I Am Not Goblin Slayer
Chapter 31: Ambush

Meva, shrouded in her cloak, emerged from the tree shadows and returned with light footsteps.

The entire process was nearly silent.

"How's the scouting situation?"

The members of the Night Owl Squad turned their gaze toward her.

"Here."

Meva retrieved a yellowish-brown piece of parchment from her chest.

She spread it flat on a rock surrounded by the group.

The paper was covered with simple symbols, markings, and handwritten notes.

This was the advantage of having a Rogue apprentice in the team—she served as both an assassin and a scout.

While Rogues might not match many professions in direct combat and their role in a team might seem insignificant, their expertise in various other fields was unparalleled by other classes.

For instance, they mastered various concealment and stealth techniques.

In special terrains, their light build and athletic abilities allowed them to climb, search, scout enemies, disarm and set traps, pick locks, and more with ease.

In combat, rather than relying on brute strength, they preferred devising plans to deliver precise strikes at an enemy's weak points.

It could be said this was a profession with very distinct characteristics.

Even though Meva was merely a Rogue apprentice, her stealth skills remained indispensable for the team at present.

Returning to the map.

Meva began briefing the team on the intelligence she had just gathered.

The paper was roughly divided into about a dozen squares.

Each square represented a building.

Their mission location was the ruins of an abandoned village.

The dilapidated walls and rubble had somehow become home to a small group of Goblins.

Since these ruins were relatively close to the nearby Mill Village, the villagers had posted a request at the Adventurers Guild—even though the green-skinned creatures hadn't yet threatened the settlement—to eliminate the potential danger before it escalated.

"The Goblin numbers range between 15 to 22. Some are hiding inside buildings, so I couldn't get a clear count."

"They're scattered. The exact numbers are marked on each building."

"Most are armed with stone spears, wooden clubs, wooden shields, and steel blades. There are four Goblins using bows."

Meva concisely relayed her intel while referencing the simple map.

"Any special leader types?" Levin nodded and added another question.

"None."

"Good. We'll proceed with the previously devised plan."

"Everyone, prepare for combat. We'll ambush the enemies here on the map. Meva, see if you can lure out a portion of the Goblins without alerting the entire group. That way, we can conserve some energy," Levin outlined the strategy to the team.

"Even if it fails, it doesn't matter. We have enough combat strength to wipe out this Goblin group head-on."

"Watch out for the archers."

"Understood."

No one had any additional input regarding his commands.

One by one, they silently helped each other don their armor.

As the newcomer temporarily joining the team, Gauss naturally had little to contribute.

The team members coordinated seamlessly, and this mission wasn't particularly challenging.

He mostly observed and absorbed the experience of being an adventurer from the others.

They had arrived late last night, selected a suitable spot to camp, and rested until dawn.

Now, fully rested, they were brimming with energy.

Gauss fastened his leather armor, arm guards, and shin guards before thrusting his rapier a few times to warm up.

Lately, he had been practicing some basic sword techniques.

Though the results couldn't compare to professional swordsmanship training, diligent practice of foundational moves always yielded some improvement.

At the very least, his thrusts now looked far more polished than before.

Of course, a rapier could also be used for slashing and parrying, but those were supplementary—the primary attack method remained thrusting.

The rapier demanded quick movements and agile handling from its wielder.

While Gauss normally lacked in this aspect, he had his cheat. By activating that brain overload state and leveraging the immense advantage of his 7-point Spirit stat, he could enter a budget version of bullet time—perfectly aligning with the rapier's specialization.

Doyle, after getting help from his teammates to don his scale armor, finally had time to observe the others.

Suddenly, his gaze caught Gauss practicing thrusts with short, quick steps in the distance, and a big question mark popped up in his mind.

What was he doing?

He had noticed Gauss carrying a rapier before but hadn't paid it much mind.

After all, many professions kept a melee weapon handy for emergencies.

But seeing Gauss warming up so intently...

Was he actually planning to engage in close combat? Was this guy really a Mage?

However, Doyle had no time to dwell on Gauss—he needed to warm up himself before battle.

Once everyone was ready, they headed toward the designated ambush point.

This was the difference between seasoned low-tier adventurer teams and rookie squads. Even when facing Goblins weaker than them in direct combat, these veterans still set up an ambush to divide and conquer.

As Levin had said, even if they could defeat the Goblins head-on, recklessness would only waste more energy and stamina.

In the boundless wilderness, you could never predict what enemies you might encounter next.

Even near human-traveled roads, though the probability was low, groups of blade-wielding monsters could still emerge.

Thus, rational stamina management was essential.

Every bit of conserved stamina meant an extra layer of survival security.

Before long, after signaling the team, Meva vanished into the shadows, sneaking toward the ruins.

Her movements were as nimble as an old cat.

The others hid in their positions, quietly awaiting Meva's return.

Soon, faint footsteps echoed from the ruins' direction.

They didn't belong to Meva but to a few green-skinned creatures standing chest-high to an adult.

These Goblins had been lured out by Meva's distractions.

Suddenly, one leading Goblin seemed to spot something valuable and turned to its companions, chattering excitedly.

Under a tree in the clearing ahead lay a bleeding gray rabbit, kicking its legs in a futile struggle against death.

"Grah grah!"

"Grah grah grah!"

After an excited exchange, the Goblins cautiously huddled together.

While warily scanning their surroundings, they inched toward the rabbit.

Goblins weren't intelligent, but they were cunning by nature.

Even with fresh prey right before them, they didn't charge forward recklessly.

This was what made Goblins dangerous—even as monsters, they maintained decent discipline as long as their group remained unbroken.