"There's a problem? What problem could a trash can have?" Vagrant No. 1 leaned in, looking utterly bewildered. "There's no problem here?"
"No problem?" Vagrant No. 2 scratched his head, puzzled. "Then why do I feel like these trash cans just moved?"
"You're seeing things! How could trash cans possibly move?"
Vagrant No. 2 circled the trash can, stroking his chin. "Is it possible... someone's hiding inside?"
Stelle and the other three: !
They were ready to knock these two out in one second.
"Hiding someone? Hahahahaha... The trash can is so small, how could anyone possibly fit inside?" Vagrant No. 1 laughed heartily. "How tiny would they have to be?"
Stelle and the other three: ...
To be fair, what Vagrant No. 1 said wasn't entirely unreasonable. At the very least, this issue had happened to Dan Heng before. Though with some forced endurance, it wasn't completely impossible to squeeze in.
But if it were other guys who weren't as mindful of their physique, they might not be able to pull it off.
Thinking of this, Stelle really didn't know whether she should be grateful that she had Stelle's body.
"Alright, alright, stop being so paranoid. While those guys from the upper district are drawing attention, let's find a place to slack off for a while."
"Right, let's go, let's go."
"..."
Hearing that these two were leaving, Stelle and the other three breathed a sigh of relief. But within seconds, the sound of footsteps gradually approached again. Before Dan Heng and March 7th could react, their trash cans were suddenly lifted open by the two vagrants.
"..."
The four of them exchanged glances, their eyes filled with deep confusion.
The two vagrants originally wanted to find a place to sit and smoke, but found the ground too cold. So they thought about moving two trash cans to sit on. Unexpectedly, this blind box draw ended up revealing the two strongest fighters among the four.
"Ahhh! Intruders!"
The two vagrants were startled and instinctively shouted. In an instant, all the vagrants and drone soldiers in the manor looked over.
"...Trouble."
Dan Heng's face darkened. He pressed down on Stelle and the other's trash cans, signaling them not to expose themselves. A water dragon roared out of his gourd, glaring menacingly at the numerous enemies.
"Targets not found on the invitation list. Conclusion: intruders. Permission to eliminate."
Svarog's head flashed with a dangerous red light, his cold electronic voice devoid of any emotion. "Attack."
Whoosh—
A cannonball shot out from its body. At the same time, the water dragon behind Dan Heng roared forth and swallowed the cannonball in one gulp!
Boom!
Part of the water dragon's body instantly collapsed but quickly recovered. However, the high temperature inside vaporized a large amount of water in an instant, causing it to shrink by a full circle.
"The plan has changed. Stelle, it's up to you two now."
Dan Heng lowered his voice, then exchanged a glance with March 7th and fled in the opposite direction of the original route.
"Capture them! Lord Root will surely reward us handsomely! Hahaha!"
"The credit is mine!"
"Kill the man, capture the woman alive!"
"No! Leave the man to me!"
"..."
A large number of vagrants immediately chased after the two fleeing figures, followed by rows of drone soldiers. In an instant, the entire manor became empty, leaving only two trash cans standing in the cold wind.
Svarog's gaze swept around, the red light on its head flickering slightly. "...Threat eliminated. No suspicious targets found."
It took quite some effort for Stelle and the other two to slowly "shuffle" to the back of the castle. With Dan Heng and the other drawing away the fire, the journey was quite smooth.
"Whew—I'm suffocating."
Bronya pushed open the trash can lid, a few strands of silver hair sticking to her forehead. "Next, we infiltrate their stronghold, right?"
"Mm, according to the blueprint Natasha provided, this castle should have ventilation ducts."
Stelle felt along the wall. "Got it!"
It was a passage blocked by ice and snow and rocks, looking like a dog hole. The entrance was rectangular; while the width was sufficient, the height was worryingly low.
"Are you sure this is it?" Bronya glanced at the narrow and deep hole, somewhat doubtful.
Stelle reached out and felt the opening. "It shouldn't be wrong. There's definitely airflow here. Even if it's not the right one, it must lead inside."
She bent down, lay on the ground, and crawled in. Although the entrance was small, the internal passage was relatively spacious, at least allowing them to crawl forward on their knees.
Seeing Stelle had already crawled in, Bronya didn't say much. She imitates Stelle's posture trying to crawl in but discovered a problem when she was halfway in—
She couldn't get in.
"Bronya? What are you doing lying there?" Stelle asked innocently.
"I..."
A rare trace of embarrassment appeared on Bronya's fair, beautiful face. "I... I think my chest is stuck..."
Stelle: ?
"Stuck? That shouldn't be, I just..."
Stelle suddenly fell silent. She looked down at her own chest and suddenly understood.
"Uh... well, let me pull you."
Stelle coughed lightly, grabbed Bronya's hands, and tried to pull her in with force. But due to the limited space, she couldn't exert much strength. After several minutes of effort, Bronya hadn't moved an inch.
Even someone with Bronya's temperament was too embarrassed to speak by now.
Stelle finally understood. This house was built with anti-theft systems in mind. The height of this ventilation shaft was designed to prevent people from crawling in.
Only someone as "petite" as Stelle could get in. Even March 7th probably couldn't manage it.
"Wait there!"
Bronya said fiercely, then retreated from the passage, tore off a piece of cloth from her sleeve, and tightly bound her chest.
This method indeed worked. Bronya successfully squeezed into the ventilation duct and glared at Stelle unhappily. "What are you looking at? Let's go!"
"Oh, oh, oh..."
Stelle awkwardly rubbed her nose and crawled deeper into the duct. She turned on her phone's flashlight to navigate the intricate duct.
"Let me see... this way, then this way, then this way..."
Stelle kept her eyes on the castle's internal layout on her phone. Suddenly, not paying attention, her hand slipped into empty space, and her whole body tumbled down the sloping pipe. It felt like sliding down a slide—thrilling and exciting.
Thud!
Stelle's head hit the pipe wall heavily, emitting a dull thud.
Thud! Thud!
Two more dull sounds followed as Bronya bumped into the back of Stelle's head, and Stelle hit the pipe wall again.
"Such bad luck..."
Stelle rubbed his forehead, then suddenly paused. At the corner ahead, he saw an iron grate different from the ventilation shaft.
This meant they had likely reached their destination.