What is an offensive priest?

Chapter 6 The Gnoll

The next morning.

The echoes of the dawn bells still reverberated through the valley, and a small, fully equipped team had already gathered in the monastery's forecourt.

Kro's silver armor gleamed coldly in the morning light, and the Stemer family crest on his breastplate had been carefully wiped clean, its patterns clear and new.

The thief Maurice was still wrapped in a gray-brown cloak, but now he had two newly polished poisoned daggers at his waist, the leather sheaths still smelling of the tar from last night's campfire.

The Drow mage huddled at the back of the group, his deep red pupils staring blankly into space, lost in thought.

"I'm leaving this town for a while, it won't be long."

"To prevent goblin attacks, I will have the mage from this adventure team stay behind to help guard the town."

Richard, dressed in mithril chainmail and covered by his signature priest's robe, looked up at Chief of the Guards, Weiss, who stood beside the stone steps.

But Weiss patted the worn armor on his chest and rejected Richard's offer.

"We just drove back those goblins last week. Knowing their habits, they'll need at least half a month to lick their wounds before they dare to come back."

"Blackrock Town may be small, but our walls are made of hardwood and rammed earth, and the watchtowers are always stocked with rolling stones and hot oil, so the goblins can't get in."

The young guards around them were also encouraged, gripping their one-handed swords at their waists and making solemn vows.

"Don't worry, Reverend Richard."

"Those beasts dare to harass our town! Let their corpses serve as fertilizer!"

Although Richard felt uneasy, he couldn't bring himself to discourage the guards' unwavering resolve.

"Then I'll go and come back quickly, you all be careful."

After bidding farewell to the townspeople, Richard and his adventure team headed north along the gravel road.

-

Blackrock is located in the Wailing Mountains, not far from Waterdeep, and serves as a transportation hub connecting to other towns.

But now, the stone arch bridge that connected the two sides of the valley has been reduced to a pile of rubble, and the broken piers are half-submerged in the stream.

"Blackstone Bridge..." Kro gazed at the ruins, his voice low. "This bridge was built sixty years ago with funding from the Waterdeep City Mage Council. The piers are infused with solidification magic, so ordinary explosives can't destroy it."

Richard crouched down and lightly touched a pebble with his fingertips.

The stone surface was cold, but faint magical fluctuations remained inside.

"It seems the lava lizard extract intercepted from the caravan has been used here."

The group turned east.

But the road was completely blocked before it reached a mile.

A huge ironwood tree lay across the middle of the road.

The tree trunk was so thick it resembled a small mountain blocking the way, and its bark was an unnatural charred black. It was pressing down on the narrowest part of the road, with steep mountain walls on both sides, making it impossible to go around.

"What's going on?"

"When we came to Heishui Town a few days ago, the roads were still clear."

Kro looked at the blocked road with a puzzled expression.

Richard frowned.

"Let's try another route."

The group changed course again, searching for other routes.

However, after searching, without exception, all roads leading to Blackrock Town were deliberately blocked.

Unbeknownst to them, Blackstone Town had become an isolated city!

Richard frowned deeply, sensing that something big was about to happen.

"Was this all done by that Santalin Society? These bandits are getting more and more arrogant!"

As a nobleman of Baldur's Gate, Crow despises the rats in the sewers.

Richard replied...

"For a rat to dare rob a granary in broad daylight, it either knows the Night's Watch is asleep, or... it has a much larger predator backing it up!"

Master Zhuoer said.

"But where do we find them?"

Morris, the thief who had been silently following at the back of the group, suddenly stopped.

He ducked into the roadside bushes, his cloak almost blending into the withered grass.

A moment later, he came out, holding a piece of leather epaulettes covered in mud in his hand.

The edge of the epaulettes was embroidered with a logo in cheap silver thread: an upside-down two-legged dragon.

"It is the symbol of the Santalite Order."

Richard recognized the badge in front of him.

The thief Maurice's voice was sharp and hoarse.

"I saw similar traces near the abandoned Twilight Abbey, about two miles to the east. The secluded environment there would be a good place to hide."

As a professional thief, Richard trusted his instincts.

But the problem now is how to overcome the obstacles in front of us.

Kro leaned forward and tried to push the tree trunk.

Beneath his silver-white armor, his muscles bulged, and he pounded shallow pits into the ground, but the iron oak tree remained unmoved, as if it had grown into the earth.

The paladin retreated, panting. "There are binding runes inside the trunk; it's impossible to move it by brute force."

Seeing the group of spellcasters helpless, the drow mage Averr's lips curled into a proud smile befitting a spellcaster.

He raised his staff above his head and began chanting a string of smooth elemental incantations.

The syllables condensed into pale blue runes in the air, swirling around the group before finally merging into the soles of each person's boots.

First-circle spell: Jump!

Kro was the first to try it.

He took a few steps back, kicked up the mud with his iron boots, and leaped up with great effort.

The magical runes beneath his feet lifted him lightly upwards, easily clearing the tree trunks over three meters high, and landing steadily on the opposite side of the road.

The thief Maurice followed closely behind, his cloak fluttering in the wind, landing without even stirring up dust.

The drow mage, Aver, glanced smugly at Richard.

"Masters never solve problems with brute force!"

Richard had to admit that the role of mages in an adventure team cannot be measured solely by combat strength.

The saying "A mage is the boss" has been circulating in the Forgotten Realms for a long time, and there is no doubt about it.

After the entire adventure team had crossed the obstacles and regrouped, they were about to continue their journey.

Richard's expression suddenly turned solemn; his exceptional senses allowed him to detect the hidden danger ahead.

"There's movement!"

Upon hearing this, Kro drew his sword instantly. The scraping sound of the steel longsword being drawn was particularly jarring in the silent valley.

"alert!"

The group lowered their pace and cautiously moved forward.

In the middle of the road in the distance, a pack of hyenas were gnawing on a mutilated corpse.

Judging from the partial remains, one could barely make out that this was an unfortunate Tyflin.

The hyenas seemed to have eaten their fill and had lost interest in the carcass.

Upon hearing the commotion, they all turned their heads in unison, their greedy eyes fixed on the four members of the adventure team.

With their swollen, full bellies sticking out, and their movements clumsy and slow, they staggered toward the group of people like a group of drunken butchers.

One of the hyenas even tripped over its own front leg, rolling twice before struggling to get up.

Avel looked at their wretched appearance and snorted contemptuously.

He tentatively poked the head of the nearest hyena with the tip of his staff. When the tip of the staff was still half a foot away from the dog's head, a faint arc of electricity flashed by, singeing the mane on its head.

"Watch out!"

"Back off!"

Richard's growl was like a thunderclap.

Almost simultaneously, he lunged forward, grabbed Avel by the back of his collar, and dragged him backward.

The hyena in front of them suddenly began to bark wildly, as if in a death throes, emitting a series of mournful and piercing howls.

Its bloated belly began to writhe, and a series of sharp, clicking sounds, like bones grinding together, came from within. Its round belly expanded at a visible speed.

bang——

A loud bang followed.

The hyena's belly exploded, spraying blood, flesh, and viscera fragments. From the blood mist and bits of flesh, a hunched figure rose.

Its entire body is covered in rough, yellowish-brown fur, with a translucent film of mucus. It has a hyena-like head, pointed ears, and amber eyes that reveal its ferocity and cruelty.

"Gods above..." Crow's hand, gripping the sword, bulged with veins. "What the hell is this thing?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the other hyenas also began to mutate.

They fell to the ground, rolling and convulsing, their abdomens swelling wildly as well.

The fur was stretched almost transparent, and you could see something writhing and tearing wildly under the skin.

Then, the second one, the third one...

Bang!Bang!Bang!

A series of explosions echoed through the valley, and blood and flesh rained down on the gravel road.

All nine hyenas exploded, and nine slimy, fierce-looking monsters crawled out of their abdominal cavities.

They wobbled to their feet and turned in unison toward Richard and the others.