Chapter 17: Chapter 16 What is this number?
At first, Drunkard Jack's eyes held a strong sense of disdain.
"You, a mere brat, have the audacity to kill someone?"
He simply didn't believe it!
But when Rein laid out a very feasible plan, word by word, his eyes slowly filled with horror!
And Rein immediately caught the flash of terror that passed through the other's eyes.
He had a chance!
This was nothing but a hollow tough guy.
So, Rein continued to threaten with an emotionless face, "And at that time, what would you have left? Probably not even your bones."
"But no one will suspect me, because I'm just a child!"
At this point, Drunkard Jack's expression seemed to start yielding.
Go to hell, still a child?!
Is there such a ruthless child?
Richard only wanted me to break your hand, but damn it, you're directly after my life!
Drunkard Jack had always been a coward; otherwise, he wouldn't have stopped being a mercenary after doing it for some time.
Because he felt that the blood-spattered life of a mercenary really didn't suit him.
This time, as soon as Rein removed the stinky sock from his mouth, Drunkard Jack immediately shouted, "It was the tavern keeper's kid, Richard, he gave me some money to break your hand!!"
Upon hearing this, Rein knew it was that bushy-browed guy.
Rein hadn't ruled out the possibility that Drunkard Jack was lying, but it's very hard to lie when one is scared.
Of course, the most important thing was that the bushy-browed guy had the motive to do this.
His natural talent in swordsmanship seemed to really irk Bushy-brows.
Recalling the look in Bushy-brows' eyes when he was defeated in the day's sparring, Rein quickly connected the two events.
...
Meanwhile, in the dense forest nearby, a silent spectator had appeared.
Just now, Hamilton had heard an unusual noise from the woods. As the newly appointed town sheriff of Flashgold Town, he was quite concerned about the local security.
So, he immediately slipped into the woods to investigate.
What he saw surprised him: a slender youth had tied up a burly man and was interrogating him!
With just a glance, Hamilton recognized the burly man tied to the tree; it was Drunkard Jack, a man with a terrible reputation in Flashgold Town.
This good-for-nothing often loitered around, committing petty theft, and boasted about his mercenary past to several widows every day. As a potential threat to local security, Hamilton had been watching him closely ever since he came to Flashgold Town.
Quickly, he learned the whole story from Drunkard Jack's interrogation.
He hadn't expected that this daring youth was just a commoner's son and was currently undergoing servant training at the Habsburg manor.
'An interesting little bugger.'
Following Hamilton's gaze, we turn back to Rein.
Rein appeared deep in thought.
But, he hadn't really considered that Bushy-brows, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, could be so devious!
As for the man in front of him…
Rein began to size up Drunkard Jack.
This made Drunkard Jack think that Rein was really about to bleed him, and he couldn't help but cry out in terror, "Rein, stop! Let's talk this out nicely!"
"Smack!"
Rein struck Drunkard Jack hard on the head, prompting a miserable howl from him.
"What number is this?"
Huh?
Drunkard Jack's eyes widened as he stared at the single finger that Rein was holding up.
He quickly said, "It's one, one!"
"Wrong answer."
"Smack!" Rein struck his head hard again with a stick!
"What number is this?" Rein asked again calmly.
Drunkard Jack's eyes bulged as he stared at the hand Rein held out.
He wasn't seeing things!
There was only one finger!
"One, it's one, stop hitting me!"
"Still wrong."
"Smack!"
Immediately after, Rein struck Jack's forehead with his stick again.
"How many is this?" Rein asked, gesturing with his fingers once more.
By this time, Drunkard Jack was not feeling good at all and wailed with a crying tone:
"Whatever you say it is..."
"Eh, not knocked senseless yet?" Rein muttered to himself.
Although he spoke softly, Hamilton, not far away and with formidable strength, heard everything clearly, causing the corners of his mouth to twitch involuntarily.
The kid's ruthless enough to dumbfound someone.
But soon, Hamilton understood something and a slight smile formed on his lips.
He guessed that this young man actually didn't want to kill Drunkard Jack outright, which is why he aimed to beat him senseless, avoiding future trouble.
'However, having an additional murder case in my jurisdiction is not a good thing.'
So, Hamilton took a few steps forward, his leather boots making a sound as they stepped on dry twigs.
Meanwhile, Rein had just noticed Drunkard Jack's exposed money pouch, bulging as though it contained a fair amount of coins.
This made Rein's eyes shine with anticipation.
Just as he bent down to take the other's money pouch, his body suddenly froze!
Then, he quickly stood up, turned, and gripping the stick tightly, looked towards the direction from where the noise was coming.
Indistinctly, he saw a tall figure emerging from the dense forest, causing cold sweat to break out on Rein's back "whoosh" in an instant.
Moreover, Rein could barely make out a longsword at the person's waist.
This startled Rein, making the hairs on his body stand on end!
'They have a weapon!'
'I don't know if they are friend or foe.'
'No! They must be an enemy, I don't recognize any mercenary.'
'I can't risk my life on this.'
'I must first flee into the forest to lose this person and ensure safety.'
In just a moment, a series of thoughts flashed through Rein's mind.
The next second!
Rein shot into the nearby dense forest like an agile monkey, disappearing in an instant.
Hamilton was momentarily dumbfounded!
But he immediately realized something and couldn't help but show a face that was both annoyed and amused.
Suddenly, as the dirt beneath Hamilton's feet burst apart, his towering figure shot into the dense forest like an arrow released from a bow, moving nearly twice as fast as Rein.
Rein, meanwhile, was darting left and right through the forest, trying to confuse his pursuer's line of sight, and after maintaining high-speed running for a while, he started to feel the strain on his stamina.
He slowed down his pace to listen carefully, and after a while, there seemed to be no movement behind him.
So, Rein immediately hid behind a large tree, panting heavily.
"Huff~ Huff~"
He thought to himself: "Who could that be?"
Suddenly, a stranger's voice came from beside Rein: "Not a bad speed!"
Rein, as if struck by lightning, was startled and thought, "He won't let me go? He actually chased me this far!"
"Dammit!"
This made Rein feel even more certain that the other person was an enemy, not a friend.
Instantly, Rein's face showed determination, and he made a decision—he decided to add his last Skill Points to his basic swordsmanship.
After all, what's the use of points if you've lost your life!