Chapter 2: New Century (Epilogue)
Chapter 427: Tit for Tat
A long line quickly formed in front of the Whirlwind Dunes’ gate. Among them was a Merchant Caravan, disguised by (Player Name) (M) and his group.
“What do we do, (Player Name)? We can’t get out now!” Claudia said, her expression panicked. The woman’s intuition told her that everything happening now was related to the medicine (Player Name) had bought from the black market.
(Player Name) was also startled by the Orcs’ formation. He replayed his actions in the underground black market several times in his mind. After confirming there were no loopholes, he gradually relaxed. He squeezed Claudia’s hand and comforted her, “Don’t worry, it’s probably just a routine inspection. It has nothing to do with us. Be patient.”
The Players’ resurrection ability was unfathomable. At that time, he was wearing a mask and a cloak. (Player Name) absolutely did not believe that these Orcs could identify him.
After a moment of waiting, heavy footsteps echoed from the main road, causing the ground to tremble slightly. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.
They saw a tall green-skinned Orc, sitting calmly on a ferocious Kodo, approaching them. Behind the Orc was a giant hammer, and he wore a spiked half-plate armor that revealed half of his strong chest. His fangs were as sharp as knives, tied with dirty red string, and he wore a necklace of monster skeletons. A demonic fire seemed to flicker in his scarlet eyes.
(Player Name) subtly cast an appraisal technique.
[Bart Maxi, Earthsplitter Hammer]
[Identity: Legion Commander]
[Strength: Level 68 (Seventh Tier)]
[Threat Level: Lethal]
[Others: ???]
“Good heavens, this is a super BOSS!” (Player Name) clicked his tongue inwardly. Although he was very confident about what he had hidden, seeing this powerful Orc still made him sweat. Moreover, this green-skinned Orc was accompanied by a Lion-man.
(Player Name) also used the appraisal technique on him. Level 69, almost no different from the green-skinned Orc next to him. Two great BOSSes had arrived. Next to their ridiculously long HP Bars, the red and black skull icons shone blindingly. (Player Name) was almost 100% certain that the appearance of these two Orc Legion Commanders was related to the incident in the underground black market.
Looking at the triple-layered Orc infantry blocking the city gate, (Player Name) felt bitter. “Was it really necessary to target me like this just because I stole a little something?”
“I apologize for detaining all of you here. I will have to delay you for a little while,” Bart said, his tone polite but his voice extremely cold, his eyes filled with killing intent. “Just fifteen minutes ago, the market set up for legion transactions was attacked by a mysterious thief, and a large amount of precious goods were lost. Now, this thief is hiding among you.”
Bart the Warlord’s words caused a stir. Although he didn’t explicitly say that the underground black market had been attacked, anyone who had spent some time in Whirlwind Dunes knew that this was just a fig leaf Bart was putting over the black market. The gazes of the crowd became strange. All sorts of emotions were present: surprise, schadenfreude, anger, panic… and a buzzing sound of discussion.
“Silence!” Bart roared, then slammed the giant hammer from behind him onto the ground. The surroundings gradually quieted down. He scanned the crowd fiercely, but unfortunately, he didn’t have the Players’ system, so he found everyone suspicious. The thief was among these people; Bart had that premonition.
“Now, all Magic users, step forward!” Seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone’s faces, and not wanting to offend the forces behind some of the mages, Bart patiently explained despite his impatience, “The thief has the ability to move items out of thin air and also uses a magic called ‘sorcery’! Therefore, please casters cooperate with our investigation.”
What was sorcery? The casters looked bewildered. Every mage was considered knowledgeable. Due to their cultivation of mental power, their memory far surpassed ordinary people and other Professionals. By the time they advanced to the Magus stage, mages could achieve photographic memory. There were even some Maguses in the crowd at this moment, but they had never heard of sorcery.
“Lord Bart, isn’t this ‘sorcery’ something you made up to make things difficult for us guests?” a discordant voice sounded from the crowd. The people parted, revealing a young man in a luxurious mage robe walking out sideways. He moved with the elegance of a swan, his chin slightly raised, outlining an arrogant curve. The man took out a staff from his Space Ring. On the black vine staff, a crimson Magic Crystal ignited the surrounding air, and Fire Elementals instantly boiled. This was a powerful fire mage.
Bart narrowed his eyes dangerously. He detested two types of people: mages and Humans. He recognized the mage in front of him; he was from the South Continent and specialized in buying Parasitic Tree Fruits. Behind this mage stood a team of Maguses. To Bart, these Maguses were minor figures, and he didn’t take the arrogant Human mage seriously. However, he had to be mindful of the backgrounds behind these mages: the Saint Lodia Empire, the most powerful empire in the South Continent. It would be unwise for the Orc Royal Court to provoke a belligerent enemy because of a few minor Maguses.
With this thought, Bart’s face remained expressionless as he replied to the young mage’s sarcastic questioning, “I have no reason to fabricate a lie to waste everyone’s time. Beside me is one of the Orc Royal Court’s warlords; he is a witness to this incident. Buyers and stall owners in the black market can also testify that what I said is true.”
The young mage looked at Bart for a moment before turning to the mages behind him and asking a few questions. They were speaking in a language other than the common continental tongue, so the surrounding people couldn’t understand. However, they saw the Maguses behind the young mage nod.
(Player Name) recognized one of the Maguses. It was someone who had bought medicine from the same stall as him earlier. The Parasitic Tree Fruits he had bought then had been counterfeit.
“I understand the situation now.” The young mage’s expression changed from nonchalant to serious. “There was indeed a serious theft incident in the underground black market.” His subordinates had just explained what happened in the underground black market to him. The fight had broken out just as they were preparing to leave. These Maguses had watched the commotion from the periphery for a while before leaving.
“However,” the young mage paused, gazing at Bart, and said without yielding, “I can guarantee that my mages are not the thieves, so please let us go immediately. Our time is more precious than you imagine.” As soon as he spoke, the atmosphere, which had slightly eased, became tense again.
***
The recent chapters have been about resolving (Player Name)’s plot hooks while introducing the Orc faction. This will end soon.
