Archer's Adventure Manual

Unsurprisingly, the old man Thompson was tackled to the ground by Brian.

For some reason, Brian felt quite fond of this little old man, perhaps because of his subtle yet unique scent?

Brian kept licking Thompson's face with his tongue, shaking his head and swaying his body, appearing very excited.

It took Thompson some effort to push the big dog away, and he slowly stood up, dusting off his clothes.

"You big guy, why are you always so excited to see me?" Thompson grumbled, then, thinking of something happy, he took out the gold coin and examined it closely.

Loran looked at Thompson and teased, "You old geezer, you're still the same old you! What counterfeit goods have you been selling this time?"

"This guy is really strange. He bought a fake once and then came back again. Didn't he realize it? That's ridiculous!"

Thompson glared at him, sniffing, and said, "What do you mean, selling fake goods? These are the real deal! Don't talk nonsense!"

"Besides, this is a precious item symbolizing love. How can you easily define it with just money? The fact that people are willing to come shows that the response is very good! What nobles buy can't possibly be fake, right?"

Loran frowned. What kind of twisted logic was this? But upon closer listening, one might actually find a grain of truth in what he was saying...

Loran curled his lip, too lazy to argue with this family. His purpose in coming was simple: he always encountered something unknown after each adventure.

Thompson is a very knowledgeable guy with a lot of clever ideas in his head; it's always good to ask him.

"Oh, you little rascal, haven't seen you in ages, I almost forgot about you!" Thompson chuckled, then took the skull off the shelf, saying irritably:

"Kid, I'm starting to wonder if you're just unlucky. I've had this skull here for so long, and nobody's come to buy it!"

Loran paused, then shrugged and said, "How can you blame me? It's all your fault for selling counterfeit goods and ruining the shop's reputation. See? I can't even sell my good stuff. It's all your fault!"

"Hey kid, stop talking about fake goods all the time. I, Thompson, have lived a life of integrity and would never stoop to such a thing!"

Loran waved his hand. "I won't waste time chatting with you, old man. I have something important to tell you. Have you heard about what happened in Rice Paddy Village?"

Thompson raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "No."

"Aren't you supposed to be well-informed? How come the news hasn't reached your ears yet?" Loran asked suspiciously.

Thompson chuckled and said mysteriously, "What do you know, kid? I've been burying myself in research these past few days!"

"You're still studying runes? I don't even know what to say to you..." Loran said speechlessly. It seems Thompson's obsession is something no one can shake...

Thompson chuckled and said confidently, "You know what, I think I've made a small breakthrough in my research. By the way, has your dog been doing anything unusual lately? Tell me about it!"

Thompson's expression immediately softened when the topic of runes came up, clearly indicating that this information was very important to him.

Loran crossed his arms, not rushing to answer, but instead asked, "Wait a minute, Thompson. I've come here with some questions of my own. Answer me first, and then I'll tell you about Brian's situation, okay?"

"Hmm? Okay, okay, of course no problem. You can completely trust me, this learned scholar!" Thompson said with great confidence.

Loran cut to the chase: "Thompman, have you ever heard of... the Doghead Forest creature?"

"Wait a minute, Kobold Forest? What kind of word combination is that? Are you trying to say kobolds?" Thompson asked curiously. "Kobolds are common. As an adventurer, you should have encountered them, and even killed them, right?"

Loran shook his head and said, "No, no, no, Thompson, I wasn't talking about kobolds. The kobold forest I was referring to is a hybrid of kobolds and goblins. Do you think these two species can reproduce and produce offspring?"

Thompson's mind went blank for a moment. He was a little slow to react and asked, "Wait a minute, you mean... the kobolds and goblins produced offspring? Are you kidding me?"

"I admit there are many amazing species in the world, like horses and donkeys. They are very similar, not only in their physical structure, and they can indeed reproduce. But the two monsters you mentioned, I think they have absolutely no chance of reproducing!"

"Even if I'm not a very reliable scholar, I firmly believe in this," Thompson said earnestly.

Loran continued, "Now I want to say that I saw a combination of these two creatures. Can you believe it? That monster had the head of a kobold and the body of a goblin. I've never heard of or seen anything like it..."

Thompson looked at Loran with a serious expression and suspicion. "Are you... serious? Why don't you tell me about what's been happening outside lately? What's going on in that Inada Village?"

"Inada Village, which is located within the jurisdiction of Hama Town, was attacked by a group of monsters a few nights ago. Most of the buildings have been destroyed and countless people have been killed or injured. It seems that Inada Village will disappear from this area." Loran gave a brief description.

"What...what? Inada Village was attacked by monsters? But that's a village where humans live. Didn't the local knights do anything?" Thompson was still incredulous.

Loran explained, "There are so many monsters, it's suffocating... In fact, Inada Village has several times the defenses of a village like Falling Creek Village near us, and even has mages, but they simply cannot stop the monsters that are surging in like a tide."

"Even behind these monsters is a goblin shaman in command. They have surrounded the village, their goal being to prevent anyone from escaping. They want to kill everyone in the village."

Thompson processed the information quickly. For him, the human settlements had been relatively peaceful in recent years, and this sudden major event left him somewhat bewildered.

"You...you heard that from someone else?"

Loran sighed and shrugged. "I was there in person."

Thompson: "?!"

"Kid, are you kidding me? The scene you described, the monsters were like a tidal wave! You're telling me you were there firsthand? How come you're standing here talking to me?!"