CHAPTER 37: CROWHILL

Crowhill sat atop one of the sloping hills, sprawling around it like the work of a particularly talented artist.

As Wade rode up to it, the details of the town grew clearer.

While it had no walls or gate like Hiving, Crowhill had clearly defined roads.

The houses in the town were made of wood, and were painted in various shades of red, blue, and green, the town shining beautifully under the light of the sun.

He followed the road up into the town, slowing his horse to a walk.

As he entered Crowhill, a smile appeared on his face. He’d found it. The town where the beekeeper was.

Next to the main road was a stable, and Wade stopped there, paying a few coins for them to hold onto his horse for him.

With that done, he began walking around the town, searching for the compound that had been described to him.

Unlike Hiving, the streets of Crowhill were not as crowded, and apart from him, he’d only seen two other adventurers.

After a few minutes of wandering the town, he finally stopped someone, asking for directions. Apparently, the beekeeper lived on the edge of the town.

Thanking the man, he followed the directions, and a few minutes later, ended up at the gate of a lone compound that sat separated from the rest of the town.

The compound was large, fenced and gated, with a few trees on the property.

The gate was a jar, but that didn’t raise any flags. He walked closer, and that was when he heard the voices.

"Please! Don’t do this! This is not what we agreed on! He said he’ll give me time to think about it! Please!" A voice loudly pleaded.

Another voice laughed, the sound high and cruel. "He said he’ll give you time to think, not that he’ll leave entirely. You can think, and we’ll do our job."

"Please! Don’t do this! How will I make money if you take all my stock?"

Wade frowned, jogging the rest of the way to the gate. Immediately he caught sight of what was happening inside, he hid himself at the side of the gate, peering in.

A man was kneeling, wearing protective gloves, thick boots, and an apron. He had blue eyes and dark hair, and he had his hands pressed together to plead. He had to be the beekeeper.

Also kneeling behind him were what looked like his employees. And surrounding them, holding wooden clubs, were a few roughly dressed men.

Even with the glance, Wade could tell that they were criminals.

Their leader, a bald headed man, stood before the beekeeper, his hands crossed as he laughed. "Has it ever occurred to you that this is the point?"

He crouched, and was now at eye level with the beekeeper. His tone changed, becoming amicable, like he was trying to advise a close friend.

"In case you missed the message, I was told to deliver it to you. Don’t hold so tightly onto something you can’t use anyways. Just sell it. That’s the only way this would end."

Wade’s eyes moved to the wagon behind the man and his eyes narrowed. Hitched to two oxen, three barrels sat innocently on the wagon.

"But if I sell, what am I going to do? How am I going to make money? You’re taking everything that I know. Please don’t do this." The beekeeper begged. He seemed on the verge of tears.

"That’s not my problem, is it?" The man grinned, standing up. "I don’t care what you do after. All I know is that whether you like it or not, we always get what we want."

Just by piecing what he’d heard so far together, Wade had a pretty good idea of what was happening.

The thugs were here to pressure the beekeeper into selling something. Probably his establishment. And the barrels on the wagon were probably the beekeeper’s remaining stock of honey.

They were about to steal it. If the man can’t sell anything, he can’t make any money. And without money, he can’t buy food or anything he needs. That meant he had to sell his entire beekeeping establishment to survive.

A dirty tactic, but he had to admit that it was pretty clever. But the question was...

’Should I intervene?’

He had no idea if the thugs were also adventurers. And if they were, would they be stronger than him? There was only one way to find out.

Peeking into the compound, he used Observe.

[Name: Ned]

[Race: Human]

[HP: 81/81]

[Strength: 15]

[Agility: 8]

[Perception: 9]

[Constitution: 12]

Wade blinked in surprise at the sight. ’Wait, what?’

He used Observe on the rest of the thugs and it was the same thing. They were all normal humans.

A small laugh burst out of Wade’s chest. He’d assumed every opponent he’d face in this world would be powerful too. After Shattered Hall, he’d expected the difficulty of each battle to be high.

He’d forgotten that there was the possibility of him facing ordinary humans. That one so soon, he’d be the stronger one.

"Who’s there!" Ned barked, having heard the laugh. He glanced at two of his subordinates, motioning towards the gate with his head for them to check it out.

With a nod, they began walking. But before they made it more than three steps, Wade stepped into view.

"Hi." He waved to them, unable to contain the grin on his face. "I was just passing by and heard you guys having fun. Hope that’s okay?"

Even when he hadn’t done anything yet, he felt like a bully interfering in the argument of kids, and beating up one side. But this was different. These were not kids. They were thugs. And they needed to be taught a lesson.

"Who the fuck are you?" One of the thugs scoffed. With his sword currently sitting in his inventory, and his breastplate still at Tom’s workshop, he looked normal, with his ordinary tunic, trousers, and boots.

But Ned, the leader of the thugs, wasn’t fooled. He recognized the light in Wade’s eye, and it was as if a cold hand gripped his heart.

He unconsciously took a half step back, eyes widening. He stammered. "I— It’s— It’s an adventurer!"

And as one, the gang immediately stumbled back, fear entering their eyes.

The beekeeper and his employees looked up at Wade, wide-eyed and hopeful.

"Yup. That’s me." Wade said, his smile still on his face. "I hope I’m not interrupting anything important?"