Several shadows sneaked into Cerys’s family tent. Upon closer inspection, they were three men dressed in black, their identities concealed.
They took out handkerchiefs laced with a sedative and knocked out the sleeping Henry couple and Harry before approaching Cerys’s bed.
The tent was too dark to see clearly. One of the men accidentally bumped into a chair beside Cerys’s bed, making a loud noise in the silence.
Cerys, in her sleep, seemed to hear something and slowly opened her drowsy eyes. She saw three large shadows with terrifying eyes staring at her.
Cerys sat up abruptly, terrified. “You… mm! mm! mm!”
Before she could scream, one of the men covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief. Cerys struggled desperately but soon lost consciousness.
The three men carried the unconscious Cerys on their shoulders, left a note on her bed, and quietly slipped out of White Miao Village.
“That was close! How could you be so careless and almost wake her up?” the leader scolded the man who had bumped into the chair.
“Sorry! I was almost scared to death. Luckily, it’s fine now. Let’s quickly take her back to Chieftain.”
The three men heaved a sigh of relief and immediately left White Miao Village with the unconscious Cerys.
At dawn, Quentin was awakened by the surrounding laughter and noise. He opened his eyes groggily to see that the village’s young men and women were already up.
The young men gathered together, tightly wrapping Jade Belts around their waists. Their clothes were neat, and they held machetes, looking spirited.
The young women had gotten up in the middle of the night to bathe and change by the spring. They then hid in the forest to dress up meticulously, their giggles echoing through the woods.
After washing up, Quentin and Eileen walked out of their tent, heading towards Cerys’s family tent.
“Why aren’t they up yet? Where is Cerys?” Quentin wondered as they entered the tent and found everyone still asleep except for Cerys.
He faintly smelled a peculiar medicinal scent.
“Uncle, Auntie, Harry, wake up,” Quentin and Eileen called them. The three woke up, stretching lazily, indicating they had slept well.
“Quentin, Eileen, why are you up so early?” Henry asked.
“Uncle, everyone else is awake. We were woken by the noise.”
“Where is Cerys? Why isn’t she here?” Quentin asked.
“Cerys?” The family looked towards Cerys’s bed and realized she wasn’t there. “She usually gets up early; she might have gone outside,” Henry guessed.
“Really? What’s that?” Quentin noticed a note on Cerys’s bedside table.
Quentin picked up the note and read it: “Quentin, I went down the mountain today.”
“I’ll be waiting for you at Breim Inn in Black Miao Village. Come alone.”
Quentin felt puzzled and showed the note to everyone, feeling increasingly uneasy.
“How strange. Why did she go down the mountain alone to Breim Inn?” Henry wondered.
“Could something have happened to her?” Aimee worried.
“This doesn’t seem like something she would do; it might be a trap,” Harry said.
“Whether it’s true or not, Cerys is indeed missing. Since she wants me to go alone, I’ll go check it out.”
“Uncle, Auntie, did you notice anyone coming in last night?” Quentin asked.
“No, we only saw you and Eileen when we woke up,” Henry’s family replied.
“That’s strange. Eileen and I will go down the mountain to find her. You should return to White Miao Village today,” Quentin said.
“Quentin, please bring Cerys back safely and be careful!” Aimee urged.
“Uncle, Auntie, we’ll find Cerys. Don’t worry,” Quentin assured them before he and Eileen quickly set off down the mountain.
They hurried down the mountain at great speed. Quentin felt something was wrong and needed to investigate further.
The Flower Mountain Festival had ended, and various Miao Villages were packing up to return home.
Groups of people who attended the festival started descending the mountain, discussing Quentin’s victory from the previous day.
Some girls frequently looked back, hoping to catch a glimpse of him in the crowd.
The Miao Villages descended in batches, but their leaders were nowhere to be seen.
In the top-floor hall of Breim Inn,
Wesley sat in the center, surrounded by leaders from various Miao Villages.
Wesley’s expression was icy and filled with anger. He had summoned the leaders for a meeting last night, so they had come down early.
Everyone was puzzled about Wesley’s sudden meeting.
“Chieftains, I called you here today to discuss something,” Wesley said coldly.
“Please speak,” they responded.
“Recently, a Miao Village secretly brought outsiders into Miao Territory without informing everyone. I hope they will confess voluntarily!” Wesley demanded angrily.
Everyone was shocked and looked at each other in confusion. Bringing outsiders back without informing others was a grave offense punishable by death!
Patriarch Rodney broke into a cold sweat while Wizard Eric remained calm. Neither admitted to it; confessing meant certain death. They decided to wait and see.
Wesley expected no one would confess and said coldly, “Since no one will admit it, Elder Ahmed, please speak.”
Elder Ahmed stood up slowly. Everyone was surprised; did Elder Ahmed bring outsiders back?
Patriarch Rodney and Wizard Eric were also shocked; did Elder Ahmed inform Wesley about the outsiders?
Elder Ahmed smirked and pointed at Rodney and Eric Shepard:
“Yes, it was Patriarch Rodney and Wizard Eric who harbored outsiders!”