The Next Step

"Jia Ruo, did you catch the mole?"

Lyle walked into the living room from the backyard, continuing to speak to Jia Ruo, who was standing at the entrance.

"I've been guarding the back door. Nothing unusual. What's the situation?"

"It's him."

Jia Ruo pointed to the bound male servant on the ground.

"Neeko has already read his memories. There's no mistake."

Neeko added.

"Very good. Are there any other valuable clues?"

Lyle didn't hesitate to discuss the next course of action with the butler and the young lady.

"From his memories, Neeko saw the bandits' hideout in Urda. Although they have thirty to forty men, they're just a disorganized mob. Wait..."

Neeko seemed to have discovered something else.

"There's another bandit sent to watch the house from outside!"

"What should we do then?"

The butler panicked.

"It's too late to go looking for this watcher now. He must have discovered our intervention. So, there's only one path left: we have to break into the bandits' lair and rescue Lady Lesthara before this watcher can report back."

Lyle seemed to have anticipated this situation.

"We'll head to Urda now. Also, I'll arrange for more people to search the city for this watcher, to delay him from returning with the report as much as possible. We haven't been here long, so he can't have left the city."

"Alright, we'll do as you say." Jia Ruo nodded.

With Lyle as the backbone, he only needed to offer minor suggestions.

Compared to Lyle, Jia Ruo felt more like a brute force enforcer. If it were just thirty to forty disorganized thugs, he could handle them easily. But the difficult part was ensuring Lady Lesthara's safety.

While thinking, Jia Ruo, Lyle, and Neeko had already boarded the carriage.

At Lyle's command, the coachman urged the horses, preparing to head straight for the East Gate.

"Miss, Butler, don't worry. I will definitely bring Lady Lesthara back unharmed."

Jia Ruo poked his head out of the carriage window and said to the master and servant standing at the mansion entrance.

The beautiful young lady seemed to have only lost her voice, not her hearing.

Hearing Jia Ruo's words, she released her hands clasped in front of her chest and waved at Jia Ruo.

I hope mother can return safely.

She thought.

The girl's hands clasped together again.

She was praying for Lady Lesthara.

In less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the carriage arrived at the east gate of Placidium.

At the head of the magnificent drawbridge, Lyle got out of the carriage, showed his Hall of Tranquility waist token to the guarding Warrior Monks, and gave some instructions.

Jia Ruo did not have this waist token. Master Percy had said that although he recognized Jia Ruo's strength, this token that could mobilize the guards of Placidium would only be issued after he demonstrated sufficient wisdom and experience.

To put it bluntly, he was still a novice now and did not have this authority.

Exiting Placidium, the coachman cracked his whip, making the two sturdy horses gallop with all their might.

This carriage was clearly not cheap. Even at full speed, the three people inside did not feel any bumps.

Percy took out a map and found the town of Urda.

He asked Neeko to try to mark the location of the bandits' lair and then discussed the details of their next move with Jia Ruo.

As dusk approached, they neared Urda.

Even though the two horses pulling the carriage were of excellent breed and had great stamina, white foam was now seeping from their mouths and nostrils. As soon as they stopped, they swayed precariously, almost collapsing.

They had clearly reached their limit.

Jia Ruo, Neeko, and Lyle got out of the carriage—since they already knew the location of the bandits' den, there was no need to enter Urda anymore.

Thus, they followed the mountain path, with Neeko using the map as a reference, leading the way.

When they crossed a mountain ridge, they saw specks of firelight appearing ahead.

It was a campfire at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by several tents.

In the glow of the firelight, several figures were moving between the tents.

It seemed this was the bandits' camp.

"What now, Lyle?"

Jia Ruo asked in a low voice from behind a clump of bushes.

"Capture an informant, let Neeko find out Lady Lesthara's location. That way, when we make our move, we can protect Lady Lesthara first, so we don't have to worry about collateral damage."

"Alright, that's the plan." Jia Ruo said.

Afterward, Lyle quietly crept down.

Even though Jia Ruo was more agile and powerful, Lyle had been a seasoned scout—this kind of task required experience.

Lyle hid behind a tree near the camp, patiently observing from the shadows.

After a long while, he picked his target: a man yawning while leaning against a tent.

In this inconspicuous corner, Lyle was confident he could subdue the man before he alerted anyone else.

He crouched and emerged from the shadows, tiptoeing behind the target.

Judging the distance perfectly, he delivered a precise chop to the man's neck.

Lyle caught the unconscious man, gently slung him over his shoulder, turned, and disappeared back into the woods.

Thump

The unconscious man was dropped behind the bushes where Jia Ruo and Neeko were hiding.

Without a word, Neeko began to examine the man's Shuoma.

"Lady Lesthara is being held in the tent furthest from us, guarded by two thugs."

Neeko stated concisely.

"Then let's move, Lyle."

"You and Neeko take the lead. I'll provide support and act as opportunities arise."

Lyle said.

"These bandits are scattered rogues; killing them is no great loss. Ensure Lady Lesthara's safety above all else. This is crucial for the diplomacy between Ionia and Demacia."

So that was the significance of it, Jia Ruo understood.

Ionia and Demacia were both hostile towards Noxus.

As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. If a Demacian noble met with misfortune within Ionia's borders, it would be an unmanageable situation for both Ionia and Demacia.

Within the bandit camp, one tent suddenly collapsed as twisting plants tore it apart.

The camp immediately erupted into chaos. This group of untrained bandits and rogues descended into disarray.

They clearly hadn't expected to be attacked.

Although their leader was trying hard to maintain order, few of his subordinates were listening to him.

Either scrambling to help their companions trapped in the collapsing tent, or emerging from their own tents to watch.

Clearly, even as fellow bandits, there was a distinct difference between them and those professional Viking Raiders from Freljord.

That's right, the one causing the commotion was Neeko, using a feint.

Jia Ruo appeared from the woods at this moment, heading straight for Lady Lesthara's tent.

He certainly didn't use the tent flap.

You Meng sliced open a large opening in the tent's side wall, and Jia Ruo charged into the tent without slowing down.

Time Warp activated.

The moment he entered the tent, Jia Ruo used this skill.

From his perspective, a middle-aged woman was tied to a chair in the center of the tent.

Even though she was a bit haggard, it couldn't hide her extraordinary bearing from having lived in a position of power for a long time. This must be Lady Lesthara.

Near the entrance, two bandits holding weapons, hearing the commotion behind them, were slowly turning their heads to look at Jia Ruo.

Expressions of terror appeared on their faces in slow motion.

This series of unexpected actions seemed overly cautious to deal with these bandits, who were no different from ordinary people.

However, Jia Ruo didn't want any accidents to occur.

Jia Ruo didn't use You Meng. With two swift whip kicks, he struck the bandits on their heads, rendering them unconscious on the spot—he didn't want to kill indiscriminately yet.

You Meng cut the Rope binding the woman, and Jia Ruo also helped remove the cloth gagging her mouth.

"Lady Lesthara, right? I'm here to rescue you. Come with me," Jia Ruo said.

The woman nodded.

"Pardon me."

Jia Ruo directly picked her up and, with a few leaps, disappeared into the woods.

Neeko and Lyle were waiting to rendezvous with him.

Jia Ruo put down Lady Lesthara and asked Lyle, "What about these bandits?"

"Notify the Guardian Warrior Monks of Urda and the nearest Marshal to pursue them. Our mission is complete."

Lyle's implication was that, to be safe, they should return to Placidium first to ensure Lady Lesthara's safety.

"I am the nearest Marshal, so I'll save the Guardian Warrior Monks of Urda some trouble."

Jia Ruo said.

Without any reservations, these bandits were no match for him.

In the camp, the bandits had only just discovered that their hostages were gone.

And then a young man charged in, like harvesting leeks.

Each bandit, after just one punch or kick, lost the ability to move and collapsed to the ground like a puddle of mud.

Before long, Jia Ruo was the only one standing in the camp.

And it took Neeko even longer to tie them all up.

Lyle nodded slightly. Jia Ruo's martial arts were excellent. Once this young man gained enough experience, he would surely become a pillar of the Hall of Tranquility in the future.

"Alright, notify the Warrior Monks of Urda to come and collect them."

Jia Ruo clapped his hands.