Chapter 4: prologue 2

Is it good luck or bad luck? Aza thought while drinking the broth.

 

    High-quality meat. Using the finest beef, hammered into a floss, a whole cow of meat can be filled in just a small pocket. When it is consumed, you just have to boil it with water and it will be restored to delectable beef. This is the dried food used by aristocratic warriors on expeditions.

 

    Flavorful soup. Even the river water in the Lizard Swamp is as clear and sweet as the purest mountain spring under the action of the purifying charm. It is used to cook a pot of beef soup, adding salt, even the master chefs in the city will approve of the taste. It makes people feel that this purification talisman is indeed worth a silver coin.

 

    Eating such good meat and drinking such fine soup will refresh even someone dying. Aza is very aware of his physical condition, and after a good night’s rest, he can bring down a cow with his bare hands.

 

    The bonfire is made of a lot of wood stacked together, and the looks are very neat. The solid and dense dry wood and wet wood are mixed, which can be guaranteed to burn until the next day. The heat of the bonfire can conceal the body temperature of a human, even the wyverns wouldn’t be able to sense them, so there is no need to hide in the cold tree holes and underground holes, and other beasts and poisonous insects do not dare to approach. A good night’s sleep next to a campfire like this will definitely restore your physical strength.

 

    Even if he can knock down five cows with his bare hands, Aza is still not confident in fighting head-on against the hunter.

 

    No matter how much he recovered his stamina, it was not enough for him to shake off the hunter’s trails. The campfire was warm, safe, and bright enough for any creature in the swamp to see clearly.

 

    “You are really amazing. This is the first time I have seen someone who dares to walk across the Lizard Swamp with only one weapon.” The woman who claimed to be a pharmacist showed an expression of admiration.

 

    Aza didn’t think he was worthy of admiration at all. He didn’t even notice that the skin of the leech was still bleeding after it fell off, and just a few drops of blood almost attracted the piranhas in the entire swampy waters. So he had to go to the bank and push a broken log that had been knocked down by a bull into the river, stand on it and float down the water to avoid the countless jaws below who were waiting for him to go into the water. But when a few huge crocodiles joined the ranks, he had no choice anymore but to go ashore. It was already dusk, and when he was about to find a place to hide, he saw the light of the fire, he then unexpectedly met a person of the same species.

 

    The woman was about the same age as Aza. Although she was dressed as an explorer, carrying a large package and a dirty blanket, her fair and delicate skin showed that she was not a commoner. Carrying that kind of high-efficiency dry food with her, in addition, the price of a water purification talisman is enough for a commoner to live comfortably for a month, this woman is most probably a noble.

 

    “I thought it was amazing that I could explore and collect herbs in the swamp by myself. The terrain and climate here are unique, and many plants only grow here, so although my father never agreed with me, I still sneak in by myself.” The woman was like a child with no ulterior motives at all, speaking at will. It’s probably been a long time since she had seen a member of the same species, and it’s in such a dangerous environment, so the woman is not wary of him at all.

 

    The sword on her waist is the Anka rapier, thin and long, hard and resilient, light and dexterous, mainly for assassination. Aza recognized it because it was always in the most noticeable place in his father’s shop for customers to tut at the sword and the price tag below.

 

    The angle of the sword around her waist was good and precise, allowing her to draw as quickly as possible. The hilt of the sword was tightly wrapped with a fine hemp rope, a method only used by professional soldiers, so that the hilt would not slip even after it was soaked in blood. Although the colour of the hemp rope is still the original colour that has not been soaked in blood, from the grip marks left by the countless slams on it, this sword is definitely not just for people to look at.

 

    But even with her, it wouldn’t be enough to deal with the hunter. The most important thing in life and death fighting is not skill, but energy and fighting spirit. Even if she had been trained since she was a child, she had never heard the cracking sound of an axe smashing into a human bone, never heard the wailing of a person who was cut in half at the waist, but still was not completely dead, never felt the sharp pain of the enemy’s blade galloping across her body, tearing through her muscles and bones, she was only an amateur at best. When faced with the threat of death, when they feel the pain that can immediately overwhelm their minds, they all fear, panic and lose their combat power.

 

    If only there was another magician or priest, even if it was just the most basic blessing, a few simple fireballs…

 

    Aza found himself a little dazed by the sudden comfort of the broth and the bonfire. It is almost unbelievable luck to be able to meet human beings in the dense swampy forest within a radius of hundreds of miles and drink broth comfortably around the campfire to replenish physical strength.

 

    After chewing a piece of adventurer’s biscuit given by the woman and serving it with broth, Aza sighed with satisfaction and resignation, feeling the warmth of this lucky bonfire.

 

    The hunter should be stalking the fire here in a random tree hole at this time. Even he had to hide when the wyvern was still searching for food in the night sky. But as long as the dawn appears in the east, and the two-legged dragon returns to its nest, he will spare no effort to rush here at an astonishing speed following the bonfire of luck.

 

    Whether it is good luck or bad luck, since it has already happened, it is crucial, or the only choice, to try to develop things to the place where they hope to develop.

 

    “How far is it from the Dono River?” Aza asked.

 

    When the Dono River first passed through the Lizard Swamp, the water was so fast that even the fish could not swim back, and it was there that Aza was forced ashore into the Lizard Swamp. But the water softened after bypassing the Lizard Swamp, and as long as it drifted down the river for a day, it would reach Bracada, the western town of the empire.

 

    “I’m not exactly sure, but it’s not far, probably can reach there walking a day or two.”

 

    If I ran there at full speed, I might be able to reach there in half a day. No, although the distance is much closer than expected, without the exact distance, there is also no exact certainty that he could reach there in time. He was quite sure that the hunter could catch up with him within half a day. The chances of escaping directly are too small.

 

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    I should probably tell the truth to the woman and ask her to deal with the hunter together. Although the chances of winning are small, it is still better than the alternatives. Aza arranged the words to tell her in his heart.

 

    “May I ask for a favour, can you accompany me for a while? I plan to go deep into the swamp tomorrow to find new herbs. This is the first time I have entered the swamp this deep.” The woman suddenly asked, “Of course, I will pay for the help.” She brushed a few strands of black hair that fell down with her hand, and the black hair was pressed against her thin lips, and her lips pursed into a slightly nervous arc. Her heels rubbed gently against each other. These are a pair of feet that are quite large for a woman, about the same size as Aza’s, and she wore a pair of leather shoes that are commonly used by adventurers.

 

    Aza suddenly realized a way to escape. This is a very efficient, high-success probability approach. There is no need to set up any traps, or set up any illusions, no need to consume physical strength, and no need to waste precious time, as long as I took advantage of the moment, here at the campfire, I can let the hunters waste a lot of time and energy. 

 

    The realization made his heart skip a beat.

 

    “Okay?” The woman blinked. Her eyes were small, with long eyelashes, and the corners of her eyes were hanging down. Even if she was angry, there would be a hazy smile flowing inside.

 

    The bonfire is bright, and the eyes are very dark in contrast, the firelight is soft and warm, but Aza did not dare to look straight at her. He looked away, took a deep breath, and tried to keep his tone as natural as possible. “I’m sorry, no, I have something very important and urgent to do.”

 

    “Oh, is it?” The woman didn’t know how to hide the disappointment in her tone and expression.

 

    “Walking westward from here for about half a day, there are several kinds of herbs unique to this swamp, which probably have unique healing properties.” Aza felt that his face was distorted, his voice was out of shape, and the meaning of his words was vague. It was the first time he had told an extremely malicious lie to a very friendly person. And to a woman.

 

    “Probably? What do you mean?”

 

    “Well, I saw a bull, no, it’s two bulls, and bulls fighting each other, and one’s hind leg was injured, hey no, it seems that the front foot is not good, it seems that it was bitten anyway, a very serious injury. It seemed like it will die on the ground for sure. Then it ate some grass, apply it to the place where it is injured, and then it will be fine after a while.” In desperation, Aza repeated the story of a dog fight he heard from an old adventurer, the story is very vague, but the words become more and more fluent.

 

    “Oh? Really? What kind of grass are you talking about?” The woman’s eyes widened, and Aza felt as if he had seen the terrifying crossbow bolt that had been fired from the dark five days ago, and almost reflexively lowered his head and twisted his body. The woman quickly pulled out a pen and paper from her backpack.

 

    “It’s a pale yellow flower.” Aza mixed up the characteristics of several wild herbs and messed up nonsense. The woman took it seriously.

 

    “If you’re going to go deeper into the swamp, be sure to grind up water mint and pyrethrum and apply it to your clothes and skin. Even if you have insect-repellent oil, be sure to apply it, because there are several poisonous insects in it. They are only afraid of the smell of these two kinds of grass.” Aza said to the woman in a very solemn voice.

 

    “Just these two kinds of grass? It’s everywhere, isn’t it?” The woman found it casually around the bonfire.

 

    Of course, these two herbs do have the effect of repelling insects. Since entering the swamp, Aza has been smearing it on his body, but these two herbs are by no means as effective as the insect-repellent oil specially made by the Adventurers Guild. During these three days, the first thing Aza did when he woke up at dawn in the tree hole was to use the slightest movement to pick out the centipedes and other poisonous insects that were sometimes under the armpits and trousers.

 

    Of course, there are no poisonous insects that fear only these two herbs in the deeper parts of the swamp.

 

    It seems that no matter what skill it is, it can be practised and honed. No matter how difficult it is, or something that goes against human nature, as long as you practice a lot, you will get used to it, become proficient, and even immerse yourself in it. With the opportunity to practice before, when Aza said the most vicious part of this extremely malicious lie, his sentences were smooth and his voice was stable, but he never dared to look at those shining eyes. He used the branches to play with the bonfire in order to hide his eyes.

 

    “Thank you very much. If I find these herbs again and figure out their properties, it will be enough to embarrass the old guys in the pharmacy.”, she probably thought that she made a friend, not only does she do things freely, but she also talked to him affectionately. “I knew for a long time that the world is so big, and there must be drugs that have not been discovered yet. But those old guys always only know how to chew on the books of their predecessors.”

 

    Nothing to feel guilty about. Even if he didn’t tell her the truth and courageously challenged the hunter, it would still result in the same situation. The hunter will never let go of any other human being found in the swamp.

 

    Even if the two of them fight together, they will most probably die, or maybe she will get in the way, or even not help at all. This method just makes her death more meaningful and gives myself more chances to escape. Aza searched his mind for every reason to justify his insidious trap.

 

    “Once my achievements are approved, let alone the Pharmacy Institute, even the Magic Academy will pay attention to me. Maybe even the bishop will personally ask me about these new herbs.” Due to the excitement, her round face floated two red clouds on both sides. Pointing to a tree next to her, she said, “Look, this tree is one of my discoveries. There is never any record in the book, but I know that it is very common in swamps by inquiring about many retired adventurers. And I also found that its sap is very irritating and toxic if the eyes of people or animals are splashed”

 

    ‘Your life is actually exchanged with the death of countless other lives, so don’t give up every hope of survival.’

 

    There are many small roots wound around the trunk of the tree, very straight and thin, much like the pen used by the old adventurer at the back of the village. From this, Aza suddenly remembered a sentence he once said that sounded very profound. This sentence undoubtedly raised the conspiracy just now to a philosophical depth. Aza felt that he could finally feel at ease. But suddenly a sense of intense disgust came over him, making him feel extremely tired.

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