That bard is such a charmer!

Chapter 24: Poets will do anything for the sake of rhyme!

Richard went out of the house, intending to discuss the plan with Grace.

Before I knew it, I had only taken a few steps when I saw Grace stagger up the stairs. Her watery eyes looked around before she fixed her gaze on Richard. Reeking of alcohol, she pounced on him.

"Ah, my little poet, I've been bullied~"

Grace clung to Richard's arm, her face flushed, and spoke in a dazed, aggrieved voice.

Richard felt his arms being clamped between two huge, soft, warm, and indescribable things.

He tried to pull it out several times, but the suction was too strong, so he gave up and pretended to be shocked, widening his eyes and saying:

"No way, who would dare bully you?"

"It's that sleeping tree spirit's boss! I still have money, but he won't let me drink!"

"How dare he do this? It's utterly heinous! By the way, how much did you drink?"

"About three... three, four, five, or six buckets..."

Ha, I knew it.

Richard could already imagine Andy staring at Grace, his expression shifting from initial delight at having made a sale to one of utter horror, as if thinking, "What the hell is this Dynamaxed female dwarf?"

Forgive him; he just doesn't want his inventory to run out. He has to keep doing business tomorrow morning.

Richard thought this, but said it aloud:

"We can talk about getting revenge for you later. I have a plan to punish a thief right now, it's quite interesting, would you like to get involved?"

For Grace, Richard's use of the word "funny" was, in a sense, similar to the safe word one would use when playing that kind of game.

The next second, her face was no longer flushed, her voice was no longer cloying, and most of the alcohol fumes had dissipated. She looked at Richard with shining eyes and said:

"Is that even a question? Count me in!"

"So you were faking being drunk just now?"

"You just don't understand, my little poet. Knowing when to be sober and when to get drunk is a kind of wisdom."

Grace tilted her head and smiled.

Richard rolled his eyes, too lazy to argue with a silly dragon, and pulled her into the bedroom.

He then repackaged the information he obtained from the tavern as something he had overheard and relayed it to the other party.

Grace licked her lips.

"Interesting... So, Richard, what's your plan?"

Richard replied in a deep voice:

"Considering that one of us is a dragon and the other disguised himself and used an alias, neither of us are exactly upright people, there will be many troubles and difficulties in explaining ourselves, whether it's informing them beforehand or solving the case afterwards..."

"Therefore, for us, the most feasible plan is actually only one, and its name is..."

"Catching someone in the act of adultery in public!"

Then Richard began to discuss the details of the plan with Grace...

Several more hours passed.

The night was deep.

The two dwarfs sneaked out of the room and began their operation.

They were seasoned pickpockets who easily pried open the lock and then silently stole everything from the group of adventurers from Winterfell.

Then they met up and divided the stolen money in two. One half was put back in their own room, while the other half was taken by the man with the mustache and sent to Andy's bedroom.

So far, everything is going smoothly.

In the corridor, the goatee who was keeping watch even relaxed to the point of humming a tune softly.

"The elven arrows pierce the clouds, and the human warships raise their sails~"

People say that greatness should be like this, but they don't know that we dwarfs move as lightly as a flowing spring.

"The big, dumb guys are all busy running around like crazy, while the clever dwarfs manage to borrow their money..."

"...Foolish dwarfs are talking in the corner, thinking their schemes are beyond anyone's reach."

Goatbeard: ?

Wait a minute, that last line wasn't sung by him!

Why would anyone sing along with him in the middle of the night?!

Goatbeard immediately tensed up and looked around, only to find that a handsome man had emerged from the dark corner at the end of the corridor, clapping his hands and singing loudly.

The man was Richard.

Seeing that the dwarf had noticed him, he smiled and greeted him, then continued singing at the top of his lungs:

"Little did they know that the true wisdom lay with the bard and his brave and reliable warrior companion."

"They overheard the dwarfs' despicable plan, learning that they intended to steal money and frame the innocent."

"Just people will never tolerate evil, and the poet and his companions decided to lie in ambush ahead."

"Don't ask why the last word was written before; you should know that poets will do anything for the sake of rhyme..."

You, you, you!

Who are you? How did you get here... This, this can't be!

Upon hearing this, Goatbeard realized that their plan had been exposed and they had been caught red-handed by someone with ulterior motives!

Moreover, this guy's singing is so loud that in a little while, everyone in the tavern will be woken up and gather around!

He was anxious and quickly tried to call his companion, Eight-Beard, away.

But the next second, with a loud bang, the door to Andy's bedroom was violently kicked open!

It turned out that while Richard was singing to attract attention, Grace had already slipped into the bedroom and easily subdued the mustache dwarf.

At that moment, she kicked open the door, grabbed Goatee by the back of his neck like a rabbit, and walked out with a smile, standing perfectly in his way as he tried to escape down the stairs.

She said to the goatee, "Hello, I'm that brave and reliable warrior companion."

Goatbeard: "..."

"Who's yelling so late at night! Damn it!"

"I finally dreamt that I was in bed with the goddess of wealth..."

"Wait, it sounds like they're talking about theft or burglary outside."

"Wait, where's our money!"

"Huh? Does the goddess charge that much?!"

Thanks to Richard's efforts, the entire pub quickly came to its senses.

Then, a dozen or so people, including the boss Andy and the Winterfell adventurers who had been robbed, came out of the room and saw Richard, Grace and the dwarves.

Seeing this, Grace laughed and shook her mustache, causing the money in the other person's arms to fall to the ground with a clatter.

Richard then took the opportunity to explain the dwarfs' plan again, highlighting the key points.

So everyone quickly understood everything.

The adventurers of Winterfell were instantly enraged and wanted to rush up and beat them up!

Andy was terrified, then his fear turned to anger as he glared at the dwarfs.

"You bastards! How could you do this to me! Ah, I know, it was Philip from the next street who ordered you to do it..."

Across from him, the goatee tried to argue, "Don't listen to that man's nonsense! We're innocent! These are all things they've framed us for!"

Richard smiled at the adventurers from Winterfell and added, "The other half of your valuables are still in their house; a search will find them."

Adventurers: "!"

Goatbeard: "..."

At this point, Goatee knew the situation was hopeless. He sighed, and then…

With a loud thud, he knelt down before Andy, the tavern owner!

"I didn't want this to happen, those thugs forced me to do it..."

Halfway through his speech, just as everyone thought he had surrendered and relaxed their guard slightly, he suddenly jumped up again, pulled out a small gray ball, and threw it on the ground!

In an instant, a large plume of smoke exploded from the small ball, filling the entire corridor, not only obscuring the view but also causing everyone to cough!

Then, the goatee took a step forward and rushed towards a blonde woman in white pajamas who was watching the commotion from a diagonal angle!

At that moment, only Richard, because he was close by and, with the help of his beast intuition, had crouched down to avoid the smoke, was able to see everything.

He wondered: Could this guy be trying to escape by taking hostages since the entrances and exits are blocked?

Theft becomes kidnapping, which is a more serious crime!

Richard had no time to think, nor could he rely on Grace, who was far away in the crowd. He quickly drew his sword and stepped forward, trying to protect the woman behind him.

He had previously checked the dwarf's stats and knew that although the opponent was a level 2 rogue, his agility and strength were inferior to his own, so he was not afraid to engage in melee combat.

However, in that instant, the dwarf grinned and, as if without momentum, abruptly changed direction, aiming at the gap Richard had created and running towards the window at the other end of the corridor!

What a big, dumb geezer!

You wouldn't believe it, this is the direction I'm heading to escape!

Richard: ?

Good grief, you're just trying to create a diversion and then escape, right?

Don't they care about their captured companions?

I hate people like you who abandon their companions the most!

Richard paused for half a second before opening his mouth, intending to deliver a hurtful remark.

But before he could utter a sound, he suddenly felt something warm and delicate touching his right hand.

Looking down, he realized that the woman behind him had taken a half step forward, crossed her left hand and grasped his right hand, thus indirectly grasping the hilt of the sword in his hand.

The woman said softly:

"Thank you, Mr. Poet, and then..."

"May I borrow your sword?"

Before she finished speaking, she used her left hand to lift Richard's sword and swung it forcefully!

In an instant, thunder roared, and a blue-green arc of light shot out, striking the goatee's calf squarely!