Chapter 255

"Run! They're just ahead!" Karl's expression changed, and he drew his long sword, charging toward the direction of the sound.

The footprints on the ground were scattered, and Karl could tell that a struggle had already begun. From the sounds, he understood that Freya was at a disadvantage.

"Who are we? We are the Swiftwind Bandits!" Chris said coldly.

"Hehehe... Didn't expect to see us here in Sedona City, huh? We've been watching you for three days. Finally, you've come out of the city." The second man let out a strange laugh.

"Last year, we let you escape, and we've been tracking you for a year and a half. Now, we've finally got you. Hand over the treasure map." Chris barked fiercely.

These words shocked Karl. It turned out that someone had already set their sights on the treasure map. The Swiftwind Bandits gave him the impression of being a formidable group. He made a note of this information, which he would need to report back to Prince Santner.

Freya faintly heard the footsteps. She quickly scooped up a pile of snow from the ground and poured it over her body. Then, she took a bamboo tube from her chest, opened it, and poured its contents into her hand.

The blood-red ketchup spilled out. Freya smeared a bit of it on her chest, cheeks, and the corners of her mouth, then also applied some to her great sword. She handed it to the confused Chris and his group.

This was what Lucas had prepared for Freya last night. How could a performance be complete without blood? A bottle of ketchup was the perfect material.

"Hurry, smear some on your sword." Freya whispered urgently.

"Right, right!" Chris quickly took the bamboo tube and smeared ketchup on his sword, then poured the remaining ketchup onto the snow. Afterward, he stuffed the bamboo tube into his pocket.

"How dare you!"

Freya screamed in agony, but her hands were already pulling a prepared parchment from her pocket and tossing it to Chris. She then collapsed into the snow, half-squinting, her mouth twisted in a way that complemented the bloody ketchup on her face, making her appear gravely wounded and on the brink of death.

"..." The eight members of Chris were momentarily stunned. What kind of performance was this? She's such a good actress! This was what was going through their minds.

"Hahahaha... We got it! If you'd just handed over the map earlier, you wouldn't have to suffer like this." Chris laughed wildly as he held up the parchment.

"Damn you!" Freya weakly shouted, her voice laced with fury.

"Hehehe... The boss and the others should be here soon, right?" The second man muttered, reciting the lines he'd memorized earlier.

"They should be close. A two-hundred-man team, in this weather, it's normal for them to be slow." Chris casually glanced toward a snowbank nearby, where seven heads had just popped up.

The seven members of Karl's team were frozen in place, anxiously watching the masked figures before them, especially the one holding the parchment. That was the treasure map they'd been chasing all along.

As for Freya, drenched in 'blood,' she was no longer their focus.

Especially when the enemy mentioned that a two-hundred-man band of bandits was on the way, Karl knew that they couldn't delay any longer. Gritting his teeth, he shouted, "Kill them! Take back the treasure map!"

"What?" Chris turned around, his tone suddenly changing.

"Beastkins? Another batch of fools looking for death," The second man narrowed his eyes.

"Kill them all, so there's no loose ends," Chris waved his hand, coldly commanding, "Not a single one gets away!"

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

At the back of the group, it was the seventh and eighth members who were armed with bows. They swiftly loosed arrows.

Thud, thud…

In an instant, two of Karl's men were incapacitated, leaving him stunned. The enemy had archers! They hadn't even closed the distance yet, and he'd already lost two men.

Whoosh, whoosh…

Two more arrows flew, taking down another two of his team, causing Karl to halt in his tracks.

"My lord, escape, quickly escape!"

"My lord, we must report to His Highness, hurry... escape..." The beastkin knight who wasn't killed by the arrows shouted loudly.

"Go! I'll cover you," The pigman roared, standing in front of Karl.

"My lord, retreat!" The fox beastkin tugged at Karl, shouting, "The information is important!"

"Retreat!" Karl gritted his teeth, glaring at the masked archer, then turned and fled.

Whoosh, whoosh…

Two more arrows flew. One struck the pigman, causing him to scream in agony.

"Ah!"

The other narrowly missed Karl, flying past his ear and startling him. He hastened his pace, his feet pounding the snow. He wasn't ready to die yet. He had to report today's events to His Highness, so the prince could send knights to wipe out the Swiftwind Bandits.

"Chase them, don't let them escape! The information about the treasure map absolutely cannot leak out!" Chris roared in fury.

The sound of his voice made Karl and his companion panic. They had to run even faster, fearing that they would be chased down.

It wasn't until they were completely out of sight that Chris and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief. Today's act had gone perfectly, and their enemies truly believed that the treasure map was in the hands of the Swiftwind Bandits.

"Ha..."

Freya immediately got up from the snow, taking a deep breath and licking the frozen ketchup off the corner of her mouth. It had a sour and sweet taste, which was quite delicious.

"Freya, we will leave these beastkins to you."

Chris turned to look at the confused beastkins lying on the ground. They were all seriously injured—Seven and Eight had shot their arrows into their legs or stomachs, but none of them had fatal wounds.

"You... you guys?" The injured beastkins stared blankly at Chris and the others. Weren't they supposed to be dying just a moment ago? How come everything was so peaceful now?

And, that wolf beastkin... wasn't she supposed to be lying on the ground? How come she's still standing and licking that 'blood'? She even ate the 'blood' on her chest!

"Don't worry, the next part is up to you." Freya nodded seriously, then broke off a piece of frozen ketchup from her clothing and popped it into her mouth.

"It's an honor to serve the master." Chris said, his lips twitching slightly.

Chris and his team cleared away the snow nearby, pulling out backpacks they had hidden there earlier. These were the supplies they would need for their long pursuit.

Their plan was to chase Karl and his companion back to Blade City, then lure Santner into sending knights to hunt them down. This would create an opportunity for Aiden to take control of the slaves.

This was the reason they started this act. Right now, Karl's perception was that the Swiftwind Bandits were a large, dangerous group with many members. To reinforce this illusion, Chris would need to keep deepening Karl's belief during the chase—like shaking tree branches to suggest that hundreds of people were involved.

Once Karl returned alive to Blade City and reported everything to Santner, the desire for the treasure map would convince Santner to send a large force of beastkins knights after Chris and his team.

Would Santner believe it? Of course, he would. After all, they had killed to keep the treasure map a secret, and had even chased their target all the way to his doorstep. Combined with Karl's report, it would make Santner trust the story without question.

The hardest part for Chris and his group would be holding off the beastkin knights for a few hours. After all, they were only eight people!

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