My job list is full of alien girls.

Chapter 18 He's such a kind and gentle person.

"You've got it wrong."

"I'm going to hunt down the goblin chieftain. There might be other treasures in its cave, which should be very valuable," Rhodes said, nodding seriously. "I want it."

Upon hearing this, the old village chief, who had been holding Rhodes' hand, froze, and the surrounding villagers exchanged bewildered glances.

Everyone looked at each other, their gratitude still lingering, but now tinged with confusion.

Why did Lord Hiro suddenly say such a thing?

"good!"

Don Quixote suddenly slapped his thigh, and his armor made a loud "clang".

She rushed to Rod, her eyes shining like stars, her face filled with the excitement of "I understand you."

In her view, Hero clearly had a compassionate heart and wanted to save people, but he pretended to be cold and ruthless, just like those tough but tender-hearted heroes.

This kind of cool and noble spirit of doing good deeds without expecting anything in return and keeping one's merits hidden is exactly what she pursues!

"Please take us with you to rescue people—no, to hunt down powerful monsters and claim the glory that belongs to us great adventurers!" Don Quixote shouted.

"Oh, I see..." Susanna, who was standing to the side, came back to her senses and finally understood the deeper meaning of Hero's words.

It turns out that he didn't want everyone to worry, so he deliberately made up this clumsy excuse, saying that he was hunting monsters for money, pretending to be greedy.

Ultimately, it's still about protecting everyone, isn't it?

Lord Hiro is such a kind and gentle person...

"You didn't have to go to such lengths for us..." The old village chief looked at Rhodes, his cloudy eyes swirling with complex emotions, and tears welled up in them.

Ever since John and his two bastards kidnapped and killed two children from the village and swindled all the village's money, he had long since lost all faith in adventurers.

In his eyes, those adventurers who dressed smartly, spouted righteousness and morality, and fought for glory and freedom were nothing but greedy, cowardly scoundrels who only picked on the weak, no different from bandits and pirates.

But this young man in front of me is different!

He was still worried about the two missing children. Even though their families had abandoned them, he was still determined to venture into the man-eating goblin's lair.

To avoid worrying everyone, he even went so far as to fabricate stories about treasure and prey, portraying himself as greedy, all to prevent these poor villagers from incurring unpayable debts of gratitude.

Such a brave and upright person, with a golden spirit, will surely achieve great things in the future.

This is the true hero that those bards sing about.

How could I just stand by and watch him risk his life and future for two children whose bodies had already been destroyed?

"You can't act impulsively and take risks..." The old village chief's rough hands gripped Rod's, and he sincerely advised him.

He wanted his child to come back more than anyone else, but deep down he knew better than anyone that such a miracle was impossible.

"I severely injured it. If I don't go now, it'll be even more difficult to deal with once it recovers," Rhodes shook his head. "Besides, I'm afraid someone will beat me to it and steal my prey..."

"Alright, you don't need to explain anymore, I understand what you mean," the old village chief said, holding his hand with emotion. "Just let us know if you need any help, and we will do our best to assist you."

"Um……"

Rod opened his mouth, wanting to emphasize again that he was really only after money.

Looking at the complicated expressions on the faces of the people around him, it seemed that no amount of explanation would help.

"Look at the way they look at you. Even if you say you're going to the goblin's lair for sightseeing, they'll think you're just making excuses to rescue people."

"That was a miscalculation," Rhodes said, somewhat annoyed. "I should have kept my mouth shut..."

"Why?" Alina asked curiously. "Isn't it good to be a hero? What's wrong with the whole village being grateful to and worshipping you?"

"No," Rod shook his head. "That would make them have too high expectations of me."

Alina was taken aback. "What?"

"If you don't expect anything, you won't be disappointed," Rod sighed. "Don't give people hope for things you're not sure you can do, or you'll only give them despair."

"I don't want to see disappointment in other people's eyes."

Upon hearing this, Alina fell into deep thought for a long time.

I never expected that this guy, who seems to have an unconventional and eccentric way of thinking, would also have such a meticulous and reliable side. I thought he was just a simple-minded person.

Just as Alina was thinking this, she heard Rhodes say again:

"What's even more troublesome is," he said, with a hint of frustration in his voice, "that my cool, chivalrous persona has been ruined because of such a small oversight..."

"That's not cool enough."

Alina: "..."

Sure enough, her belief that he was reliable was just wishful thinking.

The green blood and goblin corpses scattered on the ground emitted a pungent, fishy stench, mixed with the smell of burnt fur, which lingered in the air above the village for a long time.

The villagers looked at the mess, some were happy and some were sad.

"I wonder how much money we can get for all these monsters?" Some of the young people were still immersed in the excitement of killing monsters for the first time.

"What are we going to do?" A middle-aged man scratched his head, looking at the corpses scattered on the ground with worry. "With so many bodies, it'll take until dark to bury them. If we don't deal with it, the stench will be unbearable!"

"It's no use burying it." The old village chief sighed.

"The smell of these monsters is particularly strong; it seeps into the soil and doesn't dissipate for half a month." He squatted down, poked at the blackened blood on the ground with a twig, and frowned.

"Our village's location can no longer be hidden. It will probably attract hyenas, wolves, and even other monsters from the forest within half a day."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding villagers' expressions instantly changed.

"What should we do then? Are we supposed to move the village right now?"

"No way, the grain and farm tools are still here, how can we move them?"

"And where can we move to? There are monsters everywhere outside; leaving the village means certain death!"

Panic spread rapidly, and the villagers who had been cheering just moments before were now ashen-faced.

"Huh? Isn't that terrible?" Don Quixote, seeing their reaction, instinctively glanced at Rhodes beside him. "Isn't there any way to solve this problem?"

"Peeling their bark and nailing it to the tree trunks around the village might be useful." Sensing her gaze, Rod thought for a moment and offered a suggestion.

Upon hearing this, Don Quixote fell into deep thought, while Susanna was startled by this blunt suggestion.

"what?"

The villagers were stunned. They looked at each other, not understanding what he meant.

"Skinning them? Nailing them to a tree? That sounds terrifying..."

"Wouldn't that smell even worse? And it's terrifying..."

Seeing the crowd discussing it, Milan glanced at Rod and spoke up to explain for him.

"It is said that some experienced hunters would collect bear or tiger droppings and sew them into their clothes to mix up their own scent and deter jackals and hyenas."

Upon hearing this, the old village chief, who had been worried, suddenly understood what she meant.

"I see. This trick might actually work on monsters too."

He looked at Rod with excitement, his face full of admiration.

"Following Lord Hiro's method, those wild beasts and monsters might be scared away by seeing the goblin skins hanging here and dare not approach the village."

The villagers then realized what was happening, and the worry on their faces vanished.

"Lord Hero really knows how to handle this!"

"That's amazing! You even know that!"

Alina, still in the consciousness space, asked with great curiosity, "How do you know all this?"

"These are basic survival skills for a wandering knight," Rhodes said calmly.

"Oh, I almost forgot you're a corpse collector," Alina said, pursing her lips. "I bet you do this all the time, don't you?"

"I am now the Wind Ranger," Rhodes said with a serious expression. "Don't confuse our identities."

Alina thought to herself, "You're really into pretending."

"I'll help!"

Don Quixote was the first to roll up his sleeves, draw his greatsword from the ground, and charge forward.

"Skinning is an essential skill for legendary adventurers. Behold our prowess!"

With a swift motion, she slashed open the goblin's stomach, causing yellowish-green pus to flow onto the ground.

"Well……"

Susanna, standing nearby, froze in place, her face turning pale at the sight.

"I'll do it."

Rod drew his dagger and cleanly demonstrated his skilled skinning technique.

In the blink of an eye, a thin, green, foul-smelling hide was laid out perfectly on the ground, even preserving the goblin's expression before its death.

Unfortunately, goblin skin isn't valuable; even if you skin it perfectly, it's not very useful, at most it can be used as practice material.

"So that's how it is..." The villagers next to him exclaimed in amazement at his skill, and it took them a while to realize what he meant.

"Adventurer, we can handle this rough work."

"You big shots should save your energy to save... to hunt powerful monsters."

Milan was resting against a tree trunk not far away when she saw this scene. She covered her nose in disgust and then waved her staff.

A gentle breeze appeared out of nowhere, dispelling the most pungent, fishy stench from the ground.

"Don't take too long," she said impatiently. "We'll leave once we've rested enough."

The villagers sprang into action quickly.

The men were responsible for skinning and moving the bodies, while the women went back to get nails and hammers.

Before long, goblin skins were nailed to the tree trunks around the village.

The green skin glistened in the sunlight, making it look particularly menacing.

From a distance, the entire village looked as if it were surrounded by a ring of terrifying spoils.

Rhodes stood at the village entrance, watching the goblin skins fluttering in the wind, and nodded in satisfaction.

What a spectacle!

I wish I could decorate his house like that someday, with a circle of those powerful monsters around it.

The old village chief, along with several villagers, came running over carrying large and small bags, and shoved cloth bags stuffed with smoked meat, black bread, and dried mushrooms into their hands.

He then handed Rod a heavy money bag, saying, "This is a small token of our village's appreciation."

"It's to thank you for vanquishing the monsters and saving the village," the old village chief quickly added, seeing that Rhodes was about to speak.

Rod thought for a moment, then, without refusing, simply put it in his pocket.

"I'm gone."

He turned and left, Don Quixote followed behind with his greatsword, Susanna trotted after him with her healing staff, and Milan strolled at the back, her staff tapping the ground with a crisp sound.

Rhodes walked at the front, and with a thought, the [Hunter's Mark] was instantly activated.

A pale blue trail appeared out of nowhere in his field of vision, like a glowing little snake, winding its way into the depths of the forest. It was the magical trace left behind by the goblin leader when he fled.

"Over here."

He pointed to the path on the left, which was covered with weeds, and went in first.

"Wow, does the chivalrous hero not even need to look where he's going?" Don Quixote followed behind, his eyes shining. "Is this the legendary tracking technique? That's so cool!"

The deeper you go into the forest, the dimmer the light becomes.

The towering ancient trees blocked out the sun, their branches and leaves intertwined so densely that even the midday sun could only let through a few scattered specks of gold.

The air was filled with the smell of damp, decaying leaves, mixed with an increasingly strong stench of goblins, which made Milan frown repeatedly.

However, this precisely proves that the path Rod led was not the problem.

"What a nuisance," she muttered, waving her staff. A pale purple wind blade swept across her path, instantly turning the thorns blocking her way to ashes. "Can't these low-level monsters find a cleaner place to live?"

Susanna gripped the healing staff tightly, her face pale.

She kept glancing back, feeling as if something in the darkness was watching them.

"Don't be afraid, Susanna," Don Quixote assured her, patting his chest. "With me here, no monster can harm you!"

As soon as she finished speaking, a startled rabbit darted out of the bushes.

"Who goes there!" Don Quixote yelled in fright, raising his greatsword to strike. "Come out and have a fair fight with me!"

Susanna: "..."

Milan: "..."

Rhodes: "..."

After walking for about half an hour, Rod suddenly raised his hand to signal everyone to stop.

He squatted down and touched a bit of dirt to his fingertips.

The soil was wet and stained with fresh blood.

"They just passed by not long ago, they should be nearby."

He stood up and looked toward the mountain wall not far away.

There was a dark, gaping hole, like a gaping maw ready to devour its prey, facing them directly.

The cave entrance was about two people high, and the surrounding rocks were worn smooth and shiny. Countless gnawed bones, some human and some wild, were scattered on the ground.

Ragged clothes and rusty weapons were scattered everywhere, making a rustling sound when the wind blew.

A nauseating stench, a mixture of fishy and rotten smells, wafted from the cave entrance, making one feel nauseous.

"Is this the place?" Don Quixote immediately drew his greatsword, striking a dashing fighting pose. "Watch us charge in and wipe them all out!"

"Don't be impulsive." Rod grabbed the back of her collar and pulled her back.

He frowned slightly, staring into the depths of the cave.

The Hunter's Mark was flashing wildly, its pale blue light flickering.

something is wrong,

There seems to be something strange inside...

It was as if... something in the cave was interfering with his mark.