by Feng Yue
“‘This is a conspiracy! A despicable conspiracy to destroy the friendship between our countries!’” Charles imitated the Secretary of State’s angry words and shook his head. “Now all of Avalon is on the hunt for dogs. You should tell Old Phil to hide and not be used as a scapegoat…”
Seeing the sadness in Charles’s eyes, Ye Qingxuan’s facial muscles quivered, not sure what he should say.
They walked out of the Academy as they talked. But for some reason, a crowd ran past as soon as they left the school. Then a few pigeons flew to the sky and disappeared. There were still people running for some reason.
“What’s going on?” Ye Qingxuan studied their backsides suspiciously.
“Who knows?” Charles shrugged, “Maybe they’re playing with pigeons.”
“Avalonians have too much time on their hands.”
“Yeah.”
—
Ten minutes later at a bar downtown, smoke hung above the song and dance. Indian girls wearing golden hoops and silver chains danced to the single-strand fiddle and clay drums. Singing a hymn-like song, they swayed and twisted. In front of the stage, a bearded man lay on the cot. Smoking hookah, his eyes squinted as he enjoyed the drugs and hummed along to the music.
Amidst the entertainment, a thin man with a turban pushed open the door cautiously. Bowing, he walked up and prostrated before the cot reverently, “Lord Shahrukh, Lord Shahrukh…”
“Hmm?” Shahrukh opened his eyes. Seeing the man, he sat up and put down the hookah, “Is there news?”
“The Eastern kid has appeared,” the man replied in a low voice. “They came out and are headed towards downtown. They seem to be looking for something.”
“You are not mistaken?”
“No!” The underling nodded his head forcefully.
“Very well.” Shahrukh felt the ivory dagger at his waist, “What of the others?”
“According to your commands, the pigeons have been stopped by Master Puspotkata. All moles have been taken care of.” Fierceness flashed in the thin man’s eyes. “No one escaped. Only we’ll know where the kid is before they realize that their moles have disappeared.” He paused and mimed a slashing sword. “Should we take the opportunity to…”
“No hurries. This is a blessing from the heavens to give us the advantage. We’ve put in so much. How can a little kid be enough?” Shahrukh licked his lips hungrily. “Tell everyone to get ready! Prepare for an ambush, and use the kid to draw them all out. We’ll do something big this time!”
96 The Mantis Preys on the Cicada
In a market downtown, amidst the smell of rotting leaves and sewers, the youth trudged through the mud, looking at the messiness around him. “Senior, are you sure it’s here?”
“Don’t worry, don’t worry. I remember it’s right around here!” Charles nodded with extreme confidence. “Just walk forward and take a turn!”
“You said that ten minutes ago when we were still on a main road, and now we’re in this weird place!” Ye Qingxuan’s face was full of regret.
“This is Avalon!” Charles patted his shoulder strongly. “It’s always full of surprises! Ah, these carrots look cheap. How about we buy some for stew?”
“Can we do what we need to first? How cheap can carrots be…oh, those seriously are cheap. And these pumpkins look nice too! Boss, give me one kilogram. And how much are the cabbages?” Ye Qingxuan was immediately distracted by the vegetables and started bargaining with expertise. After a lot of skillful talking, the seller added in two eggplants. In the end, he bought a bunch of stuff at half the normal price, and Ye Qingxuan was in high spirits. Satisfied, he picked up the giant pile.
“My luck’s pretty good today. Senior, you’ve been drinking so much, a stew can help you…f*ck, where’d you go?!” He finally realized that his senior had disappeared!
“Boss, did you see where the guy who came with me went?”
The fat woman behind the vegetable stand rolled her eyes lazily. “I think a girl wearing red waved at him when you were buying and he left…”
“…” Ye Qingxuan almost spat out blood. He just wanted to scream, “Charles, you *ss, did you come to help me or to find girls?!”
Quickly, that was not what he was worried about when he started walking again. The alleys of downtown were dirty and confusing. He looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings and finally realized that he was lost.
In the silence, he heard faint sounds from afar. Someone was walking over.
—
—
“Lord, we’re here!” Outside the alley, a scruffy bum gave an affectionate smile. He rubbed his hands excitedly, watching the person before him. The man clad in a black robe stood at the entrance of the gate, looking into the distance.
Under the blazing sun, his face and body were hidden by the thick hat and robe. He emanated coldness like a ghost, sending fear into people’s hearts. “Are you certain?” a scratchy voice asked from under the hat’s brim.
“You’re giving me money, I’d never lie,” the bum said quietly. “I saw him go in with my own eyes. A white-haired Eastern kid. I can’t be wrong!” Reverence filled his eyes, “And anyway, you’re important. Everyone in downtown knows that if we want to live, we can’t piss off Mr. Professor.”
“Good.” The man referred to as Professor nodded. His voice was like bones scraping together. “Otherwise, you won’t have any days left to spend the money.” A pale and thin hand reached out from under the dark robe. It was pale as if it had never seen the sun, pale as death.
Seeing the hand, the bum’s eyes lit up with enthusiasm again. His gaze fell on the wad of green money orders held between two fingers, and he could not look away. Looking at the money, the bum could not help but laugh dumbly. The pile of money orders from the Church, each one worth one-thousand pounds…
Tying the papers with a string, the Professor tossed it and it rolled on the ground. “You can scram now.” The Professor waved a hand and walked toward the alley without looking back.
“Thank you, Lord. Thank you!” The bum dived at the money like a starving dog seeing food. Picking up the money, he impatiently counted it and laughed ecstatically. “I’m rich!” His dirty fingers gripped the money tightly. With burning eyes, he put the beautiful little darlings into his pocket.
He froze when he looked up. A pair of feet was before him. He looked up in shock and was met by a cane adorned with silver and gems. It was held by a clean and elegant hand. A large ruby ring shone from the forefinger, a family emblem engraved into the gem. As if the wearer was preparing to attend a banquet, the precious stones on the sleeve cuffs of the detailed suit shone with a subtle but luxurious light.
“Mr. Professor, what’s with the hurry? Why don’t we have a chat?” The man with the cane had an elegant voice, gentle and anchored like a warning from a friend. He wore a top hat and, and leaning on his cane, he looked like a gentleman. There was a polite smile on his handsome face, fake and arrogant like all Sicilians.
But that was not enough for the bum to cry out in shock. Behind the man was a group of thugs wielding knives and metal staffs. The burly men had appeared suddenly and soundlessly in the small alley. Their dark eyes were filled with haughty ferocity, smiling mockingly at him as if looking at a clown. There was only one group of thugs in all of Avalon who dressed so brightly, and they were all Sicilians!
“Black-black-black Hand Gang…” The bum finally processed the situation and screamed as if he had seen a ghost. The young man loosened his grip, and the bum collapsed on the ground. He scrambled up, stammering, “I—I—I…”
The young man did not care about him and waved his hand, telling the bum to get out of his sight.
The bum hurriedly crawled forward, and when he was far enough, he scrambled up and fled. He did not even dare to pick up the money on the ground.
Now, there was only the surrounded Professor and the young man leading a group of thugs.
“It seems that I’m surrounded.” The Profess
or did not act as if he were surrounded, and just gazed at his unfriendly “friends.”
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Professor. I am the second son of the Luco family. You can call me Lorenzo, Palermo Eagle Lorenzo.” The young man put a hand to his chest like a gentleman. But when he looked at the Professor, his eyes were taunting. “The legendary Viper just jumped into a trap without even realizing? This is surprising.”
“Lorenzo? Schwartz’s son?” The Professor studied the man as if he had expected this. “You’re faster than I had thought. I thought the first to arrive would have been the Indians.”
“Actually, they were indeed the first.” Lorenzo shrugged and looked back. Behind him, blood flowed under the feet of the Sicilian thugs. The blood had come from another alley, and flowed into an open sewer.
Some burly men were still tidying up the site. They threw two mutated corpses into the sewer and watched as they disappeared into the darkness. It was clear that the Indians had been taken care of by the Sicilians.
They did not even have the time to realize they had been ambushed before they had been completely destroyed by an attack.
At the back was a fat corpse with his eyes still open in shock. Shahrukh, one of the Indian leaders, had been slashed like a crazy painter’s canvas. He had died without a sound.
—
“Seems like I’ve underestimated you.” The Professor looked back from the sewer. “It seems like you had prepared beforehand. Did you think like the Indians, waiting here and capturing your supposed partners? You also want that kid?”
“Are you trying to make time?” Lorenzo saw through the Professor’s thoughts and laughed, cocking his head. “There’s no use. We’ve already cleared out everything within a few hundred meters of here. Now, Professor, you better understand this clearly. We are enemies, but seeing that you once helped us with our business, we can let you leave here unharmed. What do you think of my offer?”
“Oh? I must thank you for your pity,” the Professor said lightly, “but I’m afraid I won’t be able to leave.”
“You’re worried that I’m not trustworthy?” Lorenzo furrowed his brows, his eyes cold. “I am the second son of the Luco family. Keeping my word is something that my father has taught me. We Sicilians never break promises. Because of Ghosthand, I’m willing to let you go if you promise to never interfere with this again.”
“Idiot.” The Professor sighed. “You thought I was talking to you?”
Lorenzo blanched. He opened his mouth to say something, but his expression changed. Suddenly, he felt the ground shake. In the stillness, the tiles beneath him trembled as if hammers were pounding the ground. Heavy footsteps came from both sides of the alley. The footsteps were sharp like metal scraping against stone. Lorenzo looked up in all directions in shock. It was like a nightmare. Metal shone from both ends of the alley. It was the color of heavy plate armor!
“F*ck,” Lorenzo could not help but swear when he processed what it was.
—
Defenseless, he waited as the group of armored men rounded the corner. It was as if the hungry wolves meant for battle had taken a wrong turn and ended up the alley. The fully armored men walked in synchronization, like an army parade! The axes and swords in their hands shattered the tiles, creating fierce and piercing sounds.
But this was not a battlefield! This was Avalon! Why would heavy armored soldiers be here?!
97 Unaware of the Oriole Behind
In an instant, the ‘army’ blocked both exits in the alley. Raising their weapons, their ferocity was overwhelming.
“Look who we captured? Two big fish! The sissy Sicilian rich boy, and the sneaky Professor!” The short and stocky man at the front laughed. He held a heavy flame-shaped sword, and a horned helmet covered his face. His voice was scratchy yet icy.
“‘Basset Werner?” Lorenzo finally realized who the ‘army’ was. They were not in the army, or more accurately, they were no longer in the army. They were Asgardians! Born with the genes of pirates, these thugs, who could not do anything other than kill, spread around the world after their country’s disarmament. They made a living with their swords and were infamous for being heartless, never leaving behind any survivors. A portion of them had come to Avalon under the leadership of their former commander, Werner, and had become a cancerous part of downtown.
“Yes, that’s me.” Werner laughed, “The Professor was right. None of you will be able to leave today.”
Lorenzo’s mind went blank. He knew that these people were crazy, but he had never thought that they were this crazy. He could not believe they had hidden so many weapons! The amount of equipment they had was enough to attack the headquarters of the Scotland Yard! What did they think Avalon was?
“Are you crazy?” Lorenzo asked, his voice barely in control, and his features twisting. “The Scotland Yard will not let you get away with this!”
“Haha, that’s okay. We’ve spent some money so now the guards will pretend they didn’t see anything.” Werner caressed his heavy blade which he also used to eat with. “Don’t forget, Asgardians never go anywhere without their utensils. It’s time to eat now. Is there anything you sissy Sicilians want to say?”
Lorenzo laughed harshly. “You think that you can take us down with some steel cans?”
“My boys will tell you the answer.” Werner laughed like a maniac, the veins in his eyes prominent and red. The war dog living in his body had been awaken. Thirsty for corpses and blood, he raised his sword.
“In your dreams!” His face dark with anger, Lorenzo unsheathed his cane sword. Behind him, the Sicilian thugs were ready to fight to the end.
But just as the atmosphere was growing tense, a hoarse and jeering voice sounded. It came from the Professor in the center of the commotion. He was about to be turned to pulp by people on both sides of him, but there was no fear in his voice. Instead, there was mockery as he said, “Fellows, I wouldn’t be so impatient if I were you. The friend on the rooftop hasn’t spoken yet.” With that, the alley fell silent.
“Rooftop?” Both Werner and Lorenzo looked up on the high walls on either side of them. There came a hair-raising sound—the sound of bows tightening!
Everyone tensed. Even Werner, covered with layers of armor, felt a drop of cold sweat fall from his nose. “F*ck!” he could not help but mutter.
They could imagine the scene on rooftop with dozens of bows being pulled back slowly. As they watched, thin figures appeared on the rooftop one by one. They aimed their arrows at the “guests.” There were sixteen well-maintained army bows, radiating with the piercing smell of curing oil. Bows and arrows that powerful and that close could pierce through even the hardest of armor. Sixteen was not much, but it was enough to turn them all into porcupines!
“Ah, we’ve been discovered?” A short figure on the rooftop hid behind a large shield and peered out cautiously. He smiled at the Professor. “Mr. Professor, I didn’t expect you to be as sensitive as a dog.”
“The Pyramid Scheme?” Werner and Lorenzo finally realized who these newcomers were. They had never expected that the elites’ dogs would want a piece of this deal too!
The one who had just made his grand entrance was the leader of Avalon’s biggest smuggling group, and the obedient dog of the elites, Pyramid King: Sam Luo.
“Despicable! Completely despicable!” Lorenzo practically shook in anger. “Sam Luo, do you even have shame?”
“Ah, Young Lord, what are you talking about?” The man known as Sam Luo raised his bow in protest as if he had just been insulted. “All of you are good men who can fight, but the Pyramid Scheme is just a group of poor people who can only live on the elites’ scraps!
“It would be sure death if we fought you face to face, alright? We had no choice but to move to a higher place.” He paused. Shaking the thing in his hands, his smile became brighter. “As for this, it’s only for self-defense. Please don’t mind it. Pretend that I don’t exist and please continue, continue…”
Everyone
in the alley remained silent, trying to look for a way to escape. The Viper Professor, Palermo Eagle, Basset, Pyramid King…all of the big names in downtown had grouped here under such an awkward and strange atmosphere. Each group was ready to fight to the death.
—
“Mr. Luo, there’s something I must remind you of.” Faced with the Pyramid King’s taunts, the Professor only shrugged. “Do you really think we’ll fight each other like fools and let you reap the rewards?”
“Ah, how could you think of me like that? I’m a pacifist. I hate fighting!” The Pyramid King looked around. “Aren’t we all here for the same reason? Would you like to listen to my suggestion?”
Exchanging glasses, Lorenzo and Werner both spat out one word, “Speak!”
“Look, we’re all here for that Eastern mutt, so there’s room for discussion. You want the thing on his body, but we’re different. Arthur’s hidden treasure is too whimsical. We only want something we can touch.”
“What do you mean?” Loreno asked coldly.
“It’s simple. We want his life.” The Pyramid King smirked, “The Rossi family lost an important inheritor because of him. They paid a large sum of money for us to get rid of him.” He paused and looked at the Professor. “But we all have too many people and there’s not enough to go around. What if we get rid of the weakest and then discuss who the Eastern mutt belongs to?”
The weakest? As soon as he spoke, everyone’s focus turned to the Professor in the center. They knew that the Pyramid King was trying to turn them against each other, but they could not help considering his suggestion. Indeed, the Professor was sneaky and held many fearful secrets even though he did not have any real power. It truly would be a good chance to get rid of that scourge. And he was just one person. Why should he be able to take the reward from them? Avalon was too small and it would be good to get rid of someone in the way.