555: Chapter 23 Mysterious Conflict_1 555: Chapter 23 Mysterious Conflict_1 The afterglow of the sunset shone on the grassland, which had just witnessed a chaotic battle.
Large patches of grass were trampled on or burned, making the once smooth grassland appear uneven.
The air was filled with the acrid sll of burning fur, mixed with wafts of roasting at.
The tailless dogs had left behind more than a hundred charred corpses, and were whimpering as they scattered and fled.
Despite their strong collective strength, the tailless dogs, a large beastman group, lacked a beast king; once scattered, they found it difficult to regroup.
There was no need to worry about them causing trouble for other nomadic tribes, so the five mbers of the adventure team calmly watched as the beasts dispersed and disappeared into the distant shrubs.
From a distance, the Beastn in the camp emitted excited cheers, celebrating their survival.
If the tailless dogs had breached the camp, over a thousand ferocious magical beasts would not only devour their livestock, but also tear the twenty or so Beastn into pieces.
Many Beastn sank to their knees, devoutly kissing the God of War pendants hanging around their necks, while others huddled in the center of the camp, expressing gratitude to the Ancestor Totem they worshiped.
When they saw the five mbers of the adventure team pushing their magic-powered motorbike slowly towards them, an elder from the Horse Clan who was among them called out to the Beastn.
The twenty-odd Beastn gathered together to remove the wooden fence that was blocked their way.
Regardless of gender or age, and regardless of the fatigue from the battle, the entire tribe ca out to greet them.
That was the mont the girls understood why Pannis had said Lina was wrong; they too saw three individuals from a different race following behind the Beastn.
Judging from their strength, it was likely that these were the ones who had sent out the distress signal.
The three of them weren’t Beastn, but neighbours of the Beastn.
They were Dwarves, ‘Children of the mountains,’ created by the God of Fire and Forging with the assistance of the Earth Goddess.
They were known throughout Yarran Continent for possessing the most robust bodies among humanoid creatures.
The Dwarves were distinctive in appearance—their height was only two-thirds that of humans, but each one of them was as sturdy as a bull.
Both the males and females had long beards growing on their chins.
These three Dwarves were wearing thick armors, their heads also encased in tal helts that exposed only their faces and beards.
These full-armored outfits chosen by warriors did not seem to affect their movents—they moved as if they were wearing regular clothing instead of heavy armor.
These three individuals seed to have considerable strength, being two Silvers and one Gold.
Although Dwarves were not born at least Silver Rank like the Elves or Winged People, they still had the upper hand over humans and Beastn.
At least in the Dwarf community, there was no equivalent to an average human.
Most adult Dwarves were at least of Bronze Rank, with Silver Rank Dwarves accounting for one-tenth of the total population and thousands of Gold Rank Dwarves, which was not inferior to humans in terms of high-end strength.
Among these three Silver Rank Dwarves, the one leading them was wielding a two-handed hamr—it was likely that the tailless dogs had been knocked flying from the back of the carriage by this hamr.
Seeing that the armor styles worn by these Dwarves were almost identical, it was clear that these were standard equipnt.
rcenary groups wouldn’t force Upper Rank professionals to wear standard equipnt, so it was likely that they were from the Dwarf Kingdom’s army.
However, the observant girls noticed that while the Dwarves followed behind the Beastn as well, their facial expressions were strange.
They all had somber faces, viewing the mbers of the adventure team with suspicious eyes, as though they could suddenly turn into enemies.
This kind of wariness was common among unfamiliar professionals, but it was also unnerving for the girls to face such doubt just after resolving a crisis for them.
“We thank our ancestral spirits for their protection and all of you for rescuing our tribe.” As they approached each other, the elder of the Horse Clan Beastn was the first to co forward.
He walked briskly up to the group, gave a deep bow, and loudly said, “Our gratitude for your tily assistance, which allows us to continue living under the glory of the God of War, is beyond words.
We hope you will pause your journey and be our guests.
We will offer you the best food and potent liquor as a token of our highest respect.”
“You are being too kind, Elder.” With an impeccable diplomatic smile, Catherine extended her hand to help the bowing Horse clan Beastman up, “Helping those in need is a rule that everyone living in the dangerous wilderness must follow.
Only by doing so can we hope to receive help when we are in danger ourselves.
So please don’t say that, this is sothing that every qualified adventurer should do.
In fact, our original intention was to stay here for the night and continue our journey tomorrow.
However, based on the current situation, it seems a bit inconvenient, doesn’t it?”
“No, no, not at all.
Please do stay for the night.” Seeing Catherine looking up at the chaotic camp, the Horse Clan Beast quickly clarified, “We the people of the grassland are used to this kind of chaos.
In just ten minutes, we can restore the camp to its normal state.
So, please co in and rest for a while in the camp.
We will quickly prepare a campfire dinner party to thank our adventurers and our Dwarf friends who helped us fight off the wild dogs.”
“Oh?” Naturally turning her gaze towards the three Dwarves who had been hanging back, seemingly not wanting to interact, Catherine asked with a puzzled tone, “And these Dwarf friends are…?”
“Haha, getting old makes you forgetful, I forgot to introduce them.
These Dwarf friends arrived half an hour before you humans.
They originally wanted to spend the night here as well but ended up encountering an attack from the wild dogs.
Thankfully, with the help of these three, we were able to keep those beasts from storming our camp.
If not for their help, our tribe, with only a few Irons and two Bronze, could not have held out until your rescue.” The Horse Clan Beastman explained, “So, these three Dwarves are also our benefactors.
Please give us an opportunity to express our gratitude.”
“Elder, what are you talking about?” Upon hearing his na ntioned, the leading Dwarf could no longer remain silent.
He quickly walked over and said in his distinctive nasal Dwarf accent, “We are neighbors.
Helping each other is a given.
There’s no need for thanks.”
“We must express our gratitude.
It’s our conviction as prairie people.” The horse clan Beastman stubbornly said.
“But we are genuinely exhausted.” Catherine said softly, “Also, there are team mbers who are really unwell, and need rest.
We hope the elderly tribe leader could understand.
We don’t need a feast, only food and shelter, thank you.”
“Um…
Well, there’s no other way then.” The horse clan Beastman thought for a difficult mont, nodded and said, “I indeed did not consider thoroughly enough.
I apologize, my friends.
Ah, I’ve been so muddled.
Up till now, I haven’t even introduced myself.
This dwarf friend here is Bart from the Mountain Dwarf tribe, I’m Kairom from the horse clan, and the other two dwarf friends…”
“They are my subordinates.” Bart said in a dull voice, “Bren and Langdon.”
“I’m Catherine, the captain of Nellie’s adventure team.
They are my team mbers: the male is Pannis, the chubby one is Freya, the short one is Vivian, and the silver-haired one is Lina.”
“Sinners!” Bart suddenly yelled out, stepping back and raising his huge hamr towards a defensive position: “Earth’s sinners, you really are not good people.
Is the tailless dog you led here?
What are you plotting?”
In the belief of the dwarves, besides the gods of fire and forging, a large portion also worshipped God Denia, the Earth Goddess.
The Earth Goddess Temple is considered the second largest temple in the Mountain Country.
Therefore, the dwarves were quite familiar with so of the rituals and customs in The Church of the Earth Goddess and imdiately recognized the aning behind the crescent mark on Lina’s forehead.
But this behavior was undoubtedly very impolite.
Catherine imdiately darkened her face and sternly said: “Mr.
Bart, what do you an?
Are you declaring war on our Nellie’s adventure team?”
Holding his giant hamr defensively, Bart glared at Catherine for a while, huffed heavily, and left with the other two dwarves: “Elderly tribe leader, we’re going back to our tent.
I don’t want to stay with the Earth’s sinners.
Hmph, what good can co from people who are condemned by the Earth?”
Catherine slowly placed her hand on the hilt of her sword, her gaze icy as she watched Bart’s retreating figure.
She was just about to challenge him to a duel when she felt a soft hand on her arm.
Turning her head, Lina had already co up behind her, smiling nonchalantly and shaking her head at her: “Big sis, I’m fine.
It’s a minor issue, not worth worrying about.”
Catherine bit her lip and remained silent for a while, finally letting go of the sword hilt, gently patting Lina’s head, and turned to the embarrassed Kairom: “I apologize, elderly tribe leader.
I’m sorry that our issues have caused you trouble.
Can we still stay here, if it’s inconvenient…”
“No problem, no problem.” Kairom rubbed his hands helplessly: “I didn’t expect sothing like this to happen.
I apologize.
Regardless, you humans are still the benefactors of our tribe, and our best friends.
Please follow , I’ll have the tribe prepare tents for you to rest.
Later, we will present food and wine, please don’t hold back.”
“That would be a huge help, elderly tribe leader.” Catherine smiled and expressed her thanks, turned her head and nodded to the other four, following Kairom into the chaotic tribe.
Behind Catherine, Pannis had been leaning on the magic-powered motorbike with his arms crossed, watching Kairom’s retreating figure with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
Enigmatically, he muttered to himself: “The temperant of dwarves, heh, heh.” (To be continued.
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