Chapter 396 - 210: Fiery Red Hair Dancing in the Wind
Chapter 396: Chapter 210: Fiery Red Hair Dancing in the Wind
With the pleasantries out of the way, Lin Mo first checked on the villagers and Adventurers. Fortunately, the terrain advantage was quite effective in a battle where the combatants were of relatively low strength.
Everyone’s Physical Strength was severely depleted, but they hadn’t sustained many injuries.
Lin Mo casually cast a few Great Healing Skills, using this incredibly lavish method to heal their wounds.
[Great Healing Skill] Skill Level +1
...
"Skill [Great Healing Skill] Level 2 (10/10) has leveled up!"
"Current Skill: [Great Healing Skill] Level 3 (1/40)"
"Obtained attribute points: Magic Power +1, Spirit +1!"
’It leveled up.’
’And just like that, I gained another point of Magic Power and Spirit.’
Lin Mo felt that at this rate, he was on the verge of becoming an Elite Mage!
’After all, Flora was just an Elite Mage.’
’Of course, she probably wasn’t a newly-minted Elite. She was likely a bit stronger, maybe Level 13, Level 14, or even higher? But she was probably still a long way from the Extraordinary Level 20.’
"So, what brought you all to this village?"
Lin Mo asked curiously.
"Well, that’s... a long story..."
Bain replied, his voice tinged with emotion.
"It’s actually not that complicated. To put it simply, that bastard Lord in Roland Town has no intention of rescuing the surrounding villages, but the head of the Roland Town Adventurer’s Association isn’t ready to abandon the people in these villages. So, he organized us Adventurers to see if we could save as many as possible," Evan, who was standing nearby, summarized succinctly.
"I see."
Lin Mo nodded. That certainly fit his impression of Roland Town.
’The Lord of Roland Town... if I remember correctly, he’s the son-in-law of the Lawrence Clan, isn’t he?’
The man was obviously no good. Since Lin Mo had arrived in Roland Town, he had heard of the man doing one despicable thing after another.
In contrast, the head of the Roland Town Adventurer’s Association was a decent man. It was he who had initiated the mission to support Falling Leaves Village back then.
"So, what’s the situation in Roland Town right now?"
"Not optimistic."
Bain shook his head. "Last night, a good number of Goblins managed to break into the town, and we had a hard time clearing them out. To protect the main city, Lania City has recalled almost all the Guards from its territories. Roland Town is a special case. Since the town’s Lord is the son-in-law of Lania City’s own City Lord—Viscount Lawrence—the main city didn’t withdraw its Guards. It let the town keep its original defensive force, but..."
But how many guards can a small town possibly have?
They stood no chance against a Goblin Army numbering in the tens of thousands.
On top of that, with disaster looming, the town descended into chaos. Many people took advantage of the turmoil to loot, rob, murder, and set fires before fleeing...
The entirety of Roland Town had plunged into chaos.
The head of the Adventurer’s Association had the will to do something, but he was ultimately powerless in the face of such a situation. To put it bluntly, Roland Town was a lost cause... His only option was to organize an evacuation of the citizens and dispatch Adventurers to rescue the surrounding villages as best they could.
Listening to Bain’s description, Lin Mo gained a deeper appreciation for just how precious the situation in Silver Stream City had been—where the people were willing to trust their Lord, and their Lord, in turn, spared no effort to protect them from the Goblin Army’s invasion.
All of this was thanks to the stable order brought about by Lady Beixila’s meticulous daily governance, and the esteemed reputation she had built bit by bit. In the end, the facts proved that she had truly lived up to the people’s reverence and expectations.
Coupled with well-trained Guards of excellent Combat Power and the help of many eager Adventurers, Silver Stream City had managed to successfully fend off the Goblin invasion without paying a terrible price.
As for Lania City and Roland Town, however, the situation was much, much worse.
The entire bureaucracy of Lania City was rotten from top to bottom. In normal times, all they thought about was extorting the populace for every last coin. In a time of crisis, it was only natural that they wouldn’t think of the people’s well-being. Those nobles were probably all thinking about how to guarantee their own safety and figuring out how to move their wealth...
"Oh, right. I’m giving this back to you."
Bain suddenly and carefully took a Scroll from his breast pocket. "We agreed back then. As soon as I learned it, I’d return it to you."
Lin Mo glanced at the Scroll, and the memory of that time came back to him.
It was from his first foray into a Secret Realm. The place had been fraught with danger, Millian had nearly lost her life, and this very [Tenacity] Scroll had been acquired from a Treasure Chest during that adventure.
"Forget it."
Lin Mo shook his head. "Just keep it as a memento. In exchange, Uncle Bain, I’ll just continue to hold onto your [Shield Strike] Scroll."
Although [Tenacity] was a Green Excellent Level Skill and [Shield Strike] was a White Ordinary Level Skill, an Excellent Level Skill Scroll was no longer that important to the current Lin Mo, even if it still held some value.
"Besides, keeping it will be beneficial for your future progress with the skill, won’t it?"
Bain was silent for a few seconds, then accepted. "All right... Thank you!"
"Uncle Bain, now you’re just being too polite."
Lin Mo smiled and shook his head. "We might not be teammates anymore, but we’re still friends. You helped me so much before and taught me so many things. This little scroll is nothing."