Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 43: Kitchen Trash Bin

Crimson excitedly moved through the forest.

The strong healing surge from earlier was too significant to be overlooked. There were weaker presences near the magic fluctuations, but he had always preferred powerful prey.

Suddenly, the two powerful presences disappeared, probably sensing him. No matter, “hunting” was one of his specialties.

Without hesitation, Crimson rushed towards his target. However, before he could get far, another powerful presence approached from behind.

Who was that? He hadn’t called for backup.

Crimson slowed down slightly. He didn’t want his hunt to be interrupted by a third party. Soon, he heard the sounds of the newcomer breaking branches and trampling fallen leaves.

Judging by the sound, the figure was massive and heavy… Wait, did it have four legs?

…Ah, a monster.

The creature got closer, and Crimson could hear its heavy breathing. He instinctively concealed his presence, but the beast’s speed didn’t decrease.

What alarmed him was the sudden appearance of this creature’s presence, like a summoned beast. The creature was emanating a strong magical fluctuation; even in a one-on-one, Crimson wasn’t sure he could prevail.

What’s happening? 

Could it be that the player who escaped was a decoy with the real attack waiting here? Last time, that swordsman did have a monster with him; maybe he had a unique summoning ability…

Crimson hesitated.

Pursuit opportunities like this were rare, so he pulled out a valuable scroll—it could completely hide a person’s presence and scent. If this didn’t shake off the creature, it would indeed be a divine warning. He activated the magic, but, unfortunately, the creature still followed closely. Crimson sighed and ultimately decided to give up the chase.

He felt he could deal with the duo of sword fighters, but adding a formidable monster to the mix meant he wasn’t prepared enough. He might be insane, but he wasn’t stupid; only fools would enter battles they couldn’t win.

After changing directions, the creature didn’t follow. Crimson thought it seemed like a warning.

No matter. He’d remember them.

The duo had killed Jack using some unknown means and wiped out a formidable Immortal Knights squad—the knights didn’t even manage to send any information back. Their feud with the Eternal Church had deepened, and the church would surely target the duo.

With his [Blood Gnome Bargain], and the power of the church, locating them wouldn’t be hard.

Crimson looked regretfully in the direction the two had disappeared. There were many caravans nearby; it was not suitable to cause a stir. He’d find a remote village to level up.

Before leaving, he took out binoculars to look at the mysterious creature.

It was a massive black wolf.

It appeared and disappeared among the forest shadows; its eyes as red as burning coal. Currently, its tail wagged as it joyfully ran deeper into the forest.

Wasn’t this the boss shadow wolf from “Night of the Hunt”? Crimson thought in astonishment.

His opponents could summon dungeon bosses? Was that weird skeletal mage from the last time also summoned from some dungeon?

He really couldn’t handle this.

Thank the gods for the sign. Crimson put away his binoculars and whispered a prayer.

……

Teest wanted to find a secluded open space to lure out that sneaky follower and eliminate them. However, before he could find a suitable place, the follower’s pursuit hesitated and stopped. Their presence grew slower and eventually faded away.

‘Such a lack of determination,’ Teest thought, frowning.

Another presence, however, was more persistent. Teest recognized it: the goofy shadow wolf was rushing towards them… Wait, was the pursuer scared off by this beast?

If the follower was cautious, it was indeed a possibility.

Without the “potential victim” to ease his mood, Teest reluctantly stopped. He held Nol and sat down beneath a large tree.

Nol’s back injury was shocking, with his pale spine exposed, making him look like a cotton-stuffed doll. It wasn’t suitable to place him on the muddy ground.

Teest adjusted his position, holding Nol face-to-face. Nol’s head rested on his shoulder while his weak breath blew onto Test’s neck.

With steady hands, Teest carefully removed the fragments from the wound, then summoned a ball of water to clean the massive injury. Once sure there was no dirt or debris in the wound, Teest took out a golden thread and, with magic, formed a crescent-shaped needle.

He then began to stitch the wound, holding his breath. The gold thread moved in and out of the skin, leaving a trace of blood behind.

Teest always maintained holding Nol in his arms. His stitching movements were gentle, as if wiping an expensive cello with a soft cloth.

The stitches with the golden thread were fine, neat, and even. White bones sank into the flesh, and the skin that had burst open was now smoothed over. Only the thin gold thread quietly lay in the center of Nol’s back, like a pattern or a mark.

Sunlight leaked through the leaves, and as the light spots flickered, the gold thread was mottled yet dazzling.

It was a pity that when Nol woke up, he could instantly heal such wounds, and by then, his perfect signature would disappear. But it was just as well; it wasn’t his work after all. He could only leave such a fleeting mark.

Teest’s fingertips hovered over the beautiful stitch marks, gliding in the air as if playing a silent melody.

“Mmm…”

A few minutes later, Nol murmured in the crook of his neck. His body stirred, showing signs of waking.

“Time to get up, Mr. Mage.” Teest turned his head and whispered into Nol’s ear, “If you don’t wake up, my legs will go numb.”

Nol’s eyebrows twitched, and he opened his eyes halfway.

The feeling on his back was different. The intense pain and coldness of exposed flesh were gone, replaced by a tingling sensation and skin tension. Nol tried to bend his arm and touched his back, feeling the protruding gold thread.

“Ah, thank you for stitching me up,” Nol murmured. He weakly climbed off Teest’s lap; his voice as hoarse as an old man with a bad cold.

Both the dragon-skin notebook and his magic staff were there. The pain from using too much magic in a short time was also there. Nol felt as if he had been run over by a steamroller, taking a while to steady himself.

Since the wound was stitched, there was no rush to heal. He lazily thought and tried to relax in the green grass.

“…How are Old Hunter and the others?” Nol asked, sucking on a fist-sized water ball, his voice finally no longer hoarse.

“Everyone is alive and has regained their memory. There were some pursuing us, but I drew them away.”

Teest summarized succinctly, with a pleased expression as if to say, “Didn’t I handle that perfectly?”.

“There are many trade convoys here. Even players from the Eternal Church wouldn’t dare cause trouble recklessly.”

It was only then that Nol truly relaxed. He fiddled with his torn mage robe and asked, “You mentioned pursuers. Where are they?”

“Three,” said Test.

“…What?” Nol paused and stared at Teest in confusion.

“Two.” Teest looked at him pityingly.

Nol’s mind raced. “What are you—”

“One.” Teest sighed.

As soon as the words were out, a large shadow suddenly appeared above Nol’s head. Before he could look up, he was smothered by a massive bundle of black fur.

The shadow wolf lunged, pinning the poor lich beneath it. Only one of Nol’s hands was visible, desperately slapping the ground.

“The pursuer was scared away by it.” Teest squatted next to Nol’s exposed hand and poked it. “Now we know. This big, silly creature didn’t lose its memory either. Is it because it’s a native life in the instance, or because it’s not a simple ‘NPC’?”

“First, get me out…” Nol weakly grabbed Teest’s wrist.

Teest laughed, watching Nol struggle for a few seconds before pulling him out. As soon as Nol’s head emerged, the shadow wolf gave him a big, wet lick.

Nol: “…”

“I have another question.” Teest grinned, folding his arms. “Why does it follow you instead of the white wolf?”

“It might be that the ‘system’ scent on me is stronger.” Nol wiped the slobber from his face. “It might see me as a cub because I’m smaller than the white wolf and feel I need more protection. Or maybe the white wolf wanted to go with the hunter, and the shadow wolf instinctively rejects hunters… There could be many reasons.”

Unfortunately, they couldn’t be sure.

Nol looked into the shadow wolf’s round red eyes, clearer than those of a fresh college graduate. The shadow wolf was theoretically an intelligent being. While it possessed intelligence, it wasn’t much, comparable to that of a typical wild animal. This meant they couldn’t communicate with it.

However, seeing its happily wagging tail and moist eyes, Nol guessed it was in a good mood. If it was willing to go with them, it might be a good security measure…

“By the way, the old guy gave me this,” Teest suddenly said, showing a wolf-tooth pendant.

“It claims the wearer would be immune to all abnormal statuses, but it needs to bind to an owner. I haven’t tried yet.”

Nol raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t bind it immediately?”

“How rude to a knight.” Teest mockingly bowed. “So do you need it, my frail master?”

“Frail lich.” Valdorlock would be infuriated if he heard. Nol looked at Teest with amusement and pushed away his hand. “You keep it.”

“Are you sure? Your curse is more troublesome than mine.”

“This thing is probably aimed at short-term abnormalities. Even if it can solve the curse, it must be a ‘dispellable’ curse.” Nol shook his head. “So it suits you better—at least with this, you don’t need to worry about someone poisoning you.”

Back in Whitebird City, Teest always cooked for himself. Even when they were out and about, he wouldn’t touch the prepared food. Although Teest always seemed cheerful, Nol felt that such a mental burden on him was a bit… too heavy.

Well, this thing was indeed more suitable for Teest.

“Really for me?” Teest paused for a moment, seeking confirmation again.

“Thanks to you, this plan was successful,” Nol said sincerely. “Of course, if you dawdle a third time, I’ll just bind it to myself.”

Teest laughed and stuffed the pendant into Nol’s hand. “Then you put it on for me. This silver chain clasp tends to get caught in my hair.”

With that, he turned his back to Nol, lifting his hair.

Taking the pendant, Nol paused. At some point, Teest had took out his wedding ring and strung it with the wolf tooth pendant. The small diamond ring and the pure white tooth looked somewhat beautiful together.

He couldn’t help but look up at Teest—as he hadn’t stood up, Teest simply squatted down in front of him.

Teest’s silver hair was brushed aside, revealing a flawless, smooth neck. His linen shirt had a large neckline, exposing a lot of skin, revealing the solid and smooth lines of his neck and shoulders.

It was like a white marble statue… The parts Teest usually hid were exposed to the sunlight, evoking a peculiar sense of vulnerability.

Feeling a bit uneasy, Nol averted his gaze.

“Hm?” Teest urged briefly.

“…Just a moment.” Nol responded, hastily putting the chain around Teest’s neck, as if any delay would cause it to bite.

“You’re right.” The next moment, Teest stood up. “After binding this, it really can’t handle ‘indispellable’ curses.” He patted the pendant, tucking it with the ring inside his shirt.

Without realizing it, Nol touched his own wedding ring on his chest. Now they both wore it on their chests, which felt a bit… subtle.

While he was still pondering the subtleties of the situation, the shadow wolf behind him became restless—it didn’t have a gold chain around its neck, and now it didn’t have the silver chain either! How could it bear such injustice? It grabbed a handful of Nol’s black hair and gave it a tug upwards.

Nol’s scalp was almost torn off by this thing, causing him to stumble to his feet.

“Looks like someone also wants a collar.”

Teest whistled and leaned against a tree, looking pleased. “Do you want to sign a master-servant contract or something with it?”

“N—no need,” Nol replied, trying to rescue his hair from the wolf’s mouth. “If it wants to follow us, let it. If it wants to leave, let it… It should be free.”

Teest clicked his tongue. “Well, your trust worries me, but its intelligence reassures me. Let it do as it pleases.”

“It needs a name,” Nol said, scratching the shadow wolf’s chin.

“Stupid Dog,” Teest suggested enthusiastically.

Nol narrowed his eyes at him. “If it stays, it might be our mount. Future legends might say, the famous Mad Monk and his ferocious mount, ‘Stupid Dog’…”

“Stop, stop, stop. I give up.” Teest raised both hands. “Alright, let me borrow your naming method for the candle. How should that language be translated again, let me think… Hmm, how about ‘Ben’?”

Nol was speechless. He, at the very least, still called the candle “candle”, but with this name, it was directly naming it “Trash Bin*”.

*Clarity: Going by Nol’s naming the candle Kando, naming the wolf Ben, which sounds similar to bin, would regard it as a (trash) bin.

Teest took out a bag of deer entrails soaked in blood from his waist and threw it towards the shadow wolf. In a flash, the entrails disappeared.

The shadow wolf hummed happily at Teest. It pondered for a while and slipped into Teest’s shadow, only revealing its fluffy mouth, slightly opened—this angle was clearly better for feeding.

“You see, it’s not slander. It actually likes it,” Teest said.

Nol sighed deeply.

I tried, shadow wolf. This is the name you chose for yourself. He looked sorrowfully at the wolf, whose tongue was still licking in and out of its mouth.

“Lord of Night of the Hunt”, “The Invincible Disaster”, such awe-inspiring titles… but from today on, this shadow wolf could only represent “Kitchen Trash Bin”.

“Since the people of the Eternal Church have left, let’s camp here tonight. I think Ben also likes it here,” Nol said.

“Unfortunately, we can’t,” Teest said cruelly. “The noise we made was too loud. The followers of the Eternal Church will surely come after us. It’s better if we hide with a caravan.”

With that, he pressed the tip of his finger on the shadow wolf’s nose. The wolf snorted and disappeared into Teest’s shadow, only its ear tips peeking out from Nol’s shadow.

“Got it. A caravan it is,” Nol said with a hint of resignation.

A caravan again. He hoped for a better outcome this time—last time they had left without a word and had been gone for two whole weeks. They might already be blacklisted by the Rizzi Caravan.

The magic staff carrying Kando, wrapped up in cloth by Nol, mumbled something. Thankfully, it didn’t make a fuss. After handling the staff, Nol cast several healing spells on himself, and his wounds healed quickly. The fallen gold thread was burned away by the green flame before it even touched the ground.

Finally, he stood up dejectedly, using his magic staff to support some of his weight. With his scanty robe, Nol looked like a refugee.

From an angle Nol couldn’t see, Teest’s mouth tightened in regret.

……

What the two didn’t expect was that before the sun set, they hitched a ride with a luxurious caravan.

When they reached the roadside, they saw a dazzling caravan. The emblem on the horses looked familiar. Nol thought for a moment; it seemed to be the logo of the famous “Alva Merchant Group”.

Founded by Duke Alva from the Inato Alliance, the Alva Merchant Group was currently ranked first among all merchant groups on the Tahe Continent, known for its excellent service and rare goods.

But this wasn’t the same caravan from Whitebird City—that caravan, with the Kurt family, had left more than half a month ago. And the horses and carriages of that caravan were nowhere near as fancy as this one.

This must be another team from the Alva Merchant Group, likely carrying some very important person.

Teest snapped his fingers, changing his hair color to pitch black and his eyes to a blue similar to Nol’s. He messed up his clothes, pulled Nol close, and stopped one of the horses.

On the horse sat a modestly dressed woman, around thirty, with deep blue eyes like the ocean and shoulder-length auburn hair that curled slightly at the tips. Teest’s judgment was sharp; even the socially awkward Nol could tell she was the kind-hearted, shy, hard-to-refuse kind.

“Kind lady.” Teest held Nol tightly. “Our village—our home—was destroyed by the damn Eternal Church. Can you take us away from here?”

“We have savings. I’m willing to give ten gold wheels… I can give you some money now. Please take us away from this nightmare. I beg you.”

As he spoke, Teest discreetly stepped on the wolf’s ear tip, hiding in Nol’s shadow.

“Ah, I, I…” The lady’s common language seemed a bit rusty. She quickly stopped her horse and waved her hands. “It’s okay. No need for the money… Quickly, change your clothes, have some food.”

“Thank you!” Teest bowed deeply. If Nol didn’t know the truth, he would have thought Teest was genuinely grateful.

“Billy, Billy!” the lady called out. “Someone needs help, over here!”

“Hm? What’s the matter, my little bird?”

A cheerful voice rang out from not far away, and the entire caravan came to a stop.

Suddenly, Nol felt his hair stand on end, and Teest barely resisted touching the “Betrayer”.

Behind them, an incredibly powerful aura surged forth.

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The author has something to say:

Here it comes! Fluffy officially joins the team~

Should it be considered a non-staff member? After all, every knight needs a mount (…

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Kinky Thoughts:

The pet! …Though I thought Kando was the pet.

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