Chapter 19: Hunting (Part I)

Black Forest, this mysterious and dread-inducing region, lies more than twenty kilometers outside Winston City.

It was once heard that, in bygone years, it was only a few kilometers from Winston City.

Over the past twenty-plus years, as the territory developed, vast forests were ruthlessly logged, dense woods vanished, replaced by large farmlands cleared by the lords.

Upon entering the Black Forest, the first thing that catches the eye is the black pines covering the hills and plains.

These black pines are tall and straight, reaching into the clouds.

Their bark is deep black, looking eerily gloomy; the needles are likewise ink-black like lacquer, and in sunlight they faintly emit an eerie sheen.

In daylight, when sunlight tries to penetrate the layers of branches and leaves and falls to the ground, it forms only patchy light and shadow.

The whole Black Forest seems shrouded in a haze, a grim and terrifying aura blowing over.

When the wind blows, the needles rub together, making a rustling sound, as if unknown creatures hidden in the dark are stirring, making one feel a chill; each step seems to sense a gaze from deep within the forest.

In fact, the Black Forest is like a huge, mysterious riddle; few know exactly how large it is.

Only known is that it is vast and boundless, with over ten lords surrounding it.

Despite years of reclamation, only this small area has been developed.

If one speaks of these lords' lust for land, it simply exceeds ordinary imagination.

They are like greedy wolves, wanting to swallow every inch of land into their pockets; yet they helplessly halted further development of the Black Forest.

The reason is the terrifying beast tide within the Black Forest.

As the development zone pushes deeper into the forest, Winston City's defenses become increasingly strained.

Even if one painstakingly develops a new plot of land today, by tomorrow morning it could easily be ravaged by beasts suddenly bursting from the forest, left unrecognizable.

What's worse, every one or two years the Black Forest erupts in a beast tide without warning.

Then, various ferocious beasts, as if driven by some mysterious power, surge forth in herds from the forest depths, trampling farmlands, destroying villages, and seriously threatening lives and property.

Although the lords salivate for land, faced with such a terrifying beast tide they can only look on helplessly and halt further development.

"Robin here!" Lily's keen eyes spotted Robin's figure at a glance; she excitedly waved her arms and shouted loudly.

Her voice echoed in the quiet air at the edge of the Black Forest, startling a few birds perched on the branches.

Robin slowly raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the three before him; a gentle smile appeared on his face as he lightly nodded, responding to Lily's greeting.

"You guys are a bit late!" Robin said with a hint of teasing, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, his eyes holding a trace of amusement.

At this moment he had already been waiting at the agreed spot for a while; the surrounding quiet contrasted sharply with his inner anticipation.

"Or maybe you came too early." Eric shrugged helplessly, laughing as he rebutted.

His tone carried the casual familiarity of old friends, and he wasn't the slightest bit offended by Robin's teasing.

Tomson also nodded with a simple smile, seeming to agree with Eric's words.

Lily stuck out her tongue playfully, wearing a dismissive expression.

Each of the four held a strong bow borrowed from the army camp, the bow's body glowing with an antique sheen, clearly finely crafted.

This is indeed a major perk for knight apprentices: if conditions and qualifications allow, they can borrow various weapons from the Armory Department to strongly support their training and practice.

"I don't really know how you usually hunt!" Robin said with an earnest smile, speaking frankly.

After all, although he excels in combat, he knows little about the ins and outs of hunting.

As for the little video he saw on some sound platform, he wouldn't bring it out to be laughed at.

Upon hearing this, Eric confidently patted Robin's shoulder: "Don't worry, just follow us."

"We've been hunting here for two years and have some experience." Lily added, her eyes showing a hint of caution: "We also can't go too deep; the outskirts still have only ordinary beasts, but going deeper may bring magic beasts."

Saying this, Lily turned to Robin and explained in detail: "The difference between beasts and magic beasts lies in whether they have spawned a magic core; beasts that have a magic core can use the elemental energy within it, hence they are called magic beasts. Magic beasts are far stronger than ordinary beasts; with our current strength, encountering one would be troublesome."

Robin nodded seriously, committing this information to memory.

This hunt's process began unexpectedly dull.

The four moved cautiously through the Black Forest's outskirts; aside from occasional startled birds, they saw no game for half a day. Yet good fortune came suddenly.

Soon they spotted a Jumping Goat, the most common herbivore in the Black Forest.

The Jumping Goat is agile in build, somewhat resembling a goat but a full size larger.

Its body is covered in light brown fur, ears erect, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

This Jumping Goat seemed to sense danger, its hind legs slightly bent, ready to spring.

Suddenly it leapt, easily springing two or three meters high, instantly landing on a nearby tree to try to evade the hunt.

Fortunately, the four were prepared; almost simultaneously each drew the strong bow borrowed from the army camp, and shot arrows like meteors.

Robin's arrow struck the Jumping Goat's thigh; Eric precisely hit its neck, while Tomson and Lily's arrows missed.

The wounded Jumping Goat could no longer support itself, fell from the tree, struggled a few times, then fell still.

"Great start!" Eric laughed excitedly, his face beaming with the joy of harvest.

"Nice shot! If you hadn't hit its thigh, it might have escaped." Eric gave Robin a thumbs-up, his eyes full of admiration.

Robin heard this and gave an embarrassed laugh.

Actually, he very much wanted to say that he had aimed at the Jumping Goat's belly, but the arrow ended up hitting its thigh.

However, since they successfully captured the prey, this small "mistake" seems hardly consequential.

Everyone gathered around, looking at this Jumping Goat weighing about one hundred fifty jin.

"First treat the wound; the smell of blood easily attracts other carnivorous beasts." Eric said solemnly, his years of hunting experience making him keenly aware of the danger. Having spoken, he swiftly drew the dagger at his waist, preparing to treat the Jumping Goat's wound to minimize the spread of blood odor.

The instant Eric's words fell, a sharp system alarm suddenly sounded in Robin's mind.

(End of chapter)