Yano shoved a bruised and battered, ragged-clothed man back into the Little Black Room.
"Believe me, I really have important information, huge intelligence! I'm truly not in cahoots with that bastard Hades, I swear to heaven!"
"Mole" Moriarty staggered along while pleading in a tearful voice, his face now completely etched with terror, looking exactly like a mouse that had fallen into a cat's nest.
For him,
Nothing could be more frightening than a living, breathing Yano.
He was still alive and kicking right here.
While the Shadow Fang Team, along with that monstrous Yurian, had all vanished without a trace!
What did this mean?
This man had most likely defeated Yurian, who was hailed as Rusty Key's sharpest blade.
At that moment, a Slime was leisurely "passing by" on the ground, hopping up to squat on the Mushroom Rock as if enjoying this farce.
Yano understood the hint and tried hard to stiffen his face, imitating a bully's demeanor.
"Stop dawdling! Spit out whatever information you have, quick! After you're done, I still have to lock you up inside."
He jerked his thumb backward, pointing toward the fungal wood fortress.
"See, the Little Black Room—it's full of your guild's 'good buddies.' You won't be bored once you're in there, perfect for catching up."
"Mole" Moriarty looked in the direction pointed and began trembling uncontrollably.
He could almost hear the desperate whimpers coming from inside and see Yurian's gloomy face.
Demon!
This Yano was absolutely a demon!
He cursed wildly in his heart.
Seeing Yano's hand about to grab him, Moriarty was scared out of his wits.
"I'll talk, I'll tell everything! I know Rusty Key's big secret—Hades! That damn Guild Leader! He's been conducting human trafficking with the Goblin Army from the western swamp, the bastard is a human trafficker."
"All respectable on the surface, but behind the scenes he specializes in abducting women from the Kingdom and selling them to Goblin nests. He and those green-skinned shorties are thick as thieves."
"Now that you've pushed him into a corner, he's definitely going to mobilize the Goblin Army to retaliate against you. Sir Knight, believe me, you'd better leave this place immediately, right now! And don't forget to take me with you—I know their routes."
"Goblin Army?"
Chen Yu bounced his body curiously.
Yano explained through the little slime on his chest.
Goblin Army.
A green-skinned force roaming the vast swamps, formed by an alliance of numerous tribes.
They inherited the inherent cunning, greed, and cruelty of the Goblin race, while also possessing the discipline and cold-bloodedness of an army.
After every Winter Year, the strongest Bugbears from each tribe would engage in bloody gladiatorial combat, ultimately determining the most ferocious and cunning one to wear the crude bone crown symbolizing power, becoming the Army Commander ruling over all tribes.
This was how they maintained the army's continuation.
They typically dwelled in burrows on relatively dry mounds deep in the swamps, or built foul-smelling crude fortresses using plundered wood and stone.
By enslaving other races—Kobolds, Dwarves, Humans—they forced them to mine, gather, and then conducted dirty trades with gray market forces at the swamp's edge.
Trading for weapons, equipment, Magic Organs, and... living people.
Every summer when magical tides surged, it became their "peak season" for restlessness, invading border villages of the Kingdom, creating panic and plunder.
They were vast in number, like maggots in the swamp, impossible to eradicate completely, representing a nightmare for Kingdom folk living along the border.
Goblins actually forming an army... this was troublesome.
If what this thief said was true, then these green-skinned creatures as his neighbors definitely wouldn't be very peaceful.
However... he looked at the trembling Moriarty, feeling that this guy wasn't entirely honest and definitely had other secrets hidden away.
"Yano, scare him a bit, see what else we can squeeze out of him."
Yano received the instruction and perked up immediately.
Playing the bully?
That was his specialty.
He once again tried to make a ferocious expression, grabbing Moriarty by the collar and lifting him until his toes dangled off the ground.
"You say you're not with Rusty Key? Who are you trying to fool? A lying rat like you deserves to be locked in the Little Black Room for some serious reflection."
He made as if to drag Moriarty toward the Little Black Room's entrance.
"Waaah—!"
Moriarty was scared out of his mind, his feet flailing wildly in the air.
This Yano wasn't any miracle—he was clearly a demon wearing human skin.
He could already see his own miserable fate. He could no longer hold anything back, screaming with tears and snot streaming down his face.
"I'll talk! I'll tell everything! Don't lock me up in there!"
"It's Hades! It was all Hades forcing me! He made me go into the Kingdom to kidnap and lure women, forced me to smuggle them across the border to sell to the Goblins."
"Now that the operation's been exposed, Kingdom Knights are coming after us. He wants to make me the scapegoat, pinning all the crimes on me."
"If I go back to the guild, he'll absolutely kill me! Sir Knight, you must believe me! I was forced into all of this."
"Kingdom Knights?" Yano looked somewhat confused.
There were Kingdom Knights in this dungeon too?
"It's that Silver Blade Knight, Alice Arevalo—a terrifying woman. Please don't let me fall into her hands! As long as you take me away from here, I'll tell you everything, all of Rusty Key's secrets!"
"Alice Arevalo?"
Hearing this name, Yano's hand trembled slightly, the forced ferocity on his face instantly collapsing, replaced by obvious unease.
"You know her?" Chen Yu asked curiously.
"Boss, Knight Alice is the training instructor from Ironboot Town I mentioned before. If she's here, then wouldn't... ahem... she know about all the things I've done?"
The thought of his "heroic deeds" of stripping people and robbing them being reported back to the Border Garrison made his face burn with embarrassment.
"What should we do, Boss? Should we believe what he says?"
Chen Yu bounced away leisurely.
"Anyway, we've already captured Rusty Key's core members and taught them a lesson. Of course we should run away now."
"A bunch of Goblins without Magic Organs, with pockets cleaner than Adventurers—even if we win, there's no loot to be gained."
Yano completely agreed, silently praising the Boss's wisdom.
Only a fool would wait for the Goblin army to arrive.
"Then Boss, what should we do with these Rusty Key rats? We can't just let them go back, right?"
"Silly, with so many wanted criminals, of course we package them up and deliver them to that Lady Alice in exchange for bounty money."
"Bounty?!"
Oh right.
Yano's eyes instantly shone brighter than Gold Coins.
He looked at the still-sobbing Moriarty in his hand. That blazing gaze, as if looking at a walking pile of gold coins, made Moriarty shudder all over, giving rise to an ominous premonition in his heart.