Back in Golden Peacock Inn, Captain Rhys finished his meal and drink and intended to book himself a room.
However, all the available rooms in Golden Peacock Inn had been occupied. Vaan and the two Delarosa sisters had taken the last two rooms.
“The rooms are booked out, huh? I should have figured. No place is better than Golden Peacock Inn when it comes to food, drinks, and even security,” Captain Rhys rubbed his forehead wryly.
“I apologize for the inconvenience, Esteemed Customer,” Lady Solana curtsied with a forced smile.
“Thank you for your understanding, Esteemed Customer,” Lady Solana said.
Shortly after Captain Rhys bid farewell, he returned to his young warriors’ table.
“Why did you return, Captain? Did you change your mind and decide to join us for more drinks?” Caelan asked.
“I’ll just grab one drink, but that’s not the main reason,” Captain Rhys shook his head and said, “The rooms are booked out here, so we will have to find another place to stay the night.”
“Ah, bummers. I knew we should have settled our accommodation first,” another young warrior said.
“With what money? The money we just earned by selling the beast carcasses at the butcher stores?” Caelan retorted before adding, “We wouldn’t have luck booking a room for everyone anyway.”
“True that. I guess it can’t be helped. Let us continue to drink. The last one to hold it is the winner,” another younger said while raising her mug of mead.
Nevertheless, after Captain Rhys finished his second mug of mead, he retired to another inn.
On the other hand, the young warriors continued to compete in their drinking game. As they downed one mug after another, they subconsciously shook their feet to hold their bladder.
In the end, Caelan was the first to be defeated.
“I’m out. I can’t hold it anymore. I’ma piss and retire for the night. Laters, boys.”
After throwing out those words, Caelan immediately rushed to the restroom to relieve himself. He enjoyed a brief period of bliss before washing his hands and finding the next nearest inn to stay the night.
Little did Caelan know, another person was hidden in the room with him.
As soon as Caelan crashed into bed and closed his eyes, the black-clothed figure exited his stealth and snuck upon him with a dagger while pressing his head down into the pillow and preventing him from shouting.
However, not only could Caelan not shout, he couldn’t breathe either.
“If you don’t want to die, you will answer my questions. Comply, and you will live. However, if you shout, you will. If you run, you will die. And if you resist, you will also die. Is that understood?” the black-clothed figure stated.
Caelan immediately stopped struggling and nodded his head compliantly
Shortly after, the black-clothed figure released his pressure on Caelan’s head, allowing him to lift his head from the pillow and gasp for air.
“If you turn around, you will also die,” the black-clothed figure added.
Caelan’s body immediately froze with his hands raised in surrender. Fear gripped his heart at the possibility of dying at any moment.
“What do you want to know? I will tell you everything you want to know. Please spare my life. I will even cooperate if you want to kill someone,” Caelan pleaded with a desperate look.
“Oh? You’ll cooperate with us to kill? Even if our targets are young witches?” the black-clothed figure asked intriguingly.
“Yes! My life is more important than theirs,” Caelan declared.
“Interesting,” the black-clothed figure rubbed his chin thoughtfully without dropping his guard before he asked, “Then tell me, where is your escort group headed with the two witches? What is your schedule?”
“Lady Linette and Lillias are headed for capital to seek a Healing-type High Witch,” Caelan answered.
“However, we won’t be taking Golbin’s Road to the next city like most people. Instead, we are taking the Hobgoblin’s Road at midday tomorrow.”
“Oh? Why Hobgoblin’s Road? I heard you were taking Goblin’s Road at midday with a small merchant group, though? Are you trying to fool me? Do you want to die?” the black-clothed figure threatened.
Caelan’s body trembled with fear.
“Not at all, Sir Assassin!” Caelan quickly denied the accusation.
“It was something I overheard when the witches were talking with Vaan. They are aware that assassins are targeting them. As such, they decided to take the more dangerous path to Redpine City despite telling the small merchant group otherwise.”
“This was to throw Sir Assassin off track. Should you secretly interrogate the merchant, you would have obtained the wrong information and been misled into setting up a vain ambush in Goblin’s Road, which is also ideal for ambushes.”
“However, on Hobgoblin’s Road, it’s a highland path with little obstacles, which isn’t ideal for ambushes. This is why they decided to take Hobgoblin’s Road despite its increased level of danger.”
Caelan spilled everything he knew.
“Interesting. Although it’s a well-thought-out plan, how do I know that you are not lying to me?” the black-clothed figure pressed further.
Despite being half-convinced, he didn’t want to be careless.
“That is because I don’t dare to gamble with my life in front of a commissioned assassin, Sir,” Caelan stated.
“Furthermore, I have some grievances with the witches. Some of my brothers had indirectly or directly died due to Lady Linette.”
“So if you have any method to kill the witches without getting caught, I am willing to cooperate with you and make your job easier, Sir,” Caelan declared.
“Kekeke, now this is very interesting,” the black-clothed assassin chuckled eerily before saying, “But why do I feel like you are willing to cooperate because of another reason besides your fear for your life and revenge?”
“This… This is because…” Caelan stuttered.
It was not easy to hide his greedy intentions from a skilled assassin.