Kobolds in the Tunnel

The dark underground tunnel was illuminated once again by lantern light. The legendary, eerie horrors of the subterranean world had no effect on the group's spirits; "the youth knows not the taste of sorrow" was a perfect description for the two little girls, Aelf and Mishaer. The moment she stepped into the darkness, the elven girl took a decorative ribbon with a beautiful pattern from her small pouch and tied it around her forehead. A halo of light immediately spilled forth, casting a hazy, pale blue glow for several dozen feet around them. The little elf thoroughly enjoyed the surprise of the others, especially the look of envy and longing in the little girl's eyes, which made her heart feel as sweet as if she had eaten honey.

The smug Aelf shook her head and swayed as she circled Mishaer, deliberately showing off in front of the little girl while letting out a series of "hehehe" thief-like chuckles. You hateful little thing! So you have a day like this too! Hehehe! I was always bullied by you before, but today, this elf has finally stood tall and exhaled! Hahaha!

With tears welling in her eyes, the little girl looked toward her greatest pillar of support with a grievance-filled, whimpering voice: "William--!" William looked at the two childish little ones and rubbed his forehead helplessly. He bent down to pick up Mishaer, who looked like a wronged little daughter-in-law, and pinched her cheeks to comfort her: "Ha! Mishaer's helmet is the best! Nothing can compare to Mishaer's treasure! Here! Have this!" William pulled out a piece of cleaned Lanwo and handed it over as if coaxing a child. The little girl immediately beamed and began gnawing on the delicious treat.

Singers, who was pushing the cart, warned the little elf in a harsh, nasty tone: "You weak little thing! You'd best take that trinket off your head! Unless you want to be skewered by a spear from the shadows!" Of course, the old dwarf was simply bored and looking for trouble; in reality, he didn't believe this stretch of road held any danger. On the contrary, the light from the ribbon made it much easier for him to see the ground beneath his feet.

The dwarf and elf races had always looked down on each other. Dwarves felt elves were too delicate and weak, while elves thought dwarves were too stubborn, rigid, and lacking in artistic sensibility. The two sides had even fought wars over this in history, though nowadays, the dwarves hated orcs and giants far more. However, Phinia, who was always silent, made it hard for old Singers to find an excuse to pick a fight, so he could only turn his "firepower" toward the little elf.

Aelf snorted in disdain at the fierce-looking one-eyed dwarf and made a face before running far away. However, having grown up hearing terrifying legends of the underground world, the little elf still secretly took off the ribbon and wrapped it around Phinia's arm, then giggled and ran to William's side. The little girl deliberately used her small teeth to crunch the flesh of the Lanwo, occasionally spitting a small piece onto the ground like a peel, as if demonstrating against the little elf.

The little elf also snorted and turned her head away to show her disdain. Suddenly, a piece of Lanwo tuber, as crystalline as white jade, appeared before her eyes. Aelf, face lighting up with joy, hurriedly took it, only to look up and see William's grinning face. She tried hard to keep a straight face so as not to look too happy, humming: "Don't think that giving me things to curry favor will make me forgive you! Hmph!" But in the end, she couldn't resist the temptation of the delicacy and broke into a smile. Such succulent fruits were especially beloved by elves, and since the little girl had tricked her out of all her purple berries on the road, Aelf had rarely been able to eat fruit, as it was not the season for them.

The two little ones competed to see who could crunch the Lanwo louder and spit further. Eventually, no one knew who first spat on the other, and so the "war" broke out once again.

William led the way with the bullseye lantern, while Phinia guarded the flanks with her great axe. Mishaer, tired of walking, sat in the cart, and Aelf followed suit, sitting in as well. This made Singers' beard bristle with rage. The three of them bickered and fussed, and the otherwise dull journey seemed to flash by in the midst of their playful noise.

As they neared their destination, a faint sound of barking drifted over. William cautiously stopped and turned to the bickering dwarf: "Singers! Quiet! Listen, what is that sound?" But the silenced dwarf heard nothing, save for his own heavy, wheezing breath. He asked in confusion: "William! Did you hear wrong? I don't hear a thing!" The little girls also looked at William in surprise; no one's hearing could compare to his.

Although he heard nothing, the dwarf, who knew the dangers of the underground world well, stopped arguing with the two little ones. The group continued forward in silence, with only the sound of the cart wheels and their footsteps echoing.

The sound in William's ears—like the barking of half-grown dogs—grew closer. The dwarf finally heard the strange noise in the darkness and suddenly roared: "Damn it! It's Kobolds! A bunch of despicable vermin! They're stealing my ore! Old Singers is going to smash them! Damn it! Let me go!" The furious Singers raised his warhammer to charge, but William grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up, his two short legs kicking and flailing in the air.

"Quiet! Old Singers! Don't be impulsive! Tell me, what is a 'Kobold'!" William said calmly, holding the struggling one-eyed dwarf. This was the first time he had heard the name in the Common tongue. Mishaer and the others on the cart giggled, and the little girl waved her small fists, acting fierce: "Even Mishaer could beat up a few Kobolds!"

The Kobolds clearly noticed the commotion as well, and the chaotic barking began to close in. When this group of strange guests appeared before them, William's jaw dropped, and he silently released the agitated dwarf. He admitted he had indeed made a bit too much of a fuss. Singers, who landed on the ground with a "clatter," stood up, rubbed his sore backside, adjusted his helmet, and roared as he charged toward the "menacing" monsters.

Kobolds are a type of short, cunning, evil humanoid. They are extremely cowardly, with dark brown to black scaly skin, and a pair of pale, short horns atop heads that resemble those of dogs. Their gleaming red eyes possess darkvision that allows them to see up to sixty feet, letting them move freely in the dark. With rat-like tails, Kobolds look more like deformed, bipedal, skinny lizards.

Some say Kobolds possess the bloodline of dragons because they speak Draconic, though it sounds like the yapping of dogs. Kobold sorcerers with awakened bloodline powers can even use simple Draconic magic. Furthermore, a dragon hatchling, if stripped of its wings, looks almost identical to a Kobold, though the proud dragons vehemently deny any blood relation to such weak creatures.

These omnivorous monsters, which have a tendency to abuse other creatures, do not like to eat sentient beings, but to survive, they will still drag the corpses of their victims back to their lairs to consume. They inhabit dark, damp areas—underground or in dense forests—but as excellent miners, they prefer to live in the mines they dig themselves.

Facing this group of weak monsters that only reached William's thighs, the "tall" and sturdy dwarf was like a tank charging into a flock of sheep. The Kobolds' tiny bone spears and short javelins could not cause any damage to the dwarf's armor, and the monsters, despite their absolute numerical advantage, were sent stumbling by Singers alone. Aelf, the elf who was used to "bullying the weak," also excitedly took her bow and arrows from her small bag to kick them while they were down. The excited little girl was dancing about, wanting to fight the Kobolds with her bare hands. William, having no desire to join the fray, hurriedly stopped the hot-headed little one. While the Kobolds' short spears couldn't hurt the thick-skinned dwarf, Mishaer's delicate skin could not withstand them.

The little girl struggled constantly in William's arms, especially when Aelf shot a Kobold in the head and kept showing off to her, which made her struggle even more violently: "Let me go! William! Let me go! Those are Kobolds!"

People in Faerun see Kobolds much like we see rats, though they are far more dangerous. More importantly, after killing a Kobold, you might harvest decent loot, such as small trinkets they have stolen or looted from other creatures, or various ores they have accumulated—though, of course, you would have to search their lairs thoroughly for that.

Unable to resist Mishaer's enthusiasm, William could only string the crossbow and hand it to her. Phinia, also having no interest in bullying the weak, took the bullseye lantern from William to illuminate the way, while he was responsible for stringing and reloading for the little girl.

The little girl's first arrow shot into the tunnel ceiling, and the second grazed the elf's hair and flew into the darkness, which left Aelf furious and breaking out in a cold sweat. The little elf angrily waved her fist at the little girl before retreating, unwilling. Fine! Just as our "master archer" Mishaer was preparing to excitedly fire her third arrow, the Kobolds, half of whom had already been beaten down, scattered and ran back into the darkness. Then, a cold line of ice flew out from the dark, shooting instantly toward the little girl, but just as it was about to strike, the ice line suddenly recoiled.

The group looked at each other in dismay. The dwarf, who was about to pursue, retreated without hesitation, and Aelf, who usually lacked any seriousness, became solemn. She said with some hesitation: "It's [Ray of Frost]! There's a spellcaster on the other side!"

Singers said with some uncertainty: "It might be a Kobold sorcerer! They don't have very powerful magic! Should I go to the front and take a look?" But after looking at his own heavy armor, the dwarf immediately gave up.

Mishaer, still completely oblivious, was happily preparing to find something to shoot. She wanted to walk closer to the wounded Kobolds lying on the ground, but William reached out to stop her. He said: "Mishaer! Don't run around! Phinia, keep an eye on her! I'll go to the front and take a look!" As he spoke, he took the bullseye lantern in his left hand and held his scimitar in his right, preparing to scout the path. However, a pair of sickly green eyes appeared in the darkness ahead, and he stopped, using the lantern light to illuminate the spot.