Chapter 94: A Safe Place

“So Tang Jie’s little scheme failed torture, and now he’s resorting to trickery?” Mongo said in a hoarse voice, as though his throat had just been scrubbed raw with sandpaper.

Seeing this, Lu Kuan grinned and said, “Never mind whether it was Tang Jie’s trick or not. Do you want to keep lying here, or are you coming out with me?”

Mongo lifted his eyelids and studied Lu Kuan for a moment. Then, bracing himself on the wooden stool with both hands, he struggled to his feet. “How do you mean to get me out?”

“I have my own ways.”

As he spoke, Lu Kuan tapped the lock on the cell bars with a finger and smiled. “Before that, could you open it for me?”

...

Ten minutes later, a drunken guard appeared at the far end of the corridor, staggering as he walked. His bulbous red nose had turned bright crimson under the sting of alcohol.

“This pine-nut wine they brought this time is really good, hic... hm?”

When he reached the room where Mongo was held, the guard’s eyes flew wide open. He rubbed them in disbelief, then erupted into frantic shouting:

“Somebody! The prisoner’s escaped! Somebody, quickly—”

By then, Lu Kuan was carrying Mongo on his back, moving in a crouched run along the riverbank hundreds of yards from the castle.

Under the faint moonlight and the reflection from the water, Lu Kuan moved straight ahead as if he knew the terrain by heart, hesitating not once.

“How are you so familiar with this place...” Mongo watched everything, and his confusion only deepened. He could not help asking aloud.

“Quiet!”

Lu Kuan cut him off at once, then dropped flat to the ground and listened carefully to the sounds around them.

Mongo did not understand why Lu Kuan had stopped at a time like this. Once Tang Jie’s men discovered his disappearance, they would surely send cavalry to search the area. Why not run while they still could?

But his injuries were severe, and by Lu Kuan’s side he had no choice in the matter.

The silence of the night lasted only a dozen seconds before the faint thunder of hoofbeats sounded from behind them. In just a few breaths, the silhouettes of a mounted patrol appeared in their view.

They held torches. There were at least a dozen horses, and every rider was fully armed.

After a brief exchange, the group immediately spread out. The riders whistled as they probed the thick grass at random with their lances. A few horses plunged into the shallow water near the riverbank, and the splashing in the darkness was especially harsh on the ear.

Mongo curled in on himself nervously, too afraid to look across anymore.

“There he is!”

Suddenly, someone in the mounted patrol shouted. Mongo, hidden in the grass, jumped in alarm and was about to spring up and flee, but Lu Kuan held him down firmly with one arm while covering his mouth with the other.

“Don’t panic. They’re bluffing.”

Lu Kuan whispered into Mongo’s ear. Mongo froze, then immediately understood what was happening. His whole body slowly relaxed. Yet being held in Lu Kuan’s arms, with warm breaths brushing his ear, he felt his face grow faintly hot.

He could not help glancing sideways at Lu Kuan. The young ranger’s expression was solemn, his gaze focused, and not the slightest trace of panic could be seen on his face.

Of course Lu Kuan was tense as well. These were Tang Jie’s personal guards, each well above level twenty. For the present-day Lu Kuan, they were truly the sort who would die on the spot if touched.

But he knew their usual tactics all too well. In the deep darkness of night, they could not possibly conduct a thorough, inch-by-inch search.

Sure enough, after a while, the mounted patrol regrouped and galloped onward into the distance.

Only when the torchlight on the horses had completely vanished did Lu Kuan rise again. He hoisted Mongo onto his back and continued forward, using the riverside grass as cover.

“Who are you, really? Cough... Where are you taking me? Do you have a grudge against Tang Jie?” Having lived through what had just happened, Mongo was still shaken, and his curiosity about Lu Kuan had only grown. He fired off one question after another.

Lu Kuan was concentrating on the surroundings, and at the question he only smiled. “You’ll know when we get there. I’m not exactly Tang Jie’s enemy, and I’m certainly not his friend. Relax.”

Mongo seemed far from satisfied with that answer. In his hoarse voice, he said, “Don’t think I’ll believe you just because you say so.”

“Haha, spare your brain the trouble. Pray to your god instead and make sure the beasts around here don’t find us.” Lu Kuan shook his head with a laugh.

After that, two more mounted patrols passed near them, and Lu Kuan evaded both of them without incident. Forty minutes later, he finally saw the black outline of a village in the distance.

A hundred yards or so from the village, the guardian dogs prowling around its perimeter discovered Lu Kuan’s trail. Wisely, Lu Kuan made no attempt to resist. He simply sat where he was and let three strong watchdogs circle him.

After sprinting all this way while carrying a halfling who weighed forty or fifty pounds, Lu Kuan was exhausted.

“Who’s there! ... Huh? Old Mister Lu?”

The village guards arrived quickly and recognized Lu Kuan at a glance. Looking utterly spent, Lu Kuan waved at them with a grin, showing a mouthful of white teeth.

Ten minutes later, inside the clinic at Clearwater Stockade.

After watching the physician give Mongo’s wounds a simple treatment, Lu Kuan could finally let out a long breath. He smiled at the somewhat uneasy Mongo and said, “It’s safe here. I’ll come find you when I have time.”

Mongo said nothing. She only glanced at Lu Kuan with her large blue eyes before being helped into the inner room by several girls.

Only then did Lu Kuan have time to sit down and gulp down a large cup of water.

“This little girl’s injuries are not light,” Tao Bo said, stroking a few whiskers on his chin with a slight frown.

“Pfft!”

Lu Kuan choked badly and sprayed a mouthful of water straight across the table, drenching Tao Bo’s face.

“Cough... sorry, sorry.” Lu Kuan was a little embarrassed now and hurried to apologize.

Tao Bo remained utterly composed. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the water from his face, then looked at Lu Kuan and laughed heartily. “You risked your life to bring her back, and you didn’t even know she was a girl?”

Lu Kuan scratched his head awkwardly. How was he supposed to know? Halflings were naturally small and delicate, and both men and women looked equally refined. Given Mongo’s condition at the time, there had been no way to tell.

Besides, in his previous life, Lu Kuan had only seen Mongo in screenshots online. How could he ever have guessed that this one was a girl?

“Oh, right. Chief, I’ve found some clues about Lightning’s poisoning. Don’t worry. I’ll definitely cure her,” Lu Kuan said solemnly.

Tao Bo nodded and patted Lu Kuan on the shoulder. “Young man, I believe in you.”

After arranging things for Mongo and recovering a little of his strength, Lu Kuan left Clearwater Stockade at once.

This time, however, he no longer had to sneak around in fear and anxiety, because Tao Bo had assigned two guards, each accompanied by a pet watchdog, to escort Lu Kuan straight along the main road to Lava Fortress.