Chapter 7

As I waited with my back pressed against the wall to prepare for a surprise attack from behind, a Goblin Ranger holding a bow and a Goblin Soldier wielding a spear came into view.

“I will eliminate them instantly.”

With a speed that once again felt nothing short of teleportation, Gina dispatched both of them.

By the time I caught up with the situation, she had already defeated them, turned around, and was standing at the ready with her two daggers raised.

The only dropped item was the spear, which Gina promptly stored away.
Defeating three monsters and getting two dropped items was proof things were going well.

If I were alone, I would have already leveled up by now, but since there were two of us—and moreover, Gina was doing all the fighting—it was taking a bit longer.

If I were being greedy, kobolds offered better rewards as enemies, but kobolds were stronger than goblins.

“My lord, shall we continue hunting goblins like this?”

Perhaps thinking the exact same thing, Gina checked in with me.

“That’s probably the safest route.”

I gave her that answer.

Doubtless, the next wave would also consist of just one or two goblins.

We would just repeat this until I leveled up.

It was undeniably mundane and tedious work, but since it was absolutely necessary to keep me from dying, I had no choice but to push through.

Once I hit level two, I could use a magic book to acquire some magic.

That should slightly improve my current situation where I was practically dead weight, and hopefully speed up my leveling rate a bit as well.

The next enemy to appear was a Goblin Soldier equipped with a short sword and a round shield.

The moment they drew close to us, Gina kicked off the floor, lunged forward, and sliced through the creature’s throat.

When the difference in power is this overwhelming, it almost borders on artistic.

Just as I was thinking that, the measurement brooch began to vibrate, letting me know I had leveled up.

“Gina, let’s call it a day and head back.”

“Understood.”

Gina picked up the dropped short sword and hurried over to my side.

Goblin Soldiers were the mainstay of their pack, and the fact that one had shown up meant the horde was starting to get suspicious about why their comrades weren’t returning.

In my current situation, if things escalated further, it would start working against Gina’s maneuvering room.

Since my level had gone up anyway, it was better to head out of the dungeon for now.

Dungeon monsters’ alertness levels reset after a certain amount of time passes outside.
During that time, I could just head back to the castle and take care of studying and memorizing a magic book.

Since we had to ride the horse back and forth, it would be difficult to return to the dungeon for the rest of the day, but the goblins’ alertness would definitely reset.

Once we stepped outside the cave, Gina retrieved the horse and mounted it, then helped me up into the saddle.

“Where would you like to head next?”

“Let’s head back to the castle.”

After all, the magic books I could actually use right now were only kept back at the castle.

“Understood.”

Gina acknowledged the order, adjusted the reins, and urged the horse into a gallop.