Chapter 156: Uninvited Guests
Hal, the former bandit gang leader, obviously knew what the the two groups loitering around the town hall and the resettlement shelter during the day were up to.
There wasn't a need to bother with the town hall, and Hal's only concern was ensuring the safety of the resettlement shelter.
Thus, perching on a rooftop, Hal and his brothers lay in wait, watching the inexperienced city dwellers fumble their way through the night operation.
"Never mind. Let's give them a push." Hal decided to take matters into his own hands and signaled Finley.
Understanding the cue, Finley agilely slipped off the roof and vanished into the night.
Weisshem, even in its former days with a red-light district, never imposed a curfew. After the undead arrived and the red-light district was shut down, this wasn't brought up either. The undead never cared about the time either, and no one had the authority to restrict their nocturnal activities.
At the beginning, locals were too afraid to venture out at night, fearing encounters with the undead. Consequently, Martin Street's pubs and taverns remained closed.
However, as people realized that the undead, despite their intimidating appearance and odd behavior, were harmless, these night time establishments gradually reopened.
Finley sneaked through an alley and entered a tavern on Martin Street, finding it bustling with locals. These establishments, catering to the local populace rather than pleasure-seekers, were starkly different from city pubs. They had no waitresses or servers and only offered cheap corn rum and barley beer, accompanied by simple snacks like fried beans, roasted corn, and lightly fried potato slices.
With the emergence of the undead delicatessen, even snacks in taverns like these were upgraded. Roasted corn and fried potato slices were now served with delicious, spicy sauce, and tofu dishes like fried and grilled tofu were added, given tofu's status as one of the cheapest ingredients in Weisshem.
Among the trio, Finley was the most unobtrusive, but being from the "Taranthan" bunch, he was easily recognizable in town. A few off-duty security squad personnel recognized him and stood up to greet him nervously, "Good evening, Mr. Finley. Are you here for a drink too?"
Finley took a look at this table, recognizing a few faces, and unceremoniously beckoned. "The few of you, come. I need you to do something for me."
Ten minutes later, these off-duty security squad personnel, with beer doused on them and pretending to be drunk, started on from the resettlement shelter on Main Street.
"Why are you off-duty fellas causing trouble for us instead of being at home resting?!" on-duty security squad members that came to respond to the situation said in exasperation.
Having been given instructions, the off-duty personnel were fully immersed in their act, shouting things like "I have to teach trash like you a lesson today," or "Bastard, I've tolerated time already," to their active comrades and dragged them into the brawl
With such a big ruckus, Walton and his men, who had been lurking in the shadows, seized the opportunity and stealthily approached the shelter's wall where they quickly formed a human ladder, scaling the wall and infiltrating the compound.
Meanwhile, Hal, patiently waiting for them to clear the wall, yelled out, "Now!"
Tuttle Joe, with a bow in hand, launched a flare arrow directly above the spot where Walton and his scouts had climbed over.
Walton and his scouts, who had just made it over, heard the whizz of the arrow and sensed something was off. As the flare burst into light, Walton and his men, who were about to dash toward the shelter, were shocked to find more than 20 robust men charging toward them, all armed with nets and long sticks.
These weren't just ordinary men like the security squad personnel that wouldn't be able to stop them no matter how great the number; under the light of the flare, Walton could see the ones lying in wait were the Indahl City Defense Force soldiers that were forcibly discharged!
"We've been had! Retreat!" Walton bellowed.
The six scouts were all elite and instantly formed a hasty battle formation, covering Walton as they retreated.
However there was also an experienced commander among the ambushers!
A man, similar in height and build to Walton and bearing the look of a seasoned military officer, gave a silent, sweeping gesture with his arm. The ex-soldiers, following his lead as if on cue, spread out to the sides and threw sturdy nets, typically used to cover goods, in the direction Walton and his scouts were retreating.
Even if one could cut through these nets, they would still entangle and delay the target for some time, forcing the elite scouts to abandon retreating and instead charge forward.
The officer-like figure shouted an, "Attack!" and with a flick of his wrist, sent his wooden stick smashing down at an oblique angle toward the scouts who were now forced to advance. Walton's eyes narrowed in recognition of this movea tactic usually employed by heavy cavalry!
The identity of this officer-like figure was becoming clearLieutenant Wagner Pitt!
"You've betrayed Indahl!" Walton exclaimed in shock and anger.
Wagner, who was focusing intently, didn't quite catch what Walton was shouting. While adept at mounted combat, he was less skilled in close-quarter battles. He used his stick like a lance, striking a scout's thigh with an off angle before wisely retreating to maintain distanceclose combat would put him at a disadvantage against those skilled in grappling.
His men on either side adeptly moved to cover the gap, thrusting their long sticks in a manner reminiscent of cavalry using lances.
The elite scouts of the Radiant Sun Church, unlike the specialized heavy cavalry, were proficient in both mounted and foot combat. Yet, they were outnumbered three to one, and the opponent was deliberately keeping them at a distance, leaving them with no option but to parry.
After a few seconds of deadlock, Walton realized they could not afford to drag this out. He decisively abandoned defense and launched a direct assault toward Wagner at the rear, knowing that capturing Lieutenant Pitt could turn the tide!
The scouts instantly understood their commander's intent, quickly dispersing to Walton's flanks and attacking the soldiers whirling their sticks fiercely, clearing the way for Walton.
Wagner remained unflappable, twirling his arms to swing his staff at the charging Walton. However, the long stick, sourced by the logistics department from civilians for broom making, wasn't a proper long-handled weapon. In the very first clash, Wagner's stick was split in two by the force of Walton's determined strike.
However Walton could not advance further.
An enchanted dagger glowing eerie red, which was once coveted by players but never obtained, was now pressed against his neck.
Hal "Razor" Maxwell, who had been lying in wait in the shadows after infiltrating the yard, seized the moment Walton left the protection of his scouts.
"Armed and visiting a ladies' residence late at night. Are all old lechers currently like this?" Hal sneered with a wicked smile on his face.
Walton: ""
The scout covering Walton's left flank slightly shifted the direction of his weapon.
"It would be wiser not to move," said Finley, emerging from behind Hal and lifting his chin upward. "Take a look. What might that be?"
Maintaining his upper body in a defensive stance, Walton could see what Finley was pointing at just by shifting his eyes.
What he saw sent a chill down his spine
Perched atop the wall less than 15 meters away was a ranger with a drawn longbow, aiming straight at his head. At such a close distance, even an average archer from the army wouldn't miss.
Shutting his eyes briefly, Walton relaxed and slowly lowered his sword that was aimed at Lieutenant Pitt He realized they had been thoroughly outplayed.
Meanwhile, at the town hall.
Young Masters Parker Chapman Odysse and Grey Medei Chapman, sat together on a couch in the brightly lit reception hall, docilely listening to the black mage across the table's grandiose claims.
"This is a win-win situation, Young Master Parker," said Yang Qiu with a smile. "Our friend, Rex, and the Odysse family both stand to gain. As you mentioned, Rex's father had connections with your family, making Rex a natural ally of the Odysses. It would be absurd not to collaborate." The two young masters stared blankly, knowing all too well the perils of having Yang Qiu, an infamous criminal, involved. Despite the potential benefits of working with Rex, no sane person wouldn't hesitate with such a notorious figure thrown in the mix.
As if reading their mind, Yang Qiu continued, "Of course, I understand your concerns. Rex's position isn't yet stable, and his supportermyselfhas indeed been misunderstood by many. This could hinder our collaboration"
Young Master Parker's and Grey's faces were nearly rigid.
What kind of misunderstanding can lead to you hunted by over twenty nations, offering a bounty as high as ninety thousand gold coins?
Deep down, they scoffed at the absurdity of this claim.
That's a bounty more than enough to finance a territory war!
As the young masters were taking this in, a series of shouts and cries erupted from outside.
"Aargh!"
"Aaaah!"
"Damn it, ahhh!"
Trying their hardest not to seem unsettled, the young masters couldn't help but glance toward the window at the cacophony. The commotion seemed to have alerted Rex and Ji Tang in the adjacent room as the courtyard lights suddenly came on.
From their seats in the reception room, they could clearly see the ordinary-looking courtyard now bizarrely filled with huge, grotesque bone spikes protruding from the ground. On these spikes hung about a dozen barely alive unfortunate souls
The young masters paled and trembled slightly at the horrific sight.
Footsteps approached, and Rex peeked into the reception hall. "Yang, someone triggered your magic trap."
"I saw." Yang Qiu put down his teacup. "Go together with Ji Tang and save them. We'll interrogate them tomorrow."
"Alright." Rex closed the door and went on his way.
"Let's not allow these uninvited guests to disturb our lovely evening. Shall we continue?" Yang Qiu smiled kindly at the young masters as if nothing had happened.
Young Masters Parker and Grey: ""
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺