I Am Not Goblin Slayer

Chapter 264: Fireball

Time passed in the blink of an eye—several days went by.During that period, Gauss led the villagers on several more local sweeps to clear out goblins.

The villagers’ teamwork and fighting technique improved rapidly through real combat and the targeted guidance that followed.

Gauss’s total monster kill count quietly reached 5,631.

Unknowingly, it had climbed by nearly two hundred.

Besides training the villagers during the day, he also went out “hunting” at night.

Although he taught the villagers that nights were not suitable for fighting creatures like goblins that possess night vision, his strength had increased so much that he could already ignore that rule.

After all, his night vision was far superior to the goblins’.

He also hunted at night to try to reduce the number of monsters around Goat Village, making the village safer for a longer time.

In the threshing ground that served as the makeshift training field, Gauss silently patrolled with Aria and the others.

He felt a strong sense of achievement.

These trainees had gone from panic and awkward, malformed movements to now performing reasonably well in group drills—progress visible to the naked eye.

"Clang!"

The dull thuds of wooden weapons hitting flesh echoed in the air, mixed with one or two short, powerful shouts.

Shield-bearers took the front, their eyes alert to the “enemy’s” motions, while villagers carrying spears, pitchforks, and swords staggered behind, positioned to both support the front line and respond to flanks.

Archers were protected within the formation.

Even Rhine carried a light crossbow within the formation.

But her crossbow used no real bolts—only a kind of soft training bolt Gauss had specially made so she could practice following along.

Privately, Gauss and Shadow had taught her how to use a crossbow.

This light crossbow was also a self-defense weapon Gauss had given her.

Before mastering magic, a crossbow was a very useful weapon.

A high-quality bolt cost no small amount.

At the front of the formation, the village chief’s grandson Eric seized an opening created when a shield-bearer pushed forward and charged ahead, his eyes focused on his opponent.

When the opponent swung a heavy vertical chop, Eric changed his step with nimble footwork.

Sliding aside from the blade’s arc, his wooden sword traced a clean arc and struck precisely at the opponent’s exposed flaw caused by overcommitment—the wrist.

"Pa!"

A light crack as the opponent yelped in pain and the wooden sword flew from his hand.

"Clap, clap!"

"Very good." Gauss clapped in praise.

"Eric, you learned to use footwork and timing. Remember this feeling—for real combat, you can’t rely on brute force alone. Breaking the enemy’s balance and seizing opportunities is more important than striking first."

He looked toward another group of young people practicing seriously.

He nodded approvingly, assessing them in his mind.

"Their discipline and teamwork have improved massively."

"They’ve grasped basic skills. Although not yet meeting the entry requirements to become low-tier adventurers, and they haven’t condensed any skills, their teamwork is sufficient to handle ordinary goblins and goblin-like creatures."

"Also…" Gauss stroked his chin. "Some of them might not be far from condensing a skill."

"Maybe another month or so of training and they could qualify?"

He mulled this over.

Serlandul just then spoke up with admiration: "They’re learning faster than I expected."

Even though these dozen or so people had been picked from over a hundred and were taught by professionals like them, such a success rate was still impressive.

He tilted his head to look at Captain Gauss.

Maybe it was because of the captain?

Although Gauss led the initial melee class and Serlandul took over later, he didn’t think it was entirely his own credit.

He had taught outsiders before without achieving this level of efficiency.

Looking at everyone in the threshing ground, he couldn’t help but feel grateful in his heart.

These people were truly fortunate.

Not everyone has the chance to rapidly learn fundamental skills.

Sometimes what looks like a gap in learning speed is actually about whether they can afford the cost of trial and error—ordinary folks don’t have enough margins for that. They need to make a living, to toil.

If months or years pass with no visible results, it’s hard not to grow weary and let practice deteriorate.

If the timeline is compressed and noticeable results come quickly, trainees are far more likely to stick with it.

"Perhaps these people all have the potential to become adventurers," Gauss said with a smile.

Of course, that didn’t mean every one of them would become an adventurer, but if they could grasp some power, the village would be far more secure and peaceful.

"Should we move on to the next village?" Aria asked.

Gauss fell silent for a moment upon hearing her.

Although this was their first village, they had stayed longer than usual.

Training was nearly complete, and there was no strong reason to remain.

"Soon. Once I master Fireball. It’s almost there."

Gauss’s gaze found Rhine in the crowd.

Rhine happened to look back and gave a faint smile.

On the open ground outside the village—

Shadow and Aria watched from a distance as Rhine observed, keeping well away from Gauss.

"This Gauss is a real monster."

"If I told others that he learned Fly at level four and is about to master Fireball, they’d think I’m bragging."

Even Aria, as his teammate, found it hard to believe.

Normally, a level-four spellcaster would struggle to grasp a third-circle spell;even a level-five would need effort.

The difficulties lay in the model’s complexity, rank mismatch, and the caster’s inability to hold an overly complex model in their consciousness.

But Gauss had not only succeeded with one—it looked like he was about to master another.

It was as if the magic world’s rules didn’t apply to him.

There seemed to be no limit to the number of spells he could have.

Aria tried to count the spells Gauss knew by running her fingers through the list, but she quickly gave up.

There were simply too many to count.

Rhine said nothing, only staring with round eyes at Gauss in the distance.

These days of learning had taken her from a complete magic novice to someone who understood many basics.

Thus she could recognize Gauss’s brilliance.

This is my teacher! How amazing.

"Ha—"

So sleepy…

Rhine yawned.

Although Gauss had told her the reason she couldn’t cast Fire Bolt was her young age and insufficient bodily mana, she had not given up.

Every night she took time to practice magic on the open ground outside the yard.

She knew Gauss might leave at any time.

Before he went, she wanted to master this spell to surprise her teacher.

Unfortunately, despite her anxiousness, she hadn’t made clear progress yet.

Her gaze returned to the open ground far away.

Gauss stood there with his eyes closed, concentrating.

Deep in his consciousness, the spell model for Fireball had already been constructed.

As he tightened his grip on the white magic wand, the natural mana in the surrounding air began to stir restlessly.

At one moment he raised the hand holding the wand.

A large mass of mana gathered at the wand tip. The mana compacted so densely that the surrounding air began to warp.

Gauss held the familiar white wand, calming his mind.

When everything was ready, he exhaled.

A surging stream of mana flowed out along the wand tip!

At a chosen point in the distant air—a spot Gauss designated—a thread of crimson spark suddenly materialized out of nowhere.

Gauss’s own mana quickly combined with and drew in ambient energy.

The flame rotated and compressed at a terrifying speed, continuously absorbing power.

In the blink of an eye the ember swelled into a plump, blazing white fireball.

Strange magical runes flickered on its surface;its shell seemed like a lock, tightly constraining the vast energy still being combined.

At the deepest core of the fireball, a pinpoint of blinding white shone like a miniature sun.

That signified energy compressed to the extreme.

Sensing the fireball’s state, Gauss thought briefly.

"Explode!"

In the next instant, after a sudden inward contraction, that dazzling little ball began to expand at a speed impossible for the eye to follow!

The wind rose!

It was as if an invisible hand squeezed it even harder, forcing the energy already compressed to the limit to release its true power.

In a tenth or even a hundredth of a second, the fist-sized fireball expanded countless times, becoming a massive orb more than ten meters in diameter, hanging in the sky like a small sun!

Deep-red flames swept outward like a storm!

"Boom!!!"

A sound like it could shake the soul thundered out!

Where the massive fireball swept, the hot blast devoured everything.

The ground beneath the fireball seemed struck by an enormous hammer.

Moisture-stripped soil collapsed instantly, then massive cracks spread outward like a spiderweb.

Before the cracks finished spreading, they shot skyward—countless chunks and stones torn from the ground flew up together.

Dust and smoke rose tens of meters and swept outward farther still.

The tremor made Rhine lose her footing, but Aria caught her and instinctively raised an arm to shield against the wind and heat.

The three of them were already far enough away and were covered by Gauss’s protective field.

Yet the terrifying explosive power still shocked Aria and Rhine.

As for Shadow—

Her face rarely showed direct expression, but from her fixed stare, she was likely shocked as well.

The power was overwhelming!

The dust took a long while to fully sink.

When the air finally cleared, Gauss looked toward the explosion.

The open field had become a huge concave crater.

Smoldering smoke still rose from the scorched earth;clearly grasses and flammables were still burning.

The directly affected core ranged about twenty meters, with subsequent shockwave damage extending for dozens of meters.

Gauss felt his internal mana somewhat depleted;for some reason, even his stamina and sword qi had been partially consumed.

He swallowed.

Putting aside whether this would work against higher-level monsters with strong defenses,

the affected area was undeniably vast.

If he had known this spell when he fought goblins on the Seagull at sea, he could have fired a single Fireball from the ship when enemy vessels were still dozens or hundreds of meters away and instantly sunk and shattered an entire ship—no goblin would have survived.

Used properly, a single Fireball could kill hundreds of monsters in an instant.

Its weakness, of course, was that it didn’t distinguish friend from foe.

You must pick the right moment to use it.

Against monsters with fire resistance or immunity—such as some devils or fire elementals—its effectiveness would be drastically reduced.

But nonetheless,

this third-circle offensive spell still filled Gauss with immense delight.

"Is Fireball that powerful for others as well?" Aria and the others approached.

"Not sure. But for me, I can only use it once in a short time." Gauss shook his head.

He still had some mana left in his body, but not enough to cast Fireball a second time.

The spell consumed massive mana.

It couldn’t become a regular offensive method yet—more like an executioner’s move.

Of course, he referred to bodily mana.

He actually had backup mana reserves—blue bars—so with some rest he could cast a second time.

Gauss smiled.

Having obtained Fly and Fireball for some time now,

he had, through effort, preemptively mastered these two third-circle spells despite his level—an accomplishment that gave him genuine pride.

With Fly and Fireball, and many other 0–2 circle spells supporting him, his combat style had begun to take shape.

Next was to steadily increase proficiency in Fly and Fireball so he could apply them skillfully in real battles.

Gauss quietly discussed with Shadow and Aria the precautions they as teammates needed to take after he used Fireball, and how to coordinate as a team.

Especially with Shadow.

He wondered whether her ability to extract teammates from the battlefield could be paired with the friend-and-foe-blind Fireball.

If coordinated properly, could they withdraw teammates at the last moment so only enemies would be harmed?

After all, actual battles don’t always present a clear, separate enemy and ally setup.

You might have to create the right opening yourself.

After the brief exchange, he looked down at Rhine.

She had been quiet for a long time.

Gauss was about to check if the explosion had frightened his young apprentice.

Rhine spoke first in a small voice.

"Teacher, are you all leaving?"

Aria and Gauss exchanged glances.

He hadn’t told Rhine the exact departure plans, but he hadn’t realized how perceptive she was.

"Yes."

Gauss patted her head.

Life always brings farewells.

Even if he wanted to take Rhine along, she was too young.

Being with him wouldn’t teach her much at this stage and might instead place her in danger.

"I’ll come back to see you."

Gauss looked at the girl who had fallen silent and felt gloomy and tried to comfort her.

"That’s right, that’s right. Don’t worry, Little Rhine. Even if Gauss doesn’t come back, I’ll remind him. You’ll still see him often." Aria crouched down and took the girl’s small hand.

These days together had made Aria fond of this clever, obedient child.

Rhine nodded and pursed her lips.

Her eyes suddenly felt sore, but she lifted her head, holding back tears, and forced a smile.

"Teacher Gauss, I’ll wait here in the village for you."

She had thought about going with Gauss and the others, but thinking of her parents made her feel very reluctant.

Moreover, she knew she would be a burden to them, so the thought remained only in her heart and was never spoken.

The team silently headed toward Goat Village.

Back in the village, Serlandul—who was finishing the last bit of training with the villagers—slightly raised his mouth when he sensed the distant, intense explosion.

He knew the captain had mastered Fireball.

"Sir Serlandul, what happened over there?" the trainees asked anxiously when they felt the tremor.

During this time, Serlandul had won their respect.

These villagers no longer felt as fearful of the half-snake’s fierce appearance as at first;instead, they felt genuine reverence.

"It’s nothing, don’t panic. Probably our captain practicing magic outside the village."

Practicing… magic?

The villagers swallowed;the magnitude of that detonation exceeded their imagination.

At the moment of the explosion they’d felt the ground tremor.

What kind of attack could create such a disturbance outside the village and still affect this place?

If it had been used inside the village…

Too terrifying.

At that moment their recognition of how fearsome the mages were increased another notch.

Back in the village,

Gauss and the others announced they would leave early the next morning.

For a moment the entire village showed reluctant faces.

During their stay, the village had enjoyed unprecedented security.

Gauss also occasionally hunted a wild boar or deer to supplement the villagers’ meals.

Although many villagers did not dare to approach him often, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t remember his kindness.

People’s hearts are tender;sincere kindness doesn’t go unnoticed.

"Sir Gauss, these are our eggs—take them for the road."

"Sir Gauss, these pancakes I made are still warm."

"Smoked jerky—it's not worth much but please don’t despise it…"

By noon, villagers had gathered in front of the Fold House with various gifts.

Rhine’s parents were among the crowd, but Rhine herself was nowhere to be seen.

The villagers held simple farm produce—eggs, vegetables, smoked meat, coarse cloth garments and goods—humble items that carried heavy meaning.

Gauss looked at the simple faces and felt warmth swell in his chest.

He intended to politely refuse but, on reflection, smiled and accepted a small portion from each person, returning the rest.

"This is more than enough. Too much would go to waste."

Seeing the villagers still eager to offer gifts, the village chief stepped out.

"Enough. Do you think Sir Gauss lacks for food? Take it back. He still has to pack—don’t make things hard for him." He half-joked, half-scolded, and guided them to return their offerings.

"Sir Gauss, and the rest of you… our Goat Village will remember your help. Thank you so much!"

After the crowds dispersed, the village chief thanked them solemnly.

He appreciated them even more since his grandson Eric had told him he might soon gain adventurer strength.

While adventurers mean risk, power is still something ordinary people seek.

He, as village chief, had even bought skill training for Eric and let him learn on his own, but it had yielded no results.

Just when he and Eric had given up hope,

Gauss and the others arrived and trained the villagers—the effects immediate and remarkable, especially in his grandson, who was close to achieving extraordinary power. How could he not be grateful?

"Please, chief, take good care of Little Rhine from now on." Gauss waved a hand. "I’ll come back to see her."

Hearing Gauss’s request, the chief turned serious and pounded his chest to promise.

He had thought Gauss had simply taken a liking to Rhine. She was the only child in the village with possible mage talent, so they had paid her extra attention.

But Gauss’s explicit instruction before departure changed the meaning entirely.

Even just to remain in Gauss’s good graces he would avoid any trouble affecting Rhine’s family within his capacity.

Otherwise how could he face Gauss next time?

After the chief left,

Gauss looked out the door.

"Waiting for Little Rhine?"

"Yes." Gauss sighed. "She’s young;she’ll probably be upset for a long time."

But they weren’t in a state to bring a child with them.

Besides, what right did they have to take a two- or three-year-old away from her parents?

"I’ll go out for a walk."

Gauss stepped outside.

Before their formal departure, he wanted to leave one final gift.

He had prepared it a few days ago:

his notes on magic, some books, and the teleportation talisman Andni had once given him.

He wanted to give those to Rhine.

The notes and books would let her accumulate more magical knowledge;as for literacy, he had already taught Rhine the basics and reading shouldn’t be a problem.

After all, he was a spellcaster—if he truly wanted to teach her to read, it wouldn’t be difficult.

As for the last gift—the teleportation talisman—if crushed it could generate a protective field and instantly teleport the holder a random distance of hundreds to nearly a thousand meters away.

If an accident occurred, it was a means of survival.

Instant teleportation that far could escape many monsters.

A few hundred to a thousand meters sounds close on paper, but considering terrain, buildings, and vegetation blocking sightlines, it was quite safe.

He might not need such an item himself right now;better to give it to Rhine.

He sincerely hoped that when they met again in the future the talisman would remain intact.

By then he might have become even stronger.