Passive defense, especially against a county town gang with no bottom line, Rein thought was not a good approach.
So, what he could do was to carefully plan and see if he could take the initiative to strike first and solve the problem once and for all.
Otherwise, the disappearance of such a core group in Flashgold Town would certainly alarm "Dog King" Cole.
Once they attacked again, it would not just be a few people.
It's possible that "Dog King" Cole would personally take action!
At that time, not only would Anna be taken away, but it could also jeopardize the safety of Rein's family.
This was something Rein simply could not agree to!
As for seeking help from Hamilton?
Rein had already considered this, and even if they agreed to offer protection, unless the whole family stayed indoors all the time, there would always be a day when a slip-up occurred, giving the Hyena gang an opportunity to catch them.
This was a risk Rein could not afford to take, nor could he dare to.
From the recent interrogation, Rein had obtained some key information.
It turned out that although most of the Hyena gang's operations were in the county town, "Dog King" Cole had an unbreakable routine of returning to the dog-fighting farm almost every day to rest.
Accompanying him were over a dozen core members of the Hyena gang.
The dog-fighting farm, although named like a "manor," was in fact just a farm situated between Flashgold Town and County Town, according to the bald man and another gang member.
The huge wooden dog sculpture at the entrance was its hallmark.
The dog-fighting farm, as the name suggests, was a place "Dog King" Cole set up for dog-fighting gambling, where almost every day was filled with the barking of dogs and the shouting of gamblers, never-ending chaos.
Therefore, "Dog King" Cole came up with a solution by surrounding the entire farm with a two-meter-high white birch fence.
At the same time, a large number of fruit trees were planted inside the fence, effectively blocking the noise from inside the farm, otherwise, the clamor from dog-fighting could probably be heard miles away.
In addition, Rein was relieved to learn from the bald man's description that "Dog King" Cole was tall and strong.
But "Dog King" Cole's strength was not that of a formal Knight, meaning that he had not yet reached the Transcendent level.
However, the Hyena Queen could not be underestimated even more; as big as a wild boar, with immense strength, and she had birthed a large litter of pups, which "Dog King" Cole let roam in the dog-fighting farm.
Those five hyenas were all offspring of the Hyena Queen!
After raiding their loot, Rein pondered as he walked towards home.
Just as he was about to reach the front door, he saw Anna and little Bo He.
They both seemed to be anxiously explaining something to a few Night Watchmen, frequently pointing towards the forest, with expressions close to tears.
Additionally, Rein took a closer look and recognized these three Night Watchmen; they were Captain Weilun and the two elite members of the Night Watch he had stayed with previously.
He was naturally quite familiar with them, after all, they had fought against vicious Worgs together and slaughtered murlocs.
"Why have they come?"
"Could it be that Anna called for them?"
Without hesitation, Rein quickly stepped forward.
Seeing Rein return, Anna and little Bo He immediately rushed over excitedly.
"Brother, Sister Anna and I were so worried about you!" little Bo He plunged straight into Rein's arms, holding him tightly.
"Sister Anna was going to the administrative hall to call for the guardian officer, but halfway there we ran into Uncle Weilun and the others."
Rein's heart warmed, and turning his head, he saw Anna looking at him with concern; her face was pale, and her chest was heaving, clearly from running with her frail body.
Seeing Rein look at her, their eyes met, and Anna shyly lowered her head.
At this moment, Weilun stepped forward and said to Anna and little Bo He, "You two worry too much! I told you nothing would happen to Rein, but you didn't believe me."
"Now you believe it, huh! Haha!"
"Rein, what's the situation? Was it a few scumbags from the Hyena gang?" Weilun turned and asked Rein.
"Yes, four or five Hyena gang lackeys came here with their hyenas, they were investigating the disappearance of Blackbeard."
"This matter!" Weilun glanced at little Bo He without saying much more.
Rein immediately understood and patted Little Bo He's head, saying, "Bo He, you go home with Sister Anna first. Big brother and Captain Weilun have something to discuss."
Bo He blinked her large eyes, glanced at Rein and Weilun, then turned to take Anna's fair hand of her own accord.
"Mm, big brother, make sure you come back early, okay? We'll wait for you to have dinner together."
Rein smiled and nodded, saying, "Go on, then."
After watching the two of them enter the house, Rein's expression became solemn before he spoke to Weilun:
"Captain Weilun, there are the bodies of some of the Hyena Gang members I killed in the forest. I might need your help dealing with them."
This statement immediately caused the other two elite Night Watchmen to change their expressions and cast sidelong glances at Rein.
Weilun's face hardened. "You killed them all?"
He hadn't spared even a single dog!
"Alright, I'll take care of it!"
"However... once the Hyena Gang finds out, they're likely to target you like mad dogs! Rein, be careful on your own. I'll strengthen the nighttime patrols around your house."
"Thank you, Captain Weilun. I'll be careful," Rein said with a warmth in his heart as he nodded.
Weilun patted Rein's shoulder and quickly led his two subordinates in the direction Rein had indicated.
As soon as he entered his house, Rein could sense something odd about the atmosphere.
He heard his mother ask, "Rein, I heard from Sima that a group of people with hyenas were loitering at our doorstep?"
"But when I just asked Anna and Bo He, both of them said they were in the yard planting vegetables and hadn't noticed," his mother Emma continued with a hint of suspicion as she looked once more at the two women.
Rein immediately had a clear understanding in his heart.
It seemed Anna harbored the same thoughts as him, not wanting to overly worry their parents about the matter.
"Mother, Aunt Sima must have seen wrong, as I didn't see anyone with hyenas when I came back either!"
"Is that so? Sima really is getting old; her eyesight is going!"
Hearing Rein say the same, Mother Emma finally relaxed and stopped probing into the matter.
After dinner, Rein went back to his room.
But shortly after, there was a knock at the door.
It was Anna knocking, and little Bo He was also peeking around the doorway.
"Come on in, both of you!"
Once the two women were inside, Rein closed the door and said in a low voice, "Don't worry about the Hyena Gang, I'll handle it."
"And, Anna, thank you for not telling my parents about this. Otherwise, it would have just caused them unnecessary worry."
"No, no! It should be me thanking you, Rein... you've helped me once again!" Anna said, lowering her head with interlocked fingers, nervously twisting the hem of her long waist-clinching dress.
Little Bo He giggled and said to Anna, "Sister Anna, if you pull any more, the dress will tear!"
"Ah!" Anna immediately let go of her hands, but realizing Bo He was teasing her, a blush couldn't help but spread across her face.
After Anna and Bo He had left, Rein remembered to check the system notifications:
[Your skill Giant Bear Sword Technique has been improved, Experience +67]
[You have been through a battle, Night Watchman Professional Experience Points +34]
The experience points were not much.
It was expected, after all, a few gang members were involved, and their contribution to the experience points probably largely came from those few hyenas.
Rein glanced at the remaining 1 Skill Point he had and, after a moment of thought, decided to continue to allocate it to the Blacksmith's Strength.
Since he was about to go do a job, naturally, he had to invest points in a skill that could "Decisive Hammer"!
After Blacksmith's Strength was upgraded from lv3 to lv4, the text suddenly distorted.