I can evolve everything

Chapter 119 Baron's Past

Ryan tried to move his body.

His right arm was clamped between two flat, hard wooden boards and wrapped with several layers of linen.

The wound appeared to have been treated, with some kind of ointment applied to mask the original smell of blood.

A sharp, aching pain spread throughout the bones and muscles of the entire body.

The muscle spasms caused by the extreme overexertion of the "Black Rock Breathing Method" still prevented him from moving freely.

Renn slowly turned his head, wanting to get a clear view of the entire cave.

Less than five meters away from him, there was a makeshift fire, and a figure was sitting beside it.

The man was wearing a dark gray cloak.

The edges of the cloak were worn, and the hem was stained with dark red blood.

The man was holding a tree branch with a piece of animal meat skewered on it, slowly turning it over above the campfire.

Pale yellow fat dripped down the pieces of meat onto the fire, splattering sparks.

The figure realized that Raine had woken up.

The cloak swayed slightly, the action of flipping the roasting meat stopped, and the head was slowly turned around.

A tattered iron mask gleamed with a rough, cold light in the orange glow of the fire. Beneath the mask, a pair of cloudy eyes stared calmly at Renn.

It's Baron.

"The Hangman" Baron.

Ryan's tense muscles relaxed considerably.

He leaned against the cold rock wall, not touching the two-handed greatsword beside him.

In this situation, you don't need to be wary of someone who has just helped you heal.

If he wanted to kill him, Baron could have simply delivered the final blow in the snowy ravine.

"You're sleeping soundly," Baron said slowly, casually tossing a water pouch over.

Ryan raised his left hand and caught it steadily.

He tilted his head back and gulped it down.

The dry throat was moistened by the warm water, and the stinging sensation was finally relieved.

"You shot that arrow." Raine put down the water pouch and wiped the water from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Your sword is heavy, and your killing intent is pure." Baron turned his head and continued to turn the piece of beast meat. "But in a blizzard, brute force alone cannot kill a dire wolf king that has lived for hundreds of years. You need eyes that can perceive the environment."

Raine seemed to sense something and looked into the depths of the cave.

In the shadows where the firelight couldn't reach, lay a mountain of flesh.

It was the mangled body of the wolf king, split in two by Raine, and it was dragged into the cave by Baron.

"You've been following us," Ryan said.

"I don't have the time to hang out with a bunch of knights." Baron made a few cuts in the roasted meat to let the fat seep out more. "I'm just looking for an opportunity to assassinate this beast in the wasteland."

"It's cunning and never leaves the heart of the monster horde. Only today, when you knights caused such a commotion, did I have even the slightest chance."

Baron cut off half of the roasted meat and threw it in front of Renn.

"You've cornered it. I know this terrain better than you do. I know that if that dire wolf king wants to escape, this ravine is the only escape route it will choose. So, I found a gap there beforehand and waited for it to run into it."

Raine grabbed the piece of meat and chewed it vigorously, trying his best to regain his strength.

Outside the cave, the howling of the wind and snow remained desolate.

As the food entered his mouth, Renn felt his strength gradually returning.

Ryan swallowed the last bite of meat, his gaze falling on Baron's mask.

He's always wanted to ask this question.

From the first time I met this wild knight until today.

"Why?" Renn's voice echoed in the empty cave.

Barron paused for half a second as he fiddled with the firewood.

"I've always wanted to know," Renn said, looking directly into the eyes beneath the mask, "why become a wanted wild knight? Why cling to the Silver Laws of decades past? And why come to kill this dire wolf king and help the Northern Fortress?"

Baron didn't answer immediately, but instead asked Ryan a question: "Have you ever seen a real winter, Ryan?"

Barron stared at the flickering fire.

"Twenty years ago, when I swore allegiance to Viscount Edric's territory, we experienced such a long winter."

Baron's tone was calm. This was a memory that had been constantly replaying in his mind.

"The Viscount was a good man. He strictly enforced the Silver Laws established by the kingdom, did not collect exorbitant taxes, and even distributed the winter surplus from the castle to the serfs in his territory. But it was all in vain. Food could not grow in the frozen ground, and the game died in the cold wave. Every day, people starved to death outside the castle walls."

"Until a wandering magician appeared."

Renn's breath hitched slightly.

"He called himself the messenger of spring." Baron sneered. "He performed miracles for the Viscount. Withered wheat sprouted anew in the snow, and frozen livestock rose again."

He told the viscount that if a magic circle were erected in the center of the territory, the land could be forever protected from the harsh winter.

"The viscount believed. He had no other choice. He looked at the cattle and sheep that had stood up again and thought it was a gift from the gods."

"That mage is Hughes Bloodhoof."

"He did not bring spring. He bewitched the Viscount. He drained the life from this land to complete the half-lich conversion ritual."

"By the time I realized something was wrong, it was too late. Hughes used a magic circle to warp the minds of the entire territory. The Viscount became his puppet, manipulated by him, and launched a suicidal charge against the kingdom's border guards."

"This is the truth behind Viscount Edric's treason, which is not recorded in the kingdom's records."

Renn did not interrupt.

He was extremely perceptive of emotions. He could smell the strong stench of blood in Barron's calm narration.

"I was on patrol with a small squad at the time and escaped unscathed. By the time I got back to the castle, the Kingdom's Knights' Inquisition had already taken over the area."

Baron silently took a bite of the beast meat.

"I thought the law was just. Naively, I took the few words the viscount had written down before his death, along with the samples of the magic circles that Hughes had made, and went to appeal to the knights in the court. I wanted to prove that the viscount had been bewitched and that he had not betrayed the kingdom. In this way, even though the viscount had already been executed, perhaps I could save the lives of the viscountess and that little boy who had just turned seven."

Barron stared silently at Ryan.

"Guess what those high knights of the kingdom did?"

Raine met that gaze: "They don't care about the truth?"

“That’s right. They didn’t care.” Baron tilted his head back and chuckled dryly. “When they discovered that it was Hughes Bloodhoof who had bewitched the Viscount, they were terrified.”

"They seem determined to investigate thoroughly. The simplest and safest method is to pin all the blame on Viscount Edric and use a complete purge to cover up the truth."

It was a rainy night.

"The executioners of the court rushed into the dungeon at midnight. I watched with my own eyes the Viscountess being hanged in the castle tower, and the seven-year-old boy being pierced through the chest by a spear."

"I drew my sword and cut down two executioners. Then I met him."

Baron raised his hand and pointed to the cast iron mask on his face.

Hughes didn't leave; he stayed to witness his failed attempt.

"I swung my sword at him. I used all the skills I had learned in my life, but he didn't even take me seriously."

Baron lowered his hand and shook his head self-deprecatingly.

He extended only one finger and flicked it lightly on the blade of my sword.

"My sword shattered. The force of the recoil from the hilt broke my right arm. He looked at me lying in the mud like I was a stray dog. He had no interest in killing me, only mocking that my loyalty was not even a joke."

"Then he calmly disappeared into the rainy night."

"I've been like this ever since."

"The king's laws only bare their fangs at the weak, while groveling before the strong. Since there is no justice in that world, I will act according to the rules of the viscount's territory. The Silver Law has not been abolished; at least it still holds true under my sword."

"After that, I lived like a ghost in the North, killing bandits and hanging scum. At the same time, I was also looking for Hughes Bloodhoof."

Barron stood up, walked to the edge of the cave entrance, and put a period to this past event.