"Step, step, step..."
Inside Blade City, Santner paced back and forth, holding a piece of sheepskin in his hand, his face incredibly grim.
Yesterday, his Blade City had been blocked off. Santner was so frightened that he began packing to escape, thinking that the high-ranking human nobles had discovered them. However, by the time he realized what had happened, all the slaves outside the city had been taken away.
He had a feeling it was related to that group of Swiftwind Bandits, but he couldn't figure out why they would want the slaves in the middle of winter. Were they just keeping them for nothing?
Who were the people who took the slaves? Could it be the Black Iris organization? But didn't they only want high-quality slaves? Or was it another group of slave traders taking advantage of the situation?
Santner shook off the unnecessary thoughts. There were more important matters to handle today. He coldly scanned the seven or eight beastkins kneeling before him.
Karl knelt on the ground, while the fox clan beastkin, who had been pursued, was injured during the chase. With severe shoulder wounds and being affected by the snowstorm, he had died of a fever last night.
"You… you are truly useless. You couldn't even capture a single person from the enemy, and the treasure map you brought back is only half, no, it's only a quarter! You…" Santner raised the treasure map, glaring furiously at Karl and the other leading beastkin knights.
Could Santner believe this? His own beastkin knights couldn't even handle a human thief group. How could he possibly dare to wage war in the western lands?
"How many of our people were lost?" Santner asked coldly.
"..." Karl shrunk his neck, feeling a cold sweat in the dead of winter. He stammered, "Th-thirty... thirty died."
"What?" Santner's eyes widened, the number shocked him. Thirty beastkin knights—this was enough to fight against a hundred human knights!
"The Swiftwind Bandits were too cunning. They shot at us with long arrows from a distance, and..." Karl couldn't finish his sentence as a murderous glint flashed in Santner's eyes.
"Didn't you say the enemy had a hundred men? How could only eight of them cause such heavy casualties to you? You're really making me proud." Santner said angrily, kicking Karl and the other beastkins away.
Karl clutched his bleeding nose, but his heart let out a small sigh of relief. As long as he wasn't immediately dragged out and executed, there was still hope.
"Speak. And what else?" Santner asked coldly.
"This..." Karl quickly knelt again, his voice hoarse as he said, "Our beastkin knights were too clumsy, and with the weather being so cold, our speed was too slow."
"Heh..." Santner sneered twice, raising the sheepskin scroll in his hand, "Then what about this? Did they just hand it to you for free?"
"No, no, that's not it. We found it while surrounding a person, and it accidentally fell out," Karl hurriedly explained. "If I hadn't protected the map, it probably would've been snatched back by them."
"Bah!" Santner spat angrily, his fury turning into a mocking smile. "You still have the nerve to say that? With so many of you, you couldn't even capture a single person, let alone kill one."
Karl lowered his head. How could he have expected that the enemy's weapons were so well-made, especially their longbows, which were not only accurate but also powerful enough to pierce through their armor?
"Is this map from Freya?" Santner asked with a glint of coldness in his eyes.
"Yes, this treasure map was taken from Freya." Karl affirmed.
"Then, the Swiftwind Bandits must have other treasure maps as well."
Santner tightened his grip on the sheepskin scroll, his voice cold. "Send someone immediately. I want intelligence on the Swiftwind Bandits."
"Yes!" A beastkin immediately stood and left.
"Heh... my good brother, you actually split the treasure map into four parts. So, Perry, that girl, must have one of them too." Santner sneered.
"Then, where is the remaining one? Is it with Annie? And how did Freya get her part?"
Santner furrowed his brows, deep in thought. Something felt off. He coldly said to Karl, "Send someone out. I want to know the whereabouts of Perry and Annie."
"Yes!" Karl immediately stood up and left. He had survived.
"Perry, you Valkyrie, are you also looking for the treasure map?" Santner muttered to himself.
…
Meanwhile, the War Wolves were hiding in a cave. It was the second day since they had shaken off the beastkin knights.
"Whew... Captain, is it ready yet?" Number Three stared at the meat being roasted in front of him, feeling like his stomach was about to rebel.
"Almost, don't rush," Chris waved Number Two's hand away as he tried to grab the meat.
It was a wild rabbit they had caught the previous night. When they encountered it, the rabbit dashed straight into a snow pile, only its fat little bottom sticking out.
"Captain, you really scared us yesterday," Number Five said, holding an iron cup with both hands. "Suddenly getting involved with those beastkins was way too dangerous."
"It was to make it look more convincing. If I had started discussing it with you all, you definitely would have given it away," Chris waved his hand dismissively. "Besides, it worked, didn't it? The fake treasure map was stolen by them."
"Hey! What do you think the city lord is trying to do with that fake treasure map?" Number Seven asked while stirring the compressed rations that were cooking.
"Hehehe... The city lord is definitely trying to trick them again. Since the enemy dared to come to Sedona City to kidnap people, the city lord will surely strike back." Number Six said, swinging his military knife.
"Let's just hope those beastkins in Blade City don't go crazy when they find out the truth," Number Eight said, polishing his recurve bow.
"You're all so naïve." Chris took out a small packet of salt from his pocket, tore it open, and sprinkled it on the roasted rabbit meat. He said in a low voice, "With the city lord's abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for him to create a real treasure himself."
From what he knew of the city lord, this situation was definitely not simple. With all the preparation and planning involved, whatever the city lord was plotting was certainly something big.
"This..." The group exchanged looks, and after a moment's thought, it did seem that way.
"I wonder how long the snow will keep falling." Number Two said, tightening the cloak around him and moving a little closer to the fire.
If they hadn't found this cave, they would have been in trouble. Staying in a snow cave for too long was unbearable.
"I wonder how Aiden and the others are doing?" Number Six said softly.
"Them? If the plan went smoothly, they should have returned to Sedona City by tomorrow." Chris said as he turned the roasted rabbit meat.
"Captain, what do you think the city lord will reward us with when we return?" Number Three asked curiously.
"How would I know?" Chris rolled his eyes.
.
.
.
.
You can read advance chapters and view R-18 images of the characters on pat reon page.
pat reon.com/GreenBlue17
250 Power Stones for 1 extra chapter.
5 New reviews for 1 extra chapter.