Having said that, his gaze shifted to the area behind the camp, shrouded by the darkness of night.
The slaves, sensing sothing amiss, began to cry out. "No, you have to protect us!"
"Exactly! We can’t possibly get out of here like this!"
"Hurry, or those people will be back soon!"
"What are you afraid of?" Lance retorted irritably. "There are no heretics here. Just follow this direction, and you’ll be able to get out and return to the city."
But his words didn’t satisfy them; instead, they kept urging him.
"You’ve already saved us! How can you leave us here?"
"That’s right! Monsters will appear here! They’ll kill !"
The clamor continued.
Lance couldn’t help but laugh internally when he heard these people trying to guilt-trip him.
They were obsequious to the heretics, not daring to resist in the slightest, yet they had so many demands for him and the others who had rescued them.
Such an attitude... wasn’t it laughable?
Looking at them like this, Lance waved his hand, his gaze turning sowhat grim.
"Boudica, go on and send them off then."
Without warning, Boudica grabbed her War Halberd and swung it at the slaves, cleaving one across the head. But she wasn’t finished. She drew back the War Halberd and struck another. The remaining five scread in horror, but they couldn’t escape Boudica’s assault. Two of the last four collapsed limply, while the other two turned to flee.
Wang Cai, who was next to Lance, imdiately charged out and pounced on one of the fleeing slaves. The other hadn’t even had ti to feel relieved it wasn’t him when a ripping sound suddenly filled the air. Before he could look back, a War Halberd pierced straight through his back, sending him tumbling to the ground.
Boudica hadn’t even lowered her arm from the throw, the War Halberd clearly hurled by her. The last two slaves were dealt with.
Should good people be bullied like this?
Fortunately, he wasn’t a good person.
Lance casually handled the corpses, but the other two—Geralt and Junia—did not see it the sa way.
This sudden turn of events happened so fast that even Geralt barely had ti to react. He instinctively drew his Longsword and took a few steps back, creating distance.
Junia was about to speak, but before she could utter a word, it was all over. She stood stunned and motionless.
"These people aren’t part of the new refugees," Lance said, unconcerned by their unspoken accusations. He questioned them instead, "They helped the heretics slaughter and dismber people, and even ate human flesh with them. Do you think these people can return to a normal life?
"No. Although they were humiliated by the heretics, these experiences are now deeply imprinted in their minds. Once they return to human settlents, they will look down on ordinary people. They will relentlessly pursue Flesh, wanting to achieve Ascension. They would beco heretics lurking among us.
"So, from the mont they consud human flesh, there was no turning back for them."
Firstly, it had to be clear: he attacked this camp to save people, and the purpose of saving them was to find clues. Once the clues were obtained, these people beca irrelevant. His values were always straightforward. No matter the reason, once they chose to yield to the Sect of Ascension and turn their blades on humankind, he would not let these servants of the heretics leave here alive.
Geralt and Junia fell silent again. The day’s events had overwheld their thoughts.
"That’s right, these people can’t be sent back." Junia conceded that Lance’s approach was correct. Cannibalism was sothing most people could never accept, and as a Cleric of the Church, she loathed such individuals even more.
"The Lord has been confronting these heretics for so long. He must know more than we do. Should we search this camp now?" Geralt said, trying to diate and change the subject.
He definitely didn’t want a conflict with Lance, especially since he hadn’t been paid yet.
"There’s no need to search anymore. The truly important items have probably been taken already. What’s left isn’t likely to be valuable. We’ll set it all on fire later. I’m going to check out the place they ntioned. Are you two coming with , or would you prefer to stay here and wait? You can also head back first if you like."
If the Old Ancestor had set up traps waiting for him, it ant there wasn’t much of great value there.
Yet Lance’s decision put Geralt on high alert. With his years of experience in the dangerous world, his first reaction was to wonder if the Lord was looking for an opportunity to kill him and renege on their deal.
There was no helping it. Although the heretics were detestable, Lance’s behavior was even stranger, as if he were hiding many things. This left Geralt in a very passive position, unable to grasp the man’s intentions.
Compared to following them deeper, it seed better to check the camp for any loot and head back early if he found nothing.
Surely, Lance wouldn’t dare to renege on the paynt once they were back in Hamlet, would he?
"I..."
But just as he was about to make a statent, Junia spoke out first.
"I’ll go with you to see what exactly these heretics are up to."
This confused Geralt. By all logic, shouldn’t she be on his side?
If both of them stayed behind, at least they could watch out for each other. But if she followed Lance...
Her awareness of the dangers of the road was lacking. For a mont, Geralt faced a dilemma.
He definitely trusted Junia more than Lance. After all, she had fought alongside him all this ti.
But it was for that very reason he couldn’t just watch Junia walk into danger.
Should he leave, or...?
"I’ll co along too. It’s not a good idea to split up in a place like this." In the end, Geralt chose to go with them, partly to look out for Junia.
Lance was unaware of Geralt’s thoughts, but he did sense sothing was off. He didn’t care, however, and simply raised his torch as he walked, setting the tents on fire.
The flas spread quickly, greedily consuming everything around. By the ti they walked out and looked back, all they could see was a raging inferno engulfing the entire camp.
Finally, behind the camp, Lance found an old structure bearing ancient markings.
A tall, arched, round entrance constructed of brick and stone stood there. Most of it was buried in the earth, with only a small part visible above ground.
Above it was a sturdy gate made of black iron. Its thick bars, each as thick as a forearm, were embedded directly into the surrounding walls, sealing the entrance.
It seed engulfed by the deepest darkness. Lance slid the torch through a gap, but its light failed to penetrate the gloom. No one knew how deep it truly was.
"What is this place?" Junia asked. She had been ready for a fight but found only this structure.
"There’s a strong stench, like rotting corpses and feces..." Geralt flared his nostrils, trying to analyze the air wafting from the passage.
Lance, however, directly revealed the answer.
"This used to be part of the city’s sewer system. But when that vast city was destroyed, all traces of humanity vanished with it. Nowadays, who knows what occupies this place."
Lance looked at the dried-up channels at his feet. Perhaps this place once carried the sewage of hundreds of thousands of people, but now only weeds remained.
"City?" Geralt gazed northward, a realization dawning on him. "Could it be the Hamlet that was destroyed long ago?"
In the northeast of the Empire, only a few places could be called cities. Clearly, this location was far from those bustling areas. And with the ntion of "destroyed," it could only be one place.
In truth, like Tamara and Amanda, Geralt and Junia were not ignorant of the Hamlet that had once existed in the northern Empire. However, they had never connected it to this place.
The locations didn’t match. The present-day Hamlet was situated a considerable distance south of its original site, and its buildings were different.
Furthermore, "Hamlet" ans "ho." This na was quite common because ordinary people had a limited vocabulary and thus used such familiar terms frequently.
"You guessed right. I am the last Lord of Hamlet, Earl Lance." Lance’s expression turned somber. He placed his hand on the cold wall of the passage and slowly began to explain...
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