Arknightcraft Modpack
Chapter 520: Hooked the Wrong Fish
The power of the single-soldier rocket launcher was even stronger than Steven had imagined. By the time the thick smoke produced by the explosion finally dispersed around him, the tattooed brutes who had just moments ago been aggressively looking for trouble with him had already vanished.
To be more precise, even the black-clad men on the ground—who had merely had broken legs before—were now nowhere to be seen. Where the bar had once stood, only a field of wreckage remained, the aftermath of the explosion.
Steven had only ever used this thing to bombard a Collapsal before. This was the first time he had detonated it at such close range. Fortunately, the only people present had been the bar members who had clearly come with ill intentions in the first place, so Steven didn't feel much psychological burden about having blown them up.
What surprised him more was the girl beside him—the one he had even considered protecting a moment ago. After the crystal-like glass barrier surrounding her shattered, she had actually managed to avoid being affected by the explosion at all. That made Steven quite curious.
It seemed she really hadn't been lying earlier. If he hadn't intervened, perhaps the shield around her alone would have been enough to block those people's attacks.
While Steven examined Lin Yuhsia with a curious gaze, she, as the person involved, stared at him like she was looking at a monster. She had witnessed everything that had just happened, so she knew that the terrifying scene before her had been entirely caused by the tube in the young man's hands.
To be honest, she had only ever seen explosions of this scale from the secret weapon used by Wei Yenwu. But that required an enormous amount of Originium Arts to sustain, not to mention that it was a secret only members of the Yan imperial family were able to wield.
Yet the thing Steven had just used—and casually tossed aside after firing—didn't appear to rely on any Originium Arts at all. In fact, the only thing he had done the entire time was point it at the enemy and pull the trigger.
Even a three-year-old child could theoretically do something like that.
Did such a dangerous thing really exist in this world?
Lin Yuhsia had basically ruled out the possibility that Steven might be one of the legendary Laterano people. It was true that those people loved explosions and even held festivals celebrating them. But compared to what had just happened here, their explosions were nothing on this level—let alone the fact that Steven's weapon didn't even require Originium to function.
No matter how she thought about it, just imagining a weapon with such terrifying power—one that couldn't even be detected—being brought into a modern mobile city like Lungmen by someone like Steven was enough to cause unimaginable panic.
She didn't even have time to wonder how Steven, an ordinary person, had managed to remain completely unharmed at the very center of the explosion.
At this moment, Lin Yuhsia had only one thought left in her mind: no matter what, she had to bring the boy in front of her under control.
The deafening explosion could be heard clearly even beyond the slums. Almost the instant it happened, the rulers of the slums—and even the authorities of Lungmen itself—noticed the disturbance that could not possibly be ignored. Practically at once, people from all sides began to stir because of it.
Steven had just been about to step forward to ask the girl if she was alright—perhaps even whether he needed to cover her medical expenses—but in the blink of an eye he noticed two figures emerging from a nearby corner.
Both wore strange bamboo hats similar to his own and were dressed in black raincoats like those worn during rainy weather.
The two didn't approach him, yet Steven felt as though he had been locked onto by wild beasts. It seemed that if he made even the slightest movement, the two would instantly launch an attack.
"Hmm… That's not the kind of fish I was trying to hook."
Seeing their attire and the look in their eyes, Steven quickly guessed that they were likely some kind of elite unit responsible for maintaining Lungmen's stability and order, something similar to internal security troops.
Scratching his head, Steven didn't seem particularly bothered by their vigilance. What troubled him instead was that the person he had originally intended to lure out was only the Rat King.
Compared to Steven, who felt a bit awkward about hooking the wrong fish, Lin Yuhsia frowned slightly when she saw the two familiar colleagues. When she noticed that they seemed ready to move forward and capture Steven, she quietly made a hand signal toward them.
She wasn't sure whether Steven might suddenly pull out another huge tube like the one he had used earlier. After all, they were still in the slums. Causing another explosion here would never be a good thing. Avoiding conflict was clearly the best solution for the moment.
Moreover, although Steven looked like he probably had a few screws loose in his head, from their earlier conversation it was clear that he wasn't the type who couldn't be reasoned with. If they could somehow absorb the technology behind the weapons in his hands into Lungmen, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.
"You seem pretty familiar with people like that too. Besides being some kind of gang boss's daughter, are you also secretly a member of some assassin organization or something?"
Steven had naturally noticed the subtle exchanges between Lin Yuhsia and the two men in black raincoats, so he bluntly pointed it out.
"…You're thinking too much. Shouldn't we be leaving first? Such a huge explosion just happened, there's no way the Lungmen Guard Department will ignore it. After that, even stranger people might get involved."
Lin Yuhsia frowned and shot Steven an annoyed glance. The things he focused on were always completely unexpected. In this situation, shouldn't they be getting away from the scene as fast as possible? Why did he still have the mood to worry about her identity?
"Nope. I came here to kick the door down and wait for someone. If I cause such a huge commotion but don't get to see the person I came for, wouldn't that be a huge loss for me? If you want to leave, go ahead. We're even now anyway."
Shaking his head calmly, Steven simply sat down on the ruins of the bar. Holding the AK he had somehow produced again like a walking cane, he looked exactly like a debt collector who had come to demand payment.
Since he had already made such a huge scene, Steven didn't believe the so-called Rat King would just ignore it. After all, the guy was the underground boss of the slums. Even if he had to walk here himself, he should still arrive faster than the Guard Department.
"What kind of thinking process is that? So who exactly are you waiting for? Do you really have to go this far?"
Lin Yuhsia had already given up trying to understand Steven's thought process. Looking at the boy in front of her, she felt like all the headaches she'd ever had in her life combined might not equal the one she had today.
What had happened here would definitely attract the attention of the Guard Department. If that happened, it would be inconvenient for her to show herself. And the ones from the Guard Department who would likely handle this case, that pink-intestine dragon and char siu cat, were famously rigid and unwilling to show any leniency.
If Steven fell into their hands, who knew what might happen.
The best option right now would be to take Steven away first, keep him under control, and then try to pry information about those weapons out of him.
"Mm? I'm waiting for that so-called Rat King to show up. I just blew up one of his bars, no matter what, he has to come out and talk to me for the sake of his reputation, right?"
Steven shrugged. He rarely hid his true intentions, it was just that most people wouldn't believe him.
"The Rat King? Fine. Then you should come with me even more. I'll take you to him."
Lin Yuhsia froze slightly when she heard the familiar name, but quickly recovered. She suddenly grabbed Steven's hand and tried to pull him away from the scene.
"Huh? How can you find him? Isn't he supposed to be super mysterious?"
"That's because I'm his daughter. Is that enough?"
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The two figures that Steven sees are the Shadow Guard, here's how they looks like:
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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Tn: I updated the story daily, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
Latest Chapter: Chapter 617: A Bold Guess[1]
Link: https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628[2]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628
[2] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628