021 Mission

Dolay Village, inside Karen’s cottage.

Ten days had passed since Karen and Old Jack had last met. The interval had given Karen enough time to adjust his mindset when facing Old Jack once more. He had fully accepted his position as an outer member of the Rangers, subordinate to Old Jack, presenting himself with a grave and respectful demeanor—or at least, he made sure it appeared so.

In contrast, Old Jack was much more relaxed this time. He treated Karen with a newfound warmth and enthusiasm. Upon returning to the village, Old Jack not only sought Karen out immediately but also checked on his progress—namely, his studies of "Swordsman’s Basic Sword Techniques" and the advancement of the "Heavy Strike" skill.

Although Karen remained wary of Old Jack because of the undead territory, he did not conceal his abilities in these areas. On the one hand, he wasn’t sure he could successfully hide them; on the other, he needed Old Jack’s guidance on activating the battle energy seed. So Karen revealed his true level without reservation.

“This is what you’ve accomplished in ten days?” Old Jack’s mouth twitched involuntarily after reviewing Karen’s progress. Karen had only just started learning "Swordsman’s Basic Sword Techniques," and in about ten days, he had mastered it to its highest level and advanced a grade. The speed was nothing short of monstrous.

Old Jack never expected that the rural boy he had casually recruited would possess such extraordinary talent. It ought to have pleased him, but as he watched Karen nervously ask, “I spent ten days and still couldn’t activate the battle energy seed. Is it because my aptitude is lacking?” Old Jack couldn’t help but feel a pang of annoyance—he himself had taken over half a year to master the sword techniques and another year to activate the battle energy seed.

Old Jack composed himself and replied with a straight face, “It’s decent. Your talent is better than most.”

“How long did it take you?” Karen asked.

Old Jack clutched his chest and quickly changed the subject, “As for your inability to activate the battle energy seed, the main issue is insufficient physical strength. You need to focus more on strengthening your body.”

“Let’s do this: set aside your sword technique training for now and concentrate on building your strength. If you persist for a month or two, you should be able to activate the battle energy seed.”

Perhaps fearing Karen might say something else that threatened his composure, Old Jack swiftly steered the conversation to more pressing matters.

“But the battle energy seed can wait. Reaching the first grade in ten days is already an unexpected boon. With this strength, your next task should be much easier!”

The moment Old Jack mentioned a task, Karen sat up straight, his expression solemn. It was a habit he’d picked up from friends who worked in offices in his previous life: whenever a superior assigned a task, regardless of your own thoughts, always present an attitude of seriousness.

Indeed, this approach worked just as well with Old Jack. Seeing Karen’s respectful stance, Old Jack nodded with satisfaction and began outlining the task he had entrusted to Karen ten days ago.

Simply put, Old Jack’s assignment for Karen was a bait mission. As previously noted, the area between Goblin Forest and Moon Worship City was beyond the reach of Bourbon dynasty law. This lawless zone was a haven for tax-evading civilians like Karen—and also a breeding ground for criminals.

At its peak, this region of barely a hundred or two square kilometers was home to more than a dozen robber bands, both large and small. Generally, as long as these groups didn’t seriously threaten the Bourbon dynasty’s interests, the authorities wouldn’t bother with them. Still, there were exceptions, such as the target of Old Jack’s current mission—the Phantom Robber Band.

This was now the largest robber group in the region. But the reason Old Jack—or rather, the Bourbon dynasty—wanted to take them down was not merely their size. The real issue was their collusion with goblin merchants: capturing and selling humans to the Goblin Kingdom as slaves, and trafficking contraband. That was intolerable to the Bourbon dynasty, hence Karen’s assignment.

Of course, Karen’s task wasn’t to wipe out the Phantom Robber Band—such a mission was far beyond his reach. His role was simply to act as bait.

Dolay Village, where Karen lived, happened to be within the Phantom Robber Band’s sphere of activity. Previously, its remote location and small population—barely one hundred and fifty souls—plus its proximity to Goblin Forest, had kept it safe. Foreign races, even goblins, were viewed with deep suspicion by humans. Thus, the band had never bothered with the village before. Now, Old Jack wanted Karen to become the village chief, develop the village, guide it toward prosperity, and—well, that was it.

Old Jack instructed Karen to take the position of village chief; what came next was left undiscussed, as the Rangers, or rather those behind them, had other plans.

Karen understood immediately. Ultimately, he was nothing more than a pawn in this scheme, placed on the board for his identity, not his abilities. Old Jack sought to leverage Karen’s status, not his skills.

Karen knew the matter wasn’t as simple as Old Jack made it sound; Old Jack had not revealed the whole truth. Yet that was only natural: Karen was merely an outer member of the Rangers, recruited only because his identity happened to be useful. For such peripheral members, neither Old Jack nor Karen himself would disclose everything.

At this moment, Karen’s task was not to probe for secrets but to maintain the proper attitude and play his part.

After receiving Old Jack’s orders, Karen rose early the next morning and sought out Cain, asking him to gather the villagers at the entrance to the village.

When all the villagers had assembled, Karen was already waiting at the gate, a woodcutting knife slung over his shoulder. Beside him stood three men—habitual troublemakers notorious in the village. Unlike Karen, who stood upright, the three knelt in wait.

Once everyone was present, Karen spoke not a word. He raised his blade and, with swift strokes, executed the three kneeling men.

As their heads rolled and Karen was splattered with blood, he turned to face the villagers. “I will be the chief of this village. Who is in favor, and who is opposed?”