Chương 47: Relics

As usual, following the strategy they had decided on beforehand, Zelier allocated all four attribute points into Intelligence. STR: 65 AGI: 61 CON: 68 SPI: 71 INT: 78 → 82 PER: 30 CHA: 48 → 49 LUK: 41 TALENT SKILL: Matrix Deduction Intelligence successfully broke through the 80-point threshold. The only question was whether this improvement would be enough to help him break through his current bottleneck and reach the requirements to advance into a Novice Mage.

Besides that, Zelier had also gained a new spell— Vituperative Curse. Vituperative Curse — Analysis Progress: 2% Just like his other spells, it came with a certain amount of progress immediately after acquisition. That likely meant its spell level was not particularly high. Still, Zelier was quite interested in Vituperative Curse. He had never come into contact with Mental-type magic before. And judging from its performance earlier, its control ability was far from weak.

It had slowed down Marcus and the others' movements for several seconds. Used properly, it would become an extremely useful skill. The air was thick with the stench of blood. Goblin corpses and severed limbs littered the ground, their blood seeping into the soil and slowly winding through the dirt. The sight alone was enough to make anyone nauseous.

"It's over…" Marcus stabbed his battle-blade into the ground and leaned against the hilt, breathing heavily. Sweat dripped from his chin.

"Haha… hahahaha!" Gark's excitement still hadn't faded. He let out a hearty laugh.

"That mission was incredible!" After killing the Goblin Shaman, Gark was finally able to fight without holding back. The little green-skinned bastards had been chopped apart one after another like firewood, allowing him to vent all the frustration from being suppressed earlier. Cyr leaned against the entrance of the cavern, wiping the crimson liquid from her dagger with a white cloth. Her movements were elegant, but her eyes carried a cold indifference that was completely different from her usual expression.

Not a single drop of goblin blood had touched Cyr. Zelier glanced over unintentionally and felt a chill run through him. An assassin's gaze really was terrifying. Normally, the next step would have been searching the battlefield and collecting the spoils. But goblins were an exception. They were both classified as [Simple] -rated monsters, yet while Slimes produced Mana Cores, goblins had absolutely nothing of value. They couldn't even be eaten.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Their bodies were contaminated, and consuming them would cause poisoning. To humans, these creatures were practically worthless. That was exactly why goblin extermination requests offered significantly higher rewards compared to other [Simple] -rated monsters. A Slime was worth three silver coins. A goblin was worth ten. Otherwise, nobody would bother taking these jobs.

While Marcus and the others searched through the battlefield, cutting off goblin left ears for proof of completion, they also kicked aside the corpses with their boots, checking whether any weapons were worth recovering. Unfortunately, the results were disappointing. Goblin equipment was extremely crude. Without proper maintenance, most of their weapons had already rusted beyond repair and were completely worthless.

Even if they packed everything up and sold it to a blacksmith, they might only get a few silver coins. And they would have to carry all that heavy junk back themselves. It simply wasn't worth the effort. Besides, the reward from this mission was already more than enough. While everyone else was busy, Zelier jogged over to the Goblin Shaman's corpse. He had clearly seen it earlier. When the Goblin Shaman cast Vituperative Curse, it had waved the staff in its hand.

If that thing was actually a magic staff, then he had struck gold! Even if the quality was poor, it should still be worth several dozen gold coins, right? The Goblin Shaman's corpse lay motionless on the ground, still clutching the white bone staff. Zelier picked it up and carefully examined it. He even tried channeling his mana into it. But very quickly, he realized this thing was nothing more than an ordinary leg bone. A human leg bone, judging by the looks of it.

Several rows of tiny bite marks decorated its surface.

"Damn it… what bad luck." Zelier threw it aside with disgust.

"Alright, it's all worthless junk. Don't waste time here." After finishing the inventory, Marcus cleared his throat and began reporting.

"This mission, we killed three Hobgoblins, one Goblin Shaman, and twenty-five ordinary goblins."

"Hobgoblins are worth seven gold coins each. The Goblin Shaman is worth ten gold coins. Ordinary goblins are worth ten silver coins each."

"According to the bounty provided by the commission, we earned a total of thirty-three gold and fifty silver. Adding the Guild's additional reward of twenty gold coins, the final payment is fifty-three gold and fifty silver."

"Everyone contributed greatly in this battle, but naturally, everyone's role was different. When dividing the rewards, I'll do my best to keep things fair and reasonable. If anyone has objections, speak now."

"Zelier gets twelve gold. Vaelis and Cyr get ten gold each. The remaining twenty-one gold and fifty silver, after deducting five silver coins for the carriage rental, will be split between me, Grey, and Gark. Each of us gets seven gold and fifteen silver." After finishing, Marcus looked around at everyone.

"Any objections?" Grey and Gark shrugged, indicating they were fine with it. A reward of seven gold and fifteen silver was practically a stroke of incredible luck. Without stumbling into such a lucrative mission, they had no idea how many ordinary requests they would have needed to complete. Besides, they weren't the core members of the team. Getting this much money was already more than enough. The others accepted the arrangement as well. Zelier's contribution during the battle had been obvious.

His Arcane Missiles delivered the decisive blow, instantly killing the Goblin Shaman, and he had also taken down a Hobgoblin afterward. Vaelis's Thunderclap Arrow had also played a crucial role, clearing out the weaker monsters and creating opportunities for Zelier. Cyr, meanwhile, stepped forward when the bait team of three was locked down by crowd control, drawing the attention of the goblins. Without her intervention, Marcus and the others would likely have suffered casualties.

Besides, one was a mage, and the other two were Mid-tier class members. According to the unspoken rules, receiving a larger share was only natural.

"Alright." Marcus clapped his hands.

"Now let's head inside the cave and search for Rhode's Squad's relics."

"I'll stay outside and keep watch." Cyr gestured toward the entrance.

"Why?" Gark scratched his head.

"Because it smells." Cyr answered without hesitation. Zelier cast Illuminate, causing a glowing orb to float above the group, then gestured as well.

"You three go in first."

"Why?" Gark asked again.

"Because I don't like being stuck in the middle." Zelier gave the same straightforward answer. Something about the situation just felt unsafe. The light illuminated the inside of the cavern. The scene matched Zelier's expectations perfectly. Because Hobgoblins lived here, the passages were unusually wide, allowing enough room for combat. However, the stone walls were damp and slippery, covered in unknown sticky substances.

The ground was scattered with broken beast bones, occasionally mixed with piles of goblin feces. The stench was unbearable. Along both sides of the cavern, the goblins had dug out countless crude storage nests resembling a giant honeycomb. Each one was lined with dried grass, apparently serving as sleeping spots where ordinary goblins gathered together.