Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Episode 37: Black Street It didn’t take long for the investigation team dispatched by the Retila Guild to reach their first target. The goblin cave that Layla had cleared out was not far from Karaldin. “Are you sure this is the place?” “Yes.” The fact that goblins had established themselves within a two- or three-hour distance was unusual enough to make Lacas, a seasoned adventurer, feel doubtful. “It’s over there.” The entrance to the cave was well camouflaged, making it difficult to spot at first glance. However, since Ayra, who had experience being dragged into a goblin cave, was a member of the investigation team, such tricks were useless. The investigation team strode into the cave without hesitation and encountered the goblins that were still alive. “Kereuk, kereureuk!” Although the chief was gone and Layla had already raided it once, the cave was the perfect haven for goblins. The survivors who had scattered that day had gathered back in the cave, forming a small group.

-Whoosh!

Upon seeing the investigation team, the goblins grabbed their slings and threw stones, or hurled crude stone spears. But it was no match for the well-equipped investigation team with proper formations.

-Thud!

Those in the front ranks raised their shields to block the goblins’ stones and spears, while the archers in the rear shot arrows at the resisting goblins. “Filla Tiar!” The mages raised their staffs and chanted attack spells. “Kieeeek!!” Arrows of fire shot from the ends of the staffs, burning the goblins’ bodies and causing them to lose their will to fight. The crude fiber clothes burned, and the burned goblins screamed in pain. Before long, all the goblins in the cave were cold corpses lying on the floor. It was nothing short of a predetermined outcome. Even if goblins were annoying, that was only the case when they ambushed first. A mere dozen or so goblins could not defeat a human subjugation force with a proper formation. Lacas and Emily headed deeper into the cave and examined the spoils that Layla had missed. “Were these all taken from humans?” “Yes. They don’t have the ability to make them themselves.” Most of them were junk like belts, pouches, or farming tools like sickles, or torn clothes, but some were still usable. Seeing this, Lacas confirmed that the guild’s judgment was correct. “Indeed, there wouldn’t be this kind of loot without a group led by a chief.” “Don’t goblins usually attack adventurers?” At Lacas’s murmur, Emily tilted her head as if curious. Unlike the guild companions she had been with until now, she was wearing a sword and shield, fully armed. Lacas looked at Emily with a mixture of fondness and adoration and replied. “They only target the weak. If they judge adventurers to be weak, they’ll pounce at any time. The problem is, without a chief, they’re not good at judging the strength of their opponents. So, small groups usually don’t target humans, or if they do, they target individuals or groups of two.” That’s why the role of the chief, an intelligent individual, was important to the goblins. The more experienced the chief, the bolder and more discerning they were. Lacas muttered, looking at the junk piled up in the cave’s room. “Still, with this much loot, the chief must have been either bold or experienced. He probably wasn’t born here, but was chased out of the central Great Forest. That kid took care of something troublesome.” If left unchecked, there would have been quite a bit of damage until a subjugation force was formed. The goblin cave was not far from Karaldin, and in fact, there had been several disappearances of adventurers recently. If Layla hadn’t taken care of it, perhaps three or four more parties would have been harmed. Lacas and Emily eventually went to the innermost part of the cave and confirmed the chief’s corpse. The goblin’s skeleton was definitely larger than the others. Emily frowned at the goblin’s skeleton, but soon realized something strange and looked horrified. “…This, could it be?” It had only been a week since Layla killed the goblin chief. It would be strange for it to be reduced to bones like this, even if it were rotting. Lacas replied in a simple tone. “They’re originally cannibals. It’s no different even if it was their chief.” “…I see.” Emily nodded heavily in response.

-Thud, thud.

Having finished their confirmation, the two began to walk out of the cave. Walking through the dark cave, Emily quietly pondered. She hadn’t thought much of it when she heard it from Layla, but now that she was inside the cave, she seemed to be able to picture the situations she had gone through. The opponents were a group of at least thirty or forty goblins. On the other hand, Layla was empty-handed without any weapons. Could she have fought and won if it had been her? Emily smiled bitterly and shook her head. Probably not. In the dark cave, she wouldn’t have been able to see the stones thrown by the goblins properly. But Layla had taken the chief’s head in the cave and driven all the goblins out. Knowing that it was due to the unparalleled Iron Body Skill, Emily steeled her heart once again. In this place where qi was almost non-existent, Layla’s level of martial arts was nothing short of superhuman. And Emily knew that it was achieved by absorbing essence through the Yin Demon Art and the Essence Sucking Great Art. She had also learned the Yin Demon Art from her, and she would have to mingle with men like Layla in the future. ‘…It can’t be helped…’ But for Emily, who was a man in her previous life, mingling with men was something she was mentally reluctant to do. No matter how much Emily’s behavior was no different from that of girls her age, she still had the heart of a man inside her. The reason she left Artun Village was because she didn’t want to marry Karl, who belonged to the self-defense force. That wasn’t the main reason, but one of the other reasons, but it still accounted for a large part. Emily glanced at Lacas, who was walking next to her, blushed, and shook her head again. Just thinking about being held in Lacas’s naked body gave her goosebumps. …Of course, at the same time,

Her purpose in coming here now was not to rehash hatred, but to find a gift for Laila, who might become her first disciple. ‘Yes, those were the old days.’ Anyway, everything will be eroded by the flowing years. Mien repeated that to herself and moved her feet.

-Thump, thump.

She once hated her own school as much as the Magic Society, but now it was all in the past. At one time, she even thought about cutting off the school that her father had tried so hard to revive, but now her mind had changed. Her thoughts changed after being caught by goblins she had dismissed as insignificant and being violated by them. She had intended to not take on any disciples and just live as an adventurer until she died, but the thought that came to her mind while being violated by goblins in that dark cave was the fear that no one would remember her if she died like this. Through that experience, she realized that she wanted to be remembered by someone. It was similar to her father’s wish for the lineage of the school to continue, which he had so desperately wanted. That’s why she broke her own resolution and accepted Laila as her disciple. She wanted to share what she carried with the eccentric girl who was an incredibly skilled swordswoman but also wanted to learn magic, the girl who had appeared before her eyes as if by fate. That’s why she hastily accepted her as a disciple and came all the way to Ortania to buy her a magical artifact. The meeting was so shocking that it felt like fate. Although she was currently living as an adventurer, her father was once the head of the school and had enough wealth to ‘make a living.’ If she used that, she could raise at least one disciple. “…Pfft.” Mien let out a laugh at the complex emotions she felt in her heart and walked through the pure white streets of Ortania. There was no need to look back at the Tower of Wisdom again. Now, she just had to move forward towards the future, towards the Magic Guild. For the sake of another Necromancer who would be born in the future. ———= Author’s Note ———= Just because it’s a Necromancer doesn’t mean they summon an army of corpses or anything like that.