Chapter 167: A plan

Chapter 167: 167: A plan

Lucard stayed behind the stone and did not answer the old man.

Elowen was beside him, frozen in place with one hand over her own mouth. She had heard the old man clearly. Everyone in the hollow had heard him clearly. The old man had not shouted. He had not released the killing intent. He had only spoken in a calm voice, yet his words had climbed the ridge and found them like a hand touching the back of the neck.

"Little watcher on the ridge, your hiding skill is better than most. But do not think better means perfect."

Below them, the people around Deepwell Spring became quiet. Many eyes turned toward the ridge, but none of them saw Lucard or Elowen clearly. They only knew someone was hidden there because the old man had said so.

Lucard did not move.

The old man standing above the spring did not move either. After a few breaths, he looked away as if the hidden watcher no longer interested him.

A noble mage below bowed carefully and asked, "Senior, will you drive them away?"

The old man’s voice remained lazy. "Why should I? The mountain has stones, beasts, fools, and watchers. If I chased every one of them, I would be busier than a servant."

Another man said carefully, "But if they plan to fight for the water..."

The old man opened his eyes a little more. "Then they may come and fight. I don’t care."

No one spoke after that.

The spring water below moved in slow circles. The deep mana under the surface was rising little by little, but it was not ready yet. Everyone could feel it. That was why the groups had gathered early. That was why nobody dared leave. A chance to increase mana and push a rank was not something ordinary mages could ignore.

.

.

.

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Lucard slowly moved back from the ridge.

Elowen followed him without asking. This time, she understood that staying after being noticed was dangerous. They moved behind the stones until the voices from the hollow became lower and the old man’s presence no longer pressed against their skin like cold water.

Only after they had gone far enough did Elowen speak.

"Are we leaving?"

"For now."

She looked at him carefully. "You are not giving up."

"No."

"I thought so."

Lucard walked without hurry, but his mind moved quickly. The old man was sharp. Too sharp. He had noticed Lucard’s hiding even when the blood concealment was active and distance was on Lucard’s side. That meant his senses were either powerful, special, or both. Fighting him now would be foolish. Lucard had reached Level 36, but that did not make him invincible. The old man was not Aldren. He was not Maera. He was something above the groups gathered there.

Lucard could kill many of the people around the spring.

He could steal from weak nobles.

He could fight over the remaining ten percent if he wished.

But the old man had already claimed ninety percent, and the rest would not be enough for a proper rank rise after being divided among so many desperate hands. Even if Lucard killed half of them, the old man would still be there. The old fart would only need to watch once, understand his method, and crush the plan before it became useful.

Lucard disliked that.

Not because he feared the old man.

Because the old man was standing directly in front of the value that Lucard wanted, and Lucard was not yet strong enough to take it openly.

Elowen walked beside him, still frowning. "If the old man takes ninety percent, why are the others staying?"

"Because ten percent of treasure is still treasure to people who have nothing better."

"But you said it will not be enough."

"Not enough for one clean rank rise after so many hands fight for it. But enough to improve mana, heal old damage, or sell for a huge price. Desperate people rarely leave because the price becomes smaller."

Elowen thought about that. "Then what will you do?"

Lucard did not answer immediately.

He opened the Stoneford map again while walking. Deepwell Spring was marked with old blue ink. Around it were three underground water lines. Two came from the cliffs. One came from far below and curved under the western stones before rising into the spring basin. The old record beside it mentioned pressure holes, cold vents, and small digging beasts that sometimes drank the lower mist.

Lucard stopped.

Elowen noticed and leaned closer. "What is it?"

He pointed to a small drawing beside the western water line. It looked like a round rabbit with a swollen mouth and clawed front paws.

Elowen blinked. "A puffer rabbit?"

Lucard looked at her. "You know it?"

"Yes. They live in parts of the Maw Range. My tutor said they are silly-looking beasts, but hard to catch. They can puff their mouths and cheeks like a puffer fish, and they dig very fast. Hunters do not like them because they steal from camps and vanish underground."

"Can they carry water?"

Elowen frowned. "Carry water? I suppose so. Their mouth pouches can swell a lot. They use it to store roots, water, and sometimes shining stones. Why?"

Lucard’s eyes rested on the old water line under the spring.

Elowen understood slowly.

Her mouth opened. "No."

"Yes."

"You want to use a rabbit to steal the spring water from below?"

"Yes."

"That sounds foolish."

"That means people will not expect it."

"It is a rabbit."

"A digging rabbit with a water pouch."

"It is still a rabbit."

Lucard looked at her. "A weak tool in the right place is better than a strong tool in the wrong place."

Elowen had no answer to that. She looked back toward the direction of the spring. "But the old man noticed you from the ridge. Would he not notice the rabbit too?"

"Not if it moves from several kilometers away, underground, through an old water line, while everyone watches the surface."