Chapter 164: Clues

After a whole night of hustle, they finally delivered Alvin to Esola and arranged him in the best room of the city lord’s mansion. Wu Qingsong also took this opportunity to quietly lift the curse, allowing Alvin to wake up. 

As far as Wu Qingsong knew, the priests stationed in various places by the temple were not elf mages but half-elves who had learned magic. It was certainly possible for them to detect the presence of the curse, but the probability was not high.

After waking up, Alvin quickly became aware of his injury and what had happened. 

Wu Qingsong didn’t know if he had guessed anything, but he did not show any emotion and calmly said, “Then I’ll leave it in your hands.”

Wu Qingsong sent most people back, assigning Ram and Harold the task of seizing this opportunity to find the people of the Norwei Resistance Army, to investigate whether they really had anything to do with the previous insectoid wave, and to also look into whether there were any unidentified spies near Orgrimmar. Meanwhile, he himself had to stay behind.

Baines would not let him leave under any circumstances, fearing any change in Alvin’s condition would be blamed on him.

Fortunately, a few days later, the messengers sent to Targal quickly returned with several priests rushing over.

By this time, Alvin’s leg had started to show a disturbing purplish hue. Upon seeing this, the priests, servants of the goddess Ameys, did not hesitate any longer. They immediately informed Alvin of the potential adverse outcomes, then expelled all unrelated people from the room, leaving only Baines and the head of Alvin’s guards.

Everyone waited anxiously outside the room. It was clear that their abilities were far inferior to Nina’s and Alice’s, which put Wu Qingsong completely at ease. If even Nina couldn’t detect the curse, then these incompetents certainly wouldn’t be able to sense it.

“My Lord…” Beck quietly approached him at this moment. “Lord Harold is here.”

Wu Qingsong glanced at the tightly closed door, realizing they would still need more time to complete the treatment. He quietly slipped away from the crowd and walked outside.

Harold’s expression didn’t look good.

“What’s the situation?”

“Following the internal contact method of the wolf clan provided by Ram, we found some messages left by the Norwei wolf clan in the mountains northeast of Orgrimmar, and tracked them deep into the mountain range. However, during the pursuit, the team led by Angus encountered a sudden attack by spiderpeople in a hidden valley. They lost ten people and had to retreat.”

“Spiderpeople?” Hearing such a loss, Wu Qingsong’s mood also darkened.

“According to Angus’s report, at least twenty spiderpeople attacked them, not the kind that besieged Esola city before, but a smaller, more agile species.”

Angus is not the type to exaggerate the enemy’s numbers to lessen his own responsibility. If he said so, the number of spiderpeople in the valley must only be more, not less.

“Did you bring a map?” Wu Qingsong asked.

Harold was prepared, the place marked on the map was far from the borders of Norwei and Esola, deep in the mountains.

“What does Ram think?”

“She defers to your decision.”

“Alright then.” Wu Qingsong nodded.

Clearly, if the direction Angus and his team were tracking was not wrong, there would only be two outcomes. Either the Norwei wolfkin indeed had connections with these spiderpeople, or they had already fallen victim to them.

No matter the outcome, Wu Qingsong felt it necessary to make the trip and see for himself what was going on there.

Suddenly, a burst of commotion erupted from the building, and Wu Qingsong hurriedly walked in.

The door was open, and people were joyfully praising the Goddess Ameys, as well as Lord Osaga and Arvin.

Had Arvin’s injury healed?

“Tagraedi! Lord Arvin was injured on your territory, and at such a critical moment, you irresponsibly walked away,” Baines loudly accused, drawing a wave of agreement. “What punishment do you deserve.”

Wu Qingsong couldn’t care less about such inept folks. If he wanted, getting rid of these guys would be effortless. It was all about saving face at this point. But if they really thought to climb over him, they’d better be careful not to climb too high and fall to their death.

He looked at Arvin, who had changed into a new set of clothes, making it impossible to see the condition of his leg. However, judging by his continued use of a cane, it seemed the priests’ abilities were indeed quite limited. His spirit appeared somewhat wilted, but his gaze toward Wu Qingsong was complex, as if waiting for an explanation.

“Lord Arvin.” Wu Qingsong spoke. “It’s really good to see you recovering. I have another piece of news, my men found traces of spider creatures in the mountains to the north while searching for the rebels.”

“Spider creatures?” People exclaimed in shock.

Arvin narrowed his eyes at Wu Qingsong, seemingly evaluating the truth of his statement.

After a few seconds, he finally asked, “How many? Where exactly?” 

Wu Qingsong immediately brought over a map. “Approximately at this location, my team lost ten men. According to those who returned, there were at least twenty spider creatures in that area.”

“Lord Tagraedi indeed is devoted to the nation’s cause,” Arvin said with a half-smile. “So quick to find them.”

“It’s all thanks to Lord Osaga and you, Lord Arvin.” Wu Qingsong responded. “After you were injured, I didn’t know what I could do to make up for my fault, so I could only send out men to desperately search for clues. Fortunately, under the protection of Goddess Ameys’s light, not only are you well, but I also luckily found clues. It’s a silver lining in a misfortune.”

“I fell off the horse myself, what does that have to do with you?” Arvin said lightly.

Wu Qingsong didn’t want to dwell on this issue. After all, if Arvin was to be suspicious, he would remain so regardless of what Wu Qingsong said. 

“My Lord, I’m concerned they might escape from that place again. As for what to do next, I await your guidance.”

Arvin glanced at the city lord and the sheriff, both of whom instinctively stepped back. It was technically their responsibility, but in reality, such tasks were always handled by the mercenary groups. The defense force under their command was more symbolic than practical, utterly incapable of undertaking such a duty.

“I will issue a bounty as soon as possible.” Realizing his misstep, Baines quickly spoke up. “Lord Arvin, rest assured, this issue will certainly be–”

“Hangman.” Arvin didn’t pay him any heed, instead turning to ask Wu Qingsong, “Would you accept this task?”

“Of course!” Wu Qingsong responded. “I was about to volunteer myself. My men didn’t die there in vain. Anyone with blood on their hands, be they beastmen or bugmen, will pay a sufficient price.”