Trivia: Humans originally didn't possess the talent of using magic, it was the innate talents of the races such as Elves or Demons. Only then after producing the mixed-race descendants centuries ago, the human of Fantasia began to harbor the ability to wield magic.

(***)

The cavern's wall was greyish rocky with a rugged and unpatterned surface, Shizuka stopped after she walked in several steps, saw was only darkness ahead.

She brought up her nose, trying to smell something, then focused on her hearing, but nothing indicated out of ordinary.

The ceiling was only 3 or 4 feet above her head, and the passage barely fit for a large company, perhaps two or three people at her size could fit to walk side by side.

'Was there possibly a trap already?' Shizuka silently thought, she touched the wall on her left then walked gently.

Outside, Alex and the other saw Shizuka's figure disappeared into the dark, couldn't help but pray for her safety. Alex turned at the pink-haired girl, said, "Momo, don't you have those seeds that can suddenly grow up a vine when someone's stepped on it?"

"Oh, you mean Dazuul seeds? Technically any physical forces, not just being stepped."

"Well, that meant it also can act as a grenade?"

"Absolutely..."

Alex smiled as he just had some ideas, said, "Will you sell some? I can buy them at a good price."

"What's with the official businesses? I don't have a problem giving them," Momo chuckled, brought out her phone and prepared to take out the seeds.

"Silly, it's yours, I won't just ask shamelessly, even as my fiancee, I won't take advantage of you..." Alex lifted his hand and caressed her head, the sudden affectionate gesture startled Momo, her eyes widely enlargened with a strange feeling spurted from deep inside her heart.

"Are you sure only have one girlfriend before? You seemed very good at spoiling girls..." Momo mumbled, the pair of cheek slightly reddened.

"I am sorry, what?" Alex wrinkled his eyebrows, her tone was very low and hard for him to make up the words.

"Nothing... how much do you want? Pay them up later," Momo shook her head and smiled.

Alex thought for a while, then said, "10."

Momo pressed on the dials and took out the number of seeds based on his demand, she carefully handed it to him, "Here you go."

Alex accepted it while saying 'thanks' then he took out a bunch of sharp weapons from the storage, these were the result of looting from the goblins yesterday, half of them had been combined to make rifle bullets, these what was left.

He didn't know whether this could work, but there was no harm in trying, Alex combined the seeds with the weapons, trying to imagine the result in his mind to get the item he wanted, a small light lit up on the scene, suddenly the weapons disappeared, only left behind the 10 seeds.

'Was it failed?' Alex thought before he asked the system to analyze the seed.

(Thorn seed = by applying force into this seed, a group of sharp vines will burst out, trapping and attacking anyone in its vicinity, has the potential to kill them.)

"Nice!" Alex grinned as his idea succeeded.

At this moment, Dick and Damian also came back, they had planted the mine bomb around the area in front of the entrance, their face could tell that they were excited.

"Now, we just have to wait for Shizuka's progress..."

(***)

The kunoichi was currently crawling on the floor, not because the ceiling was decreased, but there were creatures that actually hanged on it upside down.

She couldn't make the detail, but they appeared to be similar like a bat, Shizuka almost didn't notice them if not for one of them let out a small shriek, maybe it's yawning.

Shizuka had been crawling a steep downward path, not too sharp curve.

With a calm breath, she took every action carefully and as silent as possible, she couldn't imagine what happened if those creatures awoke.

Back on her home, there were also few similar creatures, one of them was nasty because they would suck the blood out of their victim, mostly also inhabited a cave like this.

Of course, she never fought them, merely read it somewhere in the book.

The atmosphere here was slightly cold but felt terribly contrast with the outside, which quite hot.

After a while, Shizuka found a hole on the cave wall, a rather big one, maybe at the same size as an elephant, and didn't seem naturally made.

She tried to see whether there was a trap, but it's really hard to detect it, taking few considerations, she walked into the hole and immediately greeted with an edge but no ladder to climb down, she thought perhaps it's not high, but nevertheless, Shizuka didn't jump into it but using her chakra to walk past the edge, and she was right because not long after, she walked on a curve, hanging upside down just like the bats.

Taking out Alex's gift to her, which was a chain kunai, she dropped it down to measure the ground, feeling the kunai had hit a concrete for about 2 meters...

She continued walking the path before she met another curve, and she no longer upside down, but before she managed to walk normally, her feet somehow pressed against nothing, Shizuka immediately ceased her move, thankfully her chakra still gathered on her sole, otherwise she would have tumbled down.

Crouching on the ground, she threw the chain kunai ahead and found the next ground was actually 1 and a half feet, thus it was a pitfall that laid in front of her.

Shizuka tried to measure the height, but even with the entire length of chain kunai, she couldn't feel a single hard ground.

'Where this pitfall lead?'

(***)

Shizuka had been gone for about 10 minutes, Alex was a bit impatient waiting for her report, they had made an agreement that Shizuka was the only one who could call, in fear if Alex accidentally alerted the enemy.

"Alex."

The man startled and pressed the device on his ear, said, "I hear you, what's the situation Shizuka?"

"I think I was in a sort of a tunnel... there is a bottomless pitfall in front of me, do you think I should inspect or jump over it?"

A bottomless pitfall? Why the goblins dig such a thing inside their nest? Obviously a trap but wasn't that also dangerous for them?

"Ignore it, proceed onward."

"Alright."

Shizuka leaped toward the other side, but soon met another pitfall, she kept leaping for about two more before finally met a wooden door.

"..." she leaned her ears on it and closed her eyes, eventually caught several snorings.

"Alex, I think I found their lair..."

"Can you enter?"

Shizuka tried to inspect the surrounding wall, but she found no other path besides the wooden door, going silent for a while, Shizuka was not confident to go through the front door without raising alarm, but did she has a choice?

But then she looked back at the pitfall, thought then said, "Alex, I think the alternative path was precisely these holes..."

"Are you sure?"

"Not entirely, but I can easily climb back if I had been mistaken..."

"..." Alex crossed his arms and pondered; if this was other people perhaps impossible, but someone who could fly and had the ability to walk on any surfaces was no trouble at all.

"Alright, proceed with caution."

"Will do."

Shizuka turned off the device and slowly walked toward one of the pitfalls, she crouched at the edge then applied her chakra on her sole before started to march gradually inside.

(***)

She arrived at a sort of chamber, there was no one here but she saw a torch at the other side of the area, a stone made bars stood between them.

Dropping down silently, Shizuka approached the bars, there was one that appeared to be a door, but it didn't budge slightly.

"Alex."

"Yeah?"

"The pitfall leads into a prison, but there is no way to get out."

"Can you pick the lock?"

"I... I can't..." Shizuka's stoic face somewhat blushed, how she just realized what a terrible infiltrator she was.

"Hmm..." Alex sat crosslegged and thinking for a while, cannot go through here, cannot go through the wooden door, what option did she have?

Alex took a deep breath, then said with a sigh, "then, we didn't have a choice... prepare for a fight..."

"I am sorry, Alex..."

"Don't sweat it, I know it wouldn't be that easy..." Alex smiled, then he stood up from the ground, hoisted up his rifle.

"Shizuka, you hide within those holes, do not come out until you sure had seen most of the goblins came out from their nest."

"Alright!" she jumped quickly toward the hole on the ceiling.

At the outside of the goblin cave, Alex and the others hid behind respective covers, all eyes stared at the cave entrance and the mouth of their rifles pointed toward the cave entrance, even Momo also holding one.

"Are you guys ready?" Alex said, sweeping his eyes toward the rest of them, they gave a half-hearted smile, expressing their worries.

"I guess not..." Alex grinned then he looked at Momo, said, "do it."

Momo nodded, she took out something out from her pocket, closing one eye as she aimed toward the entrance of the cavern...

Then, she threw it...

The item bounced several times and stopped right before the mouth... but nothing happened... for about 5 seconds.

*Kriiiiiiiing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*

The bats inside immediately snapped open their eyes, the entire flocks went berserk and let out a high-pitch shrieking, their big ears even slightly bleeding.

That was not a normal alarm... but a combined version with a powerful amplifier, even Alex had to wince due to the loud noise, he suspected this was enough to arouse the entire town of people.

From the distance about half a mile, Elliot and Jason also heard the noise, looking at the direction and wondered what the hell was that.

"Ki?!"

"Ka?!"

All the sleeping goblins also stuttered awake, without wasting a chance to stand up from the ground and picked up their respective weapons.

The once silent and tranquil cave now filled with a lot rackets of sounds, from stomping to bats shrieking, from one shout of anger to one cry of panic.

Shizuka heard the big creaking sound, then she saw several goblins carried a torch while jumping the pitfall easily, there were so many of them that she simply lost count.

"The goblin is on the move, estimate arrival at the surface 30 seconds!"

"Got it," Alex pressed the earpiece, he greeted the face of the people around, taking a deep breath then steadily aimed toward the mouth of the cave.

Slowly but surely, Alex and the others could see the amber of their torches... 1... 3... 6...

"Alex... this number...." Momo also skipped a breath.

12... 18...

"Shizuka, are they still coming?" Alex mumbled in a daze.

24... 30...

"Yes..." Shizuka's eyes widened to the limit, "it's like..."

45... 60...

"There is no end of them..."

Finally, the foremost line of goblins appeared under the sunlight, they let out a huge roar, appeared terribly angry.

"Who dares to disturb our sleep?!"

"Fire!!!"

*Pit pat pit pat pit pat!*

... It was a hail of bullets... storming down like heavy rain...