Chapter 717

"Building goodwill early is all benefit and no harm."

"He is the strongest prodigy of the sea, recognized by all for centuries!"

"At only five years old, he already possesses the sea's top combat power. Given time, this boy will surely become the most terrifying force on the sea!"

"Once that time comes, we won't even have a chance to curry favor with him."

At that moment,

a guard hurried over to Bruce's side and whispered a few words to him.

Instantly,

Bruce's face turned pale.

He stared at Lu En's retreating back and shouted urgently: "Mr. Lu En, please wait a moment!"

Soon after,

Lu En returned before Bruce, his expression filled with confusion.

"Your Highness Prince Three, what else do you need to instruct?"

Then,

under his bewildered gaze,

Bruce took a deep breath, face full of solemnity, and spoke honestly: "Mr. Lu En, please remain calm. What I must tell you is…"

"Your hometown, Windmill Village, has been attacked by a band of bandits!"

"It is in extreme danger!"

The words fell.

In an instant,

Lu En was struck as if by lightning.

His pupils shrank slightly, his face darkened: "What did you say?!"

Goya Kingdom.

Trash Mountain.

This place is thirty kilometers away from Windmill Village.

As is well known,

Trash Mountain is where the poor collect discarded goods.

However,

a year ago, a band of bandits arrived at Trash Mountain, seized it entirely, and since then, the poor have dared not come there again.

Since then,

Trash Mountain has become the bandits' territory and their stronghold.

Over the course of a year's expansion,

the bandit group, originally numbering only three hundred, has grown to nearly eight hundred.

In short,

this band of bandits is one of the larger outlaw groups within the Goya Kingdom.

They commit every evil,

burning, killing, looting.

Their infamous reputation has filled the villagers of surrounding hamlets with terror.

On this day,

the bandits of Trash Mountain had just raided a village, carrying their loot, laughing wildly as they returned to their stronghold.

Meanwhile,

among the bandits, three captured children could be seen.

Held tightly by three burly men, the three children struggled continuously, but to no avail—they could not break free from the giants' grip.

"Be still!"

"Or we'll make you see blood!"

Seeing the children's continued struggle, several giants frowned impatiently and barked coldly.

"Let me go! Let me go!"

A furious cry came from one of the small children.

"Little Lufei…"

"Calm down."

Beside him, a boy with freckles clenched his teeth, sweat beading on his forehead; though furious, he suppressed his rage and shouted at the small child.

Correct.

These three captured children were, of course, Ace and Little Lufei.

And…

Sabo, whom they had met half a year ago and sworn brotherhood with.

The three had an excellent relationship.

Unfortunately,

today, they stumbled upon bandits attacking villagers, and driven by righteous fury, they charged forward.

In the end—

all three were defeated and captured.

Even now, it is clear,

Whether it was Ace, Little Lufei, or Sabo, all three of them had scars on their faces — bruised and swollen — and injuries scattered across their bodies.

Clearly,

The three of them joining forces could never have held their own against this mountain bandit gang of fully eight hundred men.

At most, they had managed together to take down one or two of the burly men.

And then…

They met with the miserable fate of being captured.

Perhaps thinking the three greenhorns had shown commendable courage, the bandits hadn't killed them on the spot, but had brought all three back to their main camp.

"You three, shut up already 々〃!"

"If you keep yapping…"

"I'll kill you in a minute!"

The bandit chief at the head, his face full of malice, let out a cold, furious roar.

For a moment,

Little Lufei, who kept struggling, grew a little panicked, but he clenched his Yaguan tightly, stubbornly refusing to let the tears fall.

"I will definitely rescue you both."

Ace said through gritted teeth, secretly resolving himself in his heart.

"Ace, Little Lufei, let's calm down first."

"Let's watch and see how things develop."

Sabo said.

The number of these bandits was simply too great.

They had to face it calmly.

Otherwise,

They really might die later!

As for how to escape with their lives?

Faced with a kind of desperate situation, Sabo was also at a loss.

"Still too reckless!"

"We should have made a proper plan first before making a move against these bandits."

"We shouldn't have acted on impulse."