The beam of magical energy dissipated.
The large goblin's abdomen had been pierced with a fist-sized wound.
The goblin collapsed heavily, its cleaver and body crashing into the ground, raising clouds of dust.
Gauss remained frozen in his posture from casting Magic Missile, completely motionless.
Only his eyes moved, locking onto the last three goblins in the battlefield.
The goblins who had been besieging the villagers were also startled by the tremendous magical disturbance. Seeing their strongest warrior instantly defeated by that powerful spell, and now noticing Gauss's gaze upon them,
their bodies began trembling uncontrollably like sifting beans.
Even with their limited intelligence, these ordinary goblins understood that the black-haired, green-eyed human male wielded terrifying power capable of easily ending their lives.
Goblins, after all, were precisely this kind of creature.
Gauss exhaled in relief as he surveyed the now peaceful woods again.
He had no intention of pursuing the three goblins that had escaped into the forest to eliminate them completely.
In truth, goblins separated from their tribe usually struggled to survive.
Unless they could find and be accepted by another goblin tribe, solitary goblins typically fell prey to wild beasts or other natural threats.
And most importantly—
Gauss's mana reserves were completely depleted.
Before casting Magic Missile, his mana had actually been relatively abundant.
After all, Mage Hand, as a cantrip, consumed very little mana.
Even after the recent battle had completely exhausted his stamina, he still retained considerable magical reserves.
But that single Magic Missile which had instantly killed the large goblin had completely drained him.
The mana requirement for Magic Missile seemed frighteningly high.
The complete depletion of mana brought severe physical and mental strain.
His brain throbbed with waves of pain.
Having defeated such a powerful enemy, his spirit seemed excessively drained.
This was the main reason he remained motionless—not merely to appear cool.
Fortunately, he had leveraged the residual intimidation from his magic to scare off the three goblins with just a glance.
Otherwise, given everyone's current condition, they might have faced considerable trouble.
"Adventurer, are you alright?" The three villagers also bore some injuries, though not enough to hinder movement.
Normally, ordinary goblins held no advantage against humans in one-on-one combat, but this hadn't been a fair fight—the goblins' numbers amplified their strength, and the deep night had created additional difficulties.
Seeing Gauss standing motionless without issuing further commands, his gaze fixed deep into the woods, the villagers couldn't comprehend his intentions.
After a brief hesitation, they cautiously approached.
They now realized this shabbily equipped, unremarkable-looking man was actually the team's true leader—
and an extraordinarily powerful one at that. That final comet-like magical attack had left an indelible impression.
Birch Village would likely have another exciting tale for their evening conversations.
"The battle is over."
"Go search the cave for victims," Gauss said, still rooted in place. "And please return to the village quickly to fetch help. My companions are injured and need treatment, as do your fellow villagers..."
Gauss glanced at his team members—this adventure had been extraordinarily brutal.
Bell the swordsman had suffered a broken leg, with uncertain prospects for recovery.
Upon seeing Gauss's decisive magical victory, Bell's tense nerves finally relaxed, causing him to immediately faint.
Mia's injuries were equally severe, though internal. She lay immobilized on the ground, blood continuously trickling from her mouth.
Both were in critical condition—even with this hard-won victory, their recovery remained uncertain.
Compared to Mia and Bell, Gauss and Hayley were in much better shape, though currently incapable of movement.
As for the first villager attacked, he hadn't moved in a long time—most likely already dead.
Before long, the dark forest was illuminated once more by numerous torches...
The rooster's crow marking the time echoed as usual over Birch Village.
After an uneasy night,
the village was enveloped in an inexplicably mournful atmosphere.
The good news was that the two female villagers had been successfully rescued, though they emerged from the cave barely clothed, covered in filth, their bodies bruised purple and blue—at least their lives weren't in danger.
As for whether they'd suffered other harms, Gauss had enough social awareness not to pry into such inappropriate questions.
The bad news was that one villager had died.
The deceased man was Aisha's brother.
Initially, when the villagers awaiting news heard about the death—especially of one of their own—some resentment surfaced.
They blamed the adventuring party for failing to handle mere goblins, resulting in their fellow villager's death.
But when they arrived at the goblin nest and witnessed the horrific scene, their complaints died in their throats.
The ground was stained dark red with blood, the stench of gore overwhelming. Everywhere lay severed green limbs—arms, hands, thighs—and indescribable organs oozing foul, sticky fluids: intestines, livers.
The air hung heavy with the mingled odors of flesh, excrement, and rotting corpses.
Many villagers with weaker stomachs took one look at the gruesome scene and immediately vomited.
Combined with the severely wounded Bell and Mia, and the three surviving villagers' vivid accounts of the brutal battle, the villagers' resentment turned to gratitude.
This adventuring party had become the village's heroes.
Gauss and his team were accommodated in the village's finest stone house to recuperate.
Though the village had no proper doctor, a herbalist apprentice kept vigil over the two injured members all night.
Truthfully, beyond basic bandaging, this apprentice could offer little medical assistance.
However, Bell and Mia's conditions were temporarily stabilized without further deterioration,
thanks to Hayley administering a mysterious red pill said to stimulate the body's life energy and temporarily suppress injuries.
But the pill only provided temporary relief. Moreover, being harmful if taken repeatedly in short periods, the two severely wounded members hadn't truly passed their critical phase.
They still urgently needed proper medical treatment.