The adventurer at the bottom is fantasizing again.

Chapter 112 Seriously, that's just how we warlocks are! (4K)

At the entrance to the camp, the battle remained deadlocked.

Piper remained standing in front of the three gnolls, and even though his breathing was no longer as effortless as it had been at the start of the battle, he did not take a single step back.

On his strong right arm was a scar that ran diagonally from his shoulder to his elbow, left by a gnoll with the tip of a spear before he was hammered away.

Coach Gil's "Unarmored Defense" technique was very effective, but it couldn't withstand such prolonged exhaustion.

Driven by the gnoll leader's pack frenzy, the remaining three gnolls, feeling neither fear nor pain, charged at the little man one after another, brandishing their spears and clubs.

Three gnoll corpses lay scattered on the ground, along with the charred or broken remains of many more hyenas.

"Come on! Is that all the strength you have left? I can knit with more force than you guys!"

Although the short man no longer had the strength to let out that deafening roar, his mouth still wouldn't stop for a moment.

"Take this savage beating!"

He kept cursing and grabbing the hammer, as if the profanity gave him a boost of strength.

Another gnoll was sent flying by his hammer, crashing into the boulder behind him with a "whoosh," but two more filled the gap.

They can't defeat the short guy, but they can keep him trapped.

Eileen's situation wasn't much better than Piper's. Although the little man tried his best to stop the jackals and hyenas, he was ultimately just a savage.

Some hyenas nimbly circled around him, and even a gnoll, unfazed by the little girl, attacked her at the edge of the woodland.

Fortunately, she had prepared "Blade Protection" and "Mage Armor" in advance, and calmly used fire arrows and the "Rainbow Jet" attached to her magic ring to blast it to death. She was not injured in the process, but the continuous casting of spells had consumed a lot of her mana.

"Agnirlgnis!"

Eileen swung her staff again, finishing off the gnoll that Piper had knocked away. While fire arrows weren't the most powerful weapon against these berserk gnolls, they were still the most cost-effective option.

She still retains that fiery ray.

"Why hasn't this guy lured out the leader yet? Is he really going to take it down by himself?"

Eileen turned to look at the camp.

The rising black smoke grew thicker and thicker, completely obscuring the view inside.

However, the hyenas that rushed in never came out again, and the gnoll leader's painful howl stopped a moment ago.

Could this guy have actually defeated that gnoll leader all by himself?

"You'd better stay alive."

She muttered something to herself, raised her staff again, and was about to release another fire arrow.

Just then.

"Pip, get out of the way!"

The short man didn't even think; upon hearing the voice, he instinctively made a movement, leaping backward and leaning to the side.

Before he even landed, he saw a bright yellow light fly out from between the boulders and smash between the two gnolls.

A visible heat wave spread rapidly outwards from the point of impact, instantly engulfing the bodies of the two gnolls.

However, just as it was about to get close to Piper, it was blocked by an invisible shield.

"Oath of Protection"

The two gnolls were not so lucky. The fire arrows, after being repeatedly "reignited," were even more powerful than a first-level spell.

They only had time to let out a short howl before their fur turned black and curled up the instant it came into contact with the heat wave, and then they flew away as two dead dogs.

[First kill of the enemy gnoll]

[Reward: 100 Exploration Experience Points]

Current balance: 376 exploration experience points

"What happened?"

Piper got up from the ground in a daze, watching as the flames on the gnoll corpses suddenly rose and flew into the thick fog at the camp entrance.

He looked up.

Lorraine's figure emerged from the black mist, and the raging flames obediently returned to his palm, only to be gently dispersed by his flick of the wrist.

The cloak of embers billowed and unfurled in the mountain wind that swept through the valley, like a battle flag draped behind him, making a series of low, fluttering sounds.

"6

Lorraine?

Eileen murmured to herself as she watched his figure, not even noticing when the flaming arrow on the tip of her staff had dissipated.

He actually... won all by himself?

Having exhausted his cloaking powder, without a shield, and alone deep within the camp, he slaughtered a gnoll chieftain tainted by demon blood and all the hyenas that came to his aid.

That's the leader of the gnolls, a "formal" lower-ranking member of the Adventurers' Guild, requiring at least two or three "formal" professionals to join forces.

But didn't he just get his rank recently? How can he be equivalent to two or three people? Does a warlock plus a warrior have this effect?

When did this guy become so amazing?

Before she could even utter a few more words of reflection, her heart began to race slightly, and a faint blush rose behind her ears...

Lorraine quickened his pace with a ferocious expression, and only when he reached the open space in front of the entrance did he suddenly bend down.

"Cough cough cough... Ugh... Damn it... Cough cough... It's so damn choking... My throat is hoarse..."

'

He braced himself against the ground with his long-handled knife, coughing heavily, a stark contrast to the man who had strolled out of the thick smoke just seconds before.

"6

'

Eileen closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Lo! —Lin! —"

'

The short man braced himself on the ground, shouting in grief and indignation, his face filled with shock and anger, and he even managed to squeeze out a few tears.

The hard work I've put into training these past few days...

The anticipation after accepting the task...

I didn't bring him along last time we fought the ghouls, and this time I only caught a glimpse of him while fighting the gnoll leader...

"you!..

""

"Three incredibly luxurious barbecue feasts."

"Pip!... "

'

"Plus, a whole barrel of Dwarven Special Brew...and a whole barrel of Dwarven Special Brew!"

Are you hurt anywhere?

"Give me some water..."

,

Lorraine took the water bottle from Eileen and gulped down most of it before her throat felt a little better.

Thanks.

"Um.

""

He wiped his mouth and then used several more strokes to clean the stains, cleaning the black ash off his body and face. Just as he was about to return the water bottle to her, he saw her arms crossed, looking at him with a cold smile.

"Don't you have anything to explain?" Eileen looked at him sideways.

"Huh?" Lorraine asked, puzzled.

"Was that a fireball spell?" Eileen raised an eyebrow.

"No, it's a fire arrow! I just successfully released it, can you believe it? I did it!" Lorraine exclaimed, beaming with joy.

"Flame arrow? That power?" Eileen's face looked like she was saying, "Are you kidding me?"

"Hmm...uh...you know...I'm a warlock...our spellcasting can be influenced by our talents, maybe I'm just naturally suited for fire magic?"

Lorraine was both in the wrong and indignant.

Do you think I believe that?

"That's true, that's how we warlocks are."

"Cough cough... Look at you! Piper's badly injured, and you don't even care about him, really..."

Lorraine walked toward Piper without paying any attention to Eileen's resentful gaze behind her.

"Hiss... your injury does seem quite serious."

He frowned as he looked at Piper, who was sitting on the ground.

The little man was covered in wounds, his face and body stained with blood that was hard to tell whether it was from enemies or himself, but now he looked quite like a half-barbarian.

"It's alright, Piper can probably withstand it now. Instructor Jill also taught Piper [Unarmored Defense], that he can use his muscles to withstand the damage where leather armor can't."

"It's just that we won't be able to wear those thick armors anymore. But we barbarians don't make iron pots. Let me show you, like this, ouch..."

The short guy waved nonchalantly and struck a pose, wanting to demonstrate his new skill to Lorraine, but he aggravated the wound on his shoulder and hissed in pain.

"Don't move."

Lorraine raised her hand speechlessly, first using Cleanse to clean his wound, then activating the Burning Whisperer's Ring on her hand.

Treatment for minor injuries

Warm white light emanated from his palm, and the wounds slowly closed up again in the light.

Lorraine nodded in satisfaction at the results. After many experiments, he found that performing preliminary treatment on the wound before using the healing spell would yield better results.

The short guy's injury wasn't serious, so it seems he won't need the mild healing potion.

This saved us another penny.

The short guy sat obediently in place while he received treatment, but his mouth didn't stop for a moment: "Did you see that just now? Piper just smashed all those hyenas away with one hammer each."

There was another one that was much bigger (he gestured one that was at least two or three times larger than its actual size), which Piper slammed against the wall with a "thud."

"I saw it, I saw it."

Lorraine turned his other arm over to check it as well, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that there were no deeper wounds.

He used magic to clean up the bloodstains, then looked up at the dying fire in the camp and said, "Let's take a break."

"Aren't we going back now? Piper's a little hungry. If we go now, it'll be dinner time, a barbecue feast..."

The short man licked his lips, eager to try.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush. We haven't even packed up our spoils yet, so we don't have the money to buy you a barbecue feast."

Lorraine casually found a tree to lean against and sat down, then closed her eyes, rested her head against the tree trunk, and slowly exhaled.

The continuous casting of spells had exhausted a lot of his physical strength and energy. Although he still had the strength to chat and joke with the two of them, his head was about to split open and his temples were throbbing.

He vaguely sensed someone sitting down next to him, and he knew who it was without even thinking about the familiar scent.

"Are you alright?"

"I just have a bit of a headache, I'll be fine after a rest."

"Um.

He still kept his eyes closed, but the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned.

It feels so good to have someone care about you.

Enjoying the fragrance emanating from Eileen, he opened the system panel. His previous lottery draws had already made him abandon superstition, and he threw out the dice in the void.

[Using 100 exploration experience points, you rolled the dice: 1]

[Points: One]

[Reward for consultation: Glow-in-the-dark underwear]

Glow-in-the-dark underwear

Type: Equipment; Quality: Common (White)

A pair of faded old underwear will emit a faint fluorescent green glow when soaked in black liquor. It won't penetrate any defenses, but at least it will ensure you don't trip over it when you go to the toilet at night.

Note: "A dazzling butt!"

That might not be superstition...

Lorraine reopened her eyes, looked down to check herself for any dirt, then patted Eileen, who was sitting beside her in a daze, and asked, "Is there anything dirty on my face?"

Let me see...

""

Eileen pinched his chin and looked at him from the left, quickly coming to a conclusion: "Not bad, quite good-looking."

...I didn't ask you that, never mind.

"7

Lorraine slapped her hand away speechlessly, then squeezed out some more magic power to cast [Cliff's Protection], thinking that it might work.

He seemed to remember that the Ember Cloak was drawn after he used this trick last time.

A faint scent of pine wafts through the air.

Eileen sniffed his scent carefully, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "So... your bloodline is that of a tree spirit? That's why your fire arrows are more powerful than those of ordinary people?"

"Shut up, that's called body odor."

[Using 100 exploration experience points, you rolled the dice: 1]

[Points: five]

[Reward for obtaining this item: Intelligence +1]

[Intelligence: 12 → 13]

This is the first time Lorraine has received an intelligence bonus.

The dullness brought on by overexertion was still affecting him, but his thoughts became unusually clear at this moment.

This feeling is somewhat similar to the insight that enhanced perception brings him, but they are not quite the same.

If perception allows him to see more details, then intelligence is more like enabling him to understand more from those details.

Lorraine suddenly understood many things she had been doing before, relying only on intuition and experience.

The arrangements and plans he made subconsciously during the battles now had a clear logic in his mind.

all in all.

His current feeling can probably be described in four words: So that's how it is!

Lorraine let out a long breath, calming the thoughts that were flashing through her mind.

continue!

[Using 100 exploration experience points, you rolled the dice: 1]

Points: Four

[Rewards for Posture: A Bonus/Trick for Morning Exercisers]

[You can complete a high-intensity workout in 30 seconds before the sun fully rises, which will give you energy for the rest of the day.]

[Vitality: Your stamina recovery speed is increased]

Does making yourself look presentable really help?

This thing was practically made for him.

Anyway, every morning Piper's snoring would wake him up from his hat right on time, and he would toss and turn and never be able to fall back asleep.

Instead of lying on your hat and spacing out, why not get up and do some exercise? You'll get a free day's worth of stamina recovery.

That makes perfect sense, absolutely perfect.

But what exactly does "high-intensity training" mean?

Push-ups? Squats? Or rapid high knees?

Lorraine imagined herself getting up early in the morning and running to the backyard of the Jian Pavilion to do these things.

Gustav probably felt he was finally driven mad by the little guy's snoring.

Lily, probably... wait... Lily?

He suddenly had a somewhat immature idea.

"What are you laughing at?"

Eileen looked suspiciously at Lorraine, who was lost in thought and inexplicably burst into laughter.

"It's nothing, I just thought of something funny." He quickly composed himself.

Tell me about it.

"Ah... it's about Piper snoring."

"Snoring?"

Eileen raised her eyebrows, not quite understanding why he would suddenly bring this up after such a fierce battle, but she didn't have time to ask.

"You're talking nonsense! Piper doesn't snore! Piper wanted to tell you guys last time, it's just the bubbles from the dwarf's special brew singing in Piper's belly!"

The little guy challenged himself to three super-duper roast meat meals and a barrel of dwarf special brew.