Chapter 3: Horn Town

Horn Town was located in Yorkshire, very close to the Capital of Emerald. It only took about three hours to ride a horse there.

However, Dean of course did not have a horse. After all, a horse was still a luxury for him at this time. Therefore, after disposing of the bodies of ‘Bat’ Sally and his men, changing out of the conspicuous military uniform, and slightly altering his appearance, Dean left the area near the Capital of Emerald. He spent an entire day’s journey before finally entering Horn Town in Yorkshire.

This town was a stop on his way to the Ferrchelen Knight Order. In fact, according to the map, it was not particularly necessary and even seemed like a detour.

However, based on Dean’s memory, something was going to happen here in the next few days. Since this matter was closely related to him, whether for the consideration of his future development or to weaken the power of the Vice Regiment Commander of the Central Knight Order, he had to get involved!

Therefore, Dean chose to take the long way and made this place his first departure stop.

Of course, in Horn Town, he still needed to buy some necessary equipment.

Although Horn Town was not large, it had become a resting place for Northerners, especially Northern merchants, before they truly entered the Capital of Emerald, due to its proximity. Therefore, even though the town was not big, it was quite prosperous. There were not only taverns, restaurants, and grocery stores, but even a tailor shop.

“I need a cloak, one with a hood. The best one is waterproof!”

Dean flicked a silver Keso out with his thumb. The silver Keso, shining brightly, fell into the hands of the tailor shop owner. This made the owner’s smile even brighter. In addition to the cloak, he gave Dean a pair of leather gloves. They were not valuable gloves; they were very ordinary animal skins. Therefore, even with the addition of these gloves, the owner still made a profit. He earned at least twenty Copper Coins.

This was obviously a very good deal for the tailor shop owner.

Therefore, when Dean left, the tailor shop owner enthusiastically bowed and saw him off until Dean entered the restaurant next to the tailor shop. This restaurant was completely suited to Horn Town’s geographic location. It was located in the middle of the small town, making it very convenient for merchants coming from the south and north.

Inside the restaurant, there were scattered tables for townspeople and ordinary merchants, and upstairs there were private rooms prepared for true nobles.

Dean, with his ordinary appearance, was undoubtedly led to the scattered tables.

“Sir, what would you like?”

The attendant was a young man. He looked energetic and asked with a smile.

“I want a portion of roast beef, from the hind leg, and a cup of ale! Remember, be quick. I am starving, pressed from front to back, just to offload those goods!”

Dean, speaking at an extremely fast speed, gave five Copper Coins. The food he had just ordered was worth at most four Copper Coins; obviously, the extra one was a tip.

“No problem, sir!”

The attendant’s smile became even brighter. Unobtrusively, he slipped one of the five Copper Coins into his pocket and then quickly walked into the kitchen.

During the time it took for the attendant to bring out the food, Dean casually looked around, just like the other guests who were killing time while waiting for their food. However, compared to the true casualness of these guests, Dean’s gaze had its own purpose.

It was disguised so well that no one could discover it. In his previous life as an Assassin, Dean had done this countless times. To ensure the completion rate of his missions, it had almost become Dean’s instinct.

Most of the people in the scattered tables of the restaurant were merchants, with a few locals. Dean quickly distinguished them from their clothes, appearances, and conversations with people at the same table. Undoubtedly, none of these people were the target he was waiting for. Therefore, very naturally, Dean’s gaze began to look upstairs.

Soon, one private room caught his attention.

Compared to the other three private rooms, this one, located on the far right, had nothing special, except that there was an extra person at its door.

The attire of leather armor and a short dagger indicated that the person was a guard. Especially that alert look as he glanced around confirmed it beyond doubt.

Dean’s gaze avoided the guard before the guard looked over, but his peripheral vision kept watching that place.

The noise in the restaurant prevented Dean from hearing everything happening in that private room. However, judging from the guard’s tense expression, it was obvious that something inside had entered a critical moment. Although the guard could be described as diligent, he was undoubtedly not a good fighter.

If he were a true professional, he would not show any expression on his face at any time. Even if he plunged a dagger into an enemy’s chest and crushed his heart, he would remain expressionless, like the most cold-blooded Assassin. To Dean, top-tier guards and top-tier assassins were two sides of the same coin; it was just that the latter were more concealable.

Of course, such a situation was naturally something Dean was happy to see.

If there really appeared a skilled professional, with his current ‘whitewashed’ status, it would undoubtedly make everything more difficult.

“Ah!”

Just as Dean was observing carefully, a scream suddenly came out of that private room. The noise in the restaurant could not cover such a sharp scream. It was a woman, and a relatively young one.

Dean subconsciously judged the owner of the scream. The gaze of other guests in the restaurant also turned to that private room where the scream came from. However, upon seeing the guard holding a short dagger with a fierce expression, most of the rational guests lowered their heads and continued to eat their food.

The attendant who had received Dean’s tip ran quickly to the street and shouted loudly, “Guards! Guards!”

At the same time, the owner of the restaurant ran upstairs. Of course, he was not alone; a fat man followed behind him. The grease on his clothes and the boning knife in his hand indicated his identity; he was a chef.

“Stop!”

The diligent guard held his short dagger and shouted fiercely.

“Honored guest, please don’t misunderstand…”

The owner of the restaurant was a thin and small man. He had the smile of a businessman. At this moment, he was trying to make his smile appear more sincere to gain the other’s goodwill.

“The lady inside is my wife. She just helps me manage the business here. She is not those… Moreover, my attendant just went to report to the guards in a panic. You know our Captain Mark is a very serious Guard Captain. So, I think there is a misunderstanding between us!”

With a smile, the restaurant owner continued to explain. However, his meaning was clear enough, and the raised volume was obviously not speaking to the guard.

“Hmm, there is indeed some misunderstanding!”

A voice came from the private room. Then, the door of the private room opened. A woman with a panicked face ran out, covering her chest. Under the restaurant owner’s signal, she quickly ran downstairs. Behind her, a fat man with extraordinary clothes walked out slowly.

“Honorable sir, I unintentionally offended you…”

When the restaurant owner saw the fat middle-aged man, he immediately bowed. The chef behind him did the same. As for the boning knife?

It had long been hidden behind his back.

If he dared to show a knife in front of such a Big Shot, he would be close to death.

Slap!

The restaurant owner, who had just straightened up after bowing, stumbled after receiving a loud slap. Then, before he could react, he was kicked heavily in the stomach. Immediately, this thin and small restaurant owner rolled down the stairs like a ball.

“Now, the misunderstanding is explained clearly!”

The fat middle-aged man took out a white handkerchief and wiped his right hand, which had just slapped the restaurant owner. Looking at the restaurant owner’s bloody head and moaning on the ground, he nodded satisfactorily. Then, he turned and looked at the silent downstairs. Everyone who made eye contact with him lowered their heads in fear and averted their gaze.

This made him even more satisfied.

Dean was also satisfied. Although he pretended to lower his head in panic, just in that moment of seeing the man, Dean completely confirmed his identity: Ruman Bola.

He was the biological uncle of the Vice Regiment Commander of the Central Knight Order and the person in charge of the Bola Family’s underground business.

This time, he was the main target, or rather… the interest that the other party needed to pay!

At this moment, chaotic footsteps and the loud sound of Sword Sheaths colliding came from the street.

Such sounds made the honorable man frown. He abandoned the idea of catching that woman back. After all, she was just the wife of a restaurant owner. Although she had some beauty, she was not worth such a loss of dignity for a man like him. Especially in a place outside the Capital of Emerald, causing real trouble would be bad. You had to know that the Marquis of York was no pushover.

Moreover, he had come with an important mission. Thinking of the instructions from his elder brother, who was also the Patriarch of the Bola Family, this honorable man changed his original mind. He waved to the guard, whispered two words in the latter’s ear, and then continued into the private room. The guard then went downstairs, left the restaurant, and returned after a moment.

In the meantime, the footsteps that had just sounded, and the sound of Sword Sheaths colliding, had also disappeared.