Chapter 21: Sometimes It's Awkward When the Enemy Is Too Cowardly
"Still need two thousand four hundred experience points. Fortunately, I don't have to do [Glory Quests] now; otherwise, even if I had a few months, I wouldn't be able to advance to Gold-rank."
Joshua glanced at the attribute panel again and, after confirming he didn't need to redo the advancement quest from back then, let out a sigh of relief.
In his past life in the game, for players to advance to Gold-rank, besides reaching level thirty-one, they also had to complete a single-player quest of extremely high difficulty. The quest content was bizarre and varied, but all were very targeted, with tedious and intricate processes that couldn't have any omissions. A quest chain completion rate below seventy-five percent was considered a failure.
Success went without saying, but failure meant not only being kicked back to level thirty but also being unable to challenge it again for a month, a huge waste of time.
Two thousand four hundred points, roughly the experience of four or five Silver-rank warriors, was indeed not a big problem for Joshua, especially since he had another solution.
"If I count from the street patrol soldiers all the way to the final Silver-rank guards, I've probably killed over fifty enemies in a row. The achievement [Fifty Consecutive Kills] provides five thousand experience points, more than enough to level up."
Trying to open the achievement panel, Joshua found the system a bit laggy, taking several seconds to open. He couldn't help but chuckle: "I didn't expect lag even after transmigrating."
After the joke, the achievement list opened, and instantly, a mountain of data began frantically scrolling before Joshua's eyes. The achievement enthusiast and former Legendary warrior calmly swiped past his long, long rows of [Achieved] accomplishments, found the [Repeatable] category list he needed, and clicked on the [Consecutive Kills] achievement.
"Only thirty-two consecutive kills?"
Frowning slightly, Joshua didn't dwell on such a trivial matter: "It must be because I let that mercenary go midway. Oh well, three thousand two hundred experience points, just enough."
At this moment, Ying was no longer lamenting over the ruins. She walked behind the warrior, looked up, and asked, "Master, what's next? Clear out the enemies in the city?"
"No need." Joshua shook his head in reply. "With such a big commotion, those enemies will either flee or come to us on their own. We don't need to bother searching for them."
After saying this, he simply found a large stone and sat down, with Ying sitting beside him.
A warrior is always good at waiting.
Creak—
In a nearby residence, a resident cautiously opened their door. It was a middle-aged woman who carefully poked her head out to observe the surroundings.
The people didn't know exactly what had been happening in the city lately, but at the very least, they could tell that the soldiers patrolling and guarding the gates had been replaced by a group of strangers. Coupled with the successive curfews and martial law orders that gave off an eerie feeling, and the terrible winter weather and temperatures, even fewer people were willing to go out.
Now, aside from going out to buy essential necessities, the middle-aged woman hardly left her home at all. She didn't care much about what was happening outside, but the roar just now was different—it was too loud, so she had to check what was going on.
Looking up and scanning roughly, she found no unfamiliar patrol soldiers and breathed a sigh of relief, observing carefully.
Then, the next second, she was dumbfounded, gasping in shock: "Oh my god..." Covering her mouth with both hands, the middle-aged woman kept backing up until her legs gave way, and she plopped down on the ground. "The Lord's Manor, the Lord's Manor has been—!"
"What's going on?"
An impatient male voice came from inside the house, along with the faint complaints of a child woken up: "Hurry up and close the door; the cold wind is coming in. Don't let the child catch a chill."
"Oh, dear, the child's father, come and see!"
Without time to explain, and not knowing what words to use, the middle-aged woman shouted excitedly, "Come quick!"
"You foolish woman..." Cursing under his breath, the man knew something was up, so he quickly came out of the room, pulled his wife up from the doorway, and then frowned as he looked outside.
Then, his eyes widened, his mouth fell open, and he froze, blurting out, "Oh my god..."
Not far away, where the Lord's Manor, like a small castle, once stood in the city center, a huge mushroom cloud of black dust was slowly rising, with a vast expanse of ruins at its base.
The couple exchanged glances, their eyes full of shock and confusion.
Who? Who had collapsed the Lord's Manor?!
Turning their gaze, they spotted two blurry figures beside the ruins of the Lord's Manor.
Joshua had already waited about ten minutes. Logically, whether Silver-rank or Black Iron-rank warriors, they should have arrived at the scene in that time, but in reality, no one came.
"Not stupid." Shaking his head with some regret, Joshua felt he had been a bit too presumptuous. After all, this was the real world, where you only had one life, unlike in games where players and aggro-driven NPCs would fight to the death without rest. Besides, these people were just private soldiers of the Wilson family and a secretly trained mercenary group. Getting paid to do a job was their biggest rule. Facing a monster strong enough to blow up the city lord's mansion and create a mushroom cloud, running away was hardly a burden on their conscience.
Sometimes, it's really awkward when the enemy is too cowardly.
Standing up, Joshua planned to leave. "Ying, come on. We're leaving."
"Yes, Master. Where to?"
"First, go to the church square and ring the bell to announce to the whole city." The warrior said with a matter-of-fact expression, speaking calmly. "Tell them that I, Joshua, the lord of this land, have returned."
Since his cheap uncle was dead and Chris wasn't an idiot, no one would jump out to fight him for the title now. That being the case, it was best to quickly announce it to the whole city, lift the martial law, and then go to the Black Forest Fortress to pull a squad to maintain order. Other matters regarding inheriting the title could be dealt with later.
Walking along the main road, many residents opened their doors or windows to look toward the Lord's Manor. These people paid no attention to Joshua and Ying; their eyes were only on the black mushroom cloud slowly being blown away by the wind, full of confusion. Finding that the patrolling soldiers had disappeared, some bold ones prepared to go check out the situation nearby, and murmurs began to rise.
Suddenly, the warrior's footsteps stopped.
Joshua frowned and turned back, looking into the distance. His gaze pierced through the buildings and falling snow, staring straight at the clouds high in the sky.
"The wind."
He said softly, solemnly. Under Ying's puzzled gaze, Joshua turned around, his expression gradually growing serious.
What he heard was not the winter wind sweeping through the sky and streets, nor the howling north wind brushing through the clouds and frost. What Joshua heard was a vibration that ordinary people couldn't detect, ringing between spirit and elements.
In the invisible distance, there was a person, an existence, who stirred the magical power in the atmosphere, making the spirits and elements of nature serve their will. The subtle movement of power transmitted, blowing like the wind, and was then sensed by Joshua.
"Gold-rank, Glory Force! Coming so soon? The plan needs to change."
Taking a deep breath, Joshua suddenly roared, "All residents nearby, leave immediately!"
There was no trace of gentleness in his voice, only intimidation and coercion: "This is no joke. This is an order. You have three minutes! Otherwise—"
Before he finished speaking, the ground shook beneath his feet. Waves of air surged, and violent tremors and roars like an earthquake spread out. Under the terrified gazes of all the nearby residents, a huge depression and cracks spanning dozens of meters appeared on the wide bluestone street.
There was no need to continue. This was blatant intimidation! What the hell was there to hesitate about?! Faced with such a fierce person, of course, you do whatever the big shot says!
The crowd erupted in uproar. Everyone quickly turned back to their homes, called their wives, children, and husbands, grabbed their most valuable belongings, and fled as if escaping a disaster.
After the warning, Joshua said nothing. He stared at the empty sky in the distance, while the silver-haired Divine Mechanism girl followed behind him. Countless streams of people hurriedly bypassed them on both sides, heading to the homes of acquaintances.
It's coming.