Chapter 34: Goblin Skill Tutoring

Chapter 34: Goblin Skill Tutoring

I wanted the goblins to use real weapons against me to see if the risk bonus the Chief mentioned was real. The downside I shortly realized was this would ruin my brand new outfit. I could've regressed to wearing my old rags but felt oddly vain about showing off. After some internal debate and looking through my traits, I found a solution using a forgotten aspect of [Chroma Shift].

I had been so focused on using it to perfect my mimicked forms that I forgot the trait also worked in reverse. I covered my entire goblin body and outfit in a slime layer and reduced the opacity to the absolute minimum, which sadly did not turn it completely invisible. I was playing around with getting the layer to match the color beneath, but this was taking up far too much mental capacity for my liking before even fortifying it with [Slime Density] and [Mana Reinforcement].

I eventually resigned and set it all to a transparent white. If anyone asked, I'd say I have a mana barrier, which was technically almost true and would likely be more believable to the uninformed goblins on why Tarz was suddenly surviving real weapons. If I perfected this, I could likely add it to any future disguises without much fuss.

The goblins were a bit reluctant to use real weapons on me, as they had seen how bad I was at dodging and questioned my toughness. I pointed out my mana barrier, which caused a reluctant agreement. The first trainee was very soft with her spear thrusts, and I intentionally ate a hit to prove my point. After the initial gasps and proving my point, she finally started to put real effort into it.

After getting in some dodges and taking some weapon blows from the warriors, I headed to the archery range and asked the scouts if they'd like some live shooting practice. They agreed much more readily than the warriors, likely due to how hard it was to level up shooting skills safely.

When the rain of arrows came down upon me, I almost regretted my decision as I took arrow after arrow. That blade wolf made dodging multiple projectiles look simple, but the coordination between the scouts was baffling. They would bait me into dodging one arrow, only to get hit by three. After a full afternoon of tanking more hits than dodging, I didn't gain a level in [Evasion] but an old friend instead.

Garz came to fetch me with a few other goblins dragging carcasses and, to my shock, two large bears.

"Wait, weren't those cubs a few days ago?" I asked in disbelief.

"Baby monsters grow when they level up," Garz answered.

"Talk about a growth spurt... amazing what levels can do. I'm also surprised at their obedience."

"Scouts can sometimes become tamer. Bond with baby monster."

I froze when I heard those words, remembering what happened with Sylthaeryn. I thankfully recovered before anyone seemed to notice my slight panic.

They led me to their butcher's hut, and we got to work. The goblins couldn't believe my speed since I was harvesting quicker than their butcher could simply remove the meat. Their spoils were a wolf, two deer, and one badger. I really wanted more of those badgers.

While the skill wasn't anything flashy, I liked that it would allow me to pick up a weapon and at least know if I was supposed to stab with the pointy end, slash things to pieces, or simply bash them over the head. During my evening elf practice, I did gain the trait I had suspected.

See the flow of mana throughout the world.

Mana sight can see through obstructions based on trait level.

Trait level also determines the minimum level of mana able to be detected and detection range.>

Disabling the mimicked version of the trait allowed me to compare the difference between trait levels, which was startling. Distant mana auras became snuffed out when I swapped to my inferior version, but I was glad to have it available in all forms now.

I spent the next morning and afternoon with the scouts, getting tutoring on the bow. Tarz had become quite popular amongst the goblins since I had replaced her, and I had multiple scouts offering me pointers.

Imparts a basic understanding of ranged weapons and their utilization, scaling with skill level.

In addition, gain a minor accuracy and damage adjustment for ranged attacks.>

'I wonder if this would apply to [Slime Shot]?'

While preoccupied with my new skill, a horn blew and echoed throughout the cave. All of the goblins began to scramble, and while I looked around sheepishly, Garz came running up to me.

"Humans have been spotted."