After figuring out the connection, cold sweat started to pour down Owen's back.
Oh, great. So that's how it is.
Back then, he had suggested to Flora to seek help from His Majesty abroad, and now Viscount Lewis must have been punished because of it.
The grudge had now shifted onto him.
Owen couldn't help but silently curse his bad luck.
This viscount is so petty.
Instead of targeting the King or Flora's family, he's taken a random commoner like me to vent his anger.
I'm just a pub owner. Even if they beat me to death, no one would care, right?
The knights finally came to a stop.
They dragged Owen, pulling him all the way into a grand hall.
From the knights' conversation, Owen learned that this place was none other than the Viscount Lewis Estate.
Damn it!
He had actually been captured and brought to the enemy's lair.
If things went even slightly awry, Owen could very well end up as minced meat pie.
"Viscount, Lord, this is the one."
Owen was pushed to the center of the hall.
Two men sat on high-backed chairs in front of him.
The two looked strikingly similar, clearly father and son. The older man, wearing a dark velvet robe and gazing coldly, was obviously Viscount Lewis.
And the young man next to him must be his son, Lord Lewis Jr.
Even if Owen didn't know them, just looking at their faces made his heart sink.
Murderous eyes and cold expressions.
Absolutely the faces of villains!
"Owen, do you know where you went wrong?" Viscount Lewis suddenly spoke, his voice filled with authority.
Owen was immediately reminded of his math teacher from his previous life.
Without thinking, he blurted out, "Ah, I'm not Owen! Who's Owen?"
The Lewis father and son exchanged glances.
Lord Lewis Jr. couldn't help but say, "If you're not Owen, then who are you?"
"I'm a…" Owen's mind raced, and he lifted the rabbit in his arms, "I'm just a pet merchant. I was out to buy some food for my pets when, for some reason, I ended up here."
"I swear I'm not the Owen you're looking for."
"My name is Redcatter."
The rabbit was blue.
He called himself Redcatter.
No problem with this combo.
"What kind of shitty name is that?" Lord Lewis Jr. roared, "Did you just make that up to fool us?"
"I don't know either. My parents picked it," Owen said with a foolish smile. "In my village, it's actually considered a nice name."
Viscount Lewis frowned.
He knew that the uneducated commoners often gave their children strange names.
Besides, the moment he had laid eyes on Owen, he'd felt something was off.
This man had no mana fluctuations whatsoever.
He looked utterly terrified.
There was no way this guy could be the legendary mysterious master.
Could it really be a mistake?
Viscount Lewis shot a displeased look at the knight captain.
The knight captain immediately began to explain, "Your Excellency, we questioned the locals and confirmed that this man often comes down from the mountain of the Forbidden Grounds."
"Ah!" Owen immediately took the lead, raising his voice. "That mountain is accessible now. Don't you know?"
"Not just me, there are many people sneaking up there to dig for herbs. My rabbit loves the clover around the mid-level. I just went to pick some the other day."
A cold sweat broke out on the knight captain's forehead.
Lord Lewis Jr. angrily smashed the wine glass in his hand on the floor. He pointed at the knight captain and scolded, "You fool, you caught the wrong person!"
"This so-called Redcatter is just a common country bumpkin!"
The knight captain dropped to one knee, not daring to make a sound.
Owen didn't dare relax.
He seized the opportunity and said, "Sirs, this is all a misunderstanding. Can I leave now? My rabbit is getting hungry."
"Get out!" Lord Lewis Jr. shouted. "Get out of here right now."
"But I don't know the way back. It's so far—could you give me some travel money?" Owen deliberately pushed his luck.
"Get lost this instant!"
Another wine glass flew his way.
Owen was overjoyed.
He held the rabbit and ran off without looking back.
It worked!
He mentally awarded himself a full score for his performance.
Watching his retreating figure, Viscount Lewis muttered under his breath, "Take him out. He goes up the mountain frequently and could leak information."
"Understood!"
A scorching fireball appeared in Lord Lewis Jr.'s hand. With a gentle toss, the fireball hurtled towards Owen's back.
If it were a normal person, they wouldn't even have time to scream before being reduced to ashes.
But just as the fireball was about to strike Owen—
Something strange happened.
The fireball seemed to be deflected by an invisible force, changing direction and flying back towards Lord Lewis Jr.
The change was so sudden that he didn't even have time to react.
Who had ever seen a mage's fireball backstab its own caster?
Viscount Lewis yanked him back sharply.
The fireball smashed into the ground.
With a loud boom, a massive crater appeared.
Everyone's expressions changed. They stared at Owen like they had seen a ghost, none daring to speak.
Owen was also startled by the explosion.
Instinctively, he turned around.
He saw Lord Lewis Jr., sitting on the ground in a sorry state, and a still-smoking crater not far from his backside.
"Huh? What did he eat for lunch? How could one fart cause a hole this big?" Owen muttered, puzzled.
"What are you waiting for? Activate the magic array! Knights, be on guard! Summon all the family mages here!" Viscount Lewis barked. "He cannot leave here alive today!"
"Mr. Redcatter! You played the role well, but no one can fake a reaction between life and death."
"You are that wretched Owen!"
Owen watched as a crowd suddenly surged in around him.
Some wore armor, some donned mage robes.
Each one eyed him as if ready to strike at a single command.
"Wait, wait! You've really got the wrong guy." Cold sweat dripped down Owen's back. "What's going on? I didn't do anything!"
"The proof is right here, and you still dare deny it?" Lord Lewis Jr. pointed at the crater.
"Me?" Owen felt completely wronged. "Wasn't that crater from your own fart?"
And somehow, they're blaming this on me.
This father and son duo are truly wicked.
In his previous life, they'd be the kind of unscrupulous employers who fire people just because they entered the office with their left foot first!
The rabbit in Owen's arms, meanwhile, was laughing so hard its whole body jiggled.
Did they really try to attack Owen in front of Lord White here? Courting death, are they? That fireball was just a warning.
The rabbit didn't even want to think what would happen if Owen got hurt. Even if he lost just a few strands of hair, when they got back, that evil cat would definitely string it up and beat it.
"Enough talking. Attack together," Viscount Lewis sneered. "Chop him into meatballs. The crocodiles in the garden haven't tasted human flesh in a while."
"Damn, you're ruthless!" Owen was taken aback.
The next second, his surroundings lit up.
Clusters of fireballs and balls of ice appeared in an instant, raining down on him like a storm.
The knights pulled out enchanted bows, aiming at Owen's heart and head, releasing a barrage of deadly arrows.
Viscount Lewis's face twisted with a cruel smile.
Lord Lewis Jr., however, shouted in dissatisfaction, "Hey, are you all idiots? Father said to turn him into meatballs. Who's using fireballs? If he's burned to ashes, how are we supposed to feed the fish?!"
Owen shut his eyes in terror.
His whole body trembled.
A string of untimely thoughts popped into his head.
There's good news and bad news.
The good news: some idiot mage used fireballs, so he'll die instantly, no prolonged suffering.
The bad news, of course: this time, he's really done for!
But to everyone's surprise, the first screams didn't come from Owen, but from those attacking him!
"Ahhh! Help! What's happening? The fireballs are out of control, they're flying back!"
"My mana's going berserk! Ice arrows… I'm freezing!"
"Attention, all units! Arrows are being deflected by an unknown barrier. Find cover!"
A series of screams and explosions echoed around Owen.
There was the sound of things shattering and buildings collapsing.
Owen had no idea what was happening.
He didn't dare move a muscle.
It wasn't until the rabbit in his arms tugged at his sleeve that he nervously opened one eye.
"Huh?" The scene before him was beyond his expectations.
The entire hall looked as if it had just been through a fierce battle.
The once lavish furnishings were now in ruins.
Even the main entrance had half-collapsed.
The mages and knights who had been so aggressive were all lying on the ground—some covered in blood, unconscious, others letting out faint groans.