I Am Not Goblin Slayer
Chapter 77: Professional Team

The entire caravan, counting all personnel, numbered about fifty, with roughly fifteen guards.  

From his perspective, dealing with several dozen goblin "bandits" shouldn’t be too difficult.  

However, after quietly observing for a while, the caravan’s cautious approach surprised him.  

The caravan planned to camp in place and wait, hoping to encounter other caravans so their combined guards could join forces to clear out the highway bandits.  

If they failed to meet others, they would rather risk economic loss than confront the bandits head-on and would take a detour instead.  

After some thought, Gauss could understand why they chose this path.  

Whether the caravan manager or the guard captain, they were essentially senior employees of the merchant guild, naturally unwilling to take major risks just for their wages.  

Not to mention being evenly matched on the surface, even with a slight advantage, no one wanted to take the initiative to attack unless they had a clear superiority.  

After gathering enough intelligence, Gauss returned to the carriage he had boarded.  

He was neither a merchant employee nor a temporary hire, just an outsider who paid the fare. Even as a "respected" apprentice mage, he had no standing to speak on matters concerning the caravan’s safety.  

Besides, he didn’t have the ability to kill dozens of goblins by himself, despite possessing several special attack buffs against goblins.  

So what else could he do but continue reading?  

Time slowly passed, and just as Gauss thought the caravan was preparing to detour toward Absinthe Town,  

suddenly the distant sound of wheels rolling on the road came from behind.  

“Stop!”  

A group of knights riding tall, powerful horses escorted a luxurious covered beast carriage, slowly stopping behind the caravan.  

Upon realizing their path was blocked, a tall male warrior clad in exquisite silver chainmail quickly dismounted to negotiate.  

His steps were steady and strong, subtly revealing the composed demeanor of someone accustomed to authority.  

Perhaps seeing his extraordinary presence, the caravan manager immediately softened, bowed apologetically, and patiently explained the situation ahead.  

Leaning against the carriage, Gauss observed with curiosity as the situation unfolded further.  

Suddenly, the male warrior not far ahead seemed to sense something, sharply turning his head and fixing a piercing gaze toward Gauss’s carriage.  

Their eyes met directly.  

Gauss, who had been watching the scene unfold, suddenly felt a jolt inside.  

“Professional?”  

That glance instantly made his entire body tense as if a fierce wild beast had locked onto him.  

The magic power within him quietly surged, as if triggering a protective mechanism.  

Although physiologically uncomfortable, Gauss did not look away but stubbornly held the man’s gaze for two seconds, as if confirming his identity. After exchanging smiles and nods, they simultaneously averted their eyes.  

What he did not know was that the chainmail-clad man a short distance away also felt a shock in his heart.  

Gauss’s presence subtly threatened him, the feeling identical to facing professional mages or warlocks.  

His previously arrogant attitude instinctively retracted somewhat.  

When traveling, it was best to be as friendly as possible with strangers of unknown background.  

After retracting his gaze, Gauss looked back toward the caravan behind.  

That caravan was not large, with fewer than ten people. The carriage in the center was noticeably more luxurious than the others.  

Obviously, the man who came to negotiate was just one of the guards. Given his strength, Gauss vaguely sensed there were a few others in the caravan.  

“Also heading to Absinthe Town?”  

Gauss knew that the highway bandits ahead probably had nothing to do with him anymore.  

This rear caravan alone was enough to easily deal with them.  

“Professionals are just serving as guards, but who’s sitting in the middle carriage? Could it be a noble?” In this era, commoners rarely had contact with nobles.  

Therefore, Gauss’s memories of nobles were very scarce.  

He recalled that most nobles lived in big cities, even if their fiefs were in small towns, they often entrusted relatives or trusted governors to manage them.  

Noticing several subtle glances cast his way, Gauss quickly withdrew his eyes.  

As expected, there were quite a few professionals.  

For so many professionals to lower themselves and serve as guards, the person inside the carriage must be someone important.  

The following developments matched Gauss’s expectations.  

Only three people from the rear caravan rode out, and within ten minutes, they returned on horseback. The knights’ armor was still clean; only the bloodstains on the horse hooves showed that a battle had taken place.  

The caravan yielded the road to allow the rear caravan to pass first.  

After the caravan had left for a while, they resumed their journey toward Absinthe Town.  

What was originally a moderate crisis instantly vanished with the arrival of a mysterious caravan.  

After traveling for about ten minutes, Gauss finally saw the tragic state of the highway bandits.  

On both sides of the road, roughly over fifty goblins lay sprawled in the mud.  

Crimson blood soaked the ground, emitting a strong stench and staining the originally tan soil into a deep dark brown.  

“Professionals really are powerful.” Seeing the battlefield, Gauss couldn’t help but sigh.  

Only three had been deployed. Even if their horses moved faster than the carriages, the round trip must have taken around ten minutes, meaning they had only one or two minutes to actually kill over fifty goblins.  

His gap with them was indeed huge. Gauss believed that even if it were three of him, he wouldn’t have killed fifty goblins that quickly.  

Moreover, the three returned without many stains on their bodies, clearly the fight was effortless for them.  

At this moment, his desire to become stronger surged intensely.  

He felt the profound truth of “a true strong person moves like the wind.”  

He also wanted to become such a free and powerful warrior who came and went like the wind.  

By the time the carriage Gauss was in arrived at a distance from Absinthe Town, it was still before noon of the seventh day.  

They had spent an entire day traveling.  

The checkpoint at Absinthe Town was stricter than that of Grayrock Town.  

A long line of carriages waiting to enter the town underwent inspections, and after an hour in line, it was finally Gauss’s caravan’s turn.  

As a passenger, he also had to undergo questioning and identity verification.  

Fortunately, showing the adventurer’s badge saved him considerable time.  

Upon entering the town, Gauss immediately sensed a strong herbal fragrance in the air.  

Along the streets, beasts carrying loads of herbs had copper bells tied to their necks, jingling and startling sparrows as they passed.  

Herbal merchant caravans unloaded their heavy cargo boxes, moving them into shops one by one.  

Potion makers wearing crow blue cloaks hurried through the alleys, while young girls sat in front of shops slowly grinding medicinal powders in stone mortars.  

Along both sides of the road, at least 60% of the shops were engaged in the medicinal and herbal trade.  

Unlike the dull, grayish Grayrock Town, this was a verdant green town.  

“Big brother, want a copy of the Absinthe Town Guide? Only 20 copper coins. It has all the information you need.” A child suddenly appeared beside Gauss, enthusiastically pushing a small booklet.  

Sharp-eyed, the child seemed to immediately recognize Gauss as a first-time visitor.  

“Guide?” Gauss looked skeptically at the booklet in the child’s hand.  

He could afford 20 copper coins but doubted if the contents were what he truly needed.