On the mountain path, five fine steeds galloped at top speed. Their stamina and power were astonishing, even as they crossed mountains and ridges.
This was the raiding capability of high-quality warhorses; compared to them, ordinary horses were worlds apart.
"Mountain Forest Town is just ahead. There’s a faint scent of blood in the air. It looks like Princest and Ronin’s group have clashed."
The Knight leading them was tall and powerfully built. A pair of squinted eyes looked particularly unnatural on his square face, and a slanted scar only added to the menacing aura he exuded.
This was Philton Henry, the captain of the Sain Territory’s Knight Squad.
"I wonder what the outcome was," Philton said, a little worried.
But his deputy, Uunei, looked relaxed. "Chief, you worry too much. With the handful of men Ronin brought, Princest could have easily finished the job. Why would they need us?"
Philton didn’t respond, merely whipping his horse’s flank to speed up.
After a winding journey, they finally reached the top of the hill that served as Mountain Forest Town’s landmark, but the scene that greeted them left them all stunned.
"This..."
The expression on the deputy’s face, who had just been joking moments before, froze. He didn’t know how to describe the shock of the moment.
None of them, Philton included, had expected to see a scene like this.
Dozens of bodies were strewn across the ground not far away. Among the foremost were familiar figures: Princest, Disen, Kate, and Malt.
What struck them the most was the group of people standing amidst the blood and corpses.
Each one of them held a blood-drenched longsword, silently watching the sudden arrival of these uninvited guests with unconcealed killing intent.
"How is this possible?! All five of them were Transcendents, including Princest, and they’re all dead?"
Uunei Knight, the deputy, spoke the first words in his shock. "He was an Intermediate Knight! His power was no less than mine."
Philton’s gaze swept over the battlefield. "Look closely," he cautioned. "Not only did Ronin’s group kill Princest, but their own losses are minimal. You could say this was a crushing victory."
A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. "The intelligence was wrong. Ronin has an expert with him!"
"So what do we do? Do we still attack?" Uunei asked in a low voice.
Philton frowned. The Baron couldn’t come himself, so many matters had been left for him to decide.
"First, let’s feel them out."
Meanwhile, when Ronin saw them arrive, his heart pounded with anxiety.
His greatest fear was that they would charge forward recklessly, leaving him no room to maneuver.
Fortunately, the situation looked promising.
When Ronin saw Philton and his men halt on their horses and watch for a good while, he knew his display had successfully bluffed them and sown doubt in their minds.
So he had to act even more "fearless."
Ronin lifted his sword and slowly walked forward a short distance, with Macken and Elron following close behind him.
"Who are you? What business do you have in my Mountain Forest Town?"
Philton and Uunei exchanged a look. ’It really was a rout,’ Philton thought. ’Princest and his men must have died before they could even mention Baron Reisen’s plan.’
Only a handful of people knew about the plot to encircle and kill Ronin. According to the plan, if Princest’s group had succeeded, they would have even killed all the infantrymen who participated.
Once they were dead, Ronin would have no way of knowing about their plan.
Philton quickly dismounted, his face breaking into a smile. "I am Philton Henry, Captain of the Sain Territory’s Knight Team. It is an honor to meet you, Lord Ronin!"
Ronin’s heart skipped a beat. ’It’s working.’
"Sir Philton, you know who I am?"
As Ronin asked, he looked Philton up and down with a suspicious, scrutinizing gaze, making it seem as if his guard was up.
"Knights of the Sain Territory... what are you doing in my Mountain Forest Town?"
Philton was also observing Ronin’s every move. He became more and more convinced that Ronin had no idea he was coming.
Thus, he offered his prepared excuse. "My lord, I was merely hunting in the mountains with my Knight Squad when I heard the sounds of a fight. We rode over to see what was happening."
As Philton spoke, his gaze shifted past Ronin to the corpses behind him. He asked with feigned confusion, "My lord, what is all this behind you?"
Ronin glanced back at the bodies littering the ground and gave an awkward smile.
"Just killed a few traitors, is all."
He shrugged. "A bit of an embarrassing mess, I know."
"Traitors?" Philton acted surprised and looked at the bodies again. "I’ve seen that man before. That can’t be Mountain Forest Town’s Civil Servant, Princest, can it? He betrayed you?"
"That’s right."
As Ronin spoke, he walked back and kicked Princest’s head so it rolled to face Philton. Then he continued:
"This fellow was the Civil Servant of Mountain Forest Town for a few years and started thinking he was its master."
Ronin’s tone was full of contempt. "Unfortunately for him, he overestimated his own power and underestimated mine. He was beheaded in a single exchange."
He kicked the head over. "Daring to challenge the might of the Wushan Clan with such pathetic power... He didn’t know his own limits!"
At that moment, all of Philton’s doubts vanished. He was now certain that Ronin had an expert by his side.
To cut off Princest’s head in a single exchange, that person definitely had to be at the Advanced Level!
Moreover, in a situation like this, Ronin’s arrogant attitude clearly showed he didn’t see Philton as a threat.
’In other words, he’s not worried at all that the five of us might attack!’
Philton took a deep breath and scanned the two men beside Ronin. He didn’t recognize either of them, but they both looked like Transcendents.
Macken, in particular, who was built like a bear and had a steady presence, seemed utterly unfathomable to him.
"I can’t believe Princest would betray you!"
Philton shook his head in disbelief. "I remember he was an Intermediate Knight. For you to win so easily... it seems the Marquis and the Count must have arranged for an expert to protect you in secret."
"I wouldn’t call it ’protection’."
Ronin said nonchalantly, "They only officially assigned me one Advanced Peak Knight. I reckon he’s not even as strong as you."
Philton’s pupils contracted. An Advanced Peak Knight. Winning easily against one would be no simple feat.
If he were to make a move here, even if he managed to kill Ronin, there was a high chance that this Knight would escape.
If that Knight reported what he had done to Wushan Castle, then the good days for the Sain Territory would be over.
And that was just the one they knew about.
Philton remembered Baron Reisen’s orders: do not act unless you are absolutely certain of success.
As for Princest and his men, even if they had implicated the Sain Territory, Reisen could have just claimed it was slander.
"Captain, should we...?" Uunei asked quietly from the side.
Philton shook his head slightly. He gave Ronin a Knight’s salute. "The might of the Wushan Clan must not be violated. Respected Baron, is there anything I can do to be of service?"
"I appreciate the thought, Sir Philton!"
Ronin spread his hands, an expression of disdain on his face. "But I’ve already taken care of things here. All that’s left is to clean up the bodies."
"I’d love to have you stay the night, but unfortunately, I don’t even know which room I’ll be sleeping in myself."
This was a clear order to leave.
Philton didn’t get angry. He remained perfectly respectful. "Then I wish you a pleasant evening, my lord."
"Thank you for your well wishes, Sir!"
Ronin waved at him. "And please, convey a message to Baron Reisen for me. As his neighbor, I look forward to paying him a visit."
"Of course!"
Philton mounted his horse again and prepared to leave with his Knight Squad.
Ronin turned and shouted in a deep voice, "Alright everyone, clean up the battlefield! Search their pockets and don’t leave a single copper coin behind!"
"Yes, sir!" the Guards responded loudly.
The crisp, unified shout echoed, startling Philton and his men, who were just about to leave.
They couldn’t help but turn to look, only to see that the Guards were in surprisingly high spirits.
"Let’s go!"
Philton ordered in a low voice, spurring his horse to leave.
Watching their retreating figures, Ronin felt his back, already soaked with sweat.
Just as he’d expected, they weren’t willing to take the risk.
His gamble had paid off.
"Keep lying down!"
He went to Malt’s side and instructed him in a low voice. "Everyone else, start clearing the battlefield."
Meanwhile, Philton and his men rode down the hill. As soon as their figures disappeared from Ronin’s line of sight, they slowed their pace.
"Captain, are we really just going back like this?" Uunei Knight asked in disbelief.
Philton frowned, lost in thought for a moment, then looked back in the direction of Mountain Forest Town.
"You all wait here for me!"
With that, he dismounted and ran quickly back toward the battlefield. This time, he didn’t take the main path, instead using the trees of the mountain forest for cover.
"My lord, someone is approaching," Elron warned in a low voice.
Ronin smiled to himself. ’Just as I thought, he came back to check.’ He was glad he had just told Malt to keep playing dead.
If Philton came back and saw Malt standing up, he would have known instantly that it was all an act.
Hidden in the forest, Philton watched in silence.
He saw the Guards genuinely searching the corpses for copper coins. Even Macken and Elron, who were beside Ronin, were rummaging through the bodies of Princest and his men.
’They’re not faking it.’
The last shred of suspicion in Philton’s heart vanished. ’It seems the Baron’s plan has failed.’
He sighed and returned to his squad. "Let’s go. We’ll report the situation back to the Baron."