The old village chief froze for a moment when he heard Vivian's question, then stroked his beard and began to recall. "Quite a few outsiders have come through here lately. They've dressed in all sorts of ways. Now that you mention it, I really can't remember very clearly..."
Hao Ren thought for a moment. "Was there a woman who told you she came from another world and was trying to find a way home? She probably wasn't speaking a local language."
The old village chief's eyes immediately lit up. "Oh, there was someone like that. She passed through here a couple of days ago and even stayed the night. I remember her particularly well because at first, no one could understand a word she said. It wasn't any known language at all. Then, somehow, she suddenly started speaking the mountain people's dialect. That girl looked pretty anxious and kept saying something about going home... But she never mentioned another world, did she? How did this get mixed up with what those mumbo-jumbo mages were saying?"
Hao Ren thought about it and guessed that the woman had refrained from telling these mountain people she came from another world out of caution. She had probably revealed the truth to the Wolf pack because they were merely a group of wild beasts. No matter how intelligent they were, they still wouldn't be as treacherous as humans. Seeing the old village chief examining him curiously, Hao Ren waved his hand. "Don't worry about the other-world business. We're looking for that woman. Do you know which route she took?"
"Oh, I know that," the old village chief said with a nod. "She asked us for a shortcut to Beinz Blood Lake, so I told her the route the mercenaries usually take. Wait here while I