Chapter 7 : Chapter 7
Chapter 7. We Can Never Repay My Lord’s Kindness
The wagon wheels rolled over the gravel road, kicking up faint clouds of dust.
After several days of travel, Eli’s “frontier motley crew” had finally left the borders of Black Territory and formally stepped into the kingdom’s western frontier.
Over the course of those days, the atmosphere within the group had begun to change in subtle ways.
The dim-witted raven on Eli’s shoulder would occasionally fly out in circles, bringing back vague fragments of what it had seen.
But more importantly, there was the once-daily free use of 【Intelligence Acquisition】 every morning.
It had become a divine tool that allowed Eli to plan their route, avoid danger, and even find unexpected gains along the way.
With the system’s guidance, they successfully avoided several potentially dangerous areas.
They had also “happened upon” thickets full of precious berries, as well as plump wild rabbits and mountain pheasants, greatly improving the quality of their meals on the march.
At first, the old veteran Brandon had been full of worry whenever Eli suddenly changed routes on a whim, always looking as if he wanted to speak but stopped himself.
Gradually, that had turned into silent obedience and growing astonishment buried deep in his eyes.
This young master’s luck was so absurdly good that it was as if he had kissed the toes of the Goddess of Fortune herself!
Or perhaps… the God of Light was truly watching over him?
As for the others in the group, whether human knights or Wolf-kin warriors, their trust in Eli deepened with each passing day.
The knights no longer followed him merely for gold and promises. Now they also carried genuine awe toward this “miraculous” young master.
The Wolf-kin remained quiet and distant as ever, but when they looked at Eli and his human companions, much of the icy hostility and suspicion they had once shown had already faded.
That morning, after his routine “draw,” Eli’s eyes flashed!
A line of purple intelligence appeared before him:
【Twenty kilometers ahead, at the shallows of a tributary of the Blackwater River, a group of Blood Deer (15 total, including 3 fawns) are drinking and resting.】
Blood Deer were legendary beasts. Their blood and antlers were worth their weight in gold on the market—and even then, they were nearly impossible to buy.
“Brandon!” Eli immediately called the veteran over.
“Change the route! Northwest! Destination: the shallows of the Blackwater River tributary! Full speed ahead!”
Brandon opened his mouth. The words, “Young Master, changing routes carelessly could expose us to unknown risks…” almost slipped out.
But when he saw the certainty in Eli’s eyes, and when he remembered how thoroughly his own judgment had been proven wrong over the past few days…
He swallowed the words back down. “Yes, my lord!”
The group immediately changed course.
Neither the knights nor the Wolf-kin understood why, but seeing both Young Master Eli and Brandon so resolute, they followed without hesitation.
After several hours of forced marching, they finally reached the area marked by the intelligence.
It was a sparsely wooded riverbank where clear water flowed gently past.
More than a dozen Blood Deer stood there.
They had elegant bodies covered in dark red fur, with branched antlers rising from their heads.
They were drinking and resting in the shallows, while three noticeably smaller fawns hopped and played around their mothers.
“Wolfgang,” Eli called in a low voice.
The silver-gray wolf king appeared soundlessly at his side, his icy blue eyes locking onto the herd.
“You take your people and circle around from upstream. Cut off their escape into the deep forest.
Remember—capture those three fawns alive if possible,” Eli ordered swiftly.
Wolfgang let out a low growl in acknowledgment.
He turned and issued a rapid series of low, guttural commands to the Wolf-kin behind him.
The thirteen Wolf-kin warriors scattered like hunters melting into the shadows.
Using the riverside brush and the terrain for cover, they swiftly made their way upstream.
Meanwhile, Eli led Brandon, Bol, Aika, and the other knights in a slow advance from the front, taking care not to alarm the deer too soon.
The encirclement silently took shape.
By the time the herd finally sensed danger and panicked, it was already too late.
“Now!” Eli gave the order.
“ROAR—!” From upstream, Wolfgang unleashed a thunderous wolf’s howl, and the ferocious aura of the Mid-Silver Tier exploded outward.
At the same time, more than a dozen fierce and agile wolf-shaped figures burst from the brush, cutting off the herd’s escape route!
From the front, Bol, Aika, and the other knights shot forward like arrows released from a bow.
Their horses charged, lances thrust, and blades flashed!
The battle erupted almost instantly—and ended just as quickly.
The Blood Deer were fast, but not particularly aggressive.
Faced with the charge of the human knights and the encirclement of the Wolf-kin warriors, they had little power to resist.
The shrill cries of the deer mixed with the dull sounds of weapons piercing flesh, then quickly faded into silence.
In the end, twelve adult Blood Deer were killed.
The three fawns were captured alive, tied securely with tough leather cords, and huddled together in terror.
The riverbank soon filled with the thick scent of blood, mixed with a strange, refreshing sweetness.
“Quick! Brandon, get everyone organized!” Eli ordered at once, speaking rapidly.
These past few days had brought growth to Eli as well.
“The knights are responsible for collecting the deer blood. Use clean waterskins and don’t waste a drop.
Wolf-kin brothers, you’re stronger—skin the carcasses.
Collect the antlers and sinews too. They’re all valuable!”
The orders were clear, and the division of labor precise.
The knights immediately took out the many leather waterskins they had prepared in advance.
With extreme care, they began collecting the Blood Deer’s blood, which was as thick and brilliant as liquid rubies.
The Wolf-kin drew their sharp knives—or simply used their claws—and skillfully began skinning and butchering the prey.
As he watched bag after bag of priceless deer blood being filled, Eli raised his voice and declared:
“Half of the blood we collect will be distributed immediately to every brother who took part in the fight. Drink it on the spot!
The other half will be preserved properly!”
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone was stunned.
The knights froze, staring at Eli in utter disbelief.
Blood Deer blood was a legendary treasure. Men of their station would normally never even have the chance to smell it.
And yet the young master was giving half of it to them?
To drink immediately?
After a brief silence, deafening cheers burst forth!
“Long live Lord Eli!”
“Thank you for your generosity, my lord!”
The knights’ faces flushed red with excitement, and the way they looked at Eli was filled with fanatic devotion and absolute loyalty.
The Wolf-kin on the outskirts could not understand every word, but when they saw the knights’ reaction—
and then saw Eli gesture toward them—
they understood enough.
A fierce light of desire flared in their eyes as well.
Something filled with life essence and blood vitality like this was just as beneficial to the Wolf-kin, especially when it came to stimulating the power of their bloodlines.
Eli smiled and nodded to them. “Of course, that includes all of you too—Wolfgang, and every one of our Wolf-kin brothers. This is the spoils you deserve.”
“Awoooo—!”
“ROAR—!”
Unable to suppress their excitement, the Wolf-kin threw back their heads and let out exhilarated howls.
For a time, the riverbank echoed with the cheers of the human knights and the cries of the Wolf-kin, one after another, overflowing with primal wildness and joy.
The invisible barrier between humans and demi-humans within the group seemed to have been washed away a little by this shared harvest and shared ecstasy.
As Eli looked at the lively scene before him—everyone working together in perfect harmony—his heart filled with emotion.
A few days ago, when he had looked at those silent, savage Wolf-kin, whose numbers nearly matched the knights’, he had occasionally regretted handing the contract back to Wolfgang so early.
But now, it seemed that the trust he had offered had brought him something even greater—stronger cohesion, and greater combat power.
It had been worth it.
Before long, the processing was complete.
Every person, whether human knight or Wolf-kin warrior,
received a rough earthenware bowl filled halfway with thick, dark red deer blood.
“Drink!” Eli raised his own bowl first and drained it in one gulp.
The warm liquid slid down his throat.
It did not taste as bloody as he had expected. Instead, it carried a strange sweetness and a burning heat.
A vast, pure surge of energy erupted inside his abdomen like a volcano, instantly rushing through every limb and vein!
Eli felt as if his blood had begun to boil. His battle aura, still at the Lower Black Iron Tier, seemed like oil thrown into flames—it spun wildly, condensed, and swelled.
His skin grew scorching hot, and his face instantly flushed red.
“Ugh…” He let out a muffled groan, feeling an indescribable wave of heat surge from his lower abdomen straight to his head, to the point that even his thoughts began to drift.
Wait… deer blood… a powerful tonic?
Eli’s face turned even redder.
At the same time, even fiercer waves of energy exploded from the rest of the group!
“Drink—ahhh!” Knight Bol erupted in a brilliant bronze-colored burst of battle aura, his presence climbing rapidly.
In one stroke, he broke through his bottleneck and reached the High Bronze Tier.
The other knights also experienced huge surges in aura. The density of their battle aura visibly increased, and their faces were filled with ecstatic joy and the satisfaction of overflowing strength.
The sight on the Wolf-kin side was even more spectacular.
More than a dozen plumes of blood vitality rose skyward, some strong, some weak.
Their already powerful bodies crackled under the stimulation of the deer blood, joints popping, muscles bulging, even their fur seeming to grow glossier.
Some of the younger Wolf-kin warriors could no longer suppress the frenzy of their boiling bloodlines and threw back their heads, releasing long, powerful howls into the sky!
“Awoooo—!!!”
That cry seemed to ignite a fuse.
The knights who had just broken through were infected by the same savage exhilaration, and Bol was the first to throw back his head and roar, “ROAR—!!”
“ROAR!!”
“Awoooo—!!”
For a moment, the entire riverbank descended into utter chaos, like a tribe in the midst of some ancient celebration, with human roars and Wolf-kin howls mixing together and shaking the wilderness.
Watching the scene, Eli could not help twitching at the corners of his mouth.
Forcing down the strange impulse rising inside him, he darkened his face and shouted at Brandon, who had been swept up by the atmosphere as well and was wearing a very odd smile:
“Brandon! Tell them to stop howling! Pack everything up at once, keep a close watch on those three fawns, bring all the spoils, and move out immediately!”
Brandon struggled to compose himself. “Yes, my lord!”
Amid lingering howls and the noisy bustle of packing up their spoils,
this overexcited group, overflowing with morale and blood vitality, once again set out toward the west.
My Lord Eli’s kindness can never be repaid.