Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 235 Specialty: Killing Goblins

Xia Nan was delighted to see Violet in the team.

As for the reason, it was naturally not the other person's fair and delicate face, which was usually only found in aristocratic families and was not exposed to the wind and sun.

Rather, it was because of his identity as a "mage".

Why are spellcasters, especially mages, so popular among adventurers on the continent of Aifar? Even mage apprentices who only know a few tricks are still sought after by many professional teams.
The flames and lightning formed by magical particles, and the damaging magic that is difficult for ordinary people to touch, are only part of the reason.

Most importantly, the mage profession demonstrates unparalleled versatility in dealing with all kinds of situations.

A level 1 mage with all the required spells.

Even if we exclude those spells that might be difficult to use, and ignore the improved versions of spells that might require some effort to memorize, we can still understand them.

Let's start with the most basic "trick" located at the bottom of the pyramid of laws.

There are many types that can greatly improve the adventure experience and increase the margin for error.

"Communication techniques" allow individuals to communicate directly with a target in complex environments, overcoming spatial barriers and even penetrating or bypassing obstacles.

"The Mage's Hand" is a floating hand made of magical particles and mental energy. Within a range of 30 feet, you can control it to do anything that an ordinary human hand can do.

"Dancing Light Spell" creates 1 to 4 magical light sources that float in the air and can move freely, eliminating the need to waste precious manpower on carrying torches and lanterns.

For adventurers deep in the wilderness, with no one to rely on but themselves and their teammates, having or not having these highly functional spells makes almost two completely different experiences.

For spellcasters who possess spatial storage magic, even in the remote wilderness far from towns, they can enjoy freshly cooked, fragrant dishes and chilled beer every night—a wonderful experience that ordinary adventurers could never imagine.

A full year has passed since I traveled through time, and I finally have a legendary "mage" teammate.

Xia Nan had to admit that he secretly hoped for something.

Especially considering that they had already been in contact with the girl before and knew that she seemed to have a nice personality and was not difficult to get along with.

Violet seemed quite pleasantly surprised by this.

As soon as his gaze swept over her, the slender mage girl with a high ponytail sprang up from the sofa with a "whoosh," as if she were a spring.

His face was somewhat stiff, but he paid extra attention to etiquette, flashing a standard smile that revealed eight teeth.

"Mr. Xia... Mr. Xia Nan, I never expected to see you here. What a coincidence!"

As expected of a legendary mage, his level of politeness is indeed different from that of the burly adventurers in town.

Xia Nan sighed inwardly.

On the other side, seemingly surprised by Vera's performance, Wood welcomed Xia Nan into the house and tentatively asked:
"You and Violet...knew each other before?"

“I met her at the association a few days ago because of a request, and she helped me with a few things.”

"I see." Wood nodded and smiled, "That's perfect. It's always easier to get along with someone you know than someone you don't."

"You already know the general outline of the mission. Time is tight, so I won't waste any more time on pleasantries."

Let me first introduce our team configuration to you, which will facilitate our subsequent cooperation.

"First of all, you know Young Master Hai'an."

As he spoke, Wood stepped aside to make way for him.

Standing at the back of the room, the half-elf Hai'an, who had just tied his longbow back to his back, stepped forward and extended his hand to Xia Nan with a smile.

"haven't seen you for a long time."

"I'm so sorry, because of family matters, I wasn't able to properly entertain you when you visited Neum last time."

"If I have another chance in the future... I will definitely make it up to you."

He shook hands, then gently shook his head, indicating that the other person didn't need to worry about it.

Xia Nan sized up the second son of the Lord of Newm City in front of him.

Compared to when we last met in the misty forest, it was obvious that the other person looked much more haggard and not very energetic.

But his physical condition should be okay. His long silver hair, inherited from his elf mother, is still neatly tied back, and there is still color in his face.

It's worth mentioning that almost a year has passed since we last met.

He had transformed from a low-level adventurer who only knew the [Whirlwind Slash] skill into a proper professional.

However, the opponent still failed to take that step. Judging from the intensity of their aura, they are still in the stage where they have not yet obtained a professional level.

This made him feel somewhat sentimental about the passage of time and the changing of the world.

"Then there's Luca, who, like me, is a guard of the Wycliffe family, a warrior."

Following the direction Wood pointed out, what came into view was a burly, robust man with a square, honest face.

He opened his mouth towards Xia Nan, but didn't say anything. He just smiled shyly and scratched his head.

Hmm, their strength seems pretty good.

Xia Nan's gaze swept over the opponent's strong, solid muscles in his arms, as well as the iron axe and shield in his hands, allowing him to assess the opponent's combat strength and fighting style.

Should he be positioned as a front-line melee fighter in the squad?

“And this one, Lady Sava, a dragonborn warrior.” Wood introduced them one by one, “Her clan has a long-standing relationship with our Wycliff family, and they are trustworthy.”

The argument with the other party in the room had already made Wood secretly prepared for Sava to transfer his anger to Xia Nan. He had prepared his thoughts in advance, just waiting for the other party to lash out so as to stop him immediately and reduce the impact on the atmosphere of the entire escort team.

But what I didn't expect was that Sava, who had been so aggressive and dismissive of Xia Nan just now because of his status as a "new professional," was now in a different situation.

However, he did not exhibit the offensive behavior he had imagined.

Although he wasn't particularly enthusiastic, he still crossed his arms, kept a cold face, and nodded slightly to Xia Nan.

Dragonborn?

The strange face, resembling a humanoid lizard, was reflected in his dark eyes, and Xia Nan couldn't help but feel a little curious.

Having stayed in Riverdale for so long, he had seen many races such as dwarves, elves, and orcs, but dragonborn... this was indeed the first time he had ever seen one.

He couldn't help but recall the fragmented information about this race that he had learned through various channels during this period.

Contrary to his previous belief, they are a species born from the mating of dragons and humanoid beings in this world. Although the Dragonborn also share similar classifications with the dragons in terms of metals, colors, and gemstones, the specific origins of the race have been shrouded in mystery due to the embellishments and dissemination by those with ulterior motives and the erosion of history.

For many dragons, the so-called "dragon offspring" are nothing more than defective products that come with the birth of the great dragons, born to be enslaved and driven by them, dedicating their entire lives and loyalty to the great dragon race.

However, in the Dragonborn's own mythology and epic, they are the origin of all things in this world. All species, including humans, evolved from the original Dragonborn and are the oldest and noblest race.

Some theologians have found relevant records in several ancient books about the Shaper and speculated that the birth of the "Dragonborn" comes from the blood of this great being.

This viewpoint, once it was introduced, angered countless dragons and dragon worshippers.

If what this theologian said is true, it means that "Dragonborn" and "Dragon" are not subordinate to each other.

Tracing back to the source, it stands on equal footing with the [Platinum Dragon God] and the [Colorful Dragon Queen].

He and the dragon are brothers.

There are many theories about the origin of the Dragonborn race, and only those few beings sitting high above the divine realm know the truth.

Now, they have escaped the humiliation of being enslaved by dragons and have spread across the continent of Aifar, forming clans and possessing the right to move freely.

According to Xia Nan's judgment, the Sava woman standing in front of him should belong to the Bronze Dragon race among the Dragonborn.

Her mixed bloodline caused the scales on her body, visible outside her armor, to have an irregular color distribution, and the overall appearance was not so pure, showing a dark yellowish-brown color.

It's like an old copper coin that has passed through countless hands and has been polished to a patina.

She was tall and agile, two heads taller than an average human woman, and could look Xia Nan, who was nearly 1.9 meters tall, in the eye.
Broad and powerful shoulders, a clear skeleton beneath the scales, yet the muscle lines do not appear bulky at all, flowing smoothly down to a lean waist, and then extending to two strong, full, and powerful long legs.

Hmm... It doesn't have a tail.

She habitually raised her head slightly, her dark green vertical pupils, like those of a lizard, seemed as cold as a cold-blooded animal. Her lowered center of gravity gave her a sense of stability, as if she were rooted to the ground, simply by standing.

Perhaps it's the subtle curves that flow through the body's lines, or perhaps it's some small, clearly defined movements.

Even though this Ms. Sava hadn't said a word since he entered, and her lizard-like head, with its mouth big enough to swallow a child's head whole, showed absolutely no feminine features, Xia Nan was able to tell her gender at a glance.

In my past life, many people with unique aesthetic tastes would have been interested in the Dragonborn race, discovering their special beauty in the curves of their muscles, sharp teeth, and vertical pupils hidden beneath their scales.

Meanwhile, as Wood introduced Sava, Xia Nan's gaze naturally swept over him, pondering to himself.

The athletic female dragon descendant was also sizing up the black-haired youth in front of her.

In the public's perception, Dragonborn are generally passionate and self-disciplined, with high standards for themselves and their teammates, and regard the honor of their clan as something they must uphold in their lives.

While Sawa may not be as kind and friendly as her people, she is quite selective when it comes to choosing teammates.

It's impossible for Xia Nan to instantly change his attitude just because he's an acquaintance of Wood and Hai'an.

The reason why he was willing to greet Xia Nan was because his behavior was different from when he argued with Wood.

On one hand, she noticed a somewhat abrupt change in the mage named "Veiro" in the group behind her after the black-haired youth entered.

The other party has been in the team for a few days now, and his identity as a spellcaster, as well as the strength he showed before joining the team, have already earned Sava's approval.

She could also clearly sense that when interacting with everyone in the team, including herself, there was a seemingly polite and enthusiastic but actually vague and indescribable sense of distance between her and everyone else.

Sava didn't care about this, taking it as just the spellcaster's pride.

But strangely, after this black-haired young man entered the room...

The blurred boundaries and sense of alienation that existed around Violet were broken by a stronger emotion.

He recalled the expression he had glimpsed on the girl's face during that brief moment of acquaintance.

"Panic? Fear?"

Sava suddenly felt that his thoughts were somewhat absurd, and for the first time, he began to doubt his own perception abilities.

On the other hand, what changed her attitude, though she still harbored doubts, was that she no longer simply regarded Xia Nan as a novice professional.

It was also because she sensed, under the other party's gaze, a faint, piercing danger emanating from the depths of his dark eyes.

Wherever your gaze sweeps, even the scales on its surface seem to tremble slightly.

"The last one, since you two know each other, I won't waste any more words."

As Wood's introduction reached her ears, Xia Nan's gaze naturally shifted away from Sava.

“Veer, the only spellcaster in our team.”

On the other side of the room, a girl standing ramrod straight, as if at military posture, greeted him again.

Seeing Wood looking at him, he understood what the other person meant.

Xia Nan also introduced himself to everyone:
"Xia Nan, a professional warrior, specializes in... well, lately he's been killing goblins quite a bit."

The attitude was sincere, and the tone was earnest.

At this point, the escort team was fully assembled.

Judging from the team composition, it can be said to be very good.

The front row features Luca, a shield-wielding axe-wielding fighter; Sava, a secondary attacker providing support; Wood, a wanderer roaming around; Haian, a bow-wielding archer positioned in the back; and the mage Violet, who occupies the center of the team and controls the entire field, along with the highly mobile libero Shanan.

A well-rounded six-person team with virtually no weaknesses.

Xia Nan even felt that with this configuration, they would have a fighting chance against that owl bear from back then.

As a member of the team, this was my first time working with such professional teammates.

A sense of excitement even crept into my heart.

With time limited, after introductions, Wood reiterated the details of the escort mission to everyone.

Target to be protected: Hai'an;
Destination: Nian Shu Ling – a territory within Yuan Sha Province that borders Pan Yun Province;
Dangers that may need to be guarded against: monsters encountered along the way, bandits roaming the wilderness, and pursuers from behind Nium (slightly possible).

"Everyone is here now. Let's use the last half day to double-check for any oversights."

"We'll set off after the sun sets!"

(End of this chapter)