H41 Deed of the Crow

Book cover

**Deed of the Crow** is the 41st book in the series.

## Synopsis

BECOMING THE BEST! ALEX PROTECTS CROWBONE!

As Miss Crowbone joins Alex's team, her past comes back to haunt her. A top hunter from the Mercenary Hunters Guild is after her - sent by her former torturer, the only son of the Guild's president. Refusing to bow down to external pressure to hand over his new ally, Alex quits the World Adventure Union.

## Cast

* Alex
* Lulu
* Jackal
* Hank
* Crowbone
* Silver Tiger

## Plot

### Chapter 1: Mercenary

Alex and co. are in a restaurant in Oslo, Norway. The traces of Madam Moja and anything related to Lulu and Crowbone's curse were found to be gone. They decide to continue searching for Shambhala portals. Mercenary hunters Seabrook and Toby notice Jackal. They are searching for a crow that was flying over Norway's border. Jackal tells them that he is not after the crow and to scram. Seabrook and Toby leave the restaurant.

Two years ago, there was a private castle in Turkey owned by the Mercenary Hunters Guild president's son, Silver Tiger. Crowbone attacked the castle one day and set it on fire. It caused Silver Tiger's face to be disfigured. A bounty of ten million was placed on Crowbone.

Seabrook and Toby, watching from afar, notice little Crowbone looking like the normal Crowbone in a photo. Toby continues watching while Seabrook informs Silver Tiger.

### Chapter 2: Lake Baikal

At Lake Baikal, Niko shows Alex and co. where exactly is the Shambhala portal. Niko returns home for supper and Alex and co. use a submarine Sally made. Jackal detonates his spinning blades to break the ice. Beneath the lake, the team finds the church that sunk here. Silver Tiger and several mercenary hunters arrive at the lake. Those who succeed in capturing Crowbone will be rewarded one million USD.

### Chapter 3: Underwater Warfare

Hank solves the puzzle to enter the ruins. A mercenary sub shot the team's sub propeller. Famous merc Nefarious Netter and a merc with a walrus fight Hank. Alex suggest entering the ruins so that the mercs can be defeated easily in there. When inside, Crowbone tells the team they don't have to protect her. Alex tells her that abandoning comrades is out of the question.

### Chapter 4: Adventurers Vs Mercenaries

A flashbang and a bomb that bursts out nails are thrown out of the water. Four mercs, among them being the one with the walrus and Netter, appear. A merc shoots his spear at Jackal, but he dodges it. The spear cracked the rock, which then breaks because of water. The area is flooded.

Jackal and Crowbone find themselves in a place where there is a stash of illegally-obtained treasure. They find a puzzle that they seem to not be able to answer.

### Chapter 5: Stop!

Hank and Netter engage in a fight. Netter launches a net at Hank's leg. Hank attaches herself to Netter. She knows the net has bombs, so she dares Netter to detonate them. Netter exits his suit and detonates the bombs.

The shock activated the mechanism for a staircase for the puzzle. On the walk down, Jackal points out how he and Crowbone are similar: standing at the "border" of the point of no return. Even though Crowbone burned Silver Tiger's castle, no one died. During her fights with Lulu, Marie Wright, Rita and Rica, she didn't kill them. She also avoided attacking the Valkyrie's vital areas, so all this concludes that Crowbone is subconsciously afraid of killing. Jackal remembers the time he killed a man. Mercenary Artemis finds them.

### Chapter 6: Run

As Jackal was about to stab with his spinning blade, Artemis gives him several cuts. Jackal latches on to Artemis' leg and tells Crowbone to find Alex. Crowbone runs, then is caught in Netter's electrifying net. Artemis is interested in seeing how Silver Tiger tortures Crowbone. Remembering her times of torture with her friends Alina and Holly, Crowbone bursts red energy.

### Chapter 7: Challenge

Crowbone transforms into her adult form and knocks Netter and Artemis out. Alex stops her from killing Artemis and is reminded by Jackal to not cross the line. Crowbone reverts back.

Alex plans to use the mercs' submarine to get out. Jackal tells them Artemis is Silver Tiger's right-hand man, and whenever he's around, so is Silver Tiger. Alex suggests to Crowbone that she should duel with Silver Tiger so that he'll leave her alone if she wins. Crowbone would rather be sneaking out. Alex asks if she wants to keep on running forever and not end it here. Jackal says to defeat Silver Tiger's bodyguards before defeating him as he always surrounds himself with mercs.

Alex and co. rise out of the lake and reveal themselves with Netter, Artemis and another merc defeated.

### Chapter 8: Confrontation

Alex and co. bring the defeated forward. One of Silver Tiger's bodyguards realises the situation is odd: the adventurers defeated the underwater unit and now standing before the mercs instead of fleeing. Alex was given a pass that allows him to travel freely and authorised to issue commands to adventurers. If he alerts the World Adventure Union and the Global Alliance for Humanity, things could go bad. Alex and co. have already been identified, so tracking them down next time won't be difficult.

Silver Tiger and his bodyguards move towards Alex and co. They will never hand Crowbone to him, and they know he has been purchasing girls illegally and treating them as slaves. Silver Tiger tells that he allowed Alina and Holly to die comfortably, so they should be grateful. This angers Alex. Silver Tiger knows who Alex is, and his father is more eminent than him. Leaders worldwide make secret dealings with him, not Robert and Steel Fang can escape him. To not hurt Robert and Steel Fang, Crowbone must be handed over.

Alex takes out his X-Venture Xplorers captain's identification card and adventurer license to burn them, quitting the Union. He angrily tells him to leave Robert and Steel Fang out. He will also not let Crowbone get harmed. Silver Tiger orders his men to surround Alex and co. Alex cracks the ice with Luminus' flame to go down a little winter swim.