Blood Spreads in the Shadows

Fatenai and Darwin's simple conversation didn't continue for long—with the rustling sound of leaves underfoot and the frantic barking of hounds, a group of people emerged from the woods, surrounding them—they appeared to be the humans who had harmed the unicorn.

Fatenai watched the people dressed in adventurer attire warily—about ten of them, all men by their build, all with hoods pulled up over their black cloaks. Some held bows, some swords, and some were unarmed. Hounds barked around them, robust and loud, completely unlike Little White.

"A little girl?" The leader of the adventurers pulled back his hood, revealing a scar beneath one eye and a look of surprise on his face. "A little girl in the forest? Am I seeing things?"

"Who cares about a little girl, the unicorn is over there!" said an adventurer behind him.

Fatenai remained silent, her gaze still fixed on them vigilantly. Of course, she didn't want the unicorn to be taken away by this group. But before she could even speak to stop them, the unicorn walked out from behind her, its tall form standing between the group and Fatenai, a seriousness emanating from its crystal-like eyes.

It clearly disliked these adventurers as well. Whether it was her imagination or not, Fatenai felt it was specifically staring at one of them.

"What's going on? Jolin, didn't you say your spear pierced it?" the scarred adventurer asked a companion behind him.

"I'm not lying! Its blood is still on the spear!" Jolin, the one named, also found everything before him unbelievable and hadn't quite recovered. "Could it be another unicorn?"

Jolin's spear was entirely black, but upon closer inspection, it wasn't naturally black—it was stained by the congealed blood of the unicorn.

The unicorn stared at Jolin and took a step forward, stamping its front hoof twice on the ground. Fatenai then saw the adventurers' expressions turn grim. Sensing something, she activated her Eye of Connection and discovered that magic was rapidly flowing into the unicorn. This divine beast seemed capable of manipulating the flow of magic, or rather, it had the potential to "become" a mage!

Theoretically, only humans could manipulate magic, but this unicorn had clearly changed that.

Of course, not everyone could sense the flow of magic. Some adventurers' attention was still on Fatenai. Both the unicorn and the little girl were surprising presences in the forest.

"Isn't this the little girl Wickel saved?" At this moment, a voice that was completely out of sync with the current atmosphere rang out. Everyone's attention shifted to him. The square-faced man with a sallow complexion, who had already removed his hood, stared at Fatenai. "You saved this unicorn? You know healing magic?"

"Sir, do you know me?" Fatenai looked at the man, unable to help but frown. Seeing that he was unarmed, she guessed he might be a mage.

"Marrison, do you know this girl?" the scarred adventurer asked Marrison. Fatenai could tell he showed some respect towards Marrison, which further solidified her guess that he was a mage. But when had she provoked a mage?

Even if she had, Fatenai only remembered the female mage who had tried to kill her in the forest earlier.

Marrison looked at Fatenai again before confirming, "Yes, I know you. Wickel died saving you half a month ago."

"Wickel is dead? That's huge news." The other adventurers were also very surprised.

Fatenai's mood grew heavy.

"Hey, guys, stop looking at the little girl. That unicorn really seems to be the one from before! You guys..." Jolin suddenly shouted, interrupting their conversation. What he said was reasonable, but Fatenai noticed a hint of evasion on many faces.

The unicorn took two steps in place, seemingly angered by being ignored by these humans. Jolin's expression changed drastically, and he raised his weapon—but the other adventurers merely took a step back.

The unicorn suddenly took a step forward. This step left an indentation in the ground, and with that momentum, it charged fiercely at Jolin!

Fatenai realized the unicorn wasn't using its horn directly against its enemies. Instead, it gathered a layer of magic onto its horn, making it sharper and more powerful than before. As it charged forward, it seemed to lock onto the adventurer named Jolin, rendering him immobile. Jolin, who had intended to drop his weapon and flee, couldn't move at all. He looked at the unicorn in terror, his face pale.

No one could stop it.

The powerful magical charge directly impaled Jolin onto the beech tree behind him. With a massive wound in his chest, he ceased to breathe within a moment. A flicker of surprise flashed in Fatenai's eyes; for a fleeting moment, her stomach churned. After all, the unicorn's combat style at that moment far exceeded her imagination.

It felt more like a seasoned warrior.

Although the unicorn elegantly shook its head after completing its action, without a speck of dirt on it, its actions just now instilled fear in all the adventurers.

"Damn it... let's go," the leader of the adventurers, seeing they had no chance of winning, said to his companions.

Fatenai couldn't help but wonder, with their leisurely pace, weren't they worried the unicorn would attack again?

"No, the unicorn only attacks enemies that harm it," Marrison seemed to read Fatenai's confusion and said. "It seems Wickel didn't teach you these most basic things—or perhaps he took a liking to a little girl. The people of Willington really have strange taste."

"I appreciate your explanation, but I'd prefer you not joke about Wickel," Fatenai said sternly.

Marrison was unfazed. He had also given up pursuing the unicorn and was instead very interested in Fatenai. "You don't seem to know much about him. Aren't you curious? Besides, how will you manage on your own? Let's discuss how you can survive with someone experienced."

"Why should I trust you? I don't know what my connection to mages is—if there is one, you must be a mage hired by the Ansendil Family, right? I've already considered the Ansendil Family my enemy, and I don't think I have a habit of trusting enemies." Fatenai didn't have a good impression of Marrison. Besides those hired by the Ansendil Family, were there any other mages who knew her?

And the shadow Ed had cast on her was too great, making her face turn a little pale at the mere mention of the Ansendil Family.

Marrison said, "Adventurers have their own circles. At least in the Eisole Forest, I haven't heard of a place for a little girl. The Month of Trekking is approaching. Do you really think you can continue to live alone?"

Fatenai was speechless.

The first month of Rose May, the Month of Trekking, was less than ten days away—it was actually a hunting month. Animals hurried to find suitable places to endure the difficult five months, leading to frequent activity, including rare species. Captured ones could be sold for very good prices—even nobles participated in the hunt.

Despite the danger, the Month of Trekking would become lively for the sake of profit. By then, who knew how many adventurers and nobles would flood in, and Fatenai would likely find it even more difficult, either being discovered by nobles or being seen as an enemy by adventurers.

In any place, it would be very difficult without one's own standing.

"Alright, I'll listen to you," Fatenai relented.

She was actually suspicious as to why Marrison would approach her to talk about Wickel. After all, those mages had besieged Wickel; compared to their hostility towards her, they should have had deeper animosity towards Wickel.

"Tomorrow night, north of Wickel's cabin, it will take you to the Champagne Tavern," Marrison told her, then tossed a necklace. The necklace looked quite ordinary.

Fatenai caught the necklace and rubbed its surface with her thumb. "Wait a minute... aren't you going to take your fallen comrade's body?"

"People die in the forest every day... Don't be so naive, little girl." Marrison walked away without looking back at Fatenai's words.

Fatenai didn't leave. Instead, she fell into thought until she felt an itch on her neck. Turning her head, she saw that the unicorn's breath had been sprayed onto her neck.

She turned her face sideways and reached out to pat the unicorn's head. She suddenly felt that this creature was very interesting; those who harmed it were killed cleanly, while those who saved it were treated with affection.

"This creature is truly interesting," Darwin, who had been silent the entire time, and Fatenai hadn't even considered where the old man was, approached the unicorn. "It would be even better if we could study it carefully."

The unicorn seemed to sense Darwin's presence. It tilted its head slightly, then nuzzled Darwin gently—though to these people, Darwin was just air, nothingness.

Fatenai knew it agreed to the suggestion.

"That's wonderful! Lonai, let's collect its blood. It might have other uses..." Darwin quickly proposed a plan for collection and immediately began working, truly looking like a workaholic.

Fatenai smiled and shook her head, going to help Darwin. Throughout the process, she tried her best not to look at Jolin's corpse, yet she still felt a bit unsettled—perhaps it was because she had lived two lives and had never seen a real dead person. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer. She used a shovel to dig a hole and buried Jolin.