Spot C...turned out to be a big jackpot.

How big? Well, the place is like a giant junkyard of a crafter's wet dream. All the stolen goods are stored in this bowl-shaped valley. The floor is flat though, so the valley is less of a bowl and more like a bucket, I guess? Whatever.

Only the metallurgy-related facilities seem to have been used, while the rest have been pushed into a corner of the valley (figuratively speaking). Now that I think about it, this place is called the "Iron Isle", not "Textile Isle" or "Wood Isle". Going for the forges was the only path they had.

"Then why did they steal the stuff from the woodworkers and the weavers too?" - Garami

"Maybe their leader only told them to steal crafting goods, but the goblins were too stupid to recognize what could be used or not?" - Bloom

"Now that's a theory I can go by." - Garami

Without stopping spying on the "factory zone" as I've renamed mystery spot C with my binoculars, I wrote down the combat force down there. A few hobgoblins, some of them looking like D-rank warrior types, and a small handful of goblins. 5 hobs, 11 gobs. The odds...are not as bad as they look like.

The factory zone is huge, so the goblin guards are spread around the place. The large facilities are creating lots of blindspots that I could use, so it shouldn't be impossible to go and assassinate the stronger threats one by one. I can't see any potential Feral Goblin Thieves, the evolution path that specializes in Scout classes, among the guards, so that gives me an advantage when it comes to cloak-and-dagger actions.

Regarding the guys mentioned above, they are prolly busy with the naval battle. If the thieves went to Velantas to steal the facilities, they are likely the group with the best naval-related classes in addition to their sticky fingers.

However...Feral Hobgoblin Warriors...those guys are damn tough~. I can win with a sneak attack, but killing them without noticing any of the other guards is impossible. I don't have any sound-suppression skills in my arsenal or anything such as that...

Whatever. I can't bring the facilities with me anyway, so just taking a few pictures of the facilities and the gobs and bringing them home is enough to kick the city guards into action. They can beat those muscle-headed Ferals for me...

"That guy looks out of place down there." - Garami

"Who?" asked Bloom while requesting to borrow half of the binoculars.

"The one wearing that black robe. Is that a Shaman?" - Garami

Goblin Shamans are the species of the goblin race that has the highest magic power to command. In this case, it would be a Feral Goblin Shaman. The gob in question is wearing a nasty cape that is decorated with bones and skulls. It's damn tasteless if you ask me.

"...No, it is not. [Identification] says it is a Feral Goblin Leader." - Bloom

Right, these new binoculars allow you to Identify from a distance. And a Leader!? Ain't those the leadership-focused species? A Goblin Leader is only an E-rank, but with time, it can become a Goblin King or Goblin Queen, depending on their gender. The Leader-type evolutions can only be obtained by common Goblins, so there aren't any "Hobgoblin Leaders", so it isn't a race you can obtain without thinking.

The same rules apply for Ferals, but to think there is one who thought ahead and looked away from the other options such as Feral Hobgoblin or Feral Goblin Shaman...

"You think he's the mastermind behind the robberies?" - Bloom

"He's one of the suspects, is all I can say at the moment." - Garami

Whatever that Leader is, it won't change my mission. It's time to take some photogenic evidence~.

"That is one-half of the job done. However, we are far from getting closer to locating that person who stayed behind..." - Bloom

"And this is why I'm in charge of the strategies among the two of us. Remember, what did Brak say regarding how they were rescued on their first visit?" - Garami

"Ehm...that the goblins suddenly appeared, they were chased across the island, lost their map so they have no idea where they were, then they were reduced by that person in the brink of time." - Bloom

"And then?" - Garami

"They pointed the Cheerful Hunters towards their boat while that person stayed behind and...!" - Bloom

"Right. Now that we've discovered the stolen items, we are free to go and visit the scene of the crime." - Garami

How else could you track someone down if you didn't even investigate their last known location?

---

Meanwhile, near "mystery spot B":

While Garami and Bloom started to backtrack the steps of the Cheerful Hunters' first expedition, stealthy so they would not warn the goblins and cause unnecessary delays, a different duo went forward with a different plan in mind.

*SLASH!*

"And there it goes!" - Mira

The goblin's head flew into the air as a result of meeting the spirit woman's sword. The Feral Goblins, usually fearless as they underestimated their prey, paused and gasped as they saw the sorry result of their strongest tank, or as they saw it, their living shield.

"So, who's next?" - Mira

A shiver went up the goblins' spines. A human(?) female, normally too weak to even stand up against them (in their minds), overwhelming them? The anger of having their pride hurt burned in their chest, but the fear this woman emitted from her body caused them to forget their anger, their superficial pride, and even the thought of retreating to lead her to a trap where they could get the upper hand. The only thought in their heads was: "run".

*GUEEEH!?" - Goblin archer

Had their heads been calm enough to consider trapping the swordswoman, they might have noticed. That a goblin, yet not a goblin such as they, had gone around them and trapped their path of escape.

Grumble's magic traps had pierced the fleeing archer goblin with obsidian spears. While the spears are far from the most solid out there, objects of the Obsidian attribute have an incredible attack power to compensate for their fragile nature. The archer goblin learned this the hard way.

"Aww, no need to flee from little old me~." - Mira

While cutting down the last goblin in the fleeing line, Mira blew fine crystal dust onto the remaining goblins. After a few seconds of the goblins getting blinded by the powder, it suddenly transformed into a pretty crystal net, capturing all of the remaining three Ferals and pinning them to the ground.

"And one, and a two, and a three~. Okay, I'm done." - Mira

Wasting no time, Mira cut the throat of the trapped monsters, not even offering them the chance for an honorable fight. After the final goblin died drowning in its blood, a message appeared in front of the cold-blooded female knight.

SYSTEM MESSAGE:

Your level has increased. You have gone from Lv.48 to Lv.49.

You have earned a total of 0.3 Aether Points.

Due to Guild Master [Garami]'s Blessing: "Champion of Alvatria", an additional 0.3 Aether Points were earned.

You have obtained the title: [Feral Slayer].

Acquired skill: [Stamina Lv.1].

[Skill: Stamina Lv.1] has been integrated into skill: [Stamina Lv.50 (Max)].

"People sure don't want these guys around if even the gods are putting up a reward on their head." - Mira

"Can you blame 'em? Also, we hit the jackpot with these guys." - Grumble

Despite their strong resemblance, Grumble had no problems looting the corpses of the Feral Goblins after he appeared from the shadows now that combat was over. Or maybe it is that he wishes to refuse any resemblance between him and the bloodthirsty Ferals?

Taken from the dead Feral Goblin was a piece of leather that had a primitive map written on it. A map of the route the goblins were tasked to follow, which included a somewhat detailed description of the "mystery spot B" the two were trying to infiltrate.

"Hmm..., sorry to say this, but it seems the only way to that open area is through the front entrance." - Grumble

The main reason for the duo's bloody carnage of the Feral Goblins was to look for clues on how to enter the "mystery spot B". That, and Mira wished to evolve. Not because she was jealous of the other members who had already reached the racial rank of D, but because she lusted for the power that Iron and Revi had demonstrated back at the Union's training grounds. Grumble just wished to off of more of the "insulting copycats of goblin-kind". In short, neither of them had any noble intentions. What a duo.

"Hmm...Feral Goblins or not, charging an enemy's base head-on is a sure-fire recipe of getting yourself killed." - Mira

"If we had a way to distract those damn pesky Ferals first, then gain the advantage somehow, then the story would be different." - Grumble

"My combo using [Crystal Dust] and [Crystal Net] could keep some of them preoccupied, but not too many..." - Mira

For those who are wondering, [Crystal Net] is the skill Mira obtained from the "Bondage" Skill Orb gifted by Filyn. Some of the members of the Tir na Nog raid team joked that she obtained it due to her being the right-hand knight of a demon using literal spider webs as a weapon. A joke Mira was not too unhappy about.

Seeing as hunting down more Feral Goblins would only cause the survivors to turn vigilant, the two decided to tackle the information gathering of the mystery spot head-on. While it can be seen as a risky move, seeing how the Feral Goblins have yet to notice that 6 of their patrols have already been slain, it might not be such a daredevil-ish plan after all.

Carefully, CAREFULLY, the two opened the gates leading to the mystery spot B, which, in these times, also goes by the identity of "the goblins' prison".

"*Sniff, sniff*, do you smell something funny?" - Grumble

"I hear something funny at least," said Mira as she tried to listen to the faint noise of laughter from behind the large doors.

It was right after that that she noticed the smell Grumble talked about. A strange, nasty smell resembling that of boiling oil. Mira vaguely started to remember back when she had tried out the "deep-fry" food from Marcus Pollen's restaurant, but she pushed that comparison out of her head a second later. It felt like doing the Migrant cook a disservice by comparing his food to whatever she was smelling now.

"...*Peek*...? What are they doing?" asked Grumble to no one in particular as he peeked through the small gap in the half-open gates.

"What? What is going on?" - Mira

"They seem to be preparing...dinner?" - Grumble

"...What, or who, are the ingredients?" - Mira

"...Crap! Let's go!" - Grumble

Hastily yet stealthily, the duo entered the prison area and hid in the shadows of the empty cages. The Feral Goblins were making a ruckus around one of the larger cages that had been moved to the center of the area. Whatever is inside it is so amusing for the little devils that they fail to notice Mira and Grumble entering the area.

"So, who are the unfortunate dinner guests?" - Mira

"I think... It's the birdbrains." - Grumble

With her look of worry having turned into one of exasperation, Mira took a better look at the cage. Five shadows, each a humanoid with a bird's head and feathery wings in addition to their human-like arms and legs, were trapped inside the cave, all of their six limbs constrained with thick, dirty-looking ropes.

"HEEELP!!" - Birdbrain #1

"We don't wanna turn into fried chickeeeeen!!" - Birdbrain #2

"Dammit! This is why I said we shouldn't try to profit from the Voyagers!" - Birdbrain #3

"Sorry, boooooss!!" - Birdbrain #4 & #5

"So much for our plans to steal the quest reward for finding the stolen iteeeeems!!" - Birdbrain #6

Hearing the birds crying their hearts out, to the pleasure of the sadistic Ferals, the duo of Mira and Grumble looked on the sorry state of affairs with disdain in their eyes.

"...Grumble, do you mind preparing more of those traps? ASAP, please." - Mira

"R-right. But what about those reward thieves?" asked Grumble, half-expecting that Mira would suggest they let the goblins finish off the birds before they moved.

"Let's save them. We need some eyes in the skies." - Mira

Grumble, despite his irritation over the birds' trashy attitude toward fellow adventurers, sighed with relief hearing that his bloodthirsty partner still had some degree of morals left in her.

However, that was far from what Mira was thinking about at that moment. She just wished to obtain the last bit of EXP needed for her to evolve to the same stage where Garami is standing. And to demand a ridiculous reward for rescuing the birds afterward. In one way or another, the party of Birdkin is soon going to suffer devastation, be it to their lives or their wallets.