Chapter 28: Setting OutThe Goblin Lair!
Chapter 28: Setting Out—The Goblin Lair!
Honestly, the excuse was full of holes.
For one, could that female adventurer—imprisoned for so long her eyes had lost all focus—even fight anymore? And with the goblin outbreak having just begun, clearing a path from the entrance wouldn't really waste any time at all.
Any seasoned adventurer standing here would have seen through it instantly and reached the obvious conclusion: “Finding an exit and escaping is way safer than charging headlong into a goblin nest.”
But as my earlier little test had proven…
Iresha was a complete rookie.
A rookie so shaken by the goblins that she was already showing signs of trauma—a gullible, easily manipulated fool.
Expecting her to notice anything amiss? That was about as likely as my wife running off to the Holy City and becoming the Pope.
“W-wait! Hold on!”
As it turned out, my guess was spot on. The moment she heard the words “goblin captive,” Iresha’s face went pale with fear. She didn’t hesitate for a second—she just hurried after me.
Staying put and waiting for me to return? That thought never even crossed her mind.
Who in their right mind would wait alone in a labyrinth crawling with goblins?
Even with her mana fully restored by a potion, if she got surrounded again, she’d just be reliving the same disaster as before.
No matter how you looked at it, moving together was the safer choice.
“I actually think your suggestion makes a lot of sense,” she said as she caught up, clearly trying to justify herself. “If an adventurer was just taken, there might still be time to rescue her.”
“And it’s way too dangerous for you to go alone. My mana’s back now, and since you saved me earlier, I suppose I can help out a little. That should make us even, right?”
If I suddenly told her, “There’s really no need for that,” she’d probably explode on the spot.
Lin Wei curled his lip, not bothering to argue with her any further.
“But putting that aside, how exactly do you plan to find the goblin lair?”
He did intend to search for the goblins’ breeding chamber with this country bumpkin, but the labyrinth’s fifth floor was enormous. If they wandered around aimlessly and ended up surrounded by goblins again, things could get ugly.
“Obviously, I’ll use my scouting skill to sense it.”
Lin Wei thought this rookie was just asking foolish questions.
As he strode deeper into the maze, he began spreading his mana, answering her with complete confidence.
“My scouting skill is already maxed out—just like my Potion Crafting.”
“This dungeon isn’t particularly difficult, and there aren’t any special areas. As long as we track the clues, we’ll find it.”
“Remember the adventurers who fought the goblins earlier?”
He let his mana flow out naturally, as effortless as breathing—just like when he’d mapped the area before, a portable ability that reflected everything he sensed directly into his mind.
Monsters, equipment, paths… anything he wanted to find!
As soon as Lin Wei finished speaking, it was as if a mist swept through the maze, seeping into every corner.
And just like that, every detail was relayed back to his mind with perfect clarity.
“We weren’t the only ones attacked earlier. Other adventurer parties fought goblins on this floor too.”
“As long as we find any sign of a recent battle, we just have to follow the trail of blood and energy to its source. After all, when goblins drag a captive female adventurer back to their breeding chamber, they’re not exactly going to stop and patch up her wounds.”
“And with how dim-witted these monsters are, it never occurs to them to cover their tracks in a place they think is safe… Oh, looks like I’ve found it.”
Even as he spoke, the feedback from his magic had already formed a full-scale projection in Lin Wei’s mind—a mental map as clear as a diorama.
Not far ahead, he could see, in his mind’s eye, a corridor floor smeared with blood and scattered entrails, with bits of corpses mixed into the gore.
Following the trail forward, a vivid crimson path appeared, clearly marked in his mind.
“It should be this way.”
“Wait—what do you mean, you’ve already found it?!”
At that, Iresha couldn’t hold back any longer.
Clutching her staff, she stared in bewilderment at this country bumpkin who exuded such confidence.
Up to this point, this so-called genius mage had absolutely no idea what was going on.
“You’ve just been standing here this whole time, haven’t you?”
“Even if you wanted to use a scouting skill to track clues, you’d at least have to reach the actual battle site first! How did you figure out the route from here?”
She’d never paid much attention to dungeon strategies herself, but her party members had demonstrated proper scouting before.
From what she remembered, when Rayne scouted dungeons, he’d have to move around, marking locations with mana to find the right direction. He’d probe ahead carefully, only proceeding when he was sure it was safe.
But this guy? He just stood there doing nothing, then suddenly claimed to know the right path.
“I told you, my scouting skill is maxed out. Of course it’s different from your party’s.”
Lin Wei looked at her, genuinely puzzled by her reaction.
Wasn’t scouting always just about spreading your mana over the whole area and getting a mental map in return?
This wasn’t some intricate labyrinth—finding a route was dead simple.
And honestly, he’d even held back just now, keeping his mana output to a level-50 standard, all to avoid revealing his true strength.
If he’d gone all out, he could have swept the entire maze in a single scan. Who needs clues? He could just stand here, activate the skill, and every answer would appear.
“You don’t need to worry about the details, rookie. Just stick close and follow me.”
“Let’s go!”
Without giving Iresha a chance to argue, Lin Wei set off at a brisk pace, leaving her scrambling to keep up.
Now that she thought about it, she really had sensed a faint ripple of mana sweep past her just moments ago.
Could his scouting skill really be higher than Rayne’s?
After all, if she remembered right, Rayne’s scouting skill still needed a long time to reach max level.
“How did this country bumpkin even have time to max out so many weird skills?” Iresha muttered under her breath as she hurried after him.
Well, whatever. It’s not like she had any better options right now.
Anything was preferable to staying here alone, waiting for a goblin ambush.
As Lin Wei picked up the pace, Iresha clutched her staff tighter and silently sped up to keep close behind.
Two figures darted swiftly through the darkness, meeting no obstacles along the way. Every goblin lurking nearby was deftly avoided, as if by design.
It was almost as though… the entire corridor existed just for the two of them to advance, so precise that it made one wonder if Lin Wei could truly see through the shadows themselves.
“We didn’t run into a single goblin?”
How was this possible? Was his scouting skill really this incredible? Even Rayne couldn’t manage something like this!
The fear on Iresha’s face gradually faded, replaced by a sense of ease—she was already starting to adapt to the winding maze, and without realizing it, she’d begun to treat Lin Wei as her leader.
But just then, as they hurried forward, Lin Wei came to a sudden halt. He pointed ahead, voice low and cautious.
“Stop. We’re here.”