Ireya jolted awake, sitting up from the ground, though she had no idea what she could still do at this moment.
The group was approaching fast, and it was clear they were heading straight for her without any pauses or change in direction along the way.
It wasn't long before they appeared in the young girl's line of sight!
The rider in the lead was a fat man with brown round ears and a long nose. His neck stretched slightly forward as he sniffed the air relentlessly.
His eyes suddenly lit up when he saw Ireya!
He then blew a whistle but didn't slow down his horse; instead, he galloped straight past Li Yu and Ireya, then turned around to come back and join his six companions, encircling the trio by the campfire.
"Ireya Arias?" the man with round ears dismounted, addressing the young girl with a raise of his head, then looked at Li Yu, "Since Miss Ireya is here, the one accompanying her must be the famed Merlin adviser recently known in the Noble circles of Rock Snow City."
"No, I'm not that. I don't know any Ireya; you have the wrong person!" Miss Rabbit vehemently denied.
The round-eared fat man smirked, "It's no use; my Honey Bear's nose is the keenest, and it never mistakes anyone it has scented before.
"I've never met you, how could you possibly have scented me?" Ireya was puzzled.
Honey Bear smiled without a word, his hand already resting on the hilt of his sword.
The other six also followed suit, each drawing their weapons. One of them even kicked Half-Face, who was on the ground, "Hey, stop pretending to be asleep, move aside if you don't want to die!"
Seeing their master kicked, the large black dog's eyes radiated a fierce glare. It lowered its body, ready to pounce and bite.
The previous kicker then raised the nail head hammer in his hand, ready to send the loyal dog to the Nether River.
Honey Bear frowned; he disliked complications. Just as he was about to stop his companion, an unexpected turn occurred!
From nowhere, the figure huddled on the ground produced a war axe that gleamed with a cold light, and without a word, he chopped it onto the leg of the man who had just kicked.
The latter let out a scream, his right leg completely severed in an instant!
Blood spurted from his wound as he rolled on the ground in agony!
The smile on Honey Bear's face also vanished, his eyes flickering with a dangerous glint.
"It seems I underestimated this situation; I didn't expect such a tough character to be hiding here," he remarked.
Half-Face didn't respond but simply wiped the blood from his war axe, then slowly raised his head.
Upon seeing his face, Honey Bear and his men were taken aback.
"Damn, where did this freak come from!" one of them cursed aloud.
His response was met with an axe to the face!
Half-Face didn't wait for him to finish. He swung the war axe in his hand fast and hard. The cursing man didn't even have time to raise his shield before the axe was already upon him.
Fortunately, his surrounding companions were quick to react, pulling him back just in time to save his life, preventing him from suffering the same fate as the previous unlucky fellow.
The others then realized that the disfigured man was a formidable opponent, and they all responded as if facing a great threat.
Though his strike missed, Half-Face didn't pursue further. He simply held his war axe, standing in front of the firepit, staring straight at Honey Bear and his men.
"I particularly dislike being called a freak, and I despise those who harm my dog."
He paused and then added, "But if you ask me what I hate the most, it's definitely bears."
"Are you crazy? There are no bears here!" someone couldn't help but interject.
"Honey Bear is still a bear," Half-Face sighed, "This story tells us that when we are away from home, we must not pick the wrong nickname."
Upon hearing this, Honey Bear sneered, "Good, I haven't encountered someone hurrying to deliver themselves to death in a long time. Later, I'll personally chop off your head to make my wine pot...Oh wait, I've changed my mind. Your face is so damn ugly; it can only serve as a chamber pot."
After saying this, he also drew the Hand Half Sword from his waist. Apart from the sharp edges on both sides and the blood groove in the middle, the hilt of the sword also had a spiked counterweight ball, making its design look particularly ferocious.
Honey Bear said to the two beside him, "Leave this man to me. You guys go deal with Ireya and her human advisor."
The two breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, as they lacked Honey Bear's speed and strength and were quite wary of Half-Face.
It certainly was better not to confront this madman if they didn't have to.
As for Ireya and Li Yu, they weren't even taken seriously.
A noble lady coupled with a prim-looking Foreigner, one could well imagine their combat capability, probably even less than the geese wandering at the village entrance.
As the two approached the girl and her advisor, Half-Face was helpless to intervene.
Although he spoke lightly, he was well aware of the strength of these people.
Especially the round-eared, chubby leader named Honey Bear. The way he held the sword showed that he was experienced in battle and was no ordinary fighter. Moreover, with the inherent robust physique of a Half-Beast, he was obviously a challenging opponent.
Even though Half-Face still had confidence he could defeat Honey Bear, he wouldn't be able to take him down quickly, not to mention the other three people with Honey Bear watching eagerly.
Even with Black Beauty, Half-Face was still at a disadvantage, let alone extending a helping hand to Ireya and Li Yu.
Miss Rabbit seemed to realize her fate as well, trembling violently like a sieve.
She wanted to confront the enemy, yet she wasn't a match for her opponents. Wanting to flee, her two legs couldn't outrun four.
A tremendous fear enveloped her body, rendering her immobile. As Ireya racked her brain trying to come up with a strategy to defend against the enemy, Li Yu suddenly stood up and announced, "I surrender."
??!
The girl looked disbelievingly at her advisor, seemingly unable to believe that someone would abandon her at such a time.
But before she could say anything, Li Yu had already bowed his head and walked towards the two men.
By the light of the fire, it was clear that this Foreigner did not carry anything that could be considered a weapon.
Therefore, their expression also relaxed.
One of them even laughed, "As expected of the finest strategist, truly knows the current affairs!"
Li Yu continued forward, expressionless, as if he hadn't heard the mockery in their words.
He stopped about two steps away from the man, a distance close enough to potentially alert the opposition. Suddenly, he reached behind to his lower back and drew a black, flat box from his belt.
The box was very short, about the size of a palm, and less than four fingers wide. The top had two metal protrusions, but unlike the spikes on ordinary weapons, these metal protrusions were also flat and lacked any sharp edges.
Seeing the black box for the first time, neither of them associated it with a weapon, even assuming it was a gift prepared by Li Yu for surrendering.