Booom!
All right, that's the first explosion.
Well, first set of them.
If there is one negative about these potato mines and their surveillance, its that the surveillance system no longer works once the potato mines are gone, leaving me unaware of the current status of these invaders.
And unfortunately, I had to plant a lot of these, especially underground, and the result is that unfortunately I couldn't spare more to put extra up for surveillance near the sight of the blast. This is even more important because I still needed a few on the surface so I could keep a lookout for the escorts so that the sooner they arrive, the sooner I can escape to them.
Thank god the shop offers mana replenishment potions for use.
I'm not sure 50 points is a huge amount or a small amount, but considering I haven't had need of the shop so far, it's perfectly fine to use the shop in my time of need.
Hey Stolidus, can you really not give me a status on these scouts? It'd be a huge help.
[Sorry, no can do. As a system, I can give you general info as well as common world knowledge, but asking for something specific, like the location of your foes or their plans without a skill for that is cheating.]
Wow, Stolidus actually sounds apologetic currently.
[... Whatever, I'm going to go take a nap, tell me when you're done]
He yawns and stretches before flickering out of existence.
Alright, well, thankfully I guess at least I'm aware they're not beyond my chokepoints.
All I can do is wait...
----------------------------------------
Stiff was sure this was all a trap.
Dammit! He punched the wall in frustration.
Those reactions earlier from the escorts were clearly fake! There's no way they would set up this many and leave a child here!
Chances are, the child's somewhere else.
Not like he had a choice though.
When that bomb(?) went off it took a decent chunk of his leg as well as collapsing the tunnel beneath him.
He'd tried heading to the entrance in question only to find that tunnel had been blocked off preemptively.
So now he was crouched over, trying to carefully navigate this tunnel.
A scout would've really been helpful right about now, but sadly they had only brought about 4 of them with them, all C-rank.
And none of them were here currently.
Frankly, as a result of their general assignments, none of them were very good scouts.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
They were a group meant to act as bandits as the outer rim of kingdoms, where nothing could really hurt them, acting as the extended hand of their family, damaging the interests of other families, or furthering their own.
Whatever it was, the need for quality scouting had long dissipated.
It was this very reason that the elf unknowingly had started walking in a particularly damp area, as his feet slowly sunk into the wet mud.
He was aware of, but ignoring the small pangs in his foot.
The boots he had been wearing had been broken by the initial explosion, so he waved it off as merely rocks boking his feet in the mud.
The mud did not give any indication otherwise.
However, had he chosen to examine his feet more closely perhaps he would've noticed small bloody holes in his feet.
Ironwood is considered a rare and sharp material, good for making weapons, especially the elves who specialized in wooden weapons.
So of course, they made for good small spikes, good for piercing the soles, but not too big to draw attention.
Like sharp splinters, meant to increase the blood flow.
And so, the elf kept walking, unaware of what was happening as he grew slower as more and more blood flowed, his mind growing hazier...
He stared having a hard time breathing, slowing down...
He was panting, taking deep breaths...
Each step taking more effort then the last as the distance seemed greater and greater...
The darkness grew more intense, as elementally...
the elf fell, never to wake up again...
----------------------------------------
Well that's one down.
Of course, I suspect were it not for the fact they're already worn out from one battle, and unprepared for this next one that it's managed to be so successful.
Knowing is half the battle, and in this case it's absolutely vital to know what kind of battle was approaching.
As noted, many higher rank fighters often underestimate the small things. The stronger one gets, the more often they tend to ignore smaller things, especially forests like these, which are treated as places of no danger.
Of course, since we're in the tunnels, parts of it are damp and partially mud, so thankfully that was useful for me to hide tiny little spikes.
The initial goal of the potato mine was not only dropping them into the tunnels, which were large enough for one to fit, but small enough to limit the efficiency of a fighter and leave no way to get out by blowing the roof in, but to tenderize their feet to ensure that any floor traps reached maximum efficiency.
Damaging any enchantments would be a nice side effect too.
Sadly, that was a gamble that only succeeded 5 out of the 8 entrances from what he can tell.
I'd set up 9, and only 8 were activated with only 5 of the 8 working, blowing up the entrances and forcing the elves in. The other 3 had either been lucky, competent, or some weird combo of the two.
Nonetheless, so far it wasn't going bad. 1 down already, and another one is approaching the first...
----------------------------------------
"Stiff, Stiff!"
Annie shook her friend, before checking the vitals, and finally coming to an answer that worried her.
"He's dead." How? He was a B-rank? Sure, the explosion was a surprise, but that shouldn't have been enough.
She had to check. Death was at stake here. She could not afford to stop here, when the target had not died yet.
And she still... wanted to live.
She immediately began checking his body to find the cause of death.
Privacy was for those who could live to afford it.
And when she finally found the poisoned ironwood needles, she urgently checked her feet, and finding them also poisoned, quickly began treating it.
----------------------------------------
Oh yeah, I did poison those using some weak poison from one of the many monsters running around during the waves.
Was mostly a gamble, but I guess according to her it paid off. She seems urgent enough.
Buut, there is a chance to get rid of her sooo...
... Boom.
----------------------------------------
Sensing an influx of mana above her, Annie looked up, coming face to face with a round brown lump.
beep
'A potato?' she thought, as the potato stared at her.
beep
All the while it faintly flashed red, and Annie felt a sense of urgency, as she turned to flee, only to feel a sharp sense of pain as the ironwood suddenly grew into her foot keeping her trapped.
beep
She could only helplessly stare into the blank emotionless eyes and the suicidal grin. 'May the Goddess take me quickly' she thought.
Boom!
The goddess would not take her quickly, though it would take her quietly as the initial explosion knocked her out, allowing her to sleep through the suffocation.
----------------------------------------
Two down, three to go.
Lets see what the other three are up to.