The Santal Forest Camp

After assigning the units, Ye Weian began his pre-battle speech.

"I know that some of you are here to make a name for yourselves, while others are here because they are interested in me."

Ye Wei'an reined in his horse, his mage robes fluttering in the morning breeze. His voice, amplified by the illusion of [Secondary Illusion], resounded throughout the area: "But I don't care, because the outcome will prove everything."

"In my team, the number of people you kill is not the most important thing. Your only goal is to follow the rules and complete the tasks I assign you."

"I promise that I will only keep 20% of the spoils from this battle; the rest will be distributed as a bounty. Compensation for the wounded and killed will remain as I have before!"

"Furthermore, those who demonstrate exceptional performance will have the opportunity to be knighted!"

With each word Ye Wei'an spoke, the morale of those below rose a little higher.

But here, he changed the subject:

"And those who deserted in the face of battle and disobeyed military orders..."

With a casual wave of his hand, a blue-white fire arrow shot out, instantly shattering a stone lock at the edge of the training ground. A scorching wave swept over, causing the soldiers in the front row to instinctively retreat.

"...This is what will happen to you!"

Upon seeing this, the soldiers immediately tensed up.

"Finally, the Magic Net will witness my vow. Let's go!"

With his command, the soldiers and convoy began their march into the Black Forest.

A minor incident occurred during the early stages of the march.

Just like last time, the maid Ellen used the excuse of weak legs to ride a horse with Ye Wei'an.

However, before she could speak, another hand wearing a ribbon patted her shoulder.

"Ellen, this isn't a spring outing," Lina's cool voice came from behind her.

Today, the head maid was dressed in a smart dark hunting outfit, with a short sword at her waist for self-defense, and her long hair was tied up high, making her look heroic and dashing.

Before Elaine could speak, Lina gently pulled on the reins and forcefully stood between the two.

"During the march, the lord must remain absolutely vigilant, Miss Eileen." Lina's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority. "If you feel physically exhausted, you may ride with me. I will take care of you—or rather, supervise you."

Eileen immediately wilted, and could only pout and reply in a wronged tone, "Yes... Sister Lina."

-----------------

On the only way into the Hurek Forest, a patrol of purple dragon soldiers stopped them.

The veteran at the head of the group, mounted on horseback, scrutinized the ragtag army: "You are... the armed forces of Firefall Valley? What are you doing in the forest?"

Kane rode forward and spoke curtly: "By order of the acting lord of the Xiaxing family and the pioneering lord, I have gone to the forest to clear out the bandits who have taken up residence there and to eliminate any potential threats to the new baron."

Upon hearing the words "bandit suppression," the expressions of the Purple Dragon soldiers stiffened slightly.

The leading soldier quickly put on an approving face and enthusiastically pointed to a valley to the east: "Lossanda, that's great news! Half a month ago, we saw traces of bandits in that canyon. If you go that way, you're sure to run into those bastards."

They not only offered verbal support, but also provided detailed "intelligence".

However, in Ye Wei'an's view, the markers above these soldiers' heads were rapidly changing from neutral yellow on the minimap to a hostile light red.

"It seems the Emerysque family's reach extends further than I imagined," Ye Wei'an thought to himself with a cold laugh.

These purple dragon soldiers are clearly on the other side's side, and the canyon mentioned in the intelligence is probably a dead end.

"Thank you," Ye Wei'an replied briefly, then turned his horse around.

Since they were in full view of everyone, and the other party was nominally still a guard of the kingdom, Ye Wei'an did not make trouble on the spot. He simply greeted them politely and led the team to continue on their way.

"My lord, shall we go to that canyon?" Lina, riding a horse beside Ye Wei'an, asked in a low voice.

The astute maid also noticed that something was amiss with the soldiers.

"No, we'll go in the opposite direction." Ye Wei'an turned his horse around and pointed to a road hidden by vines deep in the forest. "According to my intelligence, there's a real bandit camp in that direction."

Upon entering the Hurek Forest, Ye Wei'an displayed a navigational ability that left everyone speechless.

The mini-map provides a clear view of the terrain, outposts, and even wild animal lairs within a kilometer radius.

In this primeval forest where even the most experienced hunters could get lost, the old mage seemed as confident as if he were taking a stroll in his own backyard.

"This... could this be some kind of advanced 'positioning technique'?" Volodya followed closely behind Ye Weian, watching as he easily avoided a beast-trapping pit covered with withered leaves, his astonishment beyond words.

Even the guards who escorted Ye Wei'an were quite surprised.

Ye Wei'an had only shown this ability to Kane and the other two before.

Even they only heard about it from Kane and his men.

But hearing about it and experiencing it firsthand are two completely different things.

Looking at Ye Weian's calm back, Volodya became even more convinced of her sister Lina's judgment. The loyalty she had originally felt out of a sense of family responsibility began to quietly turn into admiration for Ye Weian's personal abilities.

-----------------

By comparing the map and the mini-map of the Santalin Society, Ye Weian led his team through the Hurek Forest and found the outskirts of a secret camp of the Santalin Society before noon.

Ye Weian stopped the team a kilometer away from the camp.

"The main force will remain in place. I will go scout personally. Kane, Volodya, keep your men under control. Clayb, take your scout squad and follow me. Lina, you go with Raine too."

After assigning the tasks, Ye Wei'an dismounted and casually drew a longsword.

He turned his head and gestured to Elaine behind him. The two of them then disappeared into the bushes like ghosts, making their way toward the Zentalonian camp.

This wasn't because he distrusted his subordinates, but because having a minimap allowed him to spot enemies first and perfectly avoid their blind spots, eliminating spies on the periphery as quickly as possible.

Ye Wei'an's goal was to peel away the outer network of the Zantalin Society's informants, layer by layer, like peeling an onion, without alerting the camp.

This kind of stealth work requires extremely quick thinking and on-the-spot reaction time.

If a mistake is made, the surprise attack will turn into a full-scale assault, meaning it will become a fierce and brutal battle.

Ye Wei'an knew very well that many of the soldiers in the unit behind him were old hands who did not trust him.

Sending a hastily assembled force, each with its own agenda, to attack a heavily fortified Zantalin camp, even with numerical superiority, would hardly yield a positive outcome.

If those veterans waver, Ye Wei'an will face not only defeat, but possibly a devastating rout.

As an illegitimate child, Ye Wei'an's most important asset in becoming a lord was his reputation.

If he suffers a setback in his initial battle, the wavering doubts will instantly overwhelm him, and the reputation he has painstakingly built over the past half month will crumble like a sandcastle. He will never have the chance to organize such an army again to prove his ability as a lord.

The wisdom of his hometown taught Ye Weian that in such situations, no one else could be relied upon; only he himself could handle it.

The two hadn't walked far when Ye Wei'an spotted the two closest red dots on the map, and heard shouts and muffled chopping sounds coming from ahead.

Two members of the Santalin Society were chopping down trees while cursing and swearing.

Both of them are [Lv.1 Bandits].

Clearly, they were sent out to gather firewood and were completely unaware that death was imminent.

Ye Wei'an glanced at Ai Lian.

(You take care of the left one, I'll take care of the right one)

Eileen nodded.

Ye Wei'an tiptoed behind the woodcutter on the right, then suddenly lunged forward, drew his longsword, and simultaneously cast a spell:

"A zero-ring trick, striking first to defeat the enemy!"

For low-level warlocks, no trick can outweigh the damage of "First Strike" combined with physical attacks.

Guided by magic, Ye Wei'an, like a seasoned assassin, plunged his sword into his back.

The woodcutter collapsed to the ground without uttering a sound.

[Defeat a Lv.1 bandit and gain 50 experience points.]

Ellen was like a quail in front of Lina, but after following Ye Wei'an in several battles, she had become quite experienced in combat.

Before the other woodcutter could even scream, she skillfully subdued him, dislocating his joints and pinning him firmly to the muddy ground.

The two were easily dealt with.

Ye Wei'an waved.

Clayb led his men up.

"Ellen, strip that man of his outer garment and drag him away. Clayb, this man is yours. I want to know the situation of the camp, the traps, and the rotation of sentries," Ye Wei'an ordered.

"Understood, Master."

"Leave it to me, sir."

Krebb understood and stepped forward.

This veteran was extremely skilled at handling prisoners. He didn't rush to ask questions; instead, he grabbed the prisoner's dislocated arm and suddenly exerted force.

"Waaah—" The prisoner tried to scream, but his mouth was tightly covered.

After two or three seconds, he released his grip, then grabbed the prisoner's hair and slammed him against the rough tree trunk. With a flick of his right hand, a short, nicked knife was pressed against the prisoner's eye.

"Listen, you scum," Clayb said menacingly, close to the other man's ear. "You have two choices: either answer the adults' questions, or I'll gouge these eyes out and shove them in your mouth. You can choose one."

The prisoner was terrified, his body trembling, and the stench of blood dripped down his trouser legs. He spilled out the information like beans from a bamboo tube.

Unfortunately, he was just an outsider in the Santalin Society and didn't know much about it.

He only knew that there were about fifty people in the camp, including more than thirty combatants and two spellcasting apprentices. He also gave a rough idea of ​​the outpost locations around the camp and the areas where traps were set.

As for more specific information such as who exactly was in the camp, what their responsibilities were, who the leader was, whether there were sentries, and the specific layout of the traps, he couldn't say anything at all.

After listening, Ye Wei'an narrowed his eyes slightly, a faint blue light flashing in his pupils.

"The Art of Making Friends"

Next, Ye Wei'an confirmed the authenticity of the interrogation results with him.

Making friends is just a simple trick, only useful for gaining the other person's trust in a short time. If anything unexpected happens, such as asking questions that touch on the other person's bottom line, they will break away.

This spell isn't very effective for interrogation, but it's quite simple to use to confirm whether someone is lying.

This prisoner was just an ordinary bandit, lacking any backbone in this regard, let alone lying about intelligence.