Our Dharma Masters are like this.

Chapter 44 Beheading Operation
However, the team did not encounter any unexpected situations along the way. Occasionally, they would encounter a few wild beasts, but they would all wisely slip away and not dare to provoke these fully armed adventurers.

After traveling for about two hours, Hill suddenly appeared at the front of the group.

"It's almost there."

Hill tilted his head. "The Misty Cave is at the foot of the mountain ahead, and there are three goblins guarding the entrance."

The team members immediately perked up and entered a state of combat readiness.

They began to move forward as silently as possible, without making a loud noise.

After passing through a barrier formed by a large clump of ferns, the view suddenly opened up.

In the middle of the Greywood Forest, a majestic mountain range stretches across the landscape, creating a spectacular sight.

Beneath the steep mountain wall directly in front of them, there was a huge opening—the Misty Cave.

The Misty Cave is located in a low-lying area, like a natural basin, where an underground river flowing from the depths of the mountains converges.

The river water evaporates and mixes with the moisture from the surrounding woodland, creating a hazy, misty scene, like clouds and fog.

“It’s fog again…” Zellier waved his hand.

The familiar scene before me gave me a strange sense of déjà vu, and the image of the Mist Demon involuntarily popped into my head.

As Hill had said, there were three hunchbacked creatures wielding crude clubs in front of the Misty Cave.

They are only about one meter tall, much shorter than normal humans.

Adventurers' Guild General Monster Encyclopedia

[Sequence 1]: Goblin

Individual Threat Rating: [Simple]

Appearance features:

They are short, humanoid creatures with dirty green or yellowish-brown skin, thin limbs, and long, pointed ears.

Lifestyle habits:
Individual goblins are extremely timid and exist at the bottom of the food chain, but when their numbers gather to a certain extent, their ferocious and greedy nature will be revealed.

They prefer to occupy dark caves, and occasionally they appear in settlements that resemble small villages.

Goblins have a strict hierarchy. Unlike a disorganized wild beast, they know how to use tools or fight in groups.

Core weakness:

Goblins have weaknesses everywhere, so there's no need to target them specifically; a farmer with a hoe could easily kill one.

Association Notes:

The first and most important lesson for novice adventurers: Never underestimate any monster.

Despite their small size, many adventurers die at the hands of goblins every year due to underestimating them. Always be vigilant!

Other.

Stop adding those weird goblin variants to the Pokédex! Especially the Prancing Horse Town branch!
The group retreated a little and began to discuss countermeasures in hushed tones.

"Looks like there are only these three on lookout outside."

Marcus glanced around at his teammates. "The white-haired goblin, the orc goblin, and the other main goblin forces are all inside the cave."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's charge in and kill them all!" Gak exclaimed excitedly.

"Charging headlong into the enemy is suicide. Goblin lairs are often very complicated, and you can easily fall into any trap. Do you want to get your stomach pierced by a spear smeared with dung?"

Vales said, "Don't forget that Rhodes Squad died at their hands."

"Then how about using fire? Just block the entrance to the cave, blow smoke in, and once they can't stand the smoke, they'll naturally come out, and then we'll kill them."

Gray patted the bundle behind him. "I just happened to bring torches." "That won't do. We don't know if this cave has other exits. What if we alert them and they escape?"

Marcus shook his head. "As long as the white-haired goblin is alive, it can quickly rebuild a small goblin colony."

The team fell into a brief silence as everyone pondered a solution.

"Let's lure the snake out of its hole," Zellier suddenly said.

"How do you intend to attract them?" Hill asked Zell.

“Marcus, you, Gray, and Gack go over there and distract them.”

Zellier picked up a twig and gestured on the ground, "The Rhodes Squad was killed by them not long ago. Now that they see only three people, they will definitely be careless and launch a full-scale attack."

"Then all you have to do is stall them, lure these guys out little by little, and lead them towards us. Vales and I will lie in ambush in the bushes, and when the white-haired goblin appears, we'll snipe him in one fell swoop!"

Marcus thought for a moment and nodded slightly.

"I think it's a good idea. What are your opinions?"

“Dealing with a group of goblins with white hair definitely requires a decapitation tactic, otherwise it will be very troublesome,” Vales agreed.

Moreover, after being promoted to intermediate ranger, he was confident that he could handle this sniping mission, and no goblin could stop his arrows.

Gray and Gack both nodded.

“Then you three draw their attention from the front, and I’ll provide support from the sides. If anything unexpected happens when the white-haired goblin appears, I can also carry out the assassination,” Hill said.

“Okay, let’s execute it that way.” Marcus set the tactics.

……

Entrance to the Misty Cave.

A goblin was squatting idly on a mossy boulder, teasing a dung beetle with its finger, causing the dung beetle to frequently change the direction it was crawling.

Finally, when it got tired of playing, it simply grabbed a dung beetle, threw it into its mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it.

Meanwhile, the other two goblins were communicating in their unique language.

"whisper……"

One of the smaller goblins rubbed its belly and made a weak sound, "Waaaaah..."

(I'm so hungry, do you have anything to eat?)
“Waaaah! Ah, gurgle gurgle!” another goblin responded impatiently.

(I didn't, you'll just have to bear with it!)

"Gurgle... Gaa gaa, chirp gaa." The first goblin looked disappointed.

(I really miss that feast from the other day; human flesh is so delicious!)
"Gawawa! Gua!"

(Stop complaining, just stand at your post!)
Goblins assigned to stand guard at the entrance usually have a low status in the community, get no benefits from anything they do, and go hungry every day.

Even with the rare human flesh feast just two days ago, they could only barely get a piece of meat and two sips of soup.

A gentle breeze blew by, and the mist drifted by. Suddenly, the goblin on guard widened his eyes.

It saw three dark figures appear ahead and were rapidly approaching!
"Gagaku waka! Gagaku waka!"

(Warning! Warning! Something's up!)
This shout immediately alerted the two goblins beside it.

"Make your move!" Marcus said in a deep voice.

The three of them started running at high speed, heading straight for the cave entrance, which startled the three goblins.

(End of this chapter)