Chapter 14: Murloc Village

Early the next morning, before Leon had even woken up, the thief had already left, leaving the hunter and others to tidy up the campsite.

The Shaman, with little to do, began speaking to Leon: "Today's battle won't be as troublesome as yesterday, but it's still not safe. Most importantly, we no longer have the advantage of the terrain today, so you must be even more obedient."

After spending a day with the group, Leon had grown somewhat familiar with the routine. He responded bluntly, "So, how are you arranging me today? Hide me again and not let me watch the battlefield?"

"No need." The Shaman smiled and said, "Yesterday, we didn't let you look up because the jackals have petrifying eyes. If you accidentally looked at them, we wouldn't have been able to save you. Today is different; we have a great spot for you to watch."

As he spoke, the Shaman led Leon down a small path. They hadn't gone far when they saw corpses lying on the roadside. The Shaman explained, "This is the thief's work. He got up early to clear the way. Today, the boss we're fighting is in the village. Time is tight, so we can't take our time like we did yesterday."

As they continued walking, more and more withered trees appeared around them. Leon noticed that the trees, affected by the nearby shadow energy, didn't grow very tall or lush, and some of them were also damaged by people.

Occasionally, weak-looking small animals would appear nearby. From their movements, it was clear that their only purpose was to serve as food.

Before long, the group arrived at the coastline. The Shaman pointed to a cliff and said, "See that spot? That's the highest place nearby. From there, you can see the entire mountain, and it's also the murlocs' observation post for the whole village. There's a bronze bell there. As soon as outsiders appear in the village, they ring the bell to alert everyone. Our first step is to take control of that spot."

Leon looked confused and shook his head. "I don't understand."

Hearing Leon say this, the Shaman laughed. "It's okay if you don't understand. This is knowledge bought with many lives. Actually, the logic is simple. This isn't a game. The murlocs can't stay on that platform forever. They need water, so they usually switch guards every hour."

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Leon still shook his head. "I don't really get it. What's the connection between taking that spot and the murlocs guarding it?"

"Of course, there's a connection. As I said, it's used to monitor the village. When outsiders enter the village, the bell rings."

Leon looked at the Shaman, still puzzled, but nodded in understanding.

"So, ringing the bell means there are outsiders in the village, and all the murlocs will come out to fight. Now, if we ring it a few more times, what do you think they'll do?" The Shaman asked with a smile.

"Send someone out to check if something's wrong here?" Leon quickly replied.

"If they were that smart, it'd be great." The Shaman shook his head and explained, "They're not that clever. They'll come running out when they hear the bell, but by then, they won't be as eager."

Now that everything was clear, Leon understood the plan. He asked, "What do you want me to do?"

"Smart. I've been telling you all this to give you a task—ring the bell." The Shaman looked up at the platform and nodded. "It seems the thief has already cleared the platform. You'll be safe there. You don't need to ring the bell continuously. Just wait until you see us in a safe position, ready for battle, and then ring it once."

As they talked, the two climbed up the mountain behind the cliff. As the Shaman said, this place was relatively safe. The platform was halfway up the cliff, and apart from a rope, there was no other way down.

At this point, the murlocs on the platform had already been killed by the thief.

After helping Leon climb onto the platform, the thief quickly left.

Standing on the platform, Leon looked down and saw the murloc village below. Half of the village was built on the water, and the other half wasn't on solid ground either, but rather in muddy areas. Some small murlocs were running around in front of and behind the houses. On the largest platform, several murloc guards were patrolling, and from a distance, he could see a few crates piled up in the center of the platform.

However, the largest boss hadn't appeared, which puzzled Leon. He was about to take a closer look when he noticed the Squad had already arrived near the village.

Once again, the thief led the way, easily killing the guards at the entrance of the village and opening a path.

Normally, this kind of movement would have been noticed by the murlocs on the platform, but Leon understood that it wasn't yet time for the signal the Shaman had mentioned. So, he just watched from the platform.

With no one stopping them, the hunter group quickly occupied a small house. Leon could even see the Shaman looking up and smiling at him.

Watching the hunter summon his pet and seeing the Shaman plant a totem on the ground, Leon knew the time had come. He picked up a stone from the ground and struck the bronze bell on the platform.

The bell didn't make a loud sound, but it traveled far. Almost instantly, the entire murloc village was in an uproar. A large number of murlocs armed with weapons rushed out of their houses.

However, by this time, the Squad had already hidden themselves well. Apart from the murlocs in the nearby houses, none of them noticed the presence of the Squad.

The Squad acted swiftly, drawing the murlocs into the very house they had just occupied before the murlocs could call for reinforcements.

During this time, Leon got to witness their combat abilities firsthand. They coordinated flawlessly. The druid, who had transformed into a bear, swept through the murlocs, pulling them all together. Then, the thief and hunter took over. One fought in melee, the other from a distance, but both had poisoned weapons.

In an instant, the murlocs held by the druid all turned green.

The rest of the battle was relatively simple. The murlocs weren't very powerful on land, and with the added poison and confusion, they were quickly wiped out by the Squad.

After finishing off the murlocs, the Squad didn't make any immediate moves. They remained hidden in the house, and when no enemies came, the murlocs returned to their homes.

The Squad quickly took control of another nearby house and prepared for battle. Once again, Leon rang the bell, luring all the murlocs in the village out.