Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

"Where are you from, and what are you doing in Black Lion City?"

John watched as the Black Lion City security team conducted a search at the next table. He had just been questioned, but perhaps because he could produce proof of the "White Shell" Chamber of Commerce, the team members didn't make things difficult for him.

In just two days since arriving, he had already learned that members of the Storm Brotherhood had defied the Earl and escaped from the dungeon, making them wanted throughout the city. Taverns were also a favorite haunt of the security forces.

"I wonder how much that guy revealed, and whether it will affect the boss," Little John said, chewing on his bread while subtly observing the people in the tavern.

He rushed to Black Lion City as quickly as possible, fearing that the news of the fortress would spread like wildfire, which would mean all of the boss's hard work would be for naught. However, it seems that no one knows why Young Master Philip led his men away from Black Lion City.

"Maybe this hasn't spread yet." He took a sip of light beer, pondering how to find the Storm Brotherhood fugitive.

"Philip just left, and he escaped from prison. It takes some skill to get out of the Earl's dungeon." Little John was having a headache about how to find the man; he hadn't done many spy or surveillance jobs.

"Boom boom boom!" A series of rapid hoofbeats came from outside the gate. Everyone in the tavern ran out to watch. Little John also stood up, pretending to go and see what was going on.

Soon, the horses' hooves faded into the distance, and the crowd returned to their seats, their voices rising in discussion.

"It seems the Earl himself led the knights out of the city."

"They ran so fast, I wonder what happened?"

"I counted, 40 members of the Knights."

John forked a piece of roast meat and stuffed it into his mouth. The food in Black Lion City was indeed a bit better than that in Gieshorn. He chewed his food and thought, "Leaving the city in such a hurry, could it be that we're going to Gieshorn? That city gate is definitely in the direction of Gieshorn."

"Could something have happened to the boss?" He put down his knife and fork, pretending to be calm as he wiped his mouth. "What do we do now? Should we rush back immediately, or stay in Black Lion City to continue investigating that person?"

John picked up his glass and gulped down a large mouthful. He had originally planned to try to buy information from the local black market, but now he was caught in a dilemma.

"Let's go back first." He finally made his decision. "The boss needs me more. Black Lion City is so big, even if we stay here, we might not find that escaped prisoner."

"What are you doing here?" A loud shout drew the attention of everyone in the tavern.

Five security guards surrounded a table in the corner of the tavern. Only one customer was sitting at the table. He put down his knife and fork and slowly stood up.

"Don't move." The security guards pulled out their iron bars.

These security guards are second-class soldiers in the Earl's territory. They undergo some combat training in normal times, and they will be immediately conscripted into regular soldiers in the event of war.

Like everyone else in the tavern, Little John was staring at the corner, but he had a feeling that the well-dressed, tall, middle-aged man with a thick beard and short brown hair looked dangerous, and his demeanor even seemed to have a hint of wildness.

"Let's wait and see." He reached for his waist and grasped the hilt of his short sword.

Just as the security guards were slowly approaching the bearded middle-aged man, he sighed, and in the blink of an eye, two of the guards were sent flying.

Little John stared wide-eyed in astonishment at the scene, not even noticing that the bread in his hand had fallen onto the plate.

Immediately afterwards, the remaining two team members rushed towards their opponents, while the last one ran straight out of the tavern and whistled.

With a series of sounds of chairs falling over and plates shattering, the middle-aged man had already knocked down the security guards and darted out of the tavern. Little John also ran to the door with the others to watch. He frowned and stared intently at the humanoid monster covered in black hair on the street. At this moment, its head had completely transformed into that of a wolf, and its long claws could easily tear apart walls.

"Could this be Ricardo from the wanted poster?" John muttered to himself. "But his age doesn't seem right."

Soon, the middle-aged man with a thick beard, after transforming, knocked down more than a dozen security guards. Then, he made several leaps, flew onto the roof, and quickly disappeared amidst the shouts of the crowd.

"This guy is amazing." Little John couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement as he watched the other person's beast-like movements. "There are all kinds of people in Black Lion City."

He felt he definitely couldn't beat this person; even using his "eye-gazing ability" wouldn't be enough to defeat him.

"I need to finish eating quickly and get back to Gieshorn right away." Little John turned and went back into the tavern to his seat. "I paid for this, I can't waste it."

He forked a piece of roasted meat, put it in his mouth, and began to chew it heartily.

He forked a piece of roasted meat, put it in his mouth, and began to chew it heartily.

…………

"My lord, is it here?" The Grand Master of the Knights drew his longsword and asked Count Valentine beside him.

"Yes, the Soul Guide is inside." Valentine looked at a blue crystal in his hand, from which a white light was pointing towards the passageway in front of him.

"It might be dangerous inside. Please stand behind us," the commander said solemnly, glancing at the passageway.

In the Kingdom of Fran, adventurers form fixed mutual aid organizations. At first, they are just fixed small teams. When they have a certain strength, they register with the Adventurers' Guild and call themselves a Brotherhood or Mutual Aid Society. Generally, the members of the Brotherhood are required to be at least Iron level. When their strength reaches another level, they will register with the Kingdom's administrative agency and officially change their name to Knights.

These knightly orders have a small number of Iron-rank members, but the majority are Bronze-rank and the rare Silver-rank. They are usually employed by high-ranking nobles or large merchant guilds on a long-term basis. In times of war, these knightly orders may also be directly conscripted or employed by the kingdom.

This knightly order is currently employed by the Valentine family on a long-term basis, mainly responsible for handling dangerous matters, and their name is the Black Lion Knights.

"Everyone, get ready. Don't let your guard down," the commander shouted, tapping his shield with his longsword.

The group members nodded calmly, drew their weapons, and thought today's battle would be easy. If it weren't for the presence of the grieving Earl Valentine, they might have been chatting and laughing about someone's affairs with a red-light district beauty, or how much someone had lost gambling.

"Follow me in," the leader shouted, and stepped into the underground stone chamber first.

The stone chamber was dark, completely devoid of light. Someone immediately used a light spell, instantly illuminating the surroundings.

"There are several corpses on the ground," someone shouted.

"Slowly approach and see if the young master is inside," the commander ordered, while also having someone protect Earl Valentine in the middle.

The stone chamber was large, surrounded by white spider silk, and scattered on the ground were many translucent objects that looked like insect wings.

"Captain, what's that sound?" a member reported, sensing that there seemed to be a lot of evil presence around them.

Just as the commander of the knights was about to instruct everyone to be on guard, a member was suddenly pulled down by a spider web and fell to the ground.

But he immediately swung his sword horizontally, and a sharp "squeak" rang out as he severed the two front legs of a giant spider in front of him.

As the scream rang out, a constant rustling sound of crawling could be heard all around.

The knights were shocked to find themselves surrounded by enormous black spiders. Their massive size and sheer number plunged them into a fierce battle.

However, this was nothing to the well-trained and well-equipped members of the Knights. They quickly adjusted their tactics, changed formations, and barely managed to withstand the spiders' siege.

"Don't panic, they're easy to deal with." The captain used his shield to block the two pincers of a giant spider, then stabbed it with his sword, drenching him in the spider's sticky blood.

"Captain, what's that sound?" a member shouted, and others around also heard the buzzing sound.

They glanced to their side, then stood there in shock, almost forgetting to swing their swords.

A dozen or so giant burrowing bees flapped their wings and clung to the top of the stone chamber, while more giant bees continued to emerge from the dimly lit walls in the distance.

These giant bees immediately joined the battle, and the two predators, who were originally fighting each other, unanimously set the "small" human in front of them as their target.

"Everyone hold your ground!" the Black Lion Knights commander shouted to his men. At the same time, he had to arrange for men to escort Count Valentine out of the underground stone chamber, but even the entrance was crowded with giant spiders.

The battle quickly became intense, and casualties began to occur.

…………

"Chief, there's a huge fight going on inside," the lame man whispered, reporting what his "big treasure" had seen.

"Hmm," Charles nodded, as he was holding a telescope and hiding behind a tree, looking at the entrance to the stone chamber.

When Valentine and his men arrived in Girth, Mary immediately sent them an intelligence report. There was no need for her to go out and wait for them. As soon as they arrived, they bought a batch of potions and sent people to arrest all the adventurers in the Ear Cleaner's Tavern and take them to the town hall for questioning, causing chaos throughout the town.

Upon receiving news that the other party had left the town, Charles immediately went to the queen ant and instructed her not to send out worker ants and soldier ants to prevent them from being spotted by the knights.

The plan went smoothly, and they indeed rushed into the "cafeteria".

In the past few days, Charles noticed that the giant bees and spiders seemed to have reached a mysterious balance and were no longer fighting much, probably because many members had died. But now that the Knights have appeared, it should be able to reignite their "enthusiasm".

"It's time to eat your fill, eat your fill like you're getting revenge." He held up his binoculars, keeping a close eye on the entrance.

"Yes, three people came out."