Lila’s POV
The clamor of the celebration was shut out by the thick beast-hide tent, sounding like it ca from another world. Inside the tent, the fla of an oil lamp cast flickering shadows on the walls. The air still held the mixed scent of dicinal herbs and blood. I held my breath, my eyes locked on the clay bowl wrapped in layers of cloth.
The joy on the Great Elder’s face hadn’t yet faded, but as my expression grew grave, his smile gradually stiffened, eventually dissolving into a deep gloom.
"Goddess," his voice was terrifyingly low, carrying an imperceptible tremble. "You just said... there’s a problem with this poison?"
I nodded and walked forward, carefully lifting the cloth wrapping. That strange odor, a mix of rotting mushrooms and rust, filled the air again, especially pungent in the enclosed space.
"Elder, do you sll that?" I pointed at the black blood still bubbling slightly in the bowl. "This isn’t just giant scorpion venom. It’s been mixed with a synthetic potion."
"Synthetic?" The Great Elder’s brow furrowed. "Are you saying... soone poisoned him?"
"It slls very similar to sothing called ’Silence Potion’." I turned to look at him and said, word by word, "A potion once produced by the traitor Derek in his Black Water Town laboratory."
The temperature inside the tent seed to plumt to a freezing point in an instant. Jasper stood to the side, his expression grave, having clearly realized the shadow lurking behind this matter.
"So you’re saying..." The Great Elder’s voice was hoarse, as if squeezed from the depths of his throat. "Our Wolf King’s death... might not have been an accident?"
"It wasn’t an accident." I shook my head, my tone certain. "Pure giant scorpion venom is potent, but the Wolf King’s constitution could have resisted it for so ti. However, if he was also afflicted with Silence Potion, his self-healing abilities would have been sealed off. The wound couldn’t heal, and the venom would have spread wildly through his body, causing him to... in just a few short hours..."
I didn’t say the rest, but everyone understood.
"Dammit!" The Great Elder slamd his Bone Staff down, making the ground tremble. The grief in his eyes was instantly replaced by a towering rage. "Derek... that one nad Derek! I can’t believe I didn’t see how dangerous he was!"
"He has always been skilled at hiding and disguising himself," Jasper added, his voice calm to the point of being cold. "I heard you say he just passed through to trade for so supplies and then left. From the looks of it, he was secretly setting up a major conspiracy."
"He wants us to fall into internal strife. He wants us to lose our backbone at a ti like this." Kael gritted his teeth, his fists cracking. "He’s a demon!"
The Great Elder fell silent. He stood there, his body trembling slightly, his Bone Staff driven deep into the ground. A dead silence filled the tent, broken only by the occasional crackle of the oil lamp.
After a long ti, he slowly raised his head. His eyes were bloodshot, but his gaze had beco unprecedentedly firm.
"Goddess, Mr. Hale." He looked at us, his voice loud and resolute. "Thank you for uncovering the truth. If it weren’t for you, we might have remained in the dark forever, letting the real murderer get away scot-free."
He turned and shouted to the tribe mbers behind him, "Sound the horns! Stop the celebration!"
The singing and laughter outside ca to an abrupt halt. Everyone stared this way in shock.
"Our Wolf King did not die by accident!" The Great Elder’s voice echoed throughout the entire camp. "He was murdered by a despicable traitor, with a poison called Silence Potion!"
"What?!"
"A traitor?!"
"Silence Potion?!"
The tribe mbers burst into an uproar as feelings of terror and fury spread rapidly through the crowd.
"This traitor’s na is Derek." The Great Elder pointed at . "The Goddess has confird it. He not only murdered our king but has also fled toward Death Canyon. He intends to use its treacherous environnt to escape our pursuit."
"But," the Great Elder’s voice suddenly rose, "we are the Desert Werewolves! We will not let our king die with his eyes open! We will have our revenge! We will make that traitor pay in blood!"
"Revenge! Revenge!"
"Blood for blood! Blood for blood!"
The tribe mbers’ emotions were completely ignited. They brandished their weapons, their eyes filled with fury.
The Great Elder turned to , his eyes filled with gratitude and respect. "Goddess, Mr. Hale. Thank you. We will dispatch our finest warriors and our most experienced guides to take you to Death Canyon! We will let that traitor witness the wrath of the Sand Sea Tribe!"
"The vengeance party departs at dawn tomorrow!"
————
The next morning, as the first rays of sunlight pierced the desert’s thin mist, we were already assembled and ready to go.
The Great Elder stood at the entrance to the camp, watching us with reluctance and resolve in his eyes. He placed a Wolf Tooth Necklace, a symbol of the tribe’s trust, around my neck.
"Goddess, please take care of yourself."
"Kael," he then patted Kael’s shoulder. "Take the warriors and bring that demon back. Or, bring his corpse back."
The desert morning wasn’t as scorching as midday, but walking was still incredibly difficult. The sand was fine and soft, and every step consud a great deal of energy. Although Kael and his team were all Werewolves with stamina far exceeding ordinary people, they still seed small in this vast, boundless Desert Sea.
After walking for about half a day, the party had already used half of its water. Kael looked at his team mbers’ chapped lips, his brow furrowed.
"We need to find a place to rest and replenish our water," he said to . "There’s an abandoned oasis not far ahead, but the water source there is said to have dried up long ago."
"An abandoned oasis?" Jasper suddenly interjected. He had been walking at the very back of the group, seemingly nonchalant, but he was actually observing the surrounding terrain the whole ti.
"What? You know it?" Kael looked at him, a bit puzzled.
Jasper didn’t answer. Instead, he walked over to my side and sniffed the air lightly.
"No, there’s still water there." He pointed at a dune up ahead. "Though the surface water has dried up, there should be an underground river. I can sll the dampness of the earth."
"An underground river?" Kael shook his head. "Impossible. We’ve scouted that area before. It’s a dead end."
"That’s because you didn’t look in the right place." Jasper shrugged, looking confident. "Are you going to trust , or you?"
Kael hesitated for a mont, then looked at his exhausted team mbers and finally nodded. "Alright, let’s go take a look."
We followed Jasper around a few huge sand dunes and arrived before a pile of jumbled rocks that seed completely lifeless. Not a blade of grass grew here—only weathered rock and rubble.
"It’s right here." Jasper stopped and pointed at a large boulder at his feet. "Move this rock."
Though Kael was skeptical, he still directed a few of his team mbers to go forward and push the massive boulder aside together.
The mont the boulder was moved, a cool, damp breeze washed over us. Imdiately after, the team mbers let out a cry of astonishnt—
Beneath the boulder, a clear spring was actually revealed! Water seeped from the cracks in the rock, gathering into a small pool that glittered enticingly in the sunlight.
"Oh my god! It’s really water!"
"This is incredible!"
The team mbers cheered, dropping to their knees to drink their fill of the sweet water.
Kael stared at the spring, then back at Jasper, his eyes filled with incredulous shock. He turned, gave Jasper a deep bow, and said, "Mr. Hale... I’m sorry. I underestimated you before. You were right."
Jasper waved his hand lazily. "I just didn’t want my Priest to get thirsty."
He leaned close to my ear and teased in a low voice, "This is just the appetizer. When I catch Derek, how do you plan on rewarding ?"
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