Chapter 575.1: Shortcut?!

"Don’t get worked up." Seeing the shift in the players’ eyes, Luo Feihui became even more certain of his suspicions. He quickly forced a laugh and waved it off. "I mean no harm. In fact, I’d quite like to be friends with you... The weather outside’s cold enough, let’s go inside and talk."

As he spoke, he patted Ample Time’s arm, shooting him a meaningful look, then turned and walked toward the room.

Ample Time exchanged a glance with Night Ten, then led the other eight players inside, following the NPC’s steps.

Since the plot had triggered, they might as well see where it went.

The group entered the restaurant.

The interior was as lavish and empty as outside. Several attendants were the only ones in sight. Apart from their group, there were no other guests.

Luo Feihui led them straight to the innermost private room.

After they were seated, seeing no one speak, he opened the conversation with a smile. "No need to be tense. This may be Lord Zhao’s property, but the people here are all family members of my subordinates."

Ample Time eyed him with interest. "When did you first notice?"

He was certain this man hadn’t figured them out simply by looking at their hands or their faces.

Luo Feihui smiled faintly, pride flickering in his expression. "From the moment you walked through the door."

"Oh?"

"Aside from what I said before, the main reason was that my informant in Hope Town called me. He said Mutant Humans had attacked there, and a group from the New Alliance drove those green-skinned monsters away."

"I see." Ample Time rubbed his chin. "I did consider the possibility of news traveling here, but I didn’t expect it to beat us here."

Now that’s troublesome.

Seeing Ample Time thoughtful, Luo Feihui seemed to guess his concerns, smiling as he continued, "No need to worry. Our lord doesn’t know who you are. He just thinks you’re mercenaries hired to do a job, and told me to treat you well while probing whether Yang He hired you to do anything... extra."

"Such as?"

"Such as usurping his authority."

Watching Ample Time’s faint surprise, Luo Feihui revealed a knowing smile. "Honestly, I was surprised myself. I thought old Yang was just a merchant growing too rich, but to think he turned to the New Alliance...

tsk, tsk

, impressive indeed."

At that, Ample Time’s expression grew not just surprised but subtly complicated. Truth be told, he hadn’t even heard of Yang He. That man was most likely Falling Feather’s employer for his mission.

The part about joining the New Alliance was pure speculation. However, no one could blame them for jumping to conclusions.

After all, who would imagine that in the New Alliance, simply posting a task at the Mercenary Guild could bring even regular army assistance once it passed review?

Seeing Ample Time’s look of shock, Luo Feihui thought he had guessed right again, a smug thrill rising in him.

That thrill gave him the confidence to keep going.

He smiled slyly and spoke slowly. "So I was right, our Boss Yang betrayed his master, turned to the New Alliance that made him rich, then let New Alliance soldiers into Pinecone Ranch. Let me guess further... The Flame Mercenary Corps, aren’t you actually the Burning Corps?"

At that, not only Ample Time but nearly every player’s expression shifted in surprise.

Good lord...

If this NPC didn’t have a cheat script, his leaps of logic were absurd!

And yet the absurd part was, he’d guessed right about which corps they were in!

"You got us." Since the reasoning had been too flawless, Ample Time didn’t bother lying. He smiled and admitted, "Yes, that’s us."

Luo Feihui clearly hadn’t expected himself to be so accurate. Overjoyed, he sat upright in his chair. "Truly? What an honor! To be frank, I’m a reader of The Survivor’s Daily. I’ve followed your broadcasts and admired your name for a long time! I just never thought we’d meet like this."

"I never thought such a small settlement of 50,000 would hide a man of such... brilliance."

Ample Time chuckled, leaning back in his chair, watching him calmly. "So? What do you plan to do?"

His expression suggested he wasn’t the least worried about having been exposed.

Luo Feihui wasn’t surprised by his composure. He’d heard their record, breaking Falcon Kingdom’s defenses, capturing a king alive.

Compared to that, his daydreaming master was nothing.

And on that, Luo Feihui was very self-aware.

"I told you, I mean no harm. If I did, I would’ve informed the master before you even arrived."

"So I should thank you?"

"No need." Luo Feihui waved it off with a smile. "Didn’t I say that from the start? I would quite like to be friends with you."

He stood from his chair, strolling lazily to the window. His eyes through the blinds fell on the mansion nearby. "What do you think of this settlement?"

The abrupt question made Ample Time uncertain of his intent. He casually countered, "Do you really call this a settlement?"

Luo Feihui smiled faintly. "Indeed, to you shelter dwellers, even to passing wastelanders, this isn’t a settlement, just a large plantation. Everyone here is the Zhao family’s property, no different from the livestock in their pens. So he can do whatever he pleases, without caring what we think."

At that, Ample Time gave him a longer look. He hadn’t expected that man to have such awareness.

Seeing Ample Time silent, Luo Feihui lowered his voice. "Most farms here are the same. The reason goes back far, so far most have forgotten.

"Once, Brocade Lake Municipality was a real settlement, as prosperous as Boulder Town. But some fools thought with their toes and took in green-skinned scum. It tore the settlement apart. Some survivors escaped to the farms. Out of fear, they banded together, trading their crops with Boulder Town for weapons. Then came more events, small farms swallowed by large ones, landless survivors turned into slaves. That’s the history of most farms here, and of Pinecone Ranch too."

"If you think I’m complaining, you’re mistaken. I believe this was a necessary price. To beat an impossible foe, we had to sacrifice more than them."

Then his voice sharpened, his tone turning fervent.

"But don’t you see? These people here have forgotten why we first put the rope around our own necks. It was to drive out the mutants, to drive out every last green-skinned monster, to reclaim our honor and prosperity!"

"Yet now, as you’ve seen, we plant Na Fruit, listen to the lies of fanatics, drown ourselves in their fantasies, dreaming of working together with Mutant Humans, even selling them the poor souls suffocated by Na Fruit, to become their food and breeding stock. If my grandfather still lived, he would be ashamed of the lord."

"We are putting the rope back around our necks, making ourselves slaves to Mutant Humans. And that fool still insists on being the Torch Church’s dog, dragging everyone else down too! Even though Hope Town proved the mutants don’t care what we believe, he tells himself it was an exception."

"I don’t know what Yang He promised you, but I’ll say this. I’m the better candidate. Many in this settlement stand with me. He can at most get you inside the settlement. I can get you into the main mansion itself. In exchange, I ask only one thing!"

"And that is?" Ample Time asked, studying the man’s growing fervor.

He didn’t know if that man was trustworthy.

But if he truly thought this way, cooperation was possible.

Luo Feihui locked eyes with him and enunciated each word. "Make me the master of Pinecone Ranch!"

...

The night deepened.

Close to midnight, the drunken mercenaries were escorted back to Pinecone Ranch’s gates.

As Ample Time had predicted, the suspicious farm owner would not let them stay inside. Their lodging was set outside the walls.

It was a shame the lord of Pinecone Ranch hadn’t accounted for one thing.

The staggering drunkards weren’t the mercenaries, they were Luo Feihui’s household servants, dressed in the players’ plain clothes.

Though their faces were entirely different, in the dark no one noticed. They reached the gates without trouble.

The only one to notice was Wu Wenzhou.

He faintly guessed what was happening, but under the eyes of Luo Feihui’s men, he dared not make a sound. He had no choice but to pretend, leading them into the inn Lord Zhao had arranged.

At the same time, crates were carried to the back door of Xinglong Restaurant, arriving with them were Falling Feather and his Little Feathers.

Slipping into a storeroom, Falling Feather spotted Ample Time checking weapons inside. He quickly grabbed him. "What’s going on? Weren’t we set to attack from outside, to pin down the garrison for you?"

Yes.

Before theft arrived, they agreed never to rely on infiltration or soft methods, but to go straight for the throat, seize the farm owner, and the settlement would fall into their hands.