7 A Chance Encounter in the Cave

Kobold Doug was on the brink of tears.

Today, he had encountered three True Dragons and was very honored to lead the way for them.

If the story ended here, it would have been a lucky day. Serving the True Dragons would become something to brag about for life. If he was lucky, he could attract the attention of a female kobold and become attached.

But the problem was that the True Dragons came to him again and made a request that almost scared him to death — he was requested to act as a guide and bring them to investigate the forest outside the stronghold.

What kind of place was the forest outside the stronghold?!

In the past, it had been nothing much. He would often even go out to catch rabbits or something. However, the problem was that there had been no precedent of teams returning unscathed nowadays. Many teams had even disappeared there.

To be honest, he wanted to refuse, but the cunning True Dragons had already exposed the fact that he was familiar with the terrain. If he refused now…

Considering a True Dragon's explosive temper, he would be squashed to the ground with a single slap, saving the need for a coffin burial.

On one side was certain death, and on the other was a slim chance of survival. Those who were wise knew what to choose.

Just like that, Doug walked out of the stronghold with the three dragons.

Doug said with a sad expression, "My lords, you have to take care of me when we encounter enemies after entering the forest. I haven't even held a female kobold's hand before."

"Enough! Enough! How many times have you said it?!" Jose waved his claws impatiently. "Rather than repeating these useless things, why don't you think about what you've seen these past few days? Who knows, you may even remember information that is beneficial to the mission."

"I've told you everything I know. I saw that the survivors of the teams that made it back were all covered in blood, while many of their members did not even return. I heard that the enemy was human adventurers. The entire forest is filled with them."

The kobold waved his hands wildly in exaggeration. Jose felt helpless and worried.

Though the kobold's words were overstated, they reflected the truth to a certain extent.

Not only the kobold guide, but the three dragons had also asked the other monsters for confirmation. The answers they received all reflected a message: There are many enemies outside!

The Golden Dragon loli was furious. "Aren't they just sending us to our doom?!"

"Don't be too pessimistic. Even if O'Neal is sending us to our deaths, he'll make our deaths worth something, or it will be a waste to him."

Jose looked ahead in the distance. "Something must have happened to this forest."

The three dragons and the kobold passed through the strategic cleared ground in front of the stronghold and stopped in front of the lush forest.

The Jorgol Mountains were located at a high altitude, and most of the plants there were pine trees, cypress trees, and other cold-resistant plants. As there was no human interference or special magical zones, the trees were tall and straight, and 40-meter-tall trees were very ordinary here.

Forty meters might sound a little hazy, but it was probably the height of a 13-story apartment building.

There was one advantage to having tall trees, and it was that even with a dragon's massive body, it would not feel crowded in the forest. However, there were also disadvantages. It was simply too easy to hide something in such a large forest.

"Let's search the area." Jose pinched the crystal ball in his hand. The detection crystal ball could only be used by injecting magic power. The detection range was 300 meters.

To the archers of the magical world, some young dragons flying in the sky were just asking to be shot. Hence, the three dragons did not dare to fly and could only walk in the forest.

After searching for several hours, they did not see even a rabbit, let alone an enemy. The three dragons and one kobold found a flat area and sat down to discuss.

Jose looked at the only one he could discuss things with, the Golden Dragon loli, and asked, "What do you think, Yaligos?"

Yaligos lowered her head and pondered for a moment. "Along the way, we found many traces of camping. These traces were left from at least last night. Obviously, the enemies must have retreated or hidden themselves."

Jose nodded. "I think so too. The big group of enemies must have retreated, while the small group of enemies hid themselves. Even if they all retreated, they at least left behind something that could interfere with detection magic. That thing is our mission target."

He frowned and muttered to himself, "I hope we don't meet any enemies."

It was obvious that since the enemy had spent so much effort to leave behind a method to interfere with detection magic, they would definitely not let the three young dragons destroy it easily.

When they found the target of the mission, the three dragons would also encounter guards or trigger their defensive measures. Considering the three dragons' strength, they would very likely be in mortal danger.

At the same time, Jose also understood why the young dragons were chosen to carry out the investigative mission.

To use a crystal ball, one had to have magic power. The Red Nest lacked spellcasters, and dragons were magical creatures. Even young dragons who had yet to awaken their ability to cast spells had magic power in their bodies; they were thus capable of using crystal balls.

Moreover, a young dragon's combat power was weak. From the perspective of the higher-ups, sacrificing a young dragon that was useless for the time being to preserve the most scarce and currently useful mage was something that almost did not need to be considered.

Naturally, the sacrifices would not be in a good mood.

"Damn it!" At the thought of O'Neal coming to take the fruits of their search once they found the source of the problem, Jose felt indignant but helpless.

Like how the kobold Doug did not dare to reject some True Dragons, they also did not dare to reject the mission either. Rejecting the mission was challenging the authority established by the Mistress of the Red Nest. They would be punished by military law.

On one side was certain death, while on the other side was near-certain death. Those who were wise knew what to choose.

"Cassie, it's your turn to supply magic power to the crystal ball." Jose handed it to the White Dragon.

Even the number of people had been calculated accurately. The three dragons would take turns to provide magic power, which was just enough to ensure that the crystal ball's magic power supply was constant.

"Keep moving."

The team set off again.

...

At the same time, in a huge cave, more than ten people were gathered in its deepest part. In the middle was a circular altar with a golden diamond embedded in its center.

One of the warriors sized up the scene inside the cave. This cone-shaped cave entrance was big, but it became smaller and smaller as one went in. There were no corners inside, so one could see inside the cave from the entrance.

"Captain Oluke! You're so brilliant! No matter how those monsters think, they will never expect us to hide in such an obvious cave!"

Captain Oluke — the red-haired mage — heard his subordinate sucking up to him and smiled, but his tone was even. "Don't be careless. Although this Concealment Magic Formation was personally set up by a Legendary Mage, there's no guarantee that the Mistress of the Red Nest will not send out someone powerful. Everyone, be prepared for battle at any time."

The red-haired mage turned around and looked at the small altar that was surrounded by people. "Three days later, when the mission is finished and the reward is received, I'll treat everyone to play to their heart's content!"

A monkey-faced bandit rubbed his hands and smiled slyly. "Captain! What 'game' are we going to play?!"

"Play whatever you want!"

"Yes! Long live the captain!"

Fortunately, the Concealment Magic Formation had the ability to isolate sound. Otherwise, the three dragons who were searching near the cave would have heard it.

After a while, the three dragons arrived in front of the cave and looked inside.

Yaligos suggested, "There's a cave here. Why don't we rest in there and let our guide eat something?"

Jose looked at the panting kobold and replied, "Alright, we'll rest for half an hour."

After such a long search, the three dragons were still far from reaching their limit; however, Doug, their kobold guide, was exhausted.