Chapter 154: The Crown’s Hunger

Adam’s eyes narrowed as a structure came into view through the trees—a crude wooden watchtower, barely visible against the gray stone of the gorge walls. A faint wisp of smoke rose from somewhere beyond it.

“That’s strange,” Adam muttered, slowing the cart. “There’s a watchtower up ahead. Like a guard post.”

Seraphina squinted, following his gaze. “I can barely make it out. Your eyesight is remarkably sharp.” She paused, processing the implication. “If that truly is a guard post, then something is wrong. That likely marks the territory of the bandits.”

Adam’s brow furrowed. “Bandits have their own territory? With watchtowers? They’re more organized than I thought.”

“We should take a detour,” Seraphina said immediately, her voice taking on a tactical edge. “Avoid confrontation. We don’t know their numbers, and engaging them serves no purpose.”

Adam nodded slowly. “You’re right. I don’t want to do the Duke’s job for him. He’d probably laugh if we cleaned up his bandit problem for free.”

He pulled on the reins, preparing to turn the cart—

And froze.

A spike of agony lanced through his skull, so sudden and intense that his vision went white. His hand flew to his head, fingers pressing against his temples as if he could physically squeeze the pain out.

“What… what is this…?”

A whisper crawled through his mind, insistent and hungry. ’Eat… eat… eat…’

Seraphina’s hand touched his shoulder, her voice sharp with concern. “Adam! What’s wrong? Are you alright?”

Adam gasped, forcing air into his lungs as the pain slowly receded. The whisper faded, but its echo lingered. He became aware of a weight on his brow—the Crown of the Hollow Glutton, manifesting without his conscious will.

He met Seraphina’s worried gaze, forcing his breathing to steady. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”

But his mind was racing. ’You woke up on your own and started demanding food? Is there something in that direction you want?’ He directed the thought at the Crown, but received only silence in return. The artifact had gone still again, satisfied to have delivered its message.

Adam’s eyes lifted to the watchtower in the distance. Curiosity warred with caution.

“Change of plans,” he said, his voice firm. “We’re going straight in.”

Seraphina stared at him. “What? Adam, we just agreed—”

“The Crown reacted to something in there.” Adam cut her off, his tone leaving no room for argument. “I need to know what. And taking a detour would cost us time we don’t have. This is faster.”

Seraphina’s jaw tightened, but she didn’t argue further. Her gaze shifted to the watchtower, calculating. “We don’t know their numbers. They could overwhelm us through sheer quantity.”

Adam’s lips curved into a cold, confident smile. The same smile she’d seen before he butchered the first bandit group.

“Then we’ll flatten them. All of them.” He flicked the reins, urging the horses forward. “We’ve handled worse.”

Seraphina exhaled slowly, her hand finding her sword hilt. “I hope you’re right.”

Behind them, the canvas rustled. Ignis’s head popped out, her eyes gleaming. “Did someone say ’flatten’? Are we fighting?!”

Adam didn’t look back. “Yeah. Get ready.”

Ignis’s head fully emerged from the canvas, her eyes blazing with barely contained excitement. “Yesss! Let’s go!”

From inside the cart, Elise’s voice drifted out, tinged with alarm. “Wait, we’re fighting? Who are we fighting? Can we please not just charge in blindly? A little strategy—”

Seraphina cut in, her voice steady and reassuring despite the situation. “Your Highness, we’re engaging the bandits blocking our path. This route is the fastest way forward, so we’re pushing through directly. Do not worry—I will protect you with my life.”

“That’s not the point!” Elise’s voice grew more agitated. “This is reckless! We haven’t scouted their numbers, their positions, anything! And are we… are we going to kill them?”

Adam didn’t turn around. His voice was flat, matter-of-fact. “We can’t wait for them to attack us first. That’s how you lose the initiative. So yes—we hit them first, and we hit them hard. And yes, we kill them.”

The cart creaked as Lilith’s pale form emerged fully, settling gracefully beside the canvas opening. Her crimson eyes gleamed with predatory anticipation, and her lips curved into a smile that held no warmth whatsoever.

“How delightful,” she murmured, her voice a silken purr. “This will be most entertaining.”

The watchtower erupted.

Ignis’s fireball slammed into the wooden structure with a deafening BOOM, sending splinters and burning debris raining down. Before the guards could even scream, Lilith’s psychic tendrils lashed out, and three figures crumpled from the tower’s height, their minds forcibly shut down mid-thought.

Adam laughed, the sound wild and free. “NICE! Keep pushing! Don’t let them regroup!”

The cart thundered forward, wheels bouncing over rough ground. Ahead, a crude gate of sharpened logs barred their path—the entrance to the bandit’s main camp.

Seraphina rose from the bench, her body already wreathed in silver-gold light. Her aura flared, intensifying until she seemed to burn. “Leave this to me!”

She leaped.

Her sword came up, not to slash, but to thrust—every ounce of her Oath’s power concentrated into the blade’s edge. The moment steel met wood, her aura exploded outward in a focused cone.

CRAAAACK—SHATTER!

The gate didn’t just break. It disintegrated, logs exploding inward as if struck by a siege weapon. Splinters the size of daggers rained into the camp beyond, and somewhere, a bandit screamed.

Adam whistled appreciatively as Seraphina landed in a perfect crouch on the other side, her sword already moving into a guard position. “Not bad, Seraphina! Not bad at all!”

From the camp, shouts erupted. Dozens of figures poured from crude buildings and tents—bandits roused from their routines, grabbing weapons, shouting warnings. They swarmed into the open space before the destroyed gate, forming a rough, chaotic line.

Adam counted quickly as the cart rolled to a halt before the breach. “Woah. That’s… a lot. Thirty? Forty? More?”

Elise peered from the canvas, her face pale but determined. “Haaah… Please, everyone—don’t get hurt. Be careful!”

Ignis had already leaped from the cart, landing in a crouch with flames wreathing her entire body. She straightened, cracking her neck, and a feral grin split her face. “Careful? Us?” Fire erupted from her palms, casting dancing shadows across the gathered bandits. “We’re the ones who’ll be doing the hurting!”

Adam stepped down from the cart with casual grace, rolling his shoulders as he walked toward the gathered bandits. His crimson eyes swept over the chaotic scene—Ignis already wading through the first wave, Lilith’s threads dancing in the shadows, Seraphina holding the line at the broken gate.

“Well said, Ignis.” His voice carried easily over the din, calm and amused. “Let’s make them regret ever choosing this job.”

A burly bandit with a scarred face shoved to the front of the crowd, pointing a rusty sword at Adam. “HEY! What the hell is this?! Who sent you?!”

“Ambush! Everyone arm yourselves!” another voice screamed from somewhere in the chaos.

“They’re just one group! A handful of idiots playing hero!”

“Someone get the Boss! NOW!”

Lilith descended from the cart with elegant grace, her feet touching the ground without a sound. She surveyed the panicking bandits with mild amusement. “They’re still busy arguing among themselves. How… quaint.”

“Capture them! Don’t let them escape!” A group of bandits charged.

Adam sidestepped a wild swing, the blade passing inches from his face. He didn’t even look at the attacker. “Elise, stay with the cart. Keep it safe.”

From within, Elise’s voice called out, tinged with exasperation. “I should probably park it somewhere farther away first!”

Too late. The battle was already joined.

Ignis was a blazing comet, her fists leaving trails of fire as she plowed through the first wave. Each punch connected with sickening force—a bandit’s chest caved in, another’s skull snapped sideways. “Weak! Weak! Weak!” she chanted with each kill, her laughter echoing off the canyon walls.

Lilith moved like a shadow, her fingers weaving intricate patterns. A bandit lunged at her, leering. “Hey pretty lady, why not surrender and—”

He never finished. Sovereign Silk wrapped around his throat, his limbs, his torso. With a delicate flick of Lilith’s wrist, the threads tightened. The bandit’s body separated into several distinct pieces before he could even scream.

“No, thank you,” Lilith murmured, already turning to her next victim.

Adam waded into the thick of it, his movements a seamless blend of raw power and predatory efficiency. His fist shot forward with a precision strike aimed with surgical accuracy. CRUNCH. Ribs shattered beneath his knuckles, the bandit crumpling with a wet gasp before he could even scream.

Adam didn’t pause. His leg snapped up in a brutal kick, the heel driving into another attacker’s spine. CRACK. The man’s body bent at an angle that defied nature, his dying scream cut short as he collapsed in a heap.

A third bandit swung an axe at Adam’s head—a wild, desperate strike fueled by fear. Adam’s hand shot up, catching the haft inches from his skull. The wood groaned in his grip. The bandit’s eyes went wide. Adam wrenched the weapon free, reversed it in one fluid motion, and drove the blunt end through the man’s face with a sickening THUD.

Blood sprayed. Bodies fell. And Adam stood in the center of it all, expression calm, breathing steady, as if he’d just completed a light workout.

’These are stronger than the last group,’ Adam noted clinically, sidestepping a thrust and responding with an elbow that caved in a skull. ’Higher level. Better equipment. This is going to be a good grind.’

He spun, catching a bandit’s wrist and using the man’s own momentum to throw him into two of his comrades. All three went down in a tangle of limbs.

“Shit! They’re too strong! GET THE BOSS!”

Adam’s lips curled into a cold smile. “Good. Let him come.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep