Goblins with Equipment?

Dean ran through the spell in his head. Simple. Far too simple. It was as easy as Basic Illumination, yet something about it felt too easy.

It was so simple that Dean didn't bother checking it again. He began the detection spell at once. In less than ten seconds, a wave of magic rippled outward from him, sweeping across roughly fifty meters.

But shortly after it passed fifty meters, the wave shuddered and shattered.

He had failed. Dean's face went pale as the failed spell hit him with backlash. To his surprise, it was mild. His mind felt a little hazy, but within a few minutes he was back to normal.

His mana hadn't decreased, either. It was almost as though what he'd felt hadn't been backlash at all, but a fluctuation in his own mana.

"Lamore, look! Did Dean just release a wave of magic?" Kana's eyes widened, as if she hadn't stopped glaring since she was done glaring at Lamore.

"I... think so! Has our little Mage turned into a genius? But how did he learn the spell? I never saw him take out a spellbook. He didn't even open his eyes." Lamore sounded baffled, but Kana had long since stopped listening to his questions.

Given the choice between watching Dean's reaction and listening to Lamore speculate, Kana naturally watched Dean.

Dean's face was pale, but after a few minutes it returned to normal. What he felt now was strange—truly strange. He had spent only five points of mana.

Basic Life Detection Magic was supposed to cost ten mana points, even if it failed, barring special circumstances.

Of course, Dean didn't think there was anything special about him. He had definitely cast the detection spell just now, even though it had failed.

Then again, perhaps there was something special about Dean: he had a horn, a horn given to him by a demon.

Normally, Basic Life Detection Magic lasted ten minutes and consumed ten mana points. Those conditions could vary depending on the user, but only for a high-level Mage.

Dean was merely a Level-One Magic Apprentice. Could he really change the conditions of a spell?

Try again. Dean cast Life Detection Magic once more, concentrating harder and taking greater care this time.

The wave of magic spread out again. It moved more slowly this time, but Kana and the other two could all feel that it was more precise.

Through Life Detection Magic, Dean sensed Kana and the other two almost instantly. Beyond them, he found nothing on the ground. Overhead, a line of large, unfamiliar birds flew past.

It was astonishing. The wave was only magic, yet it let him sense places beyond his sight.

A hundred meters. He could sense exactly a hundred meters away, but no farther.

At the edge of that range, Dean detected a Burrowing Beast about half the size of a person, buried dozens of meters underground.

The Burrowing Beast seemed to notice the scan. It raised its head to check, then went back to sleep.

It was only a level-one magical beast. It ate pests such as small insects, rarely broke through the surface, and had almost nothing to do with the farms above.

Besides, it was dozens of meters underground. In an impoverished corner like Blue Town, no powerful person would be bored enough to dig it out.

So the Burrowing Beast went right on sleeping without a care.

As for smaller insects, Dean couldn't sense creatures that tiny. Finding them would take far too much effort for a weak Mage like him. He had no chance of succeeding.

"I've learned Basic Life Detection Magic. It scans once every thirty seconds and lasts ten minutes. Let's get started!" Dean sounded a little excited. This spell was actually rather fun.

Yanxi looked at Dean with a hint of admiration. It might be one of the simplest spells, but learning it completely in just a few minutes was incredible.

Lamore was dumbfounded too. He still had so many unanswered questions, and now this had happened. Learning magic without even looking at a spellbook? And so quickly?

"You little brat, Dean, have you awakened some hidden talent? Or did your brain start working better after I tore down the house this morning?" Kana raised a hand as if to rap him on the head.

"What are you all staring at? Hurry up and find the Goblins, or I'll have wasted my mana for nothing." Dean rolled his eyes. Weren't they happy he was getting better at magic?

The four of them got moving, though all they did was circle the area to cover the entire farm. Every thirty seconds, a wave of magic spread from Dean.

Aside from Dean, Lamore knew the most about magic. Many of a Priest's professional skills resembled spells, so he knew a little about Life Detection Magic.

But what Dean was doing didn't quite match what Lamore knew.

For one thing, an ordinary Life Detection Magic spell scanned the area once a minute. The interval shortened as a Mage grew stronger, yet Dean needed only thirty seconds on his very first attempt.

That left only two possibilities: either Dean had some special item, or he was a genius whose talent had awakened later in life.

Lamore didn't press him. Dean was his teammate, and that was enough. The stronger his teammates were, the better; it couldn't hurt him.

Kana and the other two also had the sense that Dean had awakened and become a genius. Did that mean their team was finally about to take off?

Perhaps they could even apply for promotion to a Level-One Adventurer Team.

A Level-One Adventurer Team still ranked near the bottom, but it was much better than their current status as a Junior Adventurer Team. The two titles sounded almost alike, yet they marked different stages.

A Junior Adventurer Team was barely recognized as an adventuring team. It took on safe but tedious, time-consuming jobs.

Dean's group lacked both strength and numbers, so it could only be rated a junior team. There were plenty of teams like theirs—far too many to count.

Each casting of Life Detection Magic cost five mana points and lasted ten minutes. Nearly two hours later, all four of them stopped.

"How much ground is left?" Dean asked, wiping away his sweat.

"About a third, I think. Why not keep going? Maybe we'll find them just a few dozen meters farther on." Kana glanced around as she spoke, sounding rather unconcerned.

The other three had had nothing to do the whole time.

Yanxi handed Dean a pouch of spring water enhanced with a touch of stamina-restoring magic. It cost ten Copper Coins.

Anyone would have felt sorry for Dean, panting and drenched in sweat as he was.

Dean didn't stand on ceremony. He drained the pouch in one go, then let out a burp.

"Are you... trying to squeeze every last drop of mana out of me?" Dean had drunk so fast that Kana's words nearly made him choke. He caught his breath and shot her a look.

Not far away, Lamore spotted a mound of warm earth in a rice field, a thin wisp of smoke still rising from it. Something in the grass beside it gave off a sharp glint. It was so small and fleeting that he struggled to spot it again.

It was a bloodstained dagger.