Blue Slime Acid. He had collected a bunch of them hours ago with no use until now.
The balls of blue gelatinous blobs were twice the size of his hands. Each of them were thin layered and would burst at any sign of force. They were also more acidic than his skill.
Faust watched his charted path to the mine with Stealth, waiting for the silver highlighting and red arrows in his vision to fade.
The moment all the Kobolds looked away, the path grew dark, and Faust took off.
He entered the mine in a burst of motion and didn't bother even hiding. He got within ten metres of the Chief and Mage who were seated close to each other.
And starting throwing acid like they were water balloons.
Before either could react, they were hit by the first one, then two more. He threw all ten and ran out of the cave grinning manically.
The Kobolds outside the cave turned in surprise. Someone had infiltrated the mine right under their noses! They rushed towards the attacker with raised cutlasses, snarling furiously.
Faust pulled out his Jackal Dagger +2 and Kobold Cutlass +3. And welcomed them with a laugh.
His hands flickered, deflecting two strikes, and before the swift Kobolds could even react he used Dash.
His already ridiculous speed almost doubled. He threaded the needle between three Kobolds, slashing their throats as he passed.
Then extending his Slime Tether to connect to one of the Kobolds, he swung it around like a yo-yo, changing the length of the Slime tether perfectly.
BANG!
BANG!
Two more Kobolds died as their comrade smashed into their faces with bone-crushing force. Blood billowed around the still laughing Faust, and the last two Kobolds shivered, hesitating.
But Faust didn't. He dashed toward them and beheaded one before it could react.
The other one backed up, barking nervously at Faust while its cutlass shook. But didn't notice Faust's Kobold hammer trailing him.
The already dead Kobold slammed so hard into the last monster that the creature folded. A loud crack filled the air as a spine snapped. The system whispered in the back of his mind.
[You have killed "Small Kobold," and gained 10 experience points.]
[Rewards have been placed in your Spatial bag.]
All done.
Faust detached the tether and walked back into the mine, where the Kobold leaders were still suffering from the acid.
His plan had worked perfectly. He managed to stop the Small Kobolds from helping their Chief and boxing him in the mine.
The Chief roared in anger as Acid blinded him. The Kobold shaman wasn't blinded, but most of her skin and clothes had melted away.
[Kobold Chief]
[Level: 6]
[Combat Power: 704]
[Details: The leader of Kobolds. He organises forces and creates a small encampment.]
…
[Kobold Shaman]
[Level: 5]
[Combat Power: 625]
[Details: A Kobold that has glimpsed the heart of fire and uses it in battle.]
Despite her injuries, the Shaman raised its staff and conjured a fireball far greater than any other Faust had seen. The fire pulsed and trembled like a heartbeat. The air crackled and popped from the heat.
Faust shivered as he felt the destructive force and mana pouring from the conflagration of flames. But he didn't move an inch.
Then the Shaman released its spell.
Faust smiled briefly. "Thanks for the assist!"
Instance Replication!
A perfectly similar inferno of flames erupted in front of Faust and surged forward.
He turned and used Dash to escape the Mine before the two fireballs met, turning once he left the entrance and leaping sideways.
BOOM!
The entire forest was shaken. Trees around them tembled as the earth rumbled. Cracks lined the hill as the mine collapsed and heat poured from any opening, rushing over Faust.
He backed away, squinted at the awesome display of power. Damn. He was right for not going in there to assassinate the Chief. There was no escaping that much fire.
When it faded, Faust continued back up in shock. But a huge smile began to light up his features.
I just played freaking Hitman in an rpg game.
He only lightly chuckled this time, but all the tension, focus and determination that had seized his body earlier melted away under pure ecstasy. He fell on the ground, groaning from exhaustion.
"Oh. Oh god. I might be in love. System, thank you. Now that was a good game."
The concentration, finding clues, assassinating targets, coming up with a plan to deal with the shaman.
Perfect. It was all so Perfect.
So sublime that it could bring a grown man to tears.
Faust cleaned his eyes when the system suddenly chimed.
[Congratulations! Hidden quest, "Shadow of the Mind," completed!]
[Objectives: 1. Assassinate 5 targets to carve a path into the Kobold Mine. 2. Attack the Kobold Chief and Shaman without being noticed by their guards. 3. Eliminate all Kobolds]
[Rewards have been placed in your equipped Spatial Bag.]
And he completed a fucking hidden quest. What a good day!
Despite how long the last fifteen hours had been, Faust was supremely satisfied with everything.
He willed the system to display his rewards excitedly.
[You have killed 10x "Small Kobold" and gained 100 experience points.]
[You have killed a "Kobold Shaman" and gained 50 experience points.]
[You have killed a "Kobold Chief" and gained 150 experience points.]
Oh nice, the multipliers for defeating stronger enemies were applied too!
Faust rubbed his hands together. He was about to get paid!
[Origin coins: 1000.]
[Small Kobold Core x10]
[Kolbold Shaman Core x3]
[Kobold Chief Core x5]
[5x Small Kobold Essence: Consuming will increase Agility by 2.]
[3x Kobold Shaman Essence: Consuming will increase Spirit by 2.]
[5x Kobold Chief Essence: Consuming will increase Strength by 4]
[3x Kobold heart: Alchemical ingredient used in many potions.]
[Heart of fire: An essential ingredient in enchantment of Items.]
[5x Kobold Cutlasses (Bronze): rusty, poorly made weapons]
[Iron Cutlass (Iron): the Chief's weapon, made of decent steel. +30 Strength. Requirements: Level 4, 50 Strength.]
[Shaman's Necklace (Silver): Grants enhancement to all Fire-based spells. +40 Spirit, + 30 Constitution. Requirements: Level 5, 100 Spirit]
[10x Skill Stones: can be used to upgrade skills.]
[8x Enhancement Stones: can be used to upgrade equipment.]
[You have gained skill book "Observe (Iron)"]
[You have gained skill book "Fireball (Iron)"]
[You have gained skill book "Rage Strike (Iron)"]
[You have gained skill book "Shadow Step(Silver)"]
[You have gained skill book "Shadow of the Mind(Silver)"]