Swords, magic, and martial arts

Rhodes and the huntress moved the werewolf's carcass to another location, wondering if the smell of blood would attract some wild beasts.

A faint smell of blood lingered on the ground. The werewolf had bled profusely after the huntress slit his throat, and Rhodes had built a fire there.

After doing all that, Rhodes wasn't sleepy at all; he was even so excited that he wanted to find someone to fight.

"Since you're in such good spirits, then you can keep watch all night," the huntress said, yawning as she noticed Rhodes was still quite excited.

Rod thought about how he hadn't slept much yesterday, and the day before that was about the same. He wondered if he would suddenly die if he didn't sleep today.

"I'll only keep watch for the first half of the night, and you can keep watch for the second half," Rhodes said, refusing the hunter's request.

The hunter nodded, then lay down on the fur blankets she had brought and fell asleep.

Aya sat on the ground, pale-faced and trembling slightly. She had just been frightened by the werewolf's hideous appearance and had not yet recovered from the fear.

"Are you that timid?" Rod scoffed in a low voice.

Aya snapped out of her daze and said angrily, "You're the coward."

Rod laughed for a moment, then suddenly fell silent, his expression changed, and he stared at Aya's upper body.

Aya was so frightened that she didn't dare to look up and asked in a low voice, "What's up above me?" Her voice trembled with fear.

"Don't move yet, a leaf is about to fall from above," Rod said seriously.

After hearing this, Aya remained seated without moving for a while before realizing what Rod had said. She hit him hard, then lay down on the ground with her back to him, preparing to go to sleep and ignore him.

Rhodes was somewhat helpless, wondering if there was any cure for people like Aya who brought the negative effect of "the calamity of the wise".

He sat by the fire, idly playing with it. When he felt it was past midnight, he woke up the huntress and had her take over the night watch. He then leaned against a tree and began to meditate.

In the morning, they simply rinsed their mouths, ate some hard black bread (about the size of a piece of wood) from their backpacks, and continued on their way.

According to the huntress, if they walk quickly, they can leave the forest and reach Frostwood Town, which is located next to the forest, before dark today.

After asking the huntress, Rhodes learned that they had been teleported to Winterfell Province. If Baron had continued at his previous pace, they would still be in Mountain Province, since they would have to cross several thousand-meter-high snow-capped mountains to reach Winterfell Province later in their journey.

On their way out of the forest, Rhodes and his companions encountered no further danger. The huntress, with her extensive experience, led them away from an adult saber-toothed tiger.

Rhodes was terrified when he saw the saber-toothed tiger in the distance. It was almost as big as the wild boar he had killed. Such a huge feline could be called the Grim Reaper of the forest.

The huntress said that if it were to ambush them, it could easily kill a squad of five well-coordinated and well-equipped Fish Kingdom heavy infantrymen.

Rhodes didn't really believe it, after all, the army of the Kingdom of Fish had never invaded the Nord Kingdom's homeland, so how could she know the outcome of this battle?

As the sun was setting, Rhodes and his companions emerged from the forest and arrived at a small town nestled beside it. The town was bustling with activity; even though it wasn't spring yet and the sun was about to set, many merchants were still hawking their wares in the streets, and numerous adventurers carrying weapons were coming and going.

"Why are there adventurers here?" Rhodes asked the huntress curiously.

"As I told you, legend has it that there is a Nord noble's tomb in this forest. They want to find the tomb and get the treasure inside. A long time ago, a Grand Duke of Winterfell Province issued a bounty, saying that if anyone could solve the abnormality of this forest, he would be made a knight. So every year, many adventurers come here, preparing to enter the forest to explore in the spring," the huntress explained.

"Aren't they afraid that someone will go into the forest in winter and find it before they do?" Rhodes asked.

"How could that be? Countless adventurers come here every year, and it's been hundreds of years, yet not a single one has found it. Nowadays, many adventurers come here not entirely to find the tomb, but rather to join in the fun and maybe even hunt for a little money," the huntress said. "Alright, now that you've left the forest, our transaction is complete, so I'll be going now."

"We still don't know your name," Rhodes said.

"No need, you didn't tell me anyway. Maybe we'll meet again someday." With that, the huntress left.

"Are you following me or what?" Rod turned to ask Aya, who was standing next to him.

"I have no money, and I don't know where my parents are. Where can I go?" Aya said.

"Aren't you going back to the North to continue being a noble lady?" Rod asked.

"I finally escaped, how could I just go back like this..." Aya realized she had let something slip halfway through her sentence.

Rhodes smiled at her, while Aya stared at him in disbelief, unsure of what to do next.

"A noble lady yearning for adventure?" Rod said, but Aya ignored him and turned her head to look at the ground.

"A noble lady who is unwilling to accept a marriage arranged by her family?" Rod said again, and Aya angrily ran to the side.

Rod reached out and grabbed her back. "Don't be angry if I'm right. You're so stupid. If you run off like this, someone will definitely kidnap you and sell you cheaply to some idiot in the Roman Empire. You won't even get to eat meat. You'll just be having babies for other people every day."

Aya looked at Rhodes with red eyes. "How about we contact the local nobles and ask them to help send you back?" Rhodes asked.

"No, even if I'm kidnapped, I can escape. But if I go home, I'll never be able to escape again," Aya said, looking like she was about to cry.

"Then what are you planning to do out here? If I were you, I would definitely stay at home and have delicious food and drinks delivered to your mouth every day," Rod asked.

"I don't know what I want to do. I just don't want to go home. They want to marry me off to an old count who is more than twenty years older than me," Aya said softly.

Rod didn't know what to do, nor how to comfort Aya and stop her crying. He was frustrated by the sight of a little girl crying. Aya tugged at the corner of Rod's clothes.

"So what are you going to do now? Follow me?" Rod asked, and Aya nodded.

Well, that's all we can do," Rod said with a hint of helplessness.

Rod and Aya had no money on them. He took Aya to a general store, intending to sell the axe they had obtained from the mercenary. The axe was made of steel and should still be worth some money.

Upon entering the general store, the owner was idly dozing off at the table.

"How much are you going to pay for this axe?" Rod asked.

The shopkeeper rubbed his eyes, perked up, and took the axe. After examining it carefully for a while, he said, "The workmanship is excellent, but the blade is a bit dull and needs some time to sharpen. I can pay you one gold coin."

Rhodes argued, "You absolutely cannot buy an axe like this for less than ten gold coins at any blacksmith shop. If you go to a blacksmith shop in the city, you would have to pay at least fifteen gold coins. Now you're only charging one gold coin? At least five gold coins."

The shopkeeper paused for a moment, then offered a price: "Three gold coins."

"Give me back the axe, I'll go sell it next door," Rod said.

The shop owner hesitated, holding the axe, wanting to raise the price.

Aya stopped Rod, "We don't have a single penny on us right now, three gold coins will do."

She then held out her hand to the shopkeeper and said, "Give me three gold coins."

The shopkeeper happily placed the gold coins in Aya's hand, and Aya said, "Let's go."

Rod is now regretting bringing her along.

Fine, I'll bear it.

In a few days, I will hand you over to other nobles and have them send you back. Your family will surely pay me a much larger reward than this.

Rod looked at Aya with some anger and thought...