Chapter 00042: The Mantis Hunts the Cicada
# The Mantis Hunts the Cicada
Chapter 42
Novel: AFK Game: Portal to Another World
Chapter 42: The Mantis Hunts the Cicada
If possible, Lei Lei thought it would be best to live inside the convenience store, or at least right next to it.
That way, she could make the most of the high concentration of spiritual energy for her cultivation, and it would also make it easier to figure out what kind of person Li Chengxi really was.
As soon as this thought popped into her head, Lei Lei immediately recalled Xue Wenshu, the one who had tried to get close to her a few days ago.
At the time, she had followed the guidance of her Spirit-Seeking Disk to come here, but being unfamiliar with the area, finding her way had been quite difficult.
She’d heard from a friend at her cram school that Xue Wenshu lived nearby, so she used a little spell to get him to lead her here, nothing more.
She’d completely treated him as a tool person, and naturally hadn’t bothered to remember his name.
Lei Lei then recalled what Li Chengxi had said to her when she left the convenience store.
He seemed to think she was quite familiar with Xue Wenshu.
So—should she take advantage of that mundane human?
The moment that idea arose, Lei Lei quickly shook her head and dismissed it.
Her master had said: "You are not to meddle in the affairs of mortals too deeply. You might think it's easier to control them with spells for your own convenience, but when it comes time for your tribulation, the Heavenly Dao won’t let you off lightly."
What’s more, Li Chengxi’s origins were unclear; she couldn’t even see a hint of his cultivation.
If he really was some hidden great cultivator, then her probing actions might be brushed off as childish ignorance, and he likely wouldn’t be angry as long as she didn’t go too far.
But if she were to interfere with a mortal close to him, she just might seriously enrage him.
Weighing the risks, Lei Lei decided to keep observing for now.
The apartment she’d rented was already just across the residential road from the convenience store—it was close enough.
The spiritual energy concentration here was far higher than elsewhere.
She ought to be content.
With that thought, Lei Lei began unpacking the toiletries she’d bought.
She hadn’t gone to the convenience store just to probe Li Chengxi—she genuinely didn’t have any bathing supplies since she had just moved in.
There was no point in overthinking it for now.
She still had a ton of homework to get through.
It would have to wait.
But what Lei Lei didn’t know was that, in a building diagonally across from hers, someone else was watching in secret.
The window was left open, seemingly due to summer heat, with a towel hung over it in a casual fashion—nothing strange at a glance.
No one would’ve guessed that beneath the towel, a rifle barrel had been silently aimed at Lei Lei.
A precision rifle was mounted at the window, and a man was crouched in the shadow below.
He pulled his eye away from the scope and picked up a pair of binoculars.
Like some pervert, he watched as Lei Lei returned from the balcony to the living room, then looked again at Li Chengxi, who had just disappeared from the kitchen window.
He let out a long breath, then leaned against the low wall beneath the windowsill and quietly pressed the comms switch on his earpiece.
“Groundhog reporting in. At 2023 hours, observed secondary target applying magic to primary target. Primary target seemed unaware. Secondary target has since returned to the room with no further action observed.”
He repeated the report one more time before adding:
“Groundhog assesses that current equipment is insufficient to continue mission. Requesting reinforcements.”
A loud static hiss crackled in the earpiece before a voice responded:
“Roger that. Reinforcements en route. Estimated arrival within ten minutes. Maintain surveillance.”
“Copy, Groundhog out.”
The man picked the binoculars back up again and resumed careful observation, keeping an eye on both the convenience store and the buildings nearby...
–‐‐——–‐‐——
Demon Lord Calendar, Year 648.
April 12th, evening.
South of the Spine of the World Mountains.
Cooking fires glittered in the dusk like stars, smoke billowed across the sky, and a vast military camp bustled with energy.
Countless soldiers moved about, busy preparing for war.
They were getting ready to launch an assault on Sailing Harbor, a major northern coastal city of the Avarus Demon Kingdom.
This was to be a prolonged campaign.
Though the capital of Avarus had already fallen, the Coalition of Four Nations hadn’t simply steamrolled their way through.
Resistance forces still remained strong throughout the kingdom.
To utterly wipe out this kingdom and occupy it fully was not something that could be achieved by taking just the capital.
Experts estimated the war could last another five to ten years.
The quickest way to end it would be to eliminate strongholds held by local lords and generals.
Once those bases were removed, the remaining scattered forces wouldn’t pose much of a threat.
“Message!”
A soldier at the tent flap interrupted the officers inside the command tent who were poring over battle strategies.
“Enter,” said the old general seated at the central seat, waving his hand.
The herald straightened up, adjusting to his most professional posture, and stepped inside.
“A man claiming to be an envoy of Count Leon was apprehended at the gates. His purse bore a noble’s crest, and he carried a letter.”
The general gestured for the herald to drop the items and leave.
A staff officer stepped forward and handed the purse and letter to the general.
This procedure, a result of prior incidents involving assassins disguised as heralds, was standard protocol.
Any object was first handled by a trusted team member before reaching the commander.
The old general inspected the crest on the purse—which he didn’t recognize.
Though they weren’t from the same country, noble houses often communicated with each other.
The general was familiar with all the major noble crests within Avarus, but this one didn’t ring any bells.
A Count ought to be a territorial lord of some standing.
It was rather strange that such a noble’s crest would be unfamiliar.
“Count Leon... I think I’ve heard of that place before.”
He turned to check the map.
In the upper left corner was a small territory labeled ‘Count Leon’s Domain.’
“Bring in an advisor who specializes in heraldry to verify this crest,” he said.
As he sent an aide to check, the general opened the envelope and skimmed through the letter.
After a brief look, he lost interest and tossed it onto the table.
“General, what did the letter say?”
“Another noble trying to surrender in exchange for keeping his domain,” the general replied lazily. “Only slightly interesting part is that he claims Princess Viola is currently in his territory, and wants to use that as a bargaining chip.”
His staff burst into laughter.
“Does he really think he's the only one who knows the princess is hiding in Leon's domain?”
“Wouldn’t be surprised. These backwater nobles probably think it's top-tier intel.”
“The nobles of Avarus have lived in peace for far too long.”
The general didn’t stop the laughter.
A major battle was imminent; he couldn’t possibly manage everything alone.
His staff had handled much of the details these past days, so letting them laugh and relax a bit wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
In that sense, Count Leon had been unexpectedly helpful.
After the laughter died down, the general said:
“Send word to our allies about Viola hiding in Count Leon’s domain. That’s not our responsibility.”
With the capital destroyed and both the king and crown prince dead, the Avarus Demon Kingdom had fractured, each local leader fighting their own wars without coordination.
They still had considerable military power, but without someone to unify them, their forces couldn't form any cohesive strategy.
To the Coalition of Four Nations, Princess Viola was highly significant.
If she appeared with her royal lineage, she could rally the fractured lords to regroup.
The general had long assumed she was hiding in Leon’s territory.
Other allied generals knew as well, but since she was hiding in such an out-of-the-way place, they had all agreed to just let her stay there—as long as she didn’t do anything troublesome, her fate didn’t matter.
However, one of the nations within the coalition had been tasked with eliminating the Avarus royal family before the war even began.
The reason they hadn't yet entered Leon’s territory was because the main Canyon Path had been destroyed.
Using the excuse of “uncertain whereabouts of the princess,” they'd avoided taking responsibility.
Make no mistake, they were only pretending not to know.
Everyone knew that going after the princess was a dirty, exhausting job.
Rather than waste time on that, they’d rather use it to plunder the lands of Avarus.
In that light, the general thought it wouldn’t hurt to throw Count Leon’s letter at them—they might take the bait.
After all, they weren’t from the same nation.
Watching another country suffer was always amusing.
Turning back to the map, the general's eyes landed on the far edge of the left side.
Since the Canyon Path was unusable, if someone really wanted to reach the princess...
His gaze settled on a mass of wavy lines on the map—
That represented the sea.
(End of Chapter)