Chương 11: Igor's Capture

The night was young, and leaves rustled as the breeze blew. In its full brightness, the moon hanged up the sky with the stars, casting a soft glow on the craggy mountain cliff where Igor's fortress sat. Aided by the moonlight alone, several tens of warriors of the Solus tribe gathered at the foot of the cliff.

Rock, the strongest of his brothers, swung a grappling hook and hurled it up as far as he could. Clink! The hook got caught in the rocks, and with a good tug, Rock confirmed it's secure. He appointed Ray, one of the lightest and skinniest of his brothers, to climb up with the assistance of the rope.

Ray tugged on the rope, and to his waist tied another rope with a hook and a set of pulleys dangling by the side. The brothers could only watch in anticipation as he makes his way up in the rocks. Shortly, he found himself on a rocky protrusion, big enough for him and a few of his brothers to stand on.

There he found the hook, stuck in the rocks. He picked it up and gathered the rest of the rope so he could reuse them. Looking up, he saw a few trees hanging by the cliffside, anchored to the rocks with their thick, thick roots. He tossed the hook up a tree where it got caught, and after a good tug on the rope, the man resumed his climb.

The moon by his side never looked so bright and big. It generously shined its frosty light on him and the rocks at his feet, guiding him. His brothers unaware, could only watch his silhouette as he ascends the cliff higher and higher and eventually making it up to the top.

Ray found a few sturdy trees where he stood. He chose the biggest one and fastened the rope and the pulley system. Done, he tossed the rope off cliff in the direction where his brothers stood. At first try, he spent much effort to pull one of his brothers up, but as he gained a helper, the situation improved.

Late at night, all the brothers made it to the top. Igor and his men were slumbering peacefully in their beds, totally unaware of their presence. In the vicinity of the chief's manor, not a soul stood guard at night for none of them would have guessed their enemies' arrival unannounced.

Shhh! Rock gestured to the brothers to keep quiet. When he gently pushed on the door, it opened. So lax was the security that Igor's men never barred the door at night. This belief will soon change as the men occupied the manor.

Inside, they searched every room and rounded up those who were there. Igor was found sleeping at the heart of the manor, the chief's room.

SLAP! "Whoo, what! WHO DARES!" Igor jumped, slamming the back of his head at the headboard. Still groggy, his vision was ablur. He didn't have a clue what happened.

"Wake up Igor, it's me, Rock!" a smiling Rock found himself in Igor's sight.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" Igor cried, clutching the bedsheet. His face so pale as if he had seen a ghost.

"BROTHERS! ARREST THIS MAN!" two men grabbed Igor by the side. They tied his hand and mouth with the torn sheets and dragged the man outside, along with the rest of the occupants of the manor, parading them.

BAM! At the back of the procession, one of the warriors fell to the ground. Footsteps resounded inside the manor. "BROTHERS! ONE OF THEM ESCAPED!" the fallen brother screamed.

Suddenly, fire broke out of the manor. With wooden construction, it didn't take a while for the fire to grow stronger. The fire burnt so viciously that it consumed everything at its wake. CRASH! Something broke down inside the manor, leading to its collapse in mere minutes.

Still feeling the heat in his face, Rock turned to Igor, grabbing him by the collar. "How did it burn down like that? What things do you keep at home?"

"NOTHING! I DON'T HAVE NOTHING DANGEROUS, UNLESS IT WAS MR. CRIM…" Igor's eyes popped out and in seconds they turned black. Then, his mouth started to bubble, and his arms and legs lost strength. As it got heavier in his hand, Rock let go of the collar. Igor fell.

"He's dead. I promised Julius to bring him alive, but you saw what happened. Right brothers?" Rock turned to his fellows.

"Right! It isn't your fault." Ray nodded, and everyone agreed with him.

In the morning, the gates opened. Julius, Linus, and the rest of the brothers were allowed in.

With minimal casualties, all the mountain bandits were subjugated, unable to fight back. Without a leader, they lost their will completely. The infamous holy mountain was captured in just a night.

Ding! [Achievement unlocked! You are hereby granted the skill <Agriculture Lv.1>.]

[Agriculture Lv.1]

[Type: Passive]

[Agriculture Lv.1 grants the user knowledge of the three-field system, irrigation, and fertilization.]

Rock ran to Linus and gave him great hug, almost asphyxiating him. "My boy. It went as you said. It was the easiest campaign ever. Who would have thought we'll end the bandit's reign in just a night!"

Linus pushed him back. "Of course. We knew he didn't have enough men to fight in the first place. Caught by something like this, he wouldn't stand a chance."

Julius interrupted them, asking "I told you to bring him back alive. Why is Igor's corpse over there?"

Rock replied, "I didn't kill him. His eyes turned black, and he suddenly died."

"Poison. Somebody used poison on him. But, what's with the manor? It's all charred." Julius further inquired.

"Ah, fire broke out last night. We didn't know how, but it suddenly happened. I never saw fire burn so fiercely." Rock answered.

"People die suddenly, and fires start unexpectedly? Who would believe that?" Julius raised his voice.

"We swear. It happened just as he told you." Ray addressed Julius. The rest of the brothers nodded in agreement.

Julius sighed, turning to Linus he said "The manor burned down along with the treasures. Although we won, we get nothing but this fort as a reward.

"You're wrong Pops. Although Igor died and the manor burned down, he did leave us with a treasure, and more than we expected." Linus replied.

"What do you mean?" Julius asked.

Linus picked up a rock and handed it to Julius. "These rocks are rich in silver and possibly even gold."

"Those legendary metals? Here in these rocks?" His hand trembled holding the ore.

"Yes. There might be more ores of other metals available to mine in this mountain. I suggest we investigate the entire mountain to see its potential. With this, we'll need a lot of labor. Why don't we send the refugees to work here with their families?" Linus nodded.

"Hahahaha! What a find! The bandits sat on this golden mountain all the time but robbed people? Fools!" Julius laughed merrily.

After a few weeks, the mountain bustled with activity. Oxen towed carts filled with rocks to be transported back to the town of Solus. Linus deemed it inefficient and wanted to make the process simpler, so he had a group of carpenters build a foundry in the place where the manor stood.

With bronze saws, hammers, and chisels, the carpenters were able to work faster and with better quality. Their proficiency only increased with the time spent working with their new tools. Still, the new foundry was far in completion so for the meantime, the other workers busied themselves exploring the mineral deposits of the mountain.

"Young Master, I found in the cave many of these strange black rocks." a tall but skinny tanned man handed Linus the dusty rocks.

"What's your name?" Linus asked.

"Samir's the name, Young Master." replied Samir.

"You don't look like you come from here, Samir." Linus observed.

"Oh, yes. I came from far away overseas, serving a merchant. My master sold me as a servant to the coastal people. I only came free when the pirates attack, thus I made it here." Samir narrated.

"Samir, you've suffered a lot. I'll give you the benefit of living with us in the mountains. You can work in the foundry when it's completed. Thank you for bringing this treasure." Linus told Samir while inspecting the rock.

<Prospecting failed> "I don't have the right level to tell what this thing is, but I can tell it's mineral coal." Linus said to himself.

After several weeks of hard work, the carpenters finished the construction of the foundry. Immediately after its operation, its chimney spewed clouds of black and white smoke whenever people worked. Just months in operation, the foundry transformed the mountain fort into a commercial town. The metal wares produced by the foundry attracted merchants all over the Nozul Islands.

***

"Is it done, Crimson?" a heavily bearded man asked, cradling a woman on his lap.

"It is done, master. Igor is no more." Crimson replied, bowing down to the ground with a bent knee.

"Exactly. But what is this I heard about Solus? Here, look at this thing the merchants brought me." The man threw the article at Crimson. It spun in the air before it hit ground, planting itself before his foot.

"Isn't this made of bronze? The same bronze we use, master?" Crimson inquired.

"Yes, Solus has bronze. If only we could get it from them for free." the man said.

"My master, attacking Solus now is too risky. Please, leave it to me." the woman on his lap whispered with a seductive voice.

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