chsdbacks Chapter 104: Kurt's Return Home and Hick's Preparations...
Chapter 104: Kurt's Return Home and Hick's Preparations...
Chapter 105: Kurt's Return Home and Hick's Preparations...
Hick's bounty on the Moon Fox, with its enormous reward, spread like wildfire through his ever-growing network of subordinates via various clandestine channels, like a boulder thrown into deep water.
The news even reached Kurt, who was far away in his family's territory and dealing with a lot of trouble.
"The Moon-White Fox?"
Clutching a rough communication stone, Kurt paced restlessly in the luxurious, carpeted room provided by his family, his brow furrowed.
"Why is Boss Hick looking for this thing? This damn thing has been extinct in Aikar for years! Even its bones have been turned into medicinal ingredients!"
"Whatever, Kurt."
Dila sank lazily into the soft sofa, chewing on dried meat, and mumbled something indistinctly.
"That's something those monsters up there should worry about. Besides, the Moon Fox is still a demon, no matter what. With our small bodies, we might not even be enough to fill its teeth."
"Dila is right!"
Andy wiped his beloved dagger, agreeing without looking up.
"Stop thinking too much. Let's finish this mess and get back to the main thing. We missed Boss Hick's return to the tower. If we drag this out any longer, it'll be too late."
An indescribable sense of irritability and loss gripped Kurt.
The three of them were urgently recalled due to a sudden bloodbath in their family.
His second uncle's family, who were notorious and terrorized the village, were completely wiped out by a boy named Ralph.
This mess disrupted all his plans, causing him to miss the "grand occasion" of Hick's return to the Wizard's Tower and the establishment of his position.
Dila's words hit his sore spot perfectly.
Now, the guys around Hick, like Labour and Brown, have all become incredibly powerful and imposing. Even the silent Sorey is unfathomable.
He, who was once the "number one henchman", has become extremely awkward in his position.
To emphasize their difference from those who came later, and to maintain that pitiful sense of specialness, the three of them privately insisted on calling Hick "the boss" rather than the more respectful "sir".
"No!"
Kurt abruptly stopped and slammed his fist on the carved oak table, making the cups and saucers rattle.
"After I kill that bastard named Ralph, I'll go back and beg the boss! I'll ask him to get me one of those witch body modifications too! I want to become stronger! Stronger than them!"
The desire to become stronger and dissatisfaction with the status quo burned in his eyes.
"Young Master! Young Master!"
Just then, a servant stumbled in, panting, "Found it! The one called—"
"That brat named Laf! He's—he's in Graystone Village! Our people have cornered him!"
"good!!"
A fierce glint flashed in Kurt's eyes, his previous frustration instantly replaced by the exhilarating thrill of the impending slaughter.
"Finally caught this bastard! Let's go! Kill him, then we're heading back to the Silent Forest immediately!"
His desire for promotion made him impatient.
The three followed the messenger servant and hurried to the family's training ground.
Jona, who had been staying with her parents, was now riding on the back of a sturdy eagle-headed bat. Her small face was tense, carrying a hint of fierceness beyond her years: "Brother, we're ready, we can leave anytime!"
"Alright! Let's go right now! I refuse to believe that kid can really sprout wings and fly away!"
Kurt flipped and leaped onto another eagle-headed bat, with Dila and Andy following closely behind.
The thought of the culprit who forced him to interrupt his cultivation and distance himself from the inner circle filled Kurt with hatred.
As for why his second uncle's family was killed, Kurt remained completely unmoved.
The actions of the Wendt family on their territory perfectly matched people's imagination of a tyrannical and ruthless man.
In Kurt's view, Ralph's behavior was nothing more than a foolish provocation by a lowly commoner.
"Kurt! Jonah! Watch out! That little bastard is really weird—"
Their mother chased after them, her face full of worry, wanting to give them some advice.
"Okay! I know! Stop nagging!"
Kurt waved his hand impatiently to interrupt, as if shooing away an annoying fly.
"Jona, let's go!"
He suddenly yanked the reins.
The eagle-headed bat let out a loud cry, its huge wings kicking up dust, carrying the four of them into the sky, and quickly disappearing into the distant horizon.
Watching his children's departing figures, their father, the current head of the Wentt family, stroked his beard and scoffed at his worried wife, "Ignorant woman! They are now esteemed wizards! Dealing with a country bumpkin is a piece of cake for them! What are you worrying about!"
"Yes, yes, you're so knowledgeable! If you were knowledgeable, you wouldn't have looked down on someone as ignorant as me back then!" the woman retorted irritably, her worried gaze still fixed on the sky.
With the eagle-headed bat speeding along, the four quickly arrived at Greystone Village, located at the foot of the mountain.
At this moment, this once peaceful little mountain village is completely surrounded.
Dozens of guards and thugs employed by the Wentt family, armed with swords and clubs, nervously blocked the village's only exit.
However, it was not the besieged villagers who were filled with fear and anxiety, but rather the ones who surrounded them.
John, the head of the guards, a burly man with a scar on his face, was now covered in cold sweat. He shouted menacingly towards the center of the village, "Raff! Listen up! You're surrounded! If you know what's good for you, come out and surrender! Don't drag these innocent villagers down with you! Otherwise—"
His threats seemed weak and ineffective, clearly indicating that he had suffered a significant loss at Lav's hands before.
In the open space in the center of the village, a boy dressed in coarse cloth, with a slightly thin build and a small white animal perched on his shoulder, stood proudly. It was Lav.
His face showed no fear, but rather a composure beyond his years as he spoke loudly to the encirclement, "You're the ones who should get out! I'm saying this one last time, leave! I don't want to kill anyone! Don't force me!"
"That's right, gentlemen, please have mercy and leave now—"
"Yeah, yeah, we'll die if we stay any longer—"
"Ralph is a good boy, please don't make things difficult for him—"
The villagers behind him chimed in, their voices pleading.
But a closer look reveals that these villagers kept a considerable distance from Laf, their eyes darting around, filled with alienation and a barely perceptible fear.
John's face darkened further as he listened to the other party's unyielding words.
If it weren't for a strict order from his family, he would never have brought anyone to provoke this strange young man.
Several of our brothers have already been killed, and the other side didn't even get a scratch!
He was certain that Ralph had gotten incredibly lucky and obtained something amazing; he was now a legendary "adult"!
Just as the two sides were deadlocked and the atmosphere was tense, a cry of an eagle pierced the sky and came from high above!
Everyone instinctively looked up and saw four enormous eagle-headed bats swooping down, their shadows instantly covering half the village!
"It's the young master! The young master has arrived!"
John was overjoyed when he saw who it was, like a drowning man grasping at a straw. He quickly led a few trusted men to meet them, bending over so low that they almost touched the ground.
"Young Master! Miss! You've finally arrived! That kid's inside, he's really strange!"
Kurt arrogantly jumped off the eagle-headed bat, merely nodding slightly, his gaze sweeping sharply like a hawk's as he looked at Ralph in the center of the clearing, emanating a faint aura of a wizard apprentice.
"Kid!"
Kurt's voice was cold and angry, emanating from a superior position.
"So you're Ralph? You've got some nerve! Daring to kill someone from the Winter family! Today, I'll show you what it means to wish you were dead!"
The sudden appearance of the crowd and the inhuman oppressive aura emanating from Kurt instantly plunged Ralph and the villagers behind him into immense panic and bewilderment.
This is beyond the limits of their impoverished imagination!
"Raff! You murderer! Do you see them? My young master and young lady are here! They are the real wizards!"
John straightened his back instantly, shouting confidently as he pointed at Ralph.
"Hurry up and kneel down and beg for mercy! The wizard could crush you with a flick of his finger!"
"My lord! Wizard! Spare us! It's not our fault! It was all Ralph's doing! He did it all by himself!"
"Yes, yes, yes! Your Honor is right! We were forced into this! It's all that jinx, Lav's, fault!"
"Sir! I've done it! I secretly passed the message to Captain John! I betrayed him! I've done it, sir!"
''
As John shouted, the dozens of villagers behind Ralph knelt down in unison, like wheat that had been cut down!
Cries, pleas for mercy, and tattling were mixed together, creating a chaotic scene.
A thin, middle-aged man, dressed in faded clothes and looking rather "gentlemanly," squeezed to the front and kowtowed frantically in the direction of the Kurt siblings, seeking praise. This was none other than the man Ralph regarded as his mentor.
Laf turned around abruptly, looking incredulously at the villagers kneeling behind him, at his "mentor" whom he respected so much but now found utterly repulsive.
Just a few days ago, they were surrounding him, calling him a "hero," a "good man who acts on behalf of Heaven"—
Why? Why did this happen? A chilling cold and a tremendous sense of betrayal instantly gripped his heart, making him feel cold all over.
"Hahaha!!"
As Kurt watched this absurd and ugly betrayal unfold before him, he felt an immense sense of exhilaration, all the pent-up frustration of the past few days vanished.
"That was brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Lav, did you see that? That's what you got for fighting—"
His words came to an abrupt end.
Because Jona, standing beside him, was gripping his arm tightly with an almost convulsive force, slapping it repeatedly. Her pretty face was flushed red with extreme excitement, her lips trembling, only able to utter broken, incoherent syllables: "Brother—brother—that—that—white—white—look—"
"What's wrong, Jona?"
Kurt was interrupted and frowned at his sister, thinking she was either shocked by the bloody scene that was about to unfold or had something go wrong with her training.
"Stop messing around, watch how I deal with you—"
"No—it's—a—white—white fox!!!!!"
Jona's voice suddenly rose, sharp and piercing, her fingers trembling as she desperately pointed at Ralph's shoulder.
"fox?"
Kurt glanced in the direction his sister was pointing, initially finding it all rather strange.
"What's the big deal about foxes? There are plenty of foxes in the mountains, white ones, black ones, gray ones—"
His mind was filled with thoughts of how to torture Ralph.
But the next second, Jona's almost frantic scream exploded in his mind like thunder: "No! It's—Moonlight—Moonlight Fox!!!! Brother!!!!"
"Moonlight White—The Fox?!"
These four words seem to possess magic!
All of Kurt's thoughts about revenge and venting his anger were instantly shattered!
His blood seemed to freeze at that moment, and then boil again!
A powerful electric current shot from his spine straight to the top of his head, making his scalp tingle and his whole body tremble violently and uncontrollably!
Moonlight Fox!
The live Moon White Fox that Boss Hick has put a bounty on!
Value—a formal wizard's rank, a passport to the path to heaven!
He abruptly and almost violently flung Jona's hand away, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Ralph's shoulder!
Meanwhile, deep within a quiet outpost far from the hustle and bustle, Hick was completely absorbed in his work.
The enormous laboratory was filled with the unique scent of a mixture of energy fluids and ancient metals.
Hick stood before the dragon egg, which was surrounded by countless runes, his expression focused to the point of near-reverence.
Complex alchemy instruments hummed beside him, and symbols and curves that were incomprehensible to ordinary people flowed like a waterfall on the screen.
Hick's fingers slid rapidly across several crystal panels, adjusting parameters and recording every subtle change.
Sweat soaked his temples, but he didn't care.
"Stable energy absorption rate—constant core temperature—normal vital signs—"
As Hick took notes, he muttered to himself, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Ginny's estimate is correct; the incubation window is between 20 and 25 days! The error won't exceed three days!"
Each observation and record deepened his understanding of the dragon egg and made him even more excited about the upcoming "hatching".
This is not only a powerful boost to the future, but also an unprecedented research topic! A living, breathing, and nascent legendary organism! Its research value is immeasurable!
"More experiment points are needed—"
Hick looked at the numbers in his mind. They were the points he had accumulated by using the readily available materials in the base and the semi-finished products left by Perot to conduct various small-scale experiments against the clock.
"For Ginny, and also to prepare for any possible changes."
If he couldn't find the Moon Fox, he would have to accumulate a huge amount of points to forcefully stabilize Ginny's condition with the system's power at the last moment.
Although—there's only one chance!
He returned to the experimental table he had used before, took a deep breath, and once again immersed himself in the tedious and complicated experimental procedures.
With his mind highly focused, his fingers danced among the complex array of runes and alchemical instruments, conducting yet another experiment on potions and witchcraft.
Failure – Analyze the reasons – Use the system to solidify the "partially correct" understanding – Try again. – And so on.
Time slips away quietly while you're focused.
The only sounds in the laboratory were the hum of the machinery, the corpses of various creatures, and the experimental subjects who had come willingly or unwillingly. At this moment, Hick was unaware that the Moon White Fox he so desperately longed for had already appeared!
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