Chapter 971: A Key Ally
Inside Sea Eye Sovereign’s private chamber, while Lin Yu and April were engaged in heated negotiations and plotting with Sea Eye Sovereign...
On the other side of the auction house, the duo from Order and the Night Watchmen had also made a breakthrough.
“So that’s how it is. I’ve completely figured out the bodyguard Naga’s movements!”
Mountain Sparrow stared at the shadows in the corridor and spoke in a low voice.
Nearby, Crazy Blade was watching the other people in the hall. This time, he wasn’t slacking off. He was trying to determine whether any of the local NPCs present might have been bought off by the Marauders and recruited as bodyguards.
Hearing Mountain Sparrow’s words, Crazy Blade’s expression turned serious as well.
“Oh? What pattern?”
“More precisely, it’s the pattern followed by the auction house’s security system and patrols.” Mountain Sparrow’s gaze swept over a solemn-looking squad of Sea Demons emerging from the depths of a corridor. “Although Naga are skilled at stealth and concealment, that’s nothing unusual in the Pure Abyss. So an auction house like this is equipped with something that can detect Naga in stealth... After all, I can see them with my naked eyes. The professional security personnel must have some way to detect them, too.”
“Besides, this auction house has an ‘image system’ equipped with technology from the predecessor civilization in the Pure Abyss... It’s pretty much like the surveillance cameras we have back home. The only problem is that there’s no way to replay the footage.”
At this, Mountain Sparrow paused and glanced at a squad of guards who had just emerged from a corridor. “There are three squads of Sea Demon guards patrolling the entire auction house. They move at roughly the same speed, going back and forth between the exhibition hall and the various corridors. So that Naga moves through the shadows between the halls to avoid the guards. And since its employers, the two Marauders, are in that corridor, its route repeats in a fifteen-minute cycle. When the first patrol squad...”
Listening to Mountain Sparrow, Crazy Blade felt a headache coming on. “Mountain Sparrow, hold on a second... Just give me the short version. I won’t remember all those details even if you tell me. Just tell me what matters most. I won’t question you. What do we do? I’ll follow your lead!”
At that, Mountain Sparrow looked at Crazy Blade, then nodded. “All right. The important thing is that every fifteen minutes, the Naga heads to the corridor on the far left. I observed a ten-minute security gap there. And after carefully examining the corridor’s layout, I found a corner and a staircase leading up. There should be a blind spot within a blind spot there. If I use my item, I might be able to create an area... where not even sound can get out.”
Crazy Blade understood. “So we have a place where we can take that Naga out?”
“Of course.” Mountain Sparrow nodded. “But the risk is... if those two Marauders have other companions, we might alert them.”
Crazy Blade shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. We might not even be exposed... And taking out one of their stronger fighters first would be to our advantage.”
“What’s more, if the two of us really do reveal ourselves and draw out the hidden allies of those two Marauders, then in a way, we’ll have forced those people in the shadows to show themselves, won’t we?”
Crazy Blade said optimistically.
Mountain Sparrow let out a breath. “That makes sense. Then... let’s get ready to move.”
“Good. When will it head into that corridor again?”
Crazy Blade asked, eager for action.
Mountain Sparrow didn’t answer right away. Instead, he started walking. “Right now. Follow me.”
“But we need to take it out completely without leaving a trace within ten minutes, and we’ll even have to leave ourselves some time to deal with the body. So don’t mess this up, Crazy Blade!”
As Mountain Sparrow spoke, Crazy Blade grinned.
“Don’t worry, Mountain Sparrow. I’m pretty confident in my ‘damage output.’ Naga or Siren, I’ll finish it off quickly.”
“Ten minutes is too long. As long as you can keep that thing under control, I’ll leave you eight minutes to clean up the body.”
…
Ten minutes later, in the shadows beneath the staircase at the corner of the corridor on the far left.
Crazy Blade was breathing hard and fast. Blood seeped through his diving suit and spread into the seawater.
Mountain Sparrow had created two air barriers to temporarily keep the blood from flowing away. He looked at Crazy Blade with some exasperation.
“How did you manage to get stabbed in the thigh by that Naga’s stupid last-ditch counterattack when you were already about to win?”
Crazy Blade slowly bandaged the wound on his leg, baring his teeth in pain as he spoke. “Well, did I finish it off within two minutes or not? If I hadn’t counterattacked at the end, I would’ve gone over the time limit!”
Looking at the Naga’s corpse on the ground, Mountain Sparrow sighed as he crouched down and stuck a page of his comic artwork onto it. “I never told you that you had to finish it off within two minutes.”
“I said it myself. That’s called setting limits for myself, got it? I have to respect the rules I set and the promises I make.” Crazy Blade spoke solemnly. “If you don’t honor your own promises... It’s like deciding on your way home from school that stepping on a black brick is the same as stepping in lava, then stepping on one and cheating by telling yourself, ‘Oh, it doesn’t count. It’s not real lava anyway.’ That would be no fun at all!”
“That doesn’t sound like a very serious consequence.”
Mountain Sparrow still sounded unconvinced.
Crazy Blade thought about it, then said, “My example wasn’t quite right... It’s like saying you’ll read a novel before bed, promising yourself you’ll go to sleep after finishing the chapter, and then the author happens to end on a cliffhanger, so you break your promise and keep reading. Then you end up not getting a good night’s sleep.”
Mountain Sparrow considered Crazy Blade’s words. “I guess that makes some sense, but... it’s not that serious, is it?”
“Then let me think of a better example...”
As Crazy Blade spoke, Mountain Sparrow cut him off. “Forget it. Don’t give me any more examples. I think I get it.”
“Besides... I’ve made an important discovery.”
As he spoke, Mountain Sparrow stood up from beside the corpse.
Crazy Blade was a little surprised. “What did you find?”
Mountain Sparrow held up a badge. “I found this on the Naga’s chest. It’s a personal guard’s credential belonging to the Sea Demon Regent. In other words... this fellow wasn’t hired directly by those two Marauders.”
Crazy Blade saw the light. “Aha! This Naga is one of some Sea Demon Regent’s subordinates... Looks like we’ve stumbled right onto those two guys’ ‘key ally’!”