Chapter 63: Poison Smoke
At noon, in the forest.
The cicadas were chirping loudly, and a gentle breeze rustled through the trees.
“Looks like they’re all napping inside the cave.”
“Watch out for Goblin scouts,” Gauss added.
Although it had been a while since they last encountered Goblins, he hadn’t forgotten their first mission—when their location was exposed because of a Goblin lurking outside.
His gaze wandered around the surroundings.
Eventually, it locked onto a cave in the distance that didn’t seem particularly tall.
After so many commission tasks, Gauss had gained some basic understanding of low-tier monsters and their ecosystems, unlike when he first arrived in this world and knew nothing.
Generally speaking, unless Goblins occupied a natural cave, the ones they dug themselves wouldn’t be very tall.
That’s because the height of the cave was usually determined by the average height of the tribe members.
Why would a group of small creatures dig such a tall cave? To make it easier for humans to hunt them?
Obviously not.
So, most Goblin lairs were just over one meter tall at the lowest, and even the tallest wouldn’t exceed 1.6 meters.
Unless the group had a special leader or a mutated individual, the cave height wouldn’t increase.
Therefore, from the size and scale of a Goblin lair, one could roughly assess the strength of the tribe.
Of course, this wasn’t absolute—some powerful Goblins also had unremarkable builds.
The Goblin lair in the distance wasn’t very tall.
Out of caution, the group didn’t approach the Goblin cave.
Instead, they patiently waited from afar for Meiva to return.
Meiva had already snuck near the lair to investigate, mainly to check if there were any scouts lying in ambush nearby.
In the clearing outside the Goblin lair, a small pot was set up.
Many small Goblin lairs would place their cooking gear outside the cave.
At the moment, the clearing was completely empty—no Goblins in sight.
“Smack!”
Gauss casually slapped the mosquito on his neck, annoyed.
Even after completing many field missions, he still hadn’t gotten used to the ever-present insects around him.
Even though he had applied insect repellent, the effect was mediocre. He sighed inwardly.
He wasn’t sure if he had bought counterfeit goods or if insect repellents in this world were just generally ineffective.
After all, the mosquitoes here might be different from his previous world—perhaps tougher and more resilient.
Actually, mosquitoes were still tolerable; the real threat came from poisonous snakes or small venomous creatures.
Before long.
Meiva returned quietly and shook her head at the group.
She signaled that she hadn’t found any hidden Goblins nearby.
This further confirmed that this group of Goblins was relatively weak.
Though Goblins weren’t very intelligent, they were inherently lazy. Without a strong leader giving orders, they would often choose to lie inside their caves during the heat and only come out when it cooled down.
“The Goblins are inside. I can hear their voices.”
“How do we lure them out?”
“Let’s use the old smoke-out method.”
“Meiva, did you find any hidden ventilation openings in the lair?”
“Found two.”
“Then let’s do this…”
Gauss watched his teammates calmly discuss their plan of action and didn’t interrupt.
Although he had some confidence in his own strength, he didn’t want to charge into that low cave and brawl with the Goblins.
First, the narrow cave wasn’t suited for Magic Missile attacks. If the Goblins’ excavation work was unstable and caused a collapse, they could all be buried alive.
Second, the cramped space made movement difficult, limiting his agility and physical advantage.
Thirdly, the Goblins had the advantage of terrain, and their familiarity with the living environment allowed them to unleash significantly more combat power inside.
The group took out the supplies they had brought for the commission.
Firewood, sulfur powder, pungent poisonous herbs...
These were all standard supplies, meant for situations like cave environments, to drive monsters out of their lairs.
Of course, the smoke tactic wasn’t suitable for every situation; it had to be adapted to the circumstances.
The reason they didn’t use this tactic for the Kobold commission last time was because the Kobold lair was too intricate and deep.
Even if they used it, it likely wouldn’t have much effect, and it could even expose their presence prematurely and alert the Kobolds.
After a brief discussion, everyone began to get busy.
Checking weapons, guarding ventilation points, setting traps, preparing to light the fire...
They had to choose damp firewood, which, due to its high moisture content, would burn less efficiently and thus produce more smoke.
When the firewood was burning steadily, they sprinkled sulfur powder, pungent poisonous herbs, and various toxin products made from monster innards that Meiva had collected.
Then they kept blowing air into the cave.
Thick black smoke, propelled by the group all wearing several layers of masks, drifted steadily into the depths of the cave.
Throughout the process, aside from a bit of noise at the beginning, no Goblins emerged from the cave on their own.
Different Goblin tribes had their own subtle differences—some were aggressive, some were devious, some were cautious, and some were cowardly...
This group of Goblins seemed to be of the extremely cautious type.
Rather than rushing out to fight, they preferred to keep the battle inside their lair.
Unfortunately, they were destined to be disappointed.
In the game of momentum, the stronger side always held the initiative.
Gauss silently watched from the side.
As the strongest fighter in the team, he didn’t need to do miscellaneous tasks.
It was both a privilege and a responsibility.
He needed to stand ready with his wand in hand, constantly prepared in case Goblins burst out from the inside.
Watching the poisonous smoke flow steadily into the cave, he was reminded somewhat of how rats were smoked out of fields in his previous life.
The only difference was that this cave was much bigger, and the “vermin” hiding inside were far more dangerous.
After about ten minutes of smoke, the cave finally reacted.
Faint coughing sounds could be heard from within.
“These green-skinned brats are really enduring,” Doyle said, his hands sore from fanning.
“I’ll take over,” said Levin, who had rested for a while. He patted Doyle on the shoulder and resumed the work.
Goblins had tough vitality and greater endurance than ordinary creatures, but even they had limits.
After enduring another round of toxic smoke, they finally couldn’t take it anymore.
The first ugly green-skinned little monster stumbled out of the depths of the cave, holding a wooden club.
It was clear the smoke had nearly clouded its senses.
Rather than coming out to fight, it was more like it had been forced out, desperate for fresh air.
“Squelch!”
The moment it rushed out of the cave, it wasn’t greeted by sunlight or air as fresh as spring water, but a flash of cold steel.
Gauss, waiting at the side of the cave, swung his rapier.
With a flash of cold light, the icy blade pierced its throat.
“Ugh…”
Gauss withdrew his sword.
The Goblin clutched its throat, letting out a hoarse gasp, then staggered a few steps before collapsing at the cave entrance.
“Goblin killed ×1”
“Total monsters slain: 60”
Another Goblin exited this world.
Unlike previous kills, this time Gauss vaguely felt a warm current flow into his body.
In the depths of his being, he sensed his racial talent, 【Rapid Digestion】, subtly enhance.
The improvement was minimal, but with continued accumulation, it would slowly grow stronger.
Feeling his body “getting stronger,” Gauss looked into the depths of the cave with renewed focus.
At this moment, the Goblins were no longer vile green monsters in his eyes, but walking experience packs.
He wondered what kind of power 【Rapid Digestion】 would gain once it upgraded from its basic level.
Currently, it allowed him to digest food quickly to restore stamina and magic power.
Once upgraded, maybe the effect would improve further.
Perhaps he could extract more nutrients from the same food, or consume a wider variety of materials?
Though it had just started “leveling up,” it didn’t stop Gauss from looking forward to the upgraded effects.