Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

If someone told Sharl that goblins were cunning, he would have laughed it off. Before that, Sharl's understanding of goblin intelligence was at most that of Goblin A saying to Goblin B, "Guess how many dried rats I have on my back," and then when Goblin B rushed over to grab the dried rats, Sharl would simply pull out a thick wooden stick from behind and knock him unconscious, then steal the fat worms from Goblin B's pocket.

But now, that military leader actually had goblins pull off the "Jiang Gan steals the book" scheme, which made Xia Er a little curious about how that little brain of his came up with it.

There's never any talk of persuading someone to surrender in the battles between goblin tribes. At most, they just challenge each other to fight. It sounds a lot like hot-blooded teenagers in their teens who decide to meet at the back gate of the school after school to fight for the title of school bully. And every time they challenge each other, there's no coordination between different troop types. They just grab their sticks, yell, and rush over to swing them wildly. Even if they knock down their own leader, they will never stop.

The goblins of the Feathered Serpent Kingdom now have some new "units," but they still use the old tactics, rushing in all at once. The slightly smarter ones send their petrified lizards to charge first.

Therefore, there is definitely no idea among the goblins to persuade them to surrender, nor is there any thought of surrendering. Who knows whether you would roast me or boil me if I surrendered?

"It seems they're trying to lull me into a false sense of security by persuading me to surrender, while also observing the situation of my tribe," Sharl said, gazing absently at the northern forest. "I wonder when Broken Tooth will bring back any news."

While Red Eyes and his men drove the goblins away, Sharl had Broken Tooth hide in the shadows and fall behind. He believed that detailed information about these goblins would be available soon.

"However, they should still be quite a distance from the fortress." The goblins had a lot of grass clippings and broken branches on their bodies, so they must have been traversing the forest for a long time. Moreover, the herd has expanded its foraging area to collect food for the elephants during this period. Under such circumstances, no one has reported any strange discoveries, so they must be very far away.

"Looks like I've been given several days to prepare," Charles smiled. "Fortunately, Mary has already signed contracts with the craftsmen, and the first batch of weapon parts should be ready in the next few days."

He decided that when he got back, he would ask Mary to give him more money to increase the order volume with the craftsmen and have them work overtime, so that they could accumulate more weapons before the arrival of the Quetzalcoatl goblins.

"Mortars and Api chickens should be enough to deal with these goblins." Charles stroked his chin, pondering a strategy. "I just don't know if we have enough numbers, or what else we need to prepare."

"I wonder how little John is doing."

…………

Meanwhile, at the foot of the wall of the Sacred Oak Cathedral in Torch City, Mamadou was comforting the somewhat guilty-looking Little John, "Don't worry, I may not be good at magic, but when it comes to stealing, no, I mean scouting, I'm a pro."

"Are you really sure that bishop's office is up here?" Little John looked up at the third floor and asked uncertainly.

"Of course, I've been staking out the church for days," Mamadou said, quickly scanning his surroundings to make sure he was hiding in the shadows. "You know, I not only have to clean the magic tower every day, but also take care of the little fish and the teacher's various magical artifacts. Even so, I still managed to find out the location of Bishop Luther's office. Don't you think I'm just naturally gifted in this area?"

"Hehe, yes, yes." Little John chuckled awkwardly, then muttered to himself, "If I were an apprentice to a high-ranking archmage, I would prefer to have talent in magic."

"Alright, you stay here and keep watch. I'll go up and take a look. Remember what I said earlier," Mamadou said, shaking his finger.

"Hmm, keep your eyes darting around and observing, keep your body still and don't move. If someone gets close, pretend you have something to do, but don't be nervous or shout," Little John said irritably. "What's the secret to that?"

"The secret to keeping watch." After saying this, the orc mage apprentice Mamadou pulled down the brim of his hood, leaned against the outer wall of the church, muttered something that Little John couldn't understand, and then slowly disappeared into the wall as if melting into water.

"This really is an essential spell for a master thief," Little John muttered, then leaned against the wall and casually whistled.

After only a few notes, a muffled voice came from inside the wall, "You're playing too loudly. Who would play such an exciting tune for no reason?"

"Mind your own business." John slammed his fist on the wall in frustration, then lowered his voice and looked around.

Mamadou quickly moved through the walls and arrived at the door of an office on the third floor. The corridor here was covered with an elegant green carpet, and there were two potted plants at the entrance, but Mamadou could not tell what kind they were.

He waited patiently outside the heavy door for several minutes, without even a hint of adventure. As time slowly passed, the door was pushed open from the inside with a "click," and a nun stood by the door, respectfully saying, "Then I'll go ahead, Your Excellency."

"Okay, go ahead," a slightly aged voice sounded from inside the office. "Come back when things are settled."

"Yes, Your Excellency." The nun bowed, closed the door, and then quickly walked away on the carpet, leaving without making a sound in the corridor.

With a soft "whoosh," Mamadou poked half his head out from the wall and quickly surveyed his surroundings. "Strange, there isn't a single guard here."

He muttered to himself quietly, becoming even more interested in Bishop Luther behind the gate.

Despite his interest, Mamadou did not take any risky actions, but simply hid quietly in the stone wall, waiting for the best opportunity.

Soon, soft footsteps echoed down the corridor. The nun who had left earlier was now carrying a stack of documents and hurried to the front door.

She called out from outside the door, "Your Excellency, I'm back," then leaned against the door and shoved it open. Carefully carrying the documents in both hands, she entered the room.

Meanwhile, Mamadou, who was hiding inside the wall, was also convinced that this was a golden opportunity, so he followed and passed through the wall to get closer to the office.

"Your Excellency, the documents are here." The nun gently placed the documents on the desk, then bowed respectfully. "Is there anything else you require?"

"It's nothing," Bishop Luther said with a smile, putting down his pen.

"Then I'll stay outside," the nun said, pointing to the outer room of the office. "Just call me if you need anything."

"I will," Bishop Luther nodded kindly, but his eyes soon fell on the nun. Just as she was wondering if there was something on her face, the bishop said, "Since you're here, don't hide it."

The sound froze Mamadou, who was hiding in the wall. He didn't dare to move, but in his heart he was shouting, "How did this old man find me?"

"Your Excellency, what are you saying?" The nun quickly looked around, then at herself. "What do you mean, 'Don't hide it'?"

Bishop Luther remained silent, simply watching the nun calmly.

A few seconds later, just as Mamadou was about to run away, the nun suddenly seemed to have all her strength drained away, and her whole body collapsed limply. But she stopped moving halfway down and stood there in a zombie-like posture, standing there eerily.

"I knew you'd found me," the nun said, her eyes closed, but the voice of an elderly man came from her mouth. She then straightened up, though her posture appeared somewhat hunched. "How did you find me?"

"It's not so much about how I found out, after all, we're so familiar with each other," Bishop Luther put down his pen, pushed back his chair and slowly stood up. "We used to play hide-and-seek all the time when we were kids. I didn't expect that you would still like to play this at your age, right, brother?"

The nun walked around the room with her eyes closed and her back hunched, slowly approaching the window. After a few steps, she stopped, turned back to "look" at Bishop Luther, and said, "Yes, you were quite obedient back then. Let me think, when did you start becoming disobedient?"

Bishop Luther stared at the nun before him, whose eyes were closed but who seemed to see him, and said calmly, "Brother, this is a church. You shouldn't be here."

"Oh, I remember now. Ever since we started as adventurers, you've started having your own ideas, and you even joined the Church of Earth and Life," the nun said, patting the windowsill, which was spotless. "And you were even bold enough to steal your brother's things."

“I didn’t steal anything from you, brother,” Bishop Luther straightened his robes, “or rather, Archmage Cunningham.”

As soon as the name was uttered, the hunchbacked nun began to tremble. Then, with two tearing sounds, her clothes were ripped from her back, and two thin arms emerged. Then, a fleshy mass was pulled up from her back, revealing the outline of her face.

"A high-level substitute curse," Bishop Luther narrowed his eyes. "Brother, you'll kill this nun by doing this."

"Don't worry, I'm in a good mood to have found you today. I might spare her life," the fleshy ball quickly formed a head and body, and conjured the face of the dark archmage Cunningham. "As for you, my brother, if you're willing to hand over the spellbook you stole from me, maybe I'll let you die a less gruesome death."

"That book is a heretical book and should not exist in the world; it must be banned," Bishop Luther said righteously.

"Come on," Archmage Cunningham waved his hand, looking down at his brother. "I might believe what others say, but are you trying to fool me by thinking I'm a goblin?"

He pointed at Bishop Luther and said, "Hand over 'Mushroom Spores and Varieties of Life'."

"That book has its own consciousness; it's no longer an ordinary magical item. It's at least a spiritual object and must be sealed away." Bishop Luther shook his head, one hand resting on the table.

"Even if it can talk, it's still a book recording magic. I need it, and you actually stole it from me in such a despicable way!" Cunningham waved his hand forcefully, and the controlled nun also waved her hands violently, even letting out a "whoosh." "Are you planning to give it to the church to exchange for merit points?"

"You need that book?" Bishop Luther seemed unsteady on his feet, his hands gripping the massive desk tightly. "Are you still researching how to escape the plague?"

"Of course, that's my dream," Cunningham sneered. "I'm not like you, thinking that by dedicating myself to the church I can live a peaceful life. I want to solve the problem of the plague and make my name known throughout the magical world. Then, those arcane mages and elemental lackeys will still dare to swagger in front of me."

"Brother, that's impossible. The plague has been studied for thousands of years, and no one has ever escaped it," Bishop Luther said urgently. "If you release this nun and leave immediately, I promise I won't let anyone else capture you."

"Thousands of years?" Cunningham looked down at the regional bishop of the Church of Earth and Life. "What do you know? I've read hundreds of books and research notes to study the plague, and I've now figured out a new path. All I'm missing now is this book. As for you..."

He chuckled a few times, his voice as harsh as metal scraping against glass. "You don't think you can defeat me with your druidic tricks, do you? I know you very well. I've seen all your tricks since I brought you along to become an adventurer."

"Alas," Bishop Luther sighed, "Brother, I have indeed handed that book over to the church for censorship."

"Hand it over," Cunningham said, not believing the other party's words at all. Instead, he manipulated the hunchbacked nun to take two steps forward. "I'm not a goblin, don't try to fool me."

"I didn't want this either." Bishop Luther shook his head, then pressed his hand on the table hard, and several mushrooms immediately sprouted from the table. Then many white threads emerged from under his robe and began to spread around him.

"What kind of magic is this?" Cunningham immediately took a step back; his intuition told him that these mushrooms were dangerous.

"This is the magic recorded in the book," Bishop Luther smiled and raised a hand. "I call it spore magic."

With a snap of his fingers, the mushrooms made a few "poof" sounds, spraying gusts of air into the surrounding atmosphere. It seemed that apart from creating a slight airflow, they didn't cause any major changes.

But two seconds later, the nun began to wail in pain. Blisters appeared all over her body, then ulcerated and oozed yellow fluid. Wherever the yellow fluid flowed, blisters continued to grow.

"Spore magic?" Cunningham had to jump suddenly to free himself from the nun's body. He then quickly backed away, leaned against the window, and reached out his hand, muttering a few words.

"A high-level annihilation curse?" Bishop Luther's eyes widened upon hearing the words, then he coughed up a mouthful of blood. "You actually risked using such a dangerous spell? Aren't you afraid of the backlash?"

"Anyway, my true form isn't here." Cunningham chuckled a few times, then he and Bishop Luther collapsed to the ground.