Chương 62: Chapter 61: The Sweetest Bait

"Let's go take a look. Maybe we can bring back some new information too." As soon as Harlan finished speaking, he started after the white orb of light. But after only two steps, he noticed something strange. It was too quiet. Where were the others' footsteps? Harlan turned around in confusion and found Mirelle and the others still gathered where they had been, standing in a circle and whispering among themselves. When Tessa noticed him looking back, she even raised a hand and waved in greeting.

Then, as though nothing had happened, she turned around and resumed the discussion.

"... Am I really the captain?" Harlan staggered backward two steps. His body swayed several times before he sank to his knees, utterly dejected.

"Should I just crawl back and lead my old party again?" He became completely lost in his own world. He did not look up until someone reached out and patted his shoulder. Colvin stood in front of him. Colvin caught Harlan by the arm and hauled him to his feet.

"Hey, you're our captain. Why are you kneeling here? Tired? Or do you want to head back and rest?" The sudden show of concern cleared away some of the gloom hanging over Harlan. Even so, he still asked with a deeply troubled expression,"Do you really see me as your captain? Why do I feel like I'm not important at all?"

"Haha! Don't overthink it!" Colvin gave him several hearty pats on the back, then pointed ahead. Harlan followed the direction of his finger and saw that Mirelle, Dane, and the others were already standing near the white orb, waiting for them to catch up.

"See? Everyone's following your orders, aren't they?"

"Is... is that what's happening?" Colvin closed his eyes and continued patting Harlan's back while pushing him forward.

"That's right, that's right. Exactly. Now come on, let's keep moving, Captain." The gloom vanished from Harlan's face at once. As though he had rediscovered his confidence as captain, he puffed out his chest and strode toward the orb. He failed to notice the other five exchange glances behind him before sighing in unison. Doro lowered her voice.

"Should we find a chance to replace him after all?"

"Wouldn't that be a little too cruel to the kid?" Tessa gave a helpless smile.

"Besides, none of us wanted the captain's position in the first place, remember?" Dane shrugged.

"Whatever you decide."

"Let's leave things as they are for now." Mirelle watched Harlan stride ahead with renewed confidence and sighed softly.

"Otherwise, dealing with him when he starts sulking will be troublesome too."

"But sometimes he really is too reckless," Doro complained. Colvin smiled and waved a hand.

"Leave it for now. Leave it for now." Harlan, who was walking at the front, turned around again and shouted at the five people still trailing slowly behind him,"Hurry up! The orb's about to float away!"

"We're coming." The party followed the white orb deeper into the forest shrouded in thin mist. The occasional birdcall drifted through the trees, but apart from that, their surroundings were frighteningly quiet. Harlan walked alone at the very front of the party, keeping close to the white orb. His brow was faintly furrowed, and his right hand remained on the hilt at his waist. With his body lowered slightly, he advanced with care.

Dane and Tessa continued to follow at the rear, one on each flank, keeping watch on the surrounding woods. Doro walked casually in the middle of the party, holding her light hand crossbow as she loaded another bolt into place. Colvin looked around. After confirming that there was no immediate danger, he drew his dagger again and examined the blade beneath the faint light filtering through the trees, apparently checking whether any blood remained on it. Mirelle's short staff had already extended into a spear.

As she walked with the group, she kept her gaze on the mist around Harlan, never once lowering her guard. After they had gone a little farther, Doro rolled her eyes impatiently and opened her mouth to complain. Before she could speak, however, Harlan suddenly stopped at the front.

"Wait. There's a cave ahead." Harlan slowly drew his longsword and raised a hand, signaling for everyone to gather around. This time, no one delayed. After each of them checked their surroundings, they assembled beside Harlan. Just as Harlan was about to discuss their next move, the white orb that had been drifting leisurely ahead suddenly accelerated and flew straight into the depths of the cave.

"Damn it!" Harlan slapped his thigh and ran after it.

"Just follow behind me! Don't get too close, and watch out for traps!" Mirelle and Colvin did not hesitate. They quickened their pace, following a short distance behind Harlan.

"That idiot... It couldn't look any more like a trap." Doro curled her lip, but she still gripped her hand crossbow and followed at an unhurried pace. Dane and Tessa remained at the very rear. As they advanced, they quickly tied several thin cords strung with bells between roots and low branches along the way. After ensuring that anything approaching from behind would set the bells ringing, they hurried to catch up with the others. When Dane and Tessa reached the cave entrance, they did not continue inside.

Instead, they took up positions on either side and watched for anything approaching from behind. Harlan quickly followed the orb deeper into the cave. The cave was completely dark. The only illumination came from the faint glow of the white orb itself. Its light was extremely limited, revealing no more than five paces of ground ahead of Harlan. He did not dare relax for even a moment. He carefully watched the uneven stone beneath his feet while listening closely to his companions' footsteps behind him.

After running a little farther, the white orb suddenly stopped. Harlan stopped as well. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. When he saw what lay ahead, he froze. Then he slowly straightened, staring forward with a strange expression. Two skeletons lay on the ground. Tattered clothes and decayed leather armor still hung from their bones, and the two skeletons were locked tightly in each other's arms.

Not far away, a treasure chest huddled quietly in a corner of the cave, facing the two skeletons.

"What the hell...?" Harlan murmured,"Did these two die for love? And they picked a spot right in front of a treasure chest?" He did not approach recklessly. Instead, he furrowed his brow and edged forward little by little, extending his longsword to move aside one skeleton's arm. By then, Colvin and Mirelle had also arrived. Both of them froze briefly when they saw the scene.

"Harlan, what happened here?"

"Is the chest trapped?" Colvin sheathed his dagger and went over the surrounding rock walls and ground inch by inch. Aside from the treasure chest and the two skeletons lying nearby, he found no other obvious clues. The white orb swayed from side to side around the chest twice before settling quietly above its lid. Harlan observed it for a moment, then gathered his courage, stepped forward, and crouched beside the two skeletons. He reached between the ribs of one skeleton and pulled out a rusted dagger.

It was badly corroded, and more than half its blade was missing. Harlan looked down at the dagger, then at the two skeletons locked in an embrace.

"Looks like they didn't die for love." He placed the dagger aside and clicked his tongue softly.

"They probably fought over the loot and ended up dying here together." Mirelle silently studied the two skeletons. After a long silence, she let out a slow sigh.

"... Was it worth it?" Harlan rose slowly and turned toward Mirelle, shaking his head.

"It's not about whether it was worth it. That's what adventurers are like." He fell silent for a moment and let out a long breath. Then he looked seriously at Mirelle and Colvin.

"But I would never do something like this. You can trust me to watch your backs."

"Save it." Doro, who had only just arrived, gave a cold snort.

"You only dare say that because you couldn't pull something like this off anyway." Harlan's shoulders slumped, and he looked at her helplessly.

"Hey, what kind of person do you think I am?"

"An idiot who couldn't pull something like that off, but one we can at least trust." Harlan froze for a moment. His mouth fell slightly open as he stammered blankly,"Th-thank you?" Doro walked over and casually patted his arm. Harlan hurriedly moved aside. She passed him without another glance, crouched beside the two skeletons, and searched them quickly. She found nothing else worth noting. After standing up, she turned toward Harlan and spoke in a vicious tone.

"Take everyone else and move away from the chest. I'm going to inspect it."

"Oh. Oh..." Although Harlan looked confused, he obediently turned toward Mirelle and Colvin.

"Well, you two, let's head back and meet up with Dane and Tessa." Doro did not start right away. Instead, she planted both hands on her hips and glared at Harlan and the others. Once she was sure they had retreated far enough, she gave a satisfied snort, turned back to the treasure chest, and crouched beside it. She did not open it right away. Instead, she took out a short dagger and lightly tapped the lid and the wooden panels around it with the pommel.

At the same time, she listened carefully for any unusual sounds coming from inside. Once she confirmed that nothing seemed wrong, Doro lay flat on the ground and carefully examined the boundary between the bottom of the chest and the rocky floor, searching for any hidden wires, pressure plates, or other mechanisms. Good. Nothing unusual here either. Doro let out a small breath. She removed a coil of slender steel wire from her waist, followed by an iron piton with a ring and a small hammer.

First, she hammered the piton into the rock wall above the chest. She tugged hard on it several times to ensure it would not come loose easily. Then she threaded the steel wire through the ring and carefully worked its curved, hook-like end into the gap beneath the lid. Her movements were extremely light, but fine beads of sweat gradually appeared across her forehead.

Once the wire had caught firmly on the inside edge of the lid, Doro took hold of the remaining length and slowly retreated to where Harlan and the others were waiting.

"Do you really need to be that careful?"

"Shut up." Doro glared at Harlan.

"Next time, find yourself a shield and stand at the front while you open the chest yourself." Harlan wisely closed his mouth. Doro drew a deep breath and eased the wire back. As the wire gradually drew taut, the chest's lid rose little by little. Even after it had been pulled completely open, nothing unusual happened inside the cave. Harlan lifted his chin and raised his eyebrows at Doro. He did not say a single word, but his expression said it all. Doro's face went dark.

"Next time, you'd better walk over and open the chest yourself! Don't call me!" Harlan hurriedly raised both hands and lowered his voice.

"I was wrong, I was wrong! You're the best! Our party couldn't possibly do without an expert rogue like you!" Doro's face softened a little. She plopped down on the ground.

"Go look for yourself. I need a break."

"Rest as much as you need. I'll go take a look first." Harlan nodded repeatedly at her. The instant he finished speaking, he ran toward the treasure chest without looking back. Colvin and Mirelle exchanged glances. Colvin rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Mirelle let out two helpless chuckles before slowly following. Harlan reached the treasure chest and crouched beside it without the slightest concern for appearances, eagerly checking what lay inside. The chest contained a necklace and two bulging burlap sacks.

Without thinking much about it, Harlan picked up the necklace first. The instant his fingers touched it, a light screen appeared before him. [Romila's Necklace] [The sweeter and more tempting the fruit, the more easily it stirs the greed within the human heart.] [This necklace once belonged to Romila the Swindler. She spread rumors far and wide, claiming that treasure left behind by a bandit gang was hidden in a cave outside town, luring countless people onto the path of treasure hunting.] [Romila never admitted to her crimes. She always believed that the tragedies that befell those people were not caused by her, but by the greed in their own hearts.] [Effect: While worn, [Lie Detection] can be used three times per day to determine whether a target no higher than Silver rank is deliberately attempting to deceive the wearer while speaking.] Holding the necklace, Harlan scratched the back of his head. His eyebrows, raised in anticipation, drooped.

"Detect lies? Boring." He turned and casually tossed the plain silver necklace toward Mirelle.

"Here. Catch." Mirelle hurriedly caught it. The instant the necklace touched her hand, the same light screen appeared before her. Harlan raised his head and stared up at the ceiling of the cave in frustration.

"Damn it. Why couldn't it be something good like Bonecrusher's Thumb Ring? We've challenged this place so many times, so why have we never found one...?" Mirelle stared at the information on the light screen, her eyes widening. Only someone like Harlan could possibly think this necklace was useless. He really was an idiot who thought with nothing but his muscles. But she quickly shook her head. No. Harlan was merely careless whenever something failed to interest him.

When an actual tactical decision had to be made, he was usually quite reliable. Harlan then grabbed the two burlap sacks at the bottom of the chest, heaved them out, and placed them side by side.

"Whoa, these are heavy!" He patted one of the bulging sacks, excitement spreading across his face.

"Even if there's nothing else good in the chest, these two bags alone make it worth it. That's money inside, right?" Harlan crouched eagerly and untied the cord around one sack. When its mouth opened, he found it filled with old Freyland silver coins, their surfaces dull and mottled.

"We're rich! Haha! An entire sack of silver coins, and there are two of them!" Harlan became so excited that he started waving his arms and legs, dancing around the two sacks on the spot. Hearing his shout, Colvin and Mirelle hurried over to the chest. Colvin reached into the sack and removed several coins. He studied them beneath the faint light of the white orb, then lightly scraped the edge of one with his dagger. Beneath the mark, the same silver-white color remained.

"It's real silver. At least they aren't fakes with only a layer of silver on the outside." Mirelle picked up one of the coins and turned it over several times, her brow furrowing slightly.

"This design... I've never seen a silver coin like this before."

"Oh, who cares?" Harlan laughed and hooked an arm around Colvin's shoulders.

"It's real silver! With two sacks this big, even after the six of us split it evenly, we'll each make a fortune!" Harlan was making so much noise that even Dane and Tessa, who had originally remained near the cave entrance to keep watch, were drawn over. When Doro approached the two burlap sacks, she did not look as delighted as the others. She studied them with growing suspicion for several moments, then tilted her head slightly.

"Wait, Harlan."

"The sound is wrong." The smile on Harlan's face stiffened. He looked down at the sack full of silver coins.

"What's wrong with it?" Doro did not answer. She stepped forward quickly and lightly kicked the lower half of one burlap sack with the tip of her boot. Instead of the clear clinking that should have come from a large quantity of silver coins, the sack produced a dull, jumbled scraping sound. Doro's expression turned grim. She crouched at once, drew her dagger, and stabbed it into the sack near the bottom. Then she pulled the blade sharply upward.

With the sound of tearing cloth, a large number of flat stones roughly the size of silver coins slid out through the opening and struck the rocky floor one after another. Only a layer of genuine old Freyland silver coins had been spread across the top of the sack. The smile on Harlan's face froze completely. His knees gave way, and he collapsed to the ground once more, clutching his head and wailing. The expressions on everyone else's faces stiffened at the same time.

Just then, a faint cracking sound echoed through the cave, repeatedly rebounding from the surrounding rock walls. Doro snapped back to attention and looked around warily, but she could not determine which direction it had come from.

"What is it, Doro?" Ignoring Harlan, who was once again kneeling on the ground and wailing, Mirelle turned toward Doro. Doro said nothing. She crouched quickly and pressed an ear against the cold stone floor. Less than two seconds later, her expression changed sharply.

"This is bad! Everyone, run!" Before anyone could move, countless cracks suddenly spread across the ground beneath them. Doro sprang to her feet and turned to run for the cave entrance, but instinctively glanced back at the others. That single moment of hesitation was all it took for the rocky floor beneath them to collapse completely. Before any of them could react, they plunged together into the deep, pitch-black pit that had suddenly opened below.

A jumble of screams from men and women alike echoed through the cave. The sound rapidly faded as they continued falling, eventually disappearing altogether. Silence returned to the cave. Only the white orb remained hovering above the pit, bobbing happily up and down. As though celebrating a job well done.