Provocation

Led by the minotaur warriors, Mo Fei and his companions emerged from the mountains, only to find themselves gazing upon a vast, breathtaking plain. He had expected that such flat terrain would be rare here, but to his surprise, the road out of the mountains revealed an expanse perfect for cavalry maneuvers.

“We’re headed to the nearest major city,” Mo Fei announced, startling the ten minotaur warriors. None of them had ventured into a big city in years; for everyday necessities, they’d always chosen small villages or towns where the bear tribe’s influence was weak. Yet now, they were to enter the city. While none of them voiced their doubts, their trust in Mo Fei ran deeper than their faith in themselves.

“You have things like guilds or mercenary companies here, don’t you?” Mo Fei asked one of the minotaur warriors.

“Yes, we do,” replied Black Bull, as he was called. His burly physique and fearsome strength made him a terror on the battlefield; beneath his gigantic iron rod, no enemy could withstand his assault. Yet alone, his effectiveness in large-scale combat was limited. Now, he and his nine comrades wielded massive axes.

“Tell me about the mercenary teams here.”

“Here, as long as you have a group of over twenty warriors — or any combat profession — you can apply for mercenary qualification at the guild. Then you can register as a mercenary team and take on tasks from the guild,” Black Bull explained, stringing together a series of steps. Mo Fei listened and immediately understood.

“We’ve got two thousand and thirteen people here — we can apply for a super-sized mercenary team! Ha!” Mo Fei laughed heartily.

“But…” Black Bull’s expression dimmed. “Because the bear tribe suppresses us, no minotaur has ever become a mercenary. I don’t know if they’ll even let us apply.”

“If they refuse, we’ll fight until they do,” Mo Fei said calmly. “They fear the bear tribe, but from today I want them to know we are more formidable. Black Bull, you’ll handle the application. You’ll be captain of this mercenary team.”

Mo Fei’s words stirred the ten minotaur warriors to excitement. Kain and the others were accustomed to it; their young lord, for all his gentle appearance, would start a fight at the slightest provocation, even striking first. The principle of preemptive action was well-known among them. During the founding of the City of Death, Kain led these cavalrymen under Mo Fei’s direction, sweeping through the territory’s various factions and earning the title “Death Riders.” In Mo Fei’s domain, those who defied him or tried to scheme inevitably suffered in silence. Many believed Kain, the impulsive berserker, was the instigator, but it was Mo Fei pulling the strings behind the scenes.

After more than ten days of travel, Mo Fei’s party finally came upon a city that looked somewhat proper. “Somewhat proper” was apt: compared to the worst city on their own continent, this city was even shabbier. That was all that could be said for it.

Luckily, the scenery along the way was so beautiful that everyone, experiencing this continent for the first time, was too taken in by the novelty to feel tired. They encountered many squads dressed as mercenaries, all of whom, upon seeing the massive party, felt their legs turn to jelly. The warriors clad in black heavy armor radiated a murderous aura, and these formidable soldiers were led by ten minotaurs. Everyone knew the bear tribe suppressed the minotaurs, and the minotaurs had always been at a disadvantage. When had they mustered such a fearsome force? And what of those men and women dressed in foreign fashion from the other continent? Who were they, to hire such a large mercenary force for protection? But wait — there were no minotaur mercenaries on this continent, were there? When did this change? People hurried to find out, lest they be caught ignorant and shamed.

Amid the whispers of these mercenary squads, Mo Fei’s party pressed forward, only to run into trouble at the city gates. The city was clearly under bear tribe control. Seeing a powerful force led by minotaurs, the guards panicked, fearing the minotaurs were emerging from the mountains to invade their territory.

Suddenly, alarms blared across the small city, the gates slammed shut, and all available troops scrambled to the walls.

“Why are they so nervous?” Mo Fei asked with feigned innocence, his smile sly.

“Looks like they want to play games with us,” Kain replied, utterly relaxed.

“Go talk to them. If they don’t open the gates, we’ll play for real and seize ourselves a piece of territory,” Mo Fei’s grin grew even more wicked.

“Perfect! This little city will be ours in no time,” Kain eagerly agreed, itching for chaos.

“Listen up, you lot on the walls! We are the Storm Mercenary Team. Open these gates at once, or this city will soon be renamed Storm City!” Kain shouted brazenly.

“Storm Mercenary Team? Has anyone heard of them? I haven’t,” a bear tribe squad leader called from the wall. He had no idea the name had just been invented by Kain, and not even his teammates knew it yet.

“I’ve never heard of such a big mercenary team!” a soldier muttered.

“So, do we open the gates or not?” another asked.

“There’s only a thousand of us here. Look at their axes — is that a bow on their backs? Can we even stand against them? Open or not, it’s all the same,” said another soldier softly.

“Open the gates,” the bear tribe squad leader commanded, resigned. “Let them in. And from now on, none of you are to cause them trouble. If you see them, give them a wide berth. Report this immediately.”

If they weren’t here to attack the city, then so be it. Best to open the gates and hope they weren’t looking for trouble.

As the gates creaked open, Kain was dumbfounded. He’d been so brash, yet nothing had happened? Wasn’t the bear tribe supposed to be so dominant on this continent?

Mo Fei, flanked by Irene and Vivian, walked past Kain, erupting in laughter. Watching Kain’s frustrated attempt at mischief fail, Mo Fei couldn’t help but laugh. The berserkers following behind blushed fiercely, none daring to laugh aloud while Kain was on the verge of losing his temper.

“If any of you dare laugh, watch how I punish you!” Kain snapped at his warriors, who were struggling to contain their amusement.

But at last, unable to hold back, the two-thousand-strong party burst into collective laughter.

Seeing the laughing group enter the city, the bear tribe guards dared not even breathe loudly, bowing their heads as they let the party pass.

“Kain, what do you think will happen next?” Mo Fei asked after the laughter subsided.

“I’m not sure what exactly, but by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, we’ll likely be fighting the bear tribe,” Kain said, recalling the squad leader’s hostile gaze at the gates. He knew trouble would be coming.

“Oh? Tell me,” Mo Fei remained unconcerned; entering the city with minotaurs was tantamount to attacking the bear tribe’s stronghold.

Mo Fei had always taken precautions against the bear tribe, but upon arriving on this continent, he found the bears lacked the valor they supposedly had elsewhere. Whatever their commanders had told them, they’d managed to instill fearless aggression on the other continent, but here, Mo Fei noted that when fighting near their own homes, the bears showed inexplicable fear, their combat prowess greatly diminished. Two thousand minotaur warriors, inferior even to berserkers, could stand against multiples, even dozens, of bear warriors. And when two thousand berserkers joined in the last battle, they routed over ten thousand from six warships, cementing Mo Fei’s conviction.

“That little commander will definitely try to stir up trouble for us.”

“Good, then. Take a squad and tell him: if we see any bear tribe soldiers in the city by nightfall, they’ll be killed on sight,” Mo Fei said, eager for a bigger commotion.

“Haha! So that’s what you want, young master? Brothers, let’s go!”

A squad of twenty heavily armored black cavalry wheeled around, charging toward the city gate. If there’s a fight, berserkers fear nothing. Their clash with the bear tribe in the minotaur village had only fueled their excitement. The bear tribe had a natural resistance to magic, but the berserker cavalry had no intention of using magic — they preferred brute force.

Seeing the squad of cavalry return, the bear tribe squad leader descending from the walls knew trouble was imminent.