The fury of being deceived and toyed with instantly shattered Yurian's last shred of rationality.
His figure suddenly blurred, vanishing from his original spot as if teleporting, and in the next instant, he appeared ghost-like before Yano.
The dagger in his hand mercilessly swept towards Yano's unprotected neck.
It was so fast that Yano had no time to react at all.
"Clang!!!"
A sharp, ear-piercing metallic clash rang out violently.
"What?!"
Petrification?
Magic scroll?
So it really was a magic scroll.
But no matter how strong a scroll is, it has time limits and usage counts. Let's see how many more times you can block!
This thought had just arisen, and he was even prepared to launch the next, more lethal combo attack.
Right at that moment, he saw Yano in front of him suddenly take a deep breath, his eyes serious, raising his sword and roaring:
"Secret Art: Torrent!"
Secret Art? Torrent?
Yurian's brain hadn't processed it yet.
"Boom!"
A tremendous impact force erupted from Yano's chest, squarely slamming into Yurian's completely unprepared torso.
"Pfft—!"
Yurian felt as if he had been head-on charged by a galloping rhinoceros, his entire body flying backward like a kite with its string cut, heavily smashing into the wet, cold mud over ten meters away, splattering large amounts of muck.
Secret Art... Torrent...
What the hell is this thing...
Before he could figure it out, his vision went black, and he completely lost consciousness.
A seemingly serious and earnest duel actually ended in a farcical manner.
The entire battlefield instantly fell into deathly silence.
A moment later, Yano successfully locked the four new team members into the Little Black Room.
"Mmmpgh! Mmmpgh!!"
The other thieves inside the Little Black Room widened their eyes when they saw their appearances.
The Shadow Fang Team?!
And that person is... Yurian!
The strongest blade of Rusty Key!
Even he couldn't defeat the "evil" Yano?
We're finished!
Completely finished!
Everyone's vision went dark, and the Little Black Room immediately erupted with another wave of desperate muffled cries.
Outside the Little Black Room, Chen Yu and Yano squatted together, happily organizing the spoils of war.
"Such good people."
"Not only did they come, but they brought so many gifts too."
These guys had clearly just completed a mission and hadn't had time to return to their base before being dispatched here. Their backpacks were frighteningly full of loot.
Precious Alchemical Bombs, glittering Gold Coins, green potions, identity tags, wolf fangs...
And quite a few bloody Magic Organs.
Naturally, all of them went into Chen Yu's stomach.
Having a big main body stomach is really great.
Swallowing over a dozen Magic Organs at once doesn't even feel filling.
However, to prevent adventurers outside from coming to disturb them, he sent out his clone to repair the Magic Formation nodes.
Soon after, the Maze Formation rose up once again.
"Boss, the fighting just now was so intense, it definitely attracted a lot of rats."
"I'll go over and strip them all."
When Yano said this, he carried a strange excitement, making Chen Yu suspect he might be addicted to being a pickpocket.
After receiving permission, he left, leaving only Little Ka waiting nearby, his small eyes darting around as he watched the outside, guarding his safety.
An unknown amount of time passed, and when the food in his stomach was completely digested, Chen Yu felt something flicker before his eyes.
[Bronze Lv.4 → Lv.5]
[Resilient Carapace Lv.3 → Lv.4]
[Hallucinogenic Factor Lv.3 → Lv.4]
[Stealth Lv.1 → Lv.2]
Right at that moment, Yano's voice came back from outside.
"Boss, I'm back!"
"I caught another Rusty Key rat outside, calls himself 'Mole' Moriarty, says he has important intelligence."
"Important intelligence?"
...
Rusty Key Guild hidden base.
Guild Leader's office.
"What?!"
"Yurian was captured?!"
Smoke hadn't completely dissipated from the extinguished cigar butt, the scorched smell of cheap tobacco mixed with the scent of old parchment, permeating the slightly oppressive room.
The Rusty Key Guild Leader was startled upright by the sudden intelligence, his clenched fists turning white at the knuckles, his previously calm face now clouded over, his eyes churning with disbelief.
This news was like a bolt from the blue, crashing hard onto his meticulously maintained sense of control.
Shadow Fang, the guild's fangs.
Yurian, the sharpest, most reliable blade in his hand.
Actually... failed? And was captured?!
The nobleman on the sofa sighed lightly.
"It seems we've all underestimated that man, 'Miracle' Yano? It appears the title wasn't mistaken."
"My dear Guild Leader, this situation... is truly unexpected. So, the ransom? Will you pay it, or not?"
"Losing a carefully cultivated team, tsk tsk tsk... even I would feel heartache."
The Guild Leader's face shifted uncertainly, and he began pacing back and forth within the limited carpeted space, each step thudding dully on the floor.
After several rounds of pacing, the Guild Leader suddenly stopped, his back to the nobleman, looking coldly at the ruin map on the wall and said:
"Moriarty, he's just a pawn running errands on the surface. Without the guild's underground network of channels, without the guild's thieves smoothing his traces and diverting attention, he alone couldn't have quietly transported those 'goods' out of the Border and into those Goblin caves."
He turned around sharply.
"You think this matter only concerns me? Those dirty, greedy, vindictive Green-skinned Shorties, they received my 'goods', took my benefits."
"Now that the guild is in trouble, they're more anxious than I am. They will 'handle' this matter for me."
"Oh?"
The nobleman raised an eyebrow.
"Using the uncontrollable wildfire of a Goblin Army to burn the people you want burned?"
"But my dear Guild Leader, you must not forget, the Kingdom's hounds, those knights in shining armor, their noses have been sniffing around these ruins all along."
"As soon as those Green-skinned Shorties act on a large scale and make a big commotion, those hounds will instantly catch the scent, follow the clues... who do you think they will suspect?"
"A Moriarty who 'fled from justice', or a 'Rusty Key' that has the ability to mobilize Goblins, just suffered heavy losses, and urgently needs revenge?"
The muscles on the Guild Leader's face twitched violently. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"I admit... that 'Miracle' Yano, that unknown adventurer novice from Ironboot Town, he has driven me into a corner."
"Losing Yurian, losing Shadow Fang... the guild... suffering severe damage, I cannot afford to gamble."
The nobleman looked at him, the playful smile on his face finally receding somewhat, replaced by a slightly pitying scrutiny.
"Alright, alright, who told this guy who doesn't know his place to anger our dear Guild Leader?"
He elegantly rose from the sofa, walked to the door, placed his hand on the doorknob, and looked back one last time at the Guild Leader who seemed to have aged several years in an instant.
"Then, good luck, dear Hades. I hope... the Goblins' wrath will burn as fiercely and as 'cleanly' as you wish."
"Goodbye, I should return to the Dark Realm. If I stay here any longer, I feel like I can already smell the stench of those Green-skinned Shorties."
After saying this, he gently pulled the door open, then "clicked" it shut, leaving Hades alone in the room to ponder.
Not long after, a thief member entered the office and left in a hurry.