The corpse of the deceased lay in the center of the village square, before the Goddess Nia’s statue, covered with a layer of leaves. The square was silent, the elderly priest performing last rites for the departed soul, while n and won watched the scene wordlessly.
It had been this way for centuries.
Suffering had beco a part of life for the Senia People. Unable to resist, this vulnerable tribe chose to retreat further into the forest. But life in the Black Forest wasn’t necessarily sweet either. Cold, hunger, and monster attacks equally cast the shadow of death.
Everyone looked at their eldest, their Elder— the one who, for the Senia People, embodied experience and was a natural leader. In tis of suffering, he always led them out of harm’s way. But this ti, even this wise elder lowered his brows, appearing powerless.
The old man grasped his staff, every wrinkle on his face etched with a heavy shadow. He sighed deeply. The middle-aged man beside him with dark, weathered skin and a full beard clenched his teeth and turned to leave.
"Uncle Bolton, where are you going?"
The tall young man beside the elder imdiately called out to him.
The middle-aged man stopped and replied without turning, in a deep voice, "I’m going to bring Funiya back—!"
"Calm down!" The young man urged, "Uncle Bolton, what can you do alone? Are you going to get yourself killed?"
"I promised Sally... So even if I die, I have to go!" The middle-aged man replied stubbornly.
But he knew it was just bravado, and couldn’t help but turn away, fists clenched, every muscle tensed.
"Bolton, calm down," the old man with the staff finally spoke, sighing, "Sally is my daughter. Funiya is my granddaughter... After winter, we’ll return to the forest."
The middle-aged man turned back, eyes red, looking at everyone, "And Funiya? And the others’ grudges, are we just not going to avenge them?"
The crowd was silent, lowering their heads wordlessly.
The middle-aged man snorted coldly and turned to leave. The old man watched his back, sighing again, knowing Bolton wouldn’t actually go out and provoke the Noble Knights. Every man in this tribe wouldn’t abandon it so easily.
This was their duty.
Yet Bolton’s departure still brought a wave of silence among the people. But what could they do? The strongest in the village was this Silver Power martial arts leader, who was no match for the formidable Lord Baron.
But the silence did not last long; the ceremony needed to continue. Just then, everyone saw a figure stumbling from outside the village—
It was Yue’er, who was on watch outside the village.
Everyone recognized the familiar figure and instinctively tensed up. Had those ruthless Noble Knights co back?
But hadn’t they already taken Funiya away?
"Yue’er, what’s the matter?" The old man was also slightly startled but imdiately asked. As their leader, he maintained a facade of calm, though his hand gripped the wooden staff tightly.
"Fu... Funiya..." Yue’er finally ran up to the group, breathlessly shouting, as if seeing a ghost.
"Funiya?" The old man was taken aback, then his face changed, and he quickly asked, "What happened to Funiya?"
"Funiya was rescued..."
"What?"
...
News of the girl’s rescue quickly spread through the secluded forest village.
But Brand felt a bit awkward about his current situation. He hadn’t expected his group to be t with such coldness. Though he never sought gratitude for his actions, surely they had brought the girl Funiya back to the village—
But none of them anticipated that the gratitude would be far outweighed by suspicion and fearful gazes. As they rode through the village, they felt those stares from all around.
The middle-aged man nad Yue’er first received them, leading them to the village’s largest house, saying the Elder would co shortly. Finally, with a look of fear and complexity, he closed the door and left.
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