Chapter 21: Pulling Up the Grass by the Roots

Another reason for stripping Osst of his combat potion belt earlier was the fear that he might cling to a final breath and have a chance to drink medicine, which would have been troublesome.

Gavin's caution was not misplaced. Of the two, there was indeed one person still clinging to life, but it was not the professional, Osst, but Roan.

It wasn't that Roan was a master of concealment, but rather that his luck was better than Osst's.

The two were sitting face-to-face in the carriage. Osst, on the side where the fireball had landed, had endured most of the impact of the explosion and flames.

"Save me... save me... my belt... in my belt... there is healing..." Hearing someone approaching, Roan called out for help with great difficulty.

One of his arms was already missing, and his other arm, along with half of his body, was pinned beneath Osst. Though he had healing potions, he had no way to drink them.

Using Osst as a human shield to block most of the impact had exhausted all of his luck for the day.

When he saw the face of the newcomer, Roan's newly surfaced hope for survival turned into absolute despair, which immediately transformed into eyes full of venomous resentment. "It's you, it's actually you... I... I knew... it would be you. Why... why... would you do this? I am your own brother... this is unfilial treason..."

At this moment, Roan was certain that Gavin was the mastermind behind everything.

*Pfft!*

Gavin had no intention of wasting words with Roan. With one sword stroke, he lopped off his head, and with a reverse motion of the other, he cut off Osst's as well.

Someone could come to check on the commotion at any moment; he had no time to bicker with Roan. Moreover, he couldn't explain it clearly anyway, because the greatest harm they had dealt to Gavin lay in a different future, another future.

In Faerûn, death was not the end.

Because of the existence of gods and divine magic, death held many possibilities.

Resurrection was neither extremely uncommon nor particularly rare.

Noteburg did not have such priests, but there was an eighty percent chance that Calimshan might.

However, if the body was destroyed—especially by severe damage like decapitation—resurrection became difficult. One would need *True Resurrection* or *Wish* to achieve it, which required extremely high-level priests or wizards. This significantly lowered the probability of finding such help in Calimshan to less than five percent.

Beyond that, there was another prerequisite: someone had to be willing to pay a massive amount of money—no spell was free, including the divine magic of priests.

Gavin believed that given the characters of Roan and Osst, no one in Noteburg would be willing to pay such a price.

However, he was unwilling to gamble; instead, he chose to artificially reduce the possibility to the absolute minimum.

Doing this would leave more evidence, but Gavin could not care less. This was not a perfect plan in itself; it was merely "plugging one's ears while stealing a bell"—it all depended on whether the person being deceived believed the lie.

Tossing the two heads into a pre-prepared bag, Gavin did not miss the equipment on their bodies.

He stripped Roan's combat potion belt and Osst's combat boots and sidearm. If he remembered correctly, the latter two were magic items.

Afterward, Gavin did not linger. He ran swiftly to his prepared warhorse and chased in the direction the goblin shaman had fled. He had to ensure the shaman was not captured alive by those two heavy-armored guards.

By this time, many people who had heard the commotion had reacted, running toward the scene with weapons in hand.

By the time they arrived, they found only two half-charred, headless corpses and the unconscious heavy-armored guards. They looked at one another in confusion, not knowing what had just happened.

One person, a squad leader of the Noteburg militia, showed more initiative. He addressed several militia members in the crowd: "You go notify Captain Zaranda and report what happened here. You two stay here and guard the area; do not let anyone approach. Also, organize people to wake the two brothers. The rest of you, follow me to catch the assassin."

Soon, a ragtag group of militia cavalry rode out in pursuit.

By the time Zaranda arrived after hearing the news, half a day had already passed.

Gavin's timing was precise. It was exactly the moment Zaranda was leading her troops to relieve the siege of Camie Village. She was currently leading the Noteburg cavalry to hunt down the retreating goblin forces, so the information took a significant amount of time to reach her.

Zaranda stayed at the crime scene for less than thirty seconds. With a grim face, she turned and headed straight for Gavin's carriage.

Being as intelligent as she was, she had guessed most of what happened after hearing the report; now she was merely seeking further confirmation.

Seeing Zaranda, Darren's admiration for Gavin reached a new height. As expected, he had predicted everything like a god. He hurriedly jumped down from the carriage and ran toward her. "Captain, Captain, Master Gavin asked me to give this to you."

"Gavin asked you to give this to me?" Zaranda's brow furrowed again. She took the large volume from Darren's hands and asked, "What else did he tell you?"

Darren slapped his forehead. "I almost forgot. Master Gavin said you must read this book, and he also gave me this letter to hand to you along with it."

"I understand." For a moment, Zaranda could not figure out what trick Gavin was playing, so she said, "Wait here. In a moment, I have questions for you."

"Yes, ma'am," Darren replied obediently.

Carrying the book, Zaranda ducked into Gavin's carriage. She looked around; the interior was cleaned thoroughly, looking nothing like a place where someone lived, let alone a place to find useful information.

"You brat, what on earth are you up to? At this moment, I actually wish you were being controlled by some monster, so it would be easier for me to rescue you!" In the solitude, Zaranda finally dropped her facade, her face filled with conflict.

Logically, she knew Gavin was behind everything.

Emotionally, she was unwilling to believe that the person she had raised and nurtured would turn into a madman who would slay his own brother, even if the brother was not a good man.

Ultimately, Zaranda's gaze fell upon the letter and the book Gavin had left behind.

Zaranda first opened the letter. After a quick glance, she tossed it aside. It merely stated that the young man outside was a talent worth cultivating, and that she should send someone to teach him to read when possible—ideally by setting up special classes, as all the youth of Noteburg should be literate in the future.

This matter had nothing to do with the current situation, and Zaranda was in no mood to deal with it.

Next, Zaranda untied the leather cord on the book and flipped to the first page. Tucked inside was another letter, which she opened instinctively.

*To my beloved elder sister:*

*By the time you read this, I will likely have gone far away, very, very far.*

*Do not send anyone to look for me. I know what I am doing. When you need me, I will return on my own.*

*I cannot repay you for all the years of care you have given me; I can only leave this book behind, and I hope it might be of help to you.*

*From this day forward, you are no longer a knight of the Noteburg family, but a knight for all the people of Tessel. The people here have suffered for too long; they need a knight to save, to awaken, and to lead them, to do what they wish to do. I will always support you from behind.*

*Also, before I return, do not marry.*

(End of Chapter)