Finding

Everyone's attention was drawn by that shout.

The old man turned his head, saw figures moving in the distance, and immediately rode One-Eye to charge over. Karut and Trick instinctively followed their father, and the others, seeing the situation, charged out as well.

Their speed was fast, and the closer they got, the clearer the figures became; they were indeed people. The old man was in the lead and saw the most clearly; he was the first to spot his eldest grandson, Krum.

He was bowing his head, carrying a rope, and seemed to be pulling something, but Chief Kramsh did not see his most beloved youngest grandson, Solam. The old chief's heart sank.

With a bad premonition, the old man immediately urged One-Eye to accelerate.

"Ak! Ak!" Chief Kramsh shouted his grandson's name at the top of his lungs. Krum clearly heard someone calling him and looked up. Seeing many wolf riders charging out from the snow ahead, with his grandfather in the lead, Krum was overjoyed. He stopped and waved toward them.

"Grandpa, we're here!"

To be honest, Krum had felt like he was lost just a moment ago, because based on their pace, they should have reached the clan camp long ago. But this damn heavy snow had a massive impact on visibility; the sight range was very short, and everything in the distance was just blurry shadows, making it impossible to see any landmarks.

Krum had been considering whether to build a snow den on the spot and wait for the snow to stop, as getting lost in such a blizzard was extremely dangerous. It wasn't until he heard his name that he snapped out of it. Seeing his grandfather and the wolf riders, he knew he had found his people.

The old chief heard his eldest grandson's shout, which was full of vigor and joy. Half of his worry vanished. He knew his children well; if something had truly happened to Solam, Krum would never be in such a state. His eldest grandson was honest, but not heartless. Still, not seeing Solam with his own eyes left him uneasy, so he accelerated to get a closer look.

It's no wonder One-Eye, this old war wolf, was a legend; despite his advanced age, his speed hadn't diminished, leaving the others far behind. The old man quickly reached Krum and saw that the boy had no injuries. Behind him, Krum was pulling a makeshift sled loaded with the carcasses of two Alpine Goats, already covered in a layer of snow. Behind Krum, Frostfang and Bloodfang were walking side-by-side, tied to a rope and pulling another sled. That sled held a large pile of things covered in snow, making it hard to see clearly, but Solam was nowhere to be seen.

"Ak, where is Lam? Why don't I see him?" The old man jumped off One-Eye the moment he reached Krum.

"He's on the sled behind, he's asleep." Krum gave his grandfather a huge grin. Krum had hoped his grandfather would praise them; this hunt was a bumper harvest, and they had even bagged three Snow Tigers, something even the old hunters in the clan couldn't match. But the old man had no heart for that; his grandson was more important.

"Asleep?" Chief Kramsh asked, frowning as he walked toward the rear sled.

"Lam fell asleep halfway here." Krum answered with a guilty conscience, watching the others approach, led by his own father. Seeing his father getting closer made him feel even more guilty. Seeing so many people from the clan, plus the fact that Solam was injured, he figured he was in for a world of trouble—at the very least, a sound beating.

The old man reached the sled in a few steps, noticing that both war wolves were injured as he passed them.

He approached the sled and finally saw Solam curled up against the carcass of an adult Snow Tiger, wrapped in two Snow Tiger pelts, his head tucked inside. The old man hurriedly pulled back the furs to see Solam snoring softly, fast asleep. Seeing that Solam's face was pale but his breathing was steady, he knew it wasn't life-threatening. He continued to peel back the furs and found bloodstains all over Solam—mostly on his chest, but also wounds on his hands, arms, and legs. The old man's heart tightened.

When he saw the adult Snow Tiger carcass Solam was leaning against, along with the three Snow Tiger heads—one large and two small—he realized exactly what they had encountered. He felt both heartache and anger, though mostly anger. These were Snow Tigers! Was this something two half-grown boys could handle?

However, when he saw the three Alpine Goats tied behind the sled—one of which was clearly a mother still nursing—his heartache took over again.

Perhaps it was the old man's movements that disturbed Solam, or perhaps the cold air hitting him after the furs were pulled back, but Solam slowly opened his eyes. The moment he did, he saw the old man standing before him.

"Old man, how did you find us?" Solam still felt exhausted, though not physically, but mentally; he felt as if his thoughts were stalling.

"You lot have some nerve, daring to go hunting on your own..." Seeing Solam awake, the old man prepared to lecture the boy properly, or else there would be no end to this. But he was interrupted by Solam's weary voice before he could say much.

"Whatever it is, can you let me sleep first? I'm so sleepy..." He yawned as he spoke. After finishing, he wrapped the furs back around himself, shifted his position, and fell back asleep.

Watching Solam, the old man was caught between laughter and tears. Seeing how exhausted the boy was, he didn't have the heart to say anything more, deciding to deal with it after they returned.

Solam had fallen asleep and escaped the lecture, but Krum wasn't so lucky. His father, Karut, jumped off his wolf the moment he arrived and slapped Krum on the back of the head.

"Do you think you're invincible? You're just a half-grown brat, do you really think you're a man now? Daring to disobey your elders! It's one thing to be reckless yourself, but you dragged Lam into this mess!" In his fury, he kicked him. Krum was honest; seeing his father so enraged, he didn't argue, taking the kick and stumbling a few steps before steadying himself. In Orc culture, if you're wrong, you admit it; if you're being beaten, you stand firm—that's what makes a man.

"Look at you, you're the older brother! Why didn't you teach your brother better? Do you know how much trouble you've caused everyone? And where is Lam? If anything happened to him, I'd skin you alive!" Krum had been too afraid to lift his head while being scolded, but hearing about Lam—and knowing Lam was indeed injured while he himself was fine—his pride in the hunt vanished, and he lowered his head even further.

Seeing his son's reaction, Karut exploded. Lam really is hurt! He didn't care about skinning his son anymore; he grabbed Krum by the collar with one hand and hoisted the 1.8-meter-tall young man into the air like a chick.

"Tell me, what happened to Lam!" he roared at Krum.

"Lam... he got hurt saving me..." Before Krum could finish, Karut balled his fist and swung at him. Fortunately, Trick, who had been standing to the side with a grim face, caught the punch. If that blow had landed, there was no doubt it would have caused a serious injury; the strength of the clan's top young warrior was no joke, and fueled by rage, he might have truly crippled the boy.

"Big brother, big brother, calm down. Ak is just a child," Trick urged. Although he was also angry, one nephew was already hurt; there was no need for the other to be injured too. Plus, with his brother's rage, he feared he wouldn't be able to hold back his strength and would end up doing real damage.

The others hurriedly pulled Karut away. While it was normal for Orc children to be beaten for mistakes, and others would usually just watch, if an adult truly intended to cause severe harm, the others couldn't just stand by. Because the birth rate of the Avalon Orcs was low, they were very protective of their children. Discipline was fine, but excessive violence was forbidden. Orcs had explosive tempers, and when rage took over, they lost their sense of reason; it was the duty of those nearby to intervene.

The shouting and the chaotic attempts to mediate finally drew the big boss over.

"What is all this noise about? You couldn't look after the children, and now you're taking your anger out on them? Have you grown so capable? I don't remember teaching you to act like this!" The old man rushed over, pointing at Karut and scolding him furiously.

Seeing the old man blow up, Karut finally sobered up, feeling a wave of shame. He remembered that the most important thing was how Solam was doing.

"Dad, how is Lam? Is he badly hurt?" Karut hurriedly put Krum down and asked. Trick also looked at their father nervously.

"He's fine, just some flesh wounds. Once we get back and have Grandma Garom treat him, he'll be fine. He'll be back on his feet in a couple of days. But he's exhausted right now and is sleeping on the sled behind."

Hearing this, and seeing his brother had calmed down, Trick hurried toward Lam. The old man cautioned, "He just fell asleep, don't wake him."

Trick nodded and went over.