Inside a well-hidden cave, 5 people were sitting around a campfire. They were huddled close together, as it was nightti, and the forest beca quite cold after the sun went down.
"Lafia, I told you taking this quest was a bad idea! I had a gut feeling sothing would go wrong…"
"Oh, shut up. If your gut feeling was dependable, you wouldn't have lost all your money in gambling."
"Hey! You know I was drunk and…"
"Can you two shut up? It's already irritating enough that we are stuck here because of goblins. I can't bear to listen to you guys yapping about dumb shit."
"Seconded."
"Thirded."
Out of the five party mbers, Lafia, the party leader, sighed and shut her mouth. Usually, she would ignore the grumbling of her party mage, Alina, and continue to bicker with Adam, the rogue, but the situation was not that joyous.
"The adventurer's guild must've sent soone capable to help us, the town cannot casually lose a D-rank party like ours. People of our level are not that great in numbers around here."
The party's priest, Thomas, said to lift up the mood of the party. Seeing Lafia, their loud and carefree swordsman, lose her vigor was sothing that would overall negatively affect all of them.
"Hmm, well, all we can do is wait here for a while and try to et up with the rescue adventurer. We have tried raiding them 5 tis already, but that chief's commanding ability and battle formation are too much to handle. Now, with our injured state, we can only attempt to sneak out after we're healed."
Their tank, Rolan, said with a somber tone. He was the one who was the most injured, with him being wrapped up in bandages from head to toe.
Lafia noticed the somber mood and decided to cheer her party mbers up. She got up, although with great difficulty due to her injured leg, and gave a motivating speech.
"Look, we're all alive, and all the injuries we have can be healed easily. If we look at it this way, we haven't truly lost anything, except so fa and money. That can never compare to our lives and livelihood.
I say we get together with the rescue adventurer, leave this damn forest, and attempt the raid after we're healed up and properly prepared. Lafia's Super Duper Cool Party will not take this loss lying down!"
"I swear, I'll kill you one day for writing that na on the party form."
"Why? You guys are sowhat cool, and with , the great Lafia here, you will beco super duper cool!"
"I'd rather give myself as an offering to the hobgoblins than ever acknowledge that na."
"Not you too, Alina! It's not that bad!"
Thomas smiled after seeing the atmosphere light up a bit. There was a reason they put up with Lafia as their leader, and it was more than her swordsmanship.
Adam was laughing after seeing Alina and Lafia argue, but suddenly he felt a tug on his finger. His expression imdiately beca serious as he announced in an urgent hushed tone.
"Guys! There's soone approaching."
The party imdiately got ready with their weapons in their hands. Alina readied a spell to cast, and Adam began preparing his traps and tools.
*step* *step* *step*
They heard footsteps of soone approaching their cave. The whole party tensed up, their experience with the hobgoblins still fresh in their mind.
Suddenly, the footsteps stopped.
"I sense a lot of killing intent, so I want to inform you that I'm human, not a hobgoblin."
"Oh yeah? That's sothing a hobgoblin would say!"
"..."
Even Lafia's party mbers looked at her weirdly after she said that. She had a stoic face, but internally she was burning up with embarrassnt because that line was sothing that was supposed to be an inner thought and not slip out of her tongue.
"Uh, I don't think I would be speaking coherent words if I was a hobgoblin, little girl."
Soon, the footsteps resud and a silhouette ca into view of the whole party. It was a small boy who was dressed in all black, wearing a velvet cape and holding a sword. The sword and the clothes looked damaged and stained with dried blood like he had just arrived after fighting a war.
"I'm Xavier, the D-rank adventurer who was sent to rescue your party. Were you the guys who had trouble with the hobgoblin outpost?"
"...Yes, we are. But, are you really the one who was sent by the adventurer's guild? No offense, but you look like a child." Alina asked, confused by the mismatch of Xavier's deanor and looks.
"Well, that's because I am a child. Any questions?"
"A lot. How are you-"
"When did I say I'll answer them? Now, let's go. I don't want to waste any more ti."
"Wait, but what about the hobgoblins? They patrol extensively at night." Rolan said, and Thomas followed up.
"That's right. Plus, we are injured. If we get attacked by them, there's a high chance that we may die."
Xavier looked into the eyes of the party mbers, each one of them weary and exhausted from the recent ordeals they had to go through. He sighed, saying what none of them could believe.
"All the hobgoblins are dead. I have slain them all. Are you capable of just traveling back, or are you too injured for that?"
"...I'm not in the mood for jokes. There were hundreds of hobgoblins and many elite-level ones, not to ntion the tactical chief. How are we supposed to believe that?"
Adam finally spoke up, his frustration visible. How could a random child just walk in and say these absurd claims while being a rude little shit?
Xavier coldly looked at Adam, his patience running thin.
"Are you guys going to keep this interrogation up? I've said that the hobgoblins are dead. Let's get moving, otherwise, I'll just report you dead."
"What? You damn-"
"Stop it, Adam."
Lafia spoke up loudly and with a commanding tone. Her party mbers instantly looked towards her, who was looking at Xavier's red eyes.
"Let's go with him. I believe he's not lying."
Xavier looked at the girl, who had bright green eyes and black hair, with amusent.
'Oh? This one's interesting.'
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