Chapter 84: The Gale Rises Again

The disappearance of a group of thieves did not cause much of a stir within the stronghold. Kaste's actions were exceptionally covert, evading the notice of many. They were entirely unaware that the head of the Thieves’ Guild had already led an attack against Jen, and just as silently as it had begun, the incident vanished without a trace. No one noticed its start, and no one witnessed its end.

Yet Kaste was not the only one with such intentions.

At some uncertain point, mercenaries in the stronghold began to leave in twos and threes, sneaking off towards the cave where Jen resided. But their fate was always the same: once inside, they were never seen or heard from again—neither living nor dead. In the beginning, as things remained somewhat discreet, only a few took notice. But as time passed and the number of “missing” mercenaries grew, it became impossible to ignore. Anyone with eyes could see that something was amiss.

Mercenaries were no fools. Even if they did not react immediately, the sudden and unexplained disappearance of their companions made it clear what had happened: they must have gone to attack Jen and his group. Yet none of them ever returned alive, which in itself was a glaring warning.

Gradually, as the number of missing mercenaries increased, the atmosphere in the stronghold grew increasingly subdued. So many had ventured out, and not a single one had come back—this was enough to instill fear in the hearts of the rest. Moreover, not every mercenary was after the bounty in the first place. So, after a while, the agitation that had stirred within the stronghold over the reward melted away as quietly as it had arisen.

It was hard to blame the mercenaries for their caution—the disappearances were simply too bizarre. No bodies, no evidence. Logically, even if Jen had slain them, there should have been corpses. Some mercenaries had even searched the surrounding area, yet found nothing—not so much as a drop of blood. The entire site was spotless, as if those living men had simply vanished into thin air without leaving the slightest trace, as if they had never been there at all. The mere sight of such a scene made the mercenaries’ skin crawl. Even when attacked by subterranean monsters, at least some scraps or remnants would remain!

As the situation escalated, someone at last could not restrain themselves and sought out Sir Liam, urging him to investigate what was truly happening in that cave. Had Jen killed them and hidden the bodies? Or was some sinister cult ritual at work?

Given the gravity of the matter, Liam could no longer turn a blind eye. Helpless, he gathered a few of the mercenary leaders and, bracing himself, paid another visit to Jen’s dwelling.

“Sir Liam? What a rare guest. To what do I owe the pleasure? Has Lord Lox returned?” Jen sat leisurely in his chair, savoring his tea as always, a book in hand which he perused with unhurried interest. Beside him, Iris was equally absorbed in her reading, while Bix bustled about, preparing desserts and tea for them both. Everything appeared perfectly ordinary, with not a thing out of place.

“Lord Lox has not returned yet.” Liam managed a wry smile at Jen’s inquiry, glancing around. The place was nothing but an ordinary cave—one look and all was revealed. There was nothing unusual to be seen: a central campfire for warmth, Iris’s ever-burning flame for light, a few rolled bedding mats, a neat stack of books on a stone slab, and silver tea and tableware. There was no blood, no bodies; given the size of the place, hiding anything substantial would have been impossible.

Seeing this, Liam found himself at a loss. He had entertained suspicions when he first heard of the missing mercenaries, wondering if Jen had been behind it. Yet now, it appeared otherwise. Still, since he was here, he had to ask.

“I just have a question for you, Mr. Jen. Quite a few mercenaries have gone missing lately—do you know anything about this?”

“Missing?” At this, Jen finally looked up, casting Liam a glance. “I’m not too sure about that. Who knows? Maybe those fellows wandered off into the Underdark to die?”

“But didn’t you clear out all the monsters in the area?” one of the mercenaries who accompanied Liam interjected, clearly dissatisfied with Jen’s answer. He was a hot-tempered man, and now his eyes blazed as he demanded a response. Jen glanced at him with utter boredom, as if he were nothing more than rubbish strewn in the street.

“It’s hard to communicate with people of low intelligence. We only cleared the surroundings, not the whole Underdark. This is nothing like the surface world—I can guarantee the safety of patrols nearby, but further in? Who can say? If someone wishes to throw their life away, that’s their own business.”

“You...” The mercenary, enraged, pointed a shaking finger at Jen but could find no retort. Jen was not wrong—the mercenaries came for profit, and after Jen had cleared out the local monsters, many were tempted to venture deeper. Of course, there were always fools who would forever remain “lost.”

In the end, Liam could extract nothing useful. Regarding the missing mercenaries, Jen simply claimed ignorance, and with no suspicious evidence, the three could do nothing but take their leave.

“Hmph, a bunch of fools. I’m surprised they caught on so quickly; I thought it would take them longer to realize something was wrong,” Jen scoffed once the trio had left. He closed his book, stood, and walked to the back wall of the cave, where he knocked gently. As he did, the well-hidden stone wall slid away in silence, revealing a clean, well-lit passage.

Jen, who relished comfort, would never willingly live in such a dilapidated cave. In fact, after acquiring it, he had instructed Bix and the goblins to dig a tunnel connecting the cave to the dungeon below, complete with a secret door at the entrance. Whenever they were alone, Jen, Iris, and Bix would return to the dungeon. If visitors arrived, the xenomorphs would “greet” them. Unbeknownst to anyone, Jen had long since expanded his territory, incorporating the surrounding lands into the domain of his dungeon. No matter how many came, once they set foot on dungeon ground, they could never escape the system’s detection.

As for those who had come looking for trouble, the lurking xenomorphs had already disposed of them, dragging their corpses below and devouring them clean. Jen welcomed this—he didn’t kill people himself because it would not grant him experience points, but if they came into the dungeon, that was another matter. Watching his experience points rise each day brought him no end of delight. Unfortunately, these people were not entirely fools; once they sensed something amiss, they stopped. How wonderful it would have been to have a steady stream of experience delivered to him every day.

Now, he could only hope that Viscount Balf would do better and send some higher-level “walking experience points.” His xenomorphs were nearly ready to evolve.

With that thought, Jen shook his head and strode into the passage.

Clang! The exquisite, luxurious teacup crashed to the floor, shattering into pieces. Once, it would have fetched a high price, but now, the finely crafted tea set was nothing more than a pile of debris.

Yet, its sacrifice did nothing to ease its owner’s foul mood.

“Useless, all of them—utterly useless!” Viscount Balf paced the room like a caged beast, fists clenched, eyes bloodshot. In a corner, Cotton stood pale and silent, barely daring to breathe. He was beginning to regret his choice—he had sought out Viscount Balf both to eliminate Jen and to secure a path for his own future. In Cotton’s mind, Viscount Balf was young, capable, noble, and powerful. Dealing with a fallen noble should have been no more difficult than crushing an ant.

But he had not expected Jen to be so formidable. Not only had Balf lost many men, but now even the mercenaries dared not provoke Jen. Worse still, Balf’s reputation among the nobility had plummeted. He was not the only scion of noble blood at the stronghold, but his arrogance and strength had won him few friends. Now, seeing Viscount Balf bested by a ruined noble, the others could only laugh at his misfortune.

“My lord... please calm yourself. This must be that man’s doing. If we investigate thoroughly...”

“Silence!” Balf cut him off with a cold glare and a sharp wave of his hand.

“Didn’t the paladin investigate? And what did he find? Nothing! Damn it, I’ve had enough! Attend me!”

At his shout, a butler-like middle-aged man hurried in and bowed respectfully.

“My lord, what are your orders?”

“Send my command—assemble the entire guard! I will personally lead them to seize that villain! If he can withstand ten men, or fifty, I do not believe he can withstand a hundred—or five hundred!”

His eyes glowed with fury, a blazing wrath burning in his heart.

“I wish to see just what he is truly capable of!”