Explosions rocked the cave''s corridor, sending rocky shrapnel flying.


    "Take that, you scaly bastards!" Thern shouted triumphantly as he threw another glowing stone down the corridor. Shortly after, another explosion rang out, encrusting the rock and enemies in an icy residue.


    A small tunnel abruptly emerged from our side, and a small ambush squadron of kobolds was sent to flank us. Thankfully, I had [Tremor Sense] active and could feel their approach through the rocky floor. I immediately threw out a [Chain Lightning] spell at the first target after they breached, causing a cacophony of yips and yaps from the affected tiny lizard people as the dangerous lightning magic chained between them.


    Behind us, another set of explosions went off as the trap that Thern had left was triggered.


    "Ha! I told you they''d try to sneak behind us!" Thern gloated before casting a spell to seal one of the passageways with a rocky wall.


    Thern''s class was... Interesting. He had Fire and Earth Magic in his repertoire and occasionally used both effectively when the situation called for it. However, any spellcaster could accomplish that, and that''s where his Glyph Mage got to show off a little.


    Thern could rapidly create a set of offensive enchantments pretty much at will. They were like hostile or unstable versions of larger enchantments, like spells stored within an object just waiting to go off. His favorite application was storing an explosive glyph on a rock or something and throwing it at an enemy.


    He''d also shown that he could leave a glyph behind, as he had demonstrated with his trap, with trigger conditions to go off. I couldn''t help but draw comparisons to my own [Nitro Slime] trait and its usage, except while mine was sort of taken care of thanks to the trait system, Thern had to draw in his instructions and conditions.


    However, one aspect that was quite interesting was that Thern''s glyphs weren''t limited to only his affinities, and he could pull on a variety of tricks from once beneficial enchantments now turned malicious. Of course, if he actually had the affinity himself, it would be better, and that''s where I could help him.


    Thern could create an almost blank glyph, just waiting to absorb some Mana, and it would rapidly transform itself. Taking full advantage of how Arcane Mana was so transmutable. Thern could enchant a bunch of rocks, and if I just briefly channeled my Mana through the bag, it would convert all of them.


    Like Eliza, Thern had also become quite a fan of having Lightning added to his arsenal but soon requested Ice instead, as it was "making his beard fuzzy."


    Another interesting use for his class was he could quickly apply glyphs to himself and others, applying an enchantment as if it were a buff rather than a permanent effect and not requiring one to wear armor or some magic item. Thern had given both of us physical, earth, and fire resistance quite rapidly to deal with the kobolds.


    The class''s intention clearly focused on utility more than offense, but Thern seemingly took that theme under advisement only. Only a crazy dwarf could think of using unstable enchantments as a weapon.


    When he explained it to me, I thought of potentially using an unstable storage enchantment, but Thern said it didn''t work that way. Instead of sucking up the space and destroying whatever was in it, when Thern applied that enchantment offensively, it instead ejected a concussive force as if expanding the area.


    In fact, quite a few enchantments behaved oddly when turned into unstable glyphs. Weight reduction, used offensively, briefly applied a downward crushing force to those caught in its explosive residue, and it was clear that Thern had done many experiments to discover the strange variety of effects.


    Preparation was mandatory for his class, but with practiced fast rune tracing or using a skill he had picked up that let him instantly apply a template, albeit at a reduced effect, he overcame such burdens.


    When that wasn''t enough, he also had a backup weapon that looked like a combination of a hammer and a pickaxe. On one end, it had a large flat hammerhead; on the other, it had the sharp, pointy end of a pick. While it looked like a tool for heavy excavating, Thern made it look like a deadly weapon he had spent years honing.


    I sensed the survivors of the trap behind us approaching, so I turned around and cast a barrage of [Rock Lob], as I still needed to work on getting my [Earth Magic] up. The hail of rocks battered against their shields and armor. They cursed and hissed, throwing ranged projectiles and their own spells in retaliation, bouncing against my [Arcane Armor].


    The kobolds were strange creatures. Since I had only seen the dungeon variety before this, I wasn''t sure how ones not under its influence would behave. I thought they''d behave similarly to goblins since they reminded me of them, but they had a more savage feralness to them.


    As soon as they spotted us, they flew into an almost murderous rage and, in particular, focused a lot of effort on attacking Thern. I would have described goblins as cunning but cautious, but the kobolds were cunning and vicious.


    The goblins I had encountered used traps and strategy occasionally, where the kobolds lived and breathed it. The tunnel we were trying to travel through had all sorts of hidden ambush points and devious devices designed to deal with intruders. While the goblins were numerous, the kobolds felt endless.


    Or was the goblin tribe I met just on the small side?Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    We were making good progress down their tunnel when suddenly there was a rumbling, and the entire tunnel felt like it would collapse. [Tremor Sense] was basically screaming warnings at me, and I quickly began casting [Rampart] to create makeshift supports.


    Thern, with barely a flinch, also started using the [Rampart] spell to secure our position.


    "Bloody cowards tried to drop the mountain on us!" Thern spat out. "Stupid lizards, don''t you know you can never bury a dwarf! This might as well be a spa for me!"


    Thern had always been rough around the edges, but I''d never seen this side of him before. Evidently, the animosity between Dwarves and Kobolds went deep.


    When the rumbling finally stopped, Thern let out a disappointed sigh.


    "We''re gonna have to go back and find another one of their tunnels."


    "Could we not just dig our way deeper?" I asked.


    Thern shook his head. "Not worth the effort. These cowardly lizards, when they retreat, collapse the entire tunnel. We''d have to dig through an absolute avalanche of rock and stone to get anywhere.


    "I see... Well, you found this tunnel easy enough; I''m sure you''ll find another for us."


    That had been quite the surprise. When we arrived at the fungal cavern, Thern wasted no time locating "signs of kobolds." It was frankly a little embarrassing since I was the one with the [Tracking] skill, but how Thern handled it so effortlessly proved that he had done this many times before.


    Thern led us to a secluded wall section with a hidden tunnel in a small alcove. From a distance, I wouldn''t have even noticed it was a tunnel as it seemed to create an almost natural optical illusion or camouflage.


    Thern had just chuckled and called them sneaky lizards. Then, he proceeded to periodically throw some of his enchanted rocks down the tunnel to "disarm" traps and wake up the kobolds.


    After that, it had practically been a nonstop barrage of the little buggers. The experience was rather poor, but Thern warned me not to underestimate them as they had apparently claimed the lives of many overconfident dwarves through poison and treachery.


    Not that I have to worry about being poisoned...


    "So... What''s the plan to get out? I could maybe start throwing around some acid from [Corrosion Magic]?" I asked.


    "That sounds like a terrible idea," Thern said bluntly. "I thought you said you got [Earth Magic] now?"


    "It''s level two..." I answered. "I haven''t had the chance to get much use out of it. Throwing rocks isn''t nearly as effective as blasting things with lightning."


    Thern sighed. "If you weren''t so honest, I''d suspect you were just being lazy..."


    He began casting a spell, slowly turning the fallen rocks and debris behind us into fine sand.


    "Now that looks useful," I praised. "What spell is it?"


    "[Sand Pit] spell," Thern answered. "Well, an application of it. You''d get it at level four if you weren''t slacking off."


    "I was too busy getting obsidianite to level it up," I teased back. "You know, that magic metal that all three of you were so handsy over?"


    "Bah! You got me there," Thern chuckled. "It''s definitely a useful spell, though; it lets you break down most forms of rock and earth."


    "Sounds like [Rampart] in reverse," I pointed out.


    "Pretty much," Thern answered. "That big orc tunnel you found back in Kaerlin was probably dug out with it."


    "I wonder how they got rid of all the sand, though..." I murmured curiously.


    "Well! That''s something you can help with!" Thern said happily as if expecting that question. "Start using all this sand to make some dense hand-sized rocks for me; the more spherical, the better. You''ll be helping clear our way, give me more ammunition to throw glyphs on, and train your [Earth Magic]."


    I nodded in agreement. It was reasonable, and I didn''t have anything better to do.


    "I wonder how many kobolds I''ll need to gain a level up..." I couldn''t help but wonder aloud.


    "A lot... But we might start seeing some of their elites, now that we''ve kicked the hornet''s nest. Especially if they decided to abandon this entire tunnel," Thern answered.


    "What do the evolved kobolds look like?" I asked.


    "It depends. Some revert to a more monstrous form, like salamanders or small drakes. They abandon their intelligence and are handled like wild beasts by the typical kobolds. Others become just a bit bigger, similar to hobgoblins," Thern answered as we continued working. "The ones you really need to watch out for are the ones that start looking more draconic... Their scales are the first thing to notice, not unlike that salamander you harvested, and some even get vestigial wings. You see one of those buggers, you kill it immediately!"


    "I wouldn''t think only one evolution further would be that much of a threat?" I asked curiously.


    "No, it''s the threat of what they could become," Thern answered. "Each evolution after that, they become more draconic, and soon you got a lesser dragon on your hands."


    "Surely one monster isn''t that bad?"


    "Aye. You''d be right. It''s still nowhere near a real dragon, not even close. But the kobolds worship dragons, and one of those can unite multiple tribes together, and soon you have an entire kobold warband out for blood and conquest."


    Thern sighed. "It''s a pity cause lesser dragons give very good materials and are incredibly rare. But the risk isn''t worth it."


    I would''ve loved to get my tendrils on a lesser dragon, but it sounded like that wasn''t going to happen. A real pity. Of course, I had taken some nibbles on the kobolds that attacked us, but there wasn''t much other than having a cool new form to mimic at some point. So, if we went deeper into their territory, I hoped to get more of their profiles from their various evolutions.


    They were still interesting, though. If I understood their profile correctly, they would be born with a random elemental affinity and then gain a spit based on that element, as well as the appropriate resistance. Rarer ones could even get corrosion! Although it seemed they only got half of it, either poison or acid. The idea of a little lizard goblin spitting acid was quite the image.


    Eventually, we broke out to the fungal cavern once again. After all our efforts, I was rewarded with two level-ups. Sure, it wasn''t the biggest surprise, but it was still very welcome.


    I had been using the skill when I could, and watching the area''s essence gradually rise from the dead kobolds was likely worth quite a bit.


    <[Earth Magic LV 3] spell [Shatterquake] learned.>


    And, as expected, my [Earth Magic] leveled up. Of course, Thern took full credit for this, and I let him have it after he had to dig us out of this mess.


    As for the new spell, it was one I was quite familiar with... As that damned bear had given me a very up-close and personal experience!


    The spell had two components. One was that it could quake the ground to cause instability, which Thern said was quite good for knocking someone off their feet. The other was that it could violently shatter rock, creating and launching hazardous shrapnel.


    So, tremors are created in the earth and soil, while rock is shattered. That''s pretty cool. However, I wonder if that ring of erupting rock spires was just the bear using [Rampart]...