In the afternoon, a troop of riders approached Salard Village. The dense sound of galloping hooves drew closer from the distance, causing pedestrians at the village entrance to stop and see who was coming.
The troop consisted of dozens of riders. They reined in their horses and stopped at the village entrance. The first few rows wore plated chainmail armor draped with light blue surcoats, and one of them held a banner with a golden pattern on a green background.
Behind them were over a dozen carts laden with dry rations, tents, and other supplies.
The pedestrians quickly cleared the way on both sides and bowed to them. Hiding in the crowd, Roger followed suit, offering a token bow.
Any fool could see that this group was either wealthy or noble. Since he had not yet fully fledged his wings, avoiding unnecessary trouble was the wisest move.
Through the whispers of the passersby, Roger learned the identity of the newcomer: Terence Raymond, the local lord.
About half an hour earlier, Knight Stine had offered to introduce him to Baron Raymond, but Roger had tactfully declined with some high-EQ diplomacy.
The leader reined in his horse. Knight Stine led his squires forward, bowing as he greeted, “Lord Raymond.”
The leading rider raised his visor, revealing a lightly bearded face of a man in his late thirties. His gaze fell upon Knight Stine, and he nodded.
“Knight Stine, you have worked hard during this time. However, the war is not yet over. I need you to march out with me in three days to rendezvous with Count Nigel.”
Knight Stine immediately accepted the order. The Baron then commanded his men to pitch tents outside the village, having no intention of entering.
The crowd gradually dispersed, and Roger went straight back to the village chief's house, retreating to his room.
Looking at his remaining 236 points, he opened the system shop.
This amount of points wasn't even enough to buy the cheapest skill, but he could purchase some consumables.
After all, he would be marching out with the noble's army in a few days. With an uncertain future ahead, buying some medicine and the like would improve his chances of survival.
As long as he lived long enough, any points he spent could be earned back later.
He first spent 120 points to purchase three Basic Healing Potions. Just as he was wondering what to buy with the remaining 116 points, his eyes caught an icon of a small green bottle on the interface.
【Name: Grey-Spotted Viper Venom
Quality: Common
Description: Venom of the low-level magical beast, the Grey-Spotted Viper. Highly toxic. Once injected into the human body, symptoms of poisoning usually manifest within a short period, causing severe bleeding and organ failure, with a high mortality rate. The drawback is that it can be cured as long as the antidote is taken within an hour of poisoning.
Exchange Points: 100】
Roger chose to exchange for it.
After all, if a single arrow couldn't kill the target, they might escape. In that case, he might as well coat his arrows with poison.
If a human could last an hour after being poisoned, goblins, with their smaller bodies, would probably succumb even faster.
A vial containing an amber liquid appeared in his hand. He took out an arrow from his inventory and coated the arrowhead with the liquid.
The name of the arrow instantly changed from 【Common Arrow】 to 【Poison Arrow】.
【Name: Poison Arrow
Quality: Common
Description: A poison arrow coated with Grey-Spotted Viper venom. Its lethality has been significantly enhanced.
Exchangeable Points: 5】
The cheapest poison arrows in the shop cost 10 points each. With his current meager savings, buying the poison to coat them himself was clearly much more cost-effective.
Roger took out all his remaining arrows from his inventory and coated them one by one. By the time the vial of venom was empty, he had twenty more Poison Arrows in his inventory.
He still had twenty common arrows left. Glancing at his nearly depleted points and poison, Roger decided to leave it at that for now; twenty Poison Arrows would suffice for the time being.
He really wanted to find a goblin to test the potency of the snake venom right now, but considering that acting rashly could lead to unpredictable consequences, Roger decided not to look for trouble.
He would find out in a few days anyway.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, and the village chief's daughter's voice came from outside. “Roger, Lord Stine's squire is looking for you.”
Roger got up, left his room, and stepped outside. A young man around his age stood not far away. Upon seeing Roger, he got straight to the point:
“Lord Stine sent me to deliver a message. Before the official march, he has decided to personally lead a team to clear out the goblins in the woods. We depart in an hour. Please get ready and gather at the village entrance half an hour before departure.”
Perhaps the knight wanted to sweep the goblins in the woods clean before leaving to prevent future trouble for the villagers. Roger had no objections to this; after all, he could earn points.
“Understood,” Roger replied briefly. He watched the young man walk away before returning to the house.
After a brief chat with the village chief's daughter, he locked himself in his room again.
Right now, he still had no interest in chatting with girls.
...
Half an hour later, Roger arrived at the village entrance right on time.
Over twenty people had already gathered at the village entrance.
Aside from Stine and his squires, there were over a dozen able-bodied young men chosen from the militia, along with the militia captain. Perhaps because the forest was unsuited for mounted combat, the knight did not ride a horse, though he had not taken off his plated chainmail.
Roger walked over to the gathering point and quietly blended into the militia.
Stine glanced at him, then withdrew his gaze. “Move out.”
With those words, the militia captain led several young men ahead to scout, taking the lead into the woods while the rest followed in single file.
Upon entering the woods, Roger pulled out a common wooden arrow and nocked it on his bow. He decided not to use his twenty Poison Arrows for now, saving them for elite monsters.
The group trudged through the dry leaves covering the ground for a long while before Stine ordered them to rest in place. He then sent one of his squires to accompany the scouting militia to verify the surrounding situation.
Before long, they returned and reported to Stine:
“There is a clearing ahead. There are about thirty to forty goblins.”
After listening to the squire's description, Knight Stine asked, “What is their weaponry and equipment like?”
The squire continued his report, “Most carry wooden clubs, with a few swords. None of them wear armor. However, one goblin is holding a wooden staff and appears to be a spellcaster.”
Knight Stine's gaze swept over the chainmail, pauldrons, and iron poleyns worn by his squires, then drifted past the leather armor of the militia and the swords or spears in their hands. He immediately made a decision:
“Continue forward. Kill all forty goblins; leave no survivors. As long as we eliminate the spellcaster first, these goblins won't pose any threat.”
Everyone stood up and, led by the knight, moved toward the goblin camp.
Before long, the space ahead gradually opened up. Through the gaps between the tree trunks, they could faintly see the scene in the clearing.
The squire pointed forward, indicating that the goblins were not far ahead. Knight Stine then ordered them to find cover.
Roger took cover behind the nearest tree while observing the situation ahead. In the clearing, groups of goblins had formed a circle, listening to a goblin in the center holding a long wooden staff, who was giving a passionate speech in a raspy voice.
This goblin stood beside a pile of burnt-out campfire ashes, waving its wooden staff as it spoke, while its audience repeatedly let out low growls that sounded like cheers.
Unfortunately, Roger did not understand the goblin language, so he had no idea what it was saying.
The green-skinned bastards seemed completely unaware of the approaching danger.
Roger swapped the wooden arrow on his string for a Poison Arrow, planning to shoot the goblin mage dead as soon as the fight started.
Even if it didn't kill it outright, it would slowly deplete its “HP.”
Knight Stine, hiding ahead, looked back at him and pointed toward the goblin mage's position.
Roger understood. Steadying his breath, he slowly drew his bow to its limit, aiming the arrowhead at the figure still waving the wooden staff.
As his fingers released, the arrow spun rapidly through the air, shooting toward the goblin mage's position.
However, just as the Poison Arrow was about to hit, a transparent barrier materialized out of thin air. The arrow was deflected into the air before falling limply to the ground.
Rate on N.U.
