Chapter 382: The Eastern Forest — Old Stories and Old News, New Directions and Clues

The two Gryphon Knights began to eat their food; the male Gryphon Knight had a heroic manner, and after each skewer of meat was grilled, he simply stripped it off with his teeth, then chewed and swallowed in large mouthfuls.

Knight Dailisi, on the other hand, ate in small bites; her movements could hardly be called elegant, for in such a crude place, eating grilled meat skewers, it was difficult to associate the act with elegance.

The three knights spoke in low voices while they ate, while the hunters gathered around the iron pot, each with a large bowl of hot meat broth, which was filled to the brim with bones that still had meat on them.

Jier first drank a large gulp of the hot broth to drive away the chill. Then he set down the wooden bowl and used his hands to grab the meat bones to eat while they were still hot; the weather was cold, and they had to eat quickly, or it would soon turn cold.

At this moment, one could see the difference between the knights and ordinary people; Jier and the others mostly ate some meat bones simply, drank a large bowl of meat broth, and then held their bellies, satisfied.

The knights, however, looked as if they were chatting and laughing while grilling and eating meat skewers, but they showed no sign of stopping. The veteran hunters continuously used their Daggers to cut the half-soft, half-hard lean meat into thin strips or slices, then skewered them onto thin wooden sticks; the four of them moved without pause, yet they could only just manage to keep up with the three knights' consumption.

Knight Lanisha inquired about the relationship and situation between her father and Knight Dailisi, learning that the two had met and become acquainted years ago during a friction-filled conflict between the Kingdom and the Empire caused by migrating refugees.

Many years ago, the Empire increased the number of transferred refugees, which drew strong resistance from all levels of the Kingdom. Originally, a newly established country like the Kingdom was very welcoming to a large number of migrating refugees.

However, the terrain in the eastern part of the Kingdom, which bordered the Empire, was flat with excellent living conditions, so a large number of Imperial refugees who had just arrived in the Kingdom settled there. While this brought about a rapid increase in economic scale, it also generated an accumulation of more conflicts.

The strength of the Nobles in the eastern regions near the Empire grew rapidly, greatly threatening the original balance of power in the Kingdom. Not only that, but although the Empire had no intention of annexing the Kingdom, it frequently interfered in the affairs of the Kingdom's east.

This triggered a series of friction-filled conflicts.

The Kingdom demanded the withdrawal of the Imperial Border Knights' garrisons and numbers, and it was during the time that Knight Lanisha's father was supervising the Imperial Border Knights that he met the down-and-out Knight Dailisi from the southern part of the Empire.

At that time, Knight Lanisha's father, who was still young, had not yet officially joined the command of Kendall Baron to be enfeoffed; originally, during the time of supervising the withdrawal of the Knight Order, he had agreed with the Knight Dailisi he had met that once the other party finished their service, they would go together to the regions in the southern Empire controlled and eroded by the undead to lead and participate in recovery operations.

But who could have imagined that before Knight Dailisi's service time had ended, Knight Lanisha's father would mysteriously disappear in the forest north of his own fief—Umi Lake Village—which was exactly where everyone was at this moment.

Her friend had disappeared for no reason, and the excellent knight with whom she had agreed to join an epic war against the undead to round out her life had vanished; Knight Dailisi had also once ridden a Gryphon to help search, but the efforts made by the relevant people had yielded no results.

"So Janni. I know what you are doing, but those things have nothing to do with what you expect. Your father also had some friends; back then, everyone almost turned this forest upside down. The monsters we killed along the way could be piled into a small hill, and there wasn't a trace of your father," Knight Dailisi said in a low voice.

Beside them, the male Gryphon Knight was focused on grilling their food, seemingly having no intention of getting involved in the conversation between the two female knights.

Knight Lanisha's eyes were tightly shut, and she did not know what she was thinking. She did not even notice that the meat skewer in her hand had turned black from being scorched by the flames of the fire. Finally, she threw the burnt meat skewer into the fire and opened her mouth to state her meaning.

"Thank you for the Knight's kindness; I must thank you and your friends for the help you provided back then. Only now do I know that there were actually some people who did something. When he disappeared, it was a mess; hehe, when the family discussed who would accept my father's title and fief, it was truly ugly."

Knight Dailisi added: "Actually, it was fine; this kind of thing is very common. The disorderly handover of power always leads to things that people usually don't want to see. Otherwise, why would there be so many similar poems and plays, especially in your country; when compiling stories from various places, these kinds of things that the Nobles refuse to talk about are always dug up by you and widely sung."

She added one last sentence: "But everyone likes them very much. I often go to the Province Capital for vacation myself, and I haven't missed a single play arranged by the masters."

The male Gryphon Knight beside her muttered: "You really are idle." As soon as he finished speaking, he was immediately stepped on by Knight Dailisi.

Knight Lanisha's mouth curved slightly: "However, this is my persistence. When I was little, he always told me: 'Live on, persist, there is always a turning point in life.' I don't believe he just disappeared in the forest for no reason."

"There is a problem here," Knight Lanisha finally said: "And I also have some suspicions."

"Suspicions of what?" Knight Dailisi asked immediately; for her, being able to find a knight friend with unique skills was in itself a thing beneficial to the family's future major events. Not to mention that they were friends who had known each other for many years, although the fact that she herself joined the Border Knight Order was in itself a part of the tasks the family gave to its clansmen.

The goal was simple: to scatter the clansmen into various organizations with powerful strength, and through years of interaction, whether by persuading, hiring, or inviting, etc., use various means to gather many powerful figures, and then lay the foundation for them to recover lost territory and expel the undead.

Although the factors behind the destruction of the family's foundation—where large areas first experienced riots and uprisings, then went through large-scale war and slaughter, and finally, the living and dead on that land were all transformed into undead loathed by the living—included the Empire, which was like a behemoth, and the mysterious and ruthless Southern Magic Society.

But now, decades have passed, and although the Forenster Family still retains its strength, it still cannot endure the humiliation and losses brought about by the loss of the family territory. After years of arrangements, they are already about to launch an operation to recover the lost land.

Regarding Knight Dailisi's inquiry, Knight Lanisha just shook her head and did not say.

Knight Dailisi blinked, then smiled and said: "Since you are unwilling to say, then I won't ask. You yourself are now a Knight-rank Warrior, and you can naturally bear the responsibilities and consequences of all things on your own. Although your father's friends and I searched for clues for a long time, we didn't find anything in the end. It's good that you have clues on your side; in short, I support you in principle. However."

"However what."

"However, the place where we are standing right now is indeed not a safe place. If there really is any change, you and your subordinates do not have enough strength to deal with it. I've said it for you; I won't drive you away. You can temporarily use this place as a Jiedian during this winter to carry out the so-called 'suppression of the Wolf Pack' operation."

"So-called?" Knight Lanisha pursed her lips.

"But once the weather warms up, you cannot stay here. When winter ends, I will come again. I hope your operation goes smoothly, and I also hope no one is stationed here." After finishing, she and her companion ate the last of the meat skewers in a few bites and stood up.

"Goodbye, little girl," the male Gryphon Knight waved at Knight Lanisha and said.

"Are you leaving? Have some soup," Knight Lanisha had not spoken her heart to anyone for a long time, and she still wanted to say something more. But the two Gryphon Knights looked like they were about to bid farewell.

"Goodbye, little Janni. I wish you success, and I hope the gods bless you." Knight Dailisi whistled, but this whistle made no sound.

At least Jier and the others didn't hear anything.

But clearly, Knight Lanisha, who was also a knight, heard it; she turned her head to look in the direction of the platform at the top of Rock Mountain.

The two knights crouched down, then jumped up at the same time.

With a *poof*, the two knights jumped twenty meters into the air in one breath; just as they reached the highest point, a black shadow whistled through the air and grabbed the two Gryphon Knights.

The sky was very dark, and Jier and the others couldn't see clearly, but everyone obviously knew that it was the Gryphons of the two Gryphon Knights catching the two knight riders in mid-air.

Knight Lanisha said nothing, just waved at the direction the Gryphons flew away, watching the two Gryphon Knights climb the feathers of the giant Gryphons to reach their backs, put on their full-coverage Helmets, and fly away, rising toward the Northwest.

The huge sound of the Gryphons flapping their wings gradually faded away, and the small Rock Mountain Jiedian returned to calm once again.

Knight Lanisha explained to everyone the permission the two Gryphon Knights gave them to temporarily reside here, and then returned to her own Tent.

Originally, the veteran hunters wanted to tell the female knight about their new discovery from going out to deal with the Northland wolves after the Gryphon Knights left.

But it looked like Knight Lanisha was not in a good mood, so they had to give up and prepare to talk about it the next day.

The next day, after everyone got up, the veteran hunters explained the situation of the strange Northland wolves they had encountered this time to Knight Lanisha.

But after Knight Lanisha inspected the corpse of this Northland wolf, she didn't have any more discoveries. She didn't disbelieve her subordinates, and she also saw the tiny holes in Jier's armor pierced by the hardened wolf hair. But after all, she was not a scholar or a Mage, or an expert specializing in animal magic.

If her father were still here, perhaps he would be studying in a higher-level academy at this time, and in the face of this situation, he might be able to analyze something.

Unfortunately, it was not possible.

Her studies were interrupted, she returned to the family to inherit the knight status, and she practiced knight abilities desperately while holding her breath. These things completely disrupted her life trajectory and changed her path.

"Although I can't see anything more, at least the power contained within this guy's body is not much. Although I didn't see this living Northland wolf with my own eyes, it is impossible for it to maintain its special state all the time," Knight Lanisha said.

This point made the hunters pleasantly surprised: "Finally, there is good news. Since it won't maintain this power ability all the time, as long as we circle with it for a while, trick it into using its ability, then exhaust its time, and then we can simply eliminate it!"

"Generally speaking, that is the case, but you still have to be careful. Hardened hair—this kind of unorthodox ability cannot be something these Northland wolves are truly good at. Just like that wolf king, the power might originate from it, but it clearly doesn't have this ability itself. So the next time you encounter such strange Northland wolves, first figure out the other party's ability, and then choose a fighting style according to the effect of the other party's ability."

"Understood, Knight. Just watch; we have Jier here. Even if the other party's ability is still there, Jier can single-handedly kill these guys."

Hearing the praise from his companions, Jier rubbed his hair with a grin, messing up his golden-brown hair.

Knight Lanisha naturally also explained her previous battle results to the hunters; she had at least killed dozens of wolf pups that were growing up. Although it sounded a bit cruel, at least these wolf pups would not invade human territory after growing up.

After a night of rest, everyone walked out of the forest again, but this time, they had to first escort the carriage and horses to the South of the forest, and then wait for the carriage to transport more food and supplies into the supply point Jiedian. And while waiting for the carriage, the remaining people could organize a squad centered on the knight to quickly scout the southern region of the forest.

It would be best if they could encounter Northland wolves; if they couldn't, at least they could rule out the possibility of Northland wolves in the South of the forest.

Considering that even adult wolves can maneuver and relocate to deal with them, the more numerous wolf pups cannot; therefore, as long as the wolf den can be discovered, the Northland Wolves can be dealt a heavy blow.

Once serious losses are inflicted upon the entire Northland Wolf pack, their wolf king will no longer be able to sit still and will certainly be forced by the situation to show itself, just as in previous years.

When that time comes, it will be the true decisive battle between the Knight Hunters and the Northland Wolf king.

There was nothing much to say on the road; everyone brought out the carriages again, leaving no one at Yanshi Shan Judian, and the whole group followed Knight Lanisha as they headed south.

The journey took some time, but because a Knight was in the group, there was no danger at all. Unlike when the Knight was not around, when the hunters were cautious and pushed their wariness to the limit.

They did discover many animal tracks on the road, of all sizes and varieties. Fortunately, apart from fierce and cunning pack predators like the Northland Wolves, most other fierce animals were hibernating in various nooks and crannies throughout the Forest.

Knight Lanisha and the veteran hunters did not provoke the burrows and bear dens they occasionally discovered. The solitary predators in the Forest were, more or less, different from ordinary animals.

Jier had heard the veteran hunters talk about it while setting up camp at night: either they were larger than normal size, or they possessed some unique abilities. These fellows did not count as Monsters, yet they were distinct from ordinary animals.

At first, Knight Lanisha and the veteran hunters did not know why there were so few types of Monsters here; it was only after meeting the Gryphon Knights a few days ago that they learned that after Knight Lanisha's father went missing, his friends had searched this Forest extensively to find clues about the missing Knight.

While searching, they naturally killed every Monster they saw along the way.

Regarding this, a veteran hunter who held Faith in the God of Hunting judged that the reason the Northland Wolves were able to grow so large later on was likely because those Knights had killed off the other Monsters in the Forest years ago, leaving the Northland Wolves without rivals, which is why they had grown so large over these years.

Everyone felt this made sense, but it was difficult to judge the actions of those Knights; after all, they were superior in status and strength, and their intentions were good, even if they ended up doing something bad.

Knight Lanisha remained silent on this; she did not tell the hunters what she thought, only tightly pressing her lips together.

In a clearing near the edge of the Forest, the group split up.

Knight Lanisha picked Jier and two other young hunters to form a rapid-response team, preparing to scout the surrounding situation for three days while the others returned to the supply Jiedian.

After agreeing to rendezvous at this spot in three days, the two groups separated.

Jier brought his horse, but did not ride it. Because in addition to carrying his own weapons and equipment, his horse also had to carry the items of the other two hunters.

The other hunters handed many Arrows and spare bows to the two young hunters, all of which were loaded onto Jier's horse.

It was not heavy, but it meant he could not ride.

However, this was fine; besides wearing armor, a cold-proof Cloak, and carrying a sword and shield, Jier's other Backpacks, axes, Long Spear, and double-edged steel spear were all loaded on the horse's back.

The team moved quickly; Jier kept his left hand on the hilt of his sword, continuously receiving a replenishment of stamina from the hilt. The two young hunters were even more tireless, carrying nothing on their bodies except for their bows slung behind their backs and quivers with closed lids hanging at their waists; they only had a short melee dagger-axe left.

Their extra items were all placed on the horse, leaving them light and full of stamina.

Led by Knight Lanisha, the group moved in a zigzag pattern through the nearby Forest, striving to scout as much area as possible within the three days. They ignored anything unrelated to the Northland Wolves, focusing solely on finding and identifying all animal tracks on the road that resembled wolf prints.

This was not easy to manage; they were constantly led astray by other canine or feline animals with tracks similar to those of wolves.

However, the young hunters conducting the scouting soon realized the situation; they excluded all animals that left tracks alone and focused only on finding animal tracks left by at least five or more.

Among these, they still had to exclude some deer-type and pig-type animals; only four-legged canine tracks in significant numbers were what they were truly looking for.

Hard work pays off; they finally found quite a few similar tracks on a low, undulating slope in the Forest.

"My Lady, these are all heading toward the northeast. However, there are tracks heading there as well as tracks coming out from that direction." A young hunter was quite excited; after two days of work, they had finally found a clue. Besides the tracks, they also discovered some drag marks.

At first, these marks confused them, leading the hunters to think they might be marks left by wild boars.

However, Jier believed that those marks might have been left by Northland Wolves that had gone out to hunt in small groups. They went out to hunt in small teams, and when they returned, they were carrying or dragging the carcasses of their prey, which is why there were both incoming and outgoing tracks, as well as large-scale drag marks on the snow.

After all, if a dozen or so adult wolves had to feed dozens of wolf pups, even if they had prepared enough food and fat reserves during the autumn, by this time, with the number of wolf pups being so high, the adult wolves would certainly have to keep leaving the wolf den to hunt.

This might not be good in other seasons, as without the advantage of numbers, a single Northland Wolf or a group of two or three would not be a match for other fierce beasts in the Forest. But in winter, solitary predators were hibernating, and the Northland Wolves, which did not need to hibernate, became the greatest force in this Forest at this time.

Regarding Jier's analysis, Knight Lanisha added: "Do not forget the Northland Wolves with strange abilities that you defeated before. This shows that, regardless of the method, they are collectively moving toward a more advanced state."