I Have a Task Log

Colin looked in the direction of the river. He had a feeling this was the same one from Mist Harbor.

He took the [Climbing Rope] from his backpack, intending to climb to the other side.

Just then, Dorn raised a hand to stop him. He then cupped his hands around his mouth and let out a low, muffled call.

"What are you doing? You have a contact here?" Kase asked doubtfully, standing beside him.

At that moment, a sinister, cold wind blew in their faces.

A faint, ghostly blue shadow on the river’s surface slowly solidified from transparency. A closer look revealed it was a small boat, big enough for ten people. At the stern stood a figure in a Black Robe, holding an oar.

The figure tilted its head toward the shore, revealing a gleaming white Skeleton skull beneath its black hood.

Colin was about to draw his sword, but Dorn turned and held his hand down.

The Dwarf shouted to the others, "This thing can help us. Don’t attack!"

"Are you serious? Didn’t you see its face?" Ale said with a frown.

Orelia said, "This gentleman doesn’t seem to be hostile."

Since the Priest had spoken, the others suppressed their urge to attack, watching the Skeleton boatman warily.

"Adventurers who’ve reached this level have probably killed this kind of thing hundreds of times, but they seem to be unkillable. Eventually, someone discovered that if you give it money, it’ll ferry your squad along the river. It’s a way to speed up our journey," Dorn explained.

"Then why didn’t you say so earlier?"

"If I’d said so earlier, how could I have watched you all get scared?" Dorn said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He then walked onto the boat with his map, stood on his tiptoes in front of the Skeleton, spread the map out, and said a whole lot to it.

But the Skeleton boatman didn’t respond at all. It didn’t even move its head, looking just like a statue.

"What are you all still looking at? Get on!"

The group exchanged glances before boarding the small boat at the Dwarf’s urging and taking their seats.

The moment they were settled, Colin felt the small boat beneath him lift slightly. It then began to turn and head upstream.

Curious, he leaned over and looked at the bottom of the boat.

The river water beneath the boat was still flowing downstream, creating not a single ripple from the boat’s movement, as if the vessel didn’t exist at all.

"I once heard some Barbarians who live by the sea say that after you die, a boat just like this carries you into the dark depths of the ocean. The boatman is a Skeleton in a Black Robe, too."

"That’s a bit frightening to say, Mr. Kase," Orelia said, looking uneasily at the boatman.

’To a follower of the Morninglord, the Undead are more detestable than Evil Demons. Even though Orelia knows the creature means no harm, she probably can’t help but feel wary,’ Colin thought, then let out a yawn.

’But as far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t feel much different from riding in a carriage.’

Feeling relaxed, Colin looked at his Skill Level Panel and, on a whim, added all two hundred fifty skill points he’d received from the previous quest to his Magic Craftsman Skill Level.

The Skill Level for Magic Craftsman immediately updated: Magic Craftsman (Apprentice) 543/1250

At the same time, his other Skills had also increased a bit from combat, though not by much.

After the familiar illusory training, the newly acquired Specialty Panel appeared before his eyes.

[Manufacture Magic Items (Basic Level)]

[Magic Craftsmanship: You can successfully create temporary Magic Items of "Ordinary" Level.]

’So the Night Vision Helmet I made before was really just a half-assed piece of work,’ Colin thought, looking at his Specialty. ’But from now on, I can make Ordinary Level Magic Items.’

’But then again, how are permanent Magic Items made?’

After pondering for a moment, Colin glanced at the stalactites overhead.

He asked, "Will a spell like [Object Positioning Skill] work in here?"

Dorn replied, "There might be some inaccuracies."

"Just a chance of it," Colin muttered as he took a pre-prepared branch from his backpack and began Casting. His target for the positioning was the Cloaks worn by the Drow.

"How is it? Can you locate the Drow?" asked Ale, who knew what Colin was trying to do.

"They’re over two hundred meters to the south."

"So they’re around Mist Harbor. Maybe those guys have no idea we’ve already left," Dorn said.

Hearing this, Colin felt a little more relaxed.

After traveling upstream for an unknown amount of time, the Skeleton-piloted boat stopped before another small, pebble-strewn shore. Colin and the others each tossed a Gold Coin onto the boat before disembarking one by one.

Behind this shore was another cave entrance.

A dark, natural cavern stretched inward, leading to who knows where.

Even after all this time, Colin still hadn’t gotten used to the fear of the unknown darkness.

Guided by the illumination from [Light], he braced himself and followed the others into the tunnel.

Fortunately, after several hours of fumbling forward, they didn’t encounter any monsters, or even many monster corpses. It felt as if they had entered an Ordinary tunnel.

As they advanced, Dorn took the opportunity to gather some useful mushrooms from the surrounding rock crevices, so the trip wasn’t without its gains.

Before they knew it, points of firelight suddenly appeared in the tunnel ahead.

"Are there other human strongholds here besides Mist Harbor?" Colin asked.

"Some creatures of the Underworld make their homes here. To them, the Undercity isn’t much different from any other part of the Underworld." Dorn glanced at his map. "We’re almost at the entrance to the second level. I’m guessing that’s a Hobgoblin legion up ahead."

"Having Darkvision doesn’t mean they can immediately make out a visitor’s race, equipment, and goods. Some light is still necessary," Dorn said.

Ale asked, "Can we deal with them? I remember that ordinary Hobgoblins aren’t exactly good people."

"The fact that they’ve survived this long against greedy Adventurers says something. At the very least, they should be open to communication," Dorn said.

The group continued forward. The height and width of the passage ahead slowly increased, becoming more spacious.

The Hobgoblins’ checkpoint was set up in a wider part of the passage.

It was a temporary checkpoint cobbled together from a tree-like fungus called "Zuerhe Wood." The barricade, built from fungal planks, stood over two meters tall. Behind it was a small watchtower with a railing. All of these structures were a pale green color.

As Colin and his group approached, a horn blast sounded from ahead, and small figures immediately appeared on the watchtower and the barricade.