Chapter 13: Persuasion
“Hurry up.” The old servant Lambert reacted quickly as well, immediately urging them on.
Jenny and Kidd, the brother and sister, were still dazed and confused, and were simply pulled along by Linley and Lambert as they quickly fled the area. After all, killing someone on the main street meant the city guard would arrive very soon.
Linley wasn’t afraid of those soldiers, but with Jenny and the others in tow, facing the city guards would be very troublesome.
It wasn’t just Linley’s group fleeing; the panicked pedestrians nearby also scattered far away, one by one.
At this dusk hour, the main road of Blackstone City was usually at its busiest, but in just a short while, the panicked crowd had all dispersed. Within a hundred meters of the two corpses, there was no one.
“Captain, what should we do?”
In a private room window of a tavern by the street, two men were looking down through the window. One of them had fiery red hair and a sharp, chiseled face, but his expression was very gloomy at the moment. His subordinate beside him was asking in a low voice.
“I didn’t expect that there would be such a strong expert by the side of those two country siblings.” The red-haired man snorted coldly.
“Captain, there’s also a black panther beside that person. Panther-type magical beasts are definitely high-level magical beasts… With just us, it will be very difficult to deal with this expert.” The burly, strong man beside him said in a low voice.
The red-haired man felt a surge of irritation in his heart.
He had received orders from the First Madam to kill the two country siblings. According to the intelligence, the only person with any fighting ability beside these two country siblings was an old servant. At most, he was a level six warrior. In the O’Brien Empire, which was full of experts, a level six warrior was nothing.
In a small country town, a level six warrior might be formidable. But the squad sent by the First Madam of the county city’s lord, with the captain himself being a level seven warrior…
“A black panther… What kind of panther-type magical beast is this? I’ve never seen it before.” The red-haired man frowned. As a level seven expert, he knew a lot about magical beasts.
He was familiar with many panther-type magical beasts, such as the Gold-Striped Panther and the Black-Striped Panther.
But this panther with dense black patterns was one he had never seen before.
“That brown-haired man is clearly the master of the black panther. That brown-haired man is at least a level eight expert.” Recalling the moment Linley had instantly caught the two arrows, the red-haired man’s heart trembled even more.
The speed of an arrow was very fast.
To react, instantly appear in front of Jenny and Kidd, and then catch two arrows… Even an ordinary level eight expert couldn’t do that.
“Captain?” The burly man beside him called out in a low voice.
The red-haired man turned to look at him and said coldly, “Hmph, that brown-haired man is very strong. For this mission, a direct confrontation is not advisable. Do this: arrange for some people to investigate secretly. I don’t believe that expert doesn’t need to eat or sleep. He can’t possibly be with those siblings all the time, can he?”
“As soon as that brown-haired man separates from the siblings, send people to shoot them dead directly.” The red-haired man gave the order.
“Yes, Captain.” The burly man nodded and immediately withdrew from the private room.
The red-haired man turned and continued to look down through the window. The two corpses with arrows piercing their throats were still lying by the side of the street, and at that moment, city guard cavalrymen on horseback arrived.
*******
In a private room on the second floor of an ordinary hotel in Blackstone City, Linley, Jenny, Kidd, and Lambert were all seated. Even Bebe had taken a seat for himself. As for the Blackstripe Cloud Leopard, “Blackie,” it was lying on the floor, squinting its eyes and resting contentedly.
Jenny and Kidd still had somewhat pale faces.
“J-just now, it scared me to death.” There was still terror in Kidd’s eyes.
Kidd had grown up in a small country town. The most brutal thing he had ever seen was probably some youths fighting out of bravado. He had never personally experienced such a scene!
During this journey, although they had encountered bandits, the bandits were fighting with the mercenaries and hadn’t harmed him. But this time, the attackers were after his and his sister’s lives.
Jenny also had a trace of fear in her eyes at this moment.
“Jenny, Kidd, don’t be afraid.” Linley smiled and comforted them.
This kind of small scene couldn’t even stir any emotional fluctuation in Linley. In the Magical Beast Mountain Range, a lurking magical beast could pounce out to ambush you at any moment.
In the Magical Beast Mountain Range, Linley had learned to keep his heart as still as water. Let alone this kind of minor skirmish?
“Young master, young miss.” Lambert comforted them, “It’s alright now, don’t worry. This time, we were lucky to have Lord Lei here, otherwise it would have been terrible. Young master, young miss, you should properly thank Lord Lei.”
Only then did Jenny and Kidd snap out of their panic.
“Brother Lei, thank you so much this time.” Kidd said excitedly, and then his eyes lit up. “Brother Lei, that move of yours was so cool! With a wave of your hand, you caught two sharp arrows, and with another wave… you killed those two people.” He was just a child after all, instantly forgetting the fear of a moment ago.
Jenny also looked at Linley with gratitude. “Thank you, Brother Lei.”
Jenny was truly grateful to Linley from the bottom of her heart.
When she first saw Linley, in Jenny’s heart, he was a mysterious expert, an extraordinary person who possessed a powerful magical beast.
When she talked with Linley, she found him to be a very kind person.
Especially when she asked him to protect her, Linley only took one gold coin. Although Linley said that when Kidd became the city lord, he would still collect 9,999 gold coins, Jenny, now eighteen years old, understood a bit about the ways of the world.
“Don’t mention it. I agreed to protect you; it’s just my duty. By the way.” Linley frowned. “What’s going on? You just entered Blackstone City, and someone already wants to shoot you dead? Who exactly have you offended?”
Kidd looked completely bewildered.
Jenny was also a bit confused. “I… we haven’t offended anyone.”
“Then who holds a grudge against you?” Linley continued to inquire.
Jenny pondered for a moment and said, “Well, if there is anyone, it’s probably our stepmother.” But at this moment, the old servant Lambert immediately interrupted their conversation, smiling at Linley and saying, “There’s no one with a grudge. Their stepmother only has some minor conflicts with them. Lord Lei, let’s not think about such troublesome matters. Let’s just eat.”
Linley glanced at Lambert, smiled, and nodded. “Alright, let’s all eat together.”
Actually, after hearing Kidd’s story about him and his sister, Linley had already guessed the general situation. This assassination attempt was clearly the city lord’s First Madam trying to prevent Jenny and Kidd from taking the city lord’s position.
But Linley didn’t say it outright.
*******
That evening, Jenny, her brother, the old servant Lambert, and Linley checked into this hotel. They directly booked an independent courtyard and settled in.
Night fell.
Linley’s room was pitch black. Linley sat cross-legged on the bed, his heart calm and peaceful, quietly sensing the pulse of the earth and the rhythm of the wind.
From time to time, when Linley had a realization, he would get up and casually swing his heavy sword.
…
“Creak.” Wearing her nightgown, with her hair loose, Jenny walked towards the old servant Lambert’s room. “Grandpa Lambert, are you asleep?”
The door opened quickly.
“Young miss, come in quickly.” Lambert immediately opened the door, and after Jenny entered, he closed it again.
“Young miss, is there something?” Lambert asked.
Jenny stared at Lambert with wide eyes. “Grandpa Lambert, tell me, why would someone come to kill me and my little brother? Is it our stepmother?”
“Why would you think that?” Lambert’s heart trembled.
Jenny stubbornly said, “Grandpa Lambert, don’t treat me like a child. When my little brother and I left that small town, we thought we were going to happily take over the position of city lord. But now I understand. Our stepmother won’t let us take over. The people who tried to kill us this time must have been arranged by her. I can’t think of anyone else.”
Lambert looked at Jenny and sighed softly.
“Alright, young miss. I admit, your guess is correct.” Lambert said helplessly.
Jenny was stunned.
“So that’s how it is…” Jenny murmured to herself.
Jenny looked at Lambert. “Grandpa Lambert, why didn’t you tell me and my little brother from the beginning?”
“Sigh.” Lambert shook his head. “What good would telling you do? Your mother couldn’t swallow that anger even on her deathbed. She insisted that you and your brother inherit the city lord’s position. I know, with your personality, you probably wouldn’t defy your mother’s dying wish.”
“En, even if it kills me, I will do it.” Jenny nodded stubbornly.
“Since that’s the case, it’s better to let you travel happily and joyfully along the way. Besides, I’ve been trying to prepare for you. If we hadn’t met this Lord Lei, I would have found other ways for you in Blackstone City, to try and get you to Redstone County City as safely as possible.” Lambert said honestly.
In that small country town, Jenny and Kidd’s life wasn’t happy at all.
The local nobleman coveted Jenny’s beauty, and Kidd was often bullied. Even if Kidd and Jenny knew the journey would be dangerous, they would still take the gamble.
After all, once they became the city lord, their fate would truly change.
“Grandpa Lambert, is the road ahead very dangerous?” Jenny’s expression was very complex.
Lambert sighed softly. “Originally, I thought it wouldn’t be too dangerous, but it seems your stepmother is truly ruthless. She was ready to make a move in Blackstone City. The journey to Redstone County City will probably be very dangerous indeed.”
“Then Grandpa Lambert, why didn’t you tell Brother Lei everything from the start?” Jenny stared at Lambert.
“We can’t tell him everything.” Lambert shook his head. “After your father died, your stepmother practically took control of Redstone County City. She has quite a few experts under her command. If you want this Lord Lei to fight against the de facto ruler of a county city, I’m afraid he won’t risk his life for you and your brother. After all, it’s very dangerous.”
The de facto ruler of a county city possessed astonishing power.
They probably had level eight experts under their command. It was unlikely they had level nine experts, and even if they did, one would be a big deal. After all, level nine experts usually served the ruling family of a province or the emperor. Serving a county city lord… was unlikely.
However, killing someone didn’t just require swords and knives; poison, traps, and other methods could all be used.
“Very dangerous?” Jenny considered this. “Grandpa Lambert, you get some rest.” Saying this, Jenny left Lambert’s room.
After leaving Lambert’s room, Jenny didn’t return to her own room. Instead… she walked towards Linley’s room.
“Bang, bang, bang—” Three consecutive knocks on the door.
“Come in.” Linley’s voice sounded, and at the same time, the candle in the room was lit.
Jenny pushed the door open and entered.
Linley got off the bed, sat down on a chair, and smiled. “It’s so late, Jenny, is there something you need?”
“Brother Lei.” Jenny sat down, took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and looked at Linley. “Brother Lei, I have to tell you a fact.”
“What fact?” Linley looked at Jenny.
Jenny said apologetically, “Actually, my little brother and I have been living in a small country town. We haven’t been to our father’s place for a long time. We are not familiar with Redstone County City at all. This time, going to inherit the city lord’s position might not succeed.”
Jenny was a very kind girl. She now understood the dangers ahead and didn’t want Linley to face danger with them.
“Oh.” Linley just responded.
Linley sighed inwardly. This Jenny really was a very simple and honest young girl.
Seeing Linley’s reaction, Jenny thought he didn’t understand, so she quickly explained, “Brother Lei, at first, I thought that if we succeeded in inheriting the city lord’s position, we would succeed, and if we failed, we would just go back. But it’s not that simple. This time, someone wants to kill us. It’s very likely our stepmother who sent them. In the future, she might use even more ruthless methods. If you stay by our side, it will be very dangerous for you.”