By the time Rudeus had finished getting the children settled, night had fallen.
The bright moon hung high amid drifting cloud shadows.
Now was precisely the kind of dark, windy night made for murder!
The captured smugglers hunched their shoulders and led the four of them to a hut in the woods.
It was an utterly ordinary thatched hut, with a pile of timber stacked outside the door and a chopping block standing beside it.
"Are you sure this is the place?"
Rudeus put on a stern face and glared fiercely at them. The smugglers were scared out of their wits on the spot and nodded frantically.
"This is it, my lord! There's no mistake!"
"They're right. There's a basement beneath this house, with quite a few children inside."
Radeus scanned the house with his Six Eyes, discovered a basement hidden underground, and confirmed that these men had not lied.
"Rujierd, these guys are yours. Don't make too much noise."
Radeus glanced sideways at the prisoners and spoke to Rujierd in an indifferent tone.
"Understood!"
Rujierd nodded and reached out to drag them into the nearby grove.
Seeing this, the smugglers immediately realized that the others had no intention of letting them go. In desperation, they opened their mouths to shout, hoping to alert their accomplices inside the house.
"Hel-"
Before they could get even a single word out, a layer of frost sealed their mouths. Rudeus lowered his hand, ice crystals radiating cold into the air.
Rujierd nodded to the three of them, dragged the prisoners into the forest, and disposed of them thoroughly, ensuring that no one would find them.
When Rujierd returned, Radeus straightened his collar, walked up to the thatched hut, and raised his hand to knock gently on the door.
Knock, knock, knock!
A little