Chapter 44 - 42: Hero’s Triumphant Return

Chapter 44: Chapter 42: Hero’s Triumphant Return

"We’re going to save him."

Like a bolt of lightning piercing the clouds, those five words instantly changed the relaxed expressions on everyone’s faces.

This was especially true for Furen and Bai Ya.

Furen froze for a moment, then without another word, he grabbed his Sword and strode quickly toward the forest.

Bai Ya did the same, immediately running out from behind the rock. She clutched her small, almost comical Dagger, crying as she ran, looking for all the world like she was rushing to a funeral.

They didn’t seem the least bit worried that there might still be enemies in the forest. They didn’t even wait for Mirana, let alone the others who were just getting back on their feet. Soon, they had reached the edge of the woods.

Glancing at the pitch-black forest before them, the two exchanged a look, then resolutely stepped forward, ready to rescue Lu Wei.

If Lu Wei was already dead, they would bring his body back to Heitai Town and hold a grand funeral.

Or, if they encountered the enemy, the entire Mushroom Squad would meet their end here.

In any case, this was what they had to do as comrades!!

’Captain, I’m begging you, please be alive...’

’Brother Lu Wei, in my heart, you’re already the greatest Warrior in the Kingdom!’

From these silent, heartfelt monologues, it was clear that, subconsciously, neither of them thought Lu Wei had much of a chance of survival.

Otherwise, there would have been no need for "prayers" or "eulogies."

But you couldn’t blame them for coming to that conclusion.

After all, neither Furen nor Bai Ya knew that Lu Wei was actually a Professional. Their impression of their captain was basically just "very smart and very kind."

But when facing ten whole Kobolds, being smart and kind was obviously useless.

’As for Stealth...’

’If Lu Wei had really escaped, he would have come back to help us immediately.’

’He’s been gone for so long... I’m afraid he’s never coming back.’

’But don’t you worry, Brother Lu Wei!’

’I’ll make that woman pay!’

’I swear it!!’

Glancing back at Mirana, who was following behind them, Furen felt his anger about to erupt.

But just then, a voice he knew all too well suddenly rang out from not far away.

"Hm?"

"Where are you all headed?"

...

...

A few minutes later, Lu Wei returned to the campfire in the manner of a triumphant Hero.

"Waaah, Captain, we thought you were dead..."

"Brother Lu Wei, I knew you’d be okay!"

"You saved all of us!"

"That was so thrilling! This is what I always imagined an adventure would be like!"

Crowding around him, Bai Ya and Furen chattered nonstop, both looking very excited.

Especially Bai Ya, whose eyes were red-rimmed with tear tracks at the corners, as if she had just been crying.

Combined with what the two of them were saying...

’Huh? Did they really think I’d been killed by the Kobolds?’

’What a joke!’

’I’m the man who’s going to become the richest person on the continent!’

’How could I just bite the dust so easily!’

"Are you all okay?"

Glancing at the Kobold corpses scattered around, Lu Wei asked, "No one’s hurt, are they?"

"Just a few scrapes! Nothing to worry about!"

Furen was still excited, boasting loudly, "Brother Lu Wei, you know, I killed three Kobolds all by myself just now!"

"SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! Three Jump Slashes, and I chopped them right in half! No, into six halves!"

"But that’s nothing compared to you!"

"How many did you kill? It must’ve been at least seven or eight, right?"

"It’s a good thing you took out so many beforehand, otherwise we probably wouldn’t have been able to handle it!"

’Er, not quite that many.’

’It was only six.’

’But that was almost enough to be the death of me.’

Recalling what happened after his cover was blown, Lu Wei couldn’t help but feel a wave of lingering fear.

Though he had found a chance to break out of their encirclement, he wasn’t out of danger. The "battle of encirclement" had simply turned into a "chase."

He was the one being chased, of course.

But thanks to Stealth, the Kobolds, with some of their senses impaired, really couldn’t do much about him.

In fact, whenever one of them got separated from the pack, he would turn back and hit them with a surprise attack.

And by the time the Kobolds reacted, howling for revenge for their comrade, Lu Wei would have vanished again.

You have to understand, while Kobolds weren’t very smart—the dumbest among creatures of medium intelligence, in fact—they had at least evolved beyond the category of creatures of low intelligence.

In most situations, they could make basic judgments about the circumstances, unlike goblins, which act purely on instinct.

So, after being toyed with by Lu Wei several times, the remaining Kobolds finally sensed that something was wrong and began to grow fearful.

And then they fled in a panic.

Because of this, including the three he killed at the very beginning, Lu Wei’s final tally was locked in at six... a result that few people would likely believe if they heard it.

Not a Professional, with no powerful Combat Skills, and he single-handedly slayed six Kobolds in the forest at night?

The only way that could happen is if he fucking stumbled into a Kobold nursery!

"Not that many. Only six. The other four ran away."

Shaking his head, Lu Wei didn’t exaggerate his achievements. As he spoke, he glanced at Mirana, who was standing behind Bai Ya.

After a moment’s hesitation, he didn’t say anything, averting his gaze and giving out instructions:

"Bai Ya, help me with my wounds."

"Furen, you go collect the loot first. We can discuss how to divide it later."

"No problem!"

The looting phase after a big battle was always the most anticipated. Furen eagerly agreed and immediately ran toward the nearest corpse.

As for Bai Ya, she had long since noticed the three gashes on Lu Wei’s left forearm and had even been waiting for a while with ointment and bandages ready. Hearing his words, she immediately ran over, crouched down, and began to work with her head lowered.

Much like cooking, tending to wounds was a skill that almost every lower-class woman in this world had to master.

Because whether it was farming, raising livestock, or doing manual labor in the city, getting injured was a common occurrence.

But going to a clinic for treatment was too expensive, so they could only learn to do it themselves.

Of course, compared to a "Professional Nurse" like Aryan, Bai Ya hadn’t received any formal training, so her skill level wasn’t particularly high.

Fortunately, Lu Wei’s wounds were all relatively shallow and didn’t require stitches or anything, so she was able to manage.

"That should do it. You should rest for a bit."

About ten minutes later, Bai Ya carefully tied the bandage tight, then looked up and wiped the sweat from her brow.

Mirana had long since returned to the other campfire and was now crouching beside the middle-aged man, examining something. It seemed he had also been injured, and rather seriously.

Meanwhile, Furen, the young man who had come to buy mushroom soup earlier, and the Dwarf with the thick, long beard had already looted the battlefield and were now preparing to enter the forest to check on the Kobolds that Lu Wei had killed.

The blood on the ground had soaked into the soil, and the metallic scent in the air had dissipated considerably.

Taking the waterskin from Bai Ya, Lu Wei took a long swig, GLUG GLUG. He finally had time to think about the night’s events.

Although monsters attacking Adventurers was a perfectly normal occurrence, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

Thinking it over, he realized it was the Kobolds’ "strategic choice" that seemed illogical.

After all, they were creatures of medium intelligence, particularly adept at using overwhelming numbers. They usually only attacked when they outnumbered the Adventurers several times over.

And the moment they realized they couldn’t win, they would immediately retreat and flee.

But this time was clearly different.

The decision to split their forces in the forest, in particular, still had Lu Wei completely baffled.

’Since they’d already found me, why didn’t they all come to surround and kill me?’

’It was as if they were extremely worried the people in the clearing would escape.’

’Could it be that something over here was attracting them?’

’I can’t figure it out...’