Green Monster Epic

Chapter 307: Raising Prices on the Spot (Seeking Tickets!!)

The demons in the Nagen Hills were far more numerous than described in the mission, perhaps due to the discovery of the Korlik Kobold tribe, or perhaps due to the hilly environment, causing the demon squads fleeing the wilderness to gather in the Nagen Hills through some unknown means.

Apart from the team of over thirty demons that Allen and the others had encountered and killed before, there were over 50 demons stationed at the other two main cave entrances of the Korlik tribe, including 20 mid-level demons.

If it weren't for the narrow and easily defended strategic passes at the entrances to the Korlik tribe's tunnels, which prevented the demons from deploying their superior forces, how could their tribe, with only a little over 20 mid-level warriors and less than a hundred elite warriors above level 7, have been able to withstand this fierce and powerful demon army?

Even with the help of the strategic tunnel passes, the Korlik tribe had still suffered considerable losses in recent days, with a full 5 mid-level kobold warriors killed by the demons. The fierce and insane demons didn't place much importance on the lives of others or their own lives. Although they still retained the survival instincts of living beings, they often disregarded their own safety in the heat of battle, determined to kill any opponent blocking their path.

This was a race born for slaughter.

"The number of these demons is increasing every day. Just yesterday, a powerful Wrath Demon appeared in the main exit area on our southwest side. At that time, it suddenly emerged and launched a strong attack on our tunnel entrance, directly breaking through the first pass of our exit and killing Lord Vargas, who was stationed at that pass, along with 20 elite members of the tribe."

"If it hadn't been for our leader, Lord Uthikul, returning in time and stopping him, I'm afraid our entire tribe would have been strangled by the demons yesterday."

The kobold warrior, Sende, who came out with Treeborn and the others, was actually an envoy sent by Uthikul to act as a guide and supervisor for Allen and his team. At this time, when recounting the dangerous situation at that time, a look of fear couldn't help but appear on his dog-like face, as if he had been there himself.

Fortunately, this anxious and unguarded kobold revealed a lot of information to Allen, giving Allen a deeper understanding of the mission.

"That Wrath Demon is definitely a powerful high-level professional. Our leader risked his life and used several powerful scrolls at the same time to finally force the demon out of the cave."

"Then, last night, our leader used black powder to directly blow up that main cave, and then gathered all the remaining warriors to defend the tunnel entrance on the west side."

"This place was originally a retreat we left behind, but we didn't expect it to be found by these demons today. They seem to be afraid that we will escape from here, and after noticing that we are here, they didn't relax their vigilance and deployed manpower, simply preparing to block this passage and trap our entire race in the mountains."

"These lizardmen-bred mongrels!!"

While explaining the problems currently encountered by the Korlik tribe to Allen, Sende completely forgot the importance of intelligence, because in his opinion, the arrival of this reinforcement was likely to be related to the tribe's next choice and future.

The other party was able to easily kill an army with nearly ten mid-level demons, which at least proved that they were qualified to attack the demon team that was originally blocking the cave. But now the situation was different. With the appearance of a powerful Wrath Demon, it was almost impossible for this team of adventurers to help the tribe stop the demon army from conquering the village.

Lord Uthikul was the only high-level berserker in the tribe. He suffered serious injuries in yesterday's fight. Although he also used several Tier 5-6 magic scrolls to leave some injuries on the Wrath Demon, with the demon's powerful recovery ability, it would take no more than 3 days for the opponent to fully recover.

At that time, if the other party launched another attack on the main cave entrance in the village, the price to pay to repel the opponent like yesterday would be even greater. The high-level scrolls collected by the leader were valuable and rare, so how could they withstand long-term combat use?

Therefore, just before Allen led Kerr and the others to come to support and made contact with the Korlik tribe, Uthikul was gathering the elite of the tribe to discuss the next retreat.

"Take me to see your leader."

Allen eliminated a Bagura Demon by himself. While wiping the greasy aura from his mouth, he also distracted himself to feel the abyssal power contained in the Bagura Demon's barbecue, the damage it caused to his body, and the body's autonomous counterattack against the abyssal power.

When he heard that the number of this demon army had increased a lot, Allen didn't feel anything, but when he heard that a Wrath Demon had appeared in this team, Allen's expression suddenly became a little more spirited.

He had accepted many missions in Mansa City. He had accepted one of each of the high-level demon missions from the temple regarding Wrath Demons, Snake Demons, and Succubi according to their species. He thought he had found a loophole in the mission, so when he heard that a Wrath Demon had appeared here, he was secretly delighted, wasn't this a great gift sent to him?

Of course, Allen was certainly moved at this time, but there were still some things to talk about first, such as the reward for this mission. As the difficulty of the mission increased, it was obviously impossible for Uthikul and the others to let Allen take action with only 5 rubies.

Allen's sudden opening made Sende, who was chatting happily with Kerr, couldn't help but glance at him, and then took it back again, looking at Kerr in confusion.

Shouldn't the leader of this team be the female earth goblin in front of him?

Obviously, Sende's kobold eyesight was really bad, not only did he recognize Kerr as an earth goblin, but he also regarded Allen, the strongest bear goblin in the team, as an ordinary warrior.

In the final analysis, after Allen restrained his aura, his slender physique, which was comparable to that of an elf, was too deceptive. If it weren't for the fact that some parts of his body were still covered with dense hair and he had a big bear nose, I'm afraid that just looking at Allen's back, some people would believe that he was an elf.

How strong could a skinny bear goblin like this be?

No wonder Sende, the short-sighted kobold, had to turn his inquiring eyes to Kerr after Allen spoke, listening to her instructions.

"Take us to see your leader."

The corners of Kerr's mouth couldn't help but rise, and then she held back and said to Sende in a deep voice.

"Okay, but if so many of you go in, I'm afraid…"

Sende looked at Kerr and her group with embarrassment, and at the same time a vigilant look rose in his eyes. The tribe was now in a time of crisis, and he had to be careful.

"You want to leave our people outside?"

Kerr glared, she couldn't possibly leave her teammates outside to become targets for the demons.

Since Teacher Allen has offered to meet the kobold leader, it means he won't linger outside the cave. In that case, even if Coer stays outside, it might not be safe.

The thick smoke rising from burning the demon corpses has probably already alerted the demons in the hills that something has happened here.

If another team of demons attacks, especially that berserker demon, Coer and the others aren't confident they can hold them off without Teacher Allen.

"Coer, take the team to the cave entrance and wait there while I go in and talk to their leader."

Allen, also being a leader, naturally understood Sender's concerns, so he offered a compromise.

With Coer in the team and the cave's easily defended terrain, even if the demons attack, Coer and the others won't be in too much danger in the short term.

If things get too difficult, they can retreat into the cave.

"Alright, Teacher."

Coer's sudden address of 'Teacher' startled Sender, who then bowed his head to Allen with a look of fear and trepidation, apologizing, "I'm sorry, sir, forgive my foolishness!"

Although he didn't know Allen's true strength, the fact that he was the teacher of the leader of this powerful adventure team naturally indicated he had extraordinary abilities.

Allen didn't mind his lack of perception, casually waving his hand and saying indifferently, "Alright, just I will go with you to meet your leader."

"Okay."

After everything was settled, Sender led Allen towards the depths of the cave, while Coer and the others formed a battle formation at the cave entrance, ready for combat.

The cave was long, and along the way, Allen and Sender passed through two steep and narrow passes guarded by a dozen fully armed and vigilant kobold warriors.

Although they were few in number, Allen believed that even dozens or hundreds of demons might not be able to break through the defense of these dozen kobolds, given equal quality and strength of the warriors.

The further they went, the wider the cave became. After Allen and Sender rounded another corner, a vast area spanning several miles came into view.

Dozens of glowstones were embedded in the ceiling several meters above, casting a faint light on the cluster of hundreds of interconnected houses of the Corrick tribe.

Traces of artificial excavation were visible everywhere, even on the several-meter-high stone walls, which showed irregular marks of tearing and shattering.

It would probably take these kobolds decades to create this artificially excavated cave hall alone.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, esteemed guest."

A robust kobold wearing silver armor, with a single-edged double-bladed axe stuck in each side of his waist and emanating the scent of various herbs, approached Allen.

His eyes were sharp but friendly as he raised his right fist and struck his heart, saluting Allen and greeting him.

"I am Utikul, the leader of the Corrick tribe."

After the salute, Utikul extended his hand forward, palm open as if to give Allen a high-five.

Allen was taken aback at first, but then he realized that this seemed to be a test of the adventurer's strength by the employer.

Realizing this, Allen reacted quickly, raising his large hand and striking it against the other's.

Immediately, a huge force came from between their palms, trying to pull Allen towards Utikul.

Allen smiled, gently retracting his hand and using only about 50% of his strength, causing Utikul to be involuntarily pulled forward, his body swaying.

However, just as Utikul was about to lose his balance, Allen suddenly stopped exerting force, released his grip, and nodded calmly to Utikul.

Little rascal, why compete with me in strength? Aren't you just asking to be abused?

Although Utikul almost lost his composure, he was pleasantly surprised.

The opponent's strength exceeded his expectations and was far higher than the requirements of his posted task.

Although he didn't know why he had accepted this task, at least the arrival of this powerful reinforcement gave his tribe's predicament a glimmer of hope.

The simple test deepened the kobold Utikul's respect for Allen. Savage races have always respected the strong, especially when they need the strong to help them.

"Esteemed guest, I still don't know your name."

Utikul's eyes were bright, and his expression even carried a hint of flattery as he led Allen into a stone fortress in the cave that was taller than the other buildings.

The fortress was filled with various smells, mainly those of grain and meat, and a fist-sized glowstone above provided a faint white light to the spacious room.

"My name is Allen Witt, a member of the Green Lake Adventurers. My team and I accepted your task posted in the administrative hall."

Allen calmly answered Utikul's question, while also not concealing his intentions: "This time I'm looking for Leader Utikul because I believe the reward you offered for the task is far from matching the enemies we will face."

"Ah? This is my oversight, I apologize!"

Hearing Allen so bluntly state his conditions, and not showing any sign of backing down due to the strength of the demon army, Utikul was overjoyed.

Of course he knew to raise the price so that Allen could help him get rid of the demon army outside the cave.

"Tell me, what kind of reward do you need to help us fight against the demon army outside the cave?"

Utikul pondered for a long time, not knowing what price to raise it to in order to satisfy Allen, so he simply threw the question back to Allen.

"Sender, one of your tribesmen, said that a high-level berserker demon has appeared in the demon army outside.

According to the mission standards of Mansa City, a mission to kill a high-level demon is rewarded with more than 700 gold coins.

Considering that the number of demon troops outside your cave now exceeds a hundred, and the difficulty of the task has increased, you need to pay my adventure team at least 15 raw ruby stones as a suitable price."

Before the Chaos of the Evil God, the price of a mission related to a high-level professional was only about 500 gold coins.

For example, the head of the high-level Fallen Knight Klie, which Allen found by chance, eventually earned only 500 gold coins.

However, after Mansa Wilderness was destroyed by the demons, and suffered heavy losses, the reward for high-level combat missions has risen to 700 gold coins.

Even the Temple of Nature, because it could not come up with enough money as a reward, had to increase the contribution point rewards.

Finally, according to the value of exchanging inheritance crystals, the temple mission is actually more cost-effective.

Of course, this is a matter of opinion, after all, the temple controls the method of making inheritance crystals.

However, in order to better control believers and knowledge, they have never lavishly produced inheritance crystals, but consciously controlled the number of crystals.

It was only this time that the Chaos of the Evil God caused too much impact, and at the same time, the Spring Country ally in the south, the Centaur Kingdom, needed the temple to provide support.

The pontiffs and chief priests of the Temple of Nature camp had to release the production of inheritance crystals.

In the shadows, the divine systems behind other civilizations had already expressed their dissatisfaction to the nature deities. Every additional crystal produced by the followers of the nature deities meant an encroachment upon the interests of other divine systems. If this continued, it would inevitably disrupt the balance that had been maintained for many years, forcing other divine systems to issue stern warnings.

"Ah??"

Although Wu Tikul had some mental preparation, he was still startled by the price offered by Allen, his eyes filled with resistance.

"Champion Allen, although the enemy our tribe faces now is indeed stronger than described in my mission, you can't just raise the reward so much, can you?"

"We are not a large tribe, where would we get so much funds and treasure!"

Wu Tikul put on a poor and sour face, with a hint of pleading in his expression.

"Heh heh, Chief Wu Tikul, you must be joking. Look at the silver goblets on your table, the exquisite silk on your bed..."

"These don't look like the possessions of a poverty-stricken tribe!"

Allen's eyes held a hint of teasing as he pointed out the decorations of Wu Tikul's fortress, immediately causing embarrassment on Wu Tikul's face.

It is said that the kobolds possess the bloodline of dragons in their veins, so they also have a desire for shiny things and like to decorate their nests and lairs with gold and silver products, jewels, and other shiny objects. At this time, Wu Tikul's room was just such a scene. Compared to Allen's stone fort decoration in Green Lake Village, the decoration inside this outwardly unremarkable fortress could definitely be considered luxurious.

"This, this... actually, these are not valuable trinkets."

Wu Tikul couldn't hide the embarrassment on his face, but he really found Allen's asking price unacceptable, so he could only put on a bitter face and tell lies with his eyes open.

"I think this price is very reasonable, you can calculate it yourself."

Allen was completely unmoved, continuing to calculate the bill in his mind with an iron heart: "If you give up your current tribal stronghold and mine, how great will the loss be? Moreover, can you guarantee that the demons behind won't catch up with you and wipe you out cleanly?"

"..."

Wu Tikul originally intended to continue bargaining with Allen, but in the end, before he could even speak, he compromised under Allen's threat.

"I don't like wasting time. If Chief Wu Tikul thinks the price is not suitable, then I will take my people away now."

Allen felt that the price he offered was already very reasonable, so he never intended to back down from the beginning. Of course, this was also after he judged the current situation of the Korlick tribe and felt that the other party would definitely agree to him. It could be regarded as Allen taking advantage of the fire to rob them.

"... Okay, then 15 ruby gemstones! !"

Wu Tikul glared at Allen through gritted teeth, looking like he wanted to swallow Allen alive.

"By the way, the gemstone roughs must be above the standard weight, no using inferior goods to pass off as good!"

Allen did not forget to remind him. After dealing with the outside world for so many years, Allen and his people had suffered a lot of losses and learned a lot.

"My adventure team members are responsible for assisting you in holding back the demon army. The real task of dealing with the demons outside still rests with you and your warriors. I am responsible for killing the berserker demon that threatens you."

"... That won't work. You've taken so much reward, you should naturally bear a heavier task!"

Hearing this, Wu Tikul's face became displeased again, and his tone increased a little.

"When we accepted your mission..."

Allen continued to negotiate with Wu Tikul. After all, it concerned the safety of Chloe and her group of teenagers. Although taking them out for training was originally to hone them, Allen would of course be happy if there were fewer risks.

After another argument between the two leaders, they finally divided up their team deployments, the tasks they would undertake, and so on.

"Okay, now that everything has been made clear, I'll go back and call my team members over."

After half a magic hour of negotiation, Allen was still calm. After getting up at this time, he bid farewell to Wu Tikul and went to call Chloe and the others, as there were many things that needed to be communicated with them in advance.

"Okay."

Wu Tikul nodded expressionlessly and watched Allen leave along the original passage under the leadership of Sender. Only then did he order the kobold warriors beside him to gather the kobold warriors in the cave who could still fight.

Before long, more than 80 warriors in the tribe who could still fight gathered outside Wu Tikul's fortress.

Because the settlement was easy to defend and difficult to attack, although the Korlick tribe had been targeted by the demon army during this time, the actual number of warriors reduced was not large, especially the low-level warriors. On the contrary, the tribe's intermediate warriors had lost 5-6 people because they needed to be stationed at various passes, which made Wu Tikul feel very distressed when he thought about it.

"This time, reinforcements have come to our tribe. Whether we can defend our village depends on the battle ahead."

Wu Tikul's face was solemn, and he lowered his voice to instruct the tribesmen around him about the problems that needed to be dealt with in the upcoming counterattack.

"However, everyone, be smart. What you need to do is to contain the demon army at the west exit. I don't need you to show unnecessary bravery."

"If the situation is not right, everyone retreat into the cave for me! !"

"When the time comes, remember to act according to my orders! !"

The demons were too ferocious. It was not easy for the Korlick tribe to accumulate the current number of warriors, so Wu Tikul did not want everyone to suffer too much loss in this counterattack.

Although he had negotiated with Allen before and promised that Allen would let the tribe's people undertake the main attack task, there was still a lot of room for manipulation between saying and doing. Wu Tikul did not intend to really fight a life-and-death battle with Allen's adventure team against the demons blocking the west exit of the tribe. He just wanted to see if Allen, this powerful high-level war profession, could complete the decapitation operation, and then he would decide the next step of the tribe's warriors based on the situation.

If Allen could kill the berserker demon within a certain period of time and cause chaos in the demon army, then Wu Tikul would lead the tribe's warriors to launch a fierce counterattack against the chaotic demon army and take down this enemy that had plagued the tribe for a long time.

But if Allen still failed to take down the berserker demon after the Korlick warriors paid a certain price, then Wu Tikul would decisively lead the tribe back into the cave, then block the entrance, let Allen and his goblin adventure team fight each other with the demons, and then he would take the opportunity to lead the tribe to evacuate from another passage.

The reward of 15 ruby gemstones was something that Wu Tikul would feel heartache even thinking about it. How could he be willing to take it out and give it to Allen so easily!

If there was a way to not only help the tribe get out of the predicament, but also save a few jewels, how great would that be.

As for the life and death of Allen and his group of goblins, that was not a problem that he, Wu Tikul, needed to care about.