Chapter 93: Chapter 92: King of Kill Stealing

Sleirein considered himself the leader of the Tripartite Alliance. He had visited the Cyan Bamboo and Purple Fruit tribes more than once for pleasure, and in his heart, he already saw these two allies as his for the taking.

After getting the news from Lauren, he excitedly led his troops and rushed here without stopping. This was both to rescue Jenny and Erin and to annex the Purple Fruit Tribe.

But he never expected that after charging into the stockade with his men, he would see Jenny and Horn walking toward him. The affectionate way they looked was a piercing sight. Where was there even a hint of imprisonment?

“What is this?” Sleirein was dumbfounded.

Mam’s face changed. He whispered a warning, “We’re in trouble, Jenny was lying! My lord, I suggest we withdraw from the stockade immediately!”

The three Knights and several cavalrymen beside him also paled, but Sleirein just sneered.

“What’s there to be afraid of? You think they can beat us?”

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps came from behind them. It was Ridder and Tom, leading a team and blocking their path of retreat.

Sleirein glanced back, and his heart sank.

He turned back again, his gaze fixing coldly on Jenny. “Damn bitch, you dared to trick me!”

Jenny wasn’t angered by this at all. Instead, she wore a faint smile. “I’m very sorry, Sleirein. I did indeed deceive you. However, I have also brought you an opportunity to shed your ’Wildman’ status.”

She took a step forward. “This is Ronin Baron, the Lord of Mountain Forest Town and a scion of the Wushan Clan. He has already conquered the Cyan Bamboo Tribe with his strength and killed Willie Knight. I, too, have led my followers in submitting to him. Now, it is time for you to choose.”

“As your former ally, I am giving you a friendly reminder: pledging allegiance to Lord Ronin is your only choice.”

The members of the Grey Soil Tribe were stunned by Jenny’s introduction, especially Mam. He had envisioned the Purple Fruit Tribe joining forces with the Black-collar Tribe, but he never imagined a noble would suddenly appear in the Wubei Forest Land—and a family member of the Lord of Wushan Territory at that.

’The Baron of Mountain Forest Town? From the Wushan Clan?’

Sleirein shifted his furious gaze to Ronin, his brow furrowed deeply.

’No wonder. No wonder I felt a sense of unease when my eyes swept past that silver-haired boy. Wasn’t the leader of the Noble Alliance Army that hunted us down also silver-haired?’

However, submitting to a noble was out of the question for him.

Sleirein’s greatest wish was to become a noble himself, or failing that, to be the leader of his own territory. That was far more satisfying than pledging loyalty to someone else.

For him, even surrendering to the Black-collar Tribe would be more palatable than serving a noble.

He slowly drew the longsword hanging from his saddle, his small eyes narrowing as he said coldly, “Silver-haired brat, if you want me to submit to you, dream on!”

“Yah!”

Sleirein dug his heels into his horse’s belly and charged forward, not leaving Ronin any chance to negotiate.

’Jenny was right. This man is arrogant, conceited, and brainless.’

“My Lord, be careful!”

Jenny cried out in alarm, and Horn Knight, who was beside her, was already preparing to make a move.

Their surrender was genuine, and they didn’t want to see anything happen to Ronin.

But someone else was faster.

Macken, who had been guarding Ronin’s side all along, had already acted the moment the enemy began to charge.

He stomped hard on the ground, and a torrent of Fighting Qi burst forth. The ground shook violently, and halfway through the enemy’s charge, the earth surged upward, forming an Earth Wall barrier.

“Break!”

Sleirein roared, and a sharp Sword Aura from his slash struck the Earth Wall, shattering it. At the same time, Fighting Qi enveloped him and his warhorse, forming a massive, surging suit of Armor.

With a leap of his horse, Sleirein crossed the shattered Earth Wall and broke through.

Ronin’s eyes lit up. Sleirein’s fighting style was quite savage; if he could subdue him, he would gain a fierce general.

However, that thought was quickly extinguished.

Macken was completely fearless. Even without a warhorse, his short-burst speed was extremely fast. The two charged toward each other and clashed in an instant.

“Die!”

From his high vantage point on horseback, Sleirein thrust his sword at Macken. He hadn’t expected this Knight to be so unafraid of death, daring to deliver himself to his blade.

The moment he brushed past the enemy’s warhorse, Macken seized the opening and met the attack with a powerful strike of his own.

The longswords clashed, and an immense power erupted from the blades.

Macken was thrown back by the impact, but Sleirein was sent flying like a kite with a snapped string, crashing heavily to the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

The warhorse he was riding was also knocked over by the force of the blow. Its momentum caused it to plow a furrow in the ground for over ten meters, stopping a few meters in front of Ronin.

“Elron, quickly, go heal this horse!” Ronin ordered hastily.

Elron had already finished making the Healing Spell Scrolls in the past two days. Besides his Cultivation, he would look to see if anyone in the Cyan Bamboo or Purple Fruit tribes needed his healing.

If there were, he would cast a Healing Skill, which not only got the injured back on their feet but also spread the word of the Lord’s benevolence.

’I never thought my Healing Skill would end up being used on a horse.’

’Well, horses are indeed a bit expensive.’

“As you wish, my Lord!” the Light Mage accepted the order cheerfully.

While they began saving the horse, Sleirein climbed up from the dust, his face filled with terror and his expression drastically changed. ’This Baron is a little too strong.’

“Mam, attack! Everyone, together! Kill this noble, and we will still be the kings of this forest!”

The roar snapped Mam out of the shock from the recent battle, and his mind raced.

’For me, surrender isn’t a good option either, because I betrayed Jenny.’

’Now that Jenny has already surrendered to Ronin and even offered such a brilliant plan, she has surely won the Baron’s favor. If I surrender now, Jenny will likely demand my execution.’

’At that point, this young Baron would very likely agree to her request.’

’If Sleirein dies, he dies. As long as I break out with our men and return to the Grey Soil Tribe, I can become the leader myself! Then I can cooperate with the Black-collar Tribe. With their power behind me, I won’t have to fear this Baron.’

In an instant, Mam had figured out his escape route. “Babulin, everyone, Sleirein is finished! If you want to live, charge out with me! Staying here means death! That Baron and Jenny won’t spare any of us!”

With almost no hesitation, he immediately turned his horse and charged for the exit, instead of following Sleirein’s orders to attack Ronin.

Babulin, the other three Basic Level Knights, and the five cavalrymen froze for a moment, but then, without hesitation, they also turned their horses and followed Mam, charging for the exit.

Mam handled most of the affairs for the Grey Soil Tribe, so they trusted his judgment.

“Betrayal! Dammit, you dare to betray me!”

Sleirein roared, his eyes bloodshot and the Fighting Qi around him growing wild and violent. “Kill!”

’I can’t worry about them now. My only chance to live is to break through Macken’s defense and capture Ronin as a hostage.’

But no matter how he charged or changed his attack, he was completely shut down by Macken’s defense, unable to advance even a single step.

Meanwhile, just as Mam and his men were about to break out, they were met by a massive cloud of fire.

The fire cloud was like a vast red cloth unfurling from the sky, descending to cover them all.

The warhorses neighed in terror, their footwork immediately falling into disarray.

The riders, unstable on their mounts, were immediately thrown to the ground. Mam, who reacted slightly faster, raised his sword and unleashed a Fighting Qi Slash, but he was still sent flying by the impact of the fire cloud and thrown from his horse.

Ridder swung his longsword. “Capture them!”

Tom, Wodun, Dandy, and the others led the Guards and militiamen, immediately surrounding them.

The battle ended quickly. Under Ridder’s lead, not a single one of Mam’s group of ten escaped. All of them were captured and forced to their knees, with two swords pressed against their necks, too terrified to move.

At the same time, Sleirein, who had been utterly dominated by Macken, was beaten to the ground, unable to get back up.

Jenny and Horn watched the battle in shock. They never thought Ronin could win so easily in a direct confrontation with the men of the Grey Soil Tribe.

Their gazes shifted between Macken and Ridder.

’The combat power those two just displayed is just too immense. They must be at the Advanced Level Peak, maybe even comparable to Bronze Level Knights. In contrast, Ronin hadn’t made a single move from beginning to end. His calm and composed demeanor showed that he had absolute clarity and trust in his subordinates’ strength.’

Jenny and Horn were extremely glad they had chosen to surrender that night.

Ronin walked over to Macken’s side. “You finally got to stretch your muscles a bit. How did it feel?”

Macken smiled, looking as if he hadn’t had enough. “Thank you for the opportunity, my Lord. It’s just that this guy is too weak. I could have probably beaten him back when I was an Intermediate Knight.”

Hearing Ronin approach, the nearby Sleirein twisted his head to glare daggers at him.

Just a few hours ago, he was a chief who enjoyed being served by others and could decide the fate of hundreds. Now, he was a prisoner.

And the cause of it all was this silver-haired man before him.

“I’m going to… kill you!”

Sleirein tightened his grip on the sword on the ground. Extreme hatred fueled his obsession; if he weren’t unable to stand, he absolutely would have lunged at Ronin.

“Should I praise you for being a tough guy, or should I say you fail to grasp the situation?”

Ronin took the sword from Macken’s hand.

’I was originally thinking of trying to recruit him, but there’s no need for that now.’

’First, he isn’t that strong; he just charges brainlessly.’

’Second, and most importantly, the extreme hatred in Sleirein’s eyes just now made me very uncomfortable. That kind of hatred can’t be erased by simple gestures like restoring his Free People status.’

’All things considered, even if I let a person like this live, he’ll likely become a source of trouble in the future.’

PFFT!

Ronin pierced the man’s throat with his sword, ending Sleirein’s life.

[“King of Slaughter” achievement unlocked. Attribute Points +80, Energy Essence +160]

’Please, call me the King of Kill-Stealing,’ Ronin thought to himself.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep