Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

With a clang, a longsword struck a shield made of solid ice.

Ciel frowned, looking at the high-ponytailed girl on the other side of the shield, and realized for the first time that his magic seemed to have failed.

He has now developed the habit of frequently casting [Group Intelligence Reduction Curse] and [Group Language Curse] on himself, coupled with the charm-boosting effect of the [Mysterious Pact Between Vampires and Werewolves], which allows him to deal with various enemies on multiple occasions. Even Quetzalcoatl hesitated for a moment when facing him, and was easily persuaded.

Captain Byron, being an ordinary person, was caught in a dilemma and was on the verge of "surrendering".

But now this Crusader girl was completely unaffected; her spirit remained as firm as a rock, and her faith did not waver in the slightest.

With a "bang," the second sword struck down like lightning, shattering the ice shield. Although Pazzani had already gathered water magic again, it was too late to save Sharl.

Seeing Diana raise her sword, preparing to charge at him again, Charles immediately took out an acceleration scroll from his back waist. With a "sizzle," a green light flashed on his body, and then he felt his whole body become lighter.

"Stop!" A loud shout came from behind Diana. Little John gripped his longsword and charged forward, trying to rescue his boss. Unfortunately, in terms of combat experience, the Crusader's commander-in-chief was probably the most experienced among everyone present. She completely ignored Pazzani's ice spikes and Little John's longsword, instead slightly lowering her body and then shooting towards Charles like an arrow.

"To catch the thief, catch the king first?" Xia Er's eyes widened. He didn't have time to think and turned to run. He had already used [Hero's Heart] when he fought Quetzalcoatl some time ago. The effect of being immune to one fatal blow had entered the cooldown. In other words, if this girl with the high ponytail pierced Xia Er's heart with her sword, she could directly achieve the effect of "The End of This Book".

Seeing that the other party was getting closer and closer, Charles felt that even with the boost from the [Acceleration] scroll, he still couldn't effectively avoid their pursuit. However, Pazzani and John had already approached Diana and would soon enter the battle, at which point he should be safe.

With a clang, the sound of metal clashing rang out. Diana blocked Little John's slash with her twin swords, while the Naga prince conjured three blue and white ice spears, ready to be thrown at any moment.

"Phew—" Charles breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that as long as he stayed far away, he should be safe.

"Run, boss!" Little John shouted, wildly swinging his longsword and attacking relentlessly. "She has three longswords."

After the shout, a sword rang out in mid-air, and a long sword fell down with a "whoosh," heading straight for Charles's head.

Upon hearing John's reminder, Charles didn't think twice and rolled to the side. When he quickly stood up, he realized that a longsword was nearly half-inserted into the soil where he had just been standing.

"Three longswords?" He stood there in astonishment. "When did this guy draw his third sword?"

As if in response to his question, the third longsword began to sway slightly, then was pulled directly from the ground and floated in mid-air.

"Third Uncle, go after the goblin, but don't kill him. He's still useful." Diana effortlessly parried Little John's attacks. She easily dodged his sword strikes by simply shifting her position. If it weren't for the three ice spears nearby, she could have easily pierced Little John with a single sword strike.

Upon hearing the girl's command, the floating longsword suddenly thrust towards Xia Er, at which point everyone else was too preoccupied to pay attention to him.

"Flying sword?" Xia Er gritted his teeth, then immediately activated [Ability Overdraft]. A flash of white light appeared, and his strength and agility would double, as would the effect of the Acceleration spell.

He took off running, weaving through the bushes, trying to evade the flying swords chasing him from behind.

The other goblins around dared not step forward. They could only hold the weapons at hand and stand there shouting, while many picked up stones from the ground and threw them at Diana, completely ignoring the little John who was entangled in the fight.

"You, a human, are helping goblins?" Diana dodged Little John's longsword, then slapped away a flying rock with her sword.

"What? Surprised?" Little John steadied himself; a few stones had hit him earlier. "He helped me when I was in danger. He's more human than some humans."

"He's a goblin." Diana frowned, flicked her high ponytail, and then kicked Little John in the ribs.

After rolling around a few times, Little John immediately got up. He wiped the grass clippings off his face, staring intently at the other person. "So what if they're goblins? Are humans superior?"

With a "whoosh," three ice spears attacked Diana directly. The icy aura seemed about to pierce through the girl, but the Crusader commander didn't even look at them. Instead, he threw a longsword in his hand. The longsword seemed to be held by someone, and it kept dancing in the air, knocking all the ice spears away.

With a "whoosh," three ice spears attacked Diana directly. The icy aura seemed about to pierce through the girl, but the Crusader commander didn't even look at them. Instead, he threw a longsword in his hand. The longsword seemed to be held by someone, and it kept dancing in the air, knocking all the ice spears away.

Seeing that his opponent only had a longsword, John seized the opportunity and lunged forward, thrusting his sword straight at her. Unfortunately, Diana dodged the sword with a quick spin and then kicked John in the ribs, sending him flying once again.

"I don't know what you've been through, but I can sense that you're not a bad person," Diana said, reaching out and sending the flying sword she had just tossed back into her hand. "But you're a fool. How could goblins be noble? They are evil and greedy monsters. Even if he helped you temporarily, he did so with an ulterior motive, intending to deceive you."

"You're the idiot," Little John gripped his longsword and stood up again. "Although some people used to call me number one idiot, I can still tell good from evil. I can tell whether these goblins are good or bad."

"If it were really as you say, there should be human bones gnawed on everywhere here. They would probably be playing with human skulls in their hands, or even throwing them at you." Little John raised his longsword and pointed it at the girl opposite him, shouting loudly. He knew what goblins were like before, and he knew what these goblins who followed Shire were like now.

Before becoming an adventurer, he grew up hearing about the fearsome reputation of goblins. Adults would say that if you kept causing trouble, a goblin would rush out of the forest, grab your leg, and drag you into the woods.

But after getting to know these guys, he realized that goblins also have feelings, thoughts, and a sense of good and evil. After they have eaten and clothed themselves, they would look for wildflowers in the forest, pluck them, and make a crown to wear on their heads. They would also play a game called "hitting the flying stick" in groups, laughing and waving sticks.

"At least they're much better than those bloodthirsty nobles; at least they'll stick skulls around their territory as a warning to any intruders." This was Little John's joke, and it seems quite fitting now.

Diana drew her twin swords, her eyes scanning the goblins in the distance who were cowering but not fleeing. Just as Little John had said, there were indeed no human remains here. Although some skeletons were scattered in the corners of the collapsed walls, they were clearly the bones of wild beasts. And some of these goblins were even wearing well-fitting clothes, which were obviously made on purpose and not stolen from humans.

Even these goblins were behaving strangely. Usually, they would have already run away after a loud shout by now, but not one of them ran away. They were clearly still afraid, but even though they were locked behind the broken stone wall, they still threw out the stones in their hands.

"Hmph," Diana snorted, "I don't know what happened, but Uncle Three is the most resourceful swordsman. I think he'll bring that goblin back soon."

"I'll ask you all about it then. You, lie down first," she said, spreading her arms and lowering her body before rushing straight toward Little John.

Seeing the other party charging towards him, Little John hurriedly raised his sword to defend himself, but with a "bang," a lot of dust was kicked up in front of them as a giant hammer was smashed between the two of them.

…………

Charles kept darting in and out of the grass, while pulling out another scroll from his lower back—a scroll with the spell "Grease Your Feet."

Now the flying sword has abandoned its attempt to follow through the bushes and has instead flown through the air, waiting for an opening to strike the exposed goblin.

Charles used his agility to dodge the sword's edge every time, but he knew this wasn't a solution. If he made a mistake even once, he would be injured, and his agility would be greatly reduced, and he would soon be controlled by the flying sword.

Now he plans to use another scroll on himself to enhance his running ability. The effect of [Ability Overdraft] lasts for one hour. By then, others should be able to control the Crusader's commander-in-chief, so this flying sword will be nothing.

He ducked into a bush, then grabbed the reel with both hands. With a "sizzle," a flash of green light appeared on his body, and Charles felt his legs become much more agile.

But during the spell's duration, his body paused. In that less than a second, his movements were frozen in place, and the flying sword seized the opportunity to stab straight at him.

The flying sword was incredibly fast, much faster than any previous attack. It was as if a swordsman had patiently waited for the opponent to reveal a weakness after several attempts, and then seized the opportunity to strike decisively the moment the weakness flashed by.

"What the hell!" Charles' eyes widened, and he stomped his feet on the ground, but he was fast, and the flying sword was even faster, the longsword about to pierce the goblin's body.

"You're going to die!" Red Eyes yelled as he ran over and grabbed his black sword from the ground.

"You've arrived?" Charles looked at his men, feeling reassured.

"They told me." Red Eyes gripped the longsword in his hand, watching the flying sword opposite him warily. They had been sent by Sharl to tidy up the southern part of the city, which was now a large construction site, and a large number of the tribe's manpower was being used there.

This also led to Diana's surprise aerial attack, catching Charles off guard.

"Where's Cao Cao?" Xia Er asked warily, standing behind him and drawing his own two short blades.

"They went over there." Red Eyes raised his chin and pointed to the distance, where the battlefield was between Little John and the Holy Army's commander-in-chief.

…………

"Troll?" Diana stared in astonishment at the grass rushing towards her. This guy was three meters tall and had a strong, muscular body. Although he wasn't wearing any armor, his body looked like an enraged beast.

"I'm going to beat you to death!" the troll yelled, rushing between the two and then picking up the hammer from the ground with one hand.

This hammer looks like a tool hammer used on construction sites to hammer wooden stakes, only much larger, and it doesn't look out of place at all in the troll's hands.

An angry Cao Cao was now shirtless, with her trousers rolled up to her knees, looking as if she had just come from a construction site.

"As expected, these guys are no good. There's even a troll among them." Diana gripped her longsword tightly, her eyes fixed on Cao Cao opposite her. The opponent was much more threatening than Little John, especially the troll's [Regeneration] ability. This ability was troublesome, and the troll, which was three meters tall, was obviously as tall as Little Giant. It would be difficult to defend against the force of its attacks.

As soon as she finished speaking, instead of retreating, she advanced, pushing off with both feet and charging towards the troll, while her hasty hammer slammed down.

Unfortunately, the hammer wasn't handy, and it bounced back after hitting the ground, causing Cao Cao's movements to pause for a moment.

Diana dodged the blow and suddenly closed in, wielding her longswords and delivering several slashes and thrusts in an instant.

Blood spurted out, and Cao Cao had to use one hand to protect his body. He already had several wounds on his body, while Diana beside him swung her longsword even faster.

With a clang, a long sword pierced through the air at an angle, forcing Diana back. Little John shook his aching hand, his eyes fixed on the retreating girl.

"You're so stubborn." Diana's tone revealed annoyance for the first time.

She had never felt this way before, but in her eyes, John's actions seemed somewhat misguided.

"Cao Cao is a good kid." Little John smirked and then stretched out a hand to the troll beside him.

The troll, whose body was emanating a faint red mist, was beginning to heal its wounds. But when it saw Little John's outstretched hand, it looked down at its stomach and thought, "I forgot to bring any food."

Without Furu by his side, Little John couldn't understand Cao Cao's words, but seeing the other's apologetic face, he smiled, reached out and patted the troll's body, "It's okay, beat her down, and I'll buy you a new one."

Diana frowned at the two men opposite her, wanting to say something, but a voice from afar interrupted her.

"Surround her!" Charles shouted. "She's formidable; you all have to go for her together."

Before she could finish speaking, a red-eyed goblin as tall as Diana suddenly deflected the flying sword in mid-air with a single strike, then, wielding his longsword, chattered as he approached Diana.

"Another goblin?" Diana said softly, as the flying sword floated back and hovered behind her.

"There are quite a few people, but it doesn't matter. The word 'escape' doesn't exist in my dictionary, Diana's dictionary." After she finished speaking, she spread her arms, and a wave of magic immediately spread out.

"[Protection from Evil] [Shield of Devotion] [Sanctuary] [Holy Weapon] [Anti-Magic Shield]..."

To Charles's astonishment, the Holy Crusaders' leader cast several buff spells on herself, and bursts of white light flashed around her body.

After Diana cast her spell, she lowered her head slightly, opened her eyes, and scanned the goblins, trolls, naga, and humans in front of her.

"Now I'm the one surrounding you."