Flashy Adventurer System : Show Off to Get Stronger! - Chapter 649

Chapter 649: Assault On Stronghold Fifteen
Above Southwind City, dark clouds loomed.

It was unclear if the heavens were aware of the bloodshed that day in the city.

Yet, it felt as though they were, as the sky wept, offering a mournful lament for the fallen.

Despite no one truly wishing to take lives or lose their own, they had no choice—they had to fight for what they believed to be just.

In just thirteen minutes since the battle had begun, many were already wounded, and a few had fallen.

Meanwhile, at the west gate of Southwind City, the sound of numerous footsteps echoed, catching the attention of the garrisoned guards, who were without any available reinforcements.

Upon realizing that more than twenty men donning black robes, white masks, and Hadean Varsa crests were madly bolting for the city gates, the two guards were horrified.

From what they heard, even mithril-ranked adventurers had no business intervening in the battles and the few who did immediately lost their lives.

Now, more than twenty adamantite-level terrorists were upon them. It was only natural for them to be terrified.

They were but mere former emerald-ranked adventurers, after all.

Hence, without even the slightest whiff of resistance, Shye and his men were able to take control of the west gate, as the two guards merely fled without even trying to stop them.

Shye was naturally happy that he didn’t have to hurt such innocent people.

He quickly scanned to his left and spotted the towering building. It appeared to be a consumable shop on the outside, but in reality, it was one of Dweezel Hawkins’ headquarters, where the item they needed to retrieve was hidden.

‘Hawkins Stronghold Fifteen, huh?’ Shye mused, his men behind him awaiting his orders.

They didn’t know who their new commander was, which sparked some curiosity.

However, seeing Maverick Crowley—a trusted and prominent figure in the organization—place such confidence in Shye, which was proven by the commander offering only a brief explanation of the plan, made them more inclined to follow Shye’s lead.

“Alright, everyone, let’s move! Split into three groups of eight and nine and attack the shop from three separate entrances. We’ll regroup on the second floor and proceed together. Understood?”

“Yes, commander!”

Shortly after giving his orders, Shye led a group of eight through the shop’s main entrance, kicking down the sturdy titanium door with a single blow.

This act naturally impressed his subordinates, further deepening their trust and respect for him.

With a commander like him—seemingly even stronger than Maverick—leading their hidden strike force, their chances of successfully retrieving the item were bound to increase significantly.

Shye and his forces tore through the opposition, who were caught off-guard.

Most of their adamantite-level defenders came to help stop the main force, and only around ten remained.

Unfortunately, eight of the ten moved toward the main entrance—a grave mistake with Shye stationed there.

Had they chosen another entrance to defend, they might have stood a better chance of minimizing their losses.

Meanwhile, the two remaining adventurers stood guard on the top floor of the stronghold, where Dweezel’s top researchers resided, along with the item they were tasked with retrieving.

Naturally, they were aware that they couldn’t defend the area on their own.

Thus, one worked tirelessly to set up traps, while the other used the mana communicator to request backup from those who had left to stop Hadean Varsa’s main force and from those stationed outside the city.

Shye and his strike force were in a battle against time.

***

“There it is…everyone, get in position.”

Inside a Death Zone, five young adventurers hid behind thick bushes, observing the movements of an enormous bull monster.

It was then that one of them suddenly received an urgent message.

However, the young man didn’t react, seemingly indifferent to the distress call.

A few moments later, Shirley, Siegfried, Lesurii, Kiin, and Harry took their positions.

Unfortunately, just as they launched their attack on their target monster, two apex (A) ranked creatures—a pair of lightning wyverns—suddenly appeared out of nowhere and began attacking them, thwarting their plans to swiftly defeat the bull monster.

“Tch! Shirley, I trust you, Lesurii, and Harry can handle this bull?” Kiin said abruptly, signaling Siegfried to take on one of the lightning wyverns while he dealt with the other.

“Yeah, I believe the three of us can defeat it,” Shirley replied without any hesitation.

Soon after, their party split up. Siegfried jumped atop the lightning wyvern’s head after dodging its huge maw.

On the other hand, Kiin fired a specific kind of arrow that somehow made the other wyvern go after him.

The next moment, only Shirley, Lesurii, and Harry remained.

Naturally, Shirley did her job, fronting for the other two. However, there was also a frown on her face as she did so.

It appeared that what Shye had told her was accurate—there was a rat in their midst, and it might be either Kiin or Siegfried.

She was understandably heartbroken.

After all, both were her close friends and discovering that one of them was a traitor was deeply painful.

***

“PUHAAHK!”

“Mordo!”

Screams of agony reverberated through the main entrance of Stronghold Fifteen as the eight adamantite-level defenders who had come to intercept Shye’s small force were quickly overpowered.

Shye swiftly eliminated two of them, while four of the remaining six were heavily injured, clearly outmatched by Shye’s team of eight.

Soon after, despite it being far too early, the six had no choice but to begin a strategic retreat toward the top floor, using the stronghold’s layout and traps to create distance between themselves and Shye’s forces.

Unfortunately for them, even retreating proved to be hard as Shye was way faster than all of them.

If not for the lethal traps that Shye had to deal with, they would’ve already been killed.

After about seven minutes of pursuing the defenders inside the stronghold, Shye laughed heartily at the cornered individuals, venting his frustration at having repeatedly failed to kill them.

The defenders, now reinforced by two additional members, stood behind two seemingly ancient barricades, forcing Shye and his army to attempt entrance two at a time.

Behind them was a huge door.

It seemed that they could no longer retreat because they had to protect what was inside at all costs, which naturally made Shye happy, believing that their group’s target item was inside the room.

With Shye and his enormous black shield in the lead, the terrorists were quickly able to breach the defenses, forcing the last eight defenders to fight for their lives.

Just as they were on the brink of being overwhelmed, an azure ray of light suddenly appeared behind them, and a figure wearing a golden hawk mask materialized.

“S-Sir Fifteenth Hawkling!”