The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 283 A Fresh Taste
When Natalia woke up, the cabin was still somewhat dark.

Two snow sheep knelt on either side of her, unresponsive to her awakening, while the space beside her remained empty, Eric nowhere to be seen.

After a moment of blankness, her consciousness gradually returned, and she sat up, a faint pain making her frown.

Looking down, I saw that the white wool mat on which we had been joined together the night before was clearly marked.

Just as they were staring at each other, Eric pushed open the door and came in, bringing with him a gust of cold wind and snow.

"you're awake."

He quickly closed the door to the cabin and knelt down in front of her. "I have good news and some not-so-good news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Natalia looked at him for a moment, then raised her hand to stroke his face. "Good news."

Eric raised his hand as well, but stopped before touching her. "A few snow wolves passed by outside this morning, and I killed them."

"What's the bad news?" Natalia took his cold hand in her own, holding it between both of her own.

“It’s not bad news, just not that good,” Eric continued. “If this were anywhere else, we could eat some fresh meat, but here we’ll just have to leave it as is, unless you want to eat raw meat.”

Natalia just smiled and didn't seem to care about the loss.

"Can you move?" Eric glanced at the bloodstains on the snow sheepskin.

“You only slept with me, you didn’t hurt me.” Natalia raised an eyebrow and stood up. “Where is the snow wolf? I’ll go see.”

Eric smiled and led her outside. Before long, Natalia saw the snow stained red with wolf blood.

"Were these snow wolves just passing by, or were they coming for us?"

Eric shook his head. "Even if they weren't just passing by, they weren't coming for us either. It's more likely they were coming for those two snow sheep."

After spending a night with two snow sheep in a nearly enclosed indoor space, the two men became quite familiar with their smell.

Arriving at the snow wolf carcass, Natalia glanced down at it a few times. "Am I just imagining things? These snow wolves don't even look as big as Lutia's dog."

“I’m starving,” Eric said. “I guess the meat won’t taste good either.”

Natalia looked up at him, and they both smiled at the same time.

"Okay, I never expected it anyway."

She squatted down and touched the snow wolf's fur. "It's a bit hard... otherwise we could peel it off and use it as a sleeping mat."

“I don’t have that skill,” Eric said.

"Is it difficult?" Natalia asked, completely baffled.

Eric poked the dead wolf twice with the tip of his sword. "Back when I was in Oren, I heard from hunters that skinning is a skill, and it's hard to get a whole pelt without experience."

“Okay,” Natalia said casually.

Aside from being a topic of conversation, the snow wolf had nothing of value to them, so the two quickly lost interest, returned to the hut, fed the snow sheep dried vegetables mixed with snow, and ate dried meat themselves.

After quickly packing up, Eric and Natalia set off to continue their journey over the snow-capped mountains.

"We're not far from the summit. We should be there before noon."

Eric pointed to the destination, which was already visible to the naked eye. It looked close, but it was actually far away. This was the biggest feeling the two of them had after climbing the snow mountain for the past two days.

“Whatever it is, I hope to see something different from the top of the mountain, not just another snow-capped mountain,” Natalia said.

Eric took a breath. "Let's go."

Riding on snow goats, the two wrapped themselves tightly in their fur clothing and headed up the snow track.

The snowstorm that started again last night has not yet subsided, posing considerable challenges to Eric and Natalia's mountaineering trip.

The two snow sheep huddled together as they climbed upwards, trying to withstand the constant crosswinds, while Eric and Natalia kept their bodies as low as possible.

Step by step, the snow sheep struggled to climb upwards, then suddenly stopped at a certain moment.

"What's going on?" Natalia patted the snow sheep beneath her, but the sheep stood stiffly, refusing to take another step forward.

Eric squinted and looked ahead. "We've run into wolves again."

On the snow track ahead, a pack of white snow wolves, almost completely hidden in the snowstorm, were watching them greedily. Judging from their size, they were more than twice the size of the ones he had killed that morning.

"Why do these snow wolves look so big?"

"It could be the wolf king and its minions, or the snow wolves are just this big, and the ones we encountered this morning were the inferior ones."

Eric rolled off the snow sheep and drew his longsword. Although they were just wild animals, their size and numbers posed a threat to them.

He scanned his surroundings. Wolves usually hunt in packs, dividing tasks and cooperating to surround their prey. The few snow wolves exposed in front of him were likely just there to attract their attention.

“Watch your surroundings. The ring’s shield can block the snow wolf’s pounce,” Eric reminded Natalia. She responded and twirled the protective ring on her hand.

The wind and snow continued to blow, and all that could be seen in front of them were a few snow wolves blocking their path. There were no other wolves in sight to the left, right, or even behind. Eric did not dare to rush forward directly, lest Natalia and their snow sheep mounts be ambushed.

He was waiting, waiting for the wolves to approach on their own initiative. Once there was a head-on collision, the wolves would realize the difference in their strength and retreat.

However, after a brief standoff, the leading snow wolf raised its head, howled, and actually retreated on its own.

Eric and Natalia waited a while longer, but there was still no further news.

"They were scared away?" Natalia wondered.

Eric sheathed his longsword, mounted his snow sheep again, and said, "Perhaps."

He glanced around and behind him again, but still didn't see any other wolves. It seemed that the situation just now was an unexpected encounter for both sides, and both sides were frightened.

The direction the wolves retreated was the direction they were heading; no matter what, they had to cross the snow-capped mountain—they had no other choice.

He kicked the snow sheep beneath him with his heel, and the sheep finally started moving again.

"What a coward," Eric complained. The snow wolves looked about the same size as the two snow sheep. If they hadn't been rooted to the ground and refused to move, he could have had Natalia charge forward with him. That way, even if they were surrounded by wolves, they would have had a great deal of initiative.

Natalia smiled, her gaze fixed on his face. "They don't know how amazing you are."

“When we killed those snow wolves this morning, we should have let them come out and take a look too,” Eric said.

Natalia ran her hands through the long wool on the snow sheep's back. "Then I'll be woken up by the cold."

After the brief interlude, the two people and two sheep continued on their way.

However, about half an hour later, the wolf pack returned, and following them was a demon cavalryman riding a tall snow sheep!
Upon spotting two other people riding snow sheep in the distance, the demon cavalryman shouted something and gradually slowed down.

However, upon closer inspection, the demon cavalryman noticed that the skin color of the two people wrapped in snow sheepskin was off, and his expression changed drastically, prompting him to roar in anger.

Without hesitation, Eric kicked the snow sheep hard. The snow sheep cried out in pain and charged forward with him.

when!
He charged upwards, giving the demon cavalry ample time to react. Once he was close, they launched their own attack, which was blocked by Eric raising his sword.

As they passed each other, Eric abandoned the snow sheep and swiftly pounced on the demon cavalry on another snow sheep.

when!
The latter hastily parried, but his strength was insufficient, and the curved sword in his hand was forced back.

It roared and parried Eric's longsword with all its might, then leaped off the snow sheep and charged at Eric.

when!
As they blocked the sword, their swords clashed, and they exerted force simultaneously, bringing them extremely close together. Suddenly, golden light appeared in Eric's eyes and on his face.

The demon knight was horrified, and at the same time felt the oppressive force growing stronger.

With difficulty, he parried Eric's sword aside, only to have it suddenly sweep across in an attempt to force him back.

Eric did indeed step back, and the demon knight hurriedly ran to his snow sheep mount. The next second, it caught a glimpse of snow erupting in the direction the human had retreated.

Pfft!

Eric appeared instantly behind the demon knight and plunged his sword into its lower back.

The demon knight, in pain, turned and swung his sword furiously, but the target was already lost.

A blade, colder than wind and snow, pierced its neck from the front, drawing out gushing hot blood.

The demon knight convulsed and fell, his blood quickly staining the ground red. Eric looked at the snow wolves again, pushed off with his feet, and charged forward once more.

With a few mournful howls, several snow wolves collapsed, leaving only the snow goat the demon knight had ridden up standing. "Eric!"

Natalia followed on her snow goat and then dismounted.

"Are these demon cavalry?" She looked at the demon warrior on the ground whose convulsions were gradually ceasing.

“Hmm.” Eric wiped the blood off his sword with snow. “However, they are much weaker than the cavalry I’ve encountered on the battlefield.”

Natalia looked down at the demon cavalry's equipment. "They don't look like deserters to me. They seem more like they're stationed here."

"I feel so too."

Eric bent down and carefully searched the demon cavalry's corpse, but found nothing special. As for the armor on its body, he didn't like it, and Natalia couldn't wear it either.

He picked up the fallen demon sword and handed it to Natalia so she could use it for self-defense.

She brandished her curved sword a couple of times, and Eric could tell that the weapon in her hands could probably only serve a deterrent purpose.

Natalia's gaze fell on the corpses of the snow wolves, and she said, "So these snow wolves went to warn it."

"It looks like they've already been tamed by the demons."

Eric walked toward the abandoned snow sheep. "But judging from the state of this demon cavalryman when he came, these snow wolves can at most tell him where the prey is and lead the way."

"Hmm..." Natalia watched him mount the snow goat. "What should we do with this snow goat?"

“Let’s see if we can get it to follow us.” The snow sheep didn’t react much after its original owner was killed. Eric stroked the sheep’s wool. “I must have a bite of fresh meat.”

Natalia smiled.

They dismounted, transferred the saddle from the snow sheep to their own mounts, and Eric and Natalia remounted, placing the snow sheep between them and urging it to follow them.

After running for a while, it was able to follow them on its own.

Eric guessed that the demon cavalryman was able to find us so quickly, which meant that its encampment was not far away.

Near the summit of the snow-capped mountain, there is probably another demon outpost, where demons may still be stationed.

The two continued upwards, and at one point, Eric stopped, and Natalia stopped as well, looking ahead. Suddenly, she realized that the snow beneath their feet had become much flatter.

“We’ve reached the top of the mountain,” Eric whispered, gesturing for her to look ahead.

Amidst the wind and snow, a small campsite came into view in the distance.

"That is……"

"Demon Camp".

Eric rolled off the sheep, and Natalia looked at him and asked him what he was planning to do.

“I’ll sneak over and check it out,” Eric said. “You wait here. Stay hidden.”

Natalia opened her mouth slightly, but quickly nodded, rolled off, and made the three snow sheep squat down as well, squeezing herself in the middle.

Eric chuckled. "If you keep hiding like this, I won't be able to see you after a few steps."

"That's how it works, isn't it?"

Eric said no more, pulled the snow-white sheepskin on his body and head, and approached the demon camp.

The closer he got, the slower he slowed his pace. When he reached the outside of the camp fence, he lay down on the snow and peered through the gaps inside.

There were two tents, one on the left and one on the right, that looked about the same size. There was also a shed where snow sheep were kept. Eric moved to the side and counted; there were two more snow sheep inside.

If we assume one person and one snow sheep, there are at least two demon warriors involved, but if we consider the combination of infantry and cavalry, then it's hard to say.

Eric lay there for a while, and the snowstorm intensified.

He got up, slowly circled the perimeter of the camp, went to the back of one of the tents, grabbed the wooden fence, quickly climbed over, and landed silently.

After listening carefully to the sounds coming from inside the tent, I heard a series of snores, indicating that at least two people were sleeping.

After observing the movements in the opposite tent, Eric made his way to the tent entrance and quickly lifted the curtain to go inside.

A strong demonic scent wafted over. Two demon warriors lay on furs on either side, mouths agape, shouting loudly. In the middle was a tin stove.

Eric didn't give them a chance to wake up. He reached out and severed their throats one by one with his sword.

The two demon warriors convulsed and groaned, blood gushing from their necks. Eric then delivered a final blow to each of them, silencing them completely.

There was one tent left. He took his sword and went out, but when he lifted the curtain, he found that the curtain of the opposite tent was also open, and a demon warrior was standing at the door, looking out of the camp.

Out of the corner of its eye, it saw someone coming out of the opposite tent. It glanced at them casually, looked away, and then quickly turned back, its face showing surprise.

Eric rushed forward.

when!
In the close combat, the blood on the longsword was shaken and splattered onto the demon warrior's face.

Eric had already assessed its strength; it was about the same as the demon cavalryman who had been on a field mission before, and this was the only sword strike it could withstand.

He used a left-handed slash to create an opening, then swiftly thrust his sword, the tip piercing the demon warrior's throat.

Thump, the body fell to the ground.

Eric sheathed his longsword. He was the only one in this tent; two people slept in each other's tents. He guessed that the demon knight he had encountered earlier was his tentmate.

The atmosphere inside this tent was also thick with the scent of demons. Eric dragged the fallen demon to the opposite tent and opened the remaining tent flaps to let in some fresh air.

Back where Natalia and the snow sheep were hiding, Natalia stood up, revealing her black hair.

"It's a good thing you stood up, otherwise I really wouldn't have been able to find you."

Natalia smiled, knowing he was just joking, and thus guessed that his investigation was going smoothly.

Are there demons there?

“There were three. Two were sleeping. I just took care of them when the third saw us, so I had to take care of it too,” Eric said, mounting his snow sheep and heading towards the camp.

"In addition, there are two snow sheep over there."

Natalia followed, glancing at the snow sheep being driven away in the middle, and said, "Then we've got three snow sheep all at once."

"Yes, but one is enough if you want to eat it."

As they spoke, the two arrived at the demon camp.

Natalia lifted the tent flap and immediately saw three corpses in different positions on the ground. The strong demonic smell and blood made her frown, and after a few glances, she put the tent down.

“If no other demons arrive by nightfall, we can spend the night here,” Eric said.

Natalia quickly understood what he meant; he was worried that this was just one of the demon outposts, and that other patrolling demon cavalry would pass by.

“Search around here and see if there’s anything we can use,” Eric said, mounting his snow sheep again. “I’ll look around the area.”

“Okay.” Natalia nodded.

Eric left the camp and rode in the other direction, circling the mountaintop.

He quickly determined that the campsite was located on the only flat area at the top of the snow-capped mountain, and that it was downhill from there. He estimated that coming up from the other side would be just as difficult as climbing the mountain from this side.

Eric had to admit he admired the cavalry that patrolled the mountains every day.

The demons at the mountaintop camp are probably the regular sentries here, responsible for monitoring the situation to the south... or the north.

Eric guessed that there was at least one larger demon camp at the foot of the other side of the mountain, but now the wind and snow were howling and visibility was poor, so he couldn't see anything.

Back at the camp, Natalia was told about the situation. She thought for a moment and said, "Even so, we can't stay here for too long. It's difficult to patrol up here once a day, but it should be necessary to come up once every four or five days. Maybe we just happened to occupy this place at this point in time."

Eric nodded. "I'll keep an eye on what's going on outside."

Natalia then told him about the supplies she had found in a cellar in the corner of the camp.

"Besides the dried meat, I also found some things that looked like leaves... leaves, but they smelled like spices."

Eric took a deep breath. "My lamb stew."

(End of this chapter)