Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 265 The Knight's Backstab

"Ding!"

As the wooden door opened, the jingling doorbell signaled the arrival of the visitors.

Thanks to the cheap land in the Tomato area, Victoria's shop, though not small, is now packed with people.

"Huh? Did I come at a bad time?"

When Rean opened the door, he was met with two opposing forces.

On one side were Dimon and his old acquaintances like Victoria and Larry, while on the other side were people Rean didn't recognize. But Rean was very familiar with their clothes and the leather whips at their waists.

"People from the slave market? How did they get here?"

The atmosphere inside the cabin was clearly quite tense, and it looked like a fight could break out at any moment. Rean's arrival brought a hint of joy to Dimon and his group, but it also made the other side look at him with apprehension.

"You all better watch yourselves!"

The leader of the slave market uttered a harsh remark and led his men past Rean.

Rean, having roughly guessed the cause and effect, did not stop him and felt there was no need to clash with them here.

Perhaps the two sides will have another opportunity to "cooperate" in the future.

"What's going on? Have they discovered our knights? Or have our men clashed with them? Or is he demanding our full support?" Rean asked.

"You're listening outside? Why don't you come in?"

"No, I just arrived, it's all just a guess. But judging from your expressions, the answer is 'all of the above'?"

Rean laughed, poured himself a cup of coffee, and sat down.

He was also a bit tired and needed to rest.

One characteristic of intelligent beings is that they will consider internal strife at any time.

After the "Weaver Knights" were sent out, they were naturally spotted by the local tyrants. The slave tattoos on their bodies were extremely difficult to remove. It was hard to say whether the paladins would use their Evil Slash on these vengeful slave traders or on the evil slave traders.

"When two knights were chasing the cultists, they got into a dispute with a slave trader and killed both the cultist and the slave trader."

Okay, let's cut down both sides at once, that's pretty Paladin-like.

"Good job, remember to reward them."

But the moment the righteous mad dog was unleashed and the paladins were dispatched, it was all within expectations.

He did what a paladin should do, so the "organization" should support him.

The reward is a small matter, but the attitude is quite important.

Dimon thought for a moment and nodded. He had originally planned to hold back, but Rean's attitude had already said a lot.

"how is the situation?"

Rean didn't have high expectations. Since he could see the core members here, the battle should be over.

"We intercepted some of them, but a group still managed to escape underground. The few noble children we rescued have already been sent back to the Radiant District."

"Actually, we were just maintaining order and stability at first. By the time we discovered that they were leading people into the underground world through the ship graveyard, it was already too late."

This was probably expected. The Beast Order will definitely send out all its elite forces this time, and it would be good if they could intercept a portion of them.

Most importantly, once you catch their tail, you can follow their trail to rescue them.

"The slave market came asking for underground intelligence? Did you give it to them?"

“No, we only exchanged two sentences before we started arguing,” Dimon rubbed his temples, while Larry lowered his head in embarrassment.

It's quite obvious who couldn't hold back first.

But Rean didn't say anything; the paladin had already shown considerable restraint by not engaging the slave trader in a fight on the spot.

"They know there's a bull-shaped monster down there, but only from scattered information from adventurers."

While exchanging information, Rean quickly ate some black bread to replenish the energy he had lost in the previous battle.

He thought for a moment and then said.

"They will not let those cult members go; they must hunt them down to the end."

From the perspective of the slave market, those cultists who took away their valuable goods had to be eliminated. The very foundation of their business was violence and terror. If anyone could come and challenge them, there would be no need for them to continue doing business.

That guy from earlier must be the current manager of the slave market.

To be honest, it doesn't feel as good as the previous "Little Fire Dragon". After all, it was just a dirty black glove, and it's impossible for them to send out a good one so quickly.

"Do they still demand slaves?"

"Yes, but how could we possibly give them to them?" It was clear that the alumni association had rescued some of the kidnapped people, including slaves from the slave market.

After these slaves were rescued by the "slave paladins," how could they be handed over to the "demons" of the market? It was already a sign of restraint that they did not fight each other on the spot.

Rean glanced around and saw that there weren't many people present, just a few familiar Soul Heirs like Dimon and Larry.

"They'll probably be fighting the Bull Demon below. They're not strong enough. Find someone, preferably someone who's not openly related to us, and tell them the monster below is very powerful, but don't tell them exactly what it is."

Dimon was a little confused. Aren't we mortal enemies with the slave market? Why are we giving them intelligence?

"We need to get rid of that bull demon. They've used them as cannon fodder to test the waters; now it's our turn."

This is one of the reasons why Rean hopes the cannon fodder will perform well, and it would be best to transfer more of the core members and combat power from the slave market.

It would be even better if some high-level combatants could be drawn from those churches.

"Uh, aren't you worried that they actually managed to get it done?"

"The possibility is very low. Ulda Bull Demon is just a gatekeeper. There will most likely be unexpected changes when we go on stage. I will apply for a Mirror Demon to broadcast the whole process live. Those who are capable of going on stage should be serious."

Rean began to adjust his state and contacted other members of the "class reunion". This time, to kill the Ulda Bull Demon, they needed enough power.

Using the people in the slave market as cannon fodder allows our forces to be deployed. If the conflict drags on too long, the hostages may not be able to be rescued, and even if they are, they may not be "human" anymore.

"Dimmon, you're coming too. We need an alibi."

Rean glanced around and then laughed.

"When I arrived, I met with Dania and the old city lord privately, and I asked them a question. Will Radiant City and the Kingdom still need this slave market?"

It must be admitted that Rean is no longer alone. As a member of the "Royal Faction," he has Princess Dania of the Royal Family behind him.

Therefore, before making important decisions, to avoid a sudden attack on one's own faction, one should at least communicate with others.

When Rean spoke, the knights were taken aback at first, but then they immediately understood and became excited.

They have waited too long for this day.

"What did they say?"

"Danya was silent for a moment, then smiled at me and started talking about the weather and the price of equipment."

This is tacit consent.

If you do it, I don't know. If something goes wrong, whether I help you clean up the mess depends on how well you handle things.

“The city lord told me, ‘He’s been fed up with these bastards for a long time, and there’s no share of Lucifer’s business in the slave market.’”

The attitude is clear: for Radiant City now, the slave market is no longer necessary.

The logic of peacetime and wartime is different. The entire kingdom is on the verge of destruction, and the "sustainable development" achieved through compromises has become utterly ridiculous.

Previously, royal power was weak while the powerful nobles and religious authorities were strong. These people wove together a web, constantly draining the kingdom dry.

In reality, this is not a good thing for the royal power and the city lord's direct line, because the kingdom and the city truly belong to them!
Parasites and bloodsuckers don't care about the life or death of their hosts. When a kingdom becomes weak to a certain extent, the only "resource" left to be drained is its population.

The slave market was the final channel and network through which these inhuman creatures exploited the kingdom.

Previously, the kingdom and cities could only tolerate it because they were powerful and needed them to maintain stability and prevent chaos. Now, does the kingdom really still care about these things?

"The kingdom is in a phase of destruction before construction. If we continue to drain it dry, there will be no hope left, Dimon. While we are fighting the Bull Demon, find some people to raid the slave market. Disguise them as members of the Beast Order and let them take the blame."

If nothing unexpected happens, that will be the most vulnerable time for the slave market.
The main force is engaged in a fierce battle underground, and their financial backers are also on guard against unrest, making it unlikely that they will be able to spare troops to provide support.

At that time, the slave market probably had no defenses, and an attack by our side would have been enough to take away those ordinary slaves.

“Take the slaves away and hide them in the dock area or the underworld.”

It is unrealistic to completely abolish the slave market in one step.

The most effective way to bring down such an "evil organization" is actually to "make it unable to make money".

The two attacks were enough to prove that they had committed the crime of "possessing a treasure," and after losing a large number of slaves, their trade network would naturally be in trouble.

Even if the investors send people to guard the place later, local bullies like Dimon are confident they can sabotage their business.

The key point is that we are currently in the midst of a demonic upheaval and at war with the beasts. The churches and nobles are too busy to care about these "peripheral organizations."

If the slave market remains unprofitable for a period of time, everyone will be busy managing their core businesses. With a little public pressure, it will naturally fade from the historical stage.

"Let's get moving. First, find a good man to keep an eye on the elites in the slave market. We want to see how they die. Get our men ready for battle. Once they're dead, we'll go in. The Mirror Demon's live stream will help us clear our name."

Perhaps this wasn't the best time to turn against him, but since the opportunity was presented to him, and with the "Order of the Beasts" as a perfect scapegoat, Rean had long since given up on tolerating it.

"Let's go, let's be a little reckless."

(End of this chapter)