Leilin Farell furrowed his brow. It seemed his two horses had caused trouble.
Still, he happened to need someone to make an example of. A cold smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he turned and walked out of the bar.
Next to his black horse, a handful of thug-like characters were already milling about, sizing up the fine steeds. Their greedy eyes kept drifting to the chest strapped to the horse's back, and the most impatient one had already started undoing the reins.
"Planning to touch my things?" Leilin strode out.
Obviously, the leather armor and the Cross Sword at his side gave them some pause — but not nearly enough.
A slant-eyed thug shouted, "These are clearly horses that went missing from my family! How are they yours? You must have stolen them from us, you damn thief!!!"
Even if Leilin had been an ordinary mercenary with a weapon, he couldn't have withstood a mob of thugs all at once. That was clearly what they were counting on.
"Right! Let's take him to the constable!!" The rest of the gang started egging each other on.
The surrounding residents showed looks of disgust and kept their distance, but nobody stepped in to stop it.
"Get him! He's all alone!" The slant-eyed thug pulled a dagger from inside his coat and lunged first.
"Just the thing to loosen up!" Leilin flashed a savage grin, sidestepped the thrust, then seized the thug's right wrist and gave it a sharp twist. The thug shrieked in pain and the dagger clattered to the ground.
"Ahhh!! It hurts!!! What are you doing?! Let go! My brother-in-law is the constable — he won't let you get away with this!!" The thug wailed.
"Is that so? The constable? I'm terrified!" Leilin cried out theatrically, then twisted harder.
Crack!! A sickening snap of bone rang out, and the slant-eyed thug passed out cold from the pain.
Leilin's physical condition had already reached the level of a full Knight — dispatching a mere thug was effortless.
"Boss! Boss!" Several of the gang members called out from a distance, but not one dared step forward.
Leilin's lips curled into a smile. He blurred into a shadow and plunged into the pack of thugs.
Boom!! Crack!! Aaaah!!
Screams of agony and the nauseating sounds of breaking bones filled the air. Leilin seemed to transform into a gust of black wind. In just a few strikes he had every last thug sprawled on the ground, each one nursing a broken arm and a broken leg.
Wearing the warmest, most affable smile imaginable, Leilin walked over to the unconscious slant-eyed thug. He raised his foot, then stomped down hard on the man's right leg.
"Aaaah!!" The thug jolted awake from the pain, then immediately rolled his eyes and passed out again.
"Take your boss and get out! You're welcome to come back for revenge. But if you do, it won't be just a broken arm and leg next time!"
He addressed the rest of the gang. In their eyes, his smile looked like a grinning demon.
Leilin watched the thugs hobble away, supporting each other as they fled, before turning back into the bar.
"At least Preliminary Knight-level physical conditioning!" the bartender thought, his face breaking into an even more deferential and ingratiating smile.
"Esteemed sir! Is there anything I can do for you?"
This was the effect of demonstrated power. Looking at the bar, which had fallen utterly silent, Leilin sighed inwardly.
He hadn't enjoyed playing the psycho back there either, but with this much cargo on his hands, what would happen if someone stole it while he was away from the room? He'd left a tracking sigil on everything, but if the goods got damaged, he'd have nowhere to cry.
Now, having shown Preliminary Knight strength, anyone who had been scheming would think twice.
"Help me carry the chest to my room, and take the horses to the stable — the best feed you have." Leilin tossed another silver coin to the bartender. "That thug just now — does he have any connections?"
"He just has some loose tie to the constable, that's all. Skims a bit of cash here and there on the side. You have absolutely nothing to worry about, sir." The bartender bowed his head.
Anyone with Preliminary Knight strength had to possess some kind of Knight training method. Such a person was either nobility or backed by powerful interests — a small-town constable wouldn't dare cross them.
"Take me to my room." Leilin had only asked out of idle curiosity. A roadside thug couldn't possibly have any real backing.
The room was just behind the bar. The bartender made sure to bring Leilin to the one farthest from the main hall, producing a key to unlock the door.
A slant of sunlight cut through the open window and into the room, casting motes of golden dust across the space. In the middle sat a large bed with crisp, clean white sheets. On a side table stood a blue vase holding a few sprigs of wildflowers.
"Looks clean. Good — this is the one." Leilin nodded.
"Here is your key, please keep it safe." The bartender respectfully handed over a brass key.
Leilin took the key and sent the bartender off to put the horses in the stable and unload the chest into the room. He ordered a steak delivered to the room, told the bartender not to disturb him, and then shut the door.