The more Matthew thought about it, the more likely he felt it was.
Although the goat-horned magical beast before him exuded a fierce aura, its body was quite small. Every sign indicated that it was more like an individual that had not yet fully grown.
Combined with the kobold priest that Matthew and his group had previously eliminated, the priest's death would have inevitably thrown the pack into a temporary state of leaderless chaos.
Furthermore, the appearance of this goat-horned magical beast was of a type Matthew had never heard of or seen on the outskirts of the forest.
Its form and the natural pressure originating from its life level pointed to one possibility: it was not a native magical beast of the forest outskirts, but rather something that had come from the central region of the forest.
It had happened to come across this leaderless kobold pack and easily enslaved them.
This would explain why it appeared here, as well as the kobolds' bone-deep fear of and obedience to it.
“So... its strength might not actually be as terrifying as it looks.”
Matthew's gaze grew sharper.
“It is more like... an opportunity.”
In the Shadow Forest, and indeed in this entire world, one of the iron laws of adventure was that the stronger and rarer a creature was, the higher the value of the “treasures” contained within its body.
This logic was similar to comparing dragons to ordinary magical beasts.
The blood, scales, and bones of an adult dragon were undoubtedly legendary materials that drove people mad with desire, worth a fortune.
But were the blood and scales of a young dragon not treasures as well?
No, they were still extremely valuable and rare materials. Although they might be slightly inferior to an adult individual in terms of energy intensity and material properties, their “essence” of rarity still belonged to that of a “dragon”!
The same applied to the goat-horned magical beast before him.
It might only be a juvenile, and its strength might not have reached its peak, but its life level dictated that it was a walking “high-value treasure trove.”
That pair of horns, its skin, its flesh... every single part was a rare item that Matthew had never come into contact with before.
High value and low risk—this was precisely the situation an adventurer looked forward to the most!
Having figured this out, the sharp light in Matthew's eyes grew even brighter.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind, suppressing the joy in his heart: “Could there be other goat demons around?”
What if this juvenile goat demon was not in exile alone, but had migrated here along with its pack?
A single juvenile was still manageable, but if it attracted an adult individual or the entire pack, with his current strength, he would probably have no choice but to turn tail and run!
He might even have to flee all the way to the county seat to feel a modicum of safety...
But he immediately dismissed this worry.
“No, that is highly unlikely.”
According to what he knew, the more powerful a magical beast was and the more it yearned for evolution and growth, the greater and purer its demand for energy particles would be.
They would often instinctively head toward the central and deep regions of the forest, as only the energy in those areas could satisfy the evolutionary and survival requirements of powerful magical beasts.
This could be partially proven by the cave chosen by the mountain giant bear.
Even though the giant bear had come to the outskirts, it still chose to reside in a cave because the energy particles there were denser.
After a round of careful observation and weighing the options, Matthew had reached a conclusion.
This goat-horned magical beast was highly likely a solitary individual that had accidentally ended up here.
Matthew turned slightly and gave Aidan orders in an extremely low but clear voice: “Prepare to move. Prioritize taking out those three kobolds below. After that, you guard the entrance while I go inside to investigate first.”
Although Matthew had made a preliminary assessment of the goat demon's general situation, the conditions inside the cave remained unknown after all—whether there were other exits, traps, or deeper threats could not be confirmed from the outside.
Therefore, keeping someone to guard the outside of the cave was highly necessary.
Aidan did not have the slightest doubt about Matthew's words, and his gaze instantly sharpened. He nodded hard, silently drawing the short blade from its sheath with his right hand, the edge glinting with a cold, faint light.
His gaze quickly locked onto the kobold on the right that was bowing its head to dig the dirt. Lowering his posture slightly, he entered a state of readiness to strike at any moment.
After issuing the command, Matthew finished his final calculations.
He lightly flexed his finger joints, a glint flashing through his eyes as he redirected his gaze toward the depression below, sharp as an eagle.
He leaned in to confirm the final combat details with Aidan: “Leave the two on the left to me, and the one digging on the right is yours. We must strike swiftly and aim for a clean kill. We cannot let them scream and alert the creature inside the cave.”
Aidan nodded firmly, then slowly made his way down the slope, crawling forward toward the bottom.
Matthew said no more. He unslung the hunting bow from his back with steady, silent movements.
His gaze lingered briefly on the two kobolds on the left that were still shoving each other over the carcass. 【Eagle Eye Gaze】 silently activated, placing their every movement under his absolute, crystal-clear control.
The bowstring was slowly drawn back, making a tiny creak that was almost completely swallowed by the wind in the forest.
He did not use his full strength, nor did he need to trigger any additional combat technique energy—against these low-level lackeys on the outskirts, basic precision and power were more than enough to achieve his goal.
He needed to control the “degree” of his strike, ensuring that while eliminating them, he would generate as little excess energy fluctuation or noise as possible to avoid alerting the enemy.
And for his Practiced Rank in archery, this was child's play.
In the next instant, he released his fingers.
“Swish!”
The first arrow flew with a faint whistle, accurately plunging into the back of the kobold that had its back turned to him, head lowered in a bite.
The kobold's body stiffened, and it collapsed forward silently.
Almost at the exact same moment, Matthew's second arrow was already notched, and the bowstring thrummed softly once more.
Just as the other kobold dithered in confusion over its companion's sudden collapse, the cold arrowhead had already pierced the side of its neck.
It only managed to let out half a short gasp before stumbling and falling.
Right as Matthew's second arrow flew, Aidan slid out from the side like a shadow. His short blade drew a flash of cold light, precisely stabbing into the throat of the kobold on the right that had just alertly raised its head, followed by a heavy slash that sent blood spraying.
Aidan's other hand tightly clamped over its mouth and nose, choking any potential screech in its throat.
The kobold only twitched violently twice before completely going limp.
Three kobolds had been cleanly and swiftly eliminated within the span of a breath.
Only the dampness of the soil and a faint metallic scent of blood remained in the depression.
Matthew put away his hunting bow, walked down the slope, and vigilantly scanned the cave entrance and the surrounding woods, confirming that no other kobolds had appeared.
He whispered to Aidan beside him, “Good job. Guard this spot. If anything unexpected happens, just shout out. Safety first.”
Aidan gripped his short blade tightly, nodded with determination in his eyes, and quickly retreated to a position to the side of the cave entrance that was convenient for observation and interception.
Matthew took a deep breath, resting his right hand on the hilt of the 【Dawn Sword】 at his waist, feeling the faint coolness of the blade and its subtle resonance with the life energy inside his body.
He elevated his perception to its limit, his figure slipping like a nimble cat, silently creeping toward the dark cave entrance.
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