Chapter 168: Chapter 132: "Shadow Assault" and "Backstab
After lazing around for a while before getting up, he knocked on Feney’s door. He waited for some time, but there was no response.
’She’s already up?’
Lin Mo and Ali went downstairs together, and just as they expected, they saw Feney digging in.
She looked genuinely famished. Several dishes were laid out before her, and her face was smeared with sauce.
When she saw Lin Mo and Ali, she immediately waved. After struggling to swallow a mouthful of food, she said, "Mr. Lin Mo! And you too, Ali! You’re awake... I was worried you were still resting, so I didn’t want to disturb you. Come on, eat with me!"
Lin Mo and Ali were indeed hungry, so they sat down across from her and began to eat.
"Whew~ I’m stuffed, so stuffed. I can’t eat another bite..."
A moment later, Feney patted her now-slightly-rounded tummy and let out a long breath.
Then she turned around and ordered several desserts, starting to eat them as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"I thought you were full?"
Lin Mo stared in bewilderment.
"Dessert isn’t a meal, so it doesn’t count."
Ali said, stuffing a dessert into her own mouth as she spoke.
Lin Mo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’Do girls really have a separate stomach for dessert?’
He wasn’t particularly interested in sweets, so he just had a small taste.
After they finished eating, it was time to head back to the Association.
By the time they reached the Association, it was already three in the afternoon.
When they arrived, a large number of Adventurers had already gathered. Some had fought alongside them yesterday, while others had only just arrived today.
The president of the Adventurer’s Association was sitting with the Adventurers, discussing something.
"What’s the situation?"
Lin Mo walked over and asked.
He was, of course, asking about the situation on the main front.
"It’s not looking good."
The Association president shook his head. "The Goblin offensive was relentless yesterday, especially after two or three in the morning. We think they were trying to coordinate with the raid on your side; the Goblins fought like they were possessed. Thankfully, you were there to intercept their raiding party. If we had been hit by another surprise attack at that moment, the defensive line would have likely collapsed..."
"And the casualties?"
Landon asked.
"Not good either."
The Association president’s brow furrowed. "According to a rough estimate, over 500 soldiers and 100 Adventurers died on the defensive line yesterday!"
"That many?!"
Someone in the crowd cried out in alarm.
You have to understand, Silver Moon Town is just a small town. Even with the reinforcements from Silver Stream City, the total number of defenders is only a few thousand.
Five hundred casualties at once... that casualty rate was quite high.
"The biggest problem is that even though we’ve suffered so many casualties and killed at least ten thousand Goblins, their numbers don’t seem to have noticeably diminished..."
Everyone present understood exactly what that meant.
’There are probably even more Goblins pouring in toward us.’
"This can’t go on."
Landon’s brow furrowed. "Just killing these Ordinary Goblins won’t solve the crisis. We have to find a way to root out the mastermind behind all this!"
"But rushing in blindly is far too dangerous."
The Association president shook his head. "Silver Moon Town doesn’t have any particularly strong Assassins. We only have five who are Level 3 or higher, and none have reached Level 4."
A Level 3 Assassin is certainly not weak and is already quite fast. But infiltrating the rear of a Goblin Army this large is still far too dangerous.
Never mind anything else, that one Assassin Goblin they ran into last night already had a Threat Level approaching 3.
It’s safe to say the mastermind behind this disaster has a Threat Level of at least 3, maybe even 4!
A Level 4 Goblin Caster would likely be protected by numerous Level 3 and Level 2 Bronze Level Goblins. Even a Level 4 Assassin might not be able to pull it off.
’An Assassin of Level 4 or higher...’
Lin Mo suddenly froze. He’d remembered something. He looked over at Feney.
Feney blinked in confusion, not understanding what he was getting at.
"Excuse me, everyone, I have something to take care of. I’ll be back in a bit."
With that, he took Feney by the hand and left the Association.
Ali, who had been somewhat distracted, suddenly sat bolt upright. She stared at their retreating figures, an utterly priceless expression of astonishment on her face.
She pointed to herself, as if to say, ’And what about me?’
In the end, though, Ali didn’t follow. Lin Mo hadn’t called for her, and she was afraid that acting rashly might disrupt his plans.
She didn’t know what he was planning, but she trusted Lin Mo. All she had to do was wait patiently.
"Mr. Lin Mo?"
Feney looked down at the hand Lin Mo had wrapped around her wrist. She struggled faintly, a slight blush on her cheeks. "Wh-what are you trying to do?"
"You’ll know in a moment."
Lin Mo didn’t answer, simply hurrying her into a secluded alleyway.
Feney looked at the dim surroundings and at Lin Mo, who was standing so close. Her face grew redder and redder.
’Why would he bring me to a deserted place like this?’
’Could it be...?’
Feney watched as Lin Mo finally let go of her wrist, turned, and walked toward her. She squeezed her eyes shut and waved her hands frantically. "Wait a minute, Mr. Lin Mo! Isn’t this a little too sudden?"
"Huh?"
Lin Mo paused, confused. "What are you talking about?"
Then he waved to someone behind her.
"You needed me?"
Shefilya appeared behind Feney. Her sudden voice made Feney jump.
Feney spun around, her face a mask of astonishment. "Shefilya? What are you doing here?!"
Shefilya gave a slight curtsy. In response to Feney’s question, she pondered for a moment before saying, "Miss Feney, my lady instructed me not to tell you that she ordered me to protect you in secret."
"..."
That one sentence left both of them completely speechless.
’So... didn’t you just tell her anyway?’
"Ahem—"
Lin Mo cleared his throat, trying to break the awkward tension. "Miss Maid, you must have overheard. This situation is different. It’s not an Ordinary mission, but a crisis that concerns all of Silver Moon Town. We need a powerful Assassin right now, someone to help us deal with this major threat."
Shefilya didn’t answer immediately, looking instead to Feney at her side.
"Please, Shefilya!"
"I understand, Miss Feney."
Shefilya nodded at once. "Please, rest assured, and leave it to Shefilya."
’It seems this Maid really listens to Feney.’
An idea suddenly struck Lin Mo. He leaned close to Feney and whispered a few words in her ear.
Feney felt his warm breath tickle her ear. Her face flushed, but she didn’t pull away.
Shefilya’s golden eyes quietly observed the two of them. The hands she held in front of her had already tightened into fists. If Miss Feney showed the slightest hint of reluctance, Shefilya’s fist would be making intimate acquaintance with Lin Mo’s face.
However, that didn’t happen. Her young miss wore a bashful expression, looking for all the world like a girl experiencing her first crush.
Shefilya could only relax her fist with a hint of regret, waiting for her young miss to speak.
"Shefilya..."
Just as Shefilya expected, Feney soon spoke up. "Could you teach Mr. Lin Mo some Assassin Skills?"
"Skills?"
That was not what Shefilya had expected.
"Just some basic skills would be enough."
Lin Mo knew, of course, that High Level Skills were extremely rare and valuable; they couldn’t be taught to outsiders casually. However, a few simple, basic Profession Skills should be fine.
Shefilya looked at him and nodded. "Since Miss Feney has spoken, I can certainly teach you. But learning Skills takes a great deal of time. You should be prepared for that."
"I know."
Lin Mo nodded. Unsure if he could learn Skills quickly without a Scroll, he didn’t make any grand promises.
"Then let’s start now."
’Now?’
Shefilya shot him a strange look.
’Didn’t I just say learning Skills takes a long time? Shouldn’t we be heading back to discuss the assassination of the Goblin leader first, and then find some free time for this later?’
’Oh well. Let him try. He’ll soon find out how difficult it is.’
"Don’t move."
The moment the words left her lips, Shefilya produced a Flying Knife from the folds of her skirt. Her figure blurred, and in the blink of an eye, she was standing before Lin Mo.
Lin Mo had no time to react. One moment, he was watching her stand in place; the next, the sharp Flying Knife was already pressed against his chest.
"You already know stealth-type Skills, so I’ll teach you an Assassin’s basic assassination Skills."
Shefilya said, pulling the Flying Knife away, "This move is called Shadow Assault."
The next moment, while Lin Mo was distracted in thought, she suddenly appeared behind him and jabbed a finger into the small of his back. "And this one is called Backstab."
"HSSS—!"
Lin Mo sucked in a sharp breath. He rubbed the spot she had jabbed, which was already so painful it had gone numb.
He looked at the Maid. Her face was still expressionless, but he could have sworn he saw a hint of smug delight in her eyes.
’She did that on purpose, didn’t she?’
"These two moves should be enough, right?"
Shefilya’s way of speaking was concise. Seeing Lin Mo nod, she continued, "Next, I’ll explain the Qi Blood Circulation for these two Skills..."
Though she was a woman of few words, her explanation was meticulous, highlighting every crucial detail.
Following her instructions, Lin Mo began to try circulating his energy.
The process was surprisingly smooth. The difficult points Shefilya had mentioned seemed to not exist for him at all.
’Could it be that I’m actually a genius, and not completely reliant on the panel’s power?’
Lin Mo drew a dagger from his belt. Imitating Shefilya’s earlier movements, his body suddenly blurred into motion.
Shefilya expressionlessly reached out, easily catching the dagger between two fingers. But then her arm trembled, and a flicker of shock appeared in her eyes.
’Such incredible Strength!’
She knew he was a Warrior, but as a Senior Level Professional herself, Shefilya never expected his Strength to be even greater than hers.
’A Level 3 Warrior?’
What’s more... she had never witnessed Lin Mo learning Magic at such a rapid pace. So, while she knew he was a genius—and that her lady’s mission for her included protecting him as well as the young miss—she hadn’t had a clear concept of just how much of a genius he truly was.
But now, she knew.
’Perhaps it was partly because my explanation was so meticulous, or because I’d unreservedly shared my years of understanding of these two Skills. But even so... under normal circumstances, never mind me, even if an Extraordinary Level Assassin were to teach him personally, it would take at least a full day to learn a single Skill.’
’And that’s the speed of a genius...’
’Is he even human?’
While Shefilya was still lost in shock, Lin Mo seized the opportunity. He circled behind her and poked her with his own finger.
[Backstab]!
Shefilya let out a stifled grunt. She stumbled, nearly losing her footing.
Even though she was a Senior Level Assassin, it was a squishy Profession after all. And though Lin Mo held back enough not to injure her, it definitely still hurt.
"So, Teacher, how did I do?"
Having gotten his payback, Lin Mo asked with a smile.
Shefilya didn’t say a word, only shooting him a sideways glance before once again placing her hands in front of her, resuming a Maid’s standard posture.
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