I am the Enchantress!

Wilder raised his staff and walked step by step toward the two kobold leaders.

The emerald crystal at the top of the staff shimmered with a ghostly green light, casting an eerie glow on his handsome face.

"Habaha ya ya?"

(Who exactly are you?)

The kobold leader, with a dagger to his neck, swallowed hard and asked in a hoarse voice.

"Halabaha".

(Enchantress.)

As he spoke, he had already walked up to the kobold, the crystal on his staff close to its Adam's apple.

The heatwave began to burn.

The crystal kept flashing.

A scorching tongue of fire erupted and pierced directly through its throat.

He raised his staff, and a few seconds later the crystal began to flash again.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Three deep pink magic missiles precisely struck the other leader's shoulder, instantly blasting open the already bleeding wound.

Its body jolted, then its pupils dilated, and it breathed its last.

Both kobold leaders were killed off, and Wilder finally got the 100 experience points he had been longing for.

"Did you enjoy the killing this time?" Gru asked with a grin.

"Ah...it's alright."

Wilder gave a vague answer.

Gaining experience was satisfying, but he didn't feel any thrill from killing, since he wasn't a monster.

Especially since kobolds are humanoid creatures, even though Wilder has killed real people, he still feels a kind of uncanny valley-like unease when he kills them.

Hunting giant spiders and shark-lizard beasts feels better.

"What did that beast say to you just now?" Cyrion asked.

"Huh? That was Gru talking to me just now." Wilde was too exhausted to process what he was saying. "He asked me if I'd had enough killing."

"Cyrion!"

Gru angrily blew on his beard.

"I'm asking about the kobold leader!" Cyrion explained. "Didn't that beast say something before he died?"

"Oh, it's asking me who I really am," Wilde replied.

"What did you say?"

"Me..."

Wilder thought for a moment, then said, "I'll say I'm its father."

A moment of silence.

"You mean you slept with a kobold?" Gru managed to squeeze out.

Wilder: "..."

He uttered the words "bewitching mage" purely on a whim.

Perhaps the dim lighting in the cave and the eerie green glow of the staff perfectly set the mood for that spot.

But if he were to tell his teammates now, he might be so embarrassed that he would knock himself unconscious with his staff.

"We'll discuss Wilde's romantic and private affairs later."

Joffrey chuckled and asked, "What about the rest of the kobolds?"

"I'll gather them all together."

Wilder looked at the remaining eight ordinary kobolds.

They had just witnessed their new friend kill their long-time leader, and their expressions became increasingly dazed.

"Call your other companions here," Wilder said softly.

This is a simple command.

Without involving their instincts or going against their will, they naturally cannot resist and will leave to find their companions.

The other four teammates waited at the tunnel entrance, killing one each time it came back.

Before long, more than thirty kobold figures piled up next to the tunnel entrance.

Wilder didn't gain any of these experiences; his mana was completely depleted, and he desperately needed a long rest to recover.

Thirty of them would be 150 experience points.

Wilder felt his heart bleeding.

He made up his mind that he must buy back the magic crystals when he returned to town, or find other ways to quickly restore his mana.

……

The battle is completely over.

Next comes the time to clean up the battlefield.

More than thirty kobolds, plus two kobold leaders, the reward and scales added up to two or three gold coins.

These gold coins are just a drop in the ocean compared to what's already in my backpack.

The benefits of this mission far exceeded expectations.

After packing up the new spoils, Cyrion said, "That's enough for today. Let's get back to town before it gets dark."

No one objected.

After exiting the tunnel where the chief resided, Gru glanced at the entrance to the second tunnel, the only one he hadn't yet traversed.

"Or shall we go this way? Maybe it's a shortcut," he said.

"No, let's not."

Wilder shook his head. "Little Ha said this tunnel leads into the heart of the forest and is very dangerous."

Gru nodded, and finally exclaimed, "Little Ha is a good dog."

The team remained silent and returned along the same route.

After passing through the last narrow entrance tunnel, they finally emerged from the underground cave, which reeked of earth and sulfur.

It was already evening.

Looking out into the distance, the pale pink sunset blends with the layered mountains, and the entire sky changes from white to pink, then to a light blue, with distinct layers.

"Let's keep going."

Cyrion found the rope ladder he had used to get there near the rock face, and gave it a tug; it was fairly secure.

Carrying heavy spoils, the group carefully chose to climb the rope ladder one by one to reduce the load.

Cyrion was the first.

Gru held onto the bottom corner of the rope ladder for him from below, while Wilde looked up at the distance.

Lyle and Joffrey, meanwhile, admired the sunset over the woods on the opposite side.

The relaxed feeling after the battle lingered around the teammates. They had made a decision: if they could get back quickly, they would stop at the tavern for a quick drink.

The rope ladder suddenly swayed.

Wilder looked up and saw Cyrion hanging halfway up the ladder, just a few steps away from going up, but he suddenly stopped moving.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Shhh."

Cyrion turned his head and made a gesture.

He held his breath and pressed his ear closer, as if searching for some sound.

Finally, he changed direction and began to climb down the rope ladder.

"What happened?"

Once Cyrion reached the ground, the group gathered around.

"There are footsteps," Cyrion said in a low voice.

"A monster?" Wilder asked.

He shook his head: "It's the sound of shoes rubbing against the grass. It must be an adventurer."

"What's the big deal?" Gru said nonchalantly. "We're all doing this for the association. We might even chat a bit and ask for a cigarette."

Cyrion didn't bring any authentic Calira tobacco with him today, which bothered Gru.

"Be careful."

Cyrion patted the huge backpack on Gru's back.

The group nodded knowingly.

They gained over a hundred gold coins from this mission, a fortune for anyone.

Compared to most monsters that don't like gold coins, the humans who are also adventurers are now in greater danger.

"What do we do now?" Lyle asked.

"Whether we are friend or foe, our terrain is too low and we are backed by a cliff. It would be too disadvantageous to climb up rashly."

Cyrion said in a low voice, "Let's wait a bit. It would be best if the people upstairs could leave immediately."

Without any objection, everyone looked up at the sky.

The footsteps grew closer.

Standing at the foot of the cliff, they could all begin to hear the faintest sounds.