Chapter 168: Finding Kobold

The next day was the same: patrol duty while he refined his new arrows. The new arrow was two palms longer than the one he had. It was also heavier, but it was noticeable when he held both arrows side by side.

But yeah, as he expected, working on one arrow took more mana than it used to be. In the end, it depended on the arrow’s condition, as Mana Repair decided the final mana cost for the whole. Some arrows only used 30, but some in worse condition took more than 100 mana.

It took him around 300 to 430 mana for one arrow. That was about the same mana as polishing his bow. But again, there was an additional process to polish the arrow. The final touch was the Mana Sharpening. The additional process for arrow polishing.

He would bring a few arrows with him while patrolling, working on them. It was fortunate that he seemed to have high mana regeneration. Maybe that was because of his high Magic Stats; not sure, but yeah. He could regain that mana within half an hour to an hour.

He did all that after the first raid from the Kobolds, patrolling and polishing his arrow. The Chief regarded him as the most important piece, so he didn’t want to send him out for scouting anymore. Not when the Chief was currently recovering.

It made sense after their last battle. He single-handedly got rid of the Elite Kobold Archers. The Chief would expect him to do the same later when they encounter the Elite Kobold Archer.

There was an issue, though: the dwindling food and his boredom. The goblins and the hobgoblins were happy to live here, but there might be a riot once the food ran out.

There was no fight or hunt for today. He didn’t find a single living being, not even the dangerous creatures that were out of his level. There was no sign of the second raid from the kobolds. It didn’t mean the kobolds would stop. They would come again, without a doubt.

Red wished to encounter the Kobold Scout, but also no. It was surprising that they didn’t mobilize the Kobold Scout. He returned before dark, and a hobgoblin informed him that the Chief was looking for him upon his return.

The Chief was taking the previous Kobold Chief, or more like this was the Kobold village Chief Hall equivalent of his village. The Chief was sitting at the other end, on the stone chair that fit his size. The three Goblin Champions were sitting on the floor on the side.

The first thing that he checked was the Chief’s wound. The wound was healing well, as it was now scabbed. It might still hurt, but that should be much better for now. The reason the Chief wanted to meet him was most likely because the Chief wanted him to scout the kobold village.

"I didn’t find anything unusual today either, not even a sign of a beast to hunt," he lowered his head and made his report as usual.

The Chief nodded at the report. The Fool, Reasonable, and Observer also kept their silence. They no longer doubted his report, as it seemed he had gained their trust after his performance in the last battle.

"I am calling you for another matter. I am recovering well, and we will move again the day after tomorrow. So I will need you to find the next village tomorrow!"

Red predicted the moment he entered that the campaign would continue. The twenty-one additional hobgoblins increased the Chief’s confidence to continue the campaign. It would take a long time to wait for him to fully recover, after all. They couldn’t wait for that, especially when the Chief received the task directly from the Goblin King to attack the kobolds from this side.

"I have a general direction of where the village might be. I might be able to find their village by tomorrow, but I can’t guarantee it. But yes, I will go deeper to scout the kobold village." Red accepted the duty, but he didn’t promise that he would find the village tomorrow.

"You already knew the general direction, but why can’t you promise us you’ll find the village by tomorrow?"

Red thought the Fool would stop picking at him, but that didn’t change. The Fool would always try regardless of what he had done.

"Because of the distance. We have wiped out one of their forces, yet there’s no follow-up from them. An army is missing; shouldn’t they have someone to check? Maybe the Kobold Scouts, yet nothing as of now. It might be because the distance is far. If it’s close, they should be here already."

"More importantly, I don’t know their exact location. I am searching for their location, not heading straight to their village, meaning I have to scour every part of the jungle. So how long do you think it will take me?"

That silenced the Fool. For once, the Fool didn’t talk back and remained silent after that exchange.

"That’s enough." The Chief interfered, "You start looking for their village starting tomorrow. We will depart the following day if you find the kobold village. We will stay here until we find the next village. That’s your job!"

Red nodded and left the hall. He had become more comfortable around the Chief, so he didn’t enjoy hanging out with them. His time was better spent polishing his new arrow.

The following day, he left with his full gear. The new bow was on his back, new arrows mixed with the old ones, as he hadn’t finished polishing all the new arrows yet. A sword in his hand, pretending to carry them over.

The moment he left the village, he put the sword in his last slot of the Storage Pouch. Even though he said to the Chief he was not confident he would find the village today. He was, in fact, confident in finding the village. He just didn’t want to give a clear answer just to be scolded or even punished later.

Red was confident he would find the kobold village by today, but he was not expecting to find them in half a day. He thought it would take a whole day just to find the kobold village. Though he didn’t exactly find the village, more like an army of kobolds. He found them when he was looking for their village.

This kobold army was heading toward the village they occupied, heading toward where he came from. He found them, but the bad news was their number. The kobolds were outnumbering them. More than two hundred, possibly three hundred kobolds. That included the Elite Kobold Fighter and the Elite Kobold Archer.

There were too many of them for him to count. His position, which was very high up on the tree, just made it even harder to count. He was about to go down, going to the lower branch, but he stopped himself as he saw shadows moving below him. Not just one, but many. At least twenty of them.

’The Kobold Scout!’

If they brought such a big army, it just made sense for the Kobold Scout to be with them. Those kobold scouts might be the same kobold scouts that came in the first batch. They returned with a bigger army.

Red didn’t come down, not willing to risk getting found out by the scout and chased by the army.

"What should I do now?" He muttered.

The kobolds were too many for the current goblins. Even if they held an advantage, it still would be tough. Even if they survived, most of them would die from the fight.

’Or I can reduce their number first now...’

That was an option. He could use his fireball to reduce the kobolds’ numbers. Not just to reduce their number, but he also could delay them from reaching the village. That would give them more time and possibly let the kobolds stay the night in the jungle.

That was both stupid and a good idea. Giving his people time was good, but it was stupid given how risky it was. Especially because of the Kobold Scout’s presence. They could look for him in the tree, which would trouble him.

Red considered his options. Returning now and reporting the situation was also a good option. That way, they could be prepared for what would come for them.

He made the decision after following the kobold army slowly. It was better to return and report the situation. Coming down and firing the fireball was a bad choice because he didn’t have his blessing. That was right; he didn’t have his blessing because he didn’t think he would encounter the kobolds. Today’s job was just to scout, but it changed with the kobold army approaching.

Red turned around and left, making his way back to the village. The battle would not be here, but the place where he would have an advantage.