Chapter 209: Killing Only, Not Setting Fires

“Knightrod, it’s Knightrod! What do you want?! We… we have no other intentions. We definitely won’t reveal your whereabouts. Please, be relieved!” Yet Vidoc’s expression turned pale, for the words spoken by those around him filled him with despair and the sense of death. Instead of attacking, they chose to retreat, stepping back step by step while pleading for mercy.

Vidoc had forgotten the most important thing. He had thought that wealth and glory could tempt these men into recklessly attacking Knightrod, but he overlooked the key truth: in the face of death, people will give up everything. In the cold face of death, everything else is meaningless—only life matters. That was exactly what happened here. The demons’ deterrence was immense; no need to consider their strength—just their reputation was enough to scare everyone back.

Clearly, Vidoc’s plan had failed. Feeling the icy gaze from Rod across from him, he couldn’t help but shiver and instinctively stepped back a few times.

“What do you want? We really won’t reveal your location! I swear by the God of Light!” The leader of the bandits cried out anxiously as the man across from them suddenly stepped forward.

“Worry what? Do I look like Knightrod?? Do you think if I were that damned demon, you’d still be standing here?” Rod shrugged, spreading his hands helplessly, with a bitter smile in his heart. He never expected to say such things about himself one day.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to act. He knew these people said one thing but did another behind his back! Perhaps as long as he got them to leave, his identity would be exposed to the world the next moment.

But killing them to silence them wasn’t the best course of action now. First, this was the main route to Blackstone City. Not to mention the possibility of someone seeing or passing by during the act, but even under the current circumstances, it wasn’t appropriate for him to act.

Among the dozens of people present were many skilled fighters—several Silver Warriors and a dozen or so Bronze Warriors. Although he could silence them, he couldn’t guarantee that no one would escape. Besides, Mossanchi and the others had been fairly kind to him. Though they had just met, the fact that they had risked their safety to strike at him with their clubs already made Ron grateful enough that he would never dare kill them.

“You… you’re not Knightrod?” the leader of the bandits asked, trembling as he stared at Knightrod.

“Whether I am or not, get out of here now! Don’t show yourselves to me again, or don’t blame me if I become ruthless!” Rod snapped coldly, unwilling to waste time on this.

“Let’s go, we’re retreating!” The leader shouted in relief at Rod’s words, then hurriedly turned and ran away. If the leader was leaving, why would the others stay? They quickly followed as well, with only Vidok glancing resentfully at Knightrod before reluctantly joining them.

At this point, whether the man before them was Knightrod or not, they didn’t want to stay. The feeling of despair had worn them out, and leaving as soon as possible was their top priority.

Watching the group leave and noting their direction, a cold glint flashed in Rod’s eyes—only for it to vanish instantly, replaced by a gentle smile as he turned to face the few people still staring at him in confusion.

“What, do you really believe what that guy said? That Knightrod looks like me? Haven’t you seen his portrait? I heard he’s just a kid in his twenties. But me…” Rod smiled bitterly at their expressions, stroking his beard as he asked them.

“Heh… No… We wouldn’t be here if you were Knightrod. The demons wouldn’t allow anyone to know his whereabouts, especially at such a critical moment. Besides, you don’t seem like that kind of person. Well, consider it good luck—we’ve saved our lives. Let’s go. It’s getting late; reaching Blackstone City early to complete the mission is what matters most!” Mossanchi said with an awkward smile, trying to hide his confusion, as the group continued forward under the somewhat somber atmosphere.

It didn’t take long before they reached the outside of the canyon. From here, it was less than twenty kilometers to Blackstone City, and the scorching sun brought a sense of heat. After walking a bit further, the atmosphere in the group gradually eased. Looking at the people around him, Rod felt uneasy—there were still matters he needed to attend to, so he couldn’t stay with them. After pondering for a while and sensing the timing was right, he took a deep breath and said to Mosenchi, “I still have things to do. I must hurry to Blackstone City. Heh, I won’t be joining you. Thank you for taking care of me. See you later!”
“What? You’re leaving? Not staying?” Mosenchi was slightly stunned by Rod’s words and asked in confusion.
“There’s someone waiting for me in Blackstone City. I need to get there as soon as possible. Well, I’ll try to get in touch with you someday. I travel back and forth between the capital and Blackstone City often!” Rod replied evasively after a moment’s thought.
“That’s good. Our mercenary group’s headquarters is in the capital. If you want to find us, just go to the Mercenary Association. You’ll definitely find us there—our people are stationed there. See you later!” Realizing he couldn’t keep Rod, Mosenchi agreed reluctantly and bid farewell with a hint of reluctance and a smile.
“Then I’m off. Goodbye!” After giving a fist-bump as a farewell, Rod rushed forward at full speed. The moment he turned around, his gaze turned icy cold—completely different from before. If Mosenchi and the others had seen that look, they would have been scared.
“Captain, what do you think of him…” Standing beside him and watching Rod’s figure fade into the distance, a tall warrior asked doubtfully.
“Let it be. He has his own matters. Let’s go. There shouldn’t be any problems from now on. After completing this mission, let’s rest for a while! No one is allowed to talk about today’s events, understand?” Taking a deep breath, his expression changed instantly as he spoke to the people around him with a hint of seriousness.
“Could he be Knight Rod? He doesn’t seem like it at all. Anyway, today was really lucky—we didn’t encounter any trouble. Otherwise, it would have been troublesome!” Another warrior sighed, staring into the distance.
“Let’s act like nothing happened today. We can’t interfere with the demons’ affairs—it’s not our concern. Just do our own jobs!” With a sigh, Mosenchi murmured to himself as he watched where Rod had disappeared. He took out a portrait, showing the unmistakable likeness of Knight Rod.

“Heh, overthinking!” He laughed self-mockingly, putting away the portrait. “It’s not even a person at all!” With a sigh, he led the group forward. Though he was puzzled and found the identity of that tall man suspicious, after all, he had saved several lives, and he didn’t resemble a demon at all. Since he posed no threat, Rod decided not to overthink it.

Hidden in the trees in the distance, Rod quickly ran toward the direction of the canyon. Along the way, he encountered Mosanchi and his group, who were heading toward Blackstone City via the pipelines. This was intentional on Rod’s part—he wanted to get rid of these guys. He couldn’t let Vidocq or those bandits have the chance to expose his identity. Since Mosanchi and the others were present earlier, he couldn’t act then, so he thought of finding a suitable opportunity after leaving the canyon to circle around and settle accounts with them, dealing with some matters. The so-called opportunity meant ensuring Mosanchi and the others had no suspicions at all.

That’s why Rod found an opportunity and rushed toward Blackstone City, aiming to avoid their sight, create a false impression, then turn at a blind spot ahead, using the surrounding mountains as cover to return via a detour through the woods.

Relying on the direction he had remembered earlier, Rod pursued the direction in which the bandits had fled and soon found the footprints they had left. Using his experience, he quickly followed them, crossed the canyon, and reached the other side. After advancing for a while, he finally saw a wooden structure atop a slope, resembling a stronghold. From a distance, he could see bustling figures. “It’s this way!” Rod muttered to himself.

He approached cautiously and soon arrived in front of the stronghold, which was quite large, with about thirty to forty people inside. At first glance, he spotted one of the bandits who had robbed them earlier.

Removing his mask to reveal his true appearance, he smirked coldly. He didn’t engage in murder and arson, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t kill—just not set fires! It wasn’t his first time killing, and at the right time and place, he wouldn’t hesitate. Like now, faced with danger, he had no problem eliminating some scum for his own sake and for society’s benefit.

The Dark Dragon appeared in his hand. With a loud roar, after observing the situation of the stronghold, Rod quickly rushed inside. With a flash, he leaped over the high barriers and entered. He first encountered a robber on duty. His expression turned cold as he swung his sword with swift and decisive motion, sending blood flying. A single strike proved fatal. Watching the robber fall with a look of resentment and fear, Rod smirked and strode forward boldly, his heart filled with an indescribable excitement.