Gauss got up a little earlier on purpose and prepared breakfast for everyone in the kitchen.
Breakfast was still the usual.
The main dish was a large pot of oatmeal porridge, with dried fruits, diced meat, and some vegetables mixed in, cooked to a very thick consistency.
Boiled eggs and grilled bacon.
A pot of boiled, invigorating black tea.
A basket full of white bread, accompanied by the special wild berry jam made by Aaliyah.
It wasn’t particularly lavish, but it was sufficient, filling, and clean and hygienic.
As he carried each serving of food to the table in the dining room on the first floor, the others woke up one after another, drawn by the aroma.
Aaliyah, still half-asleep, instinctively walked towards the dining table, reaching out for an egg.
Gauss, who was wearing a scarf, clapped his hands and pointed to a corner of the living room.
"Go wash up first."
"Oh."
This folding house was well-equipped, consuming Magic Crystal Stones for energy, while water had to be collected by Gauss and the others when passing by water sources to store up.
Albena, coming down the stairs, saw what happened and turned to follow Aaliyah to the washroom.
"Thanks for the hard work, Captain."
Serdur, who had finished washing up, came and sat by the dining table.
Soon, everyone gathered around the dining table to enjoy today’s breakfast.
"Eat up. Today we’ll officially set off into the mine cave."
"You don’t have to worry about us," Aaliyah shook her head. "You and Albena should eat more."
"If a fight breaks out, you two are our main force."
Of course, she had an underlying message she didn’t state explicitly.
"Don’t worry, little Aaliyah, just stay behind me when the time comes, and I’ll protect you," Albena promised, patting her chest.
"Could you not add the word little, Albena big sis? I’m already an adult."
"You’re still a child," Albena stubbornly shook her head.
She was the oldest in the team.
Yesterday, during some downtime, she chatted and inquired about Gauss and the teammates’ situations.
Turns out, except for Ying who shook her head and expressed she wasn’t sure, the others were all young people under thirty.
"Gauss is even younger than me."
"Lord Gauss is different."
Aaliyah clicked her tongue, feeling a bit frustrated.
This is a double standard.
Gauss watched the scene unfold, feeling somewhat amused but also strangely reassured.
Sunlight streamed through the window of the folding house, illuminating the dining table.
Such similar scenes always gave him a sense of warmth akin to family.
The five people present had no blood relations, yet it was an amazing bond that brought them together at this moment.
It was precisely because of the existence of this small team that completely dispelled his sense of unease about being alone in this world.
Living in this world, one always needs some anchors.
Having this life continue would be a pleasant experience.
He turned to look outside.
The golden morning sun had already climbed over the rolling hills.
...
After breakfast.
Everyone became a bit more serious.
The five were not rookie Adventurers, well aware of the mindset needed when officially undertaking an assignment. They quickly adjusted their mindset and mental preparation.
Getting serious in advance was also a responsibility for the team members’ safety.
"Alright."
"Today we’ll attempt to enter through passage number three based on Ying’s painstakingly drawn map and collected information."
Passage number three was the third route Ying discovered leading to the monster lair.
Considering distance, passage height, the number of monsters, and the density of Magic and traps, it was the most suitable route for them.
"We need to reach here."
Gauss circled a small point on the map with his pen.
He then crossed out the symbols representing monsters and traps along the way.
"We need to deal with these nuisance small monsters and traps on the way without alerting other monsters."
"Once we reach this point, we’ll be within the shared vision range of the clay creatures, and I’ll first dispatch the miniature Clay Spider to scout ahead."
Currently, Gauss’s team still lacked sufficient intelligence on the main body of the lair.
Yesterday Ying attempted to enter but quickly alerted some nearby Kobolds. Fortunately, her skills were stealthy enough, and she withdrew from the realm’s barrier in time. The strange fluctuation lasted only for a fleeting moment, avoiding a larger Kobold response.
"That unknown alarm barrier should be related to the intruder’s threat level."
Gauss analyzed.
The alarm spell, in terms of function and principle, is a basic small-area detection barrier.
Its effect means not every creature entering would trigger an alarm.
Otherwise, the caster wouldn’t be able to rest all night.
As countless insects, mosquitoes, birds, snakes, and even microorganisms in Gauss’s knowledge would cross the barrier repeatedly, countless times if taken seriously.
In practice, creatures passing through undergo a judgment first.
Apart from a pre-set list by the caster, other creatures would not trigger the alarm as long as they do not exceed a certain threshold level.
As for where this threshold lies, it’s determined by the spell itself and the caster.
He surmised that the Kobold’s alarm barrier operated on a similar principle, only on a larger scale and possibly maintained by several Kobold casters at once.
The greatest advantage of his clay creatures was their variable strength.
The miniature clay creatures he created were not much different from many insects.
Highly likely to bypass the Kobold lair’s "firewall" and infiltrate the interior to explore the depths of the lair.