Chapter 38 - Day CIV: The Grand Plan

I woke up very early, as usual. Even though, instead of getting up, I kept laying in the bed. There was no mattress, just some kind of fur, and wooden planks underneath. But for me, used to sleeping on the ground, or makeshift bedding made of cut twigs full of leaves, it was luxurious.

I lied down for around an hour, I guess, before I had to get up. Some people started to knock on the door of the room. Zhang Yong probably wanted to talk. I opened the door and was greeted by a bowl of cooked meat, and pieces of bread.

- Eat quickly, and come with me. I will wait here for you - Said a man who delivered my breakfast.

I just gave him a nod and took the food. I quickly ate it. Unfortunately, there was nothing to drink, but I didn't complain and followed the instructions. I was lead back to Zhang Yong's room.

- Good morning, Peter.

- Good morning. Should I call you Zhang Yong, or can I just use Yong?

- Depends on your plan.

I smiled a bit.

- Ok. Then let us not drag this out anymore. I just need your word, that if the plan will be good enough, you are gonna fulfill my requests from yesterday.

- Fine. Just talk.

- So... The rats are a bit different from goblins. You for sure noticed that goblins do not just tend to charge without thinking, they seem unable to fight in a different way. Rats are different. You could say more intelligent? They use the advantage of numbers, but not in a mindless way, by charging. They tend to surround and coordinate their attacks. Still, they are a bit clumsy, and also slow. Their equipment is better. I've seen shortswords, knives, and shields. They tend to put those to good use. They will only attack if they have a clear advantage, which is the main point of my plan.

He was listening very carefully. Giving slight nods from time to time.

- I used to sneak my way very close to their nest. They don't roam the forest but rather stick to the mound. I would kill one of them, and let the other alarm the rest. Then I would run away pretty far and hide. After a bit of waiting a group of scouts would reach my spot, and I would deal with them. Keep in mind that I was alone, and groups of scouts tend to be from five to eight rats. So with a clear advantage in numbers, they always attacked, instead of alarming the main force, which is their tactics. I would kill them, and made enough noise, to attack a new group, and so on, and so forth.

- I understand. It's a clever tactic. You are very observant. But you promised hundreds or even thousands of crystals every day...

-Yes. I just wanted to explain, so you would have a better understanding of how they do things. My plan is to set up a perimeter around the whole nest. Then send one or two people, to sneak closer, and kill one of the rats, while letting the remaining start the alarm. Then they would come back, and the rest would wait for the scouts to make their way through the forest. Then extermination begins. Your hunters would start with the scouts. Luring them in with numbers. One or two people, while the rest of the particular group would surround them, and cut the escape route. It's simple and safe. But still won't bring as many crystals as I promised. To get them you need to attack the main force. Hundreds of rats.

- We attacked once a horde of goblins, and it ended badly. My men won't take such a risk. I won't take such a risk.

- Let me explain fully. First thing, there were way fewer hunters back then. Now we have around two hundred people.

- But they are not part of Wuxia.

- You can invite people from outside. Promise them tons of crystals, for a small tax. You can use the tax for your own purposes. They will agree after calculating profits.

- I don't like this plan.

- Let me finish. So, with enough numbers, and after dealing with scouts, you will start to make your way to the main force. You will split it apart, with few fastest runners, who will show up in many places around them, and cause the main force to break apart. They will run after them because of clear advantage and then meet your main forces. Then they will turn around and start to escape because they are cowards. And because they are also slower than us, your people can chase after them, and slaughter as many as possible. I predict they will run back to their nest, but I have no idea what's there, so it's better to not follow those who will manage to escape.

He didn't buy it. I could clearly see that he was analyzing everything, and conclusions were not positive for me.

- How sure you are they will react like that.

- It's just a prediction made after observing the behavior of smaller groups.

- So you have no idea what they will actually do.

- I couldn't test such a thing alone, but listen, on the first day, you shouldn't attack the main force. Just deal with scouts. See for yourself how it's gonna go, and how they will react. Besides your men need to get used to fighting with them. To deal with scouts you don't need people from outside of Wuxia. Just give it a try.

A long silence followed my words. He was thinking. Thinking a lot.

- Fine. We were gonna try to hunt them anyway. Might as well use your tactic, but you are coming with us. Today.

- Fine, but if what you see today is gonna change your opinion on the whole plan, we split up, and you fulfill your part of the deal.

- Agreed, but if I don't like it... You will see... Pack your things, and come to the gate.

- No. Let's gather in the city center. I will show you a faster way to get to rats.

- How?

- As I said. I will show you. I promised you an efficient way of getting crystals, and I intend to keep my word.

- Fine.

I got up and went out. There was a short line to the device, so I had to wait a bit. Some hunters from Wuxia didn't go to the woods and were preparing now to hunt the rats. It was rather a big group for hunting. I counted nine people. Familiar faces, but I had no idea about names.

I bought few oranges and made my way back to the room, where I also left my equipment. After finishing eating, a picked up my stuff and went back outside. This time to meet with Adachi.

- Here - I said while putting the backpack on the ground.

I took out forty-one crystals and put them on one pile.

- This is payment for the work, tax, and materials. And this...

I made another pail. Hundred stones this time.

- This is yours. To heal your leg and a few more for a bit of a head start.

- That's...

He was stunned. I didn't really care. I never wanted to impress him or anything. I wasn't feeling particularly generous also. Probably experiencing a similar situation pushed me more than anything else, to give him so much.

- Just take it. You earned it. I'm not being generous or anything. You did earn it.

He just answered with a nod.

- And take care of the cart. I'm gonna be pretty busy for a while. The secrecy is no longer needed.

With those words, I put my backpack on and went to Zhang Yong, who was already waiting with his men.

- Follow me - I said, without even stopping.

Clearly, Zhang Yong was not pleased with my behavior, but I wanted to show my independence. By the way, it was probably not the smartest move. I have to admit, though, I was angry. Do you know this feeling of walking on thin ice, with a clear possibility of drowning very soon? But instead of just stopping, you have to keep going. You just have to. I had just that. I was so angry that I had to give out my gold mine to them. So angry. Unfortunately, there was no other way. I couldn't see any.

We went straight to the third gate. Zhang Yong kept whispering questions to me. He didn't want to look like a fool in front of his hunters.

- Just relax and follow. Don't show them that you don't know what's going on. If I start explaining things it will ruin your reputation. I'm trying to build it here. You need to look like a leader.

It was a bunch of bullshit to just close his mouth. He didn't buy it at all, but also didn't want to look like he has no idea where we are going.

- And here we are.

I said finally in front of the gate.

- Now I have to explain to you the plan. It's simple. We made it together with your leader, but since I already fought the rats I'll take responsibility for explanations. We are gonna approach the nest of rats. Then one of us will sneak closer, and kill one of them before they run away. We probably don't need to do that, but just to be sure. Let the rest alarm the others, and then we run and hide. We wait for scouts, and we deal with them. Just remember to make enough noise to attract the next group while finishing them off. Oh, and they are cowards, so you need to cut their escape route. One person should show up as bait, so they will attack. Then the rest gets out. They are slower than you, so if you lose grip of the battle, then just run. They are armed with knives, shortswords, and sometimes shields. So be prepared for that. Any questions? No? Great.

And I just started walking. They had questions. I ignored them.

Zhang Yong was probably furious but didn't show a thing. It was my sweet little revenge for taking the rat crystals from me. I just couldn't get over it. I'm a human after all.

When we entered the forest Zhang Yong rushed past me. He clearly wanted to talk, so I speeded up.

- What the hell are you doing? Do you think you can play with me? - he hissed, trying to be relatively quiet, so others wouldn't hear.

- I know you are angry, but just relax. Look confident. If by the end of the day you are not satisfied with the results, you might kick my ass.

- Oh, I will.

That's how we made our way close to the mound. When we could see it from afar, I stopped the group.

- Let's go. I hope you are good at sneaking around - I said to Zhang Yong. - The rest should wait here.

He gave me a nod and told his people to do just that. We approached slowly the rats' nest, and when we were close enough I whispered.

- Wait, and watch.

And bolted, to the closest rat. A single, swift blow was enough to kill. Rest noticed, and ran inside.

- Now we run! - I yelled, and started to jog.

He did the same. After reconnecting with the rest of the group, we sprinted for a bit, and then just kept marching at a fast pace. There were many questions asked, but I just kept telling them to follow the plan. Since Zhang Yong was silent, they at some point just accepted it.

The rest was just like my usual hunting. The moment we killed the first group, morale changed. They got excited with new crystals. I quickly explained how much they were worth in points, and after killing another group I knew I had them. We repeated the process until the sun started to go down. With enough noise, one group of scouts showed after another. With full backpacks, we headed back to the city. Hungry, and tired, but happy with a lot of crystals. I took none. They've got them all.

- I have to apologize for my lack of explanation guys. I'm not the best at it, which your leader experienced. We both knew that it will be best to just show instead of pointless talk.

- It worked, and damn, it worked well - said one of them

Rest laughed.

- Now I want to talk a bit with your leader in private. So why don't you guys go first?

- Yes, we should talk. Take the crystals, and show them to others. Tomorrow the real hunt begins - he agreed.

This way we were left alone.

- Sho, how do you like it?

- I don't like your attitude.

I laughed.

- I needed a bit of revenge. You took my sweet farming spot. Now you will have tons of crystals, and I will have to run after goblins for hours. You are the winner. And don't worry. Your men think you were in control from the beginning to the end

- In Wuxia we don't do things like that.

- They are blinded with crystals. Just give them a speech tomorrow. Promise even more, and go hunting. But don't push it. The main force might be too much. Give them time.

- You don't need to lecture me.

He was still angry, but I noticed that visions of crystals calmed him down. Everything went too smoothly. They earned too much, so he had no choice to acknowledge at least a part of my tactic.

- I know. I might be an asshole, but I'm just salty about my hunting ground. I hope you can understand. Let's not deal with each other, hopefully, ever again.

- I agree. For now.

That's how we parted our ways. For now.

Day ended with 3 846 points on my account, 110 goblin crystals in my backpack, and 2642 hidden next to the third gate.