Erick the leader of this smuggler's unit spent the next twenty minutes explaining the terrain and route the target uses and where we are going to attack.
"Since nobody has any questions about this part of the plan let's get to the tricky parts now, the enemy team can have seventeen to twenty-two enemies. This difference may seem big, but the numerical margin is likely filled by mostly black-core warriors and maybe a few gray-core ones, so the pack on the difficulty of eliminating the group is not great."
"Why would they bring more low-level warriors?"
"Because of the merchandise, depending on their struggle, it's nice to have a few more walls to take care of the merchant. Although a smuggler has experience in many areas the evil that afflicts the mentality of people who have reached a high-level core is present in them."
Gloria couldn't keep still, her curiosity won out on her."
"What is this evil?"
"That they are above mundane jobs like feeding, cleaning and caring for slaves. They would rather bring in a group of low-level, expendable warriors to tend the slaves than get their own hands dirty."
"Okay, we understand. But I would like to hear more about the main group of smugglers."
"The main group is made up of gray-core warriors and two gray-core and one green-core mages. To several mages in the group because for certain reasons for this, an earth element mage to protect in case something goes wrong in the tunnel and a water element for convenience and defense of the group, the last and strongest mage and leader of the group is a mage of the fire element focused on destructive spells."
"Aiming at the mage leader we have two assassins a shadow element warrior who will ambush him if he survives the deadly shot of our main wind element archer, I fear a very special arrow prepared for him. The other mages can be annoying, but your power isn't that high to save their team, especially if they're under the archer's attack and having to protect themselves from a killer in the shadows."
"Any questions left about how we are going to kill the mage?"
I glanced at my companions only to see that no one seems to have a problem leaving this problem in the hands of criminals, and it's really tricky to assassinate a green-core fire elemental mage who has a tendency to explode when cornered. The shadow element warriors who have to assassinate the mage are really very brave to approach a walking bomb, I hope he survives because if he dies at the mage's hand it will be a very painful death.
"So, let's go to the warriors, I believe most of them will have a gray core in the final stages, the green core warrior of this smuggler group is on the other side of the border protecting their main base which is in a town near the border. Another unit ready to deal with them when they realize the tunnel is no longer under their control so you don't have to worry about it."
"The problem we are going to have been that the main warriors of this group will be facing that will be protecting the convoy, most of them are not only in the gray core but they are in the final stages and have some element. It is already expected that it will be difficult to kill them, but with the element of surprise we can have a good head start, but you shouldn't underestimate these warriors most of them have experience fighting in this type of situation for over a decade or two so don't expect them to panic like newbies when they are ambushed."
These experience comments may have been necessary to alert our group that the fight will be difficult, but it also had a negative effect on two fighters who hate taking hints about their lack of experience. Even without looking back I can feel that Gloria and Hilda's faces must not be kind and friendly smiles after the comment about inexperienced rookies.
"I think the best strategy is to focus our surprise attack on the closest and strongest warriors, the more we kill at the beginning of combat the easier it will be to eliminate their group. What do you think? "
"You're right that every strong warrior we kill during the ambush makes our job easier, but I want to know if the first move will be ours or the archers against the mage?"
"The archer, the priority is to kill the mage so a hidden arrow will be the first attack and the signal for the others to attack."
"And how are your group's strengths?"
"We have twelve people on our side adding up to their group, our numbers are pretty close to theirs."
"But how many of those twelve people have black cores?"
"Not one. Among the two attacks we are going to make against this group, this is the most important one, my suspicious new friend. Eliminating this team in a clean and critical way, if some of them flee into the tunnel could be a huge disaster."
"Can the tunnel have runes ready to collapse it?"
"Yes, in this kind of business it's always good to have security measures and revenge measures. Our target may have a few people on his side, but they aren't idiots unless some of our targets escape the chance of him destroying the tunnel and screwing up our plan is too big."
"I see, but considering I you have a good archer and it's very unlikely that anyone will run away."
"I wouldn't have that much confidence in him, the arrow prepared for him is not common and it drains a lot of aura and elemental energy from its user. We chose this drastic measure because the destructive power of a fire elemental mage focused on destructive spells is a target that demands our focus."
"I would love to see that arrow. Would it be possible?"
"Sorry, but the answer is no. She is a trade secret."
"I see, so there's only one problem left for me to lift. How sure are you that this ambush is still viable? Are you sure they don't know they're in your sights?"
Erick's smiling face trembles slightly, I think I poked him in an open wound.
"Don't worry about it, we're sure they don't know about our ambush."
"I think now we just have to discuss what comes after the success of our ambush. What was the roadmap prepared for us to use in our report?"
"We have a fake base that has signs that a tunnel has collapsed under it, this fake base is far from here, but it is planted in a location that will make sure that any investigator who decides to investigate your report will find all the clues necessary to believe it. that that wreckage was a base for a group of smugglers."
"The part about combat is going to be simpler, not a big fake battleground for you guys to use. In your report it will be simple and true, you ambushed them and killed the group, but you hear an explosion destroy a good part of the contraband, a simple scenario."
"Your examiners are not going to make a storm in a teapot as if they doubt your report, they will simply assume that you are profiting from smuggling which is natural and unimportant to them."
"Very detailed, but still has a good chance of giving us shit."
"Is there anything we can do to make you feel better? Safer?"
"We're going to need some proof that we killed the number of smugglers that are in the report. Even if the merchandise was 'destroyed', the smugglers' bodies must not have been much affected by the explosion, especially if we killed a good number of them and the explosion was made by the last or last survivor of the smugglers."
"I see, but should the smugglers' body be buried in a location near or in the false base?"
"Close, but it would be nice to have a corpse or two in the ruins. Allocate needs to be responsible for destroying the base."
"I see, after we kill our target, we're going to use their bodies to improve your narrative."
"So, there's nothing else to talk about, is there?"
"I also believe we ended up here."
"Where can my group pop in?"
"Just follow me, in twelve hours we'll set the ambush and finish off that group quickly."
As we followed them through the tunnels of their base, I noticed we didn't even pass a full room. They really don't want us to get even information about their base that should no longer exist.
We stayed in a large room with a low ceiling. But before my group fake something I gave the room a good analysis, but apart from the simple arrangements used to strengthen the structure and hide it there was nothing else hidden in the walls.
"What do you think of their plan?"
"It's a good plan, but I don't feel comfortable working with them. It seems to me that they don't care as much as they should about our safety after the ambush."
"They must be counting on the bribe they're going to use later on the officials in this region to cover them for any possible trouble, Gloria. The problem is that our examiners cannot be bribed by smugglers of their level."
"Not much we can do about it, Alice. But our best attitude now is to rest so that we are in our best condition to fight at dawn."
"Are we just going to sleep here?"
"No, let's reverse a guard. Although I don't believe they will get in trouble with us and better be vigilant in case there are any idiots among the smugglers at this base."