A row of crude cooking pots stood over burning firewood, and the faint fragrance of wheat porridge filled the air.
The slaves formed a long line, clutching rough wooden bowls as they waited for their porridge.
Their eyes were full of gratitude. In the days before, they had struggled with hunger every day.
They had fought over even the smallest scraps. Having hot porridge to drink now was already an immense blessing.
They could never repay Lord Louis's kindness!
Standing behind the stove, George ladled out porridge with an enormous wooden spoon and muttered anxiously:
"My lord, if you keep cooking this much, I'm afraid our grain won't last... If the shortfall gets too large one day, we'll..."
Before he could finish, Louis cut him off with a casual wave.
"People need to eat when they're hungry. If I tell you to cook, then cook. What's with all the whining?"
George opened his mouth, but finally sighed and resigned himself to ladling out more porridge.
His new master was good in every way, except that he was far too generous. He seemed to place no value on grain at all.
"Hmph, at this rate, I'll probably be back at the slave market in less than six months..." George was overcome with misery.
In that case, he'd better sneak a couple of extra bowls now, before the day came when he had to go hungry again.
Louis, however, paid no mind to any of this.
He wasn't worried about running out of food. The Red Tide Fief was so rich in resources that there was no way he would starve.
That was the confidence his cheat gave him.
As it happened, today's daily intelligence had just updated:
[1: Frontier Baron Hayes froze to death on his way to his fief after drinking excessively.] [2: Emily Edmond, the northern governor's youngest daughter, advanced to Novice Elite Knight.] [3: A pack of 70 hungry Tundra Wolves has followed the scent of food and is lurking in the canyon ahead, waiting for a chance to attack the convoy.]
The first two entries mattered little to Louis. At most, Baron Hayes's death stirred a little sympathy for someone whose fate could have been his own.
The third entry, however, made his expression turn grave!
Seventy Tundra Wolves were nothing to fear with his current forces, but if a moment of carelessness allowed these vicious beasts to ambush them and inflict casualties, it wouldn't be worth it.
He immediately summoned Lambert, the knight captain, and ordered in a low voice:
"Have the knights form groups of five and scout ahead for anything unusual around the canyon."
Lambert nodded and accepted the order without hesitation.
The knights quickly divided into groups and galloped toward the canyon.
The cold wind howled, and an ominous chill hung between the canyon walls.
The knight squad advanced slowly across the snow. An unpleasant stench filled the air.
It smelled like rotting meat mixed with the musk of wild beasts, making them instinctively wrinkle their brows.
Lambert dismounted and crouched in the snow. He brushed aside the thin layer on top, revealing a jumble of paw prints beneath.
The tracks were deep, suggesting that the wolves were so hungry they hadn't even had the patience to conceal their trail.
He raised his head, his expression grave. "We've found something."
They quickly returned to Louis and reported everything they had discovered.
After hearing their report, Louis showed no trace of panic. "Good. Since they've come looking for us, let's show them who's really the prey."
He then ordered traps to be laid throughout the canyon to lure the pack into a killing ground.
The hungry Tundra Wolves crouched in the snow, their eerie green eyes fixed on the distant convoy.
Their fur was thick and coarse, its color somewhere between grayish white and dark blue. It blended with the snow, making it easier for them to hide in this frozen wilderness.
Hunger had left their bodies even more gaunt, but the terrifying explosive strength beneath their bones was still apparent.
The wind carried a tempting scent-the prey they had been dreaming of!
"Awooo!" The wolf king leading the pack gave a low howl.
Dozens of dark shapes rose from the snow at once. Like ghosts, they crept forward soundlessly, drawing steadily closer to the convoy.
Closer and closer... closer and closer...
Bang!
A muffled crash tore through the night as a massive wooden stake mechanism sprang up. Sharp spears pierced the wolves at the front, and blood instantly stained the snow red!
Startled by the sudden trap, the wolves scattered in all directions.
The soldiers lying in ambush around the perimeter swiftly drew their bows to the full, unleashing arrows like a torrential downpour!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Arrows tore through the air. The Tundra Wolves couldn't dodge in time, and agonized cries rang out. Several were struck clean through the throat and tumbled into the snow, their blood swiftly staining it red.
"Attack now!"
Lambert's longsword traced a silver arc through the air.
The knights launched their assault together, their raging battle aura instantly setting the battlefield ablaze!
One knight leaped up, his war spear glowing red, and drove it straight through a Tundra Wolf lunging at him.
The explosive energy pinned the wolf's corpse to the snow and blasted a massive fissure into the ground!
Another knight swung a greatsword, its blade wreathed in crimson flames of battle aura.
He leaped high and brought his sword down. The flames cleaved through the night, cutting a huge wolf attempting a sneak attack in half at the waist!
Warm blood blossomed across the snow like crimson flowers.
The pack's wild instincts could no longer suppress its terror, and the wolves fled in every direction.
"Close the net!"
The knights shifted formation and encircled the pack.
They unleashed their battle aura, taking a wolf's life with every slash.
Amid the sounds of blades cutting through flesh, the pack was slaughtered to the last wolf in a chorus of agonized howls.
In the end, only the wolf king remained, standing alone on the bloodstained snowfield, its thick fur soaked with blood.
Its eerie green eyes stayed fixed on Lambert in one final display of ferocity.
"Awoooo!"
The wolf king roared and hurled its massive body at Lambert. Its slashing claws stirred a bitterly cold wind powerful enough to rend steel!
But Lambert merely sidestepped. A blade of light formed from battle aura instantly sheathed his longsword, its red radiance surging!
"Slash!"
At his low shout, the sword's light fell like thunder.
It severed the wolf king's head from its body in a single stroke. Hot blood sprayed, and the corpse crashed to the ground!
The battle ended even faster than expected, with the knights suffering almost no casualties.
Tundra Wolf corpses littered the ground, and the blood-red snow bore witness to the battle's brutality.
Without even being out of breath, Lambert turned to Louis, who was riding over from a distance.
"My lord, the pack has been wiped out."
The knights quickly tallied the results-all seventy Tundra Wolves had been killed!
The spoils were considerable as well.
Seventy thick wolf pelts, sharp wolf fangs, and, most importantly, a small mountain of wolf meat!
Louis surveyed the spoils and nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Skin the wolves and share the meat among the men. Give them something extra to eat."
The soldiers immediately burst into cheers. In the freezing north, a piping-hot meal of meat was a luxury they could only dream of!
Besides, wolf meat wasn't inedible. Prepared properly, it could taste every bit as good as the meat of ordinary wild animals!
"Our lord is truly too generous..."
At that moment, the newly recruited soldiers looked at Louis with something more than simple obedience. They had come to accept him from the bottom of their hearts.
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