Chapter 61 To Die Under the Sword Intent of Old Master Lance
The three Bounty Hunters from the Bronze Guild who accepted old man Lance's bounty quest located the lich and confirmed its identity without hesitation, and took immediate action. Continue your adventure at empire
They paid to enter the City Lord's Mansion and became its temporary servants.
The lich resided in the City Lord's Mansion, his identity being the mansion's head butler.
They planned to hunt the head butler lich of the City Lord's Mansion, and the head butler lich, too, sought to hunt them.
From the moment they paid to enter the City Lord's Mansion, they realized this, as the head butler lich enjoyed draining the life force of Extraordinaries. Their disguises had been seen through by the head butler lich long ago.
This was normal, as their disguises weren't perfect – background and accents betrayed that they were not residents of Lionheart City or its surrounding towns.
That night, all three intended to kill the head butler lich, and the head butler lich wanted to drain their life forces and turn them into puppet skeleton soldiers.
Each wanted to eliminate the other, and what followed was straightforward.
Combat.
The victor lives, the vanquished dies.
The City Lord's Mansion's rear garden.
Louis, Dalton, and Bazel had just finished exchanging words in a corner when a middle-aged man dressed in a black tailcoat and sporting a slicked-back haircut, smiling, walked into the garden with his hands behind his back.
As he passed through the area planted with tulips, he casually picked one and held it to his nose for a light sniff: "Miss Joanna is quite fond of the tulips I grow. She often asks me what one must do to cultivate such delicate and vibrant flowers.
I tell her... the quality of fertilizer is very important. Extraordinaries among humans... they make exceptional fertilizer.
Of course, your robust life forces are also quite appealing to me. But, I think you should not have come to seek me out tonight. You should have rested for a few days before coming after all... your energy has not yet returned to its peak, and I feel that will somewhat affect your combat strengths..."
Louis, Dalton, and Bazel stepped out from the corner.
"As expected of a lich who has lived who knows how many years, your mannerisms and etiquette are impeccable. We are Hunters from the Bronze Bounty Guild; my name is Louis."
"Dalton."
"Bazel."
"Brandon." The head butler lich bowed slightly, also introducing himself.
"Our mission is to kill you, Lord Brandon. If you have any last words, you're welcome to tell us now."
"Last words, hm? I do have one. If I fall at your hands, are you interested in inheriting my lich tower? In taking up the profession of a lich?"
"Sorry, not interested."
"That's very unfortunate. Let's make this quick then. Miss Joanna doesn't like me staying up late; she always reminds me to go to bed early and wake early – she's a kind human girl. Once the City Lord is dead, I plan to take her as my apprentice."
In Brandon the head butler lich's hand appeared a Black Card, which seemed to slip from his grip and fall to the ground. In an instant, the surroundings transformed.
The garden turned into a graveyard, spine-chilling howls rose from underground, and skeletons continuously crawled out from the graves.
Underneath Louis, Dalton, and Bazel's feet, skeletons also emerged from the ground but were purified by their Source Energy.
"Solar Source Energy, Wind Source Energy, Earth Source Energy, good, good, good... your strength is not bad..."
"You know how to create Cards?"
"A bit. The card I just used is called 'Paradise of the Dead.' Any Extraordinaries who seek to hunt me end up inside. Be careful; even though I am confident of victory, I still give it my all when facing Extraordinaries who want to hunt me.
Of course, to prevent our battle from affecting the City Lord's Mansion, this card also seals off the Source Energy we release during the fight.
I wouldn't want to have to hire people to repair the City Lord's Mansion after the fight ends. You must understand, repairing the City Lord's Mansion... it'll cost quite a sum, and you three... don't seem like you have much money..."
"A Domain?"
"No, no, no, if I knew how to create a Domain, you'd already be dead. You can consider this a barrier, of sorts."
Louis was surrounded by blazing flames, incinerating any lower-level skeleton soldiers that came into contact with the fire to ash.
Dalton was surrounded by a whirlwind, and the attacking skeleton soldiers were sliced by the invisible wind blades.
Bazel summoned a pair of earthy yellow giant hands with his Source Energy, sweeping, slapping, hammering... any approaching skeletons were flattened.
Brandon's hands once again produced two black cards, and the moment the cards hit the ground, two undead knights in black armor riding bone horses, holding knight's spears, charged at Louis, Dalton, and Bazel.
"The lich has quite a few attack tools, let's use the Sword Intent Scrolls Mr. Lance gave us to kill these two undead knights first."
"Alright."
Louis punched to kill several skeletons in front of him, took out two Sword Intent Scrolls given by old Mr. Lance from his chest, and threw them directly at the undead knights charging towards him.
The scrolls were pierced by the long spears of the two undead knights.
"Now's the time, kill... kill his grand.... escape escape escape... can't escape!!! Defend defend defend!!!"
"We're gonna die under the two 'Suns' given to us by old Mr. Lance!!!"
"My knee got hit by a sword from old Mr. Lance!!! I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna die!!!"
At the instant when the two undead knights slit the Sword Intent Scrolls, two golden suns appeared in the pitch-black "Undead Paradise."
At the moment the two golden suns appeared, the two undead knights vanished.
The skeletons that kept crawling out of graves and underground didn't even get the chance to shriek; they were directly vaporized by the "rays" shot from the "two golden suns."
The elegant lich butler, dressed in a tailcoat and sporting a slicked-back hairstyle, released all his strongest defensive artifacts and even took out his lich scepter to prepare for defense, but he still couldn't withstand the rays from the two golden suns.
The golden rays pierced through all his defenses.
He watched helplessly as his lich scepter disappeared in the golden rays, watched helplessly as his body was penetrated and burned by the golden rays... watched as his lich soul fire... was pierced and shredded back and forth by the golden rays...
No... that's not right... it's not the Scroll of Light...
It's the swordsman's... Sword Intent...
The swordsman's Sword Intent... became the sun...
Ridiculous...
Before Brandon's consciousness faded, he glanced at the three bounty hunters crying and howling not far away...
Three idiots...
The Sword Intent's range of damage was too wide... the City Lord's Mansion will probably need repair...
.......
The next morning, explosive news shocked Lionheart City.
Last night, two golden suns appeared above the City Lord's Mansion, and after the disappearance of the two golden suns, half of the City Lord's Mansion collapsed.
A dozen servants were slightly injured, three temporary workers were seriously injured.
Mr. Brandon, the chief steward of the City Lord's Mansion, has disappeared.
Upon investigation, the three temporary workers have become major suspects in the case, and they were taken away for questioning.
Afternoon.
The investigation results came out, and the three temporary workers were bounty hunters from other kingdoms.
The chief steward of the City Lord's Mansion, Brandon, was a lich disguised as a human. The real butler Brandon had been killed by the lich a long time ago.
The temple of Lionheart City also confirmed that the City Lord's Mansion's Brandon was a lich.Nôv(el)B\\jnn
The three temporary worker bounty hunters need to cover part of the damages to the City Lord's Mansion, estimated to be around three thousand gold coins.