Chapter 194: The End of The Hunchback

Chapter 194: The End of The Hunchback

Lin Qi and his team used Vic’s innate divine eyes to watch from a distance, while Elham and his people relied on sheer strength and rushed straight into the small courtyard.

But that small courtyard in Spider Alley was empty, like an old man with a toothless mouth, wildly laughing at Lin Qi in the distance and Elham up close. There was no one in the yard—not even a single hair. The flickering lamp swayed like a will-o’-the-wisp, giving off a biting chill.

About three miles away from the courtyard, on a small hill overlooking a little river, stood a very modest estate hidden among green trees. Modest meant the estate was small, only covering about a hundred meters square. Modest meant the color scheme was restrained, mostly made from brown and black materials. Modest meant that although it was unremarkable, every brick, every tile, every beam, and every pillar was made of the finest materials, yet they had been made to look plain to hide their true brilliance.

Inside the estate stood a small three-story building. The top floor was around ten meters high, allowing a clear view of a certain courtyard in the Commercial District.

Jiang Yong wore a green silk robe with three ferocious horned dragons embroidered front and back, adding a murderous aura to his presence. A strange smile crept across his pale face as he held a two-foot-long metal tube, wide at one end and narrow at the other, peering through exceptionally clean crystal lenses inside it to spy on events happening in the courtyard three miles away.

Cripple, now dressed in neat formal attire, stood in a corner of the building, smiling as he gazed out the window at the pitch-black sky.

In a chair at the center of the building sat a frail young man. At first glance, he seemed to be over twenty, but upon closer inspection, he appeared to be only fifteen or sixteen. His very light, thin, and smooth yellow hair rested gently on his shoulders. The young man’s body was weak and small, looking like a malnourished bean sprout.

A silver tiger-fur coat wrapped his frail frame, and he coughed lightly from time to time. He watched with curiosity as Jiang Yong handled the metal tube, waiting until Jiang Yong had collapsed it into a half-foot-long cylinder before asking with a smile, “Is this one of those new things the Goblins came up with? Can it really let you see things several miles away?”

Jiang Yong handed the cylinder to the young man and nodded with a smile.

“Goblins are small and ugly, but they have a natural talent for crafting clever gadgets. Isn’t this spyglass one of their inventions?” Jiang Yong looked proudly at the young man holding the metal tube. “This is a rare item in the West, but in our Empire, it is quite common.”

The young man fiddled with it for a while and then peered through the small crystal lens to see the distant view. He couldn’t help but sigh, “It’s good, but in the Western Continent, who would dare to make such a thing? And even if someone made it, who would dare to use it? During the Hundred-Year Land-Island War, a Dwarf artisan made something similar, but his entire family was burned at the Stake.”

Jiang Yong smiled brightly. “That was the Church’s decision. How could we mortals have a say?”

He quickly changed the subject. Pointing toward the courtyard, he sneered at Cripple and said, “Luckily Cripple sent word, or we would have been cornered. Those people in Black Armor are not easy to deal with. If they had caught us, we would have been in big trouble.”

Cripple smiled but said nothing.

The frail young man sighed softly. He shook his head and wearily propped his chin on the armrest of the sofa. “Mr. Jiang Yong, you said someone has designs on Grandfather’s personal Seal? Is that true?”

Jiang Yong looked at him frankly. “Your Highness, please rest assured. I know the details of this matter well. The person has already infiltrated the Imperial Capital, but since your grandfather is not currently in the city, they haven’t been able to act. However, as soon as he returns, that is when they will strike.”

The frail young man frowned. He thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. “No matter who they are, Grandfather’s Seal involves the honor of the Empire. If the rulers and Nobles of other countries on the Western Continent learn that Grandfather’s Seal was stolen, the Gaul Empire would be deeply shamed.”

He sighed and turned to Cripple with a smile. “You did well this time. If we can catch that audacious criminal, I will reward you. But where is that person now?”

Cripple beamed with flattery. He said in a humble tone, “Your Highness Picius, my men can only operate around the Dock District and cannot possibly monitor all of Borelly. If that person has truly arrived in the Imperial Capital and is hiding somewhere waiting for the right moment, then they must be in a place my people cannot reach.”

Picius sighed. “And where is that place?”

Cripple’s gaze turned sinister, his eyes filled with a ruthless fervor. “In the Imperial Capital, the only place my men cannot freely enter to gather information is the South City Commercial District. You see, that is The Hunchback’s territory. My family and his family signed a Covenant, so my people cannot set foot in his domain.”

Jiang Yong raised an eyebrow, a faint, ambiguous smile curling his lips.

Picius frowned and slowly nodded. “So, who is this person called The Hunchback?”

Cripple replied quickly, “He is Lartus’s man—Your Highness’s cousin’s man. Of course, his shop has no official connection to Lartus, but in reality, eighty percent of his annual profits are handed over!”

Picius shook his head with disgust and sighed again, clearly unhappy. “Really, I don’t want to get involved in the conflicts between my uncles. But, but… who can ignore that this matter concerns Grandfather and the Empire’s honor?”

Picius turned to Jiang Yong with a beaming smile, full of an irresistible warmth. “Mr. Jiang Yong, could you help me eliminate The Hunchback? If he were out of the picture, Cripple could help you better locate where that person is hiding. What do you think?”

He sighed softly, like a bitter woman in a deep palace, and murmured, “Of course, I have people who could do this, but I cannot clash with my dear cousin! I never get involved in their conflicts.”

Jiang Yong smiled and replied crisply, “Take me to him!”

Jiang Yong’s face wore a smile, but inside, his anger was raging. These uncivilized Barbarians, these half-haired monkeys, these country bumpkins—they actually dared to use Eunuch Jiang, Chief Jiang, as their tool? Hey, they really had some nerve!

If the Gaul Empire were not thousands of miles away from that vast Empire in The East, Jiang Yong would have urged his master to send a light cavalry to execute the entire Imperial Clan! Besides his master and his master’s father, who in the world would dare treat Chief Jiang as a pawn?

Resentful fire burned in his heart, and Jiang Yong wished he could slap Picius to death right then. But to make things easier in Borelly, he agreed to Picius’s request with a smile on his face.

Half an hour later, under Cripple’s personal guidance, Jiang Yong and his eighteen subordinates arrived at the private residence of The Hunchback, the leader of the Underworld in the South City Commercial District. It was a grand mansion located in the heart of the Commercial District, covering dozens of acres, surrounded by bustling commercial streets—a truly prime location worth its weight in gold.

Several Copper Helmets emerged like ghosts from the darkness. One of them shouted in a low voice from a distance, “It’s so late! What are you doing here? Drop your weapons and wait for—”

Without even a glance in their direction, one of Jiang Yong’s subordinates casually flicked his hand, and several three-inch-long ox-hair needles silently shot out. The bodies of the Copper Helmets stiffened abruptly. Tiny, nearly invisible holes appeared in their copper helmets. The needles had pierced through their helmets, entering through their foreheads and deep into their brains.

A bone-chilling, terrifying force surged from the needles. With several cracking sounds, the heads of the Copper Helmets exploded into a mess of red and white ice shards. The headless bodies fell heavily to the ground. Seeing this bizarre and horrifying scene, Cripple’s legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed.

Only then did he realize just how terrifying the people he had chosen to cooperate with—the ones who had promised him immense rewards—really were.

“Let’s go. While it’s still dark, send that Hunchback boss on his final journey!” Jiang Yong gave a few sinister chuckles and slowly drew a four-foot-two-inch-long flexible sword from his belt. With a casual swing, the heavy courtyard gate shattered like wood that had weathered for tens of thousands of years, flying out as countless wood splinters. A group of ghostly blue figures silently rushed into the compound.

The horned dragons on his robes danced in the wind, their mouths gaping as if craving a sacrifice of flesh and blood.

Hot blood flowed out from the gate, down the steps, and onto the street, where it slowly froze into a sheet of red ice. Cripple stepped back fearfully, watching the spreading patch of bloody ice.

One after another, people living in the mansion were dragged out of their warm rooms by Jiang Yong’s subordinates, forced down near the courtyard gate, and beheaded with a single sword stroke.

In the blink of an eye, hundreds of heads piled into a small hill. Finally, a head that Cripple knew all too well was placed on the very top of that pile.

The Hunchback’s head, with eyes wide open in death—until the very end, he never knew who had killed him.

Cripple could no longer stand straight. He collapsed heavily to the ground, letting out a desperate, piercing scream.

The sound immediately stirred many creatures active in the night, and police whistles soon rang out from all directions.