Chapter 653: Uninvited Guest
Damn it!
Although Yokoe didn't know what was happening outside, it definitely wasn't good.
Wasn't it said that the "Black Money" was an exhibition organized by the most powerful merchants in the local area, and that everything was the same as a regular exhibition except that the auction items were not entirely legal? He cursed Otto ten thousand times in his heart. First, the auction price was miscalculated, and now someone was coming to his door. If he had known this, he would never have agreed.
Yokoe looked around, trying to find something to defend himself, but the only things in the room were tools for torturing slaves, and none of them could be used as weapons.
Just then, the door to the inner room was pushed open, and a figure flashed in.
Yokoe knelt down without hesitation. "Spare me! I'll give you anything you want..."
But the person didn't stop at all, leaping towards him.
He's done for. He subconsciously covered his head and fell to the side, hoping to avoid the attack.
"No, Aimi!"
Amy shouted at the same time.
With the witch's voice, the cold wind that had already swept across his cheek suddenly stopped. Yokoe turned his head and saw that it was a wooden stick, which looked like it had been broken off a chair.
If he had been hit by that, it would have been a light thing if he hadn't immediately lost consciousness.
Then a large hand grabbed his arm, lifted him up, and pressed him face down on the bed.
"Did he do anything to you?" The voice sounded a little hoarse, making it difficult to tell whether it was male or female.
"He said...he came to rescue me from here."
"You've been deceived again, Amy," the person shook their head, twisting Yokoe's hands behind his back and tying them securely. "Spending four thousand gold dragons to save a strange witch? That's not a small amount of money. Even your father would need a lifetime of accumulation to gather that many gold dragons."
"Eh...is, is that so?"
Knowing the auction price so clearly, was this person really the guy who bid against him? But at the time, the only bright spot in the cave was the exhibition stand; the rest of the area was dim. How did this guy recognize him and follow him to Room 76?
Yokoe knew that the moment of life and death had arrived. This time, his persuasion was no longer for his old friend or that damned Otto, but to save himself.
"I didn't lie to her! I'm the Graycastle ambassador, and rescuing witches is the king's order!"
"Graycastle...ambassador?"
Feeling the hand pressing on his back tremble slightly, Yokoe knew this method would work.
"That's right, you've heard of Roland Wimbledon, haven't you? The fourth son of Wimbledon III, the King of Graycastle, is especially friendly to witches! He firmly believes that witches are no different from ordinary people, and even fought against the Church to allow witches to live freely in his territory! All of this is true, I swear!"
The person might not know who Roland was, but the news that the Church fought Graycastle at Coldwind Ridge and suffered a crushing defeat was well known throughout Glow City. He even knew that this news was spread by Hill. Fox and his men. The Church has always been the witch's number one enemy, and those who can defeat the Church, for whatever reason, are likely to win the witch's goodwill and respect.
Sure enough, the strength of the hand on his back suddenly loosened a lot, and then he was turned over and pulled up from the bed—at this time, Yokoe could see clearly what the person who attacked him looked like.
The person called Annie...was probably a woman, and even with a robe to cover her, her body was surprisingly burly, and her appearance was extremely heroic—two sword-like eyebrows were slightly upturned, her eyes were narrow and piercing, and her hair was pulled back and tied into a half-sky ponytail, revealing her smooth forehead. If her voice were a little lower, he would have believed she was a man, but her appearance made people a little jealous.
"In that case, why didn't you unlock Amy's shackles?"
This question again...Yokoe had to repeat his previous statement. "I was also thinking about her safety. If she didn't believe me and ran away, it would be even more dangerous."
"Where do you plan to take her?" Annie was obviously not as easily fooled as Amy. She was noncommittal about Yokoe's statement. "Send her to that Graycastle king?"
"Of course—not," he said halfway and quickly changed his mind, "My old friend doesn't treat witches as slaves. Many witches live in his territory, just like normal people, and they have also formed organizations to specifically protect the rights and interests of their kind—"
"Enough!" Annie interrupted sharply.
Yokoe shut his mouth abruptly. He had learned about these things when chatting with Hill. He had heard that when a plague broke out in the royal capital, His Majesty relied on the power of the Witch Union to curb the plague released by the Church. This was obviously a good thing, but he didn't know why the other party's face had become so ugly.
"It sounds just like the Bloodfang Society," Annie said coldly, "They used to promote themselves that way too."
"Blood...what?" Yokoe was stunned, feeling a sense of foreboding in his heart.
"Witches can only trust themselves, not the promises of nobles," she glanced around the room and quickly found the key hanging on the wall.
"Wait, you want to take her away? This is underground, and you saw when you came in that there are guards everywhere outside the cave. How are you going to get out?"
"I have my own way, you don't need to worry about it." Annie opened the shackles, put Amy down, then grabbed Yokoe and locked one of his feet to the ankle ring.
"Are you really not going to consider it?" Seeing that the other party didn't seem to want to kill him, Yokoe became bolder. He obediently let Annie do what she wanted, making a final attempt. "It's more appropriate for me to take her out. I'll hand her over to you after we leave the courtyard. This way, it won't easily arouse suspicion, and it won't leave any loose ends."
"It does sound good, but it's also possible that I'll be greeted by swords and divine stones after I go out," Annie said unmoved, "I made a big mistake because of trusting someone once, and there won't be a second time."
After securing Yokoe, she dragged Number 76 in as well, tying her hands behind her back and locking one of her feet.
"You didn't kill her?"
There were patches of blood on Number 76's head, and she was obviously badly beaten. She was still unconscious, but judging from the slight rise and fall of her chest, she was still alive.
"It's not too late to deal with her after rescuing Amy, and it's the same for you," Annie's words made Yokoe tremble, "But I won't kill you now because the King of Graycastle defeated the Church. Maybe we all owe him a thank you, but that doesn't mean I'll unconditionally trust him."
"I will pass these words on to His Majesty. Also, if you encounter any difficulties, you can come to the embassy to ask me for help." Of course, it would be best if they didn't come, and we could all save a lot of effort, Yokoe thought. This was also good. Anyway, he had tried his best, and they couldn't be forced to go to Graycastle even if they didn't want to. Even his old friend couldn't blame him.
Annie stared at him for a long time, then picked up Amy and strode out of the room.