Kru Town 02: Only Kids Have to Choose

The Red Wind Mercenary Group's plan to leave the next day fell through. In the middle of the night, Kru Town's peace was shattered as the garrison began searching house to house. Even the Red Wind Mercenary Group's compound was searched thoroughly, though the soldiers were considerably more polite about it.

No one got a moment's peace for the rest of the night.

The soldiers searching the compound gave Ye Chuqi several extra looks. They only moved on when they saw the red badge in her hand. Red Beard had just given it to her. It was a Red Wind Mercenary Group badge, though its color was a little different.

After the soldiers left, Ed slipped out after them.

The once-quiet night filled with shouts and commotion, and even the sound of crying.

Ed returned soon with two pieces of bad news. First, Duke Fulton's daughter had gone missing in Kru Town. That was what had caused such an uproar. The duke had even declared that no one would leave Kru Town until his precious daughter was found.

Second, the Fulton Family's young lady was not the first girl to disappear in Kru Town.

No wonder the soldiers had looked at Ye Chuqi that way. The missing girls were probably around her age.

Being unable to leave was bad news for the Red Wind Mercenary Group. If word got out that they had the Red Sun Fruit, they would be in grave danger.

The people who had hunted Red Beard across the Ashen Wasteland were all dead, but that did not mean whoever was behind them would give up. More likely, they would keep coming until Red Beard was worn down.

Red Beard glanced at Jun Ruofeng. Jun Ruofeng nodded and went out, with two other members following him.

Something was wrong here. They had only just arrived and knew nothing of what had led up to this. They had heard no rumors, and even while walking around town yesterday, they had noticed nothing amiss. Either they had been too oblivious, or someone had concealed the matter remarkably well.

If several girls had already disappeared without so much as a rumor, who had kept it quiet? The matter had surfaced only after the duke's daughter went missing and Duke Fulton refused to let it go. Had the earlier victims had no families? More likely, those families had been silenced by force.

There was a bitter irony to it. Kru Town was where the Adventurers' Guild had first taken shape. The Guild and the Imperial Royal Family, along with the nobles, had always been bitter enemies. Would the Guild now bow to a noble's threats?

After daybreak, everyone left the little courtyard and split up to gather information. The garrison had indeed sealed off every route into and out of Kru Town, but people were still free to move around inside it. All the usual shops were open, and the streets still looked crowded. Yet the expressions on people's faces were hard to describe, a far cry from the bustle of the day before.

Ye Chuqi turned down the street toward the little bookshop again. She had had limited time yesterday. No matter how quickly she flipped through books, she could not have gone through them all, though she had managed more than half. Since she could not leave Kru Town, she intended to finish the rest.

Yesterday, San San had made her a reading list from the books she had browsed. They could not reveal the space, so they could not simply buy everything. San San had pared the list down again and again, but the resulting stack had still been enough to make Coke bend under its weight.

Coke was immensely grateful that, as the group's quartermaster, he had a Spatial Ring. Otherwise, he would have had to hire a carriage to haul all those books back.

Remembering how strained Coke's usually cheerful face had looked yesterday, Ye Chuqi could not help laughing aloud.

"You're an odd little girl. I've never seen anyone read books like that." The shopkeeper seemed to have slept enough. Resting his cheek against his hand, he turned to look at Ye Chuqi and muttered, still so bleary-eyed that he looked ready to fall asleep again. "You might not be tired, but I'm tired just listening to you. And I have to worry you'll wear out my books."

"Sorry..." Ye Chuqi apologized sincerely. "I'll be... gentler."

Her strange way of speaking amused the shopkeeper. "How could your family let you come out alone? Haven't you heard? There's someone snatching people in town. Lots of little girls have gone missing, and you still came out by yourself? Aren't you afraid of being taken?"

"Hmm... probably not?"

From what she had learned from the other members of the Red Wind Mercenary Group, Red Beard was probably their strongest fighter. If that High-Rank Magic Beast had not appeared, his pursuers would have been unable to do anything to him, despite their numbers and preparation.

Ye Chuqi compared her own fighting ability to Red Beard's. If she had not been so badly injured, she could probably have given him a fight.

Now she had the space to fall back on, and her injuries were healing much faster. Though she still found it difficult to draw on her Spiritual Power, her body was strong and her swordsmanship was more than respectable. She could handle an ordinary "bad guy."

Besides, if even Ed dared to run around outside, why should she be afraid?

Of course, she would never say that in front of Ed. That proud, awkward boy would definitely give her trouble for it.

Chapter 12: Kru Town 02: Only Kids Have to Choose

The Red Wind Mercenary Group realized Ye Chuqi was gone at noon. Everyone had been busy with their own tasks. Even Xiya had gone out to gather information. They had all assumed Ye Chuqi would stay obediently in her room, or at least in the courtyard.

But when they returned to the courtyard at midday to compare what they had learned, they discovered that Ye Chuqi was neither in the house nor in the courtyard.

Baz, who was guarding the gate,

the older fellow,

said the little girl had gone out shortly after the others. As for why he had not stopped her—she had been carrying the Red Wind Mercenary Group's red badge, so it had never occurred to him that he should.

The red badge meant she was an honorary member of the Red Wind Mercenary Group. Though not a full member, she was an important person within the Mercenary Corps, entitled to the privileges of a guest adviser without being obliged to take on assignments. Honorary members were called upon only when the group needed support on a mission.