"Not far ahead is the burrow we need to clear for this mission."

Alden led the way through the forest, holding the mission map in his hand.

Behind him, Ellie and Lin Mo stood on either side of the team, with ranger Solan in the middle, and knight Rick at the rear of the formation.

As for assassin Carson, he was currently perched on a tree branch, surveying the surroundings.

Although they had met briefly last night, compared to that time, the fully armed group now clearly felt more like proper adventurers. Everyone understood their position and role within the team, each performing their designated duties.

Just as Lena had said, this was indeed a relatively complete and mature team.

Lin Mo held the book "Complete Bestiary of Roland Forest's Outer Region" and reviewed information about giant rats.

These were bottom-tier monsters even weaker than goblins. In pure combat terms, a healthy adult could easily handle two giant rats simultaneously, which was why the bounty for these creatures was extremely low—only 10 copper coins.

Compared to goblins before the price increase, it was only half their value, let alone the current rate where a single goblin ear could fetch a full 100 copper.

So adventurers usually couldn't be bothered to clear out these pests.

But these monsters couldn't be completely ignored either. While their reproduction rate wasn't quite as fast as goblins, it was close, and they particularly enjoyed destroying rice fields. Therefore, the Association periodically issued missions for adventurers to cull their numbers.

To motivate adventurers, the reward for this mission wasn't low either.

6 gold coins was quite generous for such a simple small mission.

"We're here."

Alden stopped walking, hiding in the bushes as he looked toward the cave ahead.

The entrance was approximately half a meter in diameter, with raised earth around it showing clear digging marks.

"Carson."

Alden glanced at the team's assassin, who immediately understood. In three quick steps, Carson climbed up a tree and stood on a branch, surveying the area from above.

About a minute later, Carson descended from the tree and pointed northwest: "About 100 meters in that direction, there's a second burrow. Then about 60 meters due east, there's another one."

"Ellie and Lin Mo, please head to the northwest burrow. Rick, Carson, and Solan take the due east burrow."

After assigning tasks, Alden pulled out a large paper package from his backpack and carefully opened it.

"What's that?"

Lin Mo asked curiously as he moved northwest with Ellie.

"Powder made from red snake fruit mixed with green dust grass. It's combustible, and the smoke it produces is quite toxic."

Ellie explained while handing him a pair of nose plugs: "These giant rats hide in their burrows during the day and only come out to forage at night. The underground tunnels they dig are complex and narrow, making it basically impossible to enter. So we have to find ways to make them come out on their own."

As she spoke, she used her sword to cut down a small tree, shaping it into a wooden stake to block the entrance on their side.

The other team did the same. After completing these preparations, Alden lit the paper package and forcefully threw it into the burrow before sealing the entrance.

Now, all they needed to do was wait quietly.

One minute, two minutes...

It seemed the burrow system was quite extensive, as the smoke needed time to spread through the tunnels. There was no immediate reaction.

Ellie also took out an identical paper package from her backpack, lit it, threw it into the burrow, and then resealed the entrance with the wooden stake.

Carson's team did the same. With all three entrances now smoking, it took less than a minute for movement to begin within the burrows.

"Get ready!"

Just as Alden's warning reached their ears, the wooden stake in front of them was violently knocked away with a "thump—" A half-meter-long giant rat burst from the burrow, only to be instantly decapitated by Ellie's quick sword.

Some smoke escaped from the burrow, but they had all put on nose plugs by now. As long as they held their breath temporarily, the minimal smoke wouldn't cause much problem.

The first emerging giant rat seemed to signal something, as the commotion beneath the ground grew increasingly noticeable. Seconds later, another dark figure shot out abruptly.

"Swish—!"

This time, Lin Mo seized the moment perfectly, slicing it cleanly in half with his sword.

[Stealth] Proficiency +1

Using "Cross Slash" on a giant rat seemed somewhat wasteful. His stamina wasn't exactly unlimited, just less constrained than before. So Lin Mo had entered stealth state early, at least to grind some proficiency for this skill.

The smoke now completely filling the burrow system sent the giant rats into total chaos. The moment Lin Mo killed one, three or four more immediately scrambled out in succession.

Cross Slash!

Lin Mo timed it perfectly, executing the fierce technique that instantly eliminated all of them.

Ellie, who had been preparing to strike nearby, gave Lin Mo a surprised look. What fierce sword technique... He hadn't used this when sparring with the captain earlier.

Which meant he had been holding back even then?

But why use such a powerful move against some giant rats...

The wolf girl seemed to have a question mark floating above her head, but she couldn't speak while holding her breath.

After a while, the burrow returned to complete silence.

From start to finish, the entire combat lasted only about five or six minutes. Thanks to his enhanced constitution, holding his breath for this duration posed no problem for Lin Mo.

Ellie, however, had to run some distance away midway to catch her breath before returning.

With the battle over, they didn't rush to clean up immediately. The group moved about a hundred meters away from the area first.

"Hah~ I was practically suffocating."

Ranger Solan plopped down on the ground, breathing in large gulps of fresh air.

Using "Cross Slash" on a giant rat seemed somewhat wasteful. His stamina wasn't exactly unlimited, just less constrained than before. So Lin Mo had entered stealth state early, at least to grind some proficiency for this skill.

"We'll collect the spoils after the smoke completely disperses."

Clearing burrows wasn't particularly difficult—just somewhat tedious. Since giant rat burrows typically had multiple entrances and most people needed to catch their breath midway, it required a team effort to complete properly.

Lin Mo checked his proficiency panel.

During the recent battle, he had eliminated 13 giant rats total. Eight contributed to his Cross Slash proficiency, while eleven added to his Stealth proficiency—quite a fruitful harvest.

They had about half an hour before the smoke would completely dissipate, perfect for taking a rest.

Alden leaned against a tree, resting with his eyes closed.

Assassin Carson cautiously checked their surroundings before joining Knight Rick in conversation.

Ranger Solan craned his neck, glanced at Alden, then quietly crept over and whispered: "Captain, recently with Bella..."

Alden's closed eyes snapped open as he glared at him: "Get lost!"

"Right away."

Solan stuck out his tongue and quickly retreated, joining Carson and Rick's conversation.

"You still haven't given up after all this time?"

Rick punched his chest playfully, teasing him.

"Got to keep trying. Who knows when the captain might agree... You guys know Miss Bella has feelings for me. Every time we go to the Association, the curve of her smile is always slightly bigger for me than anyone else."

"We've told you—that's only because you're a member of the Raging Bull Team."

Carson shook his head, not bothering to say more. After all, you can never wake someone who's pretending to sleep.