Chapter 425: Chapter 154: Holding the Pass Alone! Copying the Talent [Wind Sensor]

The number of samurai inside this tea house far exceeded what Aoto initially expected, making him increasingly suspicious about what intrigue this tea house might be hiding.

Fortunately, although the number of samurai guarding this tea house was large, their patrols were quite amateurish. They were either daydreaming or dozing off, allowing Aoto and Mukiwa to take them down one by one and make a steady advance to the stairway connecting the third floor and the second floor.

At that moment, the area around the stairway was conveniently devoid of any figures. They descended the stairs to the second floor of the tea house, then crossed a corridor and turned a corner, arriving at a spacious room resembling a hall.

Before the tea house fell into disuse, this hall should have been specifically used for guests to go upstairs to drink tea and rest.

And now, all the low tables previously used for guests to sit and enjoy tea and snacks were gone, leaving only two "small mountains" taller than Aoto.

These two "small mountains" were covered with thick burlap, making it impossible to see what they really were.

Looking around—the samurai patrolled back and forth around these two "small mountains."

Aoto glanced at Mukiwa beside him, and at the same time, Mukiwa raised her head to look at Aoto, engaging once more in silent communication through their eyes.

Mukiwa raised her hand, pointed at herself, then at the two samurai on her right hand side.

Aoto nodded knowingly, and together with Mukiwa, they emerged stealthily from the shadows where they had been hiding.

Mukiwa moved towards the two samurai she had just pointed out.

Meanwhile, Aoto naturally targeted the other two.

Even while hiding in the shadows outside the hall, Aoto had already discerned the patrol paths of the four samurai inside—they all patrolled according to a specific route.

Given this, Aoto decided to use their patrol paths to take them down one by one!

Aoto moved quietly to the "foot" of one of the "small mountains," his back pressed tightly against it, using the mountain to conceal his body.

These two "small mountains" standing in the center of the hall, slightly taller than Aoto, were perfect obstacles for Aoto and Mukiwa to use as cover.

It happened to be that the two samurai Aoto was responsible for were a pair: one fat, one thin.

Neither of them anticipated anyone sneaking up near them.

So—the thinner one, with a hand on his sword, swaggered past the "small mountain" where Aoto was hiding, brushing right by him.

Watching this thin man walking straight ahead without seeing him hidden in the shadow of the "small mountain," leaving his undefended back exposed right in front of Aoto... Aoto unhesitatingly took a quick step forward.

Then, Aoto applied the same set of steps he had used all night to knock people out—covering the thin man’s mouth from behind with one hand, and using the other to strike his side neck, knocking him out.

At this moment, an unexpected development occurred.

While Aoto was laying the already unconscious thin man on the floor, he suddenly saw a figure flashing on his right—it was the fat one from the pair of samurai Aoto was dealing with...

The pace of this guy, who was patrolling back and forth along a fixed trajectory, returning to a position where he could see Aoto was faster than Aoto had anticipated.

Thus, Aoto, who was still half-squatted as he laid down the just knocked-out thin man, found himself gazing across the dense darkness at the fat one...

This unexpected stare-down lasted less than half a second before being swiftly interrupted by Aoto’s quick reaction.

Aoto’s body, as though a tightly-coiled spring released all at once, lunged toward the fat one at high speed!

The fat one, only realizing as Aoto charged at him, hastily reached for the sword hanging at his left side and opened his mouth wide, intending to shout an alert.

With the talent of "Take the Lead," how explosive and fast were Aoto’s legs?

The moment the fat one opened his mouth, Aoto was already in front of him.

Aoto swiftly raised his left hand, covering the man’s mouth, while his right hand followed, striking the side of the fat one’s neck with force.

Since the fat one had an extra layer of fat used to absorb damage compared to ordinary people, Aoto used additional strength.

Though the surprise was sudden, it fortunately ended without any real danger.

Aoto’s "physical silencing technique" successfully caused the fat one, like everyone else Aoto knocked out tonight, to roll his eyes back dramatically and pass out.

Mukiwa finished off her guards even faster than Aoto did.

"Finally, it’s all resolved..." Mukiwa exhaled as she stepped out from Aoto’s side, quickly approaching Aoto, who had just released the fat one’s limp body.

"Yeah." Aoto nodded lightly, also exhaling like Mukiwa, then stood up, looking at the two "small mountains" beside him.

Noticing the change in Aoto’s gaze, Mukiwa followed suit, turning her eyes toward the two "small mountains."

"What on earth are these?" Mukiwa blinked in confusion.

This spacious hall was empty except for the two "small mountains" placed in the center.

So it was evident—the four samurai that Aoto and Mukiwa had just subdued were guarding these two "small mountains."