encountered a single goblin along the way, which meant Lu Wei must have drawn them all away.

Even if there were a few stragglers, it wouldn’t matter, as long as...

!!!!

Her steps faltered. The moment she entered the cavern, Mirana’s eyes flew open, and her heart seemed to skip a beat.

The violently flickering torchlight barely illuminated the scene within—

filthy animal hides, scattered beast and human bones, some glittering Gold and Silver Coins...

and two Leader Level Goblins, at least three times the size of an Ordinary goblin, currently tearing into the raw flesh of some animal!

It wasn’t one, like the intel said!

There were two of them!!

...

Her breathing instantly grew ragged. Seeing the skulls on the ground, Mirana immediately understood why the Adventurer Association’s intelligence had been so wrong.

The two previous squads had all died here! Not a single person had made it back alive!

’This is bad. I have to get out of here, now!’

She instinctively took half a step back. A second later, Mirana came to her senses and made a decision.

Although she possessed immense Power and the ability to kill a Leader Level Goblin in a single strike... there was no way they would fight her one-on-one!

While she was dealing with one, the other just had to land a single blow, and she would most likely die here!

’I can’t die here...’

Without any more hesitation, she turned to flee. Her survival instinct, combined with her vast experience, made her reaction almost instantaneous.

But just then, the two Leader Level Goblins reacted.

Faced with a human who had invaded their lair, they had no other option but to kill her brutally.

More importantly, not only were they enormous, but their intelligence was also far superior to that of an Ordinary goblin.

So, just as Mirana turned, one of them snatched up a giant, barbed Wolf-toothed Stick and hurled it viciously at her back!

BOOM—!!

In that instant, a violent, muffled explosion erupted.

Immediately after, dirt and rubble rained down from the ceiling with a RATTLE, filling the small cavern with dust.

"Gargu..."

A few seconds later, the two Leader Level Goblins let out an unsettling, deep growl from their throats. They slowly ground their tusks together, what seemed to be a smug and cruel smile spreading across their faces.

As the swirling dust gradually settled, a lone figure slowly came into view before them.

Clutching her longsword with both hands, Mirana stood with her back against the sticky cave wall, her face pale as she stared intently at the two nauseating, giant monsters not far away.

The last attack hadn’t hit her.

But it had blocked her escape route, forcing her to dodge to the side.

That in itself shouldn’t have been a problem.

But when she scrambled up to continue her escape, she discovered in despair that the cavern’s exit had been completely blocked.

The Wolf-toothed Stick had smashed into the area above the exit. How could an unsupported tunnel withstand such a heavy blow? It had immediately triggered a small cave-in.

And the collapsed earth and rubble had perfectly sealed her only way out.

Although the blockage wasn’t too thick, there was no way she could dig her way to freedom in front of two Leader Level Monsters.

’There’s no other way...’

Biting her lip, Mirana didn’t know if this was just her bad luck or if the goblin that threw the Wolf-toothed Stick had done it intentionally.

Regardless, she now had only one option left.

Even if the chances were incredibly slim...

...

"Die!!!!"