Little Mice

"How's the situation?"

Looking at Julian Aikali striding in, she asked expectantly.

"No."

The man shook his head, his face solemn and filled with undisguised exhaustion.

"There's no sign of that mage at all. I heard he took a group of Dark Elf somewhere and hasn't returned yet..."

"Why..."

Hearing Julian's answer, the little girl lowered her head in disappointment.

"How much longer are we going to have to stay in this terrifying underground city...?"

"Just bear with it, Aikali."

Julian comforted the girl, who was several years younger than him. They had all been sent to Kudel as political hostages, and with the situation becoming increasingly tense, they all knew they couldn't stay any longer. They decided to escape, and although they had luckily escaped capture, the tightly sealed border left them with nowhere to run. Go through the deep mountains and forests? What a joke! Even without soldiers, how could they enter and leave places without any roads? Besides, this girl was just a child; she couldn't possibly endure that kind of hardship.

Having finally learned of the existence of the Black Road and knowing the terror of the Dark Elf, they were forced to take this route, at least as a border crossing outside of Kudel's control. The Dark Elf were naturally untrustworthy. The merchants trading along the border felt the same way; while the mercenaries were paid to do their jobs, none of the several underground mercenary groups they'd approached dared to accept this mission—crossing the Black Road without the Dark Elf's permission? Were they courting death?

Just then, Li Lin appeared.

The human mage, with such a high reputation among the Dark Elf, might offer a chance if he were asked for help. Of course, while a human mingling with Dark Elf might not be well-intentioned, he was still human, and the mage would offer a generous reward. Although the first request was rejected, the mage still hoped to... However, the mage suddenly disappeared.

"Just bear with it a little longer, Aikali, we'll be out of here soon, very soon."

"Um..."

The little girl nodded helplessly, suppressing her inner dissatisfaction. After all, she was just a little girl, and she still longed to stand on the ground and enjoy the sunshine, instead of hiding underground in the dark, unable to distinguish between day and night...

Hmph, you want to leave?

The mercenaries sitting by the window, responsible for protecting the two, exchanged helpless, bitter smiles. What a joke! Do they think they can just come and go as they please in the Underdark? These noble young masters and ladies are truly delusional. However, this has nothing to do with them. They're doing quite well now anyway. It seems these people aren't getting any money. The best strategy is to quickly squeeze them dry, then abandon these two fools and find new cash cows. Yes, mercenaries are all about money, but if there's no money, then there's no point in looking.

These guys are getting increasingly strapped for cash; they probably can't even afford to pay their own commissions anymore.

"Knock knock."

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Who is it?!

Julian was startled and quickly moved to protect the little girl. He had already told the waiter not to disturb him unless necessary.

The knocking stopped, and then the door, which had been locked from the inside, was gently pushed open.

"A filthy, cramped place is indeed a perfect habitat for rats."

Angela took out a clean white handkerchief and covered her mouth and nose, hiding behind Li Lin with a dissatisfied expression. It was as if this would allow her to escape from the aura she considered lowly.

Hello.

Li Lin extended his hand and greeted Julian, who was on high alert.

"You are... a mage?"

Julian was slightly surprised, but he did not let his guard down.

How did you find us?

"You lowly ants, what a foolish question! With a simple spell, finding rats like you would be a piece of cake for your master!"

Angela still held the handkerchief to her face; clearly, she was not comfortable in this kind of cheap inn.

"... Master, you..."

I have some personal matters to discuss with you.

Li Lin walked in slowly, then glanced around and casually remarked, seemingly without any intention of doing so.

"Prince Kudel is with me."

The air suddenly tensed up because of that one sentence.

Julian's face immediately turned ashen; he instantly understood the other party's intentions.

"Aikali, hurry, let's go!"

He trembled as he shielded the little girl behind him, desperately trying to resist, but Li Lin didn't give him enough time to do so. With a casual flick of his wrist, he froze both of them in place. Then, he turned his gaze to the two mercenaries beside him. Feeling the mage's cold gaze, the two mercenaries shivered and immediately made what they believed to be the best choice.

"Respected Master, we have absolutely no connection with them."

As one of the mercenaries spoke, he quietly pulled his companion aside, even putting down their weapons to show their sincerity. After all, mages who roam the Underdark are not easy to get along with, and it wasn't worth risking their lives for these two.

Unfortunately, they couldn't decide this themselves.

Just as the two stood up again, looking at Li Lin with fawning and respectful smiles, they were surprised to find that Li Lin's finger was pointing at them.

"Die."

A mysterious, invisible force appeared out of thin air, seizing the souls and lives of the two people. Before they could even protest against the bullying, their lives were taken away, and they fell to the ground as corpses. The two bodies collided with the floor with a loud thud, which also made the little girl scream in fright.

"Hmph, cowardly mouse."

Angela glanced at the little girl with displeasure and snorted coldly.

After casually dealing with the two obstacles, Li Lin didn't turn to fight them as Julian had expected. Instead, he slowly walked to the two corpses, carefully examining them. Then he turned to look at Julian and Aikali, and then, Li Lin stretched out his hand again, facing the two corpses, and whispered an incantation. Soon, to their astonishment, the two mercenary corpses began to change. Their height, appearance, and even gender began to deform under the mysterious power of magic, eventually transforming into shapes that were most familiar to the two of them.

"This..."

Julian and Aikali stared in astonishment at "their" corpses lying on the ground.

"Alright."

Li Lin admired his work with satisfaction, clapped his hands, and then turned to Angela.

"Cut their heads off."

"I refuse. I am a noble Vampire Species, how could I do such a job?"

Faced with Li Lin's order, Angela unusually frowned in protest.

"If you want it, Master, come and get it yourself. It's not like you're some enemy worth bragging about."

"I'm a mage, how could I do such a thing?"

Li Lin naturally refused outright.

"..."

"..."

Because of this sudden change in circumstances, the two had no choice but to look at each other and then sigh in unison.

"I wish Mina were here."

"Yes, if you hadn't been in such a hurry, Master, we wouldn't have had to be the only two of us rushing here."

If Mina could hear the above conversation, she would be very glad she wasn't there.

"Never mind."

Li Lin shook his head helplessly. This time, he snapped his fingers, and soon the immobilization spell on Julian and Aikali was lifted.

"You do it."

As he spoke, he pointed to the two corpses.

"Why?"

Julian was taken aback by Li Lin's order.

"This..."

However, he immediately swallowed his words, because Li Lin and Angela were clearly looking at Aikali behind him with ill intent, especially Angela, who was whispering something dangerous like, "I've never tried raising such a young child into a slave before. It would be very interesting to see her become someone who only knows how to enjoy men's pleasure."

A blatant threat.

Although he didn't know what the mage was there for, it was clear he wasn't there to kill him. So, Julian gritted his teeth, picked up the weapon the mercenary had laid down, and walked over to the two corpses. But when he saw the two corpses, Julian hesitated.

Li Lin's Permanent Polymorph perfectly transformed the two mercenaries into their likenesses, especially Aikali. Looking at her now lying on the ground like Sleeping Beauty, it was impossible to imagine that her true form was a burly mercenary. Julian swallowed hard, turning to meet Aikali's terrified and frightened gaze. He even wondered if the mage was deliberately torturing him; perhaps, when he swung his sword, he would actually behead Aikali?

His concerns were not unfounded, as Angela had considered the same thing, but Li Lin's plan required them to survive, so she could only think about it.

However, now is not the time to hesitate.

Julian raised his longsword and beheaded "himself." Seeing that identical face severed, he felt a chill run down his spine, as if his own head had been cut off as well. Then, suppressing his rage and resistance, he beheaded "Aikali." After doing so, Julian immediately threw the sword far away and retreated to Aikali's side, protecting her tightly. At the same time, he glared angrily at Li Lin and Angela —the only resistance he could muster against their overwhelming power.

"Hmph, tough nut to crack."

Noticing the anger in Julian's eyes, Angela raised an eyebrow and scoffed disdainfully. Li Lin said nothing; he first cast a spell to solidify the two heads and place them into the spatial rift before turning around, glancing at the two fleeing pawns and the hostages, and then uttering a single sentence.

"Come with me."

Then, he turned and left the room, while Angela glanced at the two of them with a mocking look before following Li Lin away.

"Brother Julian..."

Aikali hesitated, then tugged at Julian's sleeve. She didn't want to follow, much less follow. The girl, who seemed younger than her, carried a terrifying killing intent that chilled her to the bone. Although she didn't understand what it was, her survival instinct prevented her from taking a step forward and following.

"It's fine."

Julian stroked the girl's hair in his arms, only then realizing that his hands were trembling.

"Let's go."

Anyway, there's no other way to go.