Silence of Friendship

The Corrupted Poison Spider chose to leave.

Linsey opened the map again and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that the Devil Beast had really left.

"It's safe now..."

Thump! Just then, a sound came from the ground next to us.

Linsey turned her head and saw that Dan had fallen to the ground and was only able to stay upright by leaning against a Fir Tree.

She was too tired.

Although he is also an Awakened One.

However, the Female Hunter's main strengths are concentrated in hunter-related areas.

Even if one 'Constitution is stronger than that of an average person, physical fatigue is inevitable after running for most of the day.

She was leaning against the tree, her eyes downcast.

After noticing that Linsey was looking at him, Dan closed his eyes and shook his head slightly.

"..."

Linsey remained silent and did not disturb the other person.

After a night of life-or-death struggle, Dan definitely needed rest, not to mention his companions who had died on this Distant Hunt.

"Well--"

Linsey sighed.

He stood guard beside the hunters who were resting, checking his own Attribute Panel.

Rescue Hunter

The hunters returning to town are attacked by Devil Beast on the way. Rescue them and ensure their safety.

[Task Reward: A small amount of attribute/ Skill Experience Points.]

This is just a simple task, and it's already shown as completed.

Linsey immediately chose to accept it, and her attributes gained an extra amount of experience points that she could freely allocate.

However, he did not choose to strengthen it immediately.

Instead, he went to the other hunters and took care of and comforted those who had reached their mental and physical limits.

A few minutes passed.

Linsey quickly treated the hunters' wounds, and the support shown on the map finally appeared before them.

People came from two directions.

On one side was the merchant Suo Mu Jin leading a group of Awakened Ones, and on the other side was Anrui leading his Awakened Ones.

The two groups unexpectedly met ahead of the Hunting Team.

The atmosphere in the air instantly became somber.

"..."

"No wonder the reinforcements came from both directions."

Seeing this, Linsey understood.

He didn't want Dan, who was resting, to continue to worry, so he went to greet them himself, "Uncle Anrui, Suo Mu Jin, you've arrived."

Anrui nodded first and spoke first, "The sentries from the town said there was a disturbance in the forest here, so I brought my men here."

"Linsey, what's going on here?"

The sentry post that Anrui mentioned.

He had specially arranged for these awakened beings to provide early warning after the Corrupted Poison Spider attacked the Farmland a few days prior.

In today's dangerous situation, it has indeed come in handy.

On the other side, Suo Mu Jin didn't want only Anrui to speak, so he quickly followed up by asking, "Why is Dan sitting on the ground? What are they...?"

The conversation was about to steer towards these exhausted hunters.

Linsey quickly interrupted, saying:

"I have a general understanding of the situation."

"They've just been attacked by Devil Beast, let them rest for a while."

Quickly taking center stage, Linsey naturally began recounting the hunters' ordeal, essentially reiterating what Dan had told him earlier, "On their way back to town, the Distant Hunt party was attacked by Devil Beast. To make matters worse, the Corrupted Poison Spider that had previously attacked the farm were also nearby and happened to be there. Dan and Mr. Sissel fought valiantly and managed to save three hunters..."

Listening to Linsey's description.

Anrui and Suo Mu Jin's expressions were even more serious than before.

Two hunters have died in town!

This means that the town is once again lacking an important food producer during this harsh winter.

Moreover, the Corrupted Poison Spider that had been repelled three times have now returned and are entrenched near the town.

This also poses a serious threat to the security of the Border Town.

Both pieces of news are quite bad.

Anrui and Suo Mu Jin fell silent, but Linsey spoke again, "The situation is very complicated right now. But I think we should take the hunters back to town first and let them rest. It's already quite an achievement for them to come back alive."

Anri and Somkin naturally had no objection to Lindsay's suggestion.

However, their differences continued to surface regarding how to bring the people back.

As the Lord of the town, Anrui was naturally in charge of the safety of his people and was prepared to escort them back himself. However, Suo Mu Jin, who had brought other awakened ones, obviously did not intend to leave empty-handed and was also prepared to take charge of transporting the hunters back himself.

Suo Mu Jin spoke first, suggesting, "Lord Anrui, you are very busy and have to take charge of the overall operation of the town. Please leave this small matter to me."

As soon as he finished speaking, Suo Mu Jin was about to command the other Awakened to take the hunter away.

But Anrui stopped the other party in time. "Suo Mu Jin, this is no small matter."

"As the Lord of Hidden Borderlands, it is impossible for me to simply abandon them and return on my own after they have been attacked."

Anrui's intervention was clearly within Suo Mu Jin's expectations. The merchant didn't continue arguing with the Lord, but instead walked to the Female Hunter's side and said to Dan, who was lying on the ground:

"Dan, get up quickly."

"That kid Ju is still waiting for you to come home."

"..."

Dan sighed almost imperceptibly, then got up from the ground.

At this moment, the Female Hunter's gaze naturally met Anrui's, and the two did not exchange a single word.

The past ten years or so.

Dan and Anrui, as influential figures in the town, are definitely close friends with a deep personal relationship.

But it is precisely because of this relationship.

The two were well aware of their differing attitudes toward the Black Mountain World, but neither of them brought it up openly.

This is what Suo Mu Jin did.

The intention was clearly to pit the two against each other, further weakening Anrui's reputation.

"..."

The Female Hunter and the Lord's eyes met.

At that moment, the atmosphere in the woods seemed to freeze.

Dan said nothing in the end, and with a flash, he disappeared into the forest.

With her Fourth Stage hunter abilities and being in the forest, it would be almost impossible for anyone to catch up with her.

Such silence speaks volumes.

Suo Mu Jin smiled victoriously, then pressed his advantage, turning his attention to Anrui standing to the side:

"Lord Anrui, if I remember correctly, those spider Devil Beast that attacked the hunters were ones you provoked in Black Mountain, weren't they?"

Suo Mu Jin had expected this to be a very successful interrogation.

But Anrui immediately gave him a rude awakening in a cold and authoritative tone:

"Keep your little schemes to yourself, Suo Mu Jin."

"Actually, just a few days ago, the mine was attacked by a small number of Devil Beast. Our troubles are far more complicated than you can imagine."

Upon hearing this, Suo Mu Jin's eyes widened in surprise.

News of the mine was known only to a small number of people in the Lord's Manor.

The businessman realized his lack of information, which was a serious problem for him.

On the other side, watching Suo Mu Jin fall silent:

Anrui continued, "This winter has only just begun."

"Even if you want to do something, you should at least get the basic information right. People who have no understanding of reality and act blindly with arrogance will only lead others to despair!"