Jobless Reincarnation: Sword, Magic Hat and Romance System

Chapter 53 The Mane Wolf's Stronghold, the Man Behind the Scenes

Deep in the forest, a small lake formed by accumulated water lies nestled within, nestled against the towering cliffs of the Red Dragon Mountain Range.

Natural habitat.

Logically speaking, there should be some birds, beasts, and monsters dwelling here at night.

However, at this moment, within a radius of several dozen meters, there were more than a dozen tents densely packed together. The raincoats on the tents were very old, and the ropes on the ground were tangled with rusty anchors, forming a semi-circle around several small wooden houses. A dense array of torches were stuck in various parts of the camp, and the firelight was bright. The grass on the ground was trampled bare, and the yellowish-brown soil was faintly visible in the firelight.

Humans drove away birds, beasts, and monsters, and occupied this habitat.

More than thirty figures stood in the campfire, silently watching the only thin man sitting in front of them.

He was standing on a burly man with a full beard, whose body was almost twice the size of the handsome man. The man had his head shoved into the mud by the man's foot and the man looked like he had passed out.

"I've said it so many times. Summoning you here isn't just about highway robbery; it's about that thousand gold coins bounty! Why are there always people causing trouble for me behind my back? Sneaking out to contact the North to buy and sell slaves? Is this what Boss Night Lion ordered you to do?"

The thin man had a somewhat effeminate face. He squinted and looked around. All around him were faces of thugs, but no one looked him directly in the eye.

After a long silence, everyone in front of them looked at the bald man closest to the thin man. Upon seeing this, the latter took a deep breath and carefully chose his words before speaking.

"Boss Leopard and the others think that Allen actually ran away a long time ago. Staying here isn't a solution; they haven't gotten their thousand gold coins yet, and everyone's short of cash. They were all suddenly summoned here after dropping everything, and it's been so long, they haven't even found a trace of him. Who knows if Boss Night Lion's information is reliable?"

With a loud bang! Blood and brain matter exploded. He looked down in shock and saw that the burly man at the leopard's feet had his head smashed to pieces.

The leopard squinted and surveyed its surroundings.

"You think I'm negotiating with you?"

Everyone stared in astonishment at the corpse on the ground, then the spotted leopard continued, his words filled with obvious anger.

"First of all, I can assure you that the source is true. As for your suspicion of Boss Night Lion, that's unacceptable, and we must not let it happen again."

As he spoke, the leopard looked at the terrified thieves around him, sighed softly, and his voice returned to its usual effeminate tone.

"You were all people that Boss Night Lion brought back from the slave market and raised from scratch. You should know that he's not the kind of person who would abandon his brothers. How can you doubt him? There's more to Boss Night Lion's decision than meets the eye. Let me explain: he was under immense pressure, which could very well determine the survival of the thief gang."

Upon hearing this, the members of the band of thieves in front of them all looked surprised and whispered among themselves. The scene was about to become noisy, but it was stopped by the sound of a sword being drawn.

The leopard planted the blade in the ground, and the hilt emitted a rapid hum.

"The pressure comes from the powerful forces at the top of the royal capital. Their current restraint is necessary. Each of you is generally a mid-level or higher swordsman, and there are even several high-level swordsmen. If it were really to gather information, why were you suddenly summoned here from all over the Asura Kingdom?"

"Most of the bandits' elite are gathered here. Are you really here to do some bullshit highway robbery? Think about it carefully."

As the leopard spoke, it swept its gaze across the faces of the people who were looking at each other with suspicion and uncertainty, and then sighed.

"Alright, continue with what you were doing, and keep patrolling outside."

There was a moment of silence, and then the crowd dispersed in twos and threes. Soon, only the bald man remained in front of the leopard. He glanced at the latter and beckoned him to his side.

"Have we found Black Wolf and his two companions yet?"

The bald man's panicked expression had vanished, and he leaned close to the leopard's ear and whispered something with a serious expression.

"We haven't found it yet. This method can only appease them temporarily. When they go out on patrol, they might desert again and go to Rigate City to relax. They're all quite capable, and they usually bully others in various bandit strongholds. They won't stay here peacefully forever. Right now, we still need to solve the problem at its root, that kid Allen."

Upon hearing this, the leopard turned its head and looked at him expressionlessly.

"Greyhawk, don't you believe me? Or do you think I'm just making empty threats?"

The bald man, Gray Eagle, paused, his expression somewhat helpless.

"I believe you! But isn't James the most powerful figure in the capital? How could a lowly minister who hasn't even officially taken over the reins from Shaolus possibly have the means to force Boss Night Lion?"

"If he's not James, does he even deserve the title?"

Gray Eagle's expression changed upon hearing this.

"Is this even possible?"

The leopard's voice was so soft it seemed weightless, yet the weight of the information it contained caused Gray Eagle's expression to change drastically.

"It's not James, it's Darius."

Darius?!

Gray Eagle raised its head and looked around. Seeing that no one was eavesdropping, it quickly moved closer to Leopard's ear.

"Minister Darius, a favorite of the First Prince. How could it be him? Does he no longer favor the young noblewoman and instead take a fancy to this kid, Allen? Isn't he afraid of beheading him while they're in bed together??"

The leopard rubbed its temples and glanced at the gray eagle with considerable displeasure.

"What are you thinking? The specific reason is definitely not because of this, but it is true that he put pressure on the Night Lion boss. Otherwise, why do you think the Night Lion boss would get involved in this mess? James doesn't have that kind of influence."

"So, if the news is true, then that kid Allen Boreas Greirat is really hiding on the southern slopes of the nearby Crimson Dragon Mountains? Shouldn't we expand our search area? Why are we stuck here? The forest is so big; how can we find that kid just by stopping people and asking questions?"

The leopard frowned.

"That's what I'm also wondering about, but the message we've received so far is just to stay here and wait."

"Who goes there?!"

Just then, a cry of alarm came from ahead, and the leopard and the gray eagle looked up at the same time.

But then, from the shadows beyond the firelight at the edge of the tent, a small figure broke through the darkness and emerged.

It was a man wearing glasses, no, it looked like a child.

He smiled and put his blood-stained glasses into the pocket of his swordsman's uniform, which was now covered in sticky blood, as he looked at the crowd in front of the camp.

"Who is it?"

Following the directions given by the now-corpse-covered scarred man, Allen raised his hands and spread them out beside him, as if displaying a product.

"Of course it's the person you're looking for."

(End of this chapter)