Encirclement

"We're here. Put away your Scourge summons so they don't see them. Oh, and watch out for the mutated Harvest Golems and Watch Golems in the Pumpkin Field. They don't recognize friend from foe," Sulonna reminded Li Shaolin.

Li Shaolin hurriedly took out the Book of the Dead and stored the three Skeleton Warriors and the Clay Golem inside. Curious, he asked, "What's going on with those golems?"

Sulonna sighed. "They seem to be products of Goblin technology. They run on lamp oil, and it seems all the golem fuel in Westfall was replaced by Goblin Engineers under VanCleef. I don't know the details. Goblins have always been so mysterious."

So that was it. It looked like the Brotherhood had secretly sold altered fuel to the farmers, causing the golems to mutate and attack indiscriminately. But everyone had already been driven away by the Brotherhood. What use were the golems now? Of course, no one should expect members of the Defias Brotherhood to do manual labor.

As they drew closer, they saw that the fine harvest in the Pumpkin Field had apparently been ruined. Bloodfang Boars with yellow fur wandered through it from time to time, rooting around among the ripe pumpkins. Occasionally, one or two Carrion Birds flew overhead before fluttering down onto the pumpkin trellises to rummage for something. The Watch Golems still instinctively drove away any creature that approached, the sharp sickles on their arms chopping the Bloodfang Boars until they squealed.

"Stop! This is Brotherhood territory!" A masked man appeared before Li Shaolin and Sulonna, the bright dagger in his hand reflecting the glaring sunlight.

"Please inform Benny Blanco that Sulonna from Elwynn Forest wishes to see him." Sulonna quickly produced a red mask, indicating that she too was a member of the Defias.

"Fine, wait here." Though a mask proved little, Sulonna's was a high-grade captain-level item. He could not afford to take it lightly.

Before long, a hearty laugh rang out. "Sulonna, is that you? Where's my good brother Erland?" As he spoke, a Defias member wearing double-collared pauldrons and carrying two Blackwater Sabers emerged from a house. This must have been Benny Blanco, known as Iron Wrist.

"Huh? Where's Erland? And who's this?" Benny Blanco asked in surprise.

Sulonna stepped forward a few paces, grief in her voice. "Erland was murdered."

"Who was it? Who killed my good brother? Tell me, and I'll avenge him!" Benny Blanco said furiously upon hearing the news.

Li Shaolin immediately grew nervous. If Sulonna exposed him, today would turn into another brutal battle.

"There's been trouble within Elwynn Forest." Sulonna wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and spoke vaguely.

Benny Blanco waved a hand. "Let's go inside first. Tell me everything clearly. I'll speak for you to VanCleef. Those people are utterly hateful. Erland was barely dead before they came to pressure you."

The group entered the small house together.

Something's wrong! This old bastard heard that his good brother had been killed, yet he didn't show the slightest surprise. And how did he know that people inside Elwynn Forest were pressuring Sulonna? Benny Blanco probably has problems too.

"Sulonna, I'll stop here. I'm heading back first." Li Shaolin tugged on Sulonna's sleeve and gave her a look.

"So soon? Didn't you still need to look for something here?" Sulonna asked in confusion. Perhaps she thought they would be safe once they found Benny Blanco.

"And this is?" Benny Blanco asked again.

"Oh, he's Mr. Karnak's distant relative, Li Shaolin, an eleventh-level mage," Sulonna replied.

Benny Blanco frowned, then blocked Li Shaolin's path with one arm and smiled. "Since you're here, rest awhile. The road hasn't been peaceful lately. Tomorrow morning, I'll have two brothers escort you back."

Unable to resist their persuasion, Li Shaolin gritted his teeth. So what if there was a scheme? Was he supposed to be afraid? The two mutated skeletons' strength was there for all to see. Even the three captains of Elwynn Forest had been killed when they joined forces. Why should he fear one man? With that thought, he stopped worrying and followed Benny Blanco into the room.

Benny Blanco whispered a few words to a follower, then smiled. "Come, sit down first. I'll have them prepare food and wine." As he spoke, the follower walked out the door.

With nothing else to do, Sulonna recounted everything that had happened in Elwynn Forest. Naturally, Erland's death was blamed on Aili, who had been carrying out a class quest. As for how the other captains had joined forces against her, she explained it in great detail. After all, whether she could establish herself within the Defias Brotherhood in the future depended entirely on this Mr. Iron Wrist.

They were only halfway through when the follower from earlier hurried back in and approached the table.

"Is it taken care of?" Benny Blanco interrupted Sulonna and asked casually.

"Everything is under your control." The follower nodded in response.

"What's going on?" Sulonna asked.

Benny Blanco raised his head, pushed back his chair, and stood. "Hahaha, Sulonna, Receiver Morgan's ring fell into your hands, didn't it? Mogani told me long ago that you colluded with Morgan to murder Erland, then killed Morgan to take the ring. I didn't believe it at first, but the moment you came today, everything became clear. So it really was true!" He clapped his hands, and seven or eight Defias members armed with weapons filed in through the door, blocking the exit.

"Benny Blanco, weren't you Erland's good friend? Are you after the Receiver's ring too? Mogani is known as a cunning bastard, and you believe him?" Sulonna said in a fury, seemingly unable to believe it.

"Hmph. Hand over the ring obediently, and I might consider sparing your life. Otherwise, heh heh!" Benny Blanco drew his Blackwater Saber and said with a vicious grin.

Everyone's fighting over that ring. What secret does it hold? No one could have imagined that the ring was actually in Li Shaolin's possession.

"You!" Sulonna seemed so furious that she was about to faint. Her body shifted slightly, and then a low voice reached Li Shaolin's ears. "Run!" Benny Blanco was one of the three great powers of Westfall, so he was naturally no weakling. With all these other members added in, the two of them would have a hard time winning.

"Hahaha!" Benny Blanco laughed arrogantly, but before he could finish, a bleating cry rang out. He transformed into a snow-white sheep and fell to the ground—it was the mage skill Polymorph. At the same time, black light flashed over the follower's head beside him, and his vision was immediately plunged into darkness. It was Lesser Blindness cast by Li Shaolin.

"Go!" Sulonna called out, and the two charged toward the door.

Sulonna flashed forward. Snap! A ring of frost briefly appeared on the floor, freezing four nearby Defias members in place and leaving them unable to move.

"Shut the door!" one man shouted in a flash of inspiration. At his words, two men near the door pushed and pulled. With a creak, the door swiftly closed just as Li Shaolin and Sulonna reached it.

Several Defias members drew their daggers and closed in from the front!

Sulonna grabbed Li Shaolin's sleeve. "Upstairs!" Though several of them had been frozen or turned into sheep, they would all recover within ten seconds at most. They would be difficult to handle then, and they were all melee Rogues. The two spellcasters would have little chance to fight back, so they had to open the distance first.

Footsteps thundered up the stairs, and the two had already reached the second floor. The uncontrolled men behind them were about to give chase when Li Shaolin turned and fired two Bone Fangs. One of them was struck, blood spraying everywhere, instantly frightening the others into halting. For the moment, none dared pursue.

"Lift the table and block the door! Block it completely! I locked all the doors upstairs. They can't escape!" Benny Blanco had already broken free from Polymorph and roared loudly.

Hearing that, the two hurriedly looked around. Sure enough, there were only two wooden doors upstairs, both secured with iron locks that could not be opened immediately. Benny Blanco had been vacationing at Fabron's Farm when he happened to discover some treasure belonging to the Fabron Family. To prevent other members from stealing it, he had kept the doors locked at all times. Of course, what use were such tiny locks against Rogues? But who would dare make trouble for Iron Wrist?

"What do we do?" Sulonna's face turned pale. The locks could not be opened anytime soon, while eight or nine Rogues waited below. They had been driven into a dead end.

"Damn it!" Li Shaolin's temper flared, and he cursed. "Then we fight!"

At that moment, hearty laughter drifted up from below. Benny Blanco had appeared at the stairway.

The staircase was narrow, allowing only two people to stand side by side. Naturally, Benny Blanco stood at the front, with the other members close behind him. As a series of faint hissing sounds rang through the air, the Rogues entered Stealth.

Perhaps confident in his skill, Benny Blanco did not enter Stealth. He laughed loudly. "Sulonna, I'll give you one more chance. Hand over the ring, or else, heh heh."

"You're Benny Blanco, right?" Li Shaolin asked flatly.

"What? Planning to become a Ghost after death and seek revenge on me? I'm Benny Blanco. You think I'm afraid of you? Hahaha! Even that useless mage relative of yours, Karnak, is beneath my notice."

In an instant, a black book bearing a blood-red skull on its cover appeared in Li Shaolin's hand. He opened it slightly and gave it a light tap. The air twisted, and a Bronze Skeleton appeared before him, sword and shield in hand. Red soul fire flickered in its eye sockets as though it smiled at Benny Blanco.

Then black light erupted!