Chapter 21: Mysterious Archer

In the chaotic woodland, a Goblin suddenly leapt from the ground. The wooden stick in its hand, studded with dense rusty nails, whipped up a gust of wind, threatening to smash Blind Shot's defenseless head into pulp.

WHOOSH!

The shriek of an Arrow leaving the bowstring tore through the air, skimming precisely across most of the battlefield before instantly sinking into the Goblin's chest!

"Gah!"

The leaping Goblin's ferocious, bloodthirsty expression froze instantly on its ugly face. Yanked mid-air by the force of the Arrow, its entire body buckled backward from the impact. Then, tilting to the side, it crashed horizontally onto the dirt with a heavy THUD. After twitching a couple of times, it went completely still.

This sudden Arrow left Blind Shot, who had thought he was undoubtedly dead, frozen in place. Only belatedly did cold sweat drench his back. Seeing this, the other two men were instantly overwhelmed by the wild ecstasy of surviving against all odds, washing away the despair on their faces.

"Reinforcements! A Master is helping us!"

The big guy roared in excitement, his previously weak and aching arms seemingly surging with fresh strength.

"We're... we're saved!" Blind Shot thought. His heart pounded wildly as he quickly grasped the situation. The sheer relief of surviving nearly made him collapse. Being an Archer himself, he understood perfectly well that such precision and power could only belong to a veteran Adventurer! They had struck gold today!

As if to confirm his guess, in the very next second, another Goblin hiding behind a tree, which had just raised a short Wooden Spear to throw, suddenly had its throat pierced by an Arrow. It fell backward without even managing a whimper, the short Wooden Spear in its hand dropping to the ground with a CLATTER.

"Boys! With a veteran backing us up, what's there to be afraid of? Let's fight these Green Skin bastards to the death!"

His spirits greatly lifted, Blind Shot drew the dagger at his waist and lunged howling at the nearest Goblin. Infected by his momentum, the big guy and the skinny young man also charged at their respective opponents, their will to fight exceptionally high.

However, their courage ultimately could not make up for the massive gap in Physical strength. The three were already like spent Crossbow bolts. This seemingly fierce counterattack merely allowed them to barely hold their ground against their opponents, failing to make any significant progress in the battle.

This was especially true for the skinny young man with a sprained ankle, who had long lost his Wooden Spear somewhere along the way. At this moment, he was rolling and grappling on the ground with a Goblin. Nails and teeth were deployed in turn, making for an exceptionally brutal brawl. The Goblin was extremely cunning. It had clearly noticed his swollen ankle and continuously used various methods to attack the injured leg.

"Ah!" the skinny guy screamed incessantly in pain, tears and snot streaming down his face.

Right at that moment, a sharp sword light suddenly flashed, the blade humming endlessly.

SQUELCH!

The Goblin, which was wantonly pinning down the skinny guy, suddenly froze in its tracks. Its wart-covered green head was instantly severed from its neck. It spun into the air, still wearing an expression of disbelief, as foul-smelling blood gushed out like a fountain.

The headless Green Skin corpse was easily kicked aside by a long, leather-booted leg, revealing the valiant figure behind it.

"Don't get in the way. Move aside." Kaelin sheathed her sword and stood tall, her burgundy ponytail swaying slightly from the previous killing blow. She glanced at the skinny guy on the ground, a hint of impatience in her tone.

"It's Armless Kaelin!"

The big guy immediately recognized her, his voice filled with unbelievable pleasant surprise. The trio's spirits could not help but soar once again!

They had long heard of the prestige of this Red-haired Female Swordsman. To be more precise, she was a hot topic of conversation among many people recently! Her tough personality, combined with the fact that on her very first day staying at the Return Inn, she had cleanly knocked out two troublemaking veteran Adventurers—anyone who could so easily subdue veterans definitely possessed a strength that could not be underestimated! Although the three of them did not stay at the Return Inn, they had heard the titles "Armless" and "Tough Chick" many times in the Adventurer's Guild!

Hearing the nicknames she absolutely loathed, a vein on Kaelin's forehead twitched involuntarily, but she quickly reined it in. This was a battlefield; she still knew when to restrain herself. Eyes widening in anger, she poured all her fury onto the remaining Goblins. Sharp Slashes tore through the air, every strike aimed straight for the vitals, completely devoid of unnecessary flair.

Meanwhile, in the Shadows, those precise Arrows did not cease, once again piercing through a Goblin Archer attempting to shoot a cheap shot from the dark. It did not take long for the remaining Goblins to be wiped out. In the woodland, only the heavy stench of blood and the ragged breathing of the few people remained. Kaelin had finished off five, the mysterious Archer had sniped three, and the trio had painstakingly teamed up to kill one.

As their taut nerves finally relaxed, the trio only now found the time to cast curious and grateful glances toward the mysterious Archer they had yet to see. Anyone who could team up with Armless Kaelin and possess such superb Archery skills could absolutely not be an ordinary person! Blind Shot was especially thrilled. If he could have the honor of receiving guidance from that Archery expert—no, that Master of Archery—his own Archery might just improve to the next level!

Under the trio's incredibly expectant gazes, the tall and straight figure finally stepped out slowly from behind a tree not far away. When the sunlight illuminated that young and composed face, time seemed to stand still for a moment.

"How could it be him?"

Blind Shot's mouth was open wide enough to fit a Dragon Egg. The big guy rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was hallucinating from too much blood loss. Even the skinny guy on the ground forgot his pain, despite his ankle being more swollen than before. They were all too familiar with this face! Wasn't this Raine, the very man they had gossiped about in the Guild, the one who had barely escaped from the Goblins?

At this moment, he was standing there calmly, Longbow in hand, his posture steady—a stark contrast to the decadent and down-and-out image they had of him in their memories. Recalling how he had submitted six Goblin ears all at once back at the Guild...

GULP.

Blind Shot swallowed hard, his cheeks burning with a hot flush again. The three of them had actually been saved by a "coward." But if such an exceptional Adventurer could be called a "coward," then what did that make them? The trio was rendered speechless. Without them realizing it, that black-haired young man had already left them far behind, reaching a level they could only look up to.

"Th-Thank you both for saving our lives!" Even though their hearts were overwhelmed by immense shock and shame, the three hastily lowered their heads, repeatedly expressing their gratitude with dry voices.

"Stop dawdling and hurry up and bandage your wounds," Kaelin said, not showing much patience. After confirming there were no other threats in the vicinity, she crouched down to gather the nearby Calming Bellflowers and harvest the loot from the Goblins' bodies.

After giving the trio a slight nod, Raine did the same. However, what the two cared about more right now was, naturally, that mysterious cave.