Mercenary Harem in Murim Novel

Chapter 70: Chapter 70 – Ambush

"You good up there, Jack?"

"I am fine, Leader. Just a little bit of scratch. A rock suddenly flew from nowhere and hit my face. Damn, it's bleeding. Ouch!"

"Heh, crying just by being hit by a rock. How weak." Shui smirked.

"Shut up! At least I don't have a sword fetish like you!"

"You son of a—"

Woosh!

Suddenly, a sound of splitting wind could be heard from outside, three of them at the same time.

Hearing it, both Jack and Shui reacted immediately. The former caught something in his hand while the latter jumped out of the Humvee and drew his sword.

Two silver arches appeared in the air and split something that targeted the driver and Zhen.

At the same time, Chiaki stopped the Humvee again with a screeching sound. It rocked for a second before coming to a stop.

"What the fuck is this?!" Jack yelled as he realized the attack was from a person. He looked at his hand and saw an arrow. "Leader, permission to shoot."

"Granted." Leo nodded and gave the signal, "Fire away, Jack!"

"Yes, sir!"

Jack pulled the trigger of his PhoSni and a thunderbolt shot from the tip, aiming at the hidden enemy in the forest. A photon bullet hit the spot where the arrows were fired and created a bright light.

"Aaaah!"

The sound of a dying scream could be heard as the hidden person fell to the ground.

"Target down! He's incapacitated, not killed."

"Great job, Jack. Shui, grab him and bring him here." Leo said, opening the door and stepping out of the vehicle. "Chiaki, protect me."

"As you wish."

"Yes, Leader."

Everything moved pretty fast. Shui jumped into the forest and grabbed the man incapacitated by Jack. He only needed 5 seconds to come back and bring the injured man in his arms.

"Ow, my shoulder! Let me go, you freak!"

"Shut up, old man."

Shui threw him at Leo's feet, and the man looked up, gritting his teeth. His shoulder was broken, and his leg was twisted. There was a hole in his stomach but he was not bleeding.

'Huh? He's not bleeding.' Leo realized. 'This man is a Martial Artist. Probably a 4 or 5 Stars if he could survive an attack from Jack's PhoSni and healed it pretty fast. Great.'

A smile formed on his face as he stared down at the man. He had a feeling this was an ambush. A planned one on top of that.

Of course his instinct could be wrong, so he asked questions.

"Who are you, old man?"

"Fuck you! Don't think you can get away by attacking me!"

The man was furious and tried to get up, but he couldn't even move a finger. Shui had him immobilized with his feet.

Somehow, it was pretty funny seeing an attacker saying that they attacked him first. Leo wanted to laugh so hard that his lips curled up like a crescent moon.

The man, who saw that, immediately shut up. Jack stepped away and Shui averted his gaze.

Zhen didn't know what happened, but he understood it immediately when he saw Leo's smile. The 6 Stars martial artist felt like surrendering his life on a plate the first time ever.

Only Chiaki was able to stay calm in front of that smile.

"Now, did I hear that correctly?" Leo said, stroking his chin in thought. "If my memories serves me right, you attacked us first with three arrows. The arrowhead in your quiver and the bow on your back should confirm it. Am I right, Jack?"

"Yes, Leader."

"So, that means you were the one who ambushed us, am I right, old man?" He crouched and smiled.

The smile was no longer the gentle and charming one. It was the kind of smile that could make anyone piss their pants in fear.

"Now, I ask again. Who are you, old man? This is a question and a confirmation. If you don't answer, we will erase the settlement inside that forest. And if you lie, we will torture you slowly and painfully."

Leo was a mercenary, and he didn't mind torturing someone to get his way. It was just his job.

Dealing with this problem right here right now would be better for his job too. Having an unknown risk could mess up his plan to get the epigraph.

Also...

"For one, I hate liars. And I hate people who ambush me. You already have three strikes. One more and I will kill you without hesitation. So, let's try again. Who are you and why are you ambushing us?

I won't ask nicely again."

"A-A... S-Spare me! Please, spare me!"

The man cried and begged for his life. He knew his life was at stake. Leo's eyes were sharp, and he could detect every twitch of his muscle and expression. The smart lenses did help a little, but most of it was from his sharp observation.

"Just answer my question, okay? I am quite kind to ask nicely once. But I won't ask nicely again. And no lies or deceptions either."

"Yes, yes! I will tell the truth! I came from the hidden village nearby. We are all 5 Stars Martial Artists there and have been living in hiding for years. We're just retired martial artists, and we only want to live peacefully. I swear on my life, no lies."

The man was shaking in fear and Leo nodded.

'Well, that's true. The smart lenses can detect his heartbeat and muscle twitching. He's not lying. But...'

"Why did you attack us earlier?"

Leo's eyes were sharp. He couldn't afford to miss a single thing.

The man gulped his saliva and finally gave up.

"I thought that was a beast. I just wanted to protect our home." He said as he looked at the Humvee.

At that moment, Leo could understand where the old man came from. Even in Chengdu, his Humvee was mistaken as a divine beast. Then when he approached the first village earlier, the villagers were a bit afraid when he approached.

The engine roared like a ferocious beast, and his team was heavily armed. Of course, he was seen as a threat and not an ally. Also...

'A hidden village for retired martial artists, huh? Now that's interesting.' Leo thought. 'So it's not a planned ambush but a misunderstanding.'

"Alright, I believe you. Thank you for answering my question." He said as he stood up. "We won't attack your hidden village. Instead, we will leave immediately."

"Thank you for your kindness." The man bowed his head in relief. "Thank you for sparing me for my mistake."

"It's no problem. Just be careful next time. Don't attack people without knowing their background."

"Y-Yes, sir. Thank you very much. I owe you my life." He bowed his head once again.

"Now, let's move out." Leo announced, returning to the Humvee.

Everyone else followed suit. But as they entered the Humvee, the man suddenly spoke loudly.

"There were many martial artists passing this path yesterday, sir. Please be careful of ambush and trickery."

Leo was surprised, but he smiled and waved his hand.

"Thanks for the information."

With that, he told Jessica to continue the journey. Now he understood why there was inconsistency in the map and why the villager told him to go around the Green Peak mountain.

By circling the mountain, they would need a day or two more than taking the usual path.

"Leader, is it fine to leave him alone like that?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, it's fine. He's no threat. Let's focus on the mission. Besides… I am pretty interested in that hidden village."

"Alright."

Leo smiled as he sat on the passenger seat.

'Retired martial artists? I've read about it in the novel once. Many martial artists who were declared dead or missing gathered to create a hidden village. In the novel, it's mentioned that it's just a rumor. To think that I stumbled upon it. And so close to Chengdu at that.'

He had to visit this village in the future. Maybe after the mission was over.

If only he didn't have a mission, he would stop by right now.

Expanding his force in this world would be good. Even in the game, he had many branches of subordinates for smaller or large scale missions. But with his current base, it was impossible to recruit the retired martial artists.

'It will take some time and effort. Maybe I should focus on that later. Let's see how the mission turns out first.'