After the night, everyone was a little nervous. Although no one knew exactly what the prince wanted to do, but since he had clearly shown hostility to this side, then there must be a countermeasure. Women's minds are always delicate, so with the exception of Caroline, who was already familiar with Jared's style of doing things, almost everyone was against Jared's proposal of waiting for the other party to come to them. Of course, from their point of view, they are not familiar with Jared's leadership ability, there is no excuse for them to have such concerns, not to mention, there is still a very important task that has not been accomplished by all of us here.
"We must find the source of the forest mutation and find out what happened!"
That's what Serenity said. This was also the reason why she strongly opposed Jared's passive plan, if she was attacked by the prince and the others who were ambushing her while investigating in the forest, then things would become quite troublesome. That's why Serenity suggested to eliminate this hidden danger first, otherwise, she couldn't feel at ease no matter what.
But in Jared and Caroline's position, they absolutely do not want the magicians to investigate the cause of this forest mutation, if they really find out the cause then it will be even worse. This time, Tawana and Kylie also stood on Serenity's side, although they also experienced the whole incident just like Jared and the others, but due to the reason that Jared knocked them out, they didn't understand the mystery of it. So they were eager to find out why. Strong objections only made people suspicious, so Jared and Caroline had no choice but to give up.
Let's hope they don't have the power to track it down enough to find anything.
There was nothing Jared could do but pray.
But there are more important things to do right now.
"We are running low on reserve food ..."
Hearing Jared's words, Kylie and Tawana immediately reflexively tensed up, looking at the expression on their faces, they knew that the fear brought by the Forest of the Dead was already indelibly etched into their souls. Facing the dreadful necromancers is not the second thing, the experience of having nothing to eat, even being tortured by hunger to the point of almost going crazy, is simply an unforgettable nightmare.
"Don't we still have some jerky and bread in our reserves?"
Serenity and Wendy hadn't changed much; after all, they hadn't been in that situation and still didn't understand the meaning of food.
"Those are Steven's to keep, aren't they?... Honestly, I'm skeptical about the safety of that food, or are either of you going to try it?"
"..."
In the face of Jared's rhetorical questions, everyone was speechless, fortunately Wendy's magic can be used to detect toxins, so she was asked to check the remaining food. The result was just as Jared expected, more than half of the remaining food had been poisoned. It was obvious that Stephen's original plan was to poison them while they were eating, and then cooperate with Prince Heine, who had been hiding on their side. However, he didn't realize that Jared would find out the whereabouts of the prince and his team, and had to change his plan. Because of his hasty action and the unexpected events, he was only able to drug half of the food. The reason why Steven attacked them last night was because he was betting on whether or not they would eat the poisoned food.
But Lady Luck was clearly not on his side.
"This is going to be a problem."
The situation had obviously become much more complicated, and Serenity frowned with a grave expression. After disposing of the contaminated food, what was left was only enough to feed the people for two or three days. Under these circumstances, Kylie had to give up her search for the cause of the forest's mutation. After all, if there is no food, nothing can be done. Jared and Caroline were very happy about this sudden news, and the search for the forest mutation would have to be postponed.
"Well then, I'll go hunting, and if you wizard ladies are really bored, you should find a way to clean up this place and make some preparations. After all, with Caroline here, there should be no need to worry about safety, and even if that group of people is around, as long as you all act collectively, there shouldn't be much of a problem."
"What about you Jared?"
Kelly asked suddenly .
"What if you are attacked by them?"
"That is to come on a hundred princes, but also just be used by me to do slicing ... Don't worry, really can't beat me can still escape, it's no big deal."
"This way ..."
Kelly was inexplicably relieved, she didn't know why she had suddenly become nervous, why did she care if this man lived or died?
It's inexplicable!
"Mr. Jared, I'm coming along."
Just then, Serenity suddenly stood up and said to Jared.
"You? Forget it, stay here, you'll only get in the way, and you can't even run away if anything happens."
Jared, as usual, doesn't give a rat's ass about people's ideas or pride. To him, that kind of nonsense doesn't exist when you're dead.
"..."
Except for Caroline's sigh, everyone was dumbfounded. Serenity was a Praetorian Trainee, the strongest in the field of magic. But to think that Jared would use her as a stumbling block? But when she heard Jared's unceremonious words, Kylie's mood calmed down a lot. Obviously, the reason why Jared had abandoned her wasn't just about Kylie herself. He was just weighing his options and making the best choice he could without regard to what the other person was thinking or what the consequences might be.
"I insist."
Different people have different ways of responding, and completely unlike Kelly, Serenity steadfastly repeated herself again.
"I refuse, it is the duty of a subordinate to follow orders, right, and don't forget that Caroline and I are the leaders of this team ... and Tawana."
The last was obviously tacked on, and everyone knew that Tawana wouldn't be of much use in this situation.
"I stand by my opinion, Mr. Jared."
"..."
(Did you say something to provoke her?)
Of all the people present, only Caroline knew Jared's habits best, he wasn't the kind of man who would go weak at the knees at the sight of a beautiful woman. So even when it came to women, Jared had never been shy, and it wasn't often that Serenity was so insistent on what she wanted. Judging from the situation, I'm afraid that Jared said something to stimulate the girl's pride.
"Okay."
Jared gave Caroline a helpless shrug, indicating that he wasn't sure, and then replied.
"But if you cause any danger, take care of it yourself, and don't expect me to be a hero, after all, I'm not a brave man, and you're not a princess."
"That's the wrong thing to say, Mr. Guardian."
At this moment, Wendy, who had been silent at the side, suddenly opened her mouth, which startled everyone. That said, this girl really does not have a sense of presence, she seems to be naturally inconspicuous. If she was silent, it was as if she had cast an invisibility spell, it was hard to be noticed. But Wendy didn't care about the crowd's astonished gazes, but continued to speak on her own.
"Last night, you saved us from the bad guys, so you're a true warrior. Euphonia-sama once said that true bravery isn't something you say, but something you actually show through your actions. So even though you're not very polite to us, if it wasn't for your help and protection, we might have been in danger.... Moreover, Ms. Serenity is a real Princess, isn't she? She is the second princess of San Marino Empire."
Wendy seemingly leisurely talk but it is like throwing a shocking bomb, even Jared is a little surprised, he simply did not think that the young girl knight in front of him is actually really a princess ... think carefully, why a princess will be sent to participate in such a dangerous mission?
Jared was quick to recognize that something wasn't quite right.
"I'll take care of myself."
Serenity repeated her opinion insistently, then glanced at Kelly with an intentional glance.
"I can use a sword and won't be a stumbling block to you, Mr. Jared, please let me walk with you."
"You ...!"
Kylie frowned slightly, it was obvious that although Serenity did not mean any harm just now, she was obviously trying to say that compared to a pure magician like Kylie, a magician like her who could use a sword would be more convenient in her actions. Kylie instinctively wanted to protest, but after a few turns of words, she didn't say anything, no matter the status or class, Serenity was higher than Kylie, so even if she was a little bit angry, Kylie couldn't argue with her, moreover, although Serenity's words were a little bit hurtful, but they were indeed the truth. Although a magician could chant as if her heart was still in a noisy environment, she was helpless in the face of a sudden attack. Of course, if Kylie could go up a level from being a magician and become a trainee chanter like Serenity, she would be able to summon her own magical spirit, and then she wouldn't have to be afraid of being attacked out of the blue.
"If you say so ... then whatever you want."
Jared took one look at Serenity and realized that something had changed about her.
At her waist, she was wearing the Soul Caller she'd gotten from the dead old man.