Chapter Summaries

Adeline and Xia Nan entered a Goblin Nest and found Volga, a powerful Half-Orc, finishing off its Bear Goblin leader. Volga left the spoils to them and rushed away, while Adeline examined the corpse and concluded it was not the one she had been searching for.

• Adeline decided to enter the suspected Bear Goblin nest with Xia Nan while Berg and Abi stayed outside.
• Xia Nan and Adeline heard a Bear Goblin roaring in pain and hurried toward the heart of the nest.
• They found Volga choking the Bear Goblin to death among the corpses of the Goblins.
• Volga recognized them as Adventurers on a mission, refused the reward and spoils, and left them to keep the Goblin ears.
• Abi arrived to check on Xia Nan and Adeline, who were unharmed.
• Adeline examined the Bear Goblin's back and murmured, "It wasn't it."

Cornell’s party camped in Thin Mist Forest, where his magic kept them comfortable, while Volga returned from venting his anger to eat and sleep. Meanwhile, the Green Blood party headed back after clearing a Goblin Nest, and Abi found a metal bracer that Adeline recognized as belonging to “Iron Hand” George.

• Cornell used magic to make his party’s camp warm and comfortable while the Elf complained about their hurried departure from Ivelius.
• Volga returned after destroying Cornell’s traps, ate summoned beast meat, and quickly fell asleep.
• Cornell and the Elf discussed Hunting Day, the mission deeper in the forest, and their plans to rest afterward.
• The Green Blood party traveled back from the cleared Goblin Nest while Berg complained about the dangers and Xia Nan reflected on Berg’s fear of death.
• Abi found a silvery-white metal bracer, and Adeline identified it as “Iron Hand” George’s.

Xia Nan’s team discovered that Iron Hand George had been tortured and killed in Thin Mist Forest, then identified Gnolls as the likely attackers. Adeline ordered the team to leave immediately, with nearly three days of travel through the forest still ahead.

• Xia Nan, Adeline, Abi, and Berg found George’s mutilated corpse hanging from an oak tree, with his silver-white bracer crushed nearby.
• Adeline stopped Abi from approaching and triggered a hidden bone-cluster trap by throwing a stone beneath the corpse.
• Adeline and Berg examined the scene and concluded that George and another Adventurer had died around the same time, likely in an attack by intelligent humanoid Monsters.
• Adeline matched the attackers’ tracks and clues to reports of Gnolls, while Berg confirmed their suspicion.
• Adeline urged the team to leave at once, and Xia Nan and the others withdrew into the forest.

Green Blood Squad camped in Thin Mist Forest after finding an Adventurer party slaughtered by Gnolls, while Xia Nan practiced Gravity Solidification during his watch. Adeline woke from a nightmare, and Xia Nan sensed danger just before a trap was triggered north of camp.

• Adeline hurried Green Blood Squad away from George’s corpse, and they set up camp with extra warning traps because Gnolls might be nearby.
• Abi lit the campfire, and the party ate in tense silence before assigning Xia Nan and Berg to the first night watch.
• Xia Nan watched Berg’s nervous vigil and practiced lifting a weighted leaf with Gravity Solidification until it rose briefly from the ground.
• Adeline woke from a nightmare about a girl in a cellar and a burly figure among Green-skinned Goblins.
• Xia Nan sensed something in the forest north of camp and stood just before a trap went off.

Green Blood was ambushed in Thin Mist Forest by five wounded Gnolls led by the notorious Gnoll Flesh Eater. Adeline engaged the leader while Xia Nan rushed toward the hidden archer who had fired at him.

• A trap sounded, waking the party as unknown enemies rushed toward their camp.
• Xia Nan deflected an arrow aimed at his chest with his longsword.
• Five Gnolls emerged, including the larger Gnoll Flesh Eater, whose wounds and burns reminded Xia Nan of Iron Hand George's corpse.
• Adeline gave Abi her shield and charged the Gnoll Flesh Eater, telling Xia Nan to handle the other enemies.
• Xia Nan dashed toward the grass where the arrow had come from to target the hidden attacker.

Xia Nan helped Green Blood Squad survive a Gnoll attack, killing the hidden archer and rescuing Abi before joining Adeline against the Gnoll Flesh Eater. After defeating it with a newly strengthened [Tooth Hunt], he gained one point of Agility and raised the skill to Level 3.

• Berg shot a Gnoll pursuing Xia Nan, giving him the chance to locate and kill a hidden Gnoll archer with Whirlwind Slash.
• Xia Nan assessed the scattered fight as Adeline held off the Gnoll Flesh Eater, Berg kited two Gnolls, and Abi struggled against another.
• When Abi fell and faced a killing blow, Xia Nan rushed in and killed the pursuing Gnoll, then sent Abi to wait at the side.
• Xia Nan saw Adeline tiring as the Gnoll Flesh Eater and another Gnoll pressed her, so he used [Tooth Hunt] to kill the assisting Gnoll.
• Xia Nan's [Tooth Hunt] advanced to Level 3 and formed a roaring Wolf Head that battered the Gnoll Flesh Eater to death, while the blast knocked Adeline down.
• Xia Nan received Agility +1.

Xia Nan and the Green Blood Squad defeated the Gnolls, and he discovered that raising [Tooth Hunt] to level 3 had greatly enhanced his abilities. While the squad prepared to move to a safer campsite, Adeline began to suspect Xia Nan was stronger than his lack of a Profession Level suggested.

• Xia Nan supported his teammates and helped the Green Blood Squad defeat the Gnolls, killing the remaining enemies alongside Adeline and Berg.
• Xia Nan realized that [Tooth Hunt] reaching level 3 had granted him an Agility Attribute Point and significantly improved his movement and combat ability.
• The squad checked for injuries and searched the battlefield, finding little valuable equipment but recovering the Gnoll Flesh Eater's head, worth a 120 Gold Coin bounty.
• Abi noticed that the Gnolls had old burn wounds, and Xia Nan suspected they had been injured in a fight with the Iron Hand squad.
• Adeline urged everyone to move to a backup campsite before the Gnolls' blood and stench attracted nocturnal Monsters.
• After seeing Xia Nan's beheading-focused fighting and the Phantom Wolf Shadow of [Tooth Hunt], Adeline questioned whether he truly lacked a Profession Level.

A high-level party led by Cornell advanced through Thin Mist Forest while discussing the Adventurers Association’s Hunting Day. In a Goblin Nest, a black-robed Bear Goblin demanded a completed blood sacrifice and sent another Bear Goblin out to gather victims, threatening punishment if it failed.

• Cornell maintained a moving warning barrier as Volga caught a wild rabbit and the party continued deeper into Thin Mist Forest.
• The Elf questioned why the Association raised goblin bounties instead of hiring powerful adventurers to resolve the threat, and Cornell said he would explain after the mission.
• A black-robed Bear Goblin watched a bloodlit altar as its sacrifice array nearly formed an oval phantom but fell just short.
• The Bear Goblin warned that the Lord’s grace could not be profaned and threatened punishment if the sacrifice failed.
• A powerful Bear Goblin promised to leave the forest and make up the shortfall with the blood of their own kind, then departed with a group of Goblins.

The Green Blood Squad returned from Thin Mist Forest to River Valley Town, where Xia Nan witnessed a group of adventurers extorting the villagers of Emerald Creek Village. As the villagers argued over what they could surrender, one of the adventurers spotted a blonde girl in the crowd.

• The Green Blood Squad headed back to River Valley Town, and Abi and Berg discussed their expected earnings and whether Abi should buy new armor.
• Adeline advised Abi to save his money as Hunting Day ended, while Xia Nan considered leaving the squad to hunt alone again.
• The squad came upon Scarface and his adventurers demanding 100 gold from Emerald Creek Village for a Goblin-clearing mission, despite the villagers having already paid the Association's bounty.
• Abi condemned the adventurers for demanding extra payment, while Berg said such extortion was common and predicted they would bargain for goods instead.
• Scarface demanded wine, livestock, and cloth from the villagers, and his sharp-faced companion spotted a blonde girl in the crowd.

Xia Nan and Adeline’s party arrived in Emerald Creek Village as Scarface’s Adventurers threatened Polly and extorted the villagers, then their reputation drove Scarface’s group away. As the party prepared to leave, Scarface returned wounded and fleeing from Goblinoids, only to be killed by a bone club.

• Scarface threatened Polly and demanded a hundred gold from the village chief, while the chief stood between him and the girl.
• Scarface recognized Adeline and Xia Nan as members of the Green Blood Squad and abandoned his attempt to intimidate the villagers.
• Adeline greeted the village chief, and Scarface led his Adventurers away rather than confront the party.
• The village chief thanked Adeline’s group, and they declined his offer to stay before preparing to leave.
• Scarface rushed back alone, bloodied and calling for help from Goblinoids, but a bone club flew from the woods and smashed his skull.

Cornell and his party reached a Hobgoblin lair in Thin Mist Forest and discovered that a blood sacrifice had summoned a strange silver-white sphere from another world. As the sphere hovered over the altar, its energy weighed heavily on Cornell, leaving the party facing an unknown threat.

• Cornell led the Elf, Volga, and the human Warrior into the cave, where they defeated thirty-six Goblins and two Hobgoblins with ease.
• The party followed Cornell's compass deeper into the lair and found a cavern filled with shadowy figures that stayed within their cave openings.
• The blond Elf spotted a blood-red glow around an oval phantom on a pale-stone altar, while the narration revealed that the Red-Maned Hobgoblin's blood sacrifice had brought down a divine gift from Maglubiyet.
• Cornell recognized the floating silver-white sphere as something that seemed to come from another world and struggled as its energy ripples made his body feel unbearably heavy.

Cornell and his companions fought the Black-Robed Goblin, whose Silver-White Device crushed them with gravity and devoured Cornell’s Cloudkill. The Goblin summoned an empowered Goblin horde, then killed Volga as Cornell teleported the Half-Orc into striking range.

• Cornell realized the Silver-White Device was suppressing the party with gravity while leaving the Black-Robed Goblin untouched.
• Cornell cast Cloudkill toward the altar as Volga, the armored Warrior, and the Elf forced themselves upright and prepared to attack.
• The Black-Robed Goblin summoned Goblins from the nest and used pus-green magic to enlarge them, while the Silver-White Device began consuming Cornell’s Cloudkill.
• Cornell completed a modified Teleportation Circle and sent Volga into the Cloudkill beside the Black-Robed Goblin.
• The Black-Robed Goblin stopped Volga’s charge and tore out his heart.

Xia Nan and the Green Blood Squad faced Red Mane, an unusually powerful bear goblin, but Adeline refused to retreat. Red Mane unleashed a blood-charged roar that forced everyone but Xia Nan to turn back and fight, and Adeline identified the attack as Mass Taunt.

• Red Mane killed Scarface with a bone club, and Xia Nan recognized him as an elite bear goblin.
• Berg urged the squad and villagers to retreat, but Adeline stayed behind to confront Red Mane.
• Red Mane crushed a pendant and unleashed a blood-colored roar that invaded the minds and bodies of those nearby.
• Berg and the villagers, including Abi, returned to face Red Mane, while Xia Nan discovered he could move freely except when trying to retreat.
• Adeline shouted that Red Mane had used Mass Taunt and called for everyone to prepare for battle.

Xia Nan resisted the Bear Goblin’s taunt enough to understand its hold over him, but he could not retreat, so he joined Adeline to face it. As they prepared to fight, a horde of more than a hundred Greenskin Goblins surged out of Thin Mist Forest toward the village.

• Xia Nan realized the Bear Goblin’s taunt had trapped his thoughts and prevented him from retreating, though he managed one step back while thinking about flanking it.
• Xia Nan joined Adeline, who explained that she would hold the Bear Goblin while he stood ready to take over if she faltered.
• Xia Nan warned that Abi and the villagers were also affected by the taunt and could not stay out of the fight.
• A vast horde of Greenskin Goblins rushed from Thin Mist Forest toward the village.

Xia Nan and the villagers of Emerald Creek Village fought off a Goblin siege until the palisade collapsed, leaving Xia Nan to hold the breach against the invading horde. As he slaughtered the Goblins, the Red-Maned Hobgoblin still watched from afar, and the village’s survival remained uncertain.

• Adeline, the village chief, Xia Nan, and the villagers organized a defense behind the palisade while the Red-Maned Hobgoblin watched without joining the attack.
• Xia Nan, Adeline, Abi, Berg, and the villagers held off more than a hundred Goblins, but the defenders grew exhausted and the fence began to fail.
• Jim watched Uncle Evan collapse, and the palisade broke, allowing Goblins to rush into the village.
• Xia Nan killed the Goblins threatening Jim and charged toward the breach as Adeline urged the defenders to hold.
• Xia Nan used [Tooth Hunt] and [Whirlwind Slash] to cut through the Goblins pouring into the village.

Xia Nan fought through the Goblin horde, but Red Mane joined the battle and shattered the village’s defensive line. After Red Mane knocked Adeline unconscious, Xia Nan tried to coordinate with Berg, but the Bear Goblin charged toward him before Berg responded.

• Xia Nan used [Tooth Hunt] and [Whirlwind Slash] to slaughter Goblins across the open plain, easing pressure on the villagers.
• Red Mane hurled its Pale Hollow Bone Club at Xia Nan, then charged through Goblins and smashed the village’s defensive line.
• Adeline attacked Red Mane with Fire Oil Bombs, but it burst from the burning ruins and knocked her unconscious.
• Xia Nan prepared to face Red Mane and signaled Berg to shoot while he held the Bear Goblin’s attention.
• Red Mane charged toward Berg, targeting the backline before Berg could answer Xia Nan’s signal.

Xia Nan tried to keep Red Mane from reaching Berg, but Berg’s fear cost the squad its last other fighter, leaving Xia Nan alone against the Bear Goblin. Elsewhere, Cornell and two high-level Professionals fought through a Goblin horde, but the creatures quickly overwhelmed the opening created by his Plague Swarm.

• Xia Nan used [Tooth Hunt] to intercept Red Mane, then wounded it with [Whirlwind Slash] and forced it to stop charging toward Berg.
• Xia Nan realized Berg was still retreating instead of attacking, and shouted for him to fight.
• Berg finally shot an arrow, but Red Mane dodged it and struck Xia Nan, triggering the [Dead Line] ring’s Deflection Force Field and exhausting its cooldown.
• Red Mane grabbed Berg by the head and crushed his skull, leaving Xia Nan as the last Adventurer on the battlefield.
• Cornell cast [Plague Swarm] while a Heavy Armor-clad Warrior and a blond Elf cut through the Goblins, but the horde rushed into the swarm and filled the gap again.

Cornell and his party battled the Black-Robed Goblin after its powers overwhelmed their attempt to retreat. They killed it, but the Silver-White Device vanished from the altar, leaving its fate unknown.

• Cornell recognized that the Goblins and the Black-Robed Goblin were more dangerous than expected, and he tried to teleport his party out before the enemy sealed the spell.
• Cornell used stored spells to summon a Fire Elemental and a Bagura Demon and divide the Goblins with a Wall of Fire, while the Elf and the human Warrior attacked the Black-Robed Goblin.
• The Black-Robed Goblin transformed into a giant Bear Goblin and lured the Elf close, severing his arm and crushing him as the Warrior stabbed it through the chest.
• Cornell tore a scroll to lock down the lair and stop the Black-Robed Goblin from escaping with the Silver-White Device.
• The human Warrior cut down the wounded Black-Robed Goblin, but the Silver-White Device disappeared from the altar.

Xia Nan faced the Red-maned Bear Goblin alone after Berg died and Adeline was badly injured, searching for a way to survive the fight. Abi arrived with a Healing Potion for Adeline, and while Xia Nan kept the Bear Goblin occupied, Abi returned to defend the village.

• The Red-maned Bear Goblin killed Berg and knocked Adeline out of the fight, leaving Xia Nan to battle it alone.
• Xia Nan dodged the Bear Goblin's attacks and considered how to exploit its limited agility and lack of armor while watching for its explosive state.
• Abi reached the battlefield and used an empty Healing Potion vial to help Adeline recover.
• Xia Nan charged the Bear Goblin again to buy Adeline time to heal.
• After checking that Adeline could move and did not need his Wooden Shield, Abi headed back toward the village to fight the Goblins.

Xia Nan and Adeline fought Red Mane until the Bear Goblin’s dark-red aura and Bone Club left Adeline gravely wounded and Xia Nan facing it alone. Xia Nan used the Fate Coin to trigger a miracle, and his sword struck a mysterious Gravity Core, leaving Red Mane collapsed as power surged through him.

• Xia Nan and Adeline alternated attacks on Red Mane, steadily wounding it while covering each other.
• Red Mane unleashed a burst of dark-red aura, retrieved its Pale Bone Club, and used its eerie sound to disorient Xia Nan and Adeline.
• Xia Nan threw his Fire Oil Bombs to clear Adeline’s senses, but Red Mane struck her with the Bone Club and knocked her out of the fight.
• Xia Nan used the Fate Coin and [Whirlwind Slash], triggering a miracle that brought a silver-white Gravity Core into the battlefield.
• Xia Nan’s sword struck the Gravity Core, gravity surged across the field, Red Mane collapsed, and unfamiliar power began flowing through Xia Nan.