Chapter 197


    Beside the manor, nestled within a stone cottage courtyard, thedies of the Mallister family were


    rudely awakened. They hastily donned their garments and, with anxious hearts, stepped out of the


    stone dwellings to peer into the distance. Their gate was firmly guarded by two Protégés of the


    Cobalt Strike, who forbade them to leave.


    "What''s happening outside?" Oda clung to her aunt. Her fear was palpable, as the urgent tolling of


    midnight bells always struck terror in the heart.


    The women gathered nervously around Helna, straining to hear themotion beyond their walls.


    "Fear not, Lucan stands watch," Helna reassured them. Lucan had protected the Mallister family for


    eight years and had rarely let them down.


    Soon after, they heard Lucan and the guard troop rush towards the neighboring estate, engaged in


    what sounded like a heated dispute with Vandill. Eventually, the argument moved further away,


    towards the mining district.


    It wasn''t long before a squad of ten guards hurried to their location. "You''ve arrived just in time to


    take over the watch," said one of the departing Cobalt Strike Protégés in a rush, his urgency


    unmistakable.


    The squad leader, Einr, entered through the door. He first bowed in respect, then soothed them.


    "Do not be rmed. The chief is negotiating."


    "Einr, what has happened?" Helna approached the iron gate, looking out into the distance.


    Oda and the others joined her and saw throngs of miners. They looked like a dark mass moving


    towards the mining district. Tens of thousands of people, as far as the eye could see, were all in a


    mood so somber it was palpable. With heads bowed, they trudged on, too exhausted and sleepy to


    speak, save for the children, who were newly woken and crying pitifully.


    The sight was heart-wrenching.


    "Vandill seems to have received sudden orders to relocate everyone by dawn tomorrow."


    "To Mythic Boulder Valley?" Helna eximed in horror. Her worst fears hade true.


    "Yes! We depart tomorrow and must reach it within a fortnight."


    "Tomorrow? But wasn''t it in a month’s time?"


    "Why the sudden move, with no prior notice?"


    "Crossing the forest to reach Mythic Boulder Valley... I dare not even think of it..."


    The women were in a panic. The journey to Mythic Boulder Valley was hundreds of miles, fraught


    with perilous woods, treacherous streams, and various Magi-Monsters and predators. They were


    gentledies without means of defense, and they feared they might be devoured en route.


    Oda asked anxiously, "Who has the Cobalt Strike appointed as escorts? How many Protégés do


    they have?"


    "Lucan is still inquiring. Stay calm, miss. Perhaps the Cobalt Strike forces will arrive by tomorrow,"


    Einr exined carefully, not wishing to frighten them further.


    "What of Korb?" she asked. Korb was at where the male members of the Mallister family were, quite


    a distance away.


    "Someone has already been dispatched there. Rest assured, all will be well."


    "How can this be?" Helna embraced Oda. Her gaze was fixed anxiously in the distance, praying


    Lucan could buy them more time and secure more protective forces; otherwise, they might indeed


    perish on the road to Mythic Boulder Valley. Death didn’t scare her. She feared for what would


    be of Oda, who was not yet fourteen, and all the other helpless girls, should she perish.


    To the west of the mining district, three hundred Cobalt Strike Protégés, disguised as bandits,y in


    wait in the shadows, eager for action. Three squads of a hundred each were positioned. Their


    captains made meticulous arrangements.


    Once Vandill managed to draw away the Mallister family''s guard troop, they had little to worry about.


    One groupprised women and the other the old and infirm, with virtually nobat strength.


    They were confident that their three hundred people could retreat without a casualty.


    Five Cobalt Strike Protégés stealthily arrived to report. "The Mallister family''s guard has been called


    to the square, leaving only a few to protect their kin."


    "Move out, swiftly and decisively," Garrat ordered.


    "Lead the way. Move out!" All three squads set off, brandishingmon des and tightening their


    masks. Guided by the leading Protégés, they stormed into the mining district.


    One squad was tasked with creating chaos, wantonly causing destruction, and intercepting the


    Mallister family''s guard.


    Another squad focused on looting, killing, and wreaking havoc.


    The third split in two, one half charging towards the women''s quarters, and the other towards where


    the Mallister family’s men were gathered.


    The night was deep, and over two hundred thousand town dwellers had already gathered in the


    vast square at the heart of the mining district, leaving the surrounding area deserted and eerily


    quiet.


    The three squads, embodying the guise of bandits, called out wildly, lit their torches, and set fires


    along their path with reckless abandon.


    The mining district of Azure Mountain was vast, and with the crowd and guards deliberately drawn


    to the central area, they encountered no resistance, bing increasingly bold. Houses, trees, and


    even tools were set aze, and the fire spread rapidly in the western part. The fierce mes


    expanded in swathes.


    "Ha! Let''s have a night of madness. Unleash yourselves!"


    "Tonight, you are bandits, bandits!"


    "Do what bandits must!"


    "Where is the magical ore? The treasure?"


    This content ? N?v/elDr(a)m/a.Org.


    "Take what you can. The Elder decrees, what you seize is yours!"