The new firearm was ready now, but it was still in its basic form. Just like any other gun crafted by a level E Gunsmith, the Pepperbox revolver too had the potential to be imbued with an enchantment. And Ezra had already obtained the item required for enchanting the weapon. Selecting the weapon’s blueprint on his system panel, Ezra tapped on the enchantment option. A translucent yellow circle swung open, emitting a bright golden aura. It had an empty slot in the middle and was surrounded by three concentric rings. [Enchanting available.] [Please add a relic to enchant the weapon.] Ezra carefully reached out and gently inserted the pirate’s cursed monocle into the empty slot within the glowing disk. Almost immediately, the circle changed color, turning from dazzling yellow to tarry black. The three rings around it now displayed three different glyphs encircled by archaic letters. [Relic detected!] [Relic added: Pirate’s cursed monocle.] The ring of light suddenly started spinni
Ezra could not believe what he was hearing. Soul gems were extremely rare gemstones that were often used by sorcerers and mages to trap Greater Souls from their fallen enemies. And a single Greater Soul was as valuable as five hundred Lesser Souls. If Ezra could get his hands on the Soul Gem, he could feed the trapped souls to his Spirit Companion and increase its level even further. However, one thing still confused Ezra. Goblins weren’t known to possess any magic, so it could only mean that they had either raided a mage’s quarters or some unfortunate magic caster had wandered into their midst by mistake. If it was Aurelia, Ezra would have trusted her blindly, but since it was Ramel asking him to join him for an adventuring quest, he felt hesitant to agree. Ramel too noticed the uncertainty in Ezra’s eyes, and he quickly changed his tone. “Come on, now. You know how difficult it is to get an apology out of me, but I’m trying really hard to make amends and become a better person,
As Ezra disappeared inside the smoke, the arch started vibrating and emitting a faint green light, indicating the dungeon had been invaded and was now off-limits for other adventurers. On the other side, Ezra found himself inside an old cave formation with damp, mossy walls and overhanging ledges which led to higher levels. Unlike the wolf dens and bear caves, this dungeon did not offer a straight path to the other side. The narrow tunnels and sloping trails created a complex network of paths, some leading to the center of the cave and others misguiding invaders to dead ends and chokepoints. It was dark inside the cave, but Ezra could faintly make out his surroundings from the light cast by the distant bonfires. Although Ezra hadn’t seen any goblins yet, the unmistakable stench of rotten eggs and fish made it amply clear who the denizens of this dark hollow were. “Clearly the goblins are not too conscious about personal hygiene or sanitation,” Marlin whispered as the cursed eye
Bloodhounds were rare monsters found deep within caves and grottos inside heavily forested regions. And although they shared many habits of their domesticated canine friends, these beasts were nearly impossible to train. However, the Gray-maned Bloodhounds were different from the rest since they weren’t captured from the wild, but bred by goblins in their lairs. This dangerous cross between a Gray Direwolf and a Common Bloodhound birthed loyal pets which specialized in keeping intruders at bay. Ezra knew one step in the wrong direction could spell disaster for him. With sweat streaming down his cheeks, Ezra continued staring at the sleeping Bloodhound. Even though he was more than twenty paces away, he could smell the canine’s foul breath as it exhaled in its sleep. Confronting the Bloodhound head-on seemed like a terrible idea, so Ezra backed away as slowly as he could, all the while keeping his eyes fixed on the canine. Suddenly, a pebble crunched under Ezra’s boot, and the Bl
[Eagle eye activated!] [Targets identified: Goblin Raiders.] [Type: Fast-moving melee units.] [Strengths: Extremely good at countering weaker melee units like foot soldiers and pikemen. Can see perfectly even in complete darkness.] [Vulnerabilities: Weak against ranged attackers and spellcasters. Countered easily by mounted units like Orc Wolf Riders and human knights and cavaliers.] [Threat level: low.] The Goblin Raiders were the fighters of the goblin colony and specialized in melee combat and tracking down escaped fugitives and prisoners. Not only were they physically bulkier than their weaker cousins, but more intelligent as well. Ezra knew handling three Goblin Raiders at once would pose a serious challenge and to minimize his chances of being overpowered by the enemy he called his Spirit Companion to even the odds. Pointing his left hand at the Raider standing in the middle, Ezra commanded his wolf to take it down. The white wolf growled and pounced on the Raider before
Goblins were not the brightest or strongest of creatures and preferred attacking defenseless villages and other unguarded non-human settlements. They usually relied upon their numbers to overwhelm their foes. However, they posed little threat to seasoned adventurers. Ezra too expected it to be an easy dungeon to clear. But all his calculations went right out the window with the appearance of a Goblin Champion. Unlike the low-level goblins like Pillagers and Raiders, the Goblin Champion did not rely on overpowering the enemy through superior numbers. And it wasn’t agile enough to launch surprise raids. However, the Goblin Champion was as strong as an adult ogre and could easily take on a whole adventuring party all by itself. Ezra realized he was in deep trouble, but there was no way out for him without defeating the Champion. If he tried to run away now, the goblins would kill the prisoners who were still waiting for him. As the Goblin Champions spotted Ezra, its lips curved into
Losing its shield made the Goblin Champion a lot more vulnerable to gunfire, but the leather armor strapped to its chest still offered considerable protection against small arms fire. Ezra’s magic bullets had already proved to be ineffective against the brute, but the enchanted ammunition kept his hopes alive. However, the problem with Disintegration Bullets was that they were designed to shatter hard surfaces like shells, metal plates, and carapaces. This made the Disintegration Bullets the perfect option for destroying bucklers and kite shields, but the Goblin Champion’s leather armor was elastic enough to absorb the shock from the blunt-faced projectiles. Ezra knew this too, but he had already thought of a perilous alternative. The Goblin Champion glared at Ezra, its beady yellow eyes almost bulging out of its thick skull as it gnashed its teeth. It knew the other goblins were watching from afar, and this sudden counterattack from its human opponent had brought it tremendous
Ezra ignored Marlin’s words and walked into the holding chamber. Offering his hand to the little girl trembling in fear, he asked, “Do you trust me?” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she looked into Ezra’s eyes. The goblins had killed her parents, and she had no family left in the village. She was afraid of setting a single foot outside this holding chamber for fear of being thrashed by the goblins again. But Ezra’s heroic act of killing the Goblin Raiders and freeing them had won her trust. The girl slowly reached out with her trembling fingers, and Ezra grabbed her hand tenderly. “The rest of you follow my lead. We need to find an exit, so keep your eyes open!” Ezra ordered. The women and children followed Ezra as he hurried down the path, pulling the little girl behind him. Large rocks and black dust rained down all around them as the cave’s ceiling shook feverishly. The cracks spread all across the cave formation just like a spider’s web. Another portion of the ceiling colla