WTYTIAAN Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Yan Yunqing slept soundly, unaware of the passage of time. When he woke up, he couldn’t even remember what day it was. For a moment, he even thought he was back on Blue Star, with his stupid dog licking his face incessantly, trying to wake him up to refill its food bowl.

Yan Yunqing sat on the bed, dazed for a while, before slowly regaining his senses. He looked around the room, which was dark. The curtains were drawn tightly, blocking out any light. Yan Yunqing couldn’t even tell what time it was.

He checked the system panel for the time and confirmed that he had only slept until evening, not the next day. Only then did Yan Yunqing breathe a sigh of relief.

Hmm, isn’t it a bit too quiet?

Yan Yunqing hesitantly looked around, and was shocked to find that Lillian was gone.

Yan Yunqing: ???

Where did his big, portable elf go?

“Lillian?” Yan Yunqing called out, but there was no response.

Yan Yunqing frowned and opened the mini-map, confirming that there were indeed no blue dots around him.

Damn it, Lillian really disappeared?!

Yan Yunqing was a little nervous, and his mind raced through all the possible reasons for Lillian’s disappearance. The more he thought about it, the worse it seemed. He quickly got up, switched to his disguise, and prepared to go out and look for the missing Lillian.

But before Yan Yunqing could leave, there was a slight sound from the window. Yan Yunqing paused, switched back to his original persona, activated his acting skills, and transformed back into the gloomy mage. He saw a corner of the curtain being lifted, and Lillian floated in, swaying slightly.

She had a large bag hanging on her, completely out of proportion to her size.

Yan Yunqing breathed a sigh of relief and took the bag off Lillian. “Where did you go? Why didn’t you tell me? I thought you were kidnapped.”

Lillian tilted her head. “I woke up and saw you were still sleeping, so I got bored and went for a stroll.”

She pointed to the bag of things. “I took these from the carriages of some rich young masters and ladies. I’ve tasted them all, and they’re delicious!”

Yan Yunqing looked down at the bag and saw that it was full of exquisite pastries and fruits. Lillian had even taken the people’s serving plates along with the food. She really inherited his legacy.

She learned the bad things but not the good, and there’s still more to learn.

Yan Yunqing put down the bag and flicked Lillian on the forehead. “Tell me next time before you go out. I’ll worry if I can’t find you.”

Lillian was stunned, and stammered an agreement, looking surprised.

“Got it.”

Lillian flew over, took a dark red fruit from the bag, and began to munch on it. She told Yan Yunqing about what she had seen and heard while she was out. “The city gates are under martial law. The reason given is that a group of people broke into the prison last night and released a lot of dangerous criminals. Everyone leaving the city is being strictly checked.”

“Broke into the prison?” Yan Yunqing considered. “They can’t openly talk about yesterday’s incident, so they can only say someone broke into the prison… to investigate the people from last night. It seems that Yochiel escaped last night.”

It wasn’t for nothing that he dropped so many Fire Emblems there. He probably blew up most of those masked people. If they still couldn’t escape, then his efforts would have been in vain.

When Yochiel’s name was mentioned, Lillian’s expression turned cold. Yan Yunqing noticed it. “Do you know that Yochiel?”

“I don’t know him!” Lillian denied. “He’s so ugly, I don’t know him at all!”

Yan Yunqing: …

Honestly, that Yochiel wasn’t exactly ugly, was he? At most, he was just ordinary and unremarkable, someone who could disappear in a crowd. It was just that his aura was very unique.

“So you do know each other?”

“I really don’t know him!” Lillian shook her head. “But I’ve heard of him.”

Yan Yunqing was surprised. “You’ve heard of him? Is he famous?”

He was ignorant again. He really needed to collect all the basic information about the major forces in this world as soon as possible, or he wouldn’t even recognize them when he met them on the road.

Lillian looked at him, making an expression as if she had eaten a fly. Her face twisted for a moment before she slowly began to speak, her voice as stiff as a socially awkward person trying to sell insurance. “The leader of ‘Blood Mist,’ a mysterious figure. Many people who have seen him can’t accurately describe his appearance, only that he’s a very dangerous and terrifying person.”

He’s the leader!

Yan Yunqing was surprised. He thought Yochiel was just some small boss, but he turned out to be the leader.

Wait, do they have to disturb the leader even for a mission? Then the status of this ‘Blood Mist’ seems to have dropped all of a sudden!

But Lillian actually knew about ‘Blood Mist.’ Yan Yunqing felt that his investigation mission was promising. “Then tell me about ‘Blood Mist.’ What kind of organization is it? What do they do?”

Finally, she didn’t have to talk about someone she hated. Lillian breathed a sigh of relief, and she was less resistant to the mention of ‘Blood Mist.’

“‘Blood Mist,’ huh? It’s just a relatively mysterious mercenary group. Their reputation isn’t very good, you could say it’s infamous. They often target nobles. Many nobles have died at their hands.”

“They basically don’t take private jobs. No one knows what they’re going to do next. They do things pretty arbitrarily. Last time, they kidnapped the only son of a noble family. The noble offered a price of 500,000 gold coins to redeem his son, but the people from ‘Blood Mist’ tore him apart without saying a word. They chopped him into pieces and sent him back, not even looking at the 500,000 gold coins.”

Yan Yunqing exclaimed. It seemed he had guessed wrong again. This wasn’t a vigilante group at all. It was practically a terrorist organization.

“But ‘Blood Mist’ doesn’t target civilians or poor people. Some ordinary merchants have even been saved by them. I heard that they also regularly send supplies to poor people in ungoverned border areas, so in non-noble circles, the mercenary group’s reputation is still decent.”

In a sense, they were a terrorist organization that robbed the rich to help the poor?

Yan Yunqing nodded to himself. No wonder these people were shown as neutral on his mini-map, not hostile.

Lillian glanced at the expression on Yan Yunqing’s face and suddenly revealed a big piece of news. “This mercenary group has been around for a long time. A few hundred years… um, about when the two great empires were first established, uh, around the time of the first monster wave, they appeared. Their first leader was Barros. I don’t know how many times the leader has been replaced since then. It became the current Yochiel.”

When Yan Yunqing heard the name Barros, he was stunned at first, then his pupils shook.

Why does this name sound so familiar? It seems like…

“Barros is…?” Yan Yunqing asked anxiously, hoping that this might be a coincidence.

Lillian realized that Yan Yunqing didn’t seem to remember the name, and her mood improved significantly. She said cheerfully, “Oh, you might not recognize him. It’s the little wolf cub that the former Demon King raised.”

Yan Yunqing: …

“The Demon King raised… a little wolf cub?” Yan Yunqing repeated with difficulty. “The Demon King I’m thinking of?”

Lillian: “Which other Demon King could there be? It’s that Demon King. Barros was a little cub he picked up from the battlefield. There aren’t many records of him, only that he was a beastman with a high degree of reversion, and often couldn’t control himself from turning into a little wolf cub.”

Yan Yunqing was silent, his eyes wandering.

Ah… it’s Barros.

Of course, he remembered this little wolf cub. In the mid-to-late stages of playing 《Demon King》, the divine war had entered a white-hot stage. Everywhere was a home destroyed by war, and countless children were forced to become orphans. Barros was one of them.

But Barros was special. He was a beastman with a high degree of reversion. His father was a werewolf, and his mother was a mixed-blood necromancer with succubus blood.

Logically speaking, his parents were so far apart in species that, due to reproductive isolation, he shouldn’t have been born at all. But he was born, and not long after birth, he reverted into a little wolf cub.

He wasn’t like a beastman, or a succubus, or even a human.

He was like an ordinary wild animal cub.

Barros’ birth was seen as a symbol of disaster by his father’s werewolf tribe. Sure enough, the tribe was soon affected by the divine war. Almost the entire tribe died, and the few remaining old and weak couldn’t hold out until rescue arrived—and besides, who was rescuing anyone in that era?

At that time, the Demon King’s army happened to pass by and saw gods fighting there. They conveniently killed the two fighting gods.

The Demon King saw the dying little wolf cub in the ruins.

At that time, the Demon King already had many subordinates. Yan Yunqing considered again and again when controlling the contracted subordinates. He didn’t want anyone who wasn’t strong or had no special abilities. Seeing this little wolf cub, he didn’t treat it as a different species at all, but as an ordinary newborn animal. He didn’t think too much about it and picked it up to raise as a dog.

—Because Yan Yunqing had just raised a puppy in reality at this time. Out of love for his own, he really couldn’t bear to see this puppy-like wolf cub die in the ruins.

It was fair to raise a dog outside the game and another dog inside the game.

Who knew that after picking up this little wolf cub, before the Demon King had time to give it socialization training or teach it how to chase frisbees, sit down, shake hands, or roll over, the little wolf cub turned into a child.

The Demon King himself: …

No, wasn’t the beastman reversion phenomenon in the game setting supposed to happen after adulthood? How could a child revert?

Yan Yunqing felt deeply deceived, but he had already picked up the wolf cub, and it often looked at him with wet, round eyes, so Yan Yunqing couldn’t bear to throw the child away.

So, the first minor appeared in the Demon King’s team—it was just that this minor often appeared as a wolf cub. Over time, only those close to the Demon King knew that he had a very imposing wolf, and didn’t know that it was actually a beastman.

Yan Yunqing gave this wolf cub a name, Barros, the same name as Cerberus.

Because it was the first cub he raised, like his dog at home, it was honored to take his last name, Yan Barros. It was just that the first name and the last name didn’t match, and it was also the Demon King’s last name, so few people called Yan Barros by his full name. They all directly called him Barros.

Yan Yunqing was also more used to calling him Barros.

“So, how did he establish ‘Blood Mist’?”

Lillian casually said, “Because the Demon King disappeared. Doesn’t a dog become a stray dog when it loses its owner? Since the Demon King disappeared, Barros also disappeared. Later, the two great empires were established, and the world also ushered in the first monster wave. At that time, the major races had just experienced the war and hadn’t recovered yet, and they were plunged into a new war.”

“Barros didn’t know where he came from. He gathered a bunch of humans and aliens who had lost their homes because of the war and established ‘Blood Mist,’ probably wanting to find a dog leash for himself. After all, after the Demon King disappeared, Barros was like a mad dog biting people indiscriminately.”

“Biting people indiscriminately?” Yan Yunqing asked suspiciously.

Lillian didn’t feel guilty at all. “Yeah, I’m not talking nonsense. It’s all recorded in the first Elf King’s notes. The great Elf King was even bitten a few times by that mad dog!”

Yan Yunqing: …?

Really? He remembered that Barros was quite obedient, and usually very well-behaved. He did whatever he was told and especially liked to act cute.

Logically speaking, the Demon King had two dogs. One was the loyal dog in name—the taciturn angel Theodore; the other was the little wolf Barros, who looked especially like a dog, acted especially like a dog, and wagged his tail and stuck out his tongue crazily when he saw the Demon King.

Barros went crazy and bit people everywhere? And even bit Sylph? Really?

How could these two, one a sexually cold high mountain flower and the other a cute little puppy who likes to act cute, be related?

Yan Yunqing was skeptical. “So, Barros established ‘Blood Mist,’ and by the way, helped some humans and aliens who had lost their homes. That doesn’t sound like a problem. How did he become infamous?”

Lillian rolled her eyes. “Yeah, how did he become infamous? Isn’t it because he’s even more insane than Theodore, biting people everywhere like a mad dog? Several of the Demon King’s former subordinates have been attacked by him, and he goes crazy from time to time!”

“Really, his strength isn’t even the strongest. The reason he dares to play like this is because those subordinates are thinking of old times and haven’t completely wiped out his power. Otherwise, he would have died long ago.”

There is no compatriotism between alien races, and even various frictions and life-and-death situations occur between them. If it weren’t for a Demon King in the middle acting as a mediator, it would have been impossible for alien races to unite and create an empire.

So the reason Barros didn’t get killed for going crazy everywhere was really because those former subordinates were thinking of him as the dog raised by the Demon King and had put up with it a little.

Lillian muttered softly, “I’ve been annoyed with him for a long time.”

“What did you say?” Yan Yunqing didn’t hear clearly.

Lillian said seriously, “Nothing. Anyway, that’s it. There aren’t many later records. At that time, the first Elf King had already returned to the Mother Tree, and the elves weren’t paying attention to Barros either. I only know that this organization has undergone several changes, and it has changed several leaders along the way. It has only recently claimed to be a mercenary group in the last hundred years, and the leader has also been changed to this Yochiel.”

“What about Barros? Is he dead?”

Lillian’s eyes drifted. “Who knows? Maybe he’s dead. Beastmen aren’t long-lived species either, and besides, he was an extremely unstable beastman. He may have died in that remote corner long ago.”

Yan Yunqing was a little regretful. He always heard about the deaths of people he used to know, and his heart did feel a little bad.

Two thousand years is still too long, too difficult to overcome.

It’s a pity. He also said that the drawing of Barros after he grew up was really imposing. It would be great if he could raise another one.

Yan Yunqing looked at his mission progress. It was obviously unreliable to just inquire about ‘Blood Mist’ from Lillian. After telling him so much information, his investigation progress had only advanced a pitiful 6%.

Sure enough, he still had to find a chance to contact them.

Lillian realized that Yan Yunqing had fallen into thought. She was a little unhappy and stuffed a piece of pastry into Yan Yunqing’s mouth. “Don’t think about that Blood Mist thing anymore! They’re just a bunch of lunatics. Let’s talk about something else!”

Yan Yunqing was suddenly stuffed with a mouthful of pastry. He chewed it twice subconsciously, and his brows furrowed instantly. He spat out the stuff in his mouth with a “Pooh” sound. “What kind of pastry is this? Why is it sour?!”

Yan Yunqing’s entire face wrinkled into a ball. Just chewing those two bites, his teeth almost fell out. His mouth was constantly producing saliva to neutralize the sourness.

Lillian looked back, smeared the remaining pastry with her fingertip, and put it in her mouth to taste it. She was also shocked by the sourness. She suddenly realized, “Ah, it’s sour powder! Hmm, let me think… Oh, this plate of pastry seems to have been taken from the carriage of a pregnant noblewoman. So she’s pregnant!”

Yan Yunqing: “…You even steal snacks from pregnant women?”

Lillian said innocently, “I didn’t know. That woman and her husband were both fat, and I didn’t know she was pregnant!”

Yan Yunqing covered his forehead, not commenting on Lillian’s behavior.

Lillian changed a fruit and stuffed it into Yan Yunqing’s mouth again. “This is a honey fruit. It’s very sweet. I specially snatched it from a noble young master. He cried so loudly when he found out the fruit was gone!”

Yan Yunqing took a bite, and the sweet juice spurted out from his bite, spreading the sweet taste on his tongue. Taking a bite immediately made him feel like his happiness had increased a lot.

This honey fruit is really sweet.

Yan Yunqing chewed, chewed, chewed. “Not bad, this one is delicious. You have good taste. You can take more of this kind of fruit next time.”

Lillian was very proud. “That’s right, my taste is unmatched!”

The elf and human shared the snacks that Lillian had foraged from outside, eating happily.

Lillian seemed to suddenly remember something and said, “Oh right, I forgot to tell you. I seemed to see Cornelia when I was out stealing… no, when I was out looking for fun.”

“Cornelia?” Yan Yunqing was stunned.

They had separated after escaping from the auction house last time. He and Lillian had left the capital and gone to Sunset Village, while Cornelia had stayed in the city to find news about her sister.

“She seems to be mixed up with Fei Wu’s people…” Lillian wasn’t sure. “I didn’t pay much attention. I just saw her in a flash. She was walking with a group of maids dressed as maids from the prince’s residence, and she seemed to have gotten on the same carriage in the end?”

Yan Yunqing hesitated. “So Cornelia has sneaked into the prince’s residence to find out news about her sister? But her appearance is so conspicuous. Isn’t she afraid of being recognized by Fei Wu?”

Cornelia had been shown at the auction as a commodity, and Fei Wu was one of the people who participated in the auction at the time, and had seen Cornelia.

Wouldn’t Cornelia be discovered immediately if she tried to sneak in?

Or does Cornelia have another way to sneak in?

“I don’t know. In the blink of an eye, Cornelia got on the carriage. There were a few powerful guys around her, and I didn’t dare get too close.” Lillian shrugged. “But didn’t we say before that we were going to kill Fei Wu? Maybe Cornelia can help?”

That’s right. With just the two of them, the possibility of infiltrating the prince’s residence, killing the Fifth Prince, and escaping successfully isn’t high. It would be much easier if there was an inside man, right?