Inside Red River Valley Castle, Miss Sera sat there with a false smile on her face, her expression stiff, listening to the fat man's chatter in front of her. If it weren't for the steward bringing in an orc, she would have almost exploded.
"Steward Gagehill, you're back. Oh... Is he the attendant I asked you to find? Although he's an orc, he looks quite strong, not bad at all." Sera almost rushed to Mr. Gagehill's side, saying anxiously and blinking constantly to signal him.
The steward glanced at the fat guest who followed behind and immediately realized, hurriedly smiling, "Yes, Miss. Barok's master just passed away, and since he had no relatives, he now belongs to the lord as private property. You're in need of a suitable attendant slave, and this orc is quite good. Look at his silver fur, such a handsome young man. It's said that those big noble families all keep such orcs."
"Oh, it's just a layer of silver fur on his body, nothing special. I bought a slave like that last year, but she was disobedient, and the outcome was not good... As noble humans, these anomalies are just temporary interests. It's better to use human attendants, and besides, this orc is a male. Letting him accompany the beautiful Miss Sera... haha, not so good." A mocking voice rang out, and a young man with a large physique and a proud expression walked over. He might be sixteen or seventeen years old, but he weighed over two hundred pounds, and his clothes were stretched tight, with buttons on his belly at risk of popping off!
Barok almost immediately raised his head, a glint of sharpness flashing in his eyes, then lowered his head, and no one saw his anomaly. Good, there's finally news from his kind!
"Master Keil, our Miss Sera is the noblest in Red River Valley. We naturally know what's best for her. And this orc is only accompanying the Miss for a few days. Once that esteemed lady finishes her business, we will naturally know what to do." Miss Sera was practically the angel of the entire Red River Valley Town, and the steward didn't want to see anyone making veiled insinuations and mocking, so he couldn't help but speak up.
"Oh..." Fatso Keil made an exaggerated expression and said, "So, Miss Sera is going to accompany that esteemed lady to capture magical beasts in the Thraum Forest? And deliberately chose an orc as an attendant? Could it be because they both have the word 'beast' in their names, so they think orcs are good at capturing magical beasts?"
"Keil, what about you? You must also be accompanying that lady to the Thraum Forest, right? After all, this is a rare opportunity from Lord Julian of Liquor City. If you can climb up to important figures from the capital, your family will prosper!" Sera retorted, the atmosphere between them thick with gunpowder. It's a waste of Julian's efforts to arrange for his son to be alone with Sera!
"At least our Liquor City will send twenty qi warriors, two of whom are intermediate qi warriors. I wonder who Lord Milo will send?" Milo Baron was notorious for his lack of ambition. Anyone with a bit of ambition and the ability to cultivate qi wouldn't stay here. So over the years, there had never been more than twenty soldiers under Milo who could cultivate qi. And they still had to leave necessary personnel to guard the castle, making it impossible to be as wealthy as Liquor City.
"More people doesn't necessarily help Lady Celine find that kind of magical beast. We'll send out the most experienced hunters." Sera was a little angry, her face flushing, and Barok stole a glance at her. At this moment, the girl was particularly attractive, like a ripe cherry!
At this point, the banquet to welcome the guests had ended, and as they escorted the guest to rest, Baron Milo and Baron Julian also came out, finally freeing them.
"Keil, it seems you've been getting along well with our beautiful Sera!" Julian said with a smile on his face, as if he couldn't see the strangeness in the atmosphere.
Milo observed the situation and found that his daughter had just been angry, but it was not appropriate to inquire further. Seeing Mr. Gagehill, he asked, "What's the matter?"
Gagehill mentioned Barok's situation, and also mentioned Miss Sera's sudden decision just now. Milo and the others all looked at Barok, who had been silent all this time!
Barok bowed and said flatly, "Respected Baron Milo, Miss Sera, Barok is at your service!"
"Huh, does a lowly orc even need to learn the etiquette of humans?" Keil couldn't help but sneer again. "Orcs barely know how to read, arrogant and ignorant!"
"In fact, I have indeed learned human etiquette," Barok suddenly interjected. "And I have also learned the common language of the continent, with no problem in writing. I am even better than some humans." With a certain purpose in mind, Barok rarely spoke out, intentionally provoking Keil.
"Insolent, a lowly orc dares to be disrespectful in front of noble nobles, you're asking for death!" Indeed, unable to withstand the provocation, Keil became angry and clamored to attack.
"Master Keil, this is Red River Valley Castle, not Liquor City. This is my slave, not yours. Please remember that." Sera finally couldn't help but speak up.
"Oh, Keil, don't you know you should maintain decorum in front of a beautiful lady?" Julian intervened to smooth things over, while also changing the topic. "And right now, don't worry about these trivial matters. You should think about how to accompany Lady Celine and do things well. This is a rare opportunity that my friend Milo and I have worked hard to get for you. Don't miss it. If you win Lady Celine's favor, won't you have the chance to enter Padia Academy in the capital?"
With Julian's character, he would naturally not share such opportunities to curry favor with nobles from the capital with others. Unfortunately, Lady Celine was going to the Thraum Forest north of Red River Valley Town, and there was no way around it, so they had to bring Milo Baron along to entertain Lady Celine.
Entering the Royal Capital Advanced Academy is almost every young person's dream, whether it's choosing the Warrior Academy for cultivating qi or the Magic Academy for practicing magic. Anyone who can get in signifies a bright future. Lady Celine comes from the capital, although she's only a mid-level mage, her noble status gives her great influence in the academy. At least helping two small noble families from the countryside get in would be no problem.
"Alright, everyone go back and rest now. We'll depart tomorrow for the Thraum Forest, and we need to be well-rested," Milo finally said, seeing off Baron Julian and his son to their guest rooms. Barok had been watching the location of Julian and his son's room. Soon, Milo came back, looking at Sera with an intentionally angry expression. "Nonsense!"
"I'm just upset with that annoying guy who always thinks he's superior," Sera pouted, looking aggrieved. Milo's stern face immediately softened, and he smiled gently, "If he's annoying, then just ignore him. No one should make my precious daughter feel wronged. But... you can't be reckless tomorrow when we go to the Thraum Forest. You must have someone to protect you."
Looking at Barok standing nearby, he said, "Although this orc young man is strong, magical beasts are completely different from ordinary ferocious beasts. Just relying on strength won't protect you." Actually, he couldn't trust this orc, especially since it was their first meeting!
"Master Milo, I can accompany Miss Sera. Although I may not be of much help, I can do small things like making fires and cooking." Barok suddenly spoke up. He happened to need to encounter magical beasts, so this was an opportunity.
Though Barok was usually quiet, he was somewhat famous in Red River Valley. After all, as the only one of his kind with silver fur in this small town, it was hard not to stand out. Milo had learned some things about Maximo and knew that this orc had taken care of the old man for a year until he passed away. His wildness should have been tamed, so his character should be decent. He nodded and agreed, "Hmm, have the steward take him to change into some clothes and prepare the things needed for tomorrow."
Sera was curious, hearing her father's agreement, she was actually somewhat happy. Looking at Barok, he was the young orc she had encountered a few days ago. At that time, she only remembered his deep eyes, and now, those eyes were still so profound... a young... orc, with such a melancholic gaze!
Knowing it was time to leave, Gagehill led Barok away with him. He found a set of coarse cloth clothes for him and led him to a house where the servants lived in the castle. Opening a small room, he said, "This will be your residence, you'll live here from now on. Wake up at dawn, go to the servants' kitchen over there for breakfast, and then wait for the masters to set off."
After thinking for a moment, he kindly asked, "By the way, do you know how to use any weapons? It's very dangerous to accompany us to the Thraum Forest, so you should have something to defend yourself."
"Just find a spear or a longsword, thank you, Steward Gagehill!" Barok said. Looking at the room, it was a bit small but still clean.
Gagehill reiterated his instructions and then left. Barok entered the room, closed the door, and lay down on the bed made of wooden planks to sleep. In the middle of the night, he suddenly opened his eyes, as silent as a ghost, and walked out of the room without making a sound. During the day, his terrifying soul had remembered the location of the rooms he needed to remember. There were people patrolling the castle walls, but Barok moved like the wind in the shadows and soon entered the corridor. After turning a few stairs, he came to the door of Keil's room.
He knew it was very risky, but unable to endure the torment of nightmares for over a year, he was prepared to take risks.
Just as his hand was about to touch the door, Barok suddenly felt an extremely strange sensation, that intuitive feeling of the soul returned! He couldn't touch this door, or he'd be discovered! He slowly retracted his hand, carefully inspecting the wooden door. Sure enough, he found something suspicious. There was a pattern engraved on it, composed of various lines, giving him a very familiar feeling, as if he had seen it somewhere before!
Yes, a totem pillar, there are such patterns on the totem pillar! This is a magic array! It must be a magic array! But how could there be a magic array on an orc's totem pillar? Could there be a connection between the orc's shamanic inheritance and magic?
Barok quietly left. He wasn't going to stir up trouble. The more he knew, the more he realized his knowledge was lacking. He had to go out and see for himself. Shamanism, magic, qi cultivation, druidism, alchemy, magic arrays, the legendary crystal armor, magical beasts, and even rare mythical beasts, all these could never be understood through books and scrolls alone!