Kobolds!

Li Si lightly jumped down from the carriage and stood in front of it.

The two kobolds, clad in some unknown red leather, seemed unaware of any danger. They still charged forward like complete idiots, brandishing crude spears made from branches and stones.

Seeing Li Si prepare to act, Ya Er and the others turned their attention toward him as well.

It was not that they doubted Li Si could handle the two kobolds. They simply wanted to see how he would perform in his first encounter with magical creatures.

Although kobolds posed a significant threat to ordinary people, that was mainly because they usually acted in groups. Once they were outnumbered, kobolds would generally choose to flee immediately.

It was truly rare for two lone kobolds like these to dare charge in.

Li Si himself looked utterly relaxed. He did not even take out the Emerald Staff, merely raising his right hand to cast without a staff.

"Flash Spell!"

Li Si deliberately increased his mana output, and a burst of blinding light flashed before the kobolds.

Because kobolds lived in dark environments for long periods, their eyes had adapted to the darkness. Thus, even the level-zero cantrip Flash Spell could produce an effect similar to blindness against them.

"Wah! Yah!"

The two kobolds were blinded by Li Si's Flash Spell. Clutching their heads, they scattered about in panic, letting out cries of unknown meaning.

Among kobolds, only higher-ranking priests and warlocks seemed able to speak the common tongue and some Draconic. Most kobolds could only communicate with one another through their cries.

"Fireball Spell!"

With a flick of his fingers, Li Si sent two Fireball Spells accurately into the ugly kobolds. In an instant, their voices fell silent as they were reduced to ashes in the flames.

[You used Fireball Spell to inflict fatal damage on the target!]

[You killed two Kobolds (Normal) LV10!]

[You gained 200 experience points]

Kobolds really give pitifully little experience! Li Si grumbled.

There was nothing to be done about it. Kobolds were simply too weak; one Tusked Boar could take on five ordinary kobolds alone.

Arsen raised his brows. Flash Spell itself was nothing special, but only veteran mages with extensive experience knew to use it against low-level kobolds.

And there was something off about Li Si's Fireball Spell. Why did it seem so much more powerful than the Fireball Spells he had seen before?

When he saw Li Si walking toward the forest where the kobolds had appeared, Arsen quickly asked, "Li Si, where are you going?"

"Kobolds generally move in clan groups. I'm going to see whether their nest is nearby."

"I'll go with you. Ya Er, you and the others stay and guard the carriage."

"I'm going too!" Ya Er, who had grown bored after sitting in the carriage for half the day, naturally would not miss this chance.

"All right." Arsen was somewhat helpless, but with Elena and Lunbos guarding the carriage, there should not be any problems.

The three followed the kobolds' trail deeper into the forest. The traces left by kobolds were fairly obvious. Although none of them had the Hunter class, they quickly found the kobold nest through experience alone.

It was at the foot of a small rocky hill. An obviously excavated cave led into the mountain, with two kobold guards standing watch at the entrance.

"What do you think?" Out of courtesy, Li Si asked Arsen before making a move.

"There's nothing to discuss. We'll just rush in. These kobolds pose no threat to us."

Arsen answered casually, then seemed to recall something and hurriedly reminded Li Si, "Li Si, remember not to use Earth Magic once we enter the cave."

"I know."

Of course Li Si knew why. In the game in his previous life, some overly clever mage had been exploring a dungeon when, for some reason, his brain short-circuited and he used the Earth Movement Spell. He directly collapsed the entire dungeon in that area, causing his entire party to perish underground.

That spectacular blunder had been rated on the player forums as one of the classic textbook examples of what mages should never do.

That said, Li Si did not think he would need to cast any damaging spells. His teammates were simply too powerful.

Li Si had only managed to cast Shield Spell on Ya Er and Arsen before the two of them had already rushed out. The kobolds guarding the entrance had not even seen what happened before their heads flew off.

Ya Er and Arsen charged straight into the cave. Shaking his head, Li Si followed them inside.

What should I do when my teammates are so strong that I look completely useless?

I can only cast Shield Spell, Elemental Shield, and Protection from Arrows on myself first, just to feel a little more involved.

Upon entering the kobold cave, Li Si found that although kobolds were generally only about a meter tall, the cave had been built remarkably spaciously. At the very least, Li Si could walk through upright without worrying about hitting his head.

As natural-born miners, kobolds were well practiced at digging caves. Li Si even noticed that at regular intervals, they had specifically installed ventilation shafts and support pillars. It was impressively reliable work.

No wonder dragons liked gathering kobolds as servants. They really were excellent at digging up precious ores and gems.

That was also why Li Si wanted to explore the kobold cave. In his previous life, whenever a kobold nest was discovered, one could usually find some relatively valuable ores inside. With exceptionally good luck, one might even uncover Magic Gems.

Many players therefore never tired of it, treating the exploration of kobold caves like opening mystery boxes.

Ya Er and Arsen had already disappeared from sight. They did not care about any valuable ores that might be in the kobold cave. They had acted purely to eliminate a hidden danger. After all, kobolds were nothing to them, but they still posed a substantial threat to ordinary travelers, especially with this kobold nest so close to the main road.

Li Si also quickened his pace toward the depths of the cave. From time to time, he saw one or two slain kobolds lying on the ground at either side of the passage.

Kill notifications from his teammates continued popping up on his status panel, and he received a share of the experience points as well. It was better than nothing.

The cave passage was likely over a hundred meters long. Before long, he reached its end.

At the end was a relatively open area. The kobolds had dug upward another five or six meters, forming a massive space. Separate caves had been excavated farther into the walls on both sides, where the kobolds normally rested.

"Li Si, come take a look! There's actually a warlock in this kobold nest."

Ya Er happily waved Li Si over to show him her new discovery.

Li Si walked over to Ya Er's side. This spot directly faced the cave passage, and the hollow in the wall was clearly much larger than the others.

A dead kobold lay at Ya Er's feet. This kobold was clearly different from the rest, wearing a more complete set of beast-hide clothing. Beside it lay a crude staff made from bone and wood.

"You already killed him, so what are you showing me?" Li Si asked helplessly.

"Ah, I forgot. I saw light coming from his staff and instinctively chopped him down."

Ya Er was a little embarrassed as well. It was her first time seeing a kobold warlock, and she had failed to hold back.

"It's fine. There's nothing to talk about with these monsters anyway."

Li Si waved it off. So what if the kobold warlock might have spoken the common tongue? Li Si did not think there was anything to communicate with these creatures about, and he had no need for kobolds to mine for him.

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