NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 11: Wanted Criminal
Chapter 11: Wanted Criminal
The body was stripped clean, and the loot was laid out one by one.
Leather armor and boots, two short blades, two grenades, two healing potions, a note with a snarling snake head emblem, and a pouch filled with silver and copper coins.
When Wu Heng saw the grenades, his eyelids couldn’t help but twitch.
His eyes first landed on the grenades.
【Poison Smoke Grenade】
(Description: Releases a large amount of toxic smoke upon activation.)
Damn, it’s a smoke grenade.
Luckily, I shot first; otherwise, if he had used this thing...
Even though it’s not an explosive, the aftermath would have been troublesome.
Carefully placing the grenades to the side, his gaze returned to the leather armor and boots.
The leather armor was brown with intricate vine and leaf patterns on its surface, with reinforced layers at the chest and abdomen.
Both the style and craftsmanship were excellent, much better than the one Wu Heng had bought for himself.
The only flaw was the bullet holes.
Even magic world leather armor can’t stop bullets.
Wu Heng held it up, sizing it against himself. It fit pretty well, just his size.
The bullet holes didn’t really matter.
He could just get it patched up at a leather shop.
Even if he didn’t, it was fine; his main enemies were zombies, and the armor just needed to protect against tearing and biting. The holes wouldn’t make much of a difference.
Putting the armor aside, he picked up the two short blades.
The scabbards were black leather, the blades silver, with grips wrapped in leather strips.
"Nice craftsmanship," Wu Heng remarked as he swung them around.
These weapons were of high quality, probably mid-to-upper tier if sold at a weapons shop, likely worth several dozen silvers.
Are all robbers this well-equipped?
Seems like it’s the regular folks who are really broke.
Besides the potions and coins, there was also that note with the snake head emblem.
It looked like some sort of receipt, with a serial number and what seemed to be an anti-counterfeiting mark.
Probably something stolen or looted.
After packing up the loot, Wu Heng felt pretty satisfied.
At least he didn’t lose out.
After inspecting the loot, he was about to use ‘Bone Rite’ to convert the body into a skeleton.
But as his eyes fell on the corpse’s face, his hand paused.
Beneath the rain-soaked beard, he noticed a scar, twisted like a centipede.
He had seen this person somewhere before.
Especially that scar.
"Why does this look so familiar?"
He hadn’t met many people in Blackstone Town, and even fewer had left an impression.
Neighbors, shopkeepers he frequented.
Where had he seen this guy before?
He couldn’t remember, so he commanded the skeletons to pack up the loot.
After checking the surroundings, he headed downstairs.
……
At the Adventurer’s Hall.
Wu Heng stared at the wanted posters, his eyes widening slightly.
【Wanted: Barson, Reward: 120 Silver Coins, One Lower-Tier Item.】
The face in the picture bore a striking resemblance to the man he had killed.
Especially the scar on his lower lip, resembling a centipede; the location and appearance were nearly identical.
Shaving off the beard, it was almost certain that the man was the wanted criminal on the poster.
But he couldn’t figure it out.
Why would a law-abiding necromancer like himself attract the attention of a wanted criminal?
If he hadn’t had that gun, he might have been the one lying on the ground.
More importantly, one of the attackers had escaped.
Wu Heng scanned the wanted list again but didn’t see anyone resembling the other man.
Either he wasn’t on the list, or he had also been in disguise.
"Could they be targeting me?"
After killing this guy today, the escaped criminal might come back for revenge.
If this were the zombie world, he wouldn’t fear these criminals; his horde of skeleton warriors could scare them to death.
But in this world, it’s a different story.
He should report this and have Blackstone Town search the crowded district.
Earlier, he had hidden the body out of fear of being misunderstood.
As a necromancer, without solid evidence, it would be hard to prove whether he was the victim or the perpetrator.
Now that he knew the guy was a wanted criminal, anyone could hunt him down without facing consequences.
Turning in the body and completing the bounty was the best course of action.
……
Having made up his mind, Wu Heng went straight to the counter.
"Sir, how can I assist you today?" the staff member asked with a smile.
Wu Heng handed over the wanted poster, saying, "This criminal was killed by me yesterday. What should I do next?"
"Sir, are you saying you killed this wanted criminal, not just providing information?" the young female clerk asked skeptically.
A wanted criminal listed by the Adventurer’s Association isn’t someone an ordinary person could handle.
Usually, when cities received such information, they would send squads to apprehend the criminal. For an individual to take one down, especially a clean-cut young man, it was… rare.
Wu Heng nodded. "Yes, what should I do next?"
"Please wait a moment. We need to arrange for someone to verify the body. Once confirmed, we’ll give you the bounty." The staff member responded immediately.
"Sure, I’ll take you there."
Soon, a five-man team wearing the association’s insignia arrived. They followed him to his place without any further discussion.
Wu Heng had already moved the body to the zombie world, dressed in a linen robe, better than leaving it bare.
The Adventurer’s Association team verified the identity of the body.
After confirmation, they wrapped up the body and left.
They returned directly to the Adventurer’s Association.
……
Back at the Adventurer’s Hall, Wu Heng filled out the incident report under the staff’s guidance.
The report included whether the target was actively pursued or if it was a case of self-defense.
The process was straightforward, with optional fields.
You could write down details if you wanted, or leave them blank if you didn’t feel like it.
There were no overly complicated steps.
"Sir, the bounty includes a lower-tier item reward. What would you like?" the staff member asked.
"What are the options?"
"Weapons, equipment, or rare materials, notebooks, and journals, depending on what you need."
Hmm…
The term “item” was quite broad, encompassing all non-currency rewards.
It was divided into tiers, with lower-tier obviously not being anything too valuable.
"Do you have any spellbooks? For mages."
"Let me check for you."
The staff member pulled out a ledger and began flipping through it.
Soon, she said, "Yes, sir, there are two corresponding to the lower-tier reward: ‘Dancing Light’ and ‘Acid Splash.’"
"Can I see them before I choose?"
"Please wait a moment; I’ll go get them for you." The staff member said and walked down a corridor.
Wu Heng sat quietly, waiting.
About five or six minutes passed.
Instead of the staff member, a group of Blackstone Town’s guards approached him.
Seeing their stern demeanor, a bad feeling crept into his heart.
The heavy boots thudded on the floor as they walked straight to Wu Heng.
After a stern glance, one of them spoke, "Wu Heng, necromancer, last night you killed a wanted criminal."
"Yes," Wu Heng replied.
"Then come with us."
With that, two guards stepped forward, ready to grab his arms and forcibly take him away.
Is anyone watching? This is making me nervous.