Amber Sword
Chapter 135: Act 2 Mercenary_2

Chapter 135: Act 2 Mercenary_2

So she always thought she might die in the next second, and was so scared that she tightly closed her eyes, yet her body remained motionless, protecting the girl beneath her.

About a minute later, with two waves of arrow rain coming in succession, the crackling sound around them finally lessened. Su and Frey opened their eyes together, trembling. They exchanged a glance and saw the lingering fear in each other’s eyes.

"Skel... skel... skeletons, outside." Su said, somewhat breathlessly.

Frey stiffened for a moment, her heart turning cold. She realized that the Madara Army had entered the city. She never doubted Ben would deceive her, just didn’t expect it to happen so quickly. Only now she understood why he always insisted on time so much.

The future Valkyrie scrambled to her feet, grabbing Su’s hand to pull her up. "Su, let’s go!"

"Where?" Su asked, a bit at a loss.

"Run! Leave here! We have to leave this place together!" Frey’s mind was in chaos. She now truly understood the pressure Ben was under. After thinking it over, she could only take things moment by moment, waiting to meet Ben before making any further plans.

"I want to go back; my father is still in the shop."

"I’ll go with you."

Su nodded.

Bonoan Market was on the west side of Ridenburg, close to the Song River, while the Red Copper Dragon Storytelling Tavern was on the north street between Bonoan Market and Traveler’s Bridge, not far from each other. But by the time Frey and Su arrived, the crowd and the tavern’s exterior were already packed because of the raging fire towards the West Gate —

Throughout the night, there had been the fire at the Noble Council, followed by frequent troop movements, making the entire situation ominously restless. People had long been whispering to each other, asking what was happening.

Some thought the Madara Army was at the gates; others believed it was noble infighting, but no one imagined that the Undead Army had already entered the city. Frey and Su pushed through the crowd and found the owner of the ’Red Copper Dragon Storytelling’ and its customers already outside, gesturing towards the blaze at the West Gate.

As soon as Su saw her father, she threw herself into his arms like a fledgling swan returning to its nest. The tavern owner, Reto, hesitated slightly at his daughter’s action. He patted the girl’s back to calm her down, but she stood on tiptoe to whisper in his ear. Reto’s eyes darkened. He looked at Frey, nodded in gratitude, and then turned to the group of mercenaries by his side — Frey noticed that most of these people were his previous customers.

Reto clapped his hands, getting everyone’s attention. Someone even joked, "What’s up, old Reto? Are you going to buy us drinks to celebrate this big fireworks display?"

The crowd cheered.

But the tavern owner replied, "I’ll buy drinks, but not today. Listen up, everyone. Madara has entered the city."

When he first said Madara had entered the city, people didn’t quite understand. It took a few seconds for them to react. Then Reto repeated, making the thirty or so people present fall silent.

Is this real?

Now everyone’s face clearly read that one question.

"Su told me, and she wouldn’t lie to me," Reto said frankly.

Frey frowned slightly. Normally, people wouldn’t discuss such news in public because it could cause panic. But unless Reto hadn’t considered this, or he had his plans, the latter seemed more likely to the future Valkyrie.

After taking some time to digest the news, someone asked with difficulty, "What do we do?"

It seemed that everyone’s priority was considering this problem first, rather than immediately turning to leave or screaming. Frey watched their reactions carefully and suddenly realized that the relationship between this tavern and its regulars might not be as simple as it seemed.

"Fight our way out."

"Let’s all fight our way out together," someone suggested.

"But how do we fight our way out?" someone else asked.

Since Madara attacked from the West Gate, most people would think the farthest East Gate would be the safest place. However, mercenaries, having battle experience, had some basic tactical understanding. Erune’s siege tactics often involved surrounding three sides and attacking one, but the crucial factor was whether it was a surprise attack or a siege.

Madara’s tactical objectives also mattered. Were the Undead aiming to kill, capture the city, loot, or did they have further attack goals?

This was a significant challenge in fighting Madara for the Bright World, as it was hard for the living to judge the intentions and tactical plans of the dead.

For a moment, there were many opinions, but no one could come up with a convincing method. Frey waited impatiently, raising her sword repeatedly, finally blurting out, "I... I think I know someone who can lead you out of the city—"

Her words silenced the crowd, turning their eyes towards her. Someone recognized her and had the mind to whistle. "Isn’t this the little miss from before?"

Frey blushed under everyone’s gaze. She hadn’t expected to say that out loud. She couldn’t help but think she was making decisions for Ben— would Ben blame her? She suddenly found herself very afraid of that. But after calming down, from Ben’s perspective, he had always been seeking support, so as long as these people were unified into a useful force, it would be fine.

But how could she unify these people?

Faced with the moment of decision, the future Valkyrie hesitated. Could she do it? With only the status of a militia captain, could she manage to command these experienced battlefield mercenaries?

But Frey quickly steadied herself. At most, she thought, she would give it a try. The girl clenched her sword, holding it nervously to her chest.

Her demeanor now had a girlish shyness, and everyone turned their eyes to Reto. The latter introduced, "This young lady saved my daughter earlier."

"So, miss, how can we trust you?" someone asked.

Here it comes. Frey took a deep breath. "You can certainly trust me. Do you know why those guards were trying to arrest my companions and me?"

"Why?"

"Because we are the militia of Buqi. It was invaded by Madara two days ago. My companions and I escaped Madara’s clutches just to bring the news to Ridenburg, but the nobles’ response was disappointing."

She paused. "Surely you wouldn’t expect those people to save you, right?"

"Of course not, those worms."

"Worms. Well said, let’s have a drink."

"A drink." The crowd responded.

"You mean, you have a way to evade Madara’s attention?" Reto looked at her and asked.

Frey nodded.

...

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(PS: With the emergence of the fourth generation heavy fighter, I, too, am exploding with excitement. Please bear with me regarding the writing style of the past few Chapters. It’s just an exercise, and I won’t always use this style. It’s just an experiment, and this book has only just begun, so please don’t mind.

By the way, maybe there will be another explosion tomorrow, will there?)