Chapter 305: Escape from the Desert 9

The Oasis Caravan’s original plan was to rest here for a day before setting out again.

But the caravan leader must have heard some news, because not long after the caravan had found a place to settle down and rest, he began urging everyone to leave quickly.

"We can’t leave now. There are still many people who haven’t returned."

Upon hearing that the caravan was about to leave, a middle-aged player immediately stepped forward to stop them.

Most of the players weren’t actually there. They had dispersed to buy supplies as soon as they entered the town.

The joy everyone felt upon seeing the town was quickly replaced by disappointment once they were inside.

They had come here to purchase and replenish their supplies. Instead, not only did they fail to buy anything, but their own provisions had caught the eye of many people.

Since they had entered the town, several groups of people had already approached them, asking if their supplies were for sale.

In response, the players, led by Yara North, sternly refused their requests to buy supplies.

Yara North’s group had purchased a lot of supplies in the last town. Even after turning in a portion, they had more than enough left to last the rest of the journey.

But having so many supplies came with its own drawbacks. They were a conspicuous target and had been watched from the moment they entered the town.

Yara North’s group resisted the temptation, but some other players couldn’t. They sold a portion of their supplies to the locals for a high price.

As far as they were concerned, once they reached the Oasis, they wouldn’t have to worry about running out of supplies.

However, these players clearly didn’t notice that after they sold some of their supplies, the way the locals looked at them changed.

Meanwhile, since she couldn’t buy anything, Perry Yates returned to the Oasis Caravan’s meeting point after a quick walk around the town.

As soon as she returned, Perry Yates saw a man messing with her camel.

The man was yanking on the camel’s reins. Its two cargo baskets had been carelessly tossed aside; they were battered and clearly had footprints on them.

"Damn beast, get a move on and come with me!"

The man tugged roughly at the camel, but it stood its ground, unmoving. Only when it caught sight of Perry Yates approaching from a distance did the camel finally start to move, making its way unhurriedly to her side.

Once it reached Perry Yates, the camel shook its head, then snorted at the man it had dragged along, almost as if it were tattling on him.

A sharp dagger had appeared in Perry Yates’s hand, its tip pressed against the man’s neck.

"What were you trying to do to my camel?" Perry Yates asked, her voice ice-cold.

The man hadn’t taken Perry Yates seriously at first. After all, she had no advantage in either size or numbers, so he wasn’t the least bit afraid even though she had caught him trying to take her camel.

He even thought, ’Good, she saw me. Now I can take the camel right out in the open.’

He wasn’t worried that the others in the caravan would side with her; after all, this sort of behavior was tacitly condoned.

He just hadn’t expected Perry Yates to be so fast. He didn’t even have time to react before the dagger was at his throat.

The dagger was incredibly sharp. While it was just an ordinary dagger and not a special item, it had undergone several of Perry Yates’s Ascensions, making it no less formidable than a three-star item.

A small cut had already opened on the man’s neck, and blood was slowly trickling from the wound.

Just then, the caravan leader stepped out from the crowd.

He didn’t glance at his companion being held hostage. Instead, he looked at Perry Yates and said in a gentle voice, "My friend, this is all just a misunderstanding. A conflict is about to break out here. You weren’t around, and it’s very dangerous to leave a camel unattended."

"So you’re saying you were just trying to protect my property for me? Should I be thanking you, then?" Perry Yates said with a cold smile.

The leader gave a slight smile. "There’s no need for that. As long as you..."

Before he could finish, Perry Yates’s dagger had already slit the man’s throat.

Warm blood sprayed out, splattering onto Perry Yates’s hand.

Perry Yates produced a handkerchief from somewhere and methodically wiped the blood from her hand and the dagger. "I’m not an idiot," she said, her voice unhurried. "And I don’t appreciate people coveting my property."

The leader looked at his dead companion on the ground with utter indifference, as if the body belonged to a complete stranger, not one of his own men.

Robbing other travelers of their belongings was an unspoken rule within the caravan. It was a classic case of fortune favoring the bold.

But by the same token, you also had to accept the risks, as was the case now.

Anyone who dared to travel alone in this dangerous desert, accompanied by a plump, healthy camel, was either a fool or a stone-cold killer.

He hadn’t stopped his man from going after the camel earlier precisely because he wanted to test Perry Yates, to see what she was made of.

"When are we leaving?" Perry Yates asked.

Now that she had shown her hand, Perry Yates dropped the innocent act.

"Right away."

Their exchange was brief and to the point. Throughout the conversation, neither of them spared a glance for the body on the ground, allowing the blood to continue staining the earth red.

The group left the town as quickly as possible.

For some reason, after the incident, the previously brusque caravan leader took the initiative to get on Perry Yates’s good side.

To that end, he even told her why they were leaving town in such a hurry.

"The Desert Robbers are coming."

The leader nodded. "The Desert Robbers are a band of thieves that are very active in this desert. To survive, they periodically raid the surrounding towns for supplies. They’re also the ones we caravans dread encountering the most."

"If a caravan runs into the Desert Robbers while transporting goods, you’ll lose your cargo at best and have to absorb the loss yourself. At worst, you’ll lose your life."

"So that’s why those people were so tense. It even drove up the price of supplies."

"Because they have to pay protection money."

According to the leader, the Desert Robbers in charge of this area were a gang led by a man named John Zane.

"It shouldn’t be time for them to collect the protection money yet. I don’t know what happened to make them move up their schedule."

"This sort of thing doesn’t happen at the Oasis we’re heading to, does it?" Perry Yates asked.

"You can rest assured on that front. The Oasis has its own guards specifically to deal with the Desert Robbers. They can’t get in, and even if they did, they’d have to follow the rules. Otherwise, not even the Desert Robbers would get off easy."

The leader said this with great confidence.