Cheat Awakening

"Your Highness, everything is ready. Because last time we underestimated the enemy's strength, this time, not only have I moved all the people in the nearby area, but I've also set up quite a few traps along the way from which those people in the black fog can escape. According to the information you provided about those monsters, if my estimation is correct, they mostly use the sewerage system to come in and out of the city. Otherwise, there's no way they could roam the city so easily without anyone finding out about them.

"As sewers are generally neglected and rarely visited by anyone unless there's some big problem, they're the perfect hiding place for criminals like them," Gandu, the leader of the Hairless Gang, explained to Myne and his team as they approached the night's hunting ground.

Unlike last time, Gandu was accompanied by only two others, who didn't seem like ordinary henchmen.

"Hmm, what you said makes sense," Myne nodded thoughtfully. "Sewers could indeed conceal such creatures and allow them to roam the city undetected." He then turned to the two middle-aged men in leather armour, wearing animal masks and carrying heavy crossbows on their backs. "By the way, who are they? They don't seem to be part of your gang."

"I wish they were Your Highness. They're professional hunters I hired from the black market. They're highly skilled and experienced with their work, and responsible for setting up traps and assisting us during the hunts. Otherwise, how could we set up traps for creatures of this level? You know most of my gang only knows how to hack and slash—traps are too high-level for us," Gandu, who was very well self-aware about his gang's shortcomings, explained with a smile, not caring that his words could ruin his own reputation.

The two hired hunters, already aware of Myne's identity, politely nodded when he looked at them without speaking, clearly not wanting too much contact with the royal family.

"You did a good job." Myne didn't know much about the black market except that you could buy illegal goods there. With limited experience dealing with people from the black market, he didn't delve too much into the matter and simply followed Gandu to today's hunting location, which was in another district, far from the spot they visited the previous night.

"Your Highness, we've gathered some information and found that the core area of the sewer system lies beneath our feet. If our guess is correct, and those creatures are indeed hiding there, the noise they make during tonight's hunt will echo through the sewerage. My two esteemed guests have already released their numerous little friends within the sewerage to track the sound and follow them."

"Even if we fail to capture them tonight, at least there's a chance we'll find their rat hole," Gandu explained enthusiastically, becoming more excited as he spoke. No matter how he looked at it, this was a perfect plan. When he first heard it from a core member during the morning meeting, he had been so thrilled that he nearly lost his composure and kissed the other party's bald head.@@novelbin@@

Now, he just wanted to get some of Myne's praise. Once the hunt was over, and with the other party's generosity, Gandu was certain he'd go home with a super heavy purse, enough to spend the upcoming winter without any worries.

Not only Myne but also Aisha and others were astonished by Gandu's intelligence. They wondered how such a brilliant mind could end up leading a gang. If he could devise such an intricate plan to capture kidnappers for a few coins, why not start a business or become a scholar and earn even more money using his brains?

"Excellent work, Mr. Gandu. If we capture those bastards tonight, I will make sure you receive a satisfactory reward for your efforts," Myne praised, patting Gandu's shoulder. He was genuinely impressed by Gandu's recent performance over the past few days. If everyone were as smart and cooperative as him, Myne felt his life would be perfect.

After some casual conversation, they arrived at the designated area, where a large number of bald men stood armed from head to toe, holding all kinds of cold weapons. Upon seeing the gang leader and their biggest client, they wanted to come forward to greet them, but Gandu waved his hand, gesturing for them not to bother. Instead, he directly led Myne and his team into a single-story house located right in front of the alley entrance, about a dozen meters away from the sewerage hole.

"Your Highness, all preparations are ready. Do you have any additional requirements?" Gandu respectfully offered Myne a glass of red wine while speaking, but it was immediately snatched away by Aisha, who gave Gandu an angry glare at Gandu, much like a mother catching a stranger trying to teach bad habits to her child, leaving Gandu in an awkward position, not knowing what wrong he had done, after all, according to understanding, it is normal for nobles to start drinking from age of ten, let's not talk about the royal family.

Myne neither had any intention of drinking alcohol nor wanted to show any sign of it, fearing that he might be beaten to death by Aisha. Ignored Gandu's goodwill, shook his head, and stood up, walking toward the window. He gazed outside, trying to memorise all the details about his surroundings.

"By the way, with so many people involved in this operation, won't the kidnappers get wind of it? What if they decide to change their plans and target someone else?" Sylphy suddenly asked Gandu, who was idly sipping wine in a corner.

"Your Highness, your concern is valid, and we've considered it," Gandu replied with a respectful nod. "However, our investigations revealed that these kidnappers are quite arrogant and always take the initiative to jump into traps to flaunt their strength. When they first started kidnapping, many people repeatedly set traps for them, but not once did they avoid them. So, we concluded that either they have a serious brain problem or they simply don't take us seriously and want to display their power. Eventually, after being beaten multiple times, we stepped back and let them have their way."

Hearing Gandu's explanation, everyone couldn't help but frown, a deep sense of uneasiness settling in their hearts. Even Myne was no exception. If he had to fight them directly, he could easily deal with those pests. But if they decided to flee, he wouldn't have many options to stop them. If he unleashed his full power and struck them hard, only for them to escape, there was a high chance they'd leave the city entirely and relocate elsewhere, turning this into a prolonged game of cat and mouse—something that would undoubtedly cause a lot of trouble to him.

Silence fell as everyone pondered the situation. Two hours passed, and as the night grew late. Since there was nothing to do and they couldn't make noise, most of the gang members who had gathered to watch fun were already begun to doze off, let alone stay vigilant.

Myne determined not to fall asleep, had turned invisible and was sitting on the roof of a house, reading a book while enjoying the cool night breeze.

Just as he reached the most exciting part of the book—where the heroine turned out to be a spy sent by the villain and easily killed the hero's brother who always want to f*ck her during their intimating moment, and while pretending to be injured so no one doubts her, and bought hero to show his brother's dead body to killed him as well while he was emotionally unstable—Myne noticed black smoke starting to fill the alley in front of him from the corner of his eye. Reluctantly putting the book away and cursing the bad timing of the kidnappers, he jumped down from the roof, knocked three times on the door to alert everyone, and rushed toward the alley.

The old man who had volunteered to act as bait this time was sleeping peacefully at the entrance of the alley as if he were in his house. Even as the black fog began to cover half his body, he remained sound asleep.

Myne didn't have time to care about the old man. As the black fog enveloped most of the alley, he heard faint, heavy footsteps. Grabbing the old man, he threw him out of the alley with all his strength, sending him flying, and rushed into the fog.

As he reached close to those stranger creatures, he cast his Unique Magic: Lightning using 10% of his mana reserves, prepared for a decisive attack while the other party was unguarded. Though he knew using such a dangerous skill in the city would cause significant destruction—and the kidnappers might flee because he was holding back, however, he had no better option to handle them effectively.

The world erupted in a flash of blinding white. Although it wasn't as powerful as the time he had used 90% of his mana, the sheer force was staggering. A bolt of thunder shot out, tearing through the dark sky with its blinding brilliance.

The thunder crackled, splitting the night apart before reversing direction and plunging back toward Myne with a deafening detonation. The black fog and two towering, four-meter-tall humanoid creatures, along with two three-meter-tall beasts crawling on all fours, were blown back by the force.

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BOOM!

A crackling sphere of purple lightning surrounded Myne, a vortex of raw, uncontrollable power. Within seconds, the force field pulsated violently, radiating terrifying energy. The entire alley and the adjacent houses were obliterated in the blast, and the sound was so deafening that half the city was likely jolted awake.