Having captured the "king," the question now was how to best utilize him.
"It feels like a waste to just extract information from him after going through all this trouble."
This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.
What would be the most effective approach?
As I tapped my fingers idly on the balcony railing, my thoughts raced. Peering outside, I noticed the monsters below still in a frenzy, tearing into something with wild abandon.
They had been at it for a while now, devouring whatever it was with insane vigor. My brows furrowed.
"What could they possibly be eating...?"
"Give it up, Princess. It's over," came Elliot's weak voice from behind me.
I turned and leaned against the railing to face him. For someone who was supposedly the tyrant of this camp, the prolonged silence from his subordinates was surprising. Surely, someone should have come to check by now.
I had barricaded the door well enough to delay them, but still...
I strode toward Elliot, who flinched and pressed himself against the chair back in alarm.
"W-What are you doing?"
"Relax, I’m not going to kill you."
At my words, Elliot fell silent. The situation was clearly humiliating for him.
Grabbing the chair, I lifted him with ease and set him on the balcony. I did the same with the other two captives, placing them next to Elliot.
The arrangement was perfect. The railing was right behind them, and any sudden movements could result in a fatal fall. An ideal setup for keeping hostages in check.
“P-Please, spare us...”
“We’re begging you... please...”
Philip and Valen pleaded, trembling like leaves. It was laughable. These were the same men who had shot at me, yet here they were, shamelessly begging for their lives.
"Begging won’t help you," I replied coldly.
“M-Mud diving?” Philip stammered, his panicked words turning into incoherent nonsense. Did he think I was about to waterboard him?
I shook my head in disbelief at his absurdity. It was only when Elliot glared at them with his sharp, menacing eyes that they finally shut up. Despite their current state, they still seemed terrified of him.
Ignoring their antics, I began examining Elliot’s notebook again. The notes inside, along with what he had let slip, provided valuable intel: the hotel’s first floor housed the laundry room, lobby, and kitchen, while the second and third floors were used by camp members.
The fourth floor, however, was where the important supplies were stored—food, daily necessities, and weapons.
"Of course, it had to be the fourth floor," I muttered to myself.
Transporting loot from the fourth floor down to the first, let alone back to Happy House, would be a massive hassle. It was a logistical nightmare, especially for just Ethan and me.
Sighing, I jotted down everything I had learned into my own notebook. Elliot’s contained additional notes on Brunel’s resources—plants that grew in the hills behind the village and animals that could be hunted.
Turning to Philip, I showed him a page from Elliot’s notebook. “Hey, Brunel expert. Is this everything you can gather from the hills behind Brunel?”
I tapped his chair leg threateningly with my foot, mimicking how Ethan interrogated criminals.
“Yes, yes! That’s all there is!” Philip stammered, nodding frantically. Judging by his terrified face, the tactic worked.
According to what I’d pieced together, the Kintner survival camp now had around forty members. Apparently, they had recently brought in more survivors during their explorations.
Elliot’s ultimate plan was to secure Brunel first, then expand southward along the river beyond the hills. His goal was to dominate the southern regions of the empire, using drugs like Bardon to subjugate the populace.
In a world this chaotic and desperate, resistance to such temptation would be rare. People would submit easily.
Elliot had decided that taking the south would be easier than pushing north toward the capital, especially with the main routes to Westmore blocked.
"Now that I think about it, I’ve never considered heading south myself," I mused.
Not that I had any reason to. The novel’s main stage was the capital, where all its secrets lay. I had planned to hole up in Happy House and avoid unnecessary risks, but finding that secret underground passage had upended everything.
No use dwelling on it. Sighing, I tucked my notebook and fountain pen into my belt pouch, fastening the buckle securely.
When I raised my head, I caught the captives hastily averting their gazes. All except Elliot, who stared straight at me and even smiled when our eyes met.
"Why waste more time, Princess?" he taunted. "I made sure no one could reach this floor without my permission, but with how long it’s been, someone will come eventually."
He was perceptive, already figuring out I was stalling for time. Not that it mattered—I’d gotten all the information I needed. Now, all that was left was to wait for Ethan.
"And keep an eye on those monsters."
Opening my belt pouch again, I retrieved a pair of opera binoculars I always carried for scouting missions. The moment I brought them to my eyes, Elliot asked:
"Where the hell did you get those?"
"I picked them up," I replied curtly, not bothering to look at him.
"When we were planning the underground passage exploration, we talked about what to do if something unexpected happened and we got separated, right?"
Back when we assembled the reconnaissance team, Ethan and I had prepared for worst-case scenarios. We’d discussed in advance how each of us would act if we were forced apart.
Reflecting on that conversation, I continued to observe the monsters through my binoculars. Among the chaos, I spotted traces of powdered drugs scattered around them.
“But there’s no way they’re going crazy because of Bardon.”
It felt like there had to be another reason. Something else was driving them wild. I kept watching with patience.
Through the torn-open bags, I caught a brief glimpse of what looked like plant stalks. However, before I could get a good look, a snarling monster lunged and devoured it.
Unidentifiable greenery and monsters that seemed crazed over it.
“Could it be... Elpinos herbs?”
Elliot’s notebook had mentioned “Jeremy’s Herb Shop” and “Bardon.” He had also said the Kintner scouting team was supposed to return with Bardon today.
Jeremy’s Herb Shop was the only herbal shop in Kintner. Amy had once mentioned that Elpinos was also available there.
If the scouting team had picked up Bardon from Jeremy’s shop, they might have grabbed other herbs along with it, thinking they could all be useful somehow.
By now, the monsters had devoured all the Elpinos from the bag and began dispersing. Slowly but surely, they sniffed the air and started converging toward the hotel entrance.
“Could someone else in the group have brought the remaining Elpinos inside the hotel?”
The memory of the monsters gathering at Happy House’s stone gate came to mind.
I wanted to confirm whether something like herbs had been dropped at the entrance, but from this vantage point, I couldn’t see the front door.
Just then—
Piiiiii! Piiiiii!
A whistle sounded from nearby. The shrill noise wasn’t far away. A grin spread across my face before I could stop it.
“Finally. Took you long enough.”
“What the hell? Who’s the lunatic blowing a whistle here? Are they trying to rile up the monsters?!” Elliot erupted, thrashing in his chair in a fit of frustration.
Piiiiii!
This time, the sound came from just outside the door. The timing couldn’t have been better.
“It’s coming from here,” I heard someone say. Then came the muffled sounds of men muttering just outside.
Despite Elliot’s earlier claims that no one would dare come up to the fifth floor without his permission, the whistle must have made them desperate.
Piiiiii!
“Damn it! Where is that sound coming from? Find it! Monsters are going to swarm us!” someone yelled from the other side of the door.
The door handle jiggled a moment later. “This one’s locked,” a deep voice announced, followed by loud knocking.
“Sir Elliot! Are you in there?”
“Why are you idiots asking? Get in here and save me already!” Elliot shouted, his true personality bursting out under pressure.
Bang! Crash! Bang!
They started trying to break the door down. The sound seemed to bring a spark of hope to Elliot, Philip, and Valen, as their faces lit up.
“See, Princess? Didn’t I tell you there’s no way you’re getting out of here?” Elliot sneered at me with a smirk.
The dresser I’d shoved in front of the door was heavy enough to buy me some time but not enough to hold them off indefinitely. Soon, the door was forced open, and armed men stormed in.
They took in the scene and immediately raised their rifles, aiming directly at me.
“Drop the axe and surrender now, and we’ll spare your life,” barked the man who appeared to be their leader.
Spare my life? As if Elliot would let that happen. If he got free, the first thing he’d do is try to kill me.
“No matter how strong you are, Princess, you can’t dodge dozens of bullets. Isn’t that right?” Elliot quipped with a smug grin.
“Yeah, you’re right,” I said with exaggerated nonchalance. “I’ve gotten everything I needed from you, so you’re useless to me now. My only goal was to extract your information.”
My tone was deliberately mocking, just to get under his skin. Sure enough, Elliot’s face twisted with rage.
Ignoring him, I shifted my gaze to the men pointing their guns at me—and smiled.
Because behind them, a familiar figure had appeared.