ATAPOW Chapter 202
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Chapter 202: Infiltrating the City in Embarrassment
Other than the two troll foot soldiers stationed as guards before the entrance, the city gates of Nolan City were desolate, with hardly any movement of people entering or out.
The city walls were composed of irregularly cut black rocks without any sense of pattern – resembling more a fortress wall than that of a city.
They were constructed from ordinary materials and had a simple structure, lacking any distinctive features that made them stand out.
As a result, they had a plain and even inferior appearance. Their defensive capabilities were extremely limited, and they would have practically negligible endurance in the event of a siege.
The materials used for the walls seemed inadequate compared to the Catalpa metal employed by the human alliance to fortify their own cities.
The choice of material clearly reflected the Asiatic Cat’s disdain towards warfare. It was evident that they had access to superior casting technology, as evidenced by the resilient structure of the ‘Color Lotus Palace’, where the former Asiatic Cat Leader resided. The palace had actually remained standing despite enduring countless large-scale battles.
The reason behind this could be attributed to the Asiatic Cats’ mindset.
Their strong aversion to war extended to all related matters, including their political system, which was deeply ingrained with the policy of ‘prioritizing literacy pursuits over martial arts’.
Warmongers and combative individuals stood to be ostracized by their peers in society.
The absence of such individuals in their society had set them apart from their neighboring counterparts, who frequently experienced successive changes in leadership. However, it also meant that they lacked the capability to assemble a competent armed force.
This was a prevailing trend within their race that could not be reversed by force.
At that moment, the grass-wreathed banner that once belonged to the Asiatic Cat Race had been replaced with the flag of the trolls. Adorned with a male falcon and massive battle axes, it now hung over the city gates, replacing the old flags that had formerly been there.
“You should be glad I discovered your little trick before entering the city.” Squatting beneath a remote tree, Ji Bai’s eyes were fixed tightly on the pair of troll foot soldiers standing guard at the city entrance.
“Why? Wouldn’t it have been better if you had just brought me in without me knowing?” Lil’ Sha twirled a tree branch between her fingers as she drew circles on the ground, showing her dissatisfaction with Ji Bai’s earlier actions.
“I urge you to think more maturely. It’s already suspicious enough for me to be carrying all these bags of different sizes. Do you think the trolls are blind and won’t stop me for inspection?” Ji Bai looked directly at Lil’ Sha, whose complexion had begun to grow paler in color the more he spoke.
“As I remember, the trolls issued a high-profile edict claiming that the entire Asiatic Cat Race, along with all their territory and members, were their property. Leaving me aside, once they check and realize there’s a cat in the bag— in other words, discover you— what sort of reaction do you think they’ll make?”
“Uhuu~”
“Oh, so now you know what fear is? Weren’t you the one who was being so obstinate earlier?” Ji Bai had noticed the subtle tension in Lil’ Sha body.
“T-Then what should I do? I can’t go back now…” Lil’ Sha gulped and took a deep breath. As her shivering body gradually regained its composure, she looked up at him with a serious expression.
“Ji Bai, will you be willing to make a bet for my sake?”
“What do you mean?”
“I have a plan, but it carries some risks. So, would you be willing to make a bet for my sake?” Lil’ Sha sat with her legs on her knees and her head downcast. She found it hard to make such a request when she thought about how she had roped an innocent person into a dangerous quagmire.
Ji Bai was slightly surprised. In his mind, Lil’ Sha was always a timid and cowardly cat, an expert at finding a way out of difficult situations. It was truly baffling for him to see her so determined.
“Do I have a choice? There’s no way I can just leave you alone.”
“Thank you… Obscene middle-aged man.” Lil’ Sha was slightly dazed. The feelings of gratitude for Ji Bai caused her to let out a small smile.
“Can I ask when you’ve noticed me?”
““This morning. I was awoken by the loud sound of you munching on your biscuits”
“Uuuu~”
“Ke’er lent you a hand, right?” Ji Bai suddenly asked after a moment of silence.
There was only one person who had packed his luggage and shared a strong enough bond with him to accomplish such a feat without arousing his suspicion.
“Mhm… I was the one who requested Ke’er to fit me into the luggage a day before the trip.” Lil’ Sha suddenly felt a sense of embarrassment as she shared this with Ji Bai.
“So, since you discovered my presence so soon, why didn’t you expose me earlier? Was there some important reason for that?”
“Or, was that to protect me?”
Seeing the incomprehensible expression on Lil Sha’s face, Ji Bai approached her with a meaningful look on his face.
“Drag you out, so that I have to pay for another passenger onboard?”
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Outside the city gate, the guarding troll soldiers let out a yawn out of extreme boredom.
Despite harboring a deep aversion to such a superficial job, they had no choice but to carry it out.
The only place that lay beyond the back entrance was the Border Town of the human alliance. Even if someone had poor taste in choosing tourist destinations, they would still steer clear of this place.
With this amount of time and effort, they would rather grab a random Asiatic Cat woman on the street to play with instead. Why did they have to be the ones manning this stupid post?
The troll foot soldier’s gaze caught a glimpse of something. In an instant, his previously lethargic and uninterested demeanor vanished and was replaced by a vicious glint on his face.
A human dressed in simple clothing was carrying several bags of luggage and walking directly towards them.
“Halt! What is your business??” The pair of towering and sturdy trolls locked their spears, blocking the visitor’s path.
“Here for a trip.” The man’s reply was neither servile or overbearing, with no hint of sadness nor joy in his tone.
“A trip??” The troll sized up the human male before him.
‘He’s actually not stuttering in fear at the sight of a troll. How interesting…’
The troll foot soldier began to show some interest in him.
“Although there has been some friction between the troll tribes and the human federation, we generally have a peaceful relationship. Is there a problem?” The man asked in puzzlement.
“Indeed. But I’ll need to see your travel permit, otherwise…” The other troll foot soldier stepped forward.
“You’ll be illegally trespassing.” The troll foot soldier said meaningfully.
‘He’s already accusing me of a crime before I’ve even entered their country. Truly impressive indeed.”
“Oh, here I am, thinking I needed something more.” Saying that, Ji Bai rummaged through his pockets and took out a blue document — Something that had been unconditionally provided as a gesture of Anna’s friendship.
Despite his reluctance to admit it, he realized he always had an inexplicable amount of trust in that vampire and believed that she wouldn’t stab him in the back.
“There’s no issue, is there? Can you let me pass now?”
“Mhm, there’s indeed no problem with the document… Wait a minute! Why are you in such a rush?!” The troll foot soldier narrowed his eyes as he scrutinized the bags on his shoulders.
“What is all this stuff?”
“Just some household items and personal clothing, that’s all.”
“We can’t just blindly take your word for it! We’ll have to inspect and see if there’s any prohibited items in them.” A troll foot soldier coldly retorted with a harrumph.
“Alright.” Ji Bai didn’t resist and unloaded luggages of various sizes from his shoulders.
The two troll foot soldiers violently ripped apart the ropes binding the cloth bags, their behavior extremely reminiscent of bandits divvying up their ill-gotten gains.
“Uhm, can sires be a bit more gentle? If these cloth bags are torn, this humble self would have no way to pack up his luggage.”
“What’s with all this commotion?? Just stay put obediently. If we find any prohibited items, you’ll still have to go to jail all the same!” The troll foot soldier said in impatience.
Ji Bai fell silent upon seeing the situation; He could only watch the troll foot soldiers violently toss his household items from the bag to the ground.
“Heh! Look what I found?? What is that?” The troll foot soldier was ecstatic as he stretched his claws towards the bag. He then retrieved a pitch black longsword, which had a blurry engraving on its crossguards.
“Have you lost your mind? This broken sword is charred and chipped all over. It’s practically a burden to carry this piece of junk, and you still want that?” The other troll foot soldier raised his head to take a look at the sword before chiding his colleague with contempt.
“Eeeh… Hey, human! What do you need that sword in your bag for?” Feeling a sense of embarrassment, he could only focus his attention on Ji Bai beside him.
“Dear sir, what can a sword be used for? This humble self is afraid he might encounter some unexpected incident on the road.”
“Hmph, he must have gone mad from poverty to actually bring such a broken sword with him.” The troll foot soldier sneered at Ji Bai after shooting a glance at his plain and simple outfit.
“Tch, this broken thing.” The troll foot soldier spat before tossing the sword back into the cloth bag.
“This equipment… You’re a human knight?” The troll foot soldier narrowed his eyes upon discovering the brigandine armor and metallic helmet within the bag.
“This is only for self-defense.”
“Hmph! I guess you pass for now. If I discover anything suspicious-…” The lion-like pupils of the troll foot soldier’s eyes narrowed as he spotted a suspiciously large cloth bag that was left.
“This cloth bag is a bit suspicious… Open it up.”
“Eh? Do I have to open this one too?” Ji Bai was slightly taken aback.
“Uh-uh. Why do you even ask? You have to open it up! Otherwise, how will I know what’s inside? You might even be harboring a major criminal there! ” A trace of a smile appeared on the troll foot soldier’s curled-up lips upon seeing Ji Bai’s reaction.
“But…”
“No buts! Open it now, or we’ll force you to!” The trolls clenched their fists and warned him.
“Alright.” Ji Bai helplessly opened up the remaining large cloth bag.
The two trolls immediately moved forward.
As they did, a putrid odor assaulted their nostrils, reminiscent of a rotten and moldy tomato. The strange and overpowering smell was so extreme that it was beyond belief.
“My goodness! What in the world is that?” The two troll foot soldiers’ eyes were wide open as they covered their noses.
They could only see a jumbled mess of fabrics piled up in the bag, consisting mostly of underwears and stockings.
“I’ve made a fool of myself in front of you both, these are my personal clothes.”
“My god!” A troll foot soldier was the first to back away as he took two steps back.
“…Why are there so many stockings?” The other troll foot soldier was clearly much more observant as he quickly noticed a problem.
“…I won’t keep it from you guys. This humble self has a fetish for female clothing.” Ji Bai finally seemed to lose his composure and turned his head around, revealing a shyness that made it clear he was having difficulty broaching the subject.
“You… How can you say such things so naturally?!”
“Yes, if you still need to search, you may find some of my personal stockings and nightwear lying underneath it. If the two of you wish to feast your eyes on it, you could…” Ji Bai was clueless as to why he could say such words with such a serious and collected expression.
He had no choice but to release the arrow from his bowstring. He had already staked everything to achieve a certain objective.
At this moment, all he could think was, ‘Why the hell did it have to come to this?’
“Stop!! Just leave, now! Don’t let me see you again!” The patience of the troll foot soldier had already reached his limits as he flicked his hands incessantly, like he was swatting away a fly.
“Thank you, sires.” Ji Bai slightly bowed before picking up the items on the ground and wrapping them up. After expressing his gratitude to the troll foot soldiers, he carried his luggage and entered the city gates.
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These clothes were naturally not his own. To be precise, it was an idea that the brat, Lil’ Sha, suggested.
After entering the city, Ji Bai maintained his composure. When he arrived at a particular corner, he opened up the cloth bag containing his ‘personal clothing’.
“Uuu~ I nearly suffocated to death…” A golden-haired head emerged from the opening.