The great battle was counting down to the last two hours.
In the Mountland forest, Dylan Harding appeared and stood under a tree.
Then, one by one, people came and upon arrival, they all bowed and said: “Master Dylan.”
“So it’s you guys,” Dylan Harding looked at these familiar faces.
Some were from Mountland, some were from other cities, but all of them radiated powerful auras. Even those who usually kept a low profile and hid their abilities were now baring their fangs.
These were the hidden cards of the Harding family.
Even Dylan Harding himself did not know of their existence before this.
And this time, these people would become Dylan Harding’s best helpers to ‘atone for his crimes.’
“My friends, are you loyal to the Harding family?”
Dylan Harding asked with his hands behind his back.
“Young master, we subordinates are willing to fight and die for the Harding family without hesitation,” they all replied.
Thinking Dylan Harding was testing their loyalty, they also knew the mission this time was to sabotage Mountland’s defenses from within, even killing some generals on the city walls.
They were capable of accomplishing these tasks.
After all, some of them had been planted in Mountland by the Harding family for many years. If not for a battle of this scale, even Dylan Harding would not have known of their existence.
Once mobilized, they could turn Mountland upside down from within.
This was one of the reasons why the South Land army claimed they could conquer Mountland in half a day – in addition to their own strength, they also had allies. The Harding family had been making preparations for many years.
So they all expressed their loyalty, willing to fight and die for the Harding family.
However, what they did not expect was that Dylan Harding casually said: “Is that so? Then the family’s latest mission is to assassinate the South Land army commander, Walton Myers.”
“What?!”
They were shocked.
Assassinate Walton Myers?
How could they assassinate the enemy’s commander-in-chief? Walton Myers had the forty five thousand South Land troops protecting him. Although their own skills were strong, they were insignificant compared to that.
Assassinating Walton Myers was suicidal.
“Master Dylan, you… you must be joking. Walton Myers can’t be that easy to kill. He is the commander of the South Land army. Besides, isn’t the Harding family allied with South Land?”
A fat man stammered.
“Do you think I’m joking?”
Dylan Harding raised his eyebrows, “There are no eternal friends in this world, only eternal interests. South Land has backstabbed us. The alliance between the Harding family and the South Land army is over. What we should do now is help Kisia win. Kill Walton Myers. Understand?”
“Is… is that so?”
They were at a loss.
After all, they were subordinates and Dylan Harding was the heir.
Just as some of them began to believe his words, a pointy-eared, monkey-cheeked man stepped forward. Dylan Harding recognized him – one of Master Lewis’ men who held an important position under him.
He did not expect this man to be a Harding family plant, embedded so long ago yet never activated until now. No wonder even Master Lewis did not find out about him.
Without activation, he was just one of Master Lewis’ men, above suspicion. But at the Harding family’s summons, he would reveal his true colors.
A Harding family chess piece.
“Dylan Harding, the orders the family gave you were to sabotage Mountland’s defenses, not make up new orders to assassinate Walton Myers,” the pointy-eared man said sternly, killing intent flashing in his eyes as he looked at Dylan Harding. “I was arranged by the Four Elders as deputy commander of this plan. If the main commander has problems, I can take over. Dylan Harding, I suspect you of betraying the family now.”
“Ah,” Dylan Harding sighed. “As I expected, the family really was guarding against me. Never mind, if I really let you all leave, my identity would be thoroughly exposed.”
“You!”
Everyone was shocked to hear this admission of betrayal, but then they heard his next words. The pointy-eared man immediately ordered: “It’s a trap! Everyone catch Dylan Harding!”
If this was really an ambush, then apprehending Dylan Harding was one way for them to escape.
It was also the most reliable method.
In an instant, they all rushed at Dylan Harding, intent on killing him. As long as Dylan Harding died, they would be saved.
But Dylan Harding did not move an inch from his spot, just watching them mockingly: “Do you know why I asked to meet you all in this forest? Not because it was secretive, but because… this is Westland’s territory.”
“Westland’s territory… Ah!”
Someone had just realized this when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his foot.
Looking down, he found a snake had bitten him without knowing when.
When the others tried to help him, they soon discovered countless venomous bugs and beasts hiding beneath the seeming layer of leaves on the ground.
“Ah… snakes…”
“Damn… centipedes…”
“Save me…”
One scream after another rang out.
“Forget them, catch Dylan Harding!”
The pointy-eared man said. They still had over a dozen people left, more than enough to grab Dylan Harding.
“Go!”
They charged at Dylan Harding again.
“Foolish,” Dylan Harding spat out.
He was standing there not because he was confident, but because he was the bait to lure these people in. Allie might not have been able to stop them from escaping otherwise, since they were the Harding family’s hidden cards.
Also, once they got out of this forest, the danger from these poisonous bugs would not be as great.
But these people insisted on coming to catch him.
That gave Allie a chance to act.
Tinkling bells rang out, accompanied by rustling sounds from the ground all around, and then bugs emerged from the earth one after another. Everyone looked down at the bugs on the ground instead of noticing the mosquitoes gathering in the sky.
It was normal to have mosquitoes in a forest.
But Allie’s mosquitoes were not normal.
“What are these bugs… can’t kill them…”
“Damn… toxic centipedes…”
In the end, except for the pointy-eared man, everyone else had fallen on that short stretch of road. And the moment he saw Dylan Harding’s face, the pointy-eared man’s eyes seemed to blaze.
He was about to catch him.
About to catch him.
He was saved. Once he got out, he would report this man’s actions to the Harding family and surely receive abundant rewards.
However, when his hand was just an inch away from Dylan Harding, he found himself unable to move. His whole body was paralyzed and he fell to the ground unwillingly, mumbling: “Why, I clearly avoided all the bugs on the ground…”