I was an apprentice in Ferren

Chapter 122 Mask
There wasn't much flammable material left in the cave, and the flames died out after the goblin corpses were left unburned, leaving only scattered sparks flickering in the tunnel.

As the flames subsided, the paladin sheathed her light crossbow. Without the passion, it might be difficult to kill the goblin with a single blow from her greatsword, but with the shield, her offensive efficiency wouldn't be much worse. After all, fragile monsters like goblins couldn't withstand any of her attacks.

However, to her surprise, although the flames disappeared, the goblins did not swarm forward again. Instead, they seemed at a loss, caught between a rock and a hard place.

Seeing this, Deva suddenly thought of a possibility: the duration of the Berserk spell might have ended.

As an old-system spell that can provide significant buffs to groups, the duration of Berserk is measured in seconds. Goblin Shamans are unlikely to have high caster levels or the delayed effects of mage super spells, so the spell's energy would naturally dissipate due to this delay.

Without the frenzy morale boost from the Berserk spell, their bodies returned to normal. Naturally, these guys, many of whom he had killed, dared not launch another attack. The fact that they could stand still against him meant that he still had the advantage of numbers.

If she still had some area-of-effect threat, she could probably blast these guys apart.

However, Deva did not launch an attack, but instead chose to hold her shield and wait patiently.

Although she was on the opponent's home turf, time was on her side. Now that DuPont had dealt with the troll, there were no monsters in the camp that could threaten her except for the shaman.

These goblins have a lot of random items, so rushing forward is not a good idea. The most reasonable tactic is to patiently follow the tactical plan and wait for support.

Seeing that the silver-armored paladin did not continue the attack, the goblins fell silent. They glared at each other and shoved each other, trying to get their companion to be the first to charge, but even the dim-witted and warlike bear goblin was unwilling to go up.

Without the old shaman's magical spells, their bodies no longer possess that sudden, powerful strength. They couldn't even win with that power's blessing, so going now would be like sending them to their deaths.
They haven't collapsed yet; it's all because the old shaman has been muttering behind their backs that these long-legged monsters will be flattened when the trolls arrive.

That's true. With the troll's massive size, it could easily crush this wretched metal can in one go. But what to do before the troll arrives?

"Fire arrows! Fire arrows! Where's the oil? Keep using it! Burn this guy!"

The old shaman's dry and incomprehensible goblin language reappeared. He anxiously released three magic missiles, but the effect was not good. He angrily kept muttering, "Why isn't the troll here yet?"

However, the goblins finally woke up from their dream and continued to try to attack the tin can using ranged means.

"Shaman leader, we're running low on oil." It was Gara who spoke. As a clever goblin, it naturally wouldn't step forward, and it didn't even join in when the old shaman cast Berserk. However, when it came close to the old shaman's strange mask, it still felt a sense of awe.

"If you don't have it, go get it!" the old shaman said, pointing with his withered arm. "Take two people with you, and hurry up!"

Upon hearing the order, the goblins in the rear panicked. They all clamored to go with Galah to retrieve the oil bottle, and the previously tense standoff became chaotic. Deva, who had been guarding the front line, didn't understand what the goblins were saying, but seeing the enemy's loose lines, she immediately understood and drew her sword to charge.

With their rear forces scattered and their front forces long since lost their will to fight, the goblins were thrown into disarray by the paladin's charge. In the face of life and death, under the old shaman's threat, the goblins tried to retaliate with their short spears, but how could their rudimentary equipment break through the defense of a set of luxurious mithril plate armor?

While she may be somewhat careless when it comes to educating her daughter, this female mage is never stingy when it comes to spending money.

Even a tiger among sheep cannot compare to the scene before them. The frost-covered longsword, capable of destroying enemies in chaos, could turn any resisting goblin into a frozen corpse with a single strike. The goblins cried out and tried to escape this terrifying iron can.

At the most critical moment, the old shaman blessed the goblin chieftain who was commanding from the side with the power of a bull and gave him a suggestive look: "Didn't you say you wanted to become a war commander? Now is the perfect time. You just need to delay this guy's progress and wait for the trolls to reinforce."

The leader hesitated after hearing this: "I'm afraid I'm no match for that long-legged monster."

"What are you afraid of? You're just stalling for time. Besides, I'm here for you." The old shaman chuckled sinisterly. "It's supposed to be a one-on-one fight, but why would we be so foolish?"

Upon hearing this, the leader immediately understood and burst into laughter. Standing at a full six feet tall, it was like a crane among chickens among the goblins, even the bear goblins were half a head shorter than it. Carrying the spear it had harvested a few days ago, it put on its sturdy chainmail and stepped forward: "Hey you, Iron Pot, what kind of skill is it to bully goblins? If you're so capable, why don't you fight me one-on-one!"

Hearing their leader's words, the fleeing goblins retreated behind him as if they had found their backbone. Deva, however, didn't seem to care. She simply picked up the warmth and the silver shield from the ground, looked at the other party, and sneered: "You?"

"It's a woman!" Upon hearing the paladin's voice, the goblins erupted in uproar, clearly finding it hard to believe that a woman could be so brave, blocking their path for so long and killing many of her companions.

The leader was also somewhat surprised after hearing this. Compared to those fools, as a level 3 warrior, it understood better how critical the situation was.

It's fair to say that if it weren't for the old shaman's magical spells that it could gamble on, it would have run away long ago, even if the other party was a woman.

A woman who can kill for so long with unwavering resolve might be even more terrifying than a man. If you look down on someone based on their gender, you might just be the one who dies.

“你就说你敢不敢就完了！”头目扔掉了平时殴打手下的棒子，拿起了那根它心爱的魔法长矛和一块皮盾牌：“如果你不敢的话就跪下亲吻我的脚趾，再把衣服脱了当俺的娘们，那只要平时你伺候好了，俺就肯定不会揍你咧。” 黛娃听到这话可真是气笑了，她将长剑收起换起巨剑，正准备上却听对方急忙摆了摆手：“在这坑道里单挑俺怕是欺负你，来俺们吃饭的洞穴里打，那里地方大！”

"That's not up to you!" Deva sneered and accelerated, bringing her greatsword down with a swift motion.

She never agreed to a one-on-one fight with that idiot!

The leader was terrified when he saw this and quickly put up his shield and retreated: "You woman, aren't you supposed to be a glowing can? How can you be so unrefined!"

Deva simply swung her sword again, and the oil-stained shield shattered in two: "Sending you to heaven!"

Two sword strikes shattered the shield, and the bear goblin's legs went weak. It dared not parry any longer and ran backward, finally shouting, "Throw the net! Throw the net!"

Upon hearing this, Deva was startled. She saw several crudely made fishing nets being thrown down from the stone pillar by the goblins, accompanied by a drizzle of arrows.

Once caught in the net, breaking free becomes quite troublesome. The paladin retreated, slashing his greatsword down at the fishing net in the air. The sharp blade successfully cleaved the first net in two, and the swirling blade successfully set the second net ablaze.

But just as Deva tensed up and prepared to destroy the third fishing net, a patch of yellowish-brown grease suddenly appeared on the bloodstains that had been burned to ashes on the ground. This caused her to lose her balance and fall to the ground. With this mistake, she ended up with several fishing nets on her body.

"Haha, Paladin, you think you're so great? You still got outsmarted by me!" The old shaman cheered excitedly, and the other goblins joined in with their ear-piercing celebrations, rushing forward with great enthusiasm.

"Beat her up! Beat her up! Let her kill so many of our brothers!"

"Be careful not to kill her. Knock her out first, then strip her of that armor. I still need this woman later!"

"Strip this woman of her armor so I can see what she looks like, then tie her up and take her to my room!" the old shaman commanded excitedly. But before his excitement could subside, a long sword pierced through the neat cloak in the darkness, penetrating his heart and lungs.

The sudden attack sent the old shaman's adrenaline soaring, but as the longsword was drawn, his body collapsed like a deflated water bag. He mustered all his strength to lift his head, only to find that it was a somewhat unfamiliar goblin wielding the longsword.

"Oh, so you're using disguise magic too." The goblin laughed, canceling the spell, and DuPont appeared instead.

The one pierced through the heart was no longer a gaunt, aged goblin shaman, but a human wearing a strange mask.

Seeing the human hesitate to speak, DuPont didn't wait for him to open his mouth before stomping down, crushing his sternum and severing his head. He then picked up the masked human's head and roared in orcish, "Your shaman is dead!"

Orcish and goblin languages ​​are not exactly the same, but this simple language has many similarities in syllables. Hearing the shout from behind, the goblins couldn't help but turn around and were stunned when they saw the strange mask.

Is this mask from an old shaman?

Why is the old shaman a long-legged monster?

Looking at the group of goblins who hadn't yet faded away, DuPont removed the mask from the head and put it in his bag. He then swept his hand across the void, and a fan-shaped flame ignited in front of him, burning away all the lifeless goblin energy.

“Manus Ignis!”

A giant, fiery hand pulled the goblins back to reality. The bear goblin leader, no longer caring about the paladin on the ground, turned and ran, but two bullets successfully blasted his body away, his fate unknown.

The goblins were utterly routed. They yelled and ran, scrambling into the corners of the walls and the gaps between the stone pillars. But DuPont didn't have time to chase after the defeated army. Instead, he rushed to the paladin's side, used his sword to cut through the several layers of tattered fishing nets on her body, removed her mask, looked at the unconscious Deva, pinched her philtrum, and took out his staff to heal her injuries.

Damn it, this young lady absolutely cannot get hurt, otherwise I won't be able to stay as an apprentice, I won't have to go back to Beer Town, I can just consider going over the mountains to other countries.

Whether it was the spell taking effect or the pinching of her philtrum working, the paladin slowly woke up in DuPont's arms. Looking at that familiar face, the fright she had just experienced turned into grievance, and she almost instinctively threw herself into his arms, her voice choked with sobs: "Why did you take so long to come? I almost got caught by those nasty goblins!"

Before Deva could continue complaining, a pair of lips sealed hers, silencing her.

The paladin's eyes widened.

(End of this chapter)