Chapter 97

Chapter 96: Ambush in the Dark Alley (Please Subscribe! Please Vote!)

The incident at the Basoro family's residence did not cause much of a stir in the Royal Market.

For this high-end market, which was exclusively open to nobles and wealthy merchants, it was not unusual for the rich to spend lavishly here.

The truly sensational big moves generally only appeared at the monthly auction.

That was the battlefield where the major noble families, wealthy merchants, and powerful factions fought until their dog brains were bashed out, and where the truly sensational big moves often emerged.

Although Aguilar and the others were annoyed by the Basoro family's domineering behavior, they could not afford to provoke them and had to swallow their frustration.

Rig also returned empty-handed, failing to obtain the sword technique he desired.

On the contrary, the two young girls, Kariga and Shafuni, could almost be said to have returned with a full load. As soon as they left the Royal Market, they had their accompanying guards load all the packages they carried onto the carriage, making it seem as if they were wholesale merchants.

The gathering of the group thus came to an end.

"I'll be heading back first," Rig said to Aguilar and the others.

"So soon?" Aguilar quickly tried to persuade him to stay, saying, "Not going to the second half?"

"No," Rig shook his head and said, "It's about time. I'm currently living under someone else's roof, so I shouldn't stay out too late."

This statement left Aguilar, who had been trying to persuade Rig to stay, with no choice but to give up.

There was no way he could urge Rig to ignore Yulie's feelings.

Aguilar wasn't so tactless.

Things were different now. In the past, he could have used phrases like "Don't be such a buzzkill," "Men need to be free," or "Can you really be controlled?" to provoke Rig's rebelliousness. But now, he couldn't do that.

He couldn't tell Rig to ignore the other person's feelings, could he?

Aguilar wasn't that reckless.

"Alright then," Aguilar said with a hint of regret, "Let's find another opportunity to gather next time."

"Sure," Rig nodded indifferently and turned to leave without any lingering attachment.

There, the carriage arranged by the Franzel family had already been driven over by the coachman.

Rig entered the carriage, and Aine and Ian, who followed him, also walked in without looking back at Aguilar and the others.

Soon, the carriage drove away, leaving Aguilar and his group of eight watching as the carriage with the Franzel family's crest departed, seemingly lost in a mix of emotions.

"We should be going too," Kariga finally spoke, still holding Shafuni's hand.

"Alright," Aguilar didn't try to persuade Kariga to stay, saying with a lack of interest, "Be careful on your way."

Kariga pursed her lips, not commenting, and led Shafuni away.

However, before leaving, Kariga said one more thing.

"I advise you not to have any ideas about him," Kariga said, either as a warning or a reminder, "He's not the same as before. He's no longer the naive country boy who can be easily deceived by you."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Aguilar smiled and said to Kariga, "Rig is my good friend. Why would I deceive him?"

"If you say so, then let's leave it at that," Kariga looked at Aguilar meaningfully and said, "I'm just reminding you out of long-standing friendship. Whether you listen or not is up to you."

With that, Kariga paused for a moment, then sighed.

"I have a feeling that the severe injury he suffered over a month ago really transformed him."

Leaving this sigh, Kariga, along with Shafuni, who had fallen silent, walked to her family's carriage and left gracefully.

Aguilar's face darkened as he stared at Kariga's departing back, remaining silent for a long time.

Seeing Aguilar like this, the tall, short, fat, and thin group didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

Only Senna managed to muster the courage to ask Aguilar.

"Weren't you going to ask Rig to introduce you to the Franzel family's person? Why didn't you say anything?"

Senna had this doubt.

"Are you stupid?" Aguilar said coldly, "After losing contact for over a month, if I asked him to introduce me to that person right after meeting, what would you think?"

Needless to say, you would definitely suspect that he had lured you out for that purpose, right?

Senna was speechless.

"This can't be rushed," Aguilar said with a serious face, "Kariga is right. Rig has indeed changed. If we still treat him like a fool, we might be the ones to suffer in the end."

For this reason, Aguilar suppressed his inner impulse and didn't rush things.

"Let's wait a while," Aguilar said, "Invite him out more often. Once he lets his guard down, we can bring up the matter."

Aguilar had the patience and willingness to wait.

"Alright," Senna nodded.

What Aguilar and Senna didn't know was that they wouldn't have another chance.

"Tell the butler that any letters or requests for meetings from Aguilar and his group should be rejected," Rig suddenly said in the carriage.

Aine and Ian were both taken aback.

"Is that wise?" Ian asked, "Aren't they your friends, Mr. Rig?"

"Only if they truly consider me a friend," Rig said calmly, "From this meeting, it's clear that, apart from Kariga and Shafuni, the rest have ulterior motives."

Aguilar and his group's actions were almost as good as telling Rig that they were a gang.

Whether it was Senna or the tall, short, fat, and thin group, they had likely been recruited by Aguilar and were now his people.

This second son of the Rein family, who seemed to be always out and about, was actually secretly building his own team and accumulating his own network.

Senna and the others were the results of his efforts.

Rig had reason to suspect that the Lam Viscount's family, where Senna came from, and the families behind the tall, short, fat, and thin group had all been recruited by Aguilar and were now his supporters.

Rig himself had also been recruited, with Aguilar seeing his potential and wanting to secure a future tactical mage.

Kariga and Shafuni's positions were a bit more complicated.

Shafuni seemed to follow Kariga's lead without any special actions.

Kariga, on the other hand, appeared to have a somewhat strained relationship with Aguilar. They seemed to be part of the same group, but Aguilar seemed to have some difficulty with Kariga, and Kariga also kept a certain distance from Aguilar, unlike the others who were more harmonious.

These were things the original owner had not noticed, and Rig only understood them after this meeting.

After understanding, Rig concluded that these people were not worth deepening ties with.

Since that was the case, Rig decided to cut ties and not want to associate with them anymore.

"From now on, if we can avoid meeting, it's best not to," Rig decided.

"A wise decision," Aine agreed with a calm expression.

Clearly, the female knight, after observing Aguilar and the others, also had a poor impression of them.

"That's for the best," Ian said thoughtfully, "At least, this way, it won't involve the young lady."

Hearing this, Rig was about to say something but suddenly froze.

"Huh?"

Aine and Ian looked at Rig, who had suddenly stopped, and then they also seemed to notice something, narrowing their eyes.

In their perception, the carriage, which had been moving at a steady pace, gradually came to a stop.

The surroundings became eerily quiet, with no human voices, and the coachman had jumped off the carriage and was panicking, trying to run away.

"Stop!"

Aine finally shouted coldly, darting out of the carriage and grabbing the coachman who was trying to flee.

The coachman was immediately terrified and screamed.

"It's not my fault! Those guys threatened me to drive the carriage here! I had no choice!"

The coachman's scream made Rig and Ian get out of the carriage.

Rig's expression remained calm, while Ian's face was serious, and his grip on his sword tightened.

The three of them looked around and found themselves in a secluded dark alley.

Surrounded by buildings, there were only one or two small alleys leading to other places, and the stone-paved ground was quite spacious, easily accommodating the Franzel family's luxurious carriage, like a small square.

Aine threw the screaming coachman aside, came to Rig's side, and stood in front of him protectively.

Ian did the same, standing beside Aine, his sharp gaze fixed ahead.

"Come out!"

Aine said coldly.

"——"

The surroundings were silent, with no response.

But Rig knew they were there.

The culprits who had caused the original owner's severe injury and led to Rig's arrival were, as expected, seeking him out again.

"Whoosh"

Suddenly, a faint sound of something breaking the air was heard.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh——"

In the next instant, countless sounds of arrows breaking the air echoed, and arrows shot from all directions from the rooftops of the buildings.

Rig and his group were instantly surrounded by a rain of arrows, with no way to escape.

Fortunately, the two female knights were already prepared.

"Quick, hide!"

Ian grabbed Rig, stepped on the ground, and turned into a blur, swiftly dodging the incoming arrows.

"Clang!"

Aine drew her large sword from her waist, swung it horizontally, and deflected the incoming arrows.

The sound of arrows embedding into the stone ground echoed continuously, turning the open space into a battlefield filled with arrows.

"Swish! Swish! Swish!"

At the same time, figures leaped down from the rooftops of the buildings, landing on the ground.

(End of Chapter)