Schedule and the Ring

Aili closed the door and saw Li Shaolin standing there with a lecherous grin on his face. Anger immediately rose in her, and she cursed, "Pervert!"

"Hehe, well, I didn't do anything to you. Oh, weren't you looking for some necklace from Sulonna? All her clothes are upstairs, so go look for it yourself. I'll keep watch down here!" Li Shaolin gestured with his chin toward the upper floor.

"Why are you trying to send me away? Don't tell me you have improper intentions toward Sulonna? I'm warning you, swallow all those filthy thoughts and guts of yours! If you delay our real business, I-I-I'll castrate you!" Aili had only taken two steps when she seemed to remember something important. She immediately turned around and glared at him fiercely.

"Uh... no, I wouldn't dare, really. Please go ahead without worry." Li Shaolin's expression changed drastically. This little brat was way too violent and overbearing.

"Pfft." Seeing how nervous he looked, Aili broke into a charming smile. For a moment, the beauty seemed both angry and coy, her willow-leaf brows soft as smoke, and he stared at her in a daze.

"What are you looking at? Never seen a beautiful woman before?" Aili lightly scolded him and headed upstairs.

After only a few steps, a startled cry came from upstairs. It was Aili! Li Shaolin's heart skipped a beat. He bounded up the stairs in a few strides, drawing the Infantry Sword from his waist with one hand. As he turned around, he collided head-on with the fleeing Aili with a bang.

"You little bastard, are you trying to get yourself killed?" Aili jumped in fright. When she saw it was Li Shaolin, she immediately started cursing.

"Uh, I didn't do anything, did I?" Li Shaolin asked with an innocent look, utterly confused.

"You killed him, fine, but you could at least have covered him with something! The moment I walked in, I saw a naked man lying there. You scared me half to death!" Aili patted her chest as she spoke, looking somewhat embarrassed.

With no other choice, Li Shaolin went over and kicked aside the man named Morgan. He began searching through the scattered clothes. At that moment, a piece of parchment sticking slightly out of a wallet caught his attention. He carefully opened it, and a passage came into view:

Collection Schedule:

Sunday: 12:30 p.m.

Tuesday: 12:30 p.m.

On the designated days, the gold ore mined from the caves in Elwynn Forest will be gathered at Blackwell's Pumpkin Patch. The "Receiver" responsible for collecting these goods will wear a Special Ring given to him by me.

A team from Defias Headquarters will contact the Receiver, who will hand over the gold he has received.

Make sure this process is completed carefully and without error. The Receiver is responsible for transferring the gold, but every member of the Defias Brotherhood is obligated to help him complete the task.

My brothers, remember that we were once craftsmen worthy of pride. We must complete our current task with the thoroughness and caution that craftsmen are known for.

There was no signature, no note, just those few brief and baffling lines. "Huh? Mining gold ore in the caves? That's not right. Weren't both Fargodeep Mine and Jade Mine occupied by Kobolds?" Li Shaolin's mind short-circuited. Could it be that the Kobolds were doing business with the Defias Brotherhood?

Looking at Morgan's hand, sure enough, there was a golden ring on his middle finger. Li Shaolin pulled hard and removed it. There seemed to be a tiny line of writing engraved on it. He held it before his eyes and read, "Thank you for your service. —VanCleef."

"VanCleef? The boss of the Deadmines? This is ridiculous, isn't it?" Li Shaolin was rather surprised. He had casually killed a Defias Brotherhood member, yet somehow that had led straight to the boss. If he angered VanCleef, he probably would not be able to mine at Fargodeep Mine anymore. But this was no time for doubts. Aili was still waiting downstairs, and it was best not to tempt fate.

After searching carefully, he indeed found an exquisite Silver Necklace in a small box. It looked like Sulonna had not even been willing to wear it yet. Could it be that Dark Necromancer Jajin had been in a teacher-student romance with her? Then love had turned to hate, leading to a crime of passion? Li Shaolin could not help imagining such a melodramatic story.

After tidying up, he found another six gold coins and stuffed them all into the Space Belt before turning to head downstairs.

"Did you find it?" Aili asked quietly.

Before he could answer, a rapid bang bang of knocking came from outside!

The two exchanged a glance. Li Shaolin made a silencing gesture, then peered through a window to the side. A young Defias member dressed all in black, though wearing white leather shoulder guards, was knocking at the door. He quietly cast Detection, and the words Erland Dudmore, Level 8, appeared before his eyes.

He raised one finger at Aili, signaling that there was only one person outside. Then he tiptoed over to the door and gestured for Aili to open it. By then, the knocking outside had become increasingly urgent.

"No, what if we can't kill him?" Li Shaolin suddenly thought. He was a Necromancer, and his physical strength was not that great. If his strike failed to kill this guy and he called over others, Old Li would be finished today. Right, wasn't Aili a warlock?

He grabbed Aili, who was about to open the door, and whispered into her ear, "Fear Spell!"

Aili felt warm breaths puffing against her earlobe, making it tingle and leaving her body weak. Her face reddened again. She shot him a fierce glare, then nodded.

Creak! The door slowly opened.

Erland Dudmore stepped inside and complained, "Sulonna, why did you open the door so—" Before he could finish, the door slammed shut with a bang, and an Infantry Sword pierced into his back!

Before he could cry out, a black skull that had long been prepared appeared above his head. An inexplicable terror surged from deep within his mind, and his legs stopped obeying him as he wandered aimlessly around the room! Immediately afterward, two Fangs shot into his body with whoosh whoosh, while Aili's Shadow Bolt finished casting and struck him.

Poor Erland Dudmore was killed before he even understood what had happened!

Li Shaolin flashed Aili a victory sign, but he was shocked inside as well. This warlock's Fear Spell was far too overpowered. It was practically the nightmare of every class! No, he would have to study his skills later and see whether there was any way to counter it.

Aili pointed at Sulonna lying behind them and made a slicing gesture.

"Uh, forget it. You want me to kill a woman who has no ability to fight back? I can't do that!" Li Shaolin hurriedly said.

Aili snorted. "So you know how to cherish women too, huh? Fine. We got the item, so let's leave quickly."

Li Shaolin nodded and gently pushed open the wooden door. After looking around, he saw that there was no one nearby. The two sneaked out like thieves, moving on tiptoe. At that moment, Sulonna, who had been lying there, twitched her eyelids and opened her eyes!

The two returned the way they had come. Fortunately, they encountered no obstacles along the way. After an hour, they circled around the entire Pumpkin Field again and returned to the place where they had met.

"Here, your big sister keeps her word. Take it!" Aili took out ten gold coins from the small bag at her waist and placed them in Li Shaolin's hand. "The rest is a gift from me because I think you're pleasing to the eye!"

"Hehe, then I'll gladly accept!" He hurriedly put them away, looking like a complete money-grubber. Yet after taking the money, the two became somewhat awkward, and a brief silence fell between them.

"Um, Aili, are you going back to Stormwind City?" Li Shaolin asked, making conversation for lack of anything else to say.

"Mm. Once I turn in this necklace, I'll have completed my trial and can learn Summon Voidwalker." Aili lowered her head to glance at him and answered softly.

"Then take care. It's getting late. If you can't make it back to Goldshire later, you'll have to sleep out in the wild, and it wouldn't be good if wolves ate you." Li Shaolin joked.

"Hmph, do you think a level-ten warlock like me is just a pretty decoration?" Aili seemed to have regained her tough attitude and immediately snapped back.

After exchanging a few words, the mood relaxed considerably. Amid a neigh, the tall red horse was summoned again. Aili leaped onto its back and said, "Then your big sister will be going first. Come find me in Town of Dusk when you have time!" As soon as she finished speaking, she shouted, "Giddyup!" The fine horse galloped away, growing farther and farther away amid the clatter of hooves until it gradually vanished, leaving only the lingering echoes behind.

"Ah, without a beauty by my side, I have to travel alone again!" Li Shaolin let out a sorrowful sigh and started walking forward.

Clop clop, clop clop. As he walked along in boredom, hoofbeats sounded from behind him, as though a fast horse was approaching. His heart leaped with joy. Could it be that Aili could not bear to leave him and had come back to share a horse with him? Hehe, would she sit in front, or would he? Lost in his happy thoughts, he could hardly wait!

"Hey, kid!" A rough male voice shattered his dream. "A young lady up ahead said someone was heading to Eastvale Logging Camp. Is that you? Come on, get in!" Amid a shout of "Whoa," a four-wheeled carriage stopped before him.