"So, did they say who they were? Where they came from?"
Mans asked Qiao Man as they hurried along, curiosity piqued. He was wondering who would want to target their Griffin Fortress.
In his opinion, they were doing well here. The Rockborn were very loyal to Mako's rule, and most importantly, he had civilized them.
"They called themselves 'Blood Hands'. I heard they belong to a secret force of a great noble in the North. The Lord occupied Skaggs Island, which that noble had his eye on, so they're retaliating!"
Qiao Man's expression was a little strange when he said "Blood Hands", as if something had struck a chord with him.
Mans was preoccupied with the problem and didn't notice the young man's odd behavior.
About five minutes later, the group arrived in front of a small house, led by Qiao Man. He said,
"Let me go in and check first. They saw that I wasn't captured today, and I didn't have any contact with you, so they probably won't suspect anything. You wait here for my signal!"
After speaking, Qiao Man walked towards the door. Mans initially wanted to stop him, but Qiao Man refused, citing the safety of his sister as the reason.
Once the plan was finalized, Mans and his men hid on the side of another house, quietly observing the situation with Qiao Man and the others.
Qiao Man walked to the door and knocked five times, "Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock." Shortly after, a man came to open the door. Upon seeing Qiao Man, the man immediately grabbed his neck.
Then, he pulled Qiao Man in front of him, using him as a shield. After carefully surveying the surroundings and confirming it was safe, he hid behind Qiao Man, pushing him forward a step.
After confirming there was still no danger, he slowly pulled Qiao Man back into the house. Mans, without thinking, prepared to go out, but the archer beside him suddenly pulled him back.
Mans then remembered that Qiao Man had instructed them to wait two minutes before going in. After waiting for two minutes, the door suddenly opened.
The man suddenly pushed Qiao Man out, and after checking the surroundings, he cursed and dragged Qiao Man inside.
It turned out this man had been hiding behind the door, observing the surroundings, and he had patiently waited for two minutes.
Seeing this scene, Mans couldn't help but sigh inwardly. It was fortunate that he hadn't acted rashly just now, or else all their efforts would have been in vain.
They moved forward silently, and Mans, who was pressed against the door, first heard voices from inside, followed by scolding and then the sound of a glass window breaking.
Upon hearing the signal, Mans kicked the wooden door open and charged in first.
Inside, Mans saw Qiao Man lying on the ground, covered in wounds, while the man who had been speaking was shot in the arm and thigh by the archers who followed.
The man, shot and lying on the ground, wasn't afraid at all. Instead, he laughed heartily:
"Qiao Man, I knew you would betray us! I told the boss long ago, but he didn't believe me, but I still got my interest!
Hahaha! Your sister is so cute! I love seeing her scared, it's just a shame she's too young. After a little game, she ended up like this! Hahaha!"
At this moment, Qiao Man had already gotten up from the ground. He ran to a wooden bed and wrapped a little girl in a blanket.
Mans only saw the girl's hair and pale face. The torchlight was too dim; he couldn't make out her condition!
At that moment, the man laughed again, "But this little thing is tough, still breathing despite this! Hahaha! If I'd known, I would have played with her more! I hear your wizard lord can bring the dead back to life. I wonder, ahhh..."
Hearing the man's words, Mans felt like he was about to explode. He grabbed the Obsidian Spear from his subordinate and plunged it into the man's ankle.
The excruciating pain made the man howl. If Mako were here, he would have laughed at Mans, because this guy, who used to eat people without spitting out the bones, now had basic ethical and moral thoughts.
These Rockborn from the Crawl clan in Griffin Fortress were among the first to settle there. Mako felt that after they pledged their loyalty to him, perhaps because of the system, their personalities and minds had undergone a huge transformation.
They were no longer savage and crude like before. If it weren't for Mans always talking about eating people, Mako wouldn't even think of them as Rockborn, but as ordinary people.
However, in Mako's opinion, this was a very good change, which could bring unexpected benefits when he contacted the Westeros Continent in the future.
Mans was furious at the moment, wanting nothing more than to devour the person in front of him and make him regret ever coming into this world.
Fortunately, a subordinate stopped him in time. The subordinate pointed to Qiao Man, who looked anxious on the side, and Mans realized what was truly important.
Therefore, he immediately ordered his subordinates to capture the man first. Then, he led Qiao Man to the entrance of the main castle.
On the way to the main castle, Mans and his group also encountered the archer captain, Lauren Hawkeye, who was coming to join them.
Lauren said that after they broke down the door, the man in charge had actually fallen asleep, so the group had rescued Qiao Man's younger brother without any trouble. His brother hadn't been harmed.
He was just clutching his stomach and cowering there, trembling. They told him that everything was alright, but the 13-year-old boy insisted on staying in that position, and no one could persuade him otherwise.
Moreover, Lauren had also found a can of unopened Wildfire there. Adding that to the first stronghold Qiao Man had gone to, they had found a total of two cans of Wildfire.
But according to Qiao Man, the "Blood Hands" had brought in a total of three cans of Wildfire, and one was unaccounted for. Mans was startled when he heard this.
After asking Qiao Man about a few possible locations, Mans immediately dispatched his men, sending out his main forces to search those areas.
After finishing all of this and confirming there were no issues, he anxiously pulled Qiao Man and his younger brother towards the main castle.
Mako was currently in the main castle's first-floor living room. Since the first-floor living room was basically unused, Mako had converted it into a command center.
Mako knew about what had happened tonight at the earliest opportunity. After Wolf Fang helped Mans and the others capture the man, they returned to instruct their subordinates in controlling the Wildcat.
The Wolf Spirit Squad's actions tonight were actually for experimental purposes. Unlike those mainstream animal companions, cats were also being used for the first time among the "Wargs," so Mako needed to check for any side effects.
Just as Mako and the priest Casper-Ed were discussing subsequent team-building plans, Sas Ting walked in to report that Lauren Hawkeye and the others were requesting him to help save a little girl!
After hearing this, Mako immediately told them to come in. At this moment, Qiao Man was in tears, seemingly holding a corpse in his arms, with a child with a blank expression following behind.
Seeing him, Qiao Man immediately knelt on the ground and said to Mako:
"My Lord! Please, save my sister! It's all my fault! I shouldn't have been coerced by the enemy! I beg you! I'll accept any punishment!"
The City Guard Captain, Mans, also addressed Mako, "My Lord! Please help him! This young man is brave. It was thanks to him that we caught those 'little rats' tonight. Those guys are absolutely detestable!"
Mako said, "Alright! I'll give it a try! As long as the injuries aren't too severe, I can still save her! But the problem is, she's already dead! How can I save her!"
His tone gradually turned cold as he spoke. As the word "her" left his lips, Qiao Man realized something was amiss. Just as he was about to act…
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his shoulder blades. Two feathered arrows were firmly lodged in his joints. The intense pain instantly made him lose his grip on the corpse, causing it to slide to the ground.
Qiao Man immediately wanted to turn around and signal his companions to attack, but as soon as he turned his head, he saw that Sas Ting was already standing behind him, and his own companions had been subdued.
At this moment, the City Guard Captain, Mans, was stunned by the scene before him. He couldn't understand why Qiao Man had been attacked.
Mako slowly walked in front of the corpse and gently pulled back the blanket, revealing the full appearance of the body inside.
This was a Rockborn girl with dark, curly hair and a face contorted in pain. From her neck down, she had been cut open, and water bags made of cowhide had been placed inside her.
One of them had already been slashed open in advance, and green, oily Wildfire was flowing everywhere, staining her flesh green.
Seeing this, the priest Casper-Ed urgently ordered the nearby candles to be extinguished. He then slowly walked to Mako's side and said to him:
"My Lord! Let's deal with this first!"
Mako was trembling all over. He felt the raging flames of anger burning within him. He suppressed his fury and asked Casper-Ed:
"Casper-Ed! We are all humans! Why would they want to hurt something so beautiful! Does causing others pain and suffering really make these scum happy?"
"Alas! My Lord! People are different. Some are beautiful and kind, while others are evil and grotesque. All living beings are lost lambs, which is why we shepherds are needed to guide them!