Alonn arrived at the hotel after walking back from the mountain. He was exhausted, despite having True Qi in the Dantian.
If he trained more and spend all his True Qi, he would probably collapse and not be ready to leave with the rest of his team.
Before returning to his room, Alonn went to the hotel's restaurant for a bite to eat. He just hungry as he was tired.
After feeling satisfied, Alonn paid the bill and left the restaurant.
As he climbed the hotel stairs, Alonn wondered if this time he would be able to retrieve his belongings.
After stopping in front of the door to room '33', Alonn knocked.
"There's anyone there? I need my belongings back!" Alonn said and yawned.
After waiting for a while, Alonn was about to give up when the door opened.
"Sorry for the delay, here's your suitcase," a young human woman appeared, she had black hair and eyes, sharp facial features and an indifferent expression. She was holding Alonm's suitcase.
When the woman appeared, an faint alarm sounded in Alonn's mind. He thought he was feeling a very faint and strange aura emanating from her, something he can't understand.
'Just hope it's nothing I need to care about. I just want to sleep right now,' Alonn thought and received his suitcase. He thought that maybe it was just his imagination, he was just too tired.
"Thanks for giving me back, I wish you a good day," Alonn said and left to his room.
The woman watched Alonn entering his room with piercing eyes and also closed the door.
After taking a bath and wore clean clothes, Alonn didn't even have the time to check his suitcase as he fell on the bed unconscious.
What Alonn did not know is that while he slept and recovered his energy, the incompatible trio was having problems.
Because they were unable to pay the bills, the dwarves had to ask for help from the infirmary doctor.
"You are unbelievable, if you had no money then why did you come here? This infirmary offers free treatment only to soldiers and officers of the Kingdom army!" she said with a bit angry voice.
"Sorry, we forgot about it!" the dwarves said.
"I just wanted them to pay for my stolen arrows, and I didn't know it was necessary to pay for treatment here," Elon said with a bitter look.
"Sigh... Listen, I can borrow you guys money. But you need to do something for me," the doctor said with her hand on her forehead.
"You wish is our duty!" the dwarves shouted.
"Be it to kill or steal, I will do anything!" Ugly Bull said as he swinged his great axe.
"As long as it doesn't involve killing a person or stealing, I will do anything," Elon said with a sigh.
"Well, this has to do with killing. Fortunately, you won't be killing a person, but a beast," she said with a smile.
"A beast?"
"Un, more precisely a spiritual beast," she said while looking to the great axes.
"Oh, I see," Elon said relieved but then asked, "Wait! What did you just say?"
"Hahahahah, this will be fun!" Ugly Ox laughed.
"I wonder if Blackie is really going to participate," Ugly Bull wondered as he massaged his beard.
"You!" Elon was speechless when he saw the attitude of the dwarves.
"Don't worry, elf. If you don't wish to do it, I won't force you. Currently, I also need something else," the doctor said.
"What?" Elon asked a bit relieved.
"Un, I need a black bear heart, can you hunt one for me? They generally live in the western mountains of this kingdom."
"A black bear? It's the first time I heard about it. Moreover, what if the difficulty of the mission isn't equivalent to what I owe?" Elon said with a frown.
"If you are not satisfied, I fear that you will have to compensate the kingdom for the expenses. And maybe they decide that you should do something much more difficult to compensate such as hunting a spiritual beast," the doctor said and yawned.
A chill went down Elon's spine and he said, "Fine, I will do it."
"Hehehehe," the dwarves suddenly laughed.
"Why are you guys laughing?" Elon asked with a strange look.
"Well, since you agree with my terms, I suggest you start preparing," the doctor said with a smile.
"Moreover, if any of you dare to break our agreement don't blame me if you are no longer allowed into this kingdom! My father has a pretty big influence here."
"The elves keep their words," Elon said with a proud look.
"Hehhehehe," the dwarves just laughed.
"Un. Right, I need the black bear heart urgently and I'll give you just five days to get one," she said.
"All right," Elon agreed.
"Puhahahahhaa" the dwarves laughed even harder.
"Crazy dwarves," Elon snorted.
"Fine, now get out of here. I need to do other things. Hey dwarves, take and give this medalion to my dad on the central square of the capital at the dusk, he is the captain of one of the teams and should be able to frame you within."
"Ah, his name is Gard!"
...
Alonn sneezed as he washed his face.
Through the bedroom window he could see that dusk was approaching, he need to hurry.
He made a messy hair bun behind his head and put on the equipment he had bought.
The hardened leather of the armor should offer him some basic protection, and his new boots should protect him from ground dangers as thorns and ordinary snakes.
"Well, I just lack a weapon to complete my new style. Or perhaps I don't need one," Alonn said as he examined himself with the mirror.
After realizing that he was wasting time, Alonn left the room and went to the reception to pay for two more weeks of stay, just to be safe.
On the way to the central square, Alonn took some time to buy a backpack and basic provisions such as a water canteen, dried meat and bread. After all, he can't depend only on what Gard and his team provides him.
When he finished doing this, the sun was about to set and he hurried to the central square.
There he saw a large number of armed soldiers and warriors. Everyone was already getting ready to leave and was separated into five groups.
There were also many horsemen who would probably be the expedition's scouts.
What most caught Alonn's attention were five giant ballistae on large carriages that would be pulled by horses.
'I wonder if it would be useful,' Alonn thought with a smirk.
After a while he met some acquaintances.
"Hey Blackie! Hahaha, you really came!"
The dwarf duo started screaming and waving to Alonn, who prayed he wouldn't be on the same team as them.
"You finally came! I thought you ran away with your ears between your legs," Gard saw Alonn and went to him.
"Greetings, team leader," Alonn said with courtesy.
"Hah! Cut the crap and join the formation," Gard said and pointed in the direction of the dwarves, more specifically the duo.
Alonn clicked his tongue and nodded. He then walked towards the formation.
"Hahaha, blackie. Look there, bowie also came!" Ugly Ox pointed to Elon, who was in a corner of the formation.
"Huh? That's a surprise," Alonn murmured.
'Wait, bowie!? What kind of shitty nickname is it?' Alonm thought.
After joining the formation, Alonn had to wait little to start moving.
"Warriors! The king!" suddenly, a dwarf screamed and pointed.
A dwarf in heavy armor with a war Hammer appeared, he has a stone crown on his head.
"Warriors and bastards! My name is Niva and I am the king of the dwarf kingdom! I will participate in this expedition as the commander, if anyone has any complaints with it, please speak up!" the dwarf king Niva shouted with a angry voice.
"I have one! There's only one bastard here and he is you!" a dwarf shouted.
"Hahahah!" most of the dwarves in the square began to laugh. In fact, the king is really a bastard.
The dwarf king looked at the dwarf with a somber expression and said, "If that is the case, I suggest that everyone present challenge the bastard so that he can prove himself and others why he is king!"
The dwarves present were silent, no one seemed to dare to challenge the king.
"Hmph! Listen you bastards, we are leaving immediately! Get ready to march!" the dwarf king screamed and went to the carriage that was in front of all the teams.
'Will he be at the forefront? How stupid of a commander,' some people thought.
However, all the dwarves seemed encouraged by the commander's attitude and began to slam their weapons against shields or armor, making a loud noise.
"Come on, bastards! Let's hunt the beast!" the dwarf king shouted and the carriage started to move, with all the teams marching behind.
The giant ballistas formed a pentagonal formation around the group as they marched.
'I wonder... will it be okay?' Alonn thought worriedly.
'Fuck, he didn't even give a speech explaining the spiritual beast and the battle plan. Is he really a commander?'
"Don't worry blackie. We dwarves have the habit of leaving the boring part for right before the battles. It's our way of keeping morale high!" Ugly Bull seemed to notice Alonn's concerned expression and explained it to him.
"...I hope so," Alonn said with a sigh.
Most of the expedition's warriors are dwarves, with a minority being elves and humans. So Ugly Bull might be right.
"Hey blackie, is it your first time?" Ugly Ox asked.
"If you're talking about hunting, yes. I've never participated in anything like this before," Alonn said.
"Worry not, little elf. We will protect you!", Ugly Bull said while swinging his great ax.
"..." Alonn twisted the courners of his mouth.
The sky quickly darkened. The expedition marched through the kingdom's fields towards the west mountains, and there were many soldiers carrying torches to light the way.
"The reason for the expedition to leave at night is the information that the white horned tiger has nocturnal habits. In addition to the fact that the beast may want to explore other areas," Gard explained to Alonn when they were about to enter a forest.
"We need to be in our best shape. If we marched during the day, when night came we would then be exhausted. When the dawn comes we will be able to rest in safety."
"I see," Alonn finally understand the reason for they leaving at night.
"Be careful. The cursed forest has many dangers within. Wolves may not be the worst there," Gard said and went to check the rest of the team.
The cursed forest... During the day, it seemed an evergreen jungle, but during the night... It turns into a horrifying place.
At their current speed, it will take an entire day and night to reach the western mountains.
"Tsk. I really miss a bard here. Such a tense air," Ugly Bull complained.
"I hear that the dwarves after-life world has many bards," Alonn said.
"Indeed, should I kill myself?"
"Don't joke around," suddenly Elon approached and said.
"The cursed forest has many poisonous creatures with nocturnal habits, we need to be careful. This is your first time on something like this, right? Double your attention," Elon said to Alonn.
"Thanks for the advice," Alonn nodded.
Indeed, after the expedition group entered the forest it didn't take long for a warrior to be attacked. A colored snake bit him on his ankle, which was protected only by an ordinary boot. To save his life, he had no choice but to amputate the limb. After all, this is the only way to guarantee survival against a deadly snake venom.
'Fortunately the boots I bought are made of hardened leather,' Alonm thought and tripled his attention in the surroundings.
One, two, three... over time more warriors suffered injuries in many ways. Be it a surprise attack by wolves and killer foxes or accidents with poisonous animals.
As he walked with his companions, Alonn suddenly looked at a bush near him. His pupils dilatated and his heart began to race.
He could even feel it, the predator killing intention.
In an instant, his True Qi circulated throughout his body to strengthen him and increase his stamina. Alonn learned to strengthen his whole body at the same time, instead of just a part of it. His True Qi circulated fast as a lightning while not being absorbed by his body.
In addition, Alonn learned that True Qi can also be used to sharpen his senses exponentially.
Alonn could now clearly see blue eyes looking at him from the bush.
The predator seemed to realize the danger that Alonn posed and attacked first. It was a gray wolf.
Before the rest of the soldiers could even respond to the attack, Alonn rocketed in the wolf's direction, swinging his fist.
The gray wolf jumped to attack Allen's head, but before it could take a bite the elf's fist reached him first.
Bang
Blood splashed in the air, the wolf's head was almost crushed with a single punch.
The wolf has been critically injuried, but it still wasn't dead.
Seeing the wolf lying on the ground, Alonn was shocked. The gaze that was once filled with murderous intent, now seemed to be filled with the will to live.
The wolf looked to Alonn and the elf looked back.
"Hey Blackie, are you all right!?" Ugly Bull asked to Alonn, but seeing the wolf's situation he was shocked.
"Damn boy, I know you're strong. But almost smashing a wolf's head with a punch is a bit..."
"Ugly Bull, shut your mouth for a moment," Alonn said suddenly and approached the wolf.
The wolf seemed afraid, but it doesn't have the strenght to run away.
'This is life. We always follow our instincts and sometimes end up like this, afraid,' Alonn thought as he looked to the wolf's eyes.
"Sorry, your life ends here," Alonn said and closed his eyes for fear of not having the courage to kill the wolf if he continued to look into it's eyes.
Bang
Another punch pounded on the wolf's head, killing it instantly.
'Next time I must do everything to kill animals with one attack, it is the only way to kill without causing unnecessary pain,' Alonn thought and looked around.
The dwarf duo, Elon and some warriors were looking at him strangely.
"What are you looking at? We must hurry to avoid being left behind!" Alonn said and returned to formation.