Chapter 23: Invasion

Lin Qi and ten elite members of the Iron Fist Brotherhood arrived outside the Sword and Beauty Tavern.

Besides Lin Qi, who was the leader of the brotherhood, the other nine men were Yulian, Enzo, and seven fighters led by Enzo. These seven fighters had some reputation at the Army Academy. They were Enzo’s close friends and true battle fanatics.

Unlike the Round Table Knight Society, which was mainly made up of students from the Army Academy, the Iron Fist Brotherhood included all sorts of people. Its strongest group was Enzo and his seven companions, who were known as the Blood-robed Seven Blades at the Army Academy.

All ten were dressed in similar tight outfits, with thick warm fur coats wrapped around them. They moved close to the walls along the street, carefully avoiding the patrolling Dragoons and the Copper Helmets from the Garrison Office. The wind howled, and snow fell heavily. The Dragoons and Copper Helmets did not want to stay outside for long. Their alertness was low, and they did not notice Lin Qi’s group.

In the alley beside the Sword and Beauty Tavern, Lin Qi, who was the tallest and strongest, crouched by the wall. Enzo, who was the most agile, stepped on Lin Qi’s shoulders and climbed onto the wall. Then the Blood-robed Seven Blades followed, one by one. Enzo lay on the wall and pulled Lin Qi up.

After Lin Qi and the others entered the tavern, Yulian walked slowly to the tavern’s front door and knocked hard on the door handle. Holding a cigar that had been put out by the snow, Yulian brushed the thin ice from his hair and cursed loudly.

In the tavern’s courtyard, several servants were adding hay to the horses in the stable and trying to pull down thick curtains to block the wind and snow, so the horses wouldn’t freeze. Suddenly hearing the knocking, the servants paused and walked toward the front door.

They all knew that the Round Table Knight Society had taken over the tavern that day to solve some private problems. Could their rivals have arrived? The servants went to open the door carefully, with one staying behind, ready to run inside and warn the others if something seemed wrong.

While the servants were distracted by the knocking, Lin Qi and Enzo rushed forward like wild bears. Lin Qi held a thick iron-wrapped oak stick and hit the last servant hard on the back of the head, knocking him out.

The howling wind and heavy snow covered the sound of Lin Qi’s strike. Enzo and the Blood-robed Seven Blades quickly moved to the other servants, punching and knocking them down. Enzo opened the door, and Yulian slipped inside with his cigar, then closed it firmly.

Lin Qi and Enzo led their group quietly toward the tavern, while Yulian went to the stable. He took a clay bottle from under his coat and spilled a liquid that smelled strongly of alcohol onto the hay in the stable.

Before Yulian finished, Lin Qi had already reached the tavern. He and Enzo exchanged a look, then put on pale ghost masks along with the Blood-robed Seven Blades. Lin Qi kicked the tavern door open and threw three bottles of dizziness potion inside. The bottles, as big as a baby’s fist, shattered. The dark liquid quickly turned into a colorless, odorless gas as it hit the warm air.

About a dozen members of the Round Table Knight Society near the bottles swayed. They cursed instinctively, twitched, and fell heavily to the floor. Then more people in the room fell one after another, like in a nightmare. Dozens of them collapsed all over the place.

The dozen or so Round Table Knight Society members closest to the door shouted and drew their swords, charging toward the entrance.

Big Sword Joe, the owner of the Sword and Beauty Tavern, froze for a moment. He looked at the Round Table Knight Society members lying on the floor, then pulled out a heavy sword over four feet long from under the counter and rushed out with a roar. The Round Table Knight Society members were his guests, and he felt responsible for their safety. Especially since Black Horse Haus came from a noble family, Big Sword Joe had to think about what might happen to his tavern if Black Horse Haus got hurt there.

Lin Qi stepped forward, avoiding the dozen Round Table Knight Society members charging at him. He drew a single-bladed battle-ax and made a standard leap to strike at Big Sword Joe. Lin Qi acted fiercely and decisively. The ax flashed, and it was already coming down on Big Sword Joe’s head. His move could be compared to a skilled warrior’s.

Big Sword Joe, who hadn’t fought in thirty years, froze. He lifted his big sword almost by instinct.

Lin Qi’s ax hit the sword. Big Sword Joe, who hadn’t been in a bloody fight for three decades, felt an overwhelming force. The sword clattered to the floor, and he was pushed backward by the great strength. Then everything went black, and he fell like the others.

Enzo and the Blood-robed Seven Blades drew their swords and clashed head-on with the dozen Round Table Knight Society members. The tavern door was narrow, and with eight men blocking it, no one could get out. Sharp sounds of swords filled the air, and in just a moment, Enzo forced three opponents back by fighting as if he didn’t care if he died.

The Blood-robed Seven Blades fought the same way as Enzo. They ignored the swords coming at them and aimed for their enemies’ hearts, using desperate tactics.

After all, these were Army Academy students and hadn’t faced life-or-death fights before. Seeing the cold blades, they instinctively stepped back. Their retreat brought them near where Big Sword Joe had fallen, and soon they too swayed and collapsed.

Lin Qi, Enzo, and the others quickly stepped back. They were also starting to feel dizzy. They breathed in the fresh air outside for a while before finally feeling better. Lin Qi coughed heavily, picked up a stone, and broke the tavern’s windows. The wind and snow rushed in, blowing away the dizziness potion in the air.

After another quarter of an hour, Lin Qi and his men carefully entered the tavern. In a small room, they found Vic, unconscious and tied up tightly. They freed him. Lin Qi didn’t hesitate; he took all the valuables from Black Horse Haus, Big Sword Joe, and the others. He opened dozens of liquor bottles and poured the strong alcohol over Black Horse Haus and his men. He picked up the broken pieces of the potion bottles, then carried Vic out of the tavern.

Not long after, a fire broke out in the tavern’s stable. The flammable liquid Yulian had spilled on the hay had caught fire.

Sharp police whistles sounded from all directions. Many Dragoons and Copper Helmets rushed toward the tavern like flies drawn to blood.