Black-Hearted Merchant (6, Bonus Chapter for Wushang Zhonglin's Patronage)
Tyrannosaur Rex is two meters tall and as strong as a black bear. The fact that he became Legion Commander means that his head is not all muscle, but also has a bit of water mixed in.
He said in a deep voice, "The Steel Duchy has carried out a total of 13 assassination attempts, all of which were successful."
They bypassed two Military Fortress and killed a total of 33 of our officers and 246 soldiers.
There was even a supply line that was discovered. If it weren't for the large number of soldiers following us, and the fact that I was also nearby with my Personal Guard, the losses would have been even greater.
The Steel Duchy's assassination targets were all mid-level officers, and their purpose was self-evident: to deplete the Legion's lower-level management personnel and thus undermine morale.
Based on their Legion movements and resupply frequency, it's perfectly clear they are about to attack.
After he and William entered a room, he did not ask to shake hands again, pretending to have forgotten the earlier show of force, and went straight to talking about the recent assassination attempt.
William glanced at his trembling right hand, looked at the markings on the map, and nodded, saying, "Scouts, Patrol Guard, and supply convoys were all targets for assassination. Didn't you consider setting up an ambush?"
Tyrannosaur gritted his teeth and said, "We tried, but it didn't work. If you want to ambush Augustine's Decapitation Squad, the number of people must be small, strong, and the personnel must be unfamiliar. Otherwise, given their cautious nature, they will definitely guess that this is a trap."
He pointed to the map. "With such a mobile and powerful Decapitation Squad, the connection between this Heavy City and the two Military Fortress has been effectively severed. I wonder if Dawn Corps has any plans?"
William stroked his chin, deep in thought. This Decapitation Squad was incredibly powerful; he had heard of them in his past life, but he disdained to confront them head-on, fearing it would be too much of a bully, so he had never dealt with them.
According to information on the Forum, the Decapitation Squad has an average level of 50+, and their Bloodline Power is at least Grandmaster, so they are unlikely to be easily surrounded and wiped out.
Most countries have similar Decapitation Squad, Elite teams, ace squads, etc. They are often responsible for the most critical tasks. Ordinary people are not worthy of their attention. They only kill the most critical individuals. They are the kind of violent, deranged killers that you can't stop.
And this... is the BOSS Squad!
Similar to how William once drew upon the Elite of various Legion to assist him in slaying Dragon Slaying.
Just like the 300 Dragonblood Warrior of today.
The Decapitation Squad, commanded by the Legendary Augustine, was incredibly powerful.
Given the current internal strife within the Blackrock Duchy, there's simply no way to spare so many skilled fighters to combat them for the time being.
After all, experts don't just appear out of thin air; these Decapitation Squad of Duchy are usually drawn from various Legion.
"But I know where you're hiding..." William pushed aside the astonished Tyrannosaur and planted three small flags on the sand table in succession.
Tyrannosaur looked closely and immediately understood William's meaning. He muttered, "The Ruined Demon Cavern, east of the Rhine River Crossing, the last spot, are you serious?"
"Believe it or not, I advise you not to act rashly. I know these three locations, but I don't know where they are hiding for the time being." William raised an eyebrow. The last location was underground in this Heavy City.
No one knew that there was an Underground Passage beneath Heavy City that connected to a place ten miles away.
"I won't alert them, but it's clear this tunnel wasn't dug recently, but rather a long time ago, for unforeseen circumstances. It seems the Steel Duchy has been playing this game for a long time."
Tyrannosaur Rex was startled. Black Rock and Steel had been locked in a standoff since their inception, Plunder War and even Conquest War against each other.
In the history of the Blackrock Duchy, there have been three crises that brought the country to the brink of annihilation. In those situations, even important border Heavy City had to be abandoned, and only the Blackrock Royal City could withstand the attacks.
If the tunnels were dug out at that time, then it would be understandable.
"After all, the Three Major Empires once said that the conquest wars of Small Duchy were not allowed to last more than a year. However, the Steel Duchy had already made plans last time, playing a very big game, seemingly aiming to annex Black Rock within a year."
William greatly admired the rules established by the Three Major Empires. The reason for establishing these rules was simple: to prevent excessive losses among Commoners and to prevent excessive losses among human Professional.
Because the wise men of those empires were very intelligent, they knew that human desires were almost endless, and power and authority were something every King desired.
If National War continue unabated, and humanity's foundation is severely damaged, it will certainly be unable to maintain its foothold on the Legendary Continent. Perhaps, like the Elf of the past, it will withdraw from the prosperous areas of the Legendary Continent.
Therefore, since this rule came into being, Human Countries have been unable to easily wage war.
Since it's impossible to conquer a country within a year, aside from what we've already seized, the only option is to retreat thousands of miles and completely return the land and cities.
However, the weaker Duchy are all cunning and often, before the war even begins, they will take away all the Commoners, property, cattle, and sheep from the border cities, leaving you with nothing.
In short, if you can't destroy a country, you won't get the greatest benefit; instead, you'll waste a lot of financial, material, and human resources.
Tyrannosaur was having a headache. There were bound to be some spies in the city. The Military Fortress didn't have any spies, but it was definitely being guarded. As long as Black Rock launched a large-scale attack, the Decapitation Squad would definitely find out. So it was impossible to simultaneously wipe out all three hideouts.
"So, there's only one way to wipe out the Decapitation Squad." Tyrannosaur said, looking intently at William.
His Prince twitched his lips and quickly waved his hand. "If you want me to act as bait, you have to tell me what the benefits are first."
"You clearly spoke with His King and promised to deal with Augustine." Tyrannosaur was somewhat annoyed. He raised his fist again, then slowly lowered it under William's gaze.
William said nonchalantly, "One thing at a time. I was talking to him about the final outcome and the spoils. Now he wants me to act as bait to get rid of Augustine. There's no way I won't benefit from it."
Tyrannosaur Rex twitched his lips. The Grand Duke had indeed told him that this William was Half-Elf, extremely greedy and cunning. So he didn't intend to delay any longer and said directly, "Then please, Lord of Dawn, put on our armor and lead the patrol team to act as bait."
"As for the benefits I'll give you, it's the reopening of the slave trade. What do you think?" Tyrannosaur smiled slightly as he said this, convinced that he had found the Dawn City Lord's weakness.
"No!"
William shook his head decisively, chuckled, and said, "I'm just a small town, what do I need so many people for?"
"So what do you want?" Tyrannosaur raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you the biggest slave buyer in the entire Southeastern Corner?"
William rubbed his fingers together. "I'm the leader of Mercenary Group. War is about to break out in a few days. Shouldn't I secure some benefits for my men beforehand? You should contact your King."
"..." Tyrannosaur couldn't help but want to hit him when he saw his smug expression. Logically speaking, this kind of thing was not his business.
But William wanted to use this demand to annoy people; instead of negotiating with the acting King face-to-face, he wanted to put them in a difficult position.
Especially since he knew the Tyrannosaur wouldn't be able to stay away for very long...
After some haggling, the wartime price for the Dawn Mercenary Group was finalized!
Each person receives 10 Silver Coin per day; experience points are not included.
"Not much, not much. I'll take two Silver Coin from it. With 50,000 people, I can earn... cough, how much tax again?" William scrolled through his fingers, happily going to be the bait.
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