On the way to the Blackthorn family's estate in Willowbrook Town, Magnus Valorion instructed his subordinates that, although they were taking on the identity of "bandits" for this mission, they must not harm innocent civilians unless absolutely necessary. Their goal this time was to seek wealth, not to take lives.
Magnus and his group leisurely rode for two days before entering the jurisdiction of Willowbrook Town. After resting for another night, the group, following the guidance of their second-in-command, Luigi Vampa (Noah Sullivan), arrived at Briarwood Manor, the Blackthorn family estate, in high spirits.
Among the soldiers following Magnus, many had lost their land and property due to the Blackthorn family's exploitation. Particularly after Lucius Blackthorn, a prominent official, emerged from their ranks, the Blackthorn family's oppression of the common people became even more severe. Now, these once impoverished residents of Willowbrook Town had the chance to reclaim what was rightfully theirs, and they were all extremely excited.
As the banner of the Blood Skull Twin Swords appeared on the horizon outside Briarwood Manor at dawn, the patrolling servants saw the group of over two hundred people from a distance. This sight frightened everyone at Briarwood Manor, prompting them to quickly shut all the gates of the estate.
Edmund Blackthorn and Victor Blackthorn, the head of the estate and the chief steward of the granary, respectively, immediately climbed to the high walls of the estate to inquire about the visitors from a vantage point. "Is the one leading the group Luigi Vampa, the deputy of Sinbad? What brings you here from afar?" Noah, holding his sword and riding his horse, leisurely approached the estate walls and shouted to those above, "Fellow townsmen, open the gates! We are merchants from far away here to do business with you, and we have a big deal to discuss!"
Victor Blackthorn and Edmund Blackthorn, who were not naive, knew that Noah was not here for business. Just a while ago, Noah had extorted 15 gold bars from them, and now he was pretending to be a merchant to deceive them into opening the gates. However, Edmund did not dare to show any dissatisfaction and quickly replied with a smile, "Second-in-command, don't joke with us. What kind of merchant comes to negotiate business with swords in hand?"
Noah, displaying a tough and unreasonable demeanor, demanded, "Just tell us whether you want to do business or not and whether you'll open the gates or not." Seeing Noah's arrogant attitude, Edmund realized that these people were likely here to loot. Initially, Edmund planned to rely on the estate's high walls to negotiate with Magnus and his group. However, seeing Sinbad's well-equipped and numerous followers, and remembering the recent news of Lucius Blackthorn's sudden death from poisoning, Edmund lost the courage to resist and decided to part with some wealth to avoid disaster.
With a loud creak, the main gate of the Blackthorn family estate in Willowbrook Town slowly opened. Edmund Blackthorn and Victor Blackthorn, accompanied by several armed guards, walked out. After exchanging a few words with Noah in front of his horse, Noah rode back to Magnus. "My lord..." Noah began, but Magnus quickly corrected him, "Call me leader from now on, and make sure you don't get it wrong later!" "Yes, yes...," Noah replied, correcting himself, "Leader, the Blackthorn family is quite sensible. Not only did they open the gate to welcome us in, but they also asked how much grain we needed this time."
Magnus was quite surprised, considering Noah hadn't even said, "Fellow townsmen, we won't take a single needle or thread from you," yet they still opened the gates. The walls of their estate were nearly five meters high, enough to hold off an attack for some time, and Magnus intended to use this opportunity to train his soldiers in siege warfare. Unexpectedly, the Blackthorn family, like a paid courtesan, offered no resistance and opened the gates immediately.
What Magnus didn't know was that Edmund had thought deeply about this. Although Briarwood Manor had dozens of guards and could call on the male residents to help defend, they certainly could not withstand Magnus's well-equipped, fierce troops. Rather than suffer heavy casualties, Edmund decided to part with some wealth to avoid disaster. Moreover, with Lucius Blackthorn, their official protector, now dead, the Blackthorn family wanted to find an underground force for protection to maintain their influence in Willowbrook Town.
Magnus, unaware of Edmund's deeper motives, frowned slightly and said to Noah, "Be cautious of any deceit. Take fifty men to scout the place carefully. If anything goes wrong, I'll lead the main force in." Noah nodded and led fifty men into Briarwood Manor. Contrary to Magnus's expectations, there were no ambushes inside. Instead, the tenants of Briarwood Manor were all trembling with fear.
To establish a good "business" relationship with the Blackthorn family, Magnus didn't demand an exorbitant amount but left it to Edmund to decide what to offer. However, the hardest decisions are often those left open-ended. Edmund and Victor understood this well. They feared angering Sinbad's ruthless bandits, especially after hearing about the three hundred corpses on Shadowpeak Mountain. So, the Blackthorn family did not dare slack off and opened two granaries, offering Magnus ten thousand pounds of wheat.
One doesn't hit a smiling face, and the Blackthorn family's understanding and willingness to cooperate couldn't be faulted. If not for their connection to Magnus's enemy, Lucius Blackthorn, and their collusion with Tuco to steal his grain, Magnus might have considered befriending them due to their sensible behavior. This time, the Blackthorn family suffered significant losses; the plunder by "Sinbad" took away about a third of the wealth and grain they had accumulated over a decade.
Before leaving, Magnus handed Edmund a pebble he had casually picked up and pretended to say, "Leader of the Blackthorn family, I knew I wasn't wrong about you. Your family is indeed composed of far-sighted and reasonable people. For your generosity today, if anything happens in the future, you can bring this token to seek help from us at the Flying Rain Mountain. If we can assist, we certainly will."
Edmund, holding the pebble, was ecstatic. Although Lucius Blackthorn had fallen, now they had the backing of Sinbad, a powerful underground figure. Other families around would have to think twice before trying to bully the Blackthorn family. Unwittingly, Magnus had become the "tiger" in the saying "a fox exploiting the tiger's might."
They say thieves never leave empty-handed, and Sinbad's group wasn't going to target just the Blackthorn family. Otherwise, other families might feel slighted. Magnus then led Noah and the others, pulling the grain "donated" by the Blackthorn family, to the gates of several nearby estates. Unlike those who boast online about getting men to spend fortunes with a few words, Magnus and his group truly got several estates to "donate" tens of thousands of silver with just a few words.
Initially, the other estates wanted to resist, but seeing the largest family in Willowbrook Town, the Blackthorn family, obediently paying protection fees, they followed suit and handed over their wealth. Magnus's group obtained grain from one estate, livestock from another, and received "donations" of cattle, sheep, pigs, and horses from others along the way.
Of course, Magnus had meticulously investigated his targets, ensuring each was a heartless, greedy landlord who exploited the poor. Magnus felt no guilt in robbing these people of their wealth. Initially, they set out with over two hundred men, all empty-handed except for their weapons, but now they were returning fully loaded.
The group following Magnus on this "bandit hunt" smiled broadly, seeing the wagons of grain and supplies trailing behind them. Magnus, munching on roast chicken, leisurely rode back to Green River Town. These few days of accepting "donations" had somewhat satisfied Magnus's appetite. Green River Town was too poor now; even the villagers' chickens and ducks were undergrown. Wild chickens and ducks from the mountains made delicious soup, but their meat was lean and tough, unable to satisfy Magnus's craving for meat.
At their current pace, Magnus estimated it would take five or six days to return to Green River Town. That evening, a pigeon released by Ethan Thompson brought Magnus a letter.