Special Meeting

The Goblin King rolled its eyes in disbelief. At the other end of the cave stood a disheveled young girl, with a pale blue Slime beside her. They were that man's companions.

"Did you foresee all of this?"

Its vision was dyed red with blood, and even the azure sky blurred in the Goblin King's eyes.

Before its death, what it saw was neither the grand accomplishments wrought by the Goblins' ancient monarchs nor Yang Yu's irritating smile, but the flicker of surprise on the face of the Goblin Elite Assassination Unit's captain today.

What had it wanted to say to me back then? If I had listened to it, how would the outcome have been different?

There was no way to know.

That possibility would exist only in the Goblin King's final imaginings.

"Cough, cough." After her violent coughing finally subsided, Bai Jin looked pale and weakly turned to He Meng beside her. "Thank you, Miss He Meng. Thanks to you, we were able to finish what Yang Yu told us to do."

That was right. Bai Jin and He Meng were here entirely on Yang Yu's orders.

When Yang Yu heard Bai Jin's report, he found something strange.

Why were there so many eyes here alone?

Yang Yu guessed that this was most likely the Goblin King's escape route. So, after escorting the Silverwind Squad back to town, he had arranged for Bai Jin to return to the cave, lie in wait, and clear out every Goblin that came here.

After waiting for a long time, Bai Jin finally encountered the Goblin Yang Yu had mentioned. She had planned to use [Healing Taboo] to block its recovery before finishing it off, but right after casting the first spell, her illness flared up. She could not stop coughing and was unable to chant the spell needed to finish it off.

He Meng had not wanted to intervene, but she could clearly sense the aura of a powerful being on that Goblin. Bai Jin could not weave a second offensive spell either, so to keep things from getting troublesome, she could only directly unleash her ultimate move into the Goblin's face.

Faced with Bai Jin's thanks, she haughtily turned her body to one side. Deep down, she was quite happy that someone could properly thank her. It was ten thousand times better than a certain ungrateful man.

"Next is..."

Bai Jin carefully approached the Goblin's corpse.

"Yang Yu also said there might be some treasure inside this Goblin's body. Hehe, how could he put it that way? This Goblin obviously looked very strong. A Goblin like this is valuable from head to toe. Hehe, maybe we can brew some strange potion from it. Once it's done, what kind of person should we test it on?"

Her words were thoroughly chilling, but the expression on Bai Jin's face was not excitement at all. It was fear, disgust, and the look of someone who did not want to do this but had no choice.

Seriously, what was wrong with her? She clearly hated it, yet she insisted on pretending not to care.

Unable to do anything else, He Meng shifted her body and enveloped the Goblin King's corpse.

It took a Slime a very, very long time to digest meat. It was nearly evening by the time she finished, and only a ruby necklace remained on the ground.

Bai Jin picked up the necklace and repeatedly thanked He Meng.

"Thank you. We got the spoils. He'll definitely be happy."

He Meng simply lay quietly to one side and let out a satisfied burp, regretting her decision to dispose of the Goblin corpse. That tasted awful. An ordinary Slime without a sense of taste would probably spit it out after one bite. And I actually managed to finish it.

At last, the matter of subjugating the Goblin King had come to an end.

That night, the adventurers returning to the tavern threw a party. Yang Yu was undoubtedly the star of the celebration, but he did not immerse himself in the tavern's cheerful atmosphere. The fact that his level had reached its limit continued to weigh on his mind.

Setting aside the method the system had given for breaking through the limit, while the Rescue Corps and those who had been rescued joyfully held their party, a special meeting was taking place at the same time.

In a dim room, nine people wearing brown hoods sat around a massive round table. Different numbered badges were pinned to their chests.

"Just as we suspected, the president of the Silver Orchid Merchant Guild truly has ties with foreign countries." Hooded Man Number Two, the investigator, spoke with conviction.

"Not only that, I've heard they're secretly conducting inhumane research as well." Hooded Man Number Three tossed out a stack of documents. "Their goal is probably far more than simply making money."

"I had a feeling about this long ago. Unfortunately, the evidence we have isn't enough to convict them. As long as he can prove his innocence, he'll probably claim that someone with ulterior motives is trying to frame him, then turn the tables on us." Hooded Man Number Five spoke.

"I agree. We still lack decisive evidence if we want to convict them," Hooded Man Number One said.

"How are we supposed to obtain that decisive evidence? Because of our identities, we cannot personally send people to investigate. Once we're exposed, Congress may not necessarily take our side," Hooded Man Number Four said.

"There is no shortage of decisive evidence."

An aged voice echoed through the meeting room. It belonged to Hooded Man Number Nine. The moment he spoke, the entire room fell silent.

"Sir, what do you mean?" Hooded Man Number Four asked tentatively.

Hooded Man Number Nine spoke decisively. "There is plenty of decisive evidence in their secret laboratory. President Big Pancake Face must have hidden records of his dealings with foreign countries in that secret laboratory. We only need to send someone there."

"Sir, as I just said, if we send our own people to investigate—"

Hooded Man Number Four was about to remind him when Hooded Man Number Nine interrupted him. "If our people won't work, then entrust it to adventurers."

"Adventurers? Can those people who only work for money really be trusted? What if we get implicated..." Doubts rose one after another in the meeting room, all expressing distrust of adventurers.

"Going to an underground laboratory, no one knows what dangers may await. I understand that perfectly well. I also know that if the plan is exposed, there is a risk that we will be implicated."

Hooded Man Number Nine spoke slowly.

"But think carefully. Adventurers only work for money and ask no questions. The risk of us being exposed is even lower than we imagine. As long as the task passes through enough hands, the adventurers will not know who their true employer is. Besides, I happen to know someone who works at the Adventurers' Guild, and he leans toward our side. If anything happens, he will certainly help us smooth it over."

The hooded men looked at one another. Though they still had some reservations, raising objections without offering an alternative would be nothing but nitpicking. Time was pressing, so they could only try this somewhat unreliable method.

"Then we shall leave everything to you, sir."

"Mm—"

Hooded Man Number Nine nodded. The other hooded men left one after another, leaving only Number Nine hunched over in the meeting room, sighing to himself.

"The nation faces disaster, yet there are still people concerned only with protecting their own interests, whether enemies or companions. For the sake of the country, what is wrong with taking a little risk? Yet they..."

Hooded Man Number Nine pulled down his hood, furrowed his brow, and muttered to himself.

"Perhaps I am the same."