A Shameless Sneak Attack

Meanwhile, on the second floor of the Dissolute Dragon Tavern, in Sage's room.

Gray Crow Finn sank into a soft armchair. Several sets of territory accounts lay spread out before him, but he couldn't focus on a single word.

The thin wooden walls did nothing to muffle the sounds from next door.

Grumman's beastlike, lustful laughter and the girl's desperate pleas kept drilling into his head.

"...That stupid donkey only thinks about getting laid." Finn angrily tossed his quill onto the desk and rubbed his bloodshot eyes. "The bastard's got stamina, I'll give him that."

Buck, the bodyguard standing behind the door, shifted his numb legs and chuckled. "You'll get used to it, boss. The guy was pent up in the woods for three days. He just barely finished the job. Did you expect him to read poetry like some gentleman from Suzar? We should be grateful he didn't round up ten barmaids all at once."

"What I don't get is why that bastard didn't come straight here for the rest of his payment when he rode into town this afternoon." Gray Crow frowned, tapping the desk. "He had to go toss coins around in the hall and drink himself silly before coming upstairs."

"Heh, isn't it obvious?" Buck scoffed. "You know what Grumman's like. He must've looted plenty of good stuff from that half-breed's carriage. A man like him can't wait to blow through his money as soon as he gets his hands on it. More importantly, he can't bear to part with that Half-elf girl."

"You've got a point." Gray Crow nodded in agreement. "If it were me, I'd lock the door and enjoy myself first, too. Who'd have time to talk business?"

"That bastard got lucky, picking such a pretty personal maid. Half-elves are a rare sight on our eastern frontier. Too bad that Barbarian got to her first." Buck licked his chapped lips, a hint of greed in his eyes.

At last, the frenzy next door came to an end, replaced by the man's heavy snores and the girl's intermittent sobbing.

"Ah... finally stopped." Gray Crow let out a long breath and leaned back in his chair. "That beast's finally asleep."

"Boss, Grumman went pretty rough on her. Do you think that girl's still going to be able to travel with us tomorrow?" Buck put away his longsword and asked, sounding curious. "Last time, he raided that merchant caravan near Messner Bridge. The woman he brought back was dead by the next morning. I heard he'd played with her until there was blood all over the floor. Tsk, tsk... In the end, they had to dump her in the woods for the dogs."

"It won't come to that this time." Gray Crow's face darkened. "Grumman may be crazy, but he isn't stupid. That Half-elf slave is proof he killed that bastard. She's the 'spoils' the Lady wants to inspect in person. If he kills her, where's he going to collect the remaining fourteen hundred gold coins? She'll suffer, sure, but she'll live."

"True. That girl's pretty cute, especially those pointed ears..." Buck chuckled, his tone turning lecherous. "Once Grumman turns her in and collects his reward, if the Lady doesn't order her executed, maybe we can ask the higher-ups to pass her along to us."

"Keep dreaming. Even if she's been used, a girl like that is still worth a pretty penny." Gray Crow Finn punctured his bodyguard's fantasy.

The two of them chatted on and off, and another half hour passed.

"Damn it, didn't Cress say he was going to visit his sweetheart? It's been almost an hour. Why hasn't he come back?" Finn glanced at the hourglass, frowning.

"You know what he's like. He sees a woman and can't tear himself away." Buck looked scornful. "After listening at the wall for so long, it's no surprise he couldn't take it anymore. Let's give him a bit longer. He's the only one who'd stoop to something that pathetic."

Another long half hour went by.

"That's enough. It's nearly the middle of the night. Even if he went to the backstreet to see that Halfling girl, he should be back by now," Gray Crow muttered. "That good-for-nothing has no sense of time. Once we get back to the territory, I'll make sure to report him to the Lady!"

"Surely it hasn't come to that..." Buck sounded uncertain now. "I know Rex's stamina. He doesn't have the strength to go that many rounds. Even if he finished and then took a nap, he should be awake by now. Firefall Town's tiny. It's not like he fell into a cesspit, is it?"

Although Gray Crow was growing annoyed, it still hadn't occurred to him that Rex might have been attacked.

Grumman was still snoring like a thunderclap next door, and there hadn't been any sounds of fighting elsewhere.

Impatiently, he waved a hand. "Enough. Stop making wild guesses. Buck, go take a look around and drag him back from that slut's bed."

"Fine. I'll be right back." Buck shrugged and stepped out into the dim hallway.

Ten minutes passed.

Twenty minutes passed.

Gray Crow Finn stood in the middle of the room, his irritation gradually giving way to a bone-deep chill.

The hallway was terrifyingly quiet. There was no sound of Buck's footsteps—not even the occasional snore he'd heard earlier.

As the Baroness's servant, he couldn't fight to save his life. The only thing he could rely on was the two professionals she'd sent as his bodyguards.

Now both of them had gone out, and he hadn't heard a thing from them. It felt as if they'd fallen into the Abyss without so much as a sound.

"Something's wrong..." He realized what was happening.

Run! He had to get out of here!

Daring not to use the front door, he scrambled toward the window, trying to climb down the eaves and escape.

He'd barely reached the window when—

Bang!

The door was smashed open by tremendous force!

Gray Crow turned around in terror. A towering figure entered, silhouetted against the dim light in the hallway.

It was Grumman, who should have been fast asleep next door.

Behind him, the Half-elf "slave" Ailian—who should have been so thoroughly ravaged she couldn't even stand—watched Gray Crow with an icy expression. She held a coil of bloodstained rope in one hand and looked nothing like a helpless girl.

Three "bandits," Cain and the others, filed in behind them.

Two men stripped of their armor, gagged, and bound like silkworm cocoons were tossed onto the floor.

Who else could they be but his two bodyguards?

Both men had swollen faces and terror in their eyes. They'd clearly been subdued before they'd even realized what was happening.

"Gr... Grumman? What are you doing?" Gray Crow Finn leaned against the windowsill, his voice trembling so badly he could barely speak. "The bounty... I'll pay you right now. Why did you attack them? Have you lost your mind?"

Under Gray Crow's astonished gaze, "Grumman" grinned, baring his teeth in a sinister smile.

Then his burly frame began to shrink. His wild hair turned neat and black, and his ugly, bearded face transformed into a handsome one.

"It's been four years, Gray Crow."

Though he was far more handsome than the intelligence reports had claimed, Gray Crow Finn recognized him at once.

"You're... Ye Wei'an? That's impossible!"

Ye Wei'an, who should have been assassinated, had appeared here wearing Grumman's gear. That could only mean one thing: Grumman had failed and been killed by his target. Ye Wei'an had followed the clues and tracked them down.

But... how?

According to their intelligence, the illegitimate son was supposed to be nothing more than a magic apprentice whiling away his days in Suzar.

How could he have killed Grumman? And how could he have mastered a disguise spell like that?

The two bodyguards, bound up like dumplings, were even more stunned.

When they'd been attacked, they'd thought Grumman was double-crossing them.

They'd never imagined that the supposedly cowardly and useless bastard had become a mysterious spellcaster—and had disguised himself as Grumman to launch a shameless sneak attack on them!

One was a Level 2 fighter and the other a Level 2 rogue, yet they'd been captured without even getting a chance to fight back.

Realizing the mission had failed completely, Gray Crow snapped out of his shock and spun around, trying to climb out the window.

He had to find a way to get word back to Firefall Fortress. Lady Selina had to know what had happened.

But someone was faster.

"Stay still!"

The seemingly petite Half-elf slave, Ailian, moved like a young leopard in the woods. With a smooth sidestep, she blocked Gray Crow's escape route, curled her right hand into a claw, and seized his shoulder precisely before wrenching it back.

Crack!

"Ow, ow, ow, ow—"

Ailian expertly twisted his arm behind his back and pinned Gray Crow firmly to the cold floor.

"Young master, I've got him." In just a few moves, Ailian had tied Gray Crow into a contorted ball. Then she looked up at Ye Wei'an as if showing off a prize.

"Well done."

Ye Wei'an patted Ailian's head in reward.

Now they had their most important witness.