His Highness's Kindness Was Like the Sun in the Sky

Because the journey was long and they carried too many things, by the time Xian and Berg returned to the village, it was already dusk.

The sky looked like a gradient oil painting, with orange-yellow and violet colors interwoven. The clouds were dyed dark gold, draping the ground in a faint golden veil. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

"His Highness Mingyu Xia, noble and kind, has taken pity on our village's poverty and hardship and graciously bestowed upon us fifteen Silver Sol and fifty Copper Sol!"

The moment they returned to the village, Berg hugged the money pouch and impatiently stood beneath the Old Oak Tree in the center of the village, shouting at the top of his lungs.

Though he felt rather embarrassed, Xian did not stop him.

After all, the money needed a plausible origin. They could hardly say he and Berg had robbed someone together, could they? Upon hearing Berg's shout, the villagers spread the word from one to ten, then ten to a hundred, emerging from their crude thatched-and-log homes. Before long, the clearing before the Old Oak Tree was packed.

Robert, the village chief, trembled as he stepped out from the crowd. He bent both knees before Xian and knelt deeply on the ground. Then, spreading his callused hands, he said in a choked voice:

"Honored Your Highness, your generosity is like the sun in the sky. Our entire village will remember your kindness forever. May the gods bless you, and may you return to your kingdom soon!"

God knew how much he had suffered these past few days over the Agricultural Tax. If he had to watch his villagers be reduced to slaves and sold away, he would rather smash his head against this Old Oak Tree!

"Your Highness, it's your turn."

Seeing this, Berg hurriedly handed the money pouch in his arms to Xian. After all, he was not qualified to scatter the coins himself.

Xian took the pouch and poured all the coins inside into Robert's outstretched hands in one go.

The gleaming silver coins burst forth in a stream, too many for even two large hands to hold, greatly stirring the emotions of the surrounding villagers.

"Your Highness, you are the kindest person I have ever met. From now on, whenever you want red fruit, no matter how much you want, I am willing to offer it all to you."

Simp lay prostrate on the ground, tears pouring endlessly from his eyes like spring water.

This was the happiest day of his life, even happier than yesterday, when His Highness had praised his red fruit as delicious.

"Your Highness, you are our savior!"

"Your Highness, I used to think that if my child were reduced to a slave, I would kill him first so he would not suffer for the rest of his life. Thank you for letting my son and me continue living!"

"Mom, you wanted to kill me?!"

Choked-up voices of gratitude rang out endlessly from the crowd. A moment later, a little boy ignored his parents' calls and squeezed through the crowd. He walked up to Xian and asked innocently:

"Your Highness, can you give me one Copper Sol to buy Black Bread?"

The surrounding crowd burst into laughter.

Xian smiled and nodded. He took out two Copper Sol from his pocket and gently placed them in the little boy's palm.

"Go buy some Black Bread. Don't eat so much that you get stuffed," Xian said softly, patting the boy's head.

The little boy ran back cheering while clutching the coins, only to be dragged aside by his parents and given a combined beating. The surrounding villagers tacitly shielded the family from view, lest the boy's wails affect His Highness's mood.

As Xian looked at these villagers, who had been moved to tears and worshipful gratitude over nothing more than a few coins, he felt both touched and suddenly uneasy.

According to Anlìyà, the lord of the Black Wolf Territory was a good noble, and the taxes in his territory were already among the lowest in the entire Sossia Kingdom.

Yet even so, the villagers of Fruit Basket Village still lacked even the slightest ability to withstand unexpected hardship. Even their children could not afford to eat the cheapest Black Bread, and every year they faced the risk of being sold into slavery.

Then just imagine what kind of lives the people in the kingdom's other territories were living.

At that thought, the smile gradually faded from Xian's face. His expression turned grave as he sank into deep thought.

At the same time, the long string of white words above his head—"Heir to a Kingdom of 1.4 Billion Citizens"—flickered with a faint green glow for no apparent reason.

Several days later, Wolf Howl Forest.

Sunlight filtered through layers of leaves, casting a patchwork of shifting light and shadow.

A plump grayish-brown wild rabbit sat quietly on a patch of lush green grass. Its pink ears twitched slightly as it vigilantly listened to the sounds around it.

Its cleft lips rapidly chewed the grass, its whiskers trembling faintly, making it look both focused and alert.

Whoosh! Suddenly, an arrow flew from afar. Its flight path, however, was crooked and wavering, while the feathers on its tail swayed back and forth through the air, tracing an irregular arc.

In the end, the arrow landed with a whoosh in the dirt five meters away from the rabbit, spraying bits of grass and dust.

Startled, the rabbit's ears instantly shot straight up. The next second, it leaped high like a spring and dashed into the bushes like an arrow loosed from a bow. In the blink of an eye, it vanished into the dense forest, leaving only the crooked arrow stuck forlornly in the ground.

At that moment, two figures emerged from the nearby bushes. They were Xian and Berg.

"Your Highness, forgive my bluntness, but you truly do not possess exceptional talent in the matter of being a Hunter."

Berg walked over, easily pulled the arrow from the ground, and gave Xian, who was still fiddling with the bow, a wry smile.

He had already put it as tactfully as possible. In truth, he suspected that any boy in the village who liked throwing stones would be more suited to becoming a Hunter than His Highness.

"Fine."

Xian sighed and gave up on continuing to fiddle with the bow in his hands.

After learning that Profession Blessings in this world could grant all sorts of marvelous abilities—and that the merchant had most likely relied on such an ability to withstand the arrow Berg fired with all his strength—he became extremely interested in Profession Blessings.

After all, there was not a single person from Blue Star who would not want to obtain such supernatural abilities.

And to obtain a Profession Blessing, the first requirement was to take up a profession.

Everyone in the village was a farmer, with Berg being the sole Hunter.

Moreover, according to Berg, the ability granted by a Hunter was Gaze. As long as he calmed his mind and gazed, he could see farther and more broadly. Whether in battle or escape, this ability was undoubtedly far more practical than the farming ability granted by being a farmer.

Thus, Xian naturally wanted to become a Hunter. Unfortunately, even though Berg taught him with all his might, he remained as utterly clueless as an unopened stone atop Flower Fruit Mountain.

"Your Highness, even if you possessed talent on the path of a Hunter, I would not advise you to become one. For someone as noble as you, bloodthirsty hunting would only tarnish your glory. There must be a profession better suited to you."

After thinking it over, Berg offered this sincere advice.

"Besides, my father told me that Status Blessings are innate, but Profession Blessings are a summary of a person's past life."

"Given Your Highness's age, your profession should have taken shape long ago. Perhaps you merely need an opportunity."

Happy New Year's Eve~(^▽^)