"Joey, I'm entrusting Lady Catherine to you. I'll leave ten men with you, and the other ten will come with me to support Captain Pouf. We'll buy you more time!"

A resolute look appeared on Eileen's face; it seemed she had no intention of returning alive.

She is truly a heroine, a Mulan from another world.

"I will definitely get Lady Catherine back to Ashfurnace City safely!"

At this moment, Joey was also drawn into the atmosphere and spoke with righteous indignation.

The bearded man returned at this time, but he was carrying a large cloth bag on his back, which was full and looked quite heavy. However, the bearded man was happy and did not feel any strain at all.

Eileen nodded solemnly to Joey, then led ten guards toward the gate of the stronghold.

"Joey, where are we going now?"

Seeing that Eileen had already left, the bearded man tightened his pack on his back and casually asked a question.

"Of course we need to find a way to slip out. It'll be too late once the gate is breached!"

Although Joey said that, he really didn't know which direction to run in.

"Wait for me, wait for me!"

An old man shouted anxiously as he ran towards them. His gray hair indicated that he was quite old, but his steps were still vigorous.

"And you are?"

Joey didn't recognize the old man. During his time at the outpost, he thought he knew everything about everyone except the people in the small manor. But this old man who suddenly appeared was a stranger to him.

"Greetings, Grand Scholar Daines!"

Before the old man could answer, the ten female soldiers who remained all bowed to him.

"Scholar Daines?"

Joey repeated softly, "I didn't expect there to be such a cultured person hidden in this place."

"Hello, Grand Scholar Daines, my name is Joey Brown, and I was sent by Captain Pouf to protect Lady Catherine!"

Grand Secretary Daines glanced at the unconscious Catherine, who looked like a sleeping kitten.

"Yes, you did a good job. I was worried that Lady Catherine wouldn't want to leave like this, and I still need to persuade her!"

Grand Secretary Daines did not blame Joey for his recklessness. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. In any case, when Catherine wakes up, he won't be the first person to be punished.

"Follow me!"

He glanced at the thirteen people in front of him, then turned and ran again, the nine knots on his body swaying conspicuously.

Without hesitation, Joey followed closely behind the Grand Scholar. The old man's identity must have brought him here to protect Catherine, and the fact that he was being followed meant that he already had an escape route planned.

"There is a secret passage inside the council chamber. I asked Puff to build it without Lady Catherine's knowledge, so that in the event of a situation like this, we could safely send Lady Catherine out!"

As he ran, Daines told Joey behind him his purpose. He greatly admired Joey's decisiveness; otherwise, given Catherine's temper, he knew the situation would have been much worse.

After hearing what Daines said, Joey also developed a deep respect for the only cultured person in the outpost.

Of course, at this moment, I was more grateful that I had made a perfect choice, which allowed both myself and the bearded man to escape danger.

What does it mean for choice to be more important than effort? This is it!