“You!”
Wells’s eyes widened with rage as he stood up abruptly—it was deliberate, this kid was absolutely doing it on purpose!
At that moment, Wells’s henchmen also began staring at the shattered cup fragments on the floor, pondering:
“Lightly tap the cup to prepare, breaking the cup means… uh, means…”
I thought, stop! Wells hurried over to restrain the pondering underling. “Enough, stop thinking! And who’s this brat that suddenly popped up out of nowhere? How does she know my secret signal?”
It shouldn’t be possible. That code was something I devised alone after three days and nights of careful thought. The design was quite ingenious—almost no one could have figured it out!
“Ah, I remember now!” Before Wells could figure out how his code was broken so quickly, the burly man beside Truth suddenly stood up, his sharp eyes showing resoluteness:
“Attack!”
With a shout, he grabbed the fruit plate on the table and slammed it fiercely toward the long-bearded old man at the table on the right. That old man was Donovan, from the Border Chamber of Commerce, and an ally of Wells.
“Wells! Why are you hitting your own people?!”
Donovan pointed to his bleeding nose as he was shielded behind his men.
Weren’t they supposed to wait until the people from the Kingdom of Sylvia arrived before making a move?
And even if they started fighting suddenly, why hit their own team?
Immediately, Wells’s other henchmen drew their batons and bayonets from their waists and tangled with Evans’s men. At the same time, the underling sent by Evans to open the door was knocked out with a single kick to the head.
The scene descended into chaos—the waiters’ screams mixed with the low growls of the thugs, echoing back and forth.
“You idiots, don’t hit your own people!”
Wells kicked the underling who started the fight, who looked a bit aggrieved but pointed to Wells’s cup. The handle was precisely pointing at Donovan.
“The cup handle points to the target to be eliminated,” Wells had said himself. This only made him angrier. The handle was supposed to point at the target from the Kingdom of Sylvia, but all of it was ruined by a child.
“There’s definitely a traitor among us. Once this is over, I’m going to interrogate that brat thoroughly, then sell her off to a brothel!”
But since the fight had broken out, there was no turning back. Forget the people from the Kingdom of Sylvia for now—they had to take the Dragon Egg by force first!
Wells and Donovan’s groups immediately aligned and began attacking Evans’s men.
Because their reinforcements hadn’t arrived yet, and the mid-tier specialists from the Kingdom of Sylvia were still absent, Evans’s forces began retreating step by step.
Were these two old fools out of their minds? Starting a fight now, before the Dragon Egg was even secured in the room? Were they trying to use Mr. Harlem to seize the Dragon Egg? Such a despicable plan!
Evans was protecting his boss Harlem on the platform, but because Wells and the child had locked the room’s door from the inside, no one outside knew what was going on.
“Why is the door locked? Has the meeting started already? The time’s not even up.”
Outside Room One, several major figures from Southwatch Fort were standing. They had been invited by the Harlem Family but were now blocked outside. What was this—an insult?
The Exchange owner was equally baffled, repeatedly knocking on the door, but no one inside answered. Occasionally, muffled noises leaked out…
After a while, a group of people who looked especially intimidating entered the Exchange. Judging by their low-key luxury attire, they were from the Kingdom of Sylvia.
The man in charge, dressed in a black coat, coldly said to the Exchange owner:
“We’re here for Harlem.”
“Mr. Harlem, uh… he’s in the room behind me, but I don’t know why the door is—”
Before the owner could finish, the man in the black coat shoved him aside with one hand, standing silently before the door for a moment:
“There’s fighting inside. Something’s wrong.”
As a mid-tier Ranger, even with the Exchange having Southwatch Fort’s top-tier Dispelled Soundproofing, the man could still hear the commotion inside. With his employer’s permission, he kicked the door open with brute force.
A chaotic scene of combat unfolded before everyone’s eyes. Before anyone could sort out what was happening, Evans, helped up on the stage and looking rather disheveled, shouted toward the door:
“Count Raul, help me! These people are trying to kidnap me and steal the Dragon Egg!”
Evans hurriedly ordered his underlings outside:
“Protect the Dragon Egg in the safe!”
The situation became even more chaotic. But with Count Raul from the Kingdom of Sylvia joining the fray, and the two mid-level Adventurers he hired quickly taking control of the battlefield, Wells and Donovan’s forces found themselves increasingly on the defensive.
Luckily, Wells’s drug-fueled underlings were fierce fighters. Even in a cross-tier fight, they hadn’t lost ground quickly.
“Damn it, why isn’t that Venerable Lady coming to help?!”
Venerable Lady? That must be the woman who had been hiding upstairs with her people, waiting for the right moment.
Truth was currently crouching under a round table, hugging her knees, eavesdropping on the whole scene. Earlier, the mid-tier Ranger had crouched down to check her and, seeing she was just a little girl, had ignored her.
Two minutes ago, Truth had heard that the Venerable Lady decided to abandon the foolish Wells and Donovan and would lead her people to intercept Evans’s underlings and steal the Dragon Egg.
Everyone was busy, and the relations were very tangled. But Truth didn’t need to figure it all out—just getting the Dragon Egg was enough.
After a while, the conversation between Count Raul and Harlem drifted into Truth’s ears:
“The Dragon Egg is okay, right?”
Count Raul had come all the way from the Kingdom of Sylvia just for the rare Dragon Egg of the Illusory Realm. Otherwise, he wouldn’t bother with these small border factions.
“Don’t worry. The Dragon Egg isn’t in the safe. My men are guarding the safe as a decoy. Soon, a carriage will bring the Dragon Egg to my estate. Once your people clear out these ungrateful pests, we can make the trade.”
Harlem hadn’t expected Wells and the others to start fighting so hastily, but the outcome was good. He could finally use Count Raul’s forces to clear out the troublesome enemies!
“Oh, so it’s in a carriage.”
Truth nodded. Soon, she heard the carriage approaching at the rear exit of the underground Exchange. Good. She immediately summoned Reg…
On the dirt road west of Southwatch Fort—the only path to the Harlem Family Estate.
In the night, two masked men crouched in the roadside grass: Reg and Anderson. The latter asked:
“Are you sure we can get the Dragon Egg here? Did the Priestess tell you?”
“Sure. We strike when the carriage arrives.” Reg said little.
But Anderson’s mouth didn’t stop moving:
“So what exactly is the Priestess’s identity? You must know something. Otherwise, you wouldn’t listen to her so obediently. Or does she have some dirt on you?”
“Nope, just afraid of dying. And she’s been pretty generous with rewards.”
“Well then, you must take me along! I want to be the Priestess’s most loyal underling!”
“Go ask her yourself!”
“Hehehe…” Just then, the sound of the carriage grew louder. Bathed in moonlight, Reg saw it was just a very ordinary carriage—no sign of a Dragon Egg inside. But if the boss said it was there, then it definitely was!
The two held their breath, and as the carriage drew near, they sprang out:
“Robbery!”
The carriage screeched to a halt, and a rough voice shouted from inside:
“Who dares to rob us!”
A burly second-rank warrior swung a large blade and charged at Reg without hesitation. The burst of power at level twenty-seven almost overwhelmed Reg.
Evans had hidden a high-level guard inside the carriage!
Luckily, there was only one—his manpower was tight.
“Hah! Only second-rank? You dare come out and rob us?” The Dragon Egg’s guard saw Reg was lower level and wanted to have some fun.
Reg then began a simple but relentless flurry of Attack Canceling strikes, astonishing both the guard and Anderson, who had just knocked out the carriage driver:
“That move again! So damn tricky. Where did you learn such a bizarre skill?”
“Stop watching, come help!”
Thanks to the small skill Truth gave him, Reg was able to suppress an opponent five levels higher. This skill was really effective. But the boss had said not to tell anyone if I got into trouble later. What did that mean?
Was this skill meant to be kept secret?
Sort of. Mainly because Attack Canceling and similar techniques were considered boring in the low-level arena, and they naturally generated a ton of Hate Value, often provoking opponents to go berserk.
Many players used to ban these moves by default.
But once someone breaks the rules, don’t blame others for using even more ruthless tactics…
If Reg shouted “Truth taught me this” while canceling attacks, the Hate Value would probably pile up on Truth herself. So it was crucial not to let Reg reveal it. Who knew if he’d later use it against some difficult foe in a red-zone?
The Dragon Egg’s guard was already bulging veins on his forehead:
“Are you fucking done yet?!”
Who the hell invented this move? It’s so damn dirty! If I find out, I’ll slice him from crotch to throat!
“Pfft!”
Suddenly, a short blade stabbed straight into the guard’s waist, and he instantly lost all strength, unable to continue fighting.
Anderson took the opportunity to stab him from behind.
Confirming the guard was incapacitated, he began searching inside the carriage while Reg collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
The biggest drawback of Attack Canceling was how physically draining it was—even a hero’s constitution struggled to keep up…
“Found it!”
After knocking around inside the carriage for a while, Anderson quickly pulled out the intact Dragon Egg from a hidden compartment under the carriage.
Just as he turned to leave, a small figure suddenly appeared behind him.
The pale moonlight shone on the old woman’s delicate face, giving it an eerie yet exquisite beauty.
Truth was still holding the broomstick she’d picked up earlier, expressionless as she stared at Anderson:
“My Dragon Egg. Give it to me.”
“Whoa! You nearly scared me to death, Priestess!”
Anderson thought he was hallucinating. There were no cute ghosts in this world, after all.
After confirming the Dragon Egg was undamaged, Truth finally relaxed.
From entering the underground Exchange to securing the Dragon Egg, it had taken just over ten minutes— she felt her Retreat Skill had slipped a bit.
Her previous stealth missions had always been almost speedruns.
Plus, using the hearing enhancement skill after transmigration was uncomfortable— constant noise made her dizzy and increasingly irritable.
“Don’t go into Southwatch Fort for now. It’s going to be chaotic for a while. That’s all. I’m out.”
After slipping out of the underground Exchange, Truth realized she’d stirred up a far bigger mess than expected.
Since many factions’ interests were involved, the underworld of Southwatch Fort had erupted into a massive brawl.
In short, after the Exchange was breached, Wells and Donovan fought Evans directly in the West District with no intention of backing down.
They resorted to despicable tactics like poison gas.
Even the Law Enforcement Bureau intervened urgently.
Lady Carteriel, known as the Queen of Black and Red Flowers, was furious after Evans tricked her.
She split her forces, planning to burn down the Harlem Family Estate and wipe out all their casinos.
After over a hundred casualties, the nearby stationed army was alarmed.
When they learned Truth had slipped into the city, Kavier was terrified and hurriedly led a team back to find her.
If she died in the chaos, Kavier would have to die in atonement.
Meanwhile, Count Raul’s caravan from the Kingdom of Sylvia was severely damaged.
Someone had secretly guided the slum residents to rob their valuables, turning the entire West District of Southwatch Fort into a wild carnival.
No matter how they tried to stop it, the chaos couldn’t be contained. Angry, Count Raul ordered his men to crack down ruthlessly on the poor, leading to his own pursuit by the Law Enforcement Bureau.
However, with the Bureau fully mobilized, their defenses were thin. Other factions took advantage and freed all prisoners, escalating the situation further.
Everyone seized the opportunity to vent years of accumulated hatred. People scattered to their homes, hunting their enemies.
Even minor factions were grabbing as many benefits and rewards as possible tonight.
The Bank Villa, mansions of the wealthy, and other rich locations were all targets.
That’s how it was.