23. Sweeping the Baron's Estate

Su Yu was unaware of the discussion on the forum, and even if he were, he wouldn't care.

At this moment, Su Yu was marching through the depths of Baron Wilson’s estate, with the steward, Charlemagne, being shoved ahead of him.

Walking along the path paved with fine cobblestones, Tina’s expression grew increasingly nervous as the Baron’s castle loomed closer. She squeezed Su Yu’s hand and whispered, "Nemesis, aren't we taking a bit of a risk? Baron Wilson is not a man to be trifled with, especially since his captain of the guard, Adams, is a formidable warrior! Perhaps we should go to the Warrior’s Guild instead; I could find Sister Quinn..."

"No need." Su Yu released her hand and patted her shoulder to reassure her. "He’s just a minor baron. I can handle it."

"But—"

Before Tina could finish her sentence, a commotion erupted from the castle ahead. A guard clad in armor and brandishing a longsword emerged, followed by six others.

"Who are you people?" the lead guard shouted at Su Yu.

Before Su Yu could answer, the steward, Charlemagne, scrambled toward the guard, crying out, "Adams, they are bandits! Quickly, finish them off!"

Su Yu frowned and unleashed a [Lightning Bolt]. With that, the steward, Charlemagne, was silenced permanently.

Captain Adams, seeing Su Yu commit murder right before his eyes, looked furious. He raised his longsword and roared at his men, "All of you, attack! Take down this bandit!"

"Understood!" The guards tightened their grips on their weapons and charged at Su Yu alongside Adams.

Seeing the guards charge, Tina grew frantic and tugged at Su Yu’s sleeve. Su Yu, however, remained completely calm and unleashed a [Chain Lightning].

A thick bolt of lightning struck the lead guard, Adams, before arcing to the others.

-104
-122
-121
-126

Four massive numbers popped up. The three guards in the rear were charred by the electricity and collapsed to the ground with a thud. Captain Adams was also struck by the [Chain Lightning], but possessing an "Elite" template, his health was 3.3 times that of a standard guard. He barely managed to withstand the damage and stayed on his feet, though he was scorched and fell to one knee, spitting out a mouthful of blood mixed with charred debris.

The remaining guards, who had luckily avoided the lightning, stopped in their tracks. They stared at Su Yu nervously, none daring to take another step.

...

Adams knelt on the ground, bracing himself with his sword, and managed to ask, "Who exactly are you?"

"A debt collector," Su Yu replied concisely. "Where is your Baron?"

"The Baron is in—no, even if I die, I won't tell you!"

"Then go ahead and die!"

Su Yu raised his staff, preparing a spell. Watching the arcs of electricity gathering at the tip, Captain Adams broke into a cold sweat. "Wait, stop! Adventurer! The Baron is in the second-floor study!"

Faced with death, he betrayed his master without hesitation.

Su Yu halted his spell and turned to Tina. "Let's go! To the second floor."

Su Yu stepped into the castle and climbed the stairs. "Right!" Tina hurried to follow.

Once inside, she glanced back at the miserable, panicked group of guards and was stunned. "Nemesis, you’re so powerful! The mighty Adams was like nothing before you! I doubt even Sister Quinn is as strong as you!"

"Of course, why else would I dare to break into a Baron’s estate without some real skill?" Su Yu smiled. "But wait here for a moment. I’ll go in to deal with Baron Wilson; you just stay outside."

"Understood!" Tina nodded obediently, her gaze filled with a hint of admiration.

...

Two minutes later, Su Yu entered the Baron’s study alone. Baron Wilson was sitting in a large leather chair, leafing through a parchment book. Seeing Su Yu walk in, he raised his coffee cup in a gesture of greeting, his expression calm and composed.

[Baron Wilson Lv8]
Health: 1000

Judging by his health, Baron Wilson possessed an 8th-level boss template.

Seeing the Baron so unfazed, Su Yu held his staff and offered a faint smile. "I suspect that you wanted to capture Tina not just to make her your mistress; you had a deeper motive, didn't you?"

Baron Wilson’s expression stiffened slightly. "How did you know?"

"It’s simple," Su Yu replied. "You had plenty of opportunities to capture Tina. Why choose the moment she was scheduled for a talent test with Quinn? Your goal was to lure Quinn here, wasn't it?"

"Adventurer, you are quite clever!" Baron Wilson stood up and clapped his hands. "I’ve grown bored of village girls like Tina. A beauty from Oran City like Quinn would be much more satisfying!"

"However, clever people often don't live very long. Do you know why?" Baron Wilson picked up the staff resting by his side. It turned out he was a mage as well!

"I don't. Care to tell me?" Su Yu smiled.

"Because of this!" Baron Wilson struck first, beginning to cast a spell.

1.5 seconds later, a fireball the size of an egg flew from the tip of his staff, streaking toward Su Yu’s head! Su Yu stood his ground, merely tilting his head slightly to the left.

The fireball whistled past his ear and slammed into the wall behind him, causing him no damage at all.

...

In his past life, Su Yu had been a high-level mage. He didn't even need to look; he could judge the trajectory, power, and range of spells cast by low-level mages like Baron Wilson just by the sound. That was why he could dodge the attack so effortlessly.

Baron Wilson was completely stunned by Su Yu’s incredible evasion. He stood rooted to the spot, looking at Su Yu in disbelief. "Who are you? Are you really a mage? You aren't an assassin in disguise, are you?"

Baron Wilson gripped his staff tightly. But even an assassin would struggle to dodge a [Fireball] so casually!

"You don't need to know who I am. You only need to know that you are going to die, and that is enough."

Su Yu began to retaliate, unleashing a [Lightning Bolt] and a [Fireball] scroll.

-114!
-53!

Both spells struck the Baron in the chest, instantly depleting 16% of his health! The Baron grimaced in pain, but he gritted his teeth and fired back with another [Fireball].

Unfortunately, the fireball failed to hit Su Yu again, grazing his body and exploding against the wall.

After missing twice, the Baron’s composure collapsed. He tried to mimic Su Yu, attempting to dodge the incoming [Lightning Bolt] and [Fireball]. But Su Yu’s spells were not so easily avoided. Su Yu predicted his movement, and both the [Lightning Bolt] and [Fireball] landed squarely on the Baron.

...

The fight lasted for exactly ten seconds.

Ten seconds later, Su Yu’s robe remained spotless, and his health was still at maximum. Baron Wilson lay on the floor, completely charred, his health bar depleted to zero.

An 8th-level boss had died in such a pathetic manner at the hands of a 4th-level player.