*step, step, step*

My steps echoed through the passage to the goblin main hall. Yes, to that hall, which was now closed by the hill of clay. The chamber was not so high, barely enough for me, and wide enough for two people. The last turn and I was there. Three goblin corpses still littered the place before the wall. I overstepped them and touched the wall. Then the wall started to disappear right into my hand. Or its better to say it started to move inside the dimension called my Inventory. When the wall lowered a little, the ceiling showed a hole through.

"Oh FUCK!"

*Cough, cough*

When the hole widened enough, the horrible smell punched my nose.

Burnt flesh, skin, hair, leather, and I don't know what else made me nauseous.

I immediately grabbed for my colar to cover my face, but it didn't help a bit.

It was so horrible, that it forced me to put on my gas mask. God be blessed, that I had it.

I continued in devouring the wall with my mask on, until it completely disappeared. I concluded, that it won't be very smart to go inside a cave where had burned. You know, the carbon monoxide is quiet and fast death. I didn't know how good could that old filter of me be good against CO. On the other hand, military filters are made to adsorb elemental gases like a chlorine, but better not to tempt my luck. Instead, walking in, I got one of my awesome ideas. I crouched and touched the floor.

[Shapeshifting]

The lane of ground liquefied and started to shape itself into a thin layer of stone reaching the top. Layer continued to the inside of cave and also to the entrance. The job was almost done, when my Mp reached a zero.

Suddenly... [Oh shit]

When my Mp fell, I suddenly felt a wave of dizziness, my head was light and I had urge to vomit. My body felt heavy and so tired.

In the end, I lost consciousness for about quarter of hour and when I woke up I didn't feel a much better.

Those are consequences of mana exhaustion. Nothing comfortable to be said, it is comparable to these nights in the style of 'drink till you can'.

When I woke up dropped the whole canteen on ex.

[Ehwww, please, never again]

Yeah, very unpleasant experience, but back to the job.

So, I made layer of the stone which halved the chamber into two.

And now, a bit of creativity.

[Shapeshifting]

This skill work on the principle of controlling the mass with mana, so, it should work even with gases, shouldn't it ? So with my thoughts, I poured my mana into the atmosphere and performed a motion. This motion was directed into one hole. And voila, you've got a ventilation.

When those dangerous gases were out. I calmly went inside. The gases may be out, but that horrid stench was still

there, just not so strong.

The cave was dark, so I borrowed a torch and stepped in. The light was dim and yet, it didn't hide that view of dead.

Corpses were littered everywhere, some of these unlucky ones burnt, others lying on the ground, still holding their heads or throats. There was obvious will of the victims to get out, many of them lied near the entrance and the wall here was scratched by their fingernails. Their desperation still ended in their death. Males or females, young or old, everyone was dead. Because of me. And still, I felt nothing, ok, maybe little anxiousness.

In this room wasn't anything valuable, so I continued into the next one.

At the end of the main hall was a small door. This door led to the chambers of head individuals of this tribe. Behind was next corridor which vent to next part of this cave. That part was about one third of main hall and was separated to several chambers by wooden walls. I opened doors of first one, there were many skulls of different animals. In the center was a skin where was mixture of several dyes and incenses. Mortar and pestle was also there. Many herbs were hanging everywhere, some ceramical vials with many different who-know-whats.

[Seems like shaman room]

Shamans were usually mediums between tribemembers and spirits, but also fullfiled function of healers or helped with births.

And in this fucking fantasy, herbs could have many effects. Like some suspicious fruits from some unnamed tree... Whatever. I stored every vial and herb I saw and proceeded to next room.

Normal simple room, some sleeping skins, and several shelves with clay tablets, that is description of next room. These tablets contained some pictograms, probably imaging tribe's status of stock. Nothing valuable.

Chamber on the opposite side of the corridor took my breath away.

There were numerous bags made of skin and inside each one were baby goblins. Many of them survived, and when I came in, they started to scream.

"What the fuck?"

[What shall I do? I dunno. This room is invaluable too. I'll just go

If I leave them, they probably die themselves, by thirst and hunger. Au revoir]

When I turned back to leave, group of the bigger children, which I didn't notice before, suddenly hoped out of their beds and attacked me. Some of them tried to bite my legs and others jumped on my back and started to scratch me. One of them even climbed up and started to strangle me. That pissed me off.

"YOU DAMN BASTARDS"

I grabbed the one who strangled me and gave him the hugest punch I could.

The kid flew backwards and crushed on the wall. Then I tore of those on my back and kicked those bastard who were chewing my precious combat boots.

"Do you fucking know how much time I spent polishing them? Huh?"

When the children realized that their enemy was far stronger than them they started to cry and run to hide.

They all pushed in one corner and looked at me with anxiousness.

I approached them and kicked right in the center of the group. Then grabbed the two nearest and hurled them to the ground. Others ran away in all directions. But. Adult goblin was about meter high. Infant were about two bigger human fists, and those kids were as high as a bigger cat. So it was easy to get them, however I didn't get all of them. When I looked carefully, I discovered a piece of skin hanging on the wall. This skin was actually covering a small foxhole, probably made for children in case of emergency. Using a flashlight on my phone, I looked inside. There really were three of those bastards hugging each other. The hole wasn't particularly big, just like a kennel. No, second exits, just a foxhole. And so I got a terribly despicable idea.

When the sticks fulfilled almost the entire hole and first flames stared to lick the sticks, goblins started to cry even more. I waited few more seconds to be sure the sticks really caught the fire and then left, accompanied by loud scream.

"Title achieved "Goblin slayer"

+30% xp when slaying goblins

Des: You killed their men, women and children. You burnt their land and completely eradicated their tribes.

Now, you are natural enemy of their kin!"

[Whaat?... No comment. I just wanna go, go away.]

And about others, I left them as they were, those others are anyway just infants, without a care of adults, they'll...whatever

BTW, each one gave me 10xp.

Now, the last room. The room of chieftain. Even doors were better than others, made relative sturdy and with proper hasp. Despite my expectations, the room wasn't something very spectacular, normal storage for things, some symbols of the might and some ornaments. Just the bedding was somehow larger, probably because of the size of that thing and also because leaders fuck more. How's that saying? yeah, the stronger dog fucks.

There were some skins with ornaments hanging from the ceiling too.

I came close to take a look, when I stumbled over some insignificant bullshit on the floor. I expected to crush into the stone wall, but there was nothing behind the skin, so I fell headfirst on the ground.

"Ouch, screw this damned place. Couldn't they tidy up, when they have a guest?"

The first thing what I saw when I got up wasn't a cold stone of a cave, but a wooden door. Strange door.

Goblin's doors are usually made by tying up several sticks with a rope, whereas those are actual door with a frame and reinforced by steel. But, goblins cannot create a steel.

So they have probably stolen it somewhere.

[So, how do I get in? This one even need a key]

[Hmmmm, ah, Shapeshifting]

I touched the lock and cast the skill.

Then reshaped it completely and voila, way's free.

[Hehe, lockpicking level 100]

Behind was a tight passage leading to naturally form cleft. And inside were numerous items.

[Seems like high value room]

There were many pretty stones, some skulls from rare animals, and in the center was a small crude pedestal which carried a fucking big hammer. It has to weigh about 15 kg. And that's not all. There also were a big black rocks, shining by many various colors.

"Aren't these..."

[Scan]

"Type/Name: Meteorite

Composition: Metallic, high probability nickel, iron, copper "

"...meteorites. Oh damn! Yess."

That place contained about twenty of meteorites. Each one weigh at least 150 kg. I took them into my Inventory and continued with exploration.

Some bone daggers of past. Raw diamond. Skulls of humans. Animal horns. Sword so rusty, that it was unusable and many other shits.

And that's all.

"Ahh, finally, fresh air and sunlight! I'm glad I got outta that stinky hole.

So, what shall I do now?"

[I'd like to get to those human nations, but I don't even know where am I now. So, how da fuck am I supposed to find out where I am. I could be wherever, in every continent or damned island, just polar areas are excluded. The best option is to ask someone, but who?

Whatever, the last thing I am gotta take are their shits. And yes that's for real]

I really didn't want to have something with their shits. I just wanted the precious substances in it. Nitrates.

To be precise, ammonium, potassium and sodium nitrates, trivially called saltpeter. Basic substances of gunpowder. Ok, the only wanted nitrate is potassium nitrate, but the others could be used to create this one too.

And why do I want exactly this one?

Easy answer, the other two ones are pretty much hygroscopicus, which means they like to absorb humidity and that isn't the property for your gunpowder.

But I won't stop only at saltpeter, nitrates are also usable to prepare miraculous liquid. The nitric acid.