The middle-aged man in the gray robe said with a serious expression, "You three need to fight. The winner gets the job. This is to prevent the weaker ones from being overwhelmed by the Bell Rats that have taken over the warehouse."
No sooner had he spoken than the dark-skinned youth from the Skull Gang targeted Durin, swiftly swinging the baseball bat in his hand. However, Durin easily dodged the bat, then drew the Page Hammer from his waist and struck the opponent's baseball bat first. He then delivered a knee strike to the opponent's lower abdomen, followed by a backhand smash to the man's chin with the tail end of the Page Hammer.
"Puff!"
With a cry of pain, the dark-skinned youth fell backward onto the ground, half of a lower molar flying out with him.
All of this happened incredibly fast, in just over a minute.
He lay on the ground, groaning in pain, covering his mouth and coughing up blood.
[One-Handed Weapon Proficiency +1, Current Proficiency: 54/75]
[Running Proficiency +1, Current Proficiency: 38/50]
As soon as the fight began, Durin realized he had been too cautious. In the Undercity of Zaun, there was no such thing as technique; everyone just relied on brute force and wild swings, blindly assaulting people without any method.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Durin then glared fiercely at the remaining civilian from the Undercity of Zaun.
"..."
The other man swallowed, instinctively exchanged glances with the herb merchant, and shuffled backward, not daring to advance.
Durin took one step forward, and he took two steps back.
Trembling, he dared not look directly at the blood-stained Page Hammer in Durin's hand, and finally, terrified, he turned and ran.
"Alright, you got the job. What's your name?" The middle-aged man asked, pointing at Durin.
"Durin."
The middle-aged man in the plain gray robe instructed, "Listen! You're going to enter the warehouse later and drive all those Bell Rats back into the sewers. Then, you'll need to sprinkle rat repellent powder deep in the sewers to make those damned Bell Rats move to other sewer areas."
Then, he pointed to the closed warehouse door behind Durin and complained indignantly, "Damn it, I don't know what's going on, these things usually hide in the sewers, but these past few days they've been acting crazy, injuring several of my partners! Thankfully, all the herbs in the warehouse have been moved out, but now I'm short-handed. Protective gear, rat repellent powder, and a back basket are all ready for you!"
After speaking, he turned and left directly.
Durin looked at a set of thick gray protective gear and a wicker back basket placed in the corner. He walked over and placed the Page Hammer into the back basket.
Then, he put on the heavy protective gear, and then hoisted the back basket onto his shoulder again. It contained various tools, such as his weapon, the Page Hammer, a spare set of long-sleeved clothes, a gas lantern for illumination, a large bag of rat repellent powder, and so on.
Bell Rats are not inherently terrifying; they are intelligent creatures that can communicate and speak the Zaunite language. They had already lived in the Undercity long before Zaun was developed; they are the true natives.
Normally, with a sharp weapon, proper protection, and overcoming fear to face them calmly, an adult can generally handle them. The difficulty lies in facing multiple enemies—two fists are no match for four claws; two Bell Rats can pin him down, and the remaining Bell Rats will use various mechanical tools to pound people.
There's even a saying in Zaun: if several Bell Rats cooperate, they can unknowingly build rampaging machines and cause chaos in the streets and alleys of the Undercity.
But as long as Durin was careful, driving away these timid Bell Rats shouldn't be a big problem.
"...Gulp..."
Durin swallowed, tiptoed, and slowly moved to the door, confirming it was locked. He held the Page Hammer from his back basket in his right hand and the gas lamp in his left.
Having done all this, Durin went to the door and pressed his ear against it, listening carefully.
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