Chapter 63: Rescue at the Critical Moment

Ya and Ling lay weakly in a puddle of filthy snow. Right where the stray cats had just eaten, the snow was black and dark, reeking of fish guts, blood, and oddly colored fluids. The sharp smell filled their noses. Never having fallen so low before, Ya and Ling nearly burst into tears.

Their whole bodies hurt terribly. It felt like their muscles and bones were all shattered. The wounds from the Hunting Crossbow bolts had left their bodies numb, without any feeling at all. Even the spot on Ya’s belly, where she’d been pierced, was rigid. Blood sprayed out steadily, yet she felt nothing.

The Beastfolk Rhinoceros Knights weren’t just powerful and hard to kill; their life force was incredibly tough. So, the Hunting Crossbow bolts had been coated in deadly poison, a mix made by fermenting eighteen poisonous plants unique to the Western Continent. A single drop of this poison could bring a buffalo to the ground, frozen. An ordinary person struck by it would find even their heart slowly going numb until they died.

This numbness spread like death’s shadow from their wounds, creeping over their bodies. The two women lay in the filth. Their bodies still held some lingering warmth but were surrounded by the foul air. This disgusting, nasty smell was something they’d never encountered in their entire lives. Raised in the Church, they were noble from birth. They’d worn soft clothes and eaten fine food since they were babies. Their fingers had never even touched cold water.

Now they lay here, quietly waiting for death to come. They wanted to cry, but the strict training since childhood meant no tears could come. Crying, shedding tears? Those were negative feelings only the lowly might show. How could someone as highborn as them ever cry?

As babies, still wrapped in swaddling clothes, they’d been trained using special methods not to cry. Now, when they actually wanted to cry, they had even forgotten this basic instinct. They felt the urge but couldn’t make the tears happen.

Heavy, marching footsteps sounded in the distance. It was the Port Garrison Army hurrying towards them.

Rapid hoofbeats approached fast. The Dragoons, belonging to the Garrison Office, were moving in this direction.

Shrill police whistles also started blaring from all sides. The whistles grew closer and closer. The Garrison Office’s Secret Police – the Copper Helmets – were getting into action.

But most prominent were the many slightly chaotic footsteps and the clanging of weapons. Dun Er Ke’s current regular stationed army was only a thousand strong. Dragoons and Copper Helmets numbered nearly a thousand too. But Dun Er Ke’s Militia force numbered in the tens of thousands. Any man you pulled from Dun Er Ke was a big, strong fighting man who knew some moves. With its population of tens of thousands, Dun Er Ke could raise a militia force strong enough to handle any threat from the north’s Five Great Archipelagos.

The explosion earlier, like a fire dragon, had startled the whole city. So, Dun Er Ke’s Militia had almost rushed out in full force. Everywhere there were urgent footsteps. Everywhere loud, angry barks came from fierce large dogs. On the rooves of some tall buildings, people lit large oil lamps. Using mirrors, they focused the beams of light towards the Port. A dozen thick, hazy beams danced wildly across the sea’s surface.

Ya and Ling were losing blood fast. They just felt icy cold all over, their vision darkening again and again. All the noises seemed to close in like nightmares. The sounds made by the Garrison Army, the Dragoons, the Militia – it all felt like the whispers of demons, forcing their way into their ears, almost scaring them to death right then.

Lin Qi rushed onto the dock. He hissed urgently, “Hurry! The Gold Notes on them! The necklaces too! Rings! Ah, and the hairpins! Those hairpins have gems set in them! Damn it, top-grade stones at least three carats! These two dead women are way too rich!”

Bar was already beside Ya and Ling, moving so fast he left ghostly trails. He swung his long scythe, ready to chop off their heads. But hearing Lin Qi’s shout made Bar pause briefly. He quickly crouched down, roughly tore open the women’s clothes, and ripped away two satin money pouches from hidden pockets on their chests.

Bar had excellent night vision. Using the faint, scattered light from a dozen or so swaying beams, he opened the pouches and looked inside. Each held a thin stack of Gold Notes. There weren’t many notes, maybe twenty total when piled together. But the sums written on them stunned even Bar. A quick glance showed the smallest note was for 500,000 Gold Coins. The largest one? A massive Three Million Gold Coins!

“Damned Hell,” he breathed. “They’re practically walking treasure ships! What fool family in Viyas do they come from? Impossible they’re from the Vias Commercial Federation! Those upstart men’s daughters just learn about marriage or managing family business. They couldn’t become Divine Art Masters!”

Snorting coldly, he stuffed the money pouches into his sleeves. Then Bar swiftly and expertly stripped off all their jewelry – necklaces, rings, hairpins, everything. In his youth, Bar had been Dun Er Ke’s most famous pickpocket. He held the city record no one had ever broken yet – in the time it took to smoke a cigarette, on Dun Er Ke’s busiest street, he’d emptied seventy-eight bulging wallets!

So Ya and Ling got robbed like thirty-six thieves hit them at once. Their valuables vanished instantly. Even the tiny, dense circle of sparkling red Rubies decorating their boots were peeled clean by Bar. These tiny Rubies were a deep red, like pigeon’s blood, and felt full of powerful life energy. Though each was no bigger than a rice grain, even one was worth dozens of Gold Coins. In the hands of a mage, these Rubies were the best material to trigger fire spells.

“Big fat sheep!” Bar chortled. “Two walking money bags! Almost matches the treasure ships!” Delighted, Bar finished scouring every last thing of value from the women. Then he jumped up and swung his scythe straight for their necks.

They were worth a fortune, but they could also become huge disasters. Thinking with their buttocks would tell him – these two women carrying massive wealth, mysteriously appearing, being Divine Art Masters, possessing powerful Divine Art Scrolls – their backers were clearly incredibly strong. Any trace of them needed to disappear completely, fast.

They could be eaten by magical beasts, robbed by mountain bandits, captured by pirates. But they absolutely could not be killed in Dun Er Ke by the Black Tiger Family.

The family wasn’t afraid of challenges, but it hated getting enemies for no good reason. Destroying the evidence was cleaner!

The scythe swept down. Ya and Ling shut their eyes in despair.

The scythe carved an arc through the air. Just when it was a foot from Ya’s neck, a huge figure burst out from beneath the breakwater. A strangely shaped heavy scimitar whistled shrilly – a noise like countless demons screaming while boiled in sulfur. Its blade sliced viciously towards Bar’s own neck.

If Bar finished his stroke, his neck would take a hit too.

Bar spat out a frustrated breath. He spun around, swinging his scythe back to block the scimitar.