Chapter 14: Old Acquaintances, Again!

“What’s the matter?” Seeing Nightingale’s serious expression, Rod also sensed something was wrong. After pondering for a moment, he quickly asked.
“I saw someone who looks very familiar—it seems to be Crow. I saw him outside our camp at noon. It was because of him that I followed him all the way to the woods near the training ground, and that’s when I saw you! But sadly, he disappeared into the woods and I couldn’t catch up!” After hesitating for a while and taking a deep breath, Nightingale sighed.
“Crow?” Hearing this name, Rod’s expression changed—he now understood why Nightingale was so serious.
The small village had been slaughtered, Silverwing and Viper had died tragically, Crow had vanished without a trace, and Nightingale had narrowly escaped. He had thought Crow was dead too, so seeing him here was indeed something worth pondering. How had he survived? He must know who the murderers were—so why refuse to show himself? Was it out of concern for those pursuing him, or something else? A myriad of thoughts flashed through Rod’s mind.
Since he had promised Nightingale to help her investigate this matter, Rod certainly wouldn’t go back on his word. After all, Nightingale had also helped him by keeping his identity hidden; otherwise, he wouldn’t be safe now.
“Are you sure?” Rod asked in a deep voice after pondering for a while.
“Yeah, I’m sure. It’s definitely Crow—90% certain. I know him well! He must be in Iron Bar Town, and likely in our Area C. Help me find him!” After lowering her head in thought for a moment, Nightingale suddenly looked up, her eyes firm as she declared.
“Okay, I understand. Be careful. And be careful yourself—has he noticed you?” Suddenly remembering something, Rod asked urgently.
“No!” Nightingale tilted her head and thought for a moment before continuing.
“Don’t reveal your identity. Don’t tell me you can’t use disguise techniques—take care of that yourself! Don’t show up in your current appearance. Our Death Scythe Squad is too observant. We’ll deal with Crow once we find him!” Rod reminded her, knowing well that with such a huge incident in the small village—and Silverwing and Viper, both as capable as Crow—only Crow’s appearance here raised many suspicions.

“I know about this. I think there’s definitely something wrong with Crow! Don’t forget what you promised me; you might need the help of those behind you!” After a moment of thought, Nightingale spoke with a somewhat serious expression. This time, Rod saw an unprecedented seriousness on her face, and seeing her like this for the first time made Rod feel a bit uneasy. From her expression, it was clear this matter wasn’t simple. Nightingale must know something, and since she refused to speak, Rod couldn’t force her. He had to keep his promises. Though he wasn’t perfect, he wasn’t one to break his word either. Promises were the most important to Rod, and besides, he wanted to figure this out himself! Both out of loyalty and personal interest, he had to get involved.

“Hmm, I’m aware of this. I can’t guarantee what’s going on over there. At most, I’ll risk everything to help you! I certainly won’t forget this!” With a bitter smile, Rod said in a deep voice. Indeed, he wasn’t sure he could get those mysterious people to help him.

“By the way, there’s one thing I want to ask. Do you know their identities? The time you met Hory…” To be honest, Rod still didn’t know who Hory and the others were. He could only guess that their organization was very powerful, seemingly no less so than the Dark Guild.

“There are some things you shouldn’t know. If you can stay out of it, then don’t get involved. That’s my advice to you. Trust me—I’m right. Since they haven’t told me, I won’t either. There must be a reason why they keep it secret. It seems they’re quite kind to you. At least I’ve never seen Hory help anyone like this, and it seems he even obeys you! I don’t know what that organization plans or what the person behind it wants. But you can rest assured—they won’t harm you. There’s no need for them to; anyone could crush you!

They might not tell you because they don’t want you to get involved in this circle. If there’s a chance, they’ll tell you themselves. All I can say is that they’re extremely powerful—more powerful than you can imagine. Even the Mage Guild, the Warriors’ Association, or the Church can’t deal with them! Enough about this. Don’t worry, I won’t force you. I don’t care what they do. Just remember your promise! I’ll keep an eye on things with Crow. You should do the same. Let me know as soon as there’s any news!” Hearing Rod’s words, Nightingale gave a helpless bitter smile, clearly not fully answering his question.

Yet even so, Rod learned a lot from her words! It seems that organization had been revealed through his own musings. Rod believed that Nightingale wouldn’t deceive him. What kind of powerful ability must it take to make a member of a secret organization say such things! It was hard to imagine—perhaps even the shadows couldn’t handle them.

After some casual chatting, it had been a long time since he’d felt this comfortable. Rod rarely enjoyed such moments of leisure and ease! It felt truly good—lying there casually, watching the sky grow brighter, faintly hearing the sounds of battle in the distance, feeling the cool breeze bring a sense of freshness, and smelling the gentle scent coming from the beauty beside him. Talking openly without any pretenses or concealment was indeed very soothing.

“Alright, it’s getting late. Everyone should get some good rest tonight. Things will get busy starting tomorrow. You go back first; I still have some matters to attend to at the city walls!” It seemed the battle that night wasn’t very critical—at least no emergency horns had been heard yet, indicating that the situation was still under control. Yet even so, Rod couldn’t help but worry, and he said this to Nightingale.

Nightingale was slightly stunned. She stood up and sat next to Rod, looking at him with an uncertain expression. She opened her mouth as if to say something but ultimately held back. “Mm, be careful!” She didn’t know why those words came so easily from her lips.

“Don’t worry. I’m very lucky. There are so many who want to kill me, yet here I am, still alive! It’s not that easy to die! I’m out first!” With a slight smile, she stood up and walked slowly ahead, hands in her pockets, enjoying the peace and comfort of the moment.

“Perhaps you shouldn’t participate in this defense battle. Those are your compatriots!” Watching Rod’s retreating figure, she hesitated for a long time, biting her lip. Eventually, Nightingale couldn’t help but softly speak out what she had been hesitating about for so long!

Those words made Rod pause slightly. Without turning around, he waved his hand. “I only know that I was born in Fire City and grew up there! As for them? I don’t care. At least for now, I’m only dealing with magical beasts!” With that, he continued walking straight ahead.

Those simple words left Nightingale sitting there in shock, staring blankly at his fading figure, not knowing what to say. She also had no idea what expression or mood Rod must have had while saying those words. All she could feel was a hint of loneliness and desolation in his back, which made her heart ache.

When did I start to care about him so much? There was a time when we were mortal enemies, determined to destroy each other. There were times when we fought fiercely, times when we couldn’t stand each other at all. How could things turn like this now! Worrying about him, concerned for him! Thinking of this, Nightingale lowered her head and sat there in a daze, not planning to leave right away!

…

With a somewhat confused gaze, she subconsciously headed toward the city walls. Rod’s mood was heavy, as Nightingale’s words had touched the deepest wounds in his heart. They also brought to light the reality he had deliberately hidden and avoided. Though he spoke casually, who could truly know what he felt inside?

Demons! Heh, if we really encountered them, it might be quite troublesome! With a sigh, he grabbed his hair and shook his head, showing a rare hint of fatigue and helplessness. After another sigh, he headed straight ahead.

It didn’t take long before he reached the city walls, where the battle was still raging fiercely.

In particular, the figures of several dragon races stood out sharply. Several god-tier warriors were fighting desperately. It had been over ten days, and the battle against the dragon races had lasted seven or eight days already! Despite this, no significant progress had been made. The dragon races were indeed formidable—although two of them were injured, the rest still retained full combat strength, coming out every night to cause trouble, which was quite troublesome.

With a heavy heart, Rod drew his sword and charged straight in, diving into the most dangerous areas to engage in fierce battles. Perhaps only the most primal and brutal fighting could ease the weight and conflict in his heart. Letting himself sink into the chaos of battle, Rod tried to escape reality.

Cries of pain, roars, and howls came one after another. After a while of fighting, it was unclear how much time had passed, but his mood eased slightly. After dealing with the last magical beast around him, Rod finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt a bit better. This sense of killing pleasure made him feel comfortable—when had he started to like this feeling?

Feeling tired, he realized that his reckless killing earlier had drained his combat energy significantly. After dealing with just three magical beasts, he already felt weak. With a sigh and a bitter smile, he decided to get down to business. He had come here mainly to find Emilio—there were some matters he needed to discuss!

After taking just two steps, Rod froze in place. His gaze became flickering and complex, and his body trembled slightly—trembling with excitement. The three figures ahead made him shake uncontrollably, his face twitching as well! He had finally seen them—the people he had searched for so long, those he had dreamed of meeting. After endless efforts, he found them effortlessly, unexpectedly here! At that moment, they were fighting fiercely against a gold-level magical beast. Seeing their precarious situation, Rod gave a helpless sigh, let out a long roar, and rushed forward without hesitation.