“Leo, what exactly did you think of?”
Leopold let go of her shoulder and took two steps back, his golden eyes glinting in the darkness.
“You said that toad came here to nurse its wounds, right?”
Isabella nodded.
“And combining that with the weapons and mining picks on the ground, the ones who injured the toad should be...?”
Isabella followed his train of thought for a few seconds, her icy-blue eyes suddenly lighting up.
“You mean... the toad was injured by the goblins?”
“Exactly!” Leopold raised his head. “You mentioned earlier that the giant noxious toad is a very vengeful creature, so we can use that to our advantage.”
Isabella nodded, but then she felt something wasn't quite right.
“But the giant noxious toad is fast asleep here. It's unlikely to clash with the goblins again.”
“Indeed, it won't actively seek out the goblins for revenge right now. But what if it gets a new enemy...” Leopold raised a front claw and pointed to himself.
“You want to draw its aggro and lead it to the goblins!” Isabella suddenly understood, but her brow quickly furrowed again. “But that's too dangerous. My wing is injured, and you have an old wound on your neck. It won't work.”
“Who said we would be the ones drawing its aggro?” Leopold suddenly let out a sinister chuckle. “Don't we have the fastest flyer among us...?”
Isabella froze for a moment, then realized. “You don't mean to have Blake lure the toad...”
“Shh!” Leopold turned around. “I didn't say that.”
About two hours later, Blake flew back to the underground river. Just as he landed on the rocks by the riverbank, he froze in place.
Fluorescent jellyfish, glowing moss, cave lizards, and some food he couldn't even name were piled high along the riverbank.
“...Did you guys do this?” Blake turned around, his gaze falling on Leopold. “Where did you find the time for this? Weren't you supposed to be scouting the way?”
“Scouting and foraging don't conflict with each other.” Leopold lay lazily on a nearby rock. “Besides, you worked hard scouting. We had to prepare some food for you. We couldn't let you go hungry, could we?”
Blake stared at the food in silence for a few seconds, then turned his face away. “...Hmph, at least you're somewhat useful.”
Isabella sat not far away, her white dragon tail swaying gently, a faint smile on her lips. She didn't expose Leopold.
Blake finally lowered his head, tore off a piece of lizard meat, and chewed on it.
Only after Blake had eaten most of the lizard did Leopold speak up unhurriedly, “Blake, how is the situation upstream?”
Blake swallowed the last bite of meat and licked the scraps from the corner of his mouth.
“I don't think the situation looks good. Although these goblins are an inferior race, they have established a well-equipped force.”
“Some of their troops are equipped with magic swords and magic bows. Those are weapons that can pose a real threat to us...”
Leopold fell into deep thought after hearing Blake's report. “Magic swords and magic bows... Do you have an estimate of their exact numbers?”
“The patrol has about five or six, but I'm not sure how many they have in stock back at the camp.” Blake shook his head and sighed.
“The magical fluctuations on those weapons are very weak, likely low-tier enchantments, but for us in our current state, taking an arrow would still hurt a lot.”
Isabella walked over from the side, her white wings fully folded. “So when the goblins spoke of “eternal service” earlier, it wasn't just a bluff. They indeed have the confidence to back it up.”
“Confidence is one thing,” Leopold chimed in, “but having confidence doesn't mean they don't have weaknesses.”
He turned his head to look at Blake. “I want to tell you about that giant noxious toad.”
Blake remained silent for a long time after listening. His grayish-blue vertical slits stared at Leopold, his expression incredibly complex.
“...So, you want me to go anger a toad twice our size, and then lure it to the goblin tribe?”
“Very smart. Your summary is extremely accurate.” Leopold nodded.
“Leopold!” Blake suddenly stood up, his tail puffing up. “Has your brain been pierced by an angelic spear? If its tongue shoots out, it could eat me like a mosquito!”
“So this is a last supper!” Blake jumped up.
“How do you know it's supper? Maybe it's lunch?” Leopold teased from the side.
“Leopold, you!”
“Stop joking around,” Isabella spoke up, taking a few steps toward Blake. “That toad is injured, so its movements will definitely be sluggish. Moreover, my newborn magic can provide you with a degree of purification.”
Blake's tail was still puffed up, but Isabella's words made him pause.
“...Purification?” Blake narrowed his eyes.
“My bloodline ability is still very weak right now,” Isabella lowered her head honestly, “but it can at least make your wounds heal a bit faster, and it can disperse a portion of toxins and negative status effects for a short duration.”
Blake fell silent for a few seconds, the tip of his tail slowly drooping down.
“...Hmph.” He shook his head and looked back at Leopold. “Do you have a detailed plan? Or is this just some half-baked idea you came up with on a whim?”
“What you need to do is very simple: fly above the toad's head, drop a rock or spit a breath of frost to wake it up, and then immediately turn around and run.”
“You just need to fly straight upstream along the main channel of the underground river in one breath, charging right past that fork. The toad will chase you from behind. When it pursues prey, it charges in a straight line and doesn't stop to think or turn.”
“Once it passes that fork, the goblin patrol will definitely spot it. When that happens—” Leopold raised his head, his golden eyes glinting with a hint of cunning, “—it will be between the goblins and the toad.”
“...Are you sure the toad will chase me that far?”
“Toads hunt relying on momentum and their catapulting tongues. As long as you stay out of its tongue's range, it will keep chasing you.” Leopold's tone was confident. “That's how it's recorded in our inherited memories.”
“And...” Leopold paused, “even if it gives up halfway, it doesn't matter. Once it's awake, it will leave a bunch of claw prints and mucus near the goblin patrol area—the goblins will naturally investigate in the direction of the toad.”
“When that time comes, they will also know there's a massive creature over there, and they will still split their forces to guard against it.”
Blake fell silent for another moment, his grayish-blue vertical slits scanning back and forth between Leopold and Isabella.
“What about you two?”
“Gathering food to throw you a welcome-back feast!”
Blake snorted, but the tip of his tail stopped twitching.
“...Fine.” He turned around, his wings kicking up a light breeze as they spread. “Let's do it. But let me make this clear first: if that toad's tongue touches my tail, you two owe me three lava worms.”
Leopold held back a laugh. “Deal!”
Isabella narrowed her eyes. Tomorrow, Grimm's proud goblin army would face an absolute disaster.
Rate on N.U.
