The most ridiculous part was...
They had gone through so much trouble to lure out and clear most of the small fry from the goblin camp. Now was the perfect time to finish the mission in one fell swoop. The hope of victory was right before their eyes.
And yet, their senior was actually trying to send them away?
The three girls froze for a moment, then grew anxious.
"Senior~ Don't be like that~ I'm a good fighter."
"Senior, you can rip my Priest Robe again, I'm begging you, don't send me away."
"Senior, I can cast a big Fireball, and I can meow like a cat~~"
They surrounded Lynch, wheedling and acting cute, their earnest promises overlapping one another.
Lynch irritably pushed the three of them away. "Alright, alright, stop pulling and tugging. What kind of behavior is this?"
After a pause, he said with a serious expression, "You can come along, if you want."
Joy had just begun to show on the three girls' faces.
But Lynch's tone shifted, cutting them off. "However, you'll be responsible for the assault. You'll lead the charge and crack the toughest nut."
The smiles on the three girls' faces froze instantly.
'What the hell? He wants us to lead the charge?'
Back at the academy, the three of them had good family backgrounds, decent talent, and striking looks. Countless male students had fawned over them. When they went out on missions, they always received all sorts of care and protection.
Why was it that with their senior, everything was the complete opposite?
First he used them as bait, and now he wanted to use them as cannon fodder for the assault?
Looking at their pitiful, aggrieved faces, Lynch said nonchalantly, "Not willing? That's fine..."
"I'm willing."
Before Lynch could finish, Ophelia gritted her teeth and was the first to agree. "We've suffered so much on this mission. We have to complete it, no matter what. I still need to kill a few more goblins to get my revenge."
"I'm willing too!" Lilith clenched her small fists, her gaze firming up.
"I... will follow your orders," Avril said in a low voice, her hand gently stroking the Holy Emblem on her Magic Staff.
"Fine then." Lynch didn't seem surprised. "Since you're all willing to stay, you must obey my commands absolutely. When I say charge, you charge. When I say retreat, you retreat. If anyone dares to act on their own or disobey an order..."
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the three girls as his voice turned somewhat sinister. "Then don't blame me for putting my own house in order before dealing with outsiders. I don't mind turning you into Skeletons and ordering you to charge."
The three girls shivered in unison and hurriedly promised, "We will resolutely obey our senior's commands!"
In truth, after spending more than two days with him, they had more or less figured out some of their senior's temperament.
Although his words were harsh and his methods erratic, his plans were always thorough when it came to actual action. He wouldn't really send them on a suicide mission.
'This senior of ours seems to be... umm... a man with a sharp tongue but a soft heart?'
After settling the team arrangements,
Lynch immediately called over the guide, Hank, and ordered him to clean up the battlefield, then transport the excess goblin corpses and junk loot back to Stone Crow Town.
For the past two days, Hank and the few Stone Crow Town militiamen he had gathered served mainly as the transport detail, responsible for cleaning the battlefield, hauling loot, and providing logistical support for the temporary camp.
"Yes, Lord Mage!" Hank quickly acknowledged and got busy.
Next, Lynch didn't immediately lead his forces to charge the goblin camp. Instead, he ordered everyone to rest at the temporary camp and wait until nightfall to fight.
Nighttime had always been a Necromancer's home turf.
Taking advantage of the break, Lilith finally found an opportunity to sneak into a small tent in a corner of the camp.
She gently stroked an antiquated Secret Silver Ring, muttering something under her breath as she infused a wisp of Spiritual Power into it.
The next moment, several sets of neatly folded, clean clothes appeared out of thin air in her hands, including a few pieces of intimate... uh, girls' underwear.
Then she took out a small wooden basin, a few clean towels, and a small jar of fragrant bath beans.
Soon, she started calling her friends over, and they took turns bathing in the cramped tent and changing into clean, comfortable new clothes.
When they emerged from the tent again, they no longer looked utterly defeated. They were refreshed from head to toe, their youthful, girlish charm blossoming once more.
Ophelia looked heroic and dashing, Lilith was lively and nimble, and even Avril had regained some color. A faint blush on her delicate face gave her a particularly heart-wrenching charm.
Lynch naturally noticed their transformation.
In fact, Lynch had been monitoring them with a Skeleton Squirrel before they started bathing. He naturally skipped the later scenes; he wasn't that much of a creep.
His gaze swept casually over the three of them, finally landing on the dark silver ring on Lilith's finger.
If he wasn't mistaken, that must be the legendary Space Ring.
It could store spare supplies, spellcasting materials, important loot... With it, you'd no longer have to carry heavy bags on your back or have Skeletons haul everything around.
His eyes were filled with envy.
'I really, really want to rob her~~'
Lilith, however, was feeling a little smug.
She hitched up her Mage Robe slightly, spun around lightly in front of Lynch, and lifted her face, showing off with a hint of smugness. "Senior, isn't my Mage Robe pretty? It's a runic Mage Robe embroidered with Mithril thread, you know. It enhances Magic~~"
But Lynch didn't even glance at her, his eyes fixed on her ring. "I think..."
He paused, and under Lilith's expectant gaze, slowly finished his sentence:
"Your ring is prettier."
Lilith: "...???"
'This is the gap between classes.'
Lynch sighed quietly to himself.
Space Rings, being highly versatile, were always sought after and expensive. It wasn't something he, Lynch, could afford at the moment.
"Alright, stop standing around. Get some rest. We move late tonight."
Lynch waved his hand irritably and, deciding "out of sight, out of mind" was best, walked into his tent to begin his Meditation. Otherwise, he was genuinely afraid he might do something unbecoming of his "senior" status.
* * * *
The night was as black as ink.
The perfect time for murder and arson... no, for cleansing evil.
The goblin camp, next to the abandoned mining area.
The camp was surrounded by a low, crude fence. A few weak campfires flickered, illuminating some haphazardly built shacks.
A few goblins assigned to night watch were leaning against the fence or the shacks, their heads bobbing as they let out soft snores.
For a creature with such lax discipline, standing guard late at night was a mere formality, especially inside what they considered their safe nest.
They were completely unaware that lethal danger had quietly descended upon them.
In the shadows, Bone Jade was sneaking about furtively.
After its previous enhancement, and having absorbed a good deal of dispersed death energy from the successive battles, Bone Jade's Soul Fire had become more condensed and powerful, already crossing the threshold into the mid-tier of Skeleton Soldiers.
...