"I will help your clan," Zephyr said softly, but Caiyi was immediately taken aback upon hearing this.
"W-why do you want to help us?"
Caiyi couldn't understand why a total stranger would be willing to help them. First, Zephyr helped them against Vince, and now he wants to help their clan. She was sure there was a catch.
"I helped you earlier because I heard you are from the Golden Peony Clan," Zephyr explained.
Caiyi and Touba were puzzled by Zephyr's statement.
"Here, look at this." Zephyr tossed a leather with his name on it.
"This is..." Touba examined the item Zephyr threw.
"What is this, big sis?"
Caiyi also looked at it and her eyes widened.
"This is the leather mark of newborn members of the Golden Peony!" Caiyi exclaimed.
Caiyi slowly looked at Zephyr.
"Y-you're also from our clan?"
"My late parents were," Zephyr replied.
"Uhmm, who were your parents? Maybe I know them," Caiyi asked softly.
As the daughter of the clan head, she knew almost all the members of their clan.
Zephyr chuckled.
"I don't even know their names," Zephyr answered, then he put on his cloak.
"I was an infant when they were ambushed and killed by bandits. Fortunately, an expert saved me and took me in, providing me with high-grade weapons like the ones you saw earlier, and now I am traveling," Zephyr said, inventing a scenario to convince Caiyi.
Caiyi felt sad upon hearing Zephyr's story.
"You can join the Army, Zephyr, and it's better there. Our Clan..." Caiyi took a deep breath, feeling sorrowful.
"There's nothing we can do about it. Maybe this is truly the end of the Golden Peony Clan," Touba said sadly.
"I want to know what's happening to the clan, but for now, we should hurry away from here," Zephyr suggested.
-----
Now, the three of them were riding in a wagon, having passed through a village where they boarded.
"The Golden Peony Clan, at its peak, was a 2nd-tier Clan, but now it's a 3rd-tier Clan and is on the brink of disappearing..."
"Everything started when my grandfather died in battle against demons. My grandfather were the ancestors of the Golden Peony Clan and the backbone of the entire clan, so the impact on the clan was huge due to what happened."
"Our rival clans took advantage of the situation to destroy our businesses and resources."
"Now, the Golden Peony Clan is in its lowest state."
Zephyr listened quietly to Caiyi's story.