Chapter 131 - 127: Must Be a Genius

Chapter 131: Chapter 127: Must Be a Genius

Under Bai Ya’s worried gaze, Lu Wei and the other four quickly vanished into the depths of the tunnel.

"Miss Bai Ya, we should head back..."

Andrew, his bow slung over his back, turned to look at her. It took him a while before he timidly reminded her in a quiet voice,

"They’re already far gone..."

"Oh, right."

Bai Ya pulled her gaze back and sighed, her heart heavy with worry.

Even though she knew she wouldn’t be much help if she went along, and she was well aware that Lu Wei rarely did anything he wasn’t confident about, she couldn’t help but worry.

On top of that, her mind was preoccupied with gathering mushrooms for soup, so she completely forgot about the two people beside her and just silently trudged toward the cave entrance.

And though Andrew and Geluo were being ignored, they certainly didn’t dare to voice any complaints.

After all, in their minds, a Mage was supposed to be this noble.

They were supposed to act high and mighty in front of Ordinary Adventurers like them.

Just like how Warriors were always reckless, Rangers were always skinny, and Priests always wore white.

’So... why is Miss Bai Ya so obedient to Lu Wei?’

Even if he was the captain, he shouldn’t be ordering a Mage around and bossing her about.

On this point, the two of them had the same question as Marcus.

But Andrew was too young and still didn’t even dare to look Bai Ya in the eye, let alone ask about something like that.

Geluo, however, was a Dwarf and had a more straightforward personality. After holding it in for a while, he couldn’t bear it any longer and finally spoke up.

"Miss Bai Ya, aren’t you angry?"

"Hm? Who’s talking?"

Bai Ya stopped, looked down, and only then realized two people were still with her.

She quickly apologized, "Sorry, I forgot about you... so what did you just say?"

"I..."

Geluo’s face flushed red with embarrassment. "I mean, aren’t you angry?"

"Huh? Why would I be angry?"

"It’s just that Mr. Lu Wei seemed a bit..."

Worried that Bai Ya would misunderstand and think he was trying to stir up trouble, Geluo wracked his brain for a good while before coming up with a more tactful way to put it.

"He seemed a little too harsh with you..."

"Oh, you mean that."

Bai Ya mumbled, a little aggrieved, "I’m used to it."

"Er..."

Geluo scratched his head, at a loss for words.

It was like asking a chef, "Why is your food so terrible?" only for them to reply, "My food has always been terrible."

It seemed like an answer, but it wasn’t one at all.

’Miss Bai Ya probably doesn’t want to answer the question.’

Thinking this, Geluo silently shut his mouth, deciding not to push his luck.

Just then, however, Bai Ya suddenly remembered about Beast Language.

"Oh, right. Mr. Geluo, could I ask you a favor?"

"Hm?"

Geluo was taken aback, then nodded repeatedly. "Of course! Just say the word!"

"Really? Thank you so much."

Seeing how easily she’d succeeded, Bai Ya said happily, "Then please demonstrate the preparation process for using Beast Language for me ten times."

"Huh? Why do you want to see that?"

"Because I want to see it."

"..."

’My question was deftly deflected in the exact same way again!’

Staring at Bai Ya with wide eyes, Geluo was utterly shocked.

He immediately came to a conclusion—

’Miss Bai Ya must be a genius with a sharp mind and a mastery of the art of language!’

...

...

Meanwhile, after leaving the pitfall trap, Lu Wei’s group of five continued deeper into the cavern.

And Hess certainly proved to be extremely useful.

Every time it whimpered, the group would immediately halt, and they would always find a trap not far ahead.

In truth, the traps weren’t particularly well-hidden. If they had proceeded slowly and carefully, Lu Wei would have been able to spot most of them himself.

But doing so would have slowed their pace considerably.

And there was no guarantee they wouldn’t miss one or two.

Therefore, Hess’s presence not only helped them speed up but also formed a "double insurance" with Lu Wei’s high Perception. As a result, the five of them reached a fork in the path, completely unscathed, in less than ten minutes.

Or rather, a "fork in the cave."

Three paths—left, center, and right—all looked more or less the same.

"Captain, same old routine?"

Splitting up is the biggest taboo for Adventurers, so Urzha turned to look at Marcus.

The "old routine" she mentioned was their squad’s tradition—

When at a fork, always take the right path first.

There was no scientific basis for it; it was just a long-standing habit.

Many squads had similar customs.

Some would eat rat meat before setting out, some would drink a unique bitter liquor, and some would even have the whole team go for a wild time in Pigeon Lane.

Except for the last one, the others were clearly just forms of psychological suggestion.

They believed doing so would bring good luck, but in reality, it was completely useless.

"Urzha’s talking about our habit, taking the right path."

Marcus explained in a low voice to Lu Wei and the other two, who were in the dark, but he didn’t make the decision himself.

"Brother Lu Wei, what do you think?"

"Either way is fine. Let’s go right, then."

Lu Wei nodded nonchalantly.

According to the Introduction in the Adventurer’s Manual, War Lizardmen don’t have their entire clan living in a single cavern, so all three paths likely lead to enemies.

It would be best to clear out the minions first, but it wouldn’t matter even if they went straight to the main nest. A single Force Field could take care of them all the same.

Since he and Marcus were in agreement, the five of them immediately turned into the right-hand tunnel and pressed on.

"CRACKLE~"

Perhaps because they were deep underground and the oxygen levels were lower, the light from the torches had grown much dimmer, illuminating only a few feet around them.

Beyond the light was a thick darkness that continuously devoured both light and sound.

Compared to the passage they had just come through, the walls of this tunnel had noticeably fewer rocks after the turn. The moss was gone, replaced by clumps of slime mold.

"GRRMPH~"

Suddenly, Hess’s whimpering sound came from the backpack again.

The group stopped at once, cautiously scanning their surroundings.

Soon, Marcus spotted a thin thread next to a clump of slime mold, nearly invisible against the cave wall.

It had to be the silk of a Giant Spider.

Seeing this, the group immediately took a few steps back, and Marcus once again took off his already "battle-scarred" backpack.

*Adventurer’s Manual for the Gelan Forest*

Chapter 5: [Traps and Ambushes] -

Section 2: [Identifying and Disabling Traps] -

[If you are not a professional, the best way to deal with a known trap is to trigger it from a safe distance!]

"Get ready."

After warning the others, Marcus took aim at the thread and hurled his backpack, which landed squarely on the clump of slime mold.

"THUD!"

With a muffled thud, the jelly-like slime mold instantly turned into a pool of sticky liquid.

The thread instantly went taut, its direction suggesting it was connected to some kind of mechanism.

But the group waited for a long time, and nothing happened.

’Huh?’

’What’s going on?’

’Did the trap malfunction?’

They looked at each other, all of them a bit confused.

The very next second, however, a faint, sharp hissing sound suddenly came from the depths of the tunnel, growing from far to near until it was clearly audible within seconds.

Urzha, at the very front, instantly grew excited. She let out a low roar and gripped her giant axe horizontally, blocking the way like a small mountain in front of the others.

"The trash that only knows how to hide in caves and hatch eggs is finally here!"

"GHRROOOOO——!!"

"Come on! Lick this old lady’s ass!!"

"..."

?

’What the fuck are you shouting?’