Chapter 48: The Brothel

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

The sharp whistling of the iron sword slicing through the air echoed continuously.

Berg swung the iron sword in his hand with extreme speed, so fast that it left behind trailing afterimages.

The newly awakened hawk-eyed vision granted by the potion not only vastly enhanced his farsightedness but also heightened his dynamic visual acuity.

Under his intensely focused gaze, the pounces of the nine grey wolves slowed down into cinematic motion—the contraction of the hind leg muscles of the grey wolf on the front left, the saliva dripping from the jaws of the alpha wolf on the rear right... All these details converged into his mind, forming a blueprint for the impending slaughter.

The first grey wolf to pounce was precisely severed at its front paws in an instant, followed by a spinning slash executed with the practiced ease of countless training sessions in the courtyard, slicing open the throat of the second wolf behind him.

Blood splattered onto the moss-covered soil, instantly staining it a dark, bruised red.

Afterwards, his entire figure seemed to transform into a streak of flowing light, constantly weaving through the pack's encirclement.

His swordsmanship was not overly profound, but it was exceptionally precise and swift. Every strike cleaved toward the grey wolves' fatal points—their eyes, their throats—from different angles.

Often, before the claws and fangs of the grey wolves could even touch Berg’s leather-clad body, their lives were already claimed by the iron sword tearing through the air.

Just a few dozen seconds later, several grey wolves lay incapacitated on the ground, whimpering wretchedly as they awaited death. Blood flowed in steady streams from their wounds, filling the air with a thick, heavy stench of iron.

The sole remaining alpha wolf, upon witnessing this scene, turned tail and bolted toward the depths of the dense forest without the slightest hesitation.

Berg picked up the bow from the ground, drew an arrow, and nocked it against the bowstring lubricated with wolf blood.

Thwack!

The arrow shot into the distance like a shooting star, embedding itself firmly into the alpha wolf's rear end.

The force of the shot was so great that only the fletching remained visible at the wolf's backside.

Awoo! Awoo! Awoo!

The alpha wolf leaped repeatedly like a comical dancer, its cries so wretched that even Xia Mingyu up in the tree felt a chill run down his spine.

After bounding into the air several times, the pitiful alpha wolf finally crashed headfirst onto the ground and gradually ceased to breathe.

How tragic...

Having completed this series of slaughters, Berg—bathed entirely in wolf blood—put away his bow and iron sword, turned, and bowed gracefully to Xia Mingyu in the tree like a gentleman.

Then, he picked up his iron sword once more and systematically pinned the wailing grey wolves to the ground one by one.

Simultaneously, the white "Hunter" title floating above his head began to shift, a wisp of emerald green weaving through it.

"Wind Rune."

Using a Wind Rune to negate gravitational potential energy, Xia Mingyu leaped down and successfully landed on the ground.

"My Lord, my father told me that hunting is solely for taking a life. A qualified hunter does not torture their prey, but rather grants them a merciful release."

Berg explained his action of pinning the grey wolves.

"...Are you sure about that?"

Xia Mingyu looked at the alpha wolf not far away, its eyes still wide open in death, and asked skeptically.

This was the first time he had witnessed such a miserable way to die.

"Ahem, my father also told me that above all else, a successful hunt is paramount. When a prey is fleeing with its back turned, shooting *that* area is always the best choice."

Berg touched the back of his head awkwardly. Had he known, he would have aimed for the hind legs instead; now he had soiled his lord's eyes.

"What abilities did your promotion to Hunter grant you?" Xia Mingyu asked.

"One is that my previous Gaze has upgraded to Hawk-Eye, and the second ability is Sensory Enhancement, which temporarily sharpens all five of my senses when activated."

After checking his reflection in a puddle of blood on the ground, Berg replied.

"Not bad, a wonderful ability." A trace of approval flashed across Xia Mingyu's face.

He knew very well that whether in combat, evasion, or tracking, the five senses were crucial and influential factors.

Looking at Berg, who was covered in blood and looked like a deranged serial killer, Xia Mingyu snapped his fingers lightly.

In an instant, as if he had fallen into a washing machine, all the wolf blood clinging to Berg's body was forcefully repelled, shedding off him in a split second and landing on the empty ground nearby.

"My Lord, this is...?"

The young man stared in astonishment, repeatedly looking down at his freshly cleaned leather armor.

"Just a little trick." Xia Mingyu smiled faintly.

"Your power truly surpasses my imagination," Berg sighed with reverence.

"My Lord, are we returning to Black Wolf Fortress now?"

"Forget it. Since we're out here for once, let's find somewhere to look around."

Xia Mingyu stretched lazily.

Now that he had advanced to a True Magician, he was no longer as powerless as before.

Coupled with the Crown of the Humble concealing his identity and Berg—a formidable transcendental retainer—by his side, his mindset was naturally much more relaxed, free from constant anxiety and dread.

At least within the domain of Black Wolf territory, he could barely claim absolute self-preservation.

"My Lord, Ore Town isn't far from our current location. Would you like to take a look?" Berg asked after a moment of thought.

In the Black Wolf territory, there were three towns and twenty-one villages. Setting aside the villages for a moment, the three towns were Ore Town, Wolf Fang Town, and Lush Fruit Town.

Among them, Ore Town attracted numerous passing wandering merchants due to its abundance of minerals, making it arguably the most prosperous settlement in the entire Black Wolf territory.

"Let's go."

...

Ore Town.

Houses built of stone and raw timber were scattered about like stars in the sky.

Along both sides of the streets, various stalls were densely packed, selling fresh red fruits, bread, textiles, pottery, furs, salt, and all sorts of other commodities.

"Surprisingly bustling!"

Xia Mingyu looked at the scene with some surprise; this place gave him the nostalgic feeling of visiting a local wet market during his childhood.

"My L—Sir, the fruit at this stall is wonderful, you should try some; the bread here is good, and this merchant offers the fairest price for furs..."

Like a tour guide, Berg led Xia Mingyu along the street, introducing everything as if rattling off the contents of his own family's treasure chest.

"Berg, do you come here often?"

"Yes, because every time I hunt, I need to come to Ore Town to sell the furs. And since I'm the only hunter in the village, Uncle Robert always entrusts me with procuring supplies for the village."

Seemingly recalling some fond memories, the corners of Berg's mouth curved upward into a slight smile.

"I see. By the way, what is that building over there?"

Xia Mingyu noticed a building a few hundred meters away that was so ornate it clashed completely with its surroundings, and its entrance was surrounded by quite a crowd.

"That's... a brothel." Berg's smile instantly turned awkward.

He had never set foot in such a place. If any of the reckless youths in the village even jokingly suggested going there, Village Chief Robert would beat them black and blue.

There were brothels in this world too?

No, come to think of it, as a world with a medieval-esque setting, it would be stranger if there *weren't* any brothels.

Xia Mingyu fell into a thoughtful silence.

"Something seems to be happening over there. Let's go take a look."

...

In the center of the crowd, a frail young girl was being pulled and dragged toward the brothel by several thugs.

The girl, wearing tattered linen clothes, struggled desperately, her bleeding fingers clawing into the dirt as she was dragged along.

There was a fresh bruise on the corner of her right eye, clearly left from her earlier resistance.

"Tch, how many is that today? Master Hawk is really making a fortune this time!"

"I heard that this year it's because some merchant from Clay swindled various villages, which is why so many people fell into debt with Master Hawk. They never stopped to think—Master Hawk's debts double every single week. There's just no paying them off!"

The onlookers whispered among themselves.