Catching Goblins (2)

It stank too much, but they were already here.

After entering, the surrounding ground-level environment was fairly clean, but the sewer running through the middle was filthy.

Beck walked ahead with a torch and said, "Come on. You'll get used to it after a while."

"The sewers on the outskirts are still fairly clean. The farther in we go, the dirtier they get."

More than a dozen people held torches as they walked along the stone steps on either side of the sewer.

As they went deeper, the surroundings became filthier and filthier. The stench was worse than when they had first entered, but at least their noses had adapted.

There was also the sound of running water in the sewer. Charles raised his torch and looked down.

The water's surface was covered in everything imaginable—household waste, excrement, and more.

As the firelight drew near, things could even be seen swimming beneath the surface, stirring up splashes.

Who knew what exactly was lurking down there.

The environment around them was truly awful. They walked for around half an hour, passing several junctions before finally stopping at one where several sewers met.

This place covered at least two or three hundred square meters. Several intersecting sewers lay at its center, surrounded by a broad empty area.

Beck looked around in delight. "This place is good. I've already seen the footprints left behind by goblins foraging for food."

"Everyone, start preparing!"

"You few, go set up the spare torches around the perimeter first!"

"I'll prepare the bait!"

Charles and the others stepped over the garbage and went to the edge of the wall, where they left several enormous torches.

If they wanted to lie in ambush, they would definitely have to extinguish the torches soon. When the time came, they would light them again and join the battle to catch the goblins.

Meanwhile, Beck dug up plenty of garbage, added the bait he had brought with him, and began mixing it together. In the end, he even poured in a bottle of potion.

After finishing all that, he said, "All right, the bait to lure the goblins is ready. Now we just wait for the goblins nearby to smell it and come over!"

"Spread out and get into position. Don't rush out until you hear my command! And before that, don't say a word, or you'll scare the goblins away."

"Understood!"

They all dispersed, each finding a slightly cleaner place to hide.

The sewer was not completely without light. Quite a bit of moss grew along the walls and ceiling.

Some of the moss seemed almost alive, glowing faintly from time to time.

By now, most of this moss was also of mutated varieties.

Charles wrapped his wizard's robe tightly around himself, placed his iron shield at his feet, and rested a hand on his longsword.

He was no coward. Even in this environment, he felt no fear.

He had already memorized the route they had taken. Even if too many goblins came, he could simply flee in time.

After waiting for a while in the dim surroundings, Charles heard faint noises coming from the center.

He began sketching runes in his mind, assembling them into a sorcery model.

Dim Vision!

A faint, half-visible shimmer settled over his eyes.

The next moment, his formerly pitch-black vision became far clearer.

Everything around him seemed veiled behind a layer of gray gauze, but it was still much better than being unable to see anything at all.

The bait Beck had prepared consisted mainly of animal organs mixed with the garbage unique to the sewers, with a potion added afterward.

The fishy stench was overpowering, but to the other creatures in the sewers, it was a fine delicacy.

Rats and all sorts of strange insects began emerging from the darkness, rummaging through the pile of bait.

Their presence had been anticipated by the party.

Their rummaging was precisely what allowed the scent of the bait to spread farther.

Some well-fed rats and insects left the area, carrying the bait's scent even farther.

After waiting a while longer, Charles raised his longsword.

Within his dim vision, goblins finally emerged on the stone steps along both sides of the sewer in the distance.

Goblins were considered intelligent creatures. The more of them gathered together, the more likely it was for highly intelligent or powerful goblins to appear among them.

Ordinary goblins stood only around 1.2 or 1.3 meters tall, with skinny bodies and yellow-green skin.

But the goblins Charles saw now were at least a head taller than their kin in the wild, standing around 1.5 meters tall.

They wore almost nothing, or merely had a few scraps draped over themselves.

The first group to emerge consisted of more than a dozen goblins. They had clearly caught the scent of the bait.

They came from afar and headed straight for where the bait lay.

Once they rushed into the central area, Charles fixed his gaze on Beck's position.

Beck let out the prearranged whistle.

Charles and the others immediately lit the torches around them, and the firelight drove back the surrounding gloom.

"Kill!"

Beck roared, raised his longsword high, and charged straight at the goblins.

The others did much the same. Only the few ordinary people remained where they were.

As Charles charged, he watched the dozen or so goblins.

Several of them gave Charles a sense of danger, and they were also taller than the other goblins.

As Beck charged forward, he shouted, "Kill the weak ones first! Leave a few suitable ones alive to capture!"

Out of more than a dozen goblins, only a few were suitable for capture.

But that did not mean the other goblins lacked fighting strength.

"Grik grik!"

The goblins on the other side were also startled by the torches suddenly flaring to life around them.

The fewer goblins there were, the more timid they became. The more there were, the bolder they became.

And it was directly proportional. There were only six of Charles's group, while the goblins numbered more than a dozen.

The goblins' courage surged at once. The leader, a goblin holding a stick made from some unknown material, shouted loudly.

Charles could not understand him, but the other goblins immediately countercharged toward them.

As he ran, Charles cast a spell.

Bone Needle Bee!

The sorcery was successfully cast. Three bone spikes floated before Charles.

He swiftly locked onto three goblins. With a slight prod of his mental power, the bone spikes shot out.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

"Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!"

The three bone spikes struck the three goblins charging at Charles almost simultaneously.

"Argh!"

"Ah!"

The three goblins seemed to have been struck head-on by a crushing blow, each taking a bone spike directly to the forehead.

The sharp bone spikes, coupled with their tremendous speed, pierced straight through the goblins' skulls.

Amid the goblins' screams, all three heads burst open at once, and their bodies fell helplessly backward.

At once, the courage of the burly goblin who had been charging toward Charles vanished.

There had been three others beside him just moments ago. Now he was the only one left, and he wanted to run.

But Charles gave him no such chance. Armored from head to toe, he barreled forward without even using his longsword and slammed his iron shield straight into the goblin's face.

"Bang!"

"Argh!!"