Tim's face grew uneasy when reminded of the uncomfortable truth, while the bard grew thoughtful.
On one hand, we already made a decent profit – especially if the gem really was worth as much as we hoped.
However…
"T-the mission… we still need to clear the remaining goblins."
The mission wasn't 'make a trip to the nest and do your best' – it specified the estimated number of green rats as the clear condition.
Sure, the estimation could be wrong – we could return with 5 goblin ears, and claim they were all we found.
However, we would have to intentionally omit the tracks we found near the side tunnel.
Of course, it was something we could claim to have missed.
However, if during the confirmation of this request the guild found out that some of the goblins are still nearby in the tunnels, or worse, the survivors have reoccupied the nest, we could forget about the full reward. With Harold's current dislike towards me, we might have foregone any reward.
"Timmy… don't you think this might be a tad too dangerous?"
The halfling's voice contained a clear message of concern. Which was more than understandable.
If the behavior of those goblins was as unusual as it seemed, then something ominous could be brewing in this cave – or, more likely, that newly opened tunnel.
Of course, it didn't match anything any of us knew – we could really have just stumbled upon a very smart tribe of goblins, something so rare it wasn't worth mentioning in that half-baked local monster guide or Tim's 3rd rate academy program.
"Pinpin… this type of mission.. you know how rare it is." Tim's voice was slowly shifting from hesitation to resolve. "You know how rare it is to get a reward this big for a few goblins."
"But, Timmy…"
Surprisingly, the halfling's voice did not show any scorn or dissatisfaction at the young man's apparent greed. Instead, it only showed sadness.
"You know how much I need this money. If we could get the full reward, my share might just be enough to cover everything."
"..."
For the first time, I have witnessed the bard at a loss for words.
I couldn't know Tim's specific circumstances, but it was clear he wasn't willing to back down, and he was quite pressed for time, too.
'Well, it's not like I'm that much different.'
I sighed, making both my companions turn their heads my way.
"...do you really need the money this badly?"
The young man just silently nodded, without a moment of hesitation.
"Alright. I don't really like this, but I also need the money right now, so I won't veto your decision if you choose to continue."
A glimmer of relief flashed across Tim's face.
"But."
Tim froze, as I took something out of my backpack under two pairs of eyes - one tense, one curious.
It was an hourglass. A pretty small one, at that, no wider in diameter than half my pinkie, no longer than my index finger.
"Once the sand runs out, we're turning back, no matter whether we find anything or not."
The hourglass was actually one of a five piece set, measuring intervals between 5 and 120 minutes. The whole set, which I fortunately managed to notice at some small stall on my way to the industrial district, cost me 2 silver. This was the 30 minute piece.
Tim's expression became conflicted, while the halfling's face was that of relief.
"I… fine. Fine. I know it's risky, and you probably don't need to take such risks to make decent money at a good pace, even with just your harvesting skills. So, thank you."
The young man lowered his head in sincere gratitude.
"Alright, alright. Now, anyone else wants to have dinner before we go? From our own provisions, that is. Although if either of you wants some smoked meat, I won't stop you."
"Indeed! Let us replenish our strength before venturing forth!"
"Yeah.. I could use some meat right about now. Although I'll pass on that smoked… thing. You can have some if you want, Pinpin."
"How could I! What if the owners happened to return, only to find their oven empty? I am an adventurer, not a thief!"
***
We found a relatively clean corner to sit, quickly consuming one of our rationed meals.
While we only really had one fight, the whole journey was quite long, and the slow descent down the cave system was draining in and of itself.
We decided to rest for 30 minutes before continuing. However, I suggested we move near the tunnel entrance, just in case. Also, this would be the perfect opportunity for the bard to renew his previous enhancement, which might have otherwise expired mid-exploration.
Luckily, Pinpin could still imbue another melody with magic before we'd have to wait until tomorrow for it to work.
With our darkvision renewed and some of our energy restored, the final grain of sand has fallen, signaling the impending resumption of our mission.
'Maybe I should… just…'
The more I looked into the dark hole ahead of me, the less easy my heart became.
However, I already made my decision, and going back on it now just didn't feel right, either.
"Time's up." I stood up, turning the hourglass upside down before fastening it to my belt again. "Our search starts now. If we find nothing in 30 minutes - we're out."
My party members got up, as we settled into the already-familiar formation – me at the front-right, Tim to my left, the halfling behind us.
We slowly climbed through the large hole, finding ourselves inside a stony tunnel – one even bigger than the caves we came from.
The tunnel itself had a bit of light blue arcane moss growing here and there.
I considered harvesting it on the way back, but for now, better lighting was worth much more than a couple copper coins.
The tunnel only went one way, and since its floor was covered with small and medium rubble, the goblin tracks were still distinctly visible.
We began making our way forward, with me still actively scouting for any enemies or traps ahead.
As we walked, the rubble became sparser. Soon, it became extremely hard for me to discern the tracks – perhaps an experienced guide would do so with ease, but had I not already known of their existence, I would definitely disregard them as another random pattern of those stone pebbles.
Suddenly, we found ourselves at a crossroads – making our way out of the tunnel and into a tiny cavern, three more tunnels lay before us.
"Seb… do you see anything?"
The one to our right was relatively small, barely big enough for one adult to pass. Its floor had some rubble, but I could not detect any tracks – although that could just be my lack of ability.
In front of us, the main tunnel continued, its slope noticeably steepening – if before we could see around 30 meters ahead due to the overall curvature, when it came to this 3 meter tall tunnel, after around 15 meters its ceiling had already left our vision, continuing downwards. The ground, relatively smooth, barely had any pebbles or stones, likely due to gravity doing its usual thing.
Finally, the left passage, wider and taller than the rest, was nearly leveled, and had quite a few pebbles, and even some dust, on the ground. In there, I could make out faint tracks.
"I see some tracks to our left."
"..how much time left?"
"Around 15 minutes. Don't take it as an excuse to rush. If we can't find anything soon, we're turning back."
"Alright, alright! No more talk, then. Let's go."
We slowly turned the corner and continued our advance, I couldn't shake the feeling – something felt odd about those goblin tracks.
However, as we carefully moved forward, I could not quite get my mind around those subtle differences, if they existed at all.
'Perhaps they were in a hurry? Or… I don't really know. Maybe I can ask Xin for tips sometimes. Anyway, there's less than 5 minutes left, so we'll probably just go back empty handed.'
Well, this wasn't so bad. I did get valuable combat experience, and I could hope for a few gold coins even without the mission reward.
'If I get lucky with harvesting on the way back, this could net me over 5 gold.. more than worth it, both for this trip and the previous wait.'
Going forward, I was actually considering doing normal goblin extermination requests, coupled with harvesting.
Now that I had a better measure of my strength, I believed I could easily handle a couple regular goblins – after all, the ones found here were an exception.
Right now, even without this mission, I could probably save up around 10 gold per week – more than enough for my payment, with a decent safety margin that could become crucial. After all, there were still certain supplies and equipment pieces I wouldn't mind buying before I left.
At the truly worst case, I could also sell my life-saving potion at a heavy discount.
Just as my thoughts ventured further into the future, I noticed the tunnel getting wider up ahead, turning into a small cavern.
Not only that, but the cavern's ceiling was reflecting slightly more dim teal light than usual, suggesting the presence of more moss.
However, I could also see the floor suddenly cutting off about 20 meters away, suggesting the base of this cavern was located farther down.
I motioned to my companions to stop and come closer, whispering my findings.
"There isn't much time left, right? Let's just see what's down there, at least. If it's more moss and rocks… we'll turn back."
Tim's suggestion sounded reasonable.
Quickly nodding, I approached the edge.
First, the vertical decline was less than three meters tall – if I stretched my hands and jumped hard enough, I was certain I could climb back up without any assistance.
The cavern itself was elliptical, around 30 meters in length. On the other side, it forked into two tunnels, each narrower than the one we just traveled.
Most importantly, on the ground, closer to one of the passages and near the cave wall, two small, green figures were laying.
Their decrepit short swords were laying beside them, and their heads were resting on top of two sacks, seemingly filled with the same meat we saw earlier. Their chests were rhythmically raising and falling.
My companions soon witnessed the sight as well, before I motioned for the three of us to fall back.
"Two of them, asleep. If we can get both, we have 7 trophies. Think this will do?"
"Umm… that'd be stretching it thin. But honestly, we should at least get most of the reward."
"Pinpin, can you get them from here?"
"I… wish I could say yes, but even if my aim stays true, I'm afraid I can't hit the neck with the first shot from here. Even if I fatally wound one, as long as it makes a bit of noise, the other will escape. And if I miss…"
"Yeah… this detour will have been for nothing."
I sighed. This wasn't as good as we could hope, but this was better than nothing. The only problem was…
"Say, Seb – do you see anything nearby that can hold a rope? With at least a halfling's worth of load on it?"
"No. I've checked."
There was no choice but jumping down. Under different circumstances, we could have maybe hammered the metal spike - thoughtfully prepared by Sebastian's father - into the floor, and used it for support. However, the sounds would certainly wake the goblins.
I sighted again, before formulating a plan.
"We can't afford to make a sound until we're close enough to charge them down. I think I can drop down quietly enough. Let's leave our backpacks here – they're far too heavy, anyway. Just take one dagger and the sack."
My companions nodded
"Tim, watch those tunnels, then follow me. You can step on my shoulders.. should be quiet enough. Same goes for you, Pinpin."
"Alright."
"Once we're down, sneak as close as we can. At ten steps you can shoot one, I'll charge the other. Then just grab the ears quickly and get the h.. hells out."
"Let's go."
"Onward!"
We quietly put down our bags, and began our descent.
I grabbed the edge with my hands, slowly lowering my body. This was a feat of athleticism I would never manage back home, but Sebastian was more than capable.
Upon stretching my hands fully, I let go, hitting the floor a moment later, doing my best to time bend my legs at the right moment for the quietest landing.
I swiftly threw a glance back – the goblins were still in the same spots. I could even hear their faint breaths - raspy and repulsive.
I leaned against the wall, eyes still locked on the targets.
Soon, I felt a weight on my shoulders, and saw two leather soles in the corners of my vision.
I crouched down, letting Tim slowly step off. Thankfully, he hadn't made a sound, and the goblins remained dormant.
I did the same thing for Pinpin, and the three of us stood less than 30 meters from our prize.
Motioning with my hand, I slowly began to move, with the other two following.
One step… two steps…
The distance between us and the goblins was now 25 meters. 20 meters… 17..
I suddenly raised my hand, forcing the party to halt.
Nothing had changed – however, as I got closer, it suddenly seemed to me like I saw the faint blue moss light reflect off of something in one of the dark tunnels ahead, even if for a fraction of a moment.
The moment we stopped, an inexplicable silence suddenly descended upon the cavern.
Before I could say anything, I saw glimmer in one of the tunnels ahead.
Everything happened in less than a second.
As the world slowed down, my eyes saw something long and sharp, made of dark gray metal, flying through the air.
Before my mouth opened, or my brain had fully processed it, my body was already beginning to move to the side.
However, in the next moment, I realized that spear (or harpoon?) was not flying my way – its trajectory was slightly off, aiming to my side, where…
"Tim!"
My mouth opened in a shout, but by the time sound started leaving my lips, Tim had only just begun reacting, his shield moving to cover his chest, his body beginning to move as well.
However, the barbed spear had already completed most of its path.
Slowly, I saw its edges brush against the shield's edge, sending splinters into the air and ever so slightly deviating from its trajectory – but not enough to stop it from piercing the leather chestpiece, tearing through the flesh before shattering the ribs with a crack.
The spear's tip poked from the other side Tim's armor, its barbed edges stopping its momentum and transferring the rest of it to the target's insides.
Tim's body fell backwards in a fountain of blood.
"TIMMY!"
The halfling's chilling scream pierced the stale cave air, as the two goblins ahead quietly grabbed their swords and stood up.. and the figure who threw the spear stepped out of the darkness.