Chapter 738: Act 95 – The Missing Food I
At this moment, almost half an hour had passed since she was found. Brendel saw Peiya, who had just woken up, looking around her surroundings in a daze. There seemed to be a hint of confusion in her dark eyes, which quickly transformed into intense vigilance.
Suddenly, it was as if she had sprung up like a wild creature, instinctively reaching for the short bow at her back.
But she was destined to grab nothing.
Then Peiya became fully aware. Upon seeing Brendel, she appeared stunned: “Ah! I-I’m sorry, Lord Knight… I thought—”
But Peiya’s words suddenly came to a halt.
Brendel noticed the look of horror that spread across her face. She turned around and glanced at the surrounding forest as if she had seen a ghost.
“How can it be… identical…”
Peiya took a few steps back, ignoring everyone around her, her eyes scanning the woods as she retreated faster and faster, and then she bolted, vanishing into the forest in the blink of an eye.
Peiya’s actions left everyone stunned. Brendel was also slightly taken aback, then he noticed that the direction in which the hunter girl had disappeared was exactly the route leading to Milos’s Breath.
“Brendel?” Freya asked from the side, “What happened to Peiya? Should we chase after her?”
Everyone exchanged glances, still unaware of what had transpired. Brendel himself was also perplexed. Peiya’s previous behavior didn’t seem like that of a reckless person; on the contrary, she could easily be considered an excellent hunter.
And the best hunters often possess a common trait.
Calmness and composure.
Brendel hesitated for just a moment before saying, “Let’s follow her.”
Faint starlight began to appear in the forest, indicating that they were leaving the realm of the Eternal Night Forest. With the dim light, Brendel saw the hunter girl ahead, weaving through the trees like a nimble she-leopard.
Yet she was not recklessly delving deeper into the woods; instead, she seemed to be scouting, occasionally stopping to wait for them. This reassured Brendel slightly, as in team operations, he despised actions that would abandon others and put them in danger; such behavior was both selfish and foolish.
But it seemed that Peiya had not lost her senses. Brendel occasionally saw her pause to look around, her face betraying a confused expression. This confirmed his suspicion that the hunter girl had discovered something in her dreams. Dreams sometimes reveal glimpses of the future, a rare occurrence, but if Peiya’s dreams were intertwined with those of her brother, it would not be impossible.
Brendel realized that Peiya might have seen the direction Duke Anlek and the others were heading in her dreams.
Only this possibility could explain her current agitation. However, this at least indicated that her brother was still alive, at least not dead while passing through this forest.
Thus, the group followed Peiya for about two to three hours, during which the hunter girl never deviated from the path leading to the glacial region. This further confirmed Brendel’s premonition that if Anlek and the others passed through here, they would not easily stray from the correct route.
Then, at this moment, the hunter girl finally came to a halt.
Brendel pushed through the underbrush, catching up with her. He saw Peiya standing dazed under a snow pine tree, and as he approached, he saw that she was holding a dagger.
This dagger certainly did not belong to the hunter girl, as her shortsword was still sheathed in her boot; besides, Peiya had no other weapons on her.
“Is this your brother’s?” Brendel glanced at the dagger; it was merely an ordinary beast-skin knife. Nobles would never use such a crude object; only hunters from this region would make use of it.
Peiya turned around, and Brendel was surprised to see her reddened eyes. Peiya rubbed her tear-streaked eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed herself to respond: “Can dreams be real, Lord?”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know. I was alone in the dream, and I saw everything that happened that day. I dreamed that I died, frozen in the river, but my soul was confused, as if I heard a voice calling me.”
“I saw those pale knights, and I followed them in a daze. I saw my brother, and I saw those people that day; they passed through this forest, slowly moving forward. I saw my brother following them, trailing behind a taller figure…”
“I saw him stumble here. I called out to him, but he didn’t respond. I saw his dagger drop here…”
Peiya lowered her head, fear in her eyes as she stared at the dagger in her hand: “Right here.”
“What else did you see?” Brendel instantly realized that this must be her brother’s dream. Her brother should have also experienced the dreams of the Nameless Ones, leaving behind a piece of memory here. However, he was curious as to how fragmented her brother’s dream was; it seemed that he too had passed through here, which was incredible. He could not help but press on with his inquiries.
“I saw them enter a glacial expanse, where the wind and snow obscured their figures, and I remained there forever.”
The hunter girl raised her head, her eyes flashing with a strange panic. She shivered: “Did I die, Lord Knight?”
She looked at Brendel in confusion, almost trembling as she asked: “… Am I, am I a ghost now?”
Brendel found her question somewhat absurd, but he could generally understand Peiya’s panic. Not everyone, like him, understood the mysteries of legends; villagers often attributed the inexplicable to ghosts and gods.
He coughed to bring Peiya back to reality: “You aren’t dead. Dreams can be absurd, but part of what you saw might be real. Your brother might also be alive, just as you saw; that part is actually his memory left behind here.”
When Peiya heard this, she shuddered all over: “Really?”
“Of course. You know I have no reason to lie to you,” Brendel replied.
Peiya instantly became excited, her hands clenched into fists. Her chest heaved rapidly. Turning around to think for a moment, she turned back, slightly embarrassed and said to Brendel: “I’m sorry, Lord Knight; I was so reckless earlier.”
Brendel sighed. What could he say? You could demand a soldier to follow military discipline, but Peiya was neither a soldier nor an adventurer or mercenary; she was just a hunter. Still, he lectured her: “Just remember this for the future. Your previous actions were dangerous—not just to you, but to others as well.”
“The knights behind you, some of them have brothers and sisters too, or children. Would you be able to bear if their loved ones lost them?”
“I’m sorry…” Peiya truly hung her head in shame this time. She knew that nobles had many rules; someone of her status didn’t need to ask why, just follow them. But Brendel’s explanation made her blush.
Although she revered those highborn nobles, deep down, she didn’t necessarily agree with their values. However, Brendel’s words made her realize that people are fundamentally the same, and the rules within a team were there to protect each individual.
For the first time, Brendel accepted the hunter girl’s apology, not for his status, but for her behavior.
“Can you confirm Duke Anlek’s route?” he asked again.
The hunter girl paused slightly, then nodded.
“Then it will be easier,” Brendel replied.
……
The Breath of Despair Glacier—
Since entering this boundless expanse of ice, Alorze had not stopped being angry for a single day. She thought that if she had known it would be like this, she would have accompanied Brendel from the start instead of listening to him and that dull-witted Gray Saint to meet with Veronika.
Of course, there were many things that dissatisfied her. For example, the cold climate made her skin even rougher, and that incessantly chattering ambassador from the Crusian knights had pushed her patience to its limits. How did that guy see that she was from Erluin and dare to speak to her in such a tone?
If it weren’t for wanting to conceal her identity, she would have loved to transform into her dragon form and swallow him whole, thus avoiding the fatigue of his incessant chatter.
And those arrogant descendants of the Crusian nobles were no different. Sometimes, she would secretly narrow her eyes, staring with her golden pupils at those annoying guys, bitterly thinking about whether to gut them all once this matter was settled.
But that was just wishful thinking.
While the dragon clan was proud, they were not foolish. The Temple of Fire, which stood behind the Crusian people, would never allow dragons to run rampant in human territory. Of course, the four great temples were not the key; the crucial point was those detestable, self-righteous Bud people.
Every time she thought about the existence of the People of Silver, Alorze couldn’t help but grind her teeth in anger. If it weren’t for those Bud people who claimed to be saviors, the dragon race would have long turned humans and elves into toys.
“Really annoying.”
Alorze cursed fiercely in her heart, wishing that the smirking old guy would crash into something and die early, and that Onais and other floating cities would best fall into the sea soon. She twirled a few strands of her platinum curls by her ear, muttering as she stepped out of her tent.
If she hadn’t heard the news that Brendel and his group had already arrived, she wouldn’t have bothered to show up in this freezing weather. The People of Silver, who held ill intentions towards dragons, referred to them as “big lizards.” Alorze would certainly not accept this title, but dragons were indeed cold-blooded creatures, there was no denying that; except for white dragons, most other kinds of dragons feel uncomfortable in cold weather.
Alorze sneezed in the wind and snow, rubbing her reddened little nose, looking like a frail little girl, far from being the terrifying young dragon she really was.
……(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes; your support is my greatest motivation.)
