A fantastical journey across the heavens, beginning with the Witcher.

As the last rays of light faded, twilight, like a velvet cloth soaked in ink, enveloped the entire forest.

A campfire crackled and burned in a forest clearing, the red flames casting long and short shadows of the two men.

Olivia huddled beside the fire, hugging her knees, her gaze unfocused as she stared at the flickering flames.

The firelight flickered on her cheeks, and in a daze, she seemed to hear the joyful laughter of her clansmen.

Li De sat on the other side, carefully maintaining his weapons by the light of the fire.

This sword, capable of cutting through iron like mud, had already proven its power in several fierce battles in less than a month since it was acquired.

The alchemical armor that had the elven warriors helpless was no more durable than rotten wood under the sword's edge. The only pity was that it didn't get to exchange more blows with the Wild Hunt General, who was genuinely interested in that armor.

Neither of them was thinking about their own thoughts, and neither of them intended to speak. For a moment, the air was unusually quiet, with only the crackling of burning firewood and the chirping of insects playing softly.

Unfortunately, this quiet period didn't last long.

Li De's ears twitched, as if he had caught something. His previously calm eyes lit up instantly, and he sprang to his feet, looking into the dense forest with its dappled shadows.

The sorceress, lost in her memories, was startled by the sudden movement and looked up in confusion: "What's wrong?"

Li De licked his lips lightly, his tone carrying a hint of pre-hunt excitement: "Are you hungry?"

Olivia had intended to be strong, but the battle during the day had exhausted her, and her stomach, which had been rebelling since the afternoon, was now making a loud "gurgling" sound.

Her cheeks flushed instantly: "A little."

"Perfect timing, dinner has been delivered."

Before the words were finished, a burly figure pushed aside the bushes and rushed into the firelight.

It was a huge brown bear, as tall as an adult’s chest, covered in thick, coarse, dark brown fur that reflected a dull, oily sheen when illuminated by the campfire.

"Waaah."

A low growl mixed with drool dripped from the corner of his mouth.

Clearly, it also regarded the two little creatures in front of it as its dinner.

Li De waved to signal the sorceress to stay away, but before he could lower his hand, the battle had already broken out.

The brown bear braced itself on its hind legs, stood upright, and its massive body cut off the flames, standing like a small mountain in front of the witcher.

The next second, shadows loomed, and a gigantic figure, accompanied by a foul stench, suddenly pounced.

Li De had anticipated this, and with nimble footwork, he dodged the attack by sidestepping, while simultaneously thrusting his steel sword straight at the brown bear's hind leg joint, before slashing it outwards.

Since it was food rations, they would strike the legs upon meeting to prevent escape.

"Aww!"

A fierce bear roar echoed through the forest, and blood spurted from the wound, forming a small fountain.

The excruciating pain did not deter the beast; instead, it fueled its frenzy, causing it to turn and pounce even more violently.

Despite his bulky and stout body, he did not appear clumsy at all.

However, its injured hind legs could no longer support its center of gravity, and every movement was unsteady and agile. Its powerful bear paws swung out repeatedly, but missed their mark, only kicking up dust.

Driven into a frenzy and devoid of reason, the beast, enduring excruciating pain, lunged forward once more.

Li De timed his attack perfectly, sidestepped to the side to avoid the attack, gripped the hilt of his sword with both hands, and swung the steel sword horizontally.

Chi!

The sword flashed past the brown bear's forepaws.

With both its front and hind legs on the same side crippled, the brown bear could no longer support itself and collapsed heavily to the ground with a mournful howl.

Hot blood gushed out, completely extinguishing the beast's anger, leaving only a deep-seated fear.

Driven by its survival instinct, it dragged its mangled body forward with difficulty, but the Witcher clearly did not want to let go of this meat that had come to its door. He stepped on its back, and with a swift and clean strike of his steel sword, he severed the bear's head.

Behind the tree, the sorceress peeked out and clicked her tongue lightly: "Ew, if Ornn were here, he'd probably be trembling with rage."

"It's just a matter of the strong preying on the weak." Li De wiped the blood from the steel sword with a cloth. "It tried to eat me first. Even a druid can't go against the laws of nature."

With that, he sheathed his steel sword, then drew the dagger from his waist and gutted the still-warm bear carcass.

The blade sliced ​​through the skin and flesh, cutting off two pieces of juicy pork belly.

Then, he pulled a red-hot piece of firewood from the fire and extinguished the flames.

"Let's go, let's find another place to camp. I don't want to be bothered by wolves in the middle of the night."

Because he had no way to preserve the meat, he only took enough for two days; any more would just rot in his hands.

As for the remaining bear carcasses, they will be disposed of by carnivorous and scavenging creatures that proclaim them as "a gift from nature," and will soon be completely recycled by nature.

The two men rebuilt their fire under a tree root sheltered from the wind.

Li De shaved a few smooth wooden skewers, cut the fatty bear meat into thick strips, skewered them, and slowly roasted them on the edge of the fire, sprinkling a few pinches of his homemade spices from time to time.

The flames gently licked the meat, the fat slowly melting in the high temperature, dripping down the grain and sparking tiny sparks in the fire.

The golden sheen of oil spread across the surface of the meat, and the bear meat, which originally had an earthy smell, exuded a rich meaty aroma after being cooked with flames and spices.

"It's ready to eat."

As soon as Li De finished speaking, the starving sorceress eagerly grabbed a skewer and began to tear it apart.

Grilling over an open flame is prone to burning. Even with frequent turning, some burnt meat is inevitable. But it is precisely this burnt aroma, mixed with oil, that completely ignites the taste buds.

Coupled with fresh, fragrant, and slightly spicy spices, it almost made the sorceress swallow her tongue along with it.

She chewed heartily, disregarding her manners, and exclaimed indistinctly, "Delicious! The cooking is quite good, comparable to the elven chefs of Blue Mountain."

"You're just too hungry. Bear meat has a strong gamey smell, and even with spices to mask it, it's not exactly delicious."

While eating the roasted meat, Li De suddenly remembered a famous Northeastern dish that had disappeared from the world due to its use as a form of criminal punishment—roasted bear paw.

He didn't have the chance to see it in his past life, but he actually ate it in this life, and his conclusion was that it wasn't worth it... The delicious part wasn't the bear paw at all, but the sauce and spices.

With that stewing method, it would be delicious even if it were stewed with slippers, let alone bear paws.

"Indeed, I prefer beef."

A light, airy voice suddenly broke into the conversation.

Gant Odim was already sitting by the fire, expertly picking up a skewer of roasted meat and tearing into it with gusto. Oil dripped down his chin as he commented, "Not enough spices, not as good as last time."

The sorceress silently put down the meat skewers in her hand, her whole body tense, and quietly assumed a casting posture.

Ever since she learned the man's true identity, she has always been extremely wary of him.

Li De, engrossed in his meat skewers, mumbled, "You came uninvited just to mooch a meal of barbecue that doesn't suit your taste?"

"Of course not."

Odim tossed the cleaned wooden stick into the fire, wiped his mouth casually, and smiled meaningfully: "We've known each other for a long time, Li De."

"I know you too well. You seem carefree and don't care about anything, but there's this little girl inside you. You always like to be kind to strangers you don't know."

"Consider this a reminder from an old friend. If I were you, I would change direction."

These words were cryptic and incoherent, so Li De decisively ignored them. He didn't consider the two to be friends, much less that Odim would be so kind.

"Alright, you're as stubborn as ever. Consider it a return gift for the barbecue, I can grant you a small wish for free, without any conditions."

Odim pinched his thumb and forefinger together to indicate that the amount of his wish was very, very small.

This time, Li De didn't refuse. He pondered for a moment and said, "My horse has fallen into the woods near the packhorse shed. So my wish is—to bring the coal briquettes to me."

Odim paused for a moment: "Uh... it doesn't have to be that small. You can make a different wish, like getting you and this lady to safety directly, or giving you a new magical gadget."

"No need, this is fine." Li De remained unmoved, looking straight at him. "Come on, let me see the skills of the Mirror Master."

"Alright, alright, the customer is king, so... as you wish."

Odim snapped his fingers lightly.

A few seconds later, a familiar neighing of a horse echoed through the woods.

"Neighing—"

A jet-black, glossy horse, its mane swishing, trotted briskly out of the darkness and came straight to Li De's side, snorting happily and nuzzling its master's shoulder affectionately with its large head.

Li De gently stroked his old buddy's head and casually stuffed his own roasted meat into the horse's mouth.

Odim stood up and dusted off his trousers.

"My wish has been fulfilled, so I'll take my leave now. Like I said before, if you change your mind, remember to contact me."

"Gant Odim, at your service."

Before the sound had even faded, the figure beside the fire vanished abruptly, as if it had never been there at all.