parentshiftbook Chapter 116 An Unexpected Trouble
Chapter 116 An Unexpected Trouble
Chapter 117 An Unexpected Trouble
A few days later, in the depths of a remote, dense forest south of the Kingdom of Siant, where the Silent Forest is located, on the border of the Kingdom of Bill.
"The trail becomes blurry here. It seems the other party acted hastily, but still understood the basics."
A slightly tall and thin man in black squatted on the ground, his fingers tracing several almost indistinguishable broken branches and shallow pits, and whispered to his companion beside him.
"Judging from this last faint direction, the people should have gone north, towards the Kingdom of Siant. Do you think those ruthless madmen might be—"
Another slightly overweight man in black observed the surroundings, making some uncertain guesses, his tone tinged with apprehension.
"It doesn't look like it."
The tall man in black interrupted him. He picked up a bit of dark soil with his fingertips, sniffed it carefully, and then closed his eyes to feel the faint energy residue that had almost completely dissipated.
"The people of the Silent Forest rarely completely conceal their markings when operating near their own territory, let alone use such a crude and awkward method to deal with traces. This is more like the work of a group of people who are used to hiding their identities but are quite confident in their own strength."
He stood up, dusted off his hands, and sharply scanned the surrounding trees: "Look, they only erased the most obvious traces of their departure, but they handled the environmental damage and energy splash residue caused by the battle rather carelessly. Either time was of the essence, or—their lair might not be too far from here, making them subconsciously feel that there was no need to be perfect."
Upon hearing this, the fat man in black nodded thoughtfully: "That makes sense. So—where did this outsider come from? A wandering group of dark wizards? Or some secret organization that has been hiding all along? The group Miss Sena described doesn't sound like ordinary petty thieves."
The tall man in black had a solemn expression: "No matter who it is, the fact that such a group of people with considerable strength and who act so recklessly are hiding in a place not too far from the Silent Forest and our Arnold family's trade route is not a good sign."
He gazed northward toward the Kingdom of Siant, his eyes flickering uncertainly: "The clues generally point to Siant, but it may not be the Silent Forest itself. Besides the Silent Forest, that region is also a chaotic gathering place for several small and medium-sized wizard families and independent wizards; it's a very murky place."
He pondered for a moment and made a decision: "We cannot rashly venture into Sant, especially near the core area of the Silent Forest, as it could easily cause unnecessary trouble. First, encrypt and send back the traces, energy residue samples, and our preliminary assessment found here, and request further instructions from the Elders."
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"As for us—"
He looked at the fat man.
"Continue to conduct covert investigations in the Kingdom of Bill, focusing on the black market and border taverns. See if there are any unfamiliar faces recently appearing, or if any local bullies have heard any rumors. Be quick, but be extra careful. Absolutely do not reveal your identities or purpose."
The fat man in black nodded solemnly: "Understood! I will send the message back to headquarters immediately using the highest level of encryption."
The two figures, like ghosts, silently disappeared into the shadows of the forest once more, as if they had never been there at all.
However, they were unaware that right above them, on the rough bark of an ancient oak tree, a milky-white face, the same color as the mushrooms and almost completely blending into the wood grain, was silently watching the direction they had left.
"Ha, I didn't expect that my first task would come knocking on my door right after I was promoted."
Sean's consciousness perceived everything through this remote spore. A hint of doubt arose in his mind.
These traces were clearly vague clues deliberately left by them when they dealt with the scene of the Ralph incident, pointing in the direction of Sant to mislead any possible tracking.
In other words, these Arnold family members came for them.
But—why?
He quickly received and analyzed the subtle stream of information transmitted back from the spores—the conversation between the two men in black, their equipment, their seamless coordination, and especially the keyword "Miss Sena".
In an instant, all the clues were connected by his highly enhanced information processing ability.
"The Arnold family—'The Dark Hand'!"
"Is it because of that naive and foolish Sena Arnold?!"
He immediately connected this clue with the situation he had encountered the Arnold family squad a few days earlier.
"What an unexpected disaster! What a nuisance!"
Having figured this out, Sean's milky-white face, which resembled a fungal aggregate, slowly disappeared from the tree bark, leaving no trace of energy or physical movement, as if it were merely a chance sway of the tree's shadow.
His consciousness suddenly opened its eyes deep within a dark canyon, in a secret room filled with all sorts of strange spores and complex information receiving devices.
"The Arnold family actually sent out their undercover agents so quickly?"
Sean muttered to himself, his brow furrowed.
He felt things were getting a bit tricky.
The Arnold family is no small fry; their business network spans the southern countries, and they have many powerful members. Their "Dark Hands" are notorious for their expertise in tracking and covert operations.
Being targeted by them would be a huge problem.
Although the two "dark hand" scouts were temporarily misled by the misleading traces they deliberately left behind, shifting their suspicions to other forces within Sant and not directly targeting Dark Canyon, it was only a matter of time.
If the Arnold family headquarters sends more personnel or expands the search area to conduct a more detailed energy level scan, the risk of Dark Canyon being exposed will increase dramatically.
"We must report to the lord immediately!" Sean said without hesitation.
He quickly compiled the newly acquired image information, sound recordings, energy residue analysis data, and his own comprehensive judgment into a concise report, then got up and strode towards Hick's core laboratory.
Inside the laboratory, Hick is debugging a newly delivered set of high-precision energy fluctuation sensing matrices.
After listening to Sean's concise, clear, and well-organized report, Hick paused for half a second while calibrating the runes, then continued his work. His face remained expressionless, with only a faint but icy glint in the depths of his eyes.
"The Arnold family—the shadowy hand"
He gently put down the rune-engraving pen in his hand, the tip of the pen striking the metal table with a crisp "click".
"They're like a persistent ghost. Even a trivial farce caused by a spoiled brat can attract this pack of hyenas with their keen sense of smell."
His tone was so calm, as if he were stating a fact that had nothing to do with him, yet it made Sean, who was standing below, feel an invisible, heart-pounding pressure.
"My lord, should I send someone—"
Sean raised his head slightly, made a clean and efficient erasing gesture, and his eyes were sharp as knives.
With his newly acquired abilities, combined with the combat-modified bodies under Labour's command who were skilled in assassination, it would not be difficult for him to silently intercept and kill the two "Dark Hand" scouts before they could send back more accurate information about their investigation to the family.
Hick shook his head slightly.
"Killing them is tantamount to telling the Arnold family directly that there are indeed things here that they don't want to be discovered, and that we have the strength and determination to eliminate two of their elite henchmen instantly."
"This would immediately escalate the situation, turning a covert investigation into a direct confrontation, which would inevitably attract higher-level attention and more severe investigation from the family, running counter to our current strategy of lying low, developing, and accumulating strength."
He pondered for a moment, his fingers unconsciously and rhythmically tapping lightly on the cold lab bench.
"Since they enjoy riddles and tracking games—let them have their fun."
A cold, calculating glint flashed in Hick's eyes, like a spider weaving a trap.
"Sean, your parasitic spores, besides sensing, should also have the ability to simulate and release specific weak energy signals, right? For example—imitating the negative energy erosion traces commonly used by those infamous black wizards?"
Or perhaps it simulates the chaotic, manic energy characteristic of certain greedy and brutal raiding gangs active in border regions?
Sean immediately understood Hick's intention, his eyes gleaming with eager anticipation: "Absolutely, sir! Although the simulated traces won't last, and the energy structure is relatively crude, it's more than enough to create some convincing deceptions that can mislead their initial judgments! Especially to guide them into those already chaotic and dangerous places!"
"very good."
A cold smile curled at the corner of Hick's lips.
"Then give them more to do. Mobilize your spores and subtly leave behind similar traces and clues in several sensitive locations on the border between the Kingdom of Bill and the Kingdom of Siant—for example, near the abandoned stronghold where the Black Wizard's Corpse Society was once active, or in the area where the Blood Wolf raiding group frequently plundered trade routes."
"It needs to be made realistic, like a flaw that someone accidentally left when they were in a hurry to move or clean up the mess."
Let the Arnold family's "undercover agents" have a good chat with the local bullies.
To shift blame eastward and use someone else to do the dirty work.
Directing potential threats to other troublemakers, causing them to distrust and exhaust each other, is currently the most efficient, effective, and time-saving way to deal with this type of spying.
"Understood! I'll go make the arrangements right away! I'll definitely prepare a wonderful surprise – a treasure hunt!"
Sean's eyes gleamed with a mixture of excitement and caution. This was his first independent mission after his promotion, and he had to handle it flawlessly.
"remember!"
Hick added, in a serious tone.
"Absolutely, absolutely no trace of our Dark Canyon can be left behind. Your safety, and the spores' stealth, are paramount."
If any risk of exposure is detected, or if the enemy employs unexpected reconnaissance methods, immediately abandon the mission, sever all communication, and withdraw all spore units.
"Yes, sir! I will not let you down!"
Sean nodded solemnly in acceptance, quickly turned and left, his figure disappearing into the shadows of the corridor, as he began to fully implement his "fog bomb" plan.
The laboratory fell silent again, and Hick's gaze returned to the energy sensor, but his eyes became even more profound.
The Arnold family's involvement, though troublesome, also reminded him that the outside world never stops turning.
"Arnold—heh, I hope you guys don't look for trouble!!"