Wildcat Sisters

Since crossing over, Russell had never felt truly safe, especially after arriving in a world with Extraordinary Power.

Snow Demons ran rampant, and giant dragons roared.

He feared that one careless moment would see him killed by some unforeseen force.

Perhaps only those who had died once feared death even more. When Russell discovered the assassin, he had truly broken out in a cold sweat.

Two full-force slaps finally calmed him down a little.

"You're saying Lone Wolf Lisbon plans to lure a group of Snow Ghosts into attacking my territory to test my methods?" Russell sat back down.

After hearing Catherine the wanderer's explanation, he could not help looking at Eric, then at Charles, who had been summoned afterward.

Eric said in a muffled voice, "I've heard of Lisbon. He's a Great Ranger. Over by Xiangshui River Cave, they all call him Boss Lone Wolf."

"Boss Lone Wolf Lisbon... hmm, I've heard that name too." Charles's eyes kept roaming over Catherine. "As for this wanderer, she should be one of the Wildcat Sisters. The older sister is Katie, the younger one is Catherine. Both are rather famous."

"Wildcat Sisters?" Russell asked curiously.

Catherine was still tied up, sitting on the damp floor. The black cloth covering her face had been torn away, revealing her two swollen cheeks.

Still, it was obvious that even without the swelling, she was rather plain-looking.

Her complexion was pale, her eye sockets sunken. She was not old, but the lines around her mouth were deeply etched, giving her the air of an addict.

"My sister and I have no desire to accept Boss Lone Wolf's rule. Xiangshui River Cave has always followed the principle of freedom. We may be rats of the underground world, but we refuse to become anyone's slaves." Catherine looked at Russell and spoke earnestly.

Charles snorted. "What principles could lowborn wretches like you possibly have? Life as servants would still be better than yours."

"You don't understand what freedom is..." Catherine's voice sank. "Besides, we simply refuse to become slaves of the underground world."

Russell raised an eyebrow at that.

However, he offered no opinion.

He merely asked again, "Lone Wolf Lisbon wants to lure Snow Ghosts into attacking my territory. Why come to warn me? Aren't you afraid you won't be able to get along with Lisbon after returning, or were you planning to use my hand to get rid of him?"

"Baron Roman stands behind you. The Wildcat Sisters only want to live well, and we also hope that you, our excellent neighbor, can live well."

"Excellent neighbor?" Russell stroked his chin. "Has my excellent reputation already reached Xiangshui River Cave?"

He had not even had the chance to display his talents. How had he already earned a reputation for excellence?

Catherine's reply cleared up his confusion. "There are not many lords willing to hire serfs for work and feed them as well."

"Hmm." Russell suddenly felt a little emotional.

So merely doing that already made him an excellent lord. The serfs and freefolk truly had low expectations of their lords.

He looked at Catherine and asked calmly, "How am I supposed to believe you?"

"I have a letter written by my sister on me. I had originally planned to slip it through the window, and while I was at it... take a look at the new lord."

Charles immediately reached out and groped Catherine's body a few times.

"Don't grope me... It's by my knee. There's an inner-seam pocket!" Catherine's face reddened, making the slap marks on her face even clearer.

"I had to make sure you weren't carrying a weapon." Charles spoke righteously before finally pulling a folded sheet of letter paper from the inner seam by the knee of her tight-fitting clothes.

He handed it to Russell.

After unfolding it, Russell saw several wrinkled lines scrawled on the paper: "Dear neighbor, beware Lisbon. He will lure Snow Ghosts into attacking Wuyou Snake Manor."

The signature read: "Your neighbor, Little Wildcat."

"Sneaking around in the shadows." Russell offered that assessment, both for the letter and for the Wildcat Sisters. Their methods were rather beneath notice.

Catherine defended herself. "We can't afford to offend either you or Boss Lone Wolf."

Once he had confirmed that Catherine had not truly come to assassinate him, Russell suddenly lost interest. "Teacher Charles, untie her. And pour her a cup of hot water."

"Thank you." Catherine looked deeply at Russell.

"Do you need a change of dry clothes?"

"No need. All my clothes are close-fitting and lined with fleece, so no rain seeped through." Catherine tugged at her collar and gave it a quick shake, flinging away all the moisture on the outer layer. "Besides, I'm a ranger. With Battle Aura protecting my body, I can wear wet clothes just fine."

A ranger was simply another name for a wanderer. Different people used different terms.

"Can you determine when Lisbon will lure the Snow Ghosts here?"

"Probably within the next few days. They're already preparing, and they have to act quickly. Once the warm season arrives, the threat of Snow Ghost incursions will be much smaller."

Dragon Sleep Continent had no distinct four seasons. The opposing powers of Snow Demons and giant dragons caused Ice Ages and warm seasons to alternate across different regions.

During the Ice Age, Snow Ghosts ran rampant. During the warm season, they were much more subdued.

After all, the power of the giant dragons spread beneath Guangguang River Valley. If Snow Ghosts entered this place during the warm season, their strength would be cut by more than half.

"How many people are in Xiangshui River Cave?" Russell asked another question.

"Over five hundred, probably. There's only one Great Ranger, Boss Lone Wolf. There are five or six rangers, some Wandering Souls, and the rest are all pitiful people." Wandering Souls were those who had only cultivated a Battle Qi Seed, similar to a knight's Qi Seed Stage.

"From the attitude of you Wildcat Sisters, it seems you don't reject me as a lord. Then why live hidden away in Xiangshui River Cave?"

Catherine lowered her head and smiled for no apparent reason. "No one can reject their origins. My sister and I have lived in Xiangshui River Cave since childhood. As for why, I don't know either. Perhaps the cave is dark and damp, but it's the place that gave birth to me and raised me."

Russell neither agreed nor disagreed.

He had asked everything he needed to ask, so he stood up. "Do you need me to arrange a room for you to rest in?"

"No. If possible, please allow me to return now. If I get back too late, Boss Lone Wolf may discover me."

"How will you return? Do you need me to send someone to escort you to the border?"

"If you trust me, my lord, I can return alone." Catherine took a sip of hot water, looking somewhat uneasy.

She did not know how she would be treated.

"Russell..." Charles wanted to say something.

Russell raised a hand lightly, stopping Charles before he could speak. He looked calmly at Catherine. "When you leave, use the front gate."

"All right."

A short while later, a bewildered Butler Morris escorted Catherine out through the gate.

Catherine did not take the umbrella Morris offered. She simply rushed into the curtain of rain and vanished onto Cinder Path moments later.

"Russell, you shouldn't have let her go back just like that. The words of cave-dwelling lowborn wretches can't be trusted," Charles complained.

Russell smiled calmly. "Killing her or locking her up wouldn't mean much."

Then his smile faded, and he said seriously, "The most important thing now is that whether Catherine spoke the truth or lied, we must prepare for a Snow Ghost attack. Teacher Eric, can our current strength handle it?"

Eric pondered for a moment before replying, "I'm afraid not, my lord. It would be best to inform Baron Roman and ask Knight Captain Kendall to come and hold the line."

Kendall, the Territory Patrol Knight Captain, was a Phantom Beast Knight.

With Kendall holding the line, unless a Snow Demon personally invaded, no number of Snow Ghosts would be able to shake the territory in the slightest.

Charles nodded in agreement. "Yes, Russell. You mustn't try to act tough over this. We should inform Baron Roman immediately."

Since it concerned their lives, Russell naturally would not act on impulse. "All right. Tomorrow morning, I'll send Knight Retainers to Fluorite Castle with a letter."

"Send someone now. Before that little wildcat returns, get Knight Captain Kendall here as soon as possible." Charles shrugged. "Who knows whether that Catherine is some kind of vanguard? What if Lone Wolf Lisbon is right behind her?"

Russell deeply agreed.

Taking the advice readily, he immediately had Butler Morris wake the two Knight Retainers, Tom and John, and ordered them to ride at full speed to Fluorite Castle.

After the Knight Retainers rode away, Russell and the others had no desire to sleep, so they simply played chess in the study.

"Russell, are you thinking of bringing the lowborn wretches of Xiangshui River Cave under your control?" Charles had been observing his expression and had already noticed some clues.

"I do have that immature idea."

"If you ask for my opinion, I would certainly oppose it. Lowborn wretches are no good sort. But if you truly decide to do this, I can only urge you to be cautious. You must carefully distinguish which of those lowborn wretches have the blood of their own kind on their hands."

Russell nodded, made a move on the chessboard, then said calmly, "I won't act blindly, and besides... my goal is to resolve Xiangshui River Cave completely."