Chapter 172: Ceaseless Battle (4)

Red squatted on top of one of the houses, on the lookout for the kobolds. The sun had set; the darkness enveloped the open clearing between the village and the jungle. His eyes were used to the darkness, so he could see into the distance. He saw a lot of silhouettes at the border of the jungle.

The kobolds arrived, lining up at the border. They seemed to be hesitant to launch an attack. The Chief and the other three Goblin Champions managed to create a tall pile of wood.

It was not tall enough to be an obstacle for the Elite Kobold Fighter. They could use Burst Leap to jump it over, but that would produce their desired result. That would separate the Elite Kobold Fighter and the normal kobolds. That would work in their favor, and he could attack the backline with his fireball to cover the Chief, who would engage the Elite Kobold Fighters.

Piling up the missing wall with the debris was simple yet very effective for their situation. He was glad to come up with it, though it was purely accidental.

"Are they attacking yet?" The Fool was sitting next to the house where Red was. He had been asking the same question many times, and Red had lost count.

"They haven’t moved yet, but they are at the edge of the jungle."

Red answered, giving the Goblin Champion the same answer as before.

The Goblin Champion clicked his tongue. "Can’t they attack already? What are they waiting for?"

Red ignored that part. If he were on the kobold’s side, he would hesitate to attack as well. The limited vision and the wall obstacle would put them at a disadvantage.

The hobgoblins and the goblins were hiding inside the house on his advice. They were hiding from the Elite Kobold Archers.

It seemed the kobolds could wait no longer. He saw the lines of kobolds running out of the jungle.

"The kobolds are attacking! Get ready!" Red shouted, warning the others.

"Finally!" The Fool was excited upon hearing that.

"I will set the archers on fire once the elites pass the wall!" Red shouted once more, using Burst Leap, heading to the right side. His jump was so high in the air, and he believed the kobold should not be able to see him. The village was dark as the Chief didn’t allow the torches to be lit.

He easily skipped over the wall, and he had learned to land without injuring himself. He landed on his feet, but didn’t roll over to avoid injuring himself this time. Then he dashed toward the jungle.

The jungle was totally different between noon and night. It was not just about the lightning, but also the temperature and the atmosphere. A slight breeze gave him a cold, causing him to shiver. It certainly became even more ominous.

Red tried his best not to go deeper. He climbed the tree and moved between the trees at one edge of the jungle. He stopped when he was in range for his bow and fireball.

Red took a deep breath when he got a clear look at his enemy. He didn’t get to see all of them before, but he saw them now. More than a hundred elites, Elite Kobold Fighters and Elite Kobold Archers combined.

The normal kobolds were the vanguard, the Elite Kobold Fighters followed them from behind closely, and the Elite Kobold Archers were the rearmost.

"Archers... my target is the archer..." With that in mind, Red went ahead, circling the kobolds.

He would attack them from behind instead of from the side. In case there were still more Kobold Scouts, he went up further in the tree and went slower, afraid of missing the Kobold Scouts.

To his surprise, he didn’t encounter the Kobold Scouts; he assumed there were no more Kobold Scouts. The thirty-three Kobold Scouts he killed earlier in the afternoon were all the Kobold Scouts.

By the time he arrived at the back of the kobold army, the kobolds were already halfway to the village. They didn’t charge toward the village, but they paced, walking.

For safety measures, Red checked the surroundings once more. He made sure that there were no kobolds staying behind in the jungle. He made sure there would be no kobolds behind; only then did he climb down from the tree. In the dark night, he didn’t hide on top of the tree.

Red scanned the kobold army once more. If those were all the kobolds, that meant there was no Kobold Chief. That was the good news, as it would be a problem if the wounded Chief had to fight another Kobold Chief.

"Let’s start with fire, shall we?"

He let out a toothy grin as he directed his right hand toward the line of Kobold Archers. Through Mana Authority, he drew 210 mana from his core, seven times the mana required for a fireball.

The fire burst out on his palm, lighting the dark jungle. The fire got bigger, forming the swirling fireball. He quickly released the fireball.

Swish!

The fireball, three times the size of his head, flew toward the Elite Kobold Archers. The fireball lit the dark clearing. That caused the kobold army to halt their advance. It was impossible not to notice the bright crimson lightning from the fireball.

All the kobolds turned around only to see the fireball. None of the kobolds, including the elite kobolds, managed to react to the incoming fireball. The fireball hit the middle line of the Elite Kobold Archers.

Boom!

The fireball exploded; the fire burst upward, swirling and expanding. The fire swallowed the closest kobolds; their screams echoed. Chaos ensued as the kobolds scrambled around.

The normal kobolds ran forward, trying to avoid the fire. They rushed toward the village. Meanwhile, the Elite Kobold Fighters that were far from the fire merely distanced themselves from the fire.

Around eleven Elite Kobold Archers were running around while on fire. Their cloaks became fuel for the fire, burning their body. Meanwhile, Red was hiding behind the tree, peeking from behind the tree to see the aftermath.

"Beautiful!" He muttered.

That fireball messed up the Kobold Army. The Kobold Warrior and Kobold Hunters ran ahead of the elite kobolds. They climbed up the pile of woods to get over to the village. However, what awaited them in the village was a flock of goblins and hobgoblins.

The kobolds could not cross into the village together. They came in a small group of five or six, which was quickly swarmed by the goblins and the hobgoblins. The last battle gave them motivation to fight with fervor. Knowing they would be able to get the loot, they gave their all.

Meanwhile, the Elite Kobold Fighters and the Elite Kobold Archers didn’t follow their frontline. They were busy looking for the culprit who shot the fireball. They could not see what was inside the jungle, let alone find the culprit with their restricted vision. The night became a cover for Red.

"Good... Waste your time looking for me while your underlings get slaughtered..."

Red could not see what happened inside the village, but those normal kobolds would not be able to face off against a swarm of goblins and hobgoblins. Especially when they could not fight together with their friends.

"Keep wasting your time on me..." He grinned ear to ear, noticing the elite kobolds were still looking for him.

Even after the first fireball, the elite kobolds remained in a group, staying close to each other. That was the ideal situation for him. He could shoot them with his bow, but he decided not to reveal his position to them. The fire was still crackling, charring the ground. All the bodies were still on fire, burning the flesh crisp.

"Twenty breaths..." He did a countdown in his head.

Now some of the elite kobolds were starting to look at the village, focusing back on the village. They were clearly torn about whether to find the one who shot the fireball or attack the village.

"Ten breaths..."

Some of the elite kobolds started following their frontline. The Elite Kobold Archers were still wary, but they didn’t have any choice but to go forward. There was a short discussion among them. They decided to leave five Elite Kobold Archers and ten Elite Kobold Archers behind. Those fifteen elite kobolds were watching the dark jungle.

"That’s actually smart... They leave a group to keep watch, and they will warn the others if I shoot another fireball..."

That gave him no choice but to pull his bow. He climbed on the tree, staying on the lowest branch. He squatted on one knee, pulling his new arrow from the quiver.

This time he coated his arrow with mana. It was not to increase the firepower of his arrow, but to increase his arrow speed. It took him forty-five mana to do a full mana coating. His target was the Elite Kobold Archers.

Red fired his first shot. His arrow whistled through the air and pierced one Kobold Archer’s head. The arrow went through the head and even hit the Elite Kobold Archers that went closer to the village.