I Am Not Goblin Slayer

Chapter 97: The Young Goblins Encounter Their Natural Enemy

Mage Hand successfully carried the Toxin Pouch to the pool.

The next step went very smoothly.

The Toxin Pouch was placed into the pool. Under the pressure of Mage Hand, the pouch ruptured, and thin streams of venom slowly oozed out, silently dissolving into the water.

Mission accomplished!

Gauss used Mage Hand to sink the pouch to the bottom of the pool and pressed it down with stones to prevent the Goblins from noticing the foreign object.

Then he dispelled the cantrip.

Now all that was left was to wait for good news.

Leaving the Goblin Village, Gauss returned to the forest, chewing on Dried Meat Strips while carefully observing the village.

“Ah, ah!”

On a hot afternoon, the forest buzzed with the relentless chirping of cicadas.

On the open ground, the visible heatwaves rolled and surged.

The temperature kept climbing.

Even though Gauss was under the shade of the forest, he took out his water pouch several times to moisten his parched lips.

Let alone the Goblins.

In the following hour or two,

Gauss observed that most of the Goblins in the village had already gone to the pool to drink and had returned to their shabby huts to rest.

After a while, the medicine finally began to take effect.

The first to suffer were the Goblin Sentries, who drank the water earliest.

Originally sleeping against the wall, the Goblins were awakened by a sudden sharp abdominal pain, then, under Gauss’s watchful eyes, squatted down right beside the short wall and defecated on the spot.

A murky, brown, viscous substance erupted beneath them like a flood.

The grass beneath their feet instantly turned yellowish-brown.

At first, it was just one, then several more followed suit, replicating the first’s behavior, defecating repeatedly.

Although Gauss found the scene somewhat disgusting, he acknowledged the efficacy of the laxative and secretly decided to revisit that shop to stock up when he returned.

Soon after, the Goblins who were napping in the shacks also crawled out, using both hands and feet, their faces twisted in pain, making their way to the short wall to relieve themselves.

Those who couldn’t make it in time simply relieved themselves just outside their huts.

The number kept growing.

In just under an hour, over forty Goblins fell victim at different times.

Several were clearly drained to the point of collapse, returning feebly to their huts and lying there like corpses.

The only regret Gauss had was that the Redcap Goblin inside the central large tent never came out to drink.

Whether it was more tolerant of thirst or had clean drinking water stored inside the tent was unknown.

“It’s time for a righteous assault,” Gauss muttered, realizing he could wait no longer as the majority of Goblins had already shown symptoms of diarrhea.

Wait any longer, and night might fall, giving those drained Goblins time to recover some strength.

Time to do a final check of gear before the big battle.

Gauss gripped his Wand and approached the Goblin Village.

Before he even got close, the stench wafting from the wall already hit him.

Fortunately, he had prepared a Gas Mask this time, which helped block some of the odor.

With one foot, he kicked open the crude wooden door made of sticks. The nearby Goblin Sentry was startled by the sudden commotion and struggled to rise from the ground.

But drained as it was, it could never be faster than Gauss’s reaction.

In its surprised gaze, the blade cleaved its pathetic little head.

The head rolled on the ground, its large, cloudy eyes wide open, still conveying its master's fear and shock.

“You have slain Goblin *1”

“Total Monster Kill Count: 186”

Seeing the helpless Goblin, Gauss felt no sense of an unfair victory.

On the contrary, he felt that all his previous efforts had paid off.

The laxative had slowed down the usually agile Goblins significantly.

Killing them was effortless.

As for any sympathy toward the Goblins about to be slaughtered, he felt none.

The inherent nature of the Goblin race meant they would always be enemies to humanity.

The human thighs hanging on the food rack in the central square were the best proof of that.

Killing Goblins was the right thing to do.

“Kill!”

Once Gauss entered the village, he charged forward.

The few Goblins closest to him hadn’t even grabbed their weapons before becoming corpses under his sharp blade.

Their murky blood splashed all over Gauss.

But he didn’t care much right now. After all, it was unrealistic to expect to emerge spotless after slaughtering a tribe of over fifty Goblins.

“You have slain Goblin *4”

“Total Monster Kill Count: 190”

Ten more to go!

Gauss set his sights on the Goblins farther away.

At this point, the Goblins also noticed this uninvited guest and scrambled to pick up weapons and regroup.

But due to the toxic effects of the laxative, their movements were feeble and sluggish, as if floating when they walked.

Their hideous faces were filled with panic, brought on by weakness and the sudden enemy attack on their village.

Inside the Leader’s Large Tent, the Redcap Goblin was also awakened by the commotion outside. It strapped on its weapon, bent over, lifted a corner of the curtain, and peeked through the gap to observe the situation.

Then it silently slipped out from under the tent’s curtain, tiptoed into the shadows of a corner, and drew an Arrow from the Quiver on its back, quickly nocking it to its Longbow.

“Whoosh!”

An Arrow tore through the air, flying precisely toward Gauss's side.

Its movement was very stealthy. Gauss, focused on the other Goblins in front of him, had somewhat neglected the sudden sneak attack from the side.

Mid-flight, he caught it out of the corner of his eye and instinctively raised a guard.

“Dong!”

The Mage Armor continuously active on Gauss’s body was not just for show.

The Metal Arrowhead struck Gauss’s side but was intercepted by a layer of energy field.

Ripples spread from the Arrowhead’s tip, and finally, the Arrow’s kinetic energy was fully absorbed by the energy field and fell to the ground.

“Hmm?”

Gauss turned his head toward the Leader’s Large Tent.

Only then did he realize that the Redcap Goblin had somehow already crept out.

As expected, its intelligence was higher than ordinary Goblins.

If it weren’t for his Mage Armor, that could have been dangerous.

Despite its small size, its movement was swift, strength fierce, and the force behind its Arrow was twice that of a normal Goblin.

In the distance, the Redcap Goblin saw its attack fail, and unease flashed through its eyes. Looking at its sluggish and disordered subordinates, it grew more confused.

What exactly is going on?

After hesitating for a moment, it didn’t aim another shot at Gauss. Its instinct told it—

The man in the distance was an extremely powerful opponent, unlike the feeble two-legged creatures it had slain before, and clearly came prepared.

So it chose to step forward and, like an agile monkey, swiftly blended into the gathered Goblin “army”.

Trying to hide and snipe me again? Gauss shook his head.

Other novice Professionals might find this kind of cunning Goblin leader troublesome.

But he was different.

Moreover, the Goblin force the Redcap pinned its hopes on was now nothing more than a crippled formation.

Gauss gripped the Unbreaking Staff and struck the ground.

A blue glow instantly gathered before him.

His gaze locked onto several Goblin Archers on the far flank.

“Magic Missile!”

A double-cast Magic Missile locked tightly onto the Goblin Archers.

In the next moment, deep blue elliptical orbs traced glowing arcs through the air, precisely striking the chests of two Goblin Archers.

“Bang!!”

The two Goblins died instantly the moment they were struck.

“You have slain Goblin *2”

“Total Monster Kill Count: 192”

Not enough.

Gauss ignored the Goblin ranks, which under the Redcap's shout tried to muster strength and charge toward him.

He focused on the remaining Goblin Archers.

In fact, if the Redcap Goblin hadn’t been so sly and hidden within the ranks all along,

Gauss would have followed the principle of capturing the leader first and targeted it.

Exhaling, he let Mana surge rapidly into his Wand.

The blue halo, as if heralding death, gathered once more.

A Goblin Archer climbed the Short Wall to take the high ground and aimed, but when it saw that terrifying glow, its face changed. Yet to an ordinary Goblin, the power of a Magic Missile was irresistible!

“Boom!”

Another double Magic Missile!

After precision sniping the archers, Gauss exhaled and again focused his Mana twice in succession.

He managed to eliminate all eight Goblin Archers before the Goblin ranks could reach him!

“You have slain Goblin *6”

“Total Monster Kill Count: 198”

Looking at the rapidly approaching Goblins wielding Wooden Spears, Gauss withdrew his Mana, his expression unchanged.

He even took a moment in the chaos to wipe his hands and stuffed a piece of Dried Meat Strips into his mouth to chew.

Because the Goblins in this condition were just too slow.

They posed little threat.

He raised the Metal Wand in his hand and swung it in a circle.

“Whoosh!”

The rugged Wand Body howled through the air!

The few Goblins charging fastest—likely the ones who hadn’t drunk the tainted water—were sent flying the instant they made contact with the Wand.

Gauss bent his knees slightly and Activated Skill [Enhanced Jump]. Strength surged through his lower limbs.

It was as if a wind blew beneath Gauss’s feet.

Their weakness, his strength.

The Goblins’ attacks appeared even slower to him now.

Too weak!

He leapt lightly, dodging a thrust from a Wooden Spear.

Then he planted the Wand into the ground and drew the Sword at his waist.

Two gleams of sword light tore through the air.

“Puff!”

“Puff!”

Two Goblins were pierced through the throat before they could react.

“You have slain Goblin *2”

“Total Monster Kill Count: 200”