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I raised an eyebrow, unable to conceal my surprise. Indeed, I was not expecting such a thing to happen at all.

"A man in Korvan\'s crew is working for you?"

Roderick nodded, his expression grim. "That\'s right. He\'s been with them for a while now, and he\'ll get Ron out when the time is right—once we make our move."

I narrowed my eyes, leaning forward slightly. "And why wasn\'t I informed of this earlier, Roderick? If you had someone embedded with Korvan\'s men, we could\'ve used that to our advantage. At the very least, we would know where to find them."

Roderick met my glare, his voice steady but tinged with frustration. "He only reached out yesterday. I was in the dark about this, too, Lucavion. And in fact…" Roderick paused, rubbing his temple. "The only reason we know Ron was captured at all was because of him."

I blinked, processing his words. "You\'re telling me this insider allowed Ron to be taken?"

Roderick nodded. "Yes. He\'s one of my men. He\'d been approached by the bandits and had been playing both sides, gathering information for us while feeding them just enough to stay alive. When they told him about the plan to kidnap Ron, he let it happen so we could use it to our advantage."

I glared at him, feeling the tension rising between us. "You let them take Ron to gain an upper hand? You knowingly let them think they have control?"

Roderick\'s expression hardened, but there was no apology in his tone. "Yes. It was a calculated risk. By allowing them to believe they have the upper hand, we\'ve gained crucial insight into their operations. The insider now knows the exact location of their base. If we had tried to stop the kidnapping outright, we would\'ve tipped our hand and lost any chance of tracking Korvan down."

I stood up, pacing the room for a moment, trying to digest the information. "You\'re playing a dangerous game, Roderick. You\'re gambling with Ron\'s life—hoping your man won\'t be discovered or turn on you."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I\'m aware of the risks, but it\'s the best chance we have to bring Korvan down once and for all."

I stopped, turning to face him, my voice low and cold. "You\'d better hope you\'re right. If this goes wrong, Ron\'s blood will be on your hands."

Roderick held my gaze, his expression unflinching. "I know."

I narrowed my eyes at him, leaning slightly forward. "Why do you think I won\'t tell Baron Edris about this little plan of yours?"

Roderick\'s lips curled into a small, knowing smirk. "Firstly, you\'re an outsider," he said, his tone calm and measured. "Baron Edris has known me for years and trusted me with the defense of this town. You think he\'ll believe someone he\'s just met over me, his loyal knight?"

I didn\'t respond, allowing him to continue.

"And secondly," Roderick added, his smirk widening slightly, "if you do tell him, you\'ll implicate yourself. You\'ve been seen talking with me, creating a bit of chaos around town. If the baron catches wind of that, it won\'t be hard for him to connect the dots and view you as an accomplice. At the very least, you\'ll be arrested, or worse—your entire plan falls apart.

After all, you\'re just an outsider with no real standing here. A perfect scapegoat if things go south."

I couldn\'t help but let out a laugh, shaking my head at his reasoning. "You\'ve thought this through, haven\'t you?"

Roderick\'s smirk faded slightly, replaced by a more serious expression. "I have no intention of screwing you over, Lucavion. Believe me, I want this to end just as much as you do. The bandits need to be dealt with, and I didn\'t make this choice lightly. But you and I both know that sitting around, waiting for some miracle, isn\'t going to help the people of Rackenshore."

I folded my arms, watching him carefully as he spoke.

"I didn\'t betray the baron or the household by allowing this to happen," Roderick continued his voice firm. "I did what I had to do because I can no longer sit by and watch innocent people suffer. The people here are living in fear, barely scraping by because of those bastards. And if letting Ron be taken means we can finally end Korvan\'s reign of terror, then that\'s a price I\'m willing to pay."

There was a brief silence as his words settled between us. I studied his expression—there was no hint of malice, no hidden agenda beyond what he had already revealed. He wasn\'t lying; he truly believed this was the best course of action.

I leaned back, crossing my arms. "You\'ve got guts, I\'ll give you that. But you\'re still gambling with a lot more than just your reputation."

"Well, you are not that different."

"Indeed, that I am."

"Well, you\'re not that different," Roderick added, a wry smile tugging at his lips.

I let out a low chuckle, leaning back in my chair. "Indeed, that I am." My gaze locked onto his. "But now that it\'s come to this, you must know where the hideout is. And you must be aware that we need to move fast."

Roderick\'s expression hardened, and he gave a single nod. "I do. My man is already in position, and everything is set."

I raised an eyebrow, an amused smirk playing on my lips. "That decree, though—it was just a way to get my attention, wasn\'t it? And to create a deception that the city would take its time preparing."

Roderick\'s eyes gleamed with a hint of approval. "Exactly. By issuing the decree, we\'ve given the bandits the impression that we\'re biding our time, gathering forces. They\'ll think they have a window to fortify their defenses or even negotiate. But in reality, we\'ll strike before they have a chance to react."

I couldn\'t help but smile at that. "I like this plan," I said, my voice tinged with amusement. "A surprise assault while they\'re busy underestimating us. Now, tell me—how many people do you have for this strike?"

Roderick leaned back in his chair, his face thoughtful. "Not enough to take on the entire group head-on, but we don\'t need that many."

"Heh….You still want me to work, it seems."

"That is right. Though I did not see how strong you are, considering you were the one who had taken care of Lothar and Loren, you must be really powerful."

"Hmm….Go on."

Roderick\'s eyes narrowed in thought as he continued, "When we make our move, it\'ll be you and me dealing with Korvan and his top lieutenants—two more 3-star Awakened like Lothar. The rest of my men will handle the lower-level fighters, but we don\'t have the numbers for a prolonged battle. We\'ll need to strike hard, hit fast, and eliminate the leadership before they can rally."

I leaned back, crossing my arms with a smirk playing on my lips. "You want me to do most of the heavy lifting, huh? Well, I don\'t mind, but you\'re right—we don\'t have time for a drawn-out fight."

Roderick met my gaze, his expression serious. "We don\'t have the manpower for it, and we can\'t afford to get bogged down. If we\'re too slow, Korvan\'s men will regroup, and Ron\'s life will be forfeit. We need precision. Once we hit Korvan and his lieutenants, the rest will crumble."

A low chuckle escaped me as I stood up, adjusting the grip on my estoc. "Don\'t worry. It\'ll be quick. I\'ll take care of Korvan and the others. You and your men just make sure the rest of the rats don\'t crawl away."

Roderick gave a nod, his gaze hardening with resolve. "Then it\'s settled. We move at dawn. There\'s no room for hesitation."

I turned toward the door, casting one last glance over my shoulder. "Dawn, then. Get your men ready. I\'ll make sure Korvan never sees it coming."

As I stepped out of the room, Vitaliara\'s voice echoed in my mind. [This will be interesting, won\'t it? You\'ve already taken down two of his top men. Korvan must be seething by now.]

"We will see about that. There is this feeling….I feel like things will not be that easy."

[Really?]

"Yeah. At the very least, some people will die."

[As long as you don\'t, I don\'t care.]

"Well, I will not; you can be sure of that."

*******

In the dense, shadow-laden forest where Korvan\'s hideout was nestled, the atmosphere was heavy with tension. The bandits moved quietly through the trees, keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings. Despite the relative silence of the camp, there was an unmistakable sense of unease that had settled over the group.

Korvan\'s top men had fallen, and whispers of something far worse approaching swirled through the ranks.

Inside the cavernous hideout, Korvan sat brooding on a throne-like chair made of dark wood and bone; his brow furrowed in deep thought. A goblet of wine rested in his hand, but his mind was elsewhere—focused on the fact that two of his most trusted lieutenants, Lothar and Loren, had been taken out so swiftly.

He couldn\'t shake the nagging feeling that something bigger was at play, something far more dangerous than a simple mercenary.

Suddenly, the door to the chamber swung open, and one of his scouts stumbled in, his face pale with urgency.

"Leader!" the scout panted, his voice tight with fear. "We\'ve received news from Rackenshore. The baron... he\'s issued a decree."

Korvan\'s eyes snapped up, his grip tightening around the goblet. "A decree?" he growled, his deep voice filling the room. "What are you talking about?"

The scout swallowed hard, taking a hesitant step forward. "Baron Edris has called for mercenaries, bounty hunters... anyone who can bring your head and rescue his son. He\'s offering a fortune in gold and land."

The moment the words left the scout\'s mouth, Korvan\'s face twisted into a mask of fury. His goblet slammed onto the armrest, spilling wine across the floor. "That bastard dares to make such a move?!" he roared, his voice echoing off the stone walls. "Doesn\'t he care about his son?!"

Korvan stood, his large frame towering over the scout. His eyes gleamed with a dangerous fire as he paced the room, fists clenched tightly at his sides. The thought that Baron Edris had issued such a bold decree, knowing full well that Korvan still had Ron in his clutches, filled him with a seething rage.

"This is a direct challenge." Alric, his right hand, exclaimed. "He knows that we won\'t kill the boy."

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