Your Majesty's money, why don't you engrave my name on it?

"Then they most likely didn't originate from a certain warband, but rather from the infection of a few lone gnolls!" Angrita responded immediately. "The book says that the origin of gnolls can be traced back to the time when the demon lord Yeenoghu invaded various material planes. A group of ordinary hyenas once served him at the time, and were later transformed into—"

"There's no time to show off your knowledge, Miss Barty!" Bella subconsciously revealed Angelita's gender. "What should we do now? They're coming!"

Just as Bella said, one after another, hyenas much stronger than the newborns appeared in their sight. There were as many as twenty or thirty of them. Some of them held crude longbows, others held heavy scimitars made of bones, and more of them just held two claws, trying to use their claws to tear apart the prey that was already surrounded.

Reslaufer's gaze was focused on a gnoll that was clearly different from the others. The gnoll leader beside him was at least two times larger than him, but the light in his eyes was not as bright as that of the gnoll. In his hand, he held a three-headed flail that looked like it was made of ordinary wood and bones.

"Did you see that? Do you know what it is?" Leslough directed Angelita's attention in that direction. "It's not the biggest one, the one with the bright eyes."

"I'm not sure..." Angrita followed Leslaufer's gaze and looked at the werewolf, "but I think that should be the 'Yenogu Fang' among the werewolves mentioned in the book!"

"Fangs?"

"They are the chosen ones of the Gnoll Lord. If ordinary hyenas are fed the flesh and blood of the creatures killed by them, they will become Gnolls just like the first hyenas transformed by Yeenoghu!" Angelita forced herself to recall those fragmented words. "Uncle Leslaufer, the one you just killed was very likely its masterpiece!"

The mercenaries turned their gaze to the hyenas that stood farther away than the jackals. They were wandering around, seemingly thirsting for the flesh and blood of the three of them.

It had to die, die in front of the leader who was bigger and stronger than it.

"Bella, protect her," Leslaufer took a deep breath and strode forward. "It'll only take a moment. I'll be back soon."

Chapter 45: Flail Poison

Seeing that the strongest human took the initiative to destroy the three people's defense line, the jackals once again let out bursts of shrill laughter. Two of them rushed towards Leslaufer from the left and right, one stretched out its claws, and the other raised the rusty sickle in his hand.

Behind them, two jackals and three hyenas were ready to attack. Even if Leslaufer was entangled for only a moment, these guys would immediately pounce on him and chew and swallow the mercenary's bones.

Their weapons might be crude, even their blades blunt, but relying on their physiques built for killing, gnolls could easily tear cattle and sheep into pieces. However, when the mercenaries in front of them began to swing their greatswords, they quickly realized that challenging the greatswords was the most foolish act.

When the sharp blade, which was terrifying in length and weight, chopped down the werewolf's head with both front and back blades, the unlucky guy wielding the sickle was knocked to the ground before he could even whimper. Another werewolf tried to climb up the mercenary's back from behind and bite the relatively fragile throat, but saw Reslaufer stepped on the corpse below, and the drawn sword immediately smashed the attacker's skull with even more ferocious momentum.

The hyenas tried to take advantage of this opportunity to rush forward, but the gnolls leading them did not dare to move at all. By the time they reacted and wanted to launch an attack with the bone and stone scimitars in their hands, Reslough had already slid easily into the large field of flesh and blood in front of him like a giant sickle used in busy farming seasons.

Whether it was a hyena or a gnoll, there was no difference under his sword. The strong gnoll leader howled while swinging his flail, but while driving his men to attack, he kept retreating, exposing the gnoll that Angelita thought was the "Yenogu Fang".

A series of gibberish werewolf words burst out from Venom Fang's mouth. Just by listening to the tone, one could feel its anger and fear, but such emotions quickly disappeared.

A scimitar thrown by an unknown gnoll hit Leslaufer's shoulder, causing the mercenary to stagger slightly, but the huge sword in his hand stabbed forward horizontally like a spear at this time, and after piercing through the gnoll in front of him, the blade crushed the heart of Yeenoghu's fang behind him!

"Nothing more!" The giant sword could not be drawn out quickly, so Reslaufer decisively abandoned the large weapon, drew out his fighting sword and engaged in close combat with the swarming gnolls around him. These monsters had weapons, claws and fangs, and could launch tricky attacks from multiple angles and in different ways, but they soon discovered that they were not as aggressive as this human!

What was even more deadly was that two other humans (the gnolls could not simply identify race by ears) also rushed up!

"Leslaufer, come to me - roar!" Bella jumped high from the outside, and a handful of stones flew out from her hands, bombarding several werewolves and making them run away in panic. They didn't notice that the young woman who was falling rapidly in the air was getting bigger and heavier, and finally turned into a wild boar with fangs, and fell directly on the back of a hyena!

In the wilderness, the ferocious wild boar is not even less aggressive than a tiger, not to mention that this "wild boar" also possesses human thinking and skills!

"Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on Angreta?!"

"Uncle, don't worry about me!" The princess's still somewhat childish cry rang out beside the wild boar. A wolf's claws tore open a piece of leather armor under her left rib, but it was entangled by the thick cloth lining inside. In just such a short while, the owl bear's head smashed its head into pieces.

"It's just, it's just a 'human'! I can take care of myself!" A stream of acrid liquid surged up her throat, but Angelita forced it down. Now was not the time to feel nauseous.

Having said that, it was impossible for Leslaufer to completely ignore Angrita. It was just that he only had a shorter fighting sword in his hand, and the range of his deterrence was greatly reduced. When the werewolf leader who had just retreated cunningly returned to the battlefield, Leslaufer's right hand was quickly hit by the vicious chain mail. With a piercing pain, the sword fell to the ground.

"Restlover!" Bella, in boar form, carrying Angarita, charged headlong into the mercenary's path. Before the gnoll leader could land his second flail, she reverted to human form and lashed out with a thorn whip, leaving a nearly meter-long wound on the giant monster's chest. The pain of his flesh being torn apart fueled the leader's ferocity. He howled to the heavens, attempting to communicate with the evil of the abyss for greater power. Unfortunately, the abyss was still closer to the material plane than the distance between Restlover and his sword.

With a dull thud, the sword held in Leslaufer's left hand sank completely into the heart of the werewolf leader. The latter's howl stopped abruptly, and his strong physique followed the footsteps of Yeenoghu's fangs, and he fell dejectedly on the road soaked in blood plasma.

The remaining jackals and hyenas hadn't intended to flee after their leader's death, but with their two strongest fighters dead, these ordinary monsters were no longer able to organize a decent resistance. They could only retreat again and again under the constant pressure of the three men. In the end, they led Reslaufer and his companions to an overturned carriage.

"This is the last one!"

Angelita lowered her head to avoid the enemy's dying counterattack, and the hateful head slid into her arms. The owlbear's hammer head slammed down, accompanied by a crisp cracking sound. The last werewolf had to give up struggling and fell limply to the ground.

"Are those hyenas still chasing us?!" Angelita was extremely excited at the moment. Her face was flushed and hot, and she completely forgot about the fear.

"That's unnecessary. They already have no chance of turning into monsters," Bella quickly stopped her. "Luckily, that Venom Fang was killed right at the beginning, otherwise we might have to face even more gnolls."

"I saw you were scratched by a guy earlier. Was it seriously injured? And Leslough, is your hand okay?"

It was not until the druid reminded her that Angelita felt a vague pain in her ribs, but the problem did not seem to be too serious. The double protection of leather armor and cold-proof lining prevented her from being really hurt. On the contrary, when Reslaufer was about to take off the gauntlet, he found that his entire right hand had swollen and was numb to the point of being almost unconscious.

"The flail is poisonous." Leslaufer grabbed the sword with his left hand and carefully pried off the gauntlet. Sure enough, the flesh that had just been hit by the flail had now turned a frightening purple-black color, and yellow-white pus flowed out of the ruptured wound due to the action of taking off the gauntlet.

Chapter 46 Trophies

The place where the three flails hit him looked quite horrific, but in comparison, the slight pain quickly became numb. Of the three things praised by the gnolls, pain was not qualified to be ranked alongside strength, hunger, and fear.

"Don't move! I should be able to take care of you!" Bella quickly held Reslaufer down, her hand emitting an emerald green light once again. Although the help she could provide was relatively limited, it could at least neutralize some of the toxin, preventing Reslaufer from losing his life.

"I'm sorry, this is all my fault..." Angelita lowered her head guiltily, her hands twisted together, "If I hadn't rushed in, you wouldn't have been distracted..."

"According to you, those guys who died on the battlefield have an excuse to shirk responsibility," Leslaufer grinned. "Since they took up arms, they're bound to get hurt or even die sooner or later. How can it be that I'm the only one taking action and they can't fight back?"

"We're lucky this time, at least we have a de-hiss-what are you doing?!"

In the sudden intense pain, a word from East Inassus's native dialect burst out from Leslaufer's mouth. He tried to pull back his right hand, but Bella held his wrist tightly.

"I'm telling you not to move! I'm treating you!" Bella forcefully pulled Reslaufer's right hand back. "Does it hurt? That's right! Do you think being unconscious is a good thing? Stay still!"

"It's not just poison in here, it also contains some cursed power... It might make your right hand less flexible for a while, but fortunately it's not life-threatening. We're heading to Xinmu City, where there should be several experienced priests and pastors who can handle this."

Bella's druidic skills weren't particularly advanced, so a curse that even she could discern couldn't be anything high-end. Xinmu City, a major city known to the Imperial Princess, would surely find help in resolving this issue. However, before that, Reslaufer would inevitably suffer.

"Don't look at me like that." The mercenary's face looked a little pale, but he was still in good spirits. He tried to put his other hand on Angelita's head, but seeing the blood stain on it, he couldn't bring himself to do it. "I'm not going to be crippled just yet. Didn't you see me just kill the remaining monsters with my left hand?"

"Even if both my hands are crippled, I can still get you to your destination with just my teeth!"

"I... don't doubt it, Uncle Racelover."

Angelita forced a smile. Teacher Boll and head maid Grandin had also been injured in front of her, and their injuries were even more serious than Leslaufer's. But for some reason, Angelita always felt that she didn't seem so sad at that time.

Perhaps she wasn't surprised that Paul and Grandin were injured?

"That's a good thing," said Bella, letting go of his hand. Leslaufer stood up and walked to the still-warm wolf leader. He bent down and picked up the cursed and poisonous three-headed flail. "When I fought another group of wolfs before, the leader also had a weapon like this, but it didn't have these tricks on it."

"Our captain took it as his own trophy. I heard he sold it for about a hundred gold coins."

Of course, Reslaufer was referring to the counterfeit coins of East Inassus, which were in no way comparable to the Imperial gold coins.

"The sword you have in your hand can probably be exchanged for the same amount of Imperial gold coins," Bella said. "The Empire has always been willing to pay high prices for various magical items. However, thanks to this, things related to magic are becoming increasingly scarce within the Empire."

"The 'Decree for the Reduction of Magic' was issued by Joseph I fifty years ago. However, Joseph I died just three days later and Henry III ascended the throne. Therefore, many people speculate that this was a decree issued by Henry III under the pretext of his father's prestige." Angelita was naturally very familiar with her family affairs and said immediately.

Although this decree was quite controversial at the time, her great-grandfather, "Good Man" Joseph, had enjoyed a high reputation during the decades he had been in power. In addition, her grandfather soon introduced the concept of royal wizards, using the imperial treasury to support all spellcasters who were able and willing to serve the Matt Dynasty. Therefore, the decree on the return of magic did not encounter much resistance. To this day, except for priests and pastors who still belong to the gods and druids who belong to nature, the rest of the spellcasters and their creations are basically under the name of the emperor.

Wild mages like the one who mixed in with the light cavalry and chased Angelita at that time were truly rare species in the empire.

Leslaufer nodded. Although he couldn't truly recite the cursed weapon like Angarita, he certainly knew it. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to retrieve it. He then held the sword in his left hand and began to walk through the corpses, cutting off the ears of the gnolls and carefully wrapping them in the cloth from their bodies.

If the chief's three-headed flail was considered a crudely made magic item, then the ears of the gnolls were the raw materials for making magic props. Although hyena ears could often be used as a substitute because gnolls were transformed from hyenas, parts from gnolls were still more valuable than those from ordinary hyenas.

Even if he used his toes to think, it would cost a lot to lift the curse. Reslaufer had to find a way to get more gold coins. The gold coins that Boll promised would not arrive for at least another six months, and he didn't want to starve in the meantime.

"Plus the loot you took from that wild mage earlier—oh, and those things too!" Angritta watched as Reslaufer squeezed every bit of value out of these losers, and she herself began to ponder. "Uncle Reslaufer, do you still remember those two scrolls and that potion? Sister Bella might recognize them!"

"If you don't know the goods, wouldn't you be easily cheated even if you find the seller?"

Leslaufer was stunned for a moment, then he remembered what Angelita said - neither of them knew magic, so they almost forgot it!

The mercenary quickly put away the spoils and displayed the three items for Bella to see - this was a genuine spellcaster, finally someone who knew the value of it!

Bella stared at the two scrolls stuffed into her arms in amazement, then looked at the potion bottle filled with sticky liquid. In the end, she could only speak with a tone of laughter and tears:

"Um...did you guys make a mistake?"

Chapter 47 Survivors in the Carriage

For most residents living in this world, it is enough to know that those who can cast spells are "spellcasters". For those who can distinguish the difference between arcane magic and divine magic, the former will be collectively referred to as "mages" or "wizards", and the latter will be collectively referred to as "priests" or "priests". Anyway, there will be no mistake.

But in reality, the understanding and system of magic vary greatly between different factions and even different individuals.

"so--"

"So how do I know what this is?!" Bella threw the scroll back. "I can't even understand what the symbols on it say!"

"As for this potion, I can only guess that it's some kind of potion that temporarily changes the relationship between the user and the elements. As for what specific elements it is and what it changes to...if you two could let me take a sip, maybe I could taste it."

After that, the bottle is basically useless. Most magic potions aren't very stable, and even if you drink them right away, they can't be kept for very long. Exposure to air can cause the potency to diminish, but some of the ingredients suppressing the toxicity can also dissipate. Taking it again after that point could be a real hassle.

"You'd better save your energy, Sister Bella..." Angelita rolled her eyes and helplessly put the things away for Leslaufer. "I thought you could at least recognize what this potion is."

"I thought you could at least tell me your real name!" Bella snorted, hugging her shoulders. "Right, Buddy? Or Miss Buddy?"

"It's still Angelita! Disguised as a man is fine, but even her name has nothing to do with her real name."

Angelita glanced at Leslough guiltily. She didn't let on that this "uncle" had just called out to her - and he was calling it to Bella.

But they didn't mean to hide this from Bella. This was decided after they left Buddy Antichi's house. They didn't expect to encounter a druid teaching the Chocobos to eat a vegetarian diet among the flock of birds. This was a complete misunderstanding.

If it was when they first met, Bella would never give up, but now, after listening to the simple explanation of the two, Miss Druid accepted it: "So what should I call you next? Still Buddy? It feels weird."

"Let's keep this name, Sister Bella," Angelita said hurriedly, "Our current situation is a bit... special, so the less trouble we can get away with, the better."

"What else are you hiding from me?" Bella pouted unhappily, but wisely decided not to delve deeper into the matter. "Okay, let's leave it at that for now. Don't worry, only one more person will know about this, and you can trust me completely—"

A slight "creak" sound interrupted Bella's words and made the three of them nervous at the same time. Six eyes turned together and finally stopped on the overturned carriage that they had ignored.

It is difficult for the gnolls to leave behind any living people or even complete corpses. Could it be that there is a lucky person here?

Raising his sword in his left hand, Reslaufer signaled his two companions to remain silent while he slowly approached the carriage, which had previously barely existed. The upward door was warped, its ornamentation almost completely worn away, replaced by dried blood and a scraggly pattern of claw marks and teeth. However, the door itself was quite sturdy. Despite being dented and deformed in places, it remained firmly fixed, unbending from the gnoll's brute strength.

Perhaps it was this that gave the person inside a glimmer of hope. That person must have firmly grasped the handle behind the door, using it as a shield to avoid being torn apart by the bloodthirsty monsters.

The injury to his dominant hand forced Reslaufer to spend more energy to slowly outline in his mind what the survivor might look like - there were many possibilities, but at least he had to be a strong enough person, powerful enough, and calm enough.

If this survivor was truly as Reslaufer believed, there was no need to consider silencing him. Based on what the mercenaries had seen and heard over the past decade or so, deliberately reducing the number of people who knew the truth wouldn't necessarily make things better. Because no one knew meant speculation, it meant wild speculation, and since it was wild speculation, there was always the possibility of being closer to the truth.

Instead, things are truly buried when those who know the truth create misleading information and deception in order to protect themselves.

While Reslaufer was thinking, the sword slowly approached the door crack. It was much easier than expected. Reslaufer opened the door of the carriage with almost no effort. What shocked him was that there was no strong and calm person in the carriage, but a thin and withered old man!

"No, no..." The old man had a small frame, with almost no flesh between him and the outer layer of skin. His shriveled skin was dark and dull. Only his eyes still had some light, but now they were filled with fear and confusion. He looked frantically at the mercenary who had suddenly broken open the car door.

"I, I really don't taste good! Don't eat me, don't eat me!"

"No one here wants to eat you, old man," the two girls hurried over to help after hearing the old and pitiful voice. Bella saw the old man's frightened look and immediately tried to comfort him. "We have killed all the monsters and driven them away. You are safe now!"

"Are they all...dead?" The old man's eyes suddenly became cloudy and confused. He subconsciously stretched out his hand, wanting to grab something. "Are they really all dead?"

"Yes, there are no monsters that can threaten you anymore!" Bella wanted to pull the old man up from the bottom of the overturned carriage, but found that he was unexpectedly heavy. In the end, she still needed Leslaufer's help to let him see the sunlight outside again.

The old man just stood there in a daze, his eyes gazing blankly at the corpses of jackals and hyenas on the ground. His toothless mouth opened slightly, and after a moment, saliva dripped out: "All dead, all dead... Good! Good!"

"Old man, where are you from?" Bella asked, noticing the old man's half-conscious and half-confused look. "Where are you going? Perhaps we can give you a ride?"

"Are there any relatives with you? Perhaps we can help you find them."

"Where else can we go? Xinmu City, of course." The old man withdrew his gaze sadly and turned to look at Bella. "There is no one else. They are all dead... Can you tell me who did this good deed? I want to thank him. He is my benefactor!"

The answer was actually obvious. Among the three people, Reslaufer had more blood stains on his body than Bella and Angelita combined. Anyone with eyesight could see it, so the old man quickly shifted his attention to Reslaufer, and the latter responded frankly.

The sword, still stained with the blood of the gnoll, was pressed against the old man's throat. As the latter retreated in horror, the mercenary strode forward and knocked him to the ground with his strong shoulder. His words were as cold and bloody as the sword in his hand:

"Thank you, or revenge?"

Chapter 48 Turning into a Jackal

"What are you talking about? I...I don't understand."

The old man was pushed to the ground by Reslaufer and crawled back twice in panic, but before he could make any further moves, Reslaufer's sword had already pressed against him.

"Restlaufer, what are you doing?" Bella was shocked. She tried to step forward to persuade him, but the mercenary only gave the druid a look, and the druid stopped in his tracks and dared not move forward. "What happened?"

"You might as well ask him."

Leslough looked down at the old man, whose eyes grew increasingly resentful as they met his gaze, but he did not relent. "I don't understand what you're saying, sir."

"Don't understand? Never mind." Leslaufer kicked him to the ground easily. "With your physique, how did you avoid being 'dug' out of the carriage by these gnolls and devoured whole?"

Gnolls treat all other creatures—even their own kind—as equals. They will never spare you simply because you're frail and skinny. On the contrary, strong individuals might even stand a chance of survival if they resist. Given the appearance of this man, it's impossible for him to have survived under the watchful eyes of over twenty Gnolls.

"I grabbed the car door, they couldn't open it..." The other party tried to quibble, "You should have felt it just now. I have a big frame and am heavier than the average person--"

"Really? You must be very tired clinging to the car door all the time?" Leslough looked at him with a half-smile. "Come on, show me your hands."

The "old man" immediately pulled his hands behind his back at lightning speed.

"Who are you?" This time, even Bella and Angelita realized something was wrong. "Or rather, what are you?"