With that move, Ethan Brooks revealed his great strength, sweeping Edward Grant off his horse in a single stroke. With a thud, Edward Grant hit the ground. Nearby foot soldiers, already stationed close by, saw Edward Grant fall and immediately rushed forward to tie him up. Looking at Edward Grant lying on the ground, Ethan Brooks thought to himself, “I don’t know what’s going on, but my strength seems to be getting greater and greater! Could it have something to do with my inexplicable arrival in this chaotic era?” He lowered his head and glanced again at Edward Grant, who was being tied up by the soldiers, and couldn’t help but feel delighted, thinking, “I never expected to catch such a big fish. This Edward Grant is a top general under Cao Cao. If I bring him back, I wonder if James Carter will make me a general?” The more he thought about it, the happier he became, as if he had already become a general, his whole face blooming with joy.

Seeing the soldiers had finished tying up Edward Grant, and that Edward Grant seemed to have been knocked unconscious and hadn’t reacted at all, Ethan Brooks looked around. The hundred or so men who had been with Edward Grant were either killed or had surrendered by now, and those who had come with him were now chatting and cleaning up the battlefield. Looking into the distance, the flames were much dimmer than before, and the sounds of battle were fading and barely audible—it seemed the fighting was over. After thinking it over, Ethan Brooks ordered the surrounding soldiers to escort the prisoners toward Xinye.

Because Ethan Brooks didn’t know the way, it took quite a bit of effort. Fortunately, the soldiers with him were all locals from Xinye and were very familiar with the area. He called one over to lead the way, and after winding around for a long time, they finally saw the city of Xinye.

When Ethan Brooks entered the city, he realized his earlier guess was correct: the battle at Bowang Slope had ended, and only a small number of soldiers remained there to clean up the battlefield. The great generals Guan, Zhang, and Zhao were all gathered in the city governor’s mansion. Ethan Brooks ordered the soldiers with him to return to their units, and took only two soldiers to escort Edward Grant to the city lord’s residence. He knew Edward Grant was a top general under Cao Cao, so he didn’t send him to the prisoner holding area, but instead personally brought him to see James Carter.

By this time, Edward Grant had regained consciousness and was looking dejectedly at Ethan Brooks, who was striding ahead with his chest out and head held high. He never imagined he would be captured by such an unknown figure, and judging by this man’s armor, he didn’t even look like a general. “Could it be that my fate, Peter Grant, ends here?” With this thought, his expression inevitably turned sorrowful, forming a stark contrast to the beaming, jubilant Ethan Brooks ahead.

When they reached the city governor’s mansion, the guards outside stopped Ethan Brooks. This was within Ethan Brooks’s expectations, so he wasn’t annoyed. Instead, he politely said, “Please inform them that Ethan Brooks, personal guard under David Clark, has captured the Cao army’s Edward Grant. I am unsure how to proceed, so I have brought the enemy general here for our lord’s decision!”

When the guard heard that the man being escorted was a top general of the Cao army, he looked at Ethan Brooks in shock, then turned and rushed inside to report. Ethan Brooks stood there, enjoying the complex looks of awe, envy, and admiration from the other guards. Before long, the guard hurried back out, followed by David ClarkWilliam Clark. As soon as David Clark saw Ethan Brooks, he immediately said, “Andrew! I heard you captured Edward Grant?”

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Chapter Four: Deputy General

Ethan Brooks followed behind David Clark into the mansion. Along the way, David Clark simply led the way without turning back to say a word, so Ethan Brooks had no choice but to keep quiet and follow silently. Behind them, two soldiers pushed Edward Grant along.

Soon, they arrived at the main hall. Ethan Brooks followed David Clark straight inside, while Edward Grant was left outside the hall, presumably to wait until James Carter summoned him. Inside the hall stood many people, divided into two rows. Only James Carter sat at the head, and beside him was the man fanning himself non-stop with a feather fan—Benjamin Reed.

David Clark entered the hall, bowed to James Carter, and said, “Reporting to my lord, Andrew has been brought in.” Then he stood to the right. Following David Clark’s lead, Ethan Brooks noticed that all those on the right were military officers, headed by the long-bearded, green-robed Robert EvansRobert Evans. Next was Michael Bolton—even if Ethan Brooks hadn’t met Michael Bolton before, just seeing that face, he could guess who it was. The third was David Clark, and further down were Thomas Evans, George Parker, and others.

On the left were presumably the civil officials, but Ethan Brooks only knew that under James Carter, only Benjamin Reed was truly outstanding among the civil officials; the rest were not much to speak of. Besides, few civil officials had such distinctive features as Benjamin Reed, so even after looking at them for a long time, he couldn’t recognize many. Moreover, since James Carter was looking at him, he didn’t have much time to observe others. Once inside, David Clark stepped aside, and Ethan Brooks immediately knelt on one knee and said, “Ethan Brooks, greets my lord!” He currently held no official position; though nominally David Clark’s personal guard, David Clark had never given him a clear rank, so Ethan Brooks didn’t know how to address himself and simply left it out to avoid the headache.