The air was biting cold.
The howling wind felt like scraping steel blades against bone. Giles stood in a canyon, barefoot and naked, with only a pair of shorts for modesty.
All around him, as far as the eye could see, was a vast expanse of white.
Icebergs, snow!
At this moment, his entire body was numb from the cold.
And then—
When it rains, it pours. In this frigid, biting world, the sky suddenly unleashed a torrential downpour. Each drop of rain that landed on him, accompanied by the whistling wind, seemed to seep its chill directly into his marrow.
What puzzled him most was why the rain seemed to fall only on him.
The rope always breaks where it's thinnest.
Misfortune always finds the unfortunate?
Shivering and curled into a ball, he sniffled and then suddenly opened his mouth wide.
"Ahhhhhh… Achoo!"
Giles, bound to the torture rack, let out a sneeze.
This sneeze jolted him awake from his dream. Vaguely, he felt as if someone was sprinkling water on his face. He slowly opened his eyes and saw the Bee Woman, her small hand damp with water, flicking it towards his face.
Vaguely, he also thought he heard someone speaking.
"What are you doing, playing around? I told you to splash him, not so gently. You should do it like this…"
Splash!
Before Giles could even fully open his eyes, he felt a basin of water douse his face. The icy water soaked him entirely, making him tremble uncontrollably.
The basin of water thoroughly sobered him up.
He snapped his eyes open and saw a human dressed in adventurer's gear, holding a wooden bucket. He was looking sideways at the Bee Woman beside him, lecturing her.
"See?"
"Just splashing with a bucket, that's how you get results."
"Alas!"
"Clearly, you're a child who hasn't watched court dramas. In those dramas, when interrogating criminals and forcing confessions, they always use this tactic."
The human with the bucket sighed and shook his head.
The Bee Woman beside him nodded vigorously, placing her right hand on her left and holding it over her chest. Then, she pointed a finger at Giles on the rack.
"Sir Knight, he's awake."
"Oh?"
Hearing this, the human with the bucket slowly turned his head. Giles, still bound, recognized him instantly.
"It's you!"
Giles, frozen to the extreme, had a pale face and trembling lips. Yet, his eyes were wide open, staring hatefully at Chen Yu.
"Oh, you know me?" Chen Yu grinned.
How could he not recognize him!
Chen Yu was the target of the mercenary bounty. Giles had been a freelance mercenary himself, and his years of mercenary work had honed his ability to memorize bounties at a glance.
He glared at Chen Yu in annoyance, then noticed he was still bound to the rack.
"Let me go!"
"Oh my, truly worthy of a Golden Realm expert. Even as a drenched chicken, you still speak so fiercely. What, did you eat shit at noon to have such a big mouth?" Chen Yu sneered.
"You…"
"What about me? Don't glare at me. One wrong move and I'll smash your nose so hard it'll leak, believe it or not?"
"What do you want from us!" Giles, still bound, clenched his fists and glared at Chen Yu. "We already gave you the money, didn't we?"
"Huh?"
Chen Yu looked bewildered.
He spread his hands in confusion and chuckled at Giles.
"Frozen senseless, are you? I haven't seen a single coin. You're telling me you paid? Who did you pay?" Chen Yu gestured slightly with his chin towards him.
"Giles, save me!!!"
A sobbing cry came from not far away. Giles, still on the rack, looked over and saw Tony sitting on the ground, his face bruised and swollen.
His nose was broken, his bridge seemed crooked, and blood was gushing down.
"Young Master Tony!"
Giles shouted urgently, then his eyes widened as he looked at Chen Yu.
"Do you know what you've done?"
"Still shouting, shouting at me, are you?" Chen Yu pointed a finger at Giles and slapped him. "You dare to shout at me again?"
Before Giles could even speak, Chen Yu swung another slap.
"You're glaring at me?"
Before the words were out, he turned and delivered yet another slap.
"You dare to breathe in my direction?"
Giles, bound throughout, had only managed to question Chen Yu once. Chen Yu, standing outside the rack, was using both his hands, striking left and right. The sound of the slaps was like the drumbeats during the Spring Festival, or the firecrackers on New Year's Eve.
Crackling, they echoed endlessly.
By the end of it, Chen Yu's arms were a little sore, and Giles's face was swollen on both sides.
"Whew!"
"The Apple Man wasn't wrong about me. Action and reaction are mutual." Chen Yu exhaled lightly, rotating his wrist, and blew on his reddened palm. "Such a thick face. My hands are red from hitting you. Next time, I should use the sole of a shoe."
Chen Yu muttered to himself.
Unbeknownst to him—
The orc mercenaries in the wilderness cave were all stunned.
That, was a Golden Realm expert.
A wanted man issued by the city, bound and beaten like a newborn chick. That was too brutal!
Damn it!
This bounty was a scam!
If even a Golden Realm expert was beaten into such a state, they would only be cannon fodder if they went up.
The city's decree stated.
Bounties for Silver Realm Level 7 and above were not to be posted within city limits. The difficulty of the mission before them had clearly exceeded this standard!
"Damn it, the Ratman Association deliberately scammed us for challenge fees!"
One orc mercenary suddenly shouted.
As soon as he said this, countless mercenaries chimed in.
"We must go back to the city and demand an explanation!"
"Yes, demand an explanation!"
"Make them refund the challenge fees and compensate us for our losses!"
The voices of the orc mercenaries rose one after another.
Hundreds of mercenaries shouted in a cave, the scene as chaotic as it could be.
"What are you shouting about!" Chen Yu, annoyed by the noise, yelled, glaring at the mercenaries. "You all want to die, don't you? If you don't want to die, just shut your mouths."
Swish!
In an instant, silence fell.
All the mercenaries lowered their heads and lined up obediently. Seeing them behave, Chen Yu blew on his hair.
"Asking for trouble!"
Chen Yu's gaze fixed on those mercenaries.
Whenever they felt his gaze, the mercenaries would bury their heads even lower.
But then—
Just at this moment, Giles, who had been slapped dozens of times and had his face swollen, endured the humiliation. Finally, having gathered a wisp of strength, he broke the tough ropes binding him with a bang.
"Sir Knight, be careful!!!"
The Bee Woman cried out and lunged towards Chen Yu. Giles's eyes also turned bloodshot.
"Outsider, give me…"
"Kneel!" A faint whisper came from Chen Yu. Giles, who had just regained his freedom, didn't even manage to utter a complete sentence before he fell to his knees with a thud.
Looking up at Chen Yu's profile, his face was filled with a fawning smile.
"Alright, brother!"
—
Author's Note:
Good evening, this time it should be eaten.