Schemes

Adventurer's Guild.

After practicing his swordsmanship for a while, Wu Heng took the skeleton Bartholomew and patrolled along the assigned route.

The Light Orb from Dancing Lights floated around him, illuminating the area around them.

"This spell is actually pretty good."

Although he had found a flashlight too, this spell that did not use electricity felt more cost-effective.

The spell's effect was also quite good. Compared to when he had used it during the day last time, it was much brighter at night.

And it covered a large area, illuminating everything around him.

But Wu Heng had also discovered this spell's drawback.

The Light Orb revolved around its caster, meaning that in the darkness, the caster was the brightest one.

If there were enemies, they would spot you first.

It was easy to draw fire.

So he should use it less when there was nothing going on. No, he should go out less at night.

He patrolled all the way to the Training Ground, went inside and looked around, then opened the door and walked back out after finding nothing unusual.

But the instant he opened the door, Wu Heng's heart jolted. He quickly dispelled the magic, and the surroundings fell completely into darkness.

Just now, in the darkness, he had seen someone.

He could be certain the other person had seen him too.

"Good evening, friend from the Adventurer's Guild."

Wu Heng narrowed his eyes and carefully shifted his position, drawing his pistol and flicking off the safety.

"What do you want?"

The other person spoke casually. "The others were so easily lured away. When they come back and find everyone here slaughtered, don't you think that'll be rather exciting..."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Before he could finish, Wu Heng fired toward the voice. Bartholomew opened fire at the same time.

Deafening gunshots echoed through the corridor, sparks bursting from the muzzles.

But darkness shrouded everything around them.

"Pin down his location."

Wu Heng placed one hand on Bartholomew's shoulder and pulled the trigger in the direction the skeleton was facing.

Bullets streaked through the darkness, vanishing like stones thrown into a muddy swamp.

He had overlooked something.

The flashlight was in his Backpack, so he could only rely on Bartholomew's vision to determine the enemy's approximate location.

Fortunately, he had plenty of bullets this time.

"Damn it, what the hell is that?" A curse came from the darkness.

Then came the sound of hurried footsteps rapidly closing in.

"Hold him off!" Wu Heng ordered again.

Bartholomew tossed aside his pistol, gripped a blade in each hand, and charged headlong into the darkness.

Soon, the sounds of fighting and clashing weapons rang out from within.

Wu Heng quickly reloaded, took the flashlight from his bag, and shone it straight ahead.

A blinding beam instantly lit up. The enemy raised an arm to shield his eyes, and Bartholomew took the opportunity to thrust forward, aiming directly for the artery at the side of his neck.

Clang!

The enemy blocked with his Armguard, producing a sharp impact.

Only then did Wu Heng get a clear look at him.

He was of average build, with a thin face, heavy brows, leather armor, and a sword in hand.

Wu Heng glanced at him and pulled the trigger again.

Unlike the blind fire from before, he could now clearly see the man's position.

The first shot hit the wall. The second was fired along the path of the man's roll, followed by a third and fourth shot.

The enemy did not dare take them head-on and quickly tumbled away.

With a flick of his hand, he somehow produced a scroll and tore it open.

Whoosh!

A tentacle covered in black tendrils flew straight at him.

Wu Heng fired at it. The bullet passed through the tentacle without affecting it at all.

He rolled aside on the spot to evade it.

With a smack, the black tentacle flattened against the wall behind him.

The enemy tried to rush forward, but when he saw Wu Heng raise his gun again, he quickly ducked into the darkness around the corner. At the same time, a round black grenade rolled out with a rumble.

"Damn it, Bartholomew, fall back!"

As he shouted, he rapidly retreated. With a bang, the grenade exploded, filling the area with smoke.

Wu Heng widened the distance and began reloading.

This enemy was far more formidable than the Wanted Criminals from before.

He was agile, and his combat rhythm was excellent.

And even now, neither the captain nor Cavina had come over. There was probably more than one enemy.

A large number of Troops from Blackstone Town had been drawn away. It was hard not to suspect they had fallen for a Lure the Tiger out of the Mountain scheme.

He reloaded again, and the empty magazine fell to the ground.

The smoke before him suddenly churned. A figure rushed from afar, breaking through the smoke with a sword raised to slash down at him.

Bartholomew rushed over and stepped between them, crossing his two short blades above his head.

Clang!

Another crisp clash rang out, sparks flying everywhere.

Bartholomew's body sank under the force, his knees bending.

Delight appeared on the enemy's face. His longsword twisted with the momentum, piercing through the breastplate in front of him and emerging from the other side.

The moment the sword struck, the delight on the man's face turned to confusion.

Why did it feel like he had stabbed empty air?

Before he could think further, the thief before him grabbed the arm holding his sword, while the short blade in its other hand slashed upward toward his chest and abdomen.

At the same time, a dark green water orb came crashing down from above.

Outside the city, Gravel Bridge.

Various Scout Birds returned from the night.

Reports began coming in. "Sir, there's a pile of rubble ahead. There are no signs that humans have stayed there."

"Same here. We found nothing. Are you sure this is the place?" the ranger from the Adventurer Team added.

As soon as he said that, everyone frowned.

If only one person had said so, perhaps something had been overlooked. But if both the guards and the Adventurer Team said it, then they could not have been mistaken.

Had they come to the wrong place?

"Move out. The whole team advances and surrounds the area ahead," ordered a square-faced commander.

Clatter!

The guard unit rushed forward, quickly closing in and surrounding the pile of rubble ahead.

This was the ruined remains of a collapsed manor. Passing merchants sometimes rested nearby.

But now, there was no one here at all.

"That shouldn't be possible. The intelligence said they were hiding here," someone muttered.

The steward Yazde softly reminded them, "Search it."

The square-faced commander ordered, "Search. See if there are any cellars or hidden places."

The guards and adventurers entered with torches, searching bit by bit.

"Nothing. They left nothing behind. Looks like the information was false," someone said.

Everyone's expressions immediately darkened.

At the same time, they thought of a terrifying possibility.

After pondering for several seconds, the square-faced commander said coldly, "Let's go back."

"Damn it, he's a mage!"

The dark green water orb shattered, splashing everywhere.

Only after fighting until now did he realize that his opponent was a mage.

The Burning Sensation from the acid blurred his vision. Relying on memory, he turned and tried to retreat back around the corner.

"Bartholomew, kill him."

Bartholomew charged in again. Wu Heng followed behind, firing several more shots straight ahead.

With his vision obstructed, his reactions had slowed somewhat.

He only rolled after hearing the gunshots, but it was already too late. The bullets instantly struck his body.

He staggered and could no longer keep his footing.

Wu Heng pulled the trigger rapidly again, firing bullets as if they cost nothing. They struck the target, and the target fell to the ground with a bang.

After a slight twitch, he lay stiffly on the floor.

No Experience Points notification?

Wu Heng did not approach. He pulled the trigger at the enemy on the ground again.

Bang!

At the same moment the shot rang out, the enemy on the ground quickly rolled to one side and tried to get up and flee again.

Bartholomew blocked his path.

Bang! Bang!

Gunshots rang out again. One bullet pierced through his neck, blood spraying everywhere.