novelraw Chapter 361: The Hideout That Must Not Fall
Chapter 361: The Hideout That Must Not Fall
Walking on the street, the Slave Trade Guild Captain had her usual smile plastered on her face. Her plan had gone more smoothly than expected. Behind her, two of her trusted aides looked at her back with respect and adoration.
"Congratulations on the plan’s success. With this, you can return to the Guild Headquarters with your head raised," one of the aides said with a fawning smile.
"Hahaha. I cannot wait to see those bastards’ faces when they see the Captain’s face when she returns to the Headquarters," the second aide added quickly, not wanting to be outdone.
Listening to the flattery, the Slave Trade Guild Captain could not help but chuckle silently.
Who did not like to be flattered?
Besides, she had earned it.
Her shoulders were raised high, her head raised like a peacock, and her mind was swelling with pride.
The thought of returning to the headquarters with such success filled her mind with unending joy.
For too long, many within the headquarters had looked down on her.
They had believed her methods were too delicate.
They had believed her smile was weakness.
They believed she relied too much on manipulation instead of raw power.
But after this mission, all those mocking eyes would have to lower themselves before her.
She had secured an easier cooperation of the Sandroach Chief.
She had opened the path for their hidden goods. A path to an unending flow of sacrifice of both human and beastmen.
Such achievements were more than enough to raise her standing within the Slave Trade Guild.
Just then, humans and Sandroach rushed toward their direction frantically.
"What is going on?" one of the aides asked, his expression filled with puzzlement.
The Captain did not speak, but her expression was enough to tell what she was feeling.
’Why do I have this bad feeling?’ she thought, creasing her brow.
The street ahead had become messy. People were running in different directions.
Some had pale faces while some stumbled as they ran, as if their legs had lost strength from fear.
Quickly, one of the aides stopped one of the human awakeners for questioning.
"What is going on? Why are you all running as if you are being chased?" he asked, his voice cold and devoid of any emotion.
He even released a portion of his aura.
Hmm?
Feeling the strong, intimidating aura, the group trembled, and their faces contorted into dread.
"P-Please... We do not know what is going on," one of the group responded with a shaky voice.
"We only saw the western street being attacked by people dressed in black cloaks," he added.
Hmm?
Instantly, the expressions on their faces changed. The Slave Trade Guild Captain moved closer to the group.
"Tell me everything. Do not hide anything," she commanded, her voice laced with blatant threat.
The group of four swallowed hard. They knew their situation was delicate.
They had barely managed to escape from the western street, hoping to hide near the Sandroach Chief’s residence, but who would have thought they would encounter such unreasonable people?
They wanted to cry, but there were no tears in their eyes.
"From what we learned, all the guards have been killed, and all stores on the western street are also under attack," the first person among the group said with a shaky voice.
"Also, I heard the patrolling guards of the Slave Trade Guild on the northern street have also been killed. None survived," a lean young woman among the group added from the side.
Listening to the report, the Slave Trade Guild Captain’s expression turned ugly.
Whoosh!
Without bothering to listen to the end, she vanished from her spot at breathtaking speed.
’How is this possible?’ she exclaimed in her mind.
Just from the fragmented information, she knew their guild was being attacked.
But how was that possible?
Her men were stationed at every entrance of the town. If there had been a powerful awakener entering the town, she would have been informed.
Yet, she did not hear anything.
’Is it possible some of my men have defected to the opposite faction?’ she thought.
The more she thought about it, the harder she found it to wrap her head around what was going on. She had meticulously arranged the security of Sandroach Town.
Even if the Sandroach wanted to rebel, they would find it nearly impossible.
Her men had been stationed in all strategic places throughout the town.
But now...
It was as if her enemies had read through her plan and sneaked in under her nose.
The more she thought about it, the more she found the situation was not as simple as attacking a single street.
Her enemy’s plan was too thorough to attack a single street and depart.
The western street was the wealthiest area controlled by the Slave Trade Guild.
The northern street was close to the Sandroach clan’s inner area.
If both had been attacked almost at the same time, then the attacker was not moving randomly.
They were cutting through the guild’s influence piece by piece.
’Is it possible I am being targeted?’ When she reached this conclusion, she believed this must be the likely cause.
Suddenly, she halted in her tracks. She looked in the direction of the western street, which was less than fifty meters from her.
Then, she took a drastic turn. Instead of going to the western street, she headed back to their guild hideout.
If the enemies were targeting her, going to the western street was like delivering herself to her enemy.
’I need to return to the hideout immediately and plan my next action.’
With that thought, she rushed toward their hideout. Although the Slave Trade Guild was the unrivaled power in the town, she still understood the danger of walking into a prepared trap.
Only their members knew of their hideout. Most humans and Sandroach did not know.
That hidden location was their true root in Sandroach Town and it must not fall into the unknown enemy’s hand.
It contained their records.
It contained their captives.
As long as the hideout remained safe, she could still reorganize everything.