Chapter 117: The Various Faces in the Autumn Hunt (Part 1)

“Whew—” Craig put his fingers to his lips and blew out a sharp, loud whistle.

This was to call back the horses that had been driven away earlier; after all, those hunting horses were bought for a high price.

Although they were branded with the family crest and unlikely to be lost during the Autumn Hunt, it would still be bad if they got hurt in the forest.

As for why the horses were driven away just now, fighting beasts while on horseback in the woods was not a good idea.

After all, one could not gallop freely here; without the advantage of speed, these warhorses became a burden that hindered evasion.

Besides, these fine horses couldn’t withstand a single hit from a Fierce Tiger; one careless mistake, and over 400 Gold Coins would go down the drain.

Although the battle just now was very short, George, who dealt the most damage to the Fierce Tiger, had indeed exploded with combat power.

Fortunately, his foundation was solid, so there were no adverse effects; he didn’t even feel the slightest weakness or fatigue.

‘I actually showed a noticeable stiffness during the battle just now. It seems my control over the combat style of fully releasing and retracting power is still somewhat lacking.’

‘It is also a side effect caused by the gap between my Soul ability and physical ability being too large.’

‘The continuous breakthroughs in my mind recently have caused the growth of my Soul to far exceed that of my body.’

‘Breaking the balance always comes with a price. It seems that for the next period, I need to shift the focus of my training towards tempering my body.’

George touched his chin, recalling the battle process just now, evaluating his gains and losses over this period based on his previous performance.

At the same time, after walking around the tiger, Hiren said to himself: “If we rely on just the three of us, I’m afraid it will be impossible to get this thing back.”

Hearing Hiren’s words, George stopped his thoughts. After sizing up the huge tiger corpse, he said: “It is indeed a trouble. Let’s wait for Old Bobby and Pascal to come over, and then have them go back to gather people!”

“This Fierce Tiger probably weighs 6000 to 7000 pounds.”

“It’s not just a problem of moving it; even the skinning and other processing later will require finding people to help.”

“Relying solely on the people we brought, we would definitely be busy until night.”

“Fortunately, that shorty Thomas came along this time; otherwise, at least half of the Alchemy materials on this Fierce Tiger would have been wasted.”

“With such a big prey, even if it doesn’t count towards the hunting score, our Bolerum Territory can be said to have earned enough face in this year’s Autumn Hunt.”

Hiren said with some excitement; after all, he was a young man and still had some longing for things that could show off.

Similarly, he might have been influenced by pressure from home; after all, the elders had uncharacteristically made requirements for the Autumn Hunt results this time.

George looked at Craig, who was boredly hacking at the bushes with his sword not far away, then turned to Hiren and said: “Thomas was sent specifically by Sir Bart because he was worried about Craig.”

“As for the issue of the Autumn Hunt results, it’s useless for us to say anything here; in the end, it depends on what the elders think.”

Craig, who was actually swinging the sword, twitched the ears on his small head, then stopped the Longsword he was waving.

He turned his flushed little face and protested to the unscrupulous George and Hiren: “It’s not like I wanted him to come. It was entirely Father’s own arbitrary decision!”

“Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!” Hearing Craig’s complaint, George and Hiren not only didn’t react the way he wanted, but instead laughed even more unscrupulously.

Craig was so angry that he could only keep venting his anger at the bushes.

After the joke, Hiren turned to George and said: “What you said isn’t wrong. If only they still calculated hunting scores the way they did over twenty years ago.”

“Just this one Fierce Tiger would be enough to put us at the top.”

Regarding Hiren’s complaint, George enlightened him: “It’s been so long since that happened. Even if you bring it up, would His Grace the Duke change the rules back?”

“They say it’s for fairness, but can’t those weaklings train?”

“We have suffered and worked hard for so many years to gain our strength, why can’t we show it off on occasions like this?”

“It would have been fine if finding prey with the help of others was just discounted, but now even fierce beasts don’t count as before.”

“Is taking care of those weaklings like this fairness?”

“I feel this is actually the greatest unfairness!” Hiren began to loudly express his dissatisfaction with this phenomenon.

However, although his words were a bit sharp, his expression remained relatively calm.

At least under George’s observation, whether it was his complexion, pupils, or breathing, everything was extremely normal.

This meant that Hiren was just venting general dissatisfaction; it was still within the range of self-control, and at least it wouldn’t cause a conflict.

In fact, there were many Knights and Nobles dissatisfied with this situation, and venting it out like Hiren did was a reasonable way to let off steam.

In this situation, George made the choice he thought was best: listening quietly from the side.

After Hiren finished venting, George patted his shoulder and started to wrap things up: “His Grace the Duke has his difficulties too. After all, those weaklings are part of the Duchy.”

“Besides, among those weaklings, there are actually some who are talented in certain things!”

“Also, they are inferior to us fighters in many other places, so there should be a place for them to find some psychological balance.”

“Look, you felt unfair about just this one thing, the Autumn Hunt, and it brought out so many complaints.”

“What about them!”

“Facing us, they are at an absolute disadvantage; wouldn’t they feel even more stifled and uncomfortable? Giving them an outlet isn’t wrong.”

“Besides, Hiren, you are now a Formal Knight. Knights are supposed to protect the weak.”

“Just think of this Autumn Hunt as protecting the weak hearts of those weaklings.”

George’s long-winded speech stunned Hiren; the latter scratched his hair and thought for a while, seeming to understand something.

He smiled and said: “You really have a way with words. Listening to you, I do feel much better.”

“Especially that last part about protecting their weak hearts; it really suits my mind.”

“Let’s just keep these words between ourselves. Don’t spread them around, or it will cause trouble,” George reminded him very seriously, pointing his finger.

These words were not only for Hiren but also a warning to Craig nearby, who was a kid with no filter.

Craig, who finally had a bit of presence, snorted “Hmph!” and turned his head to the other side. However, knowing Craig as he did, George was sure he would pay attention.

A “Hee-haw—” neigh indicated that the horses that had run away had all returned.

After tying the horses with reins to a tree with falling leaves nearby, the three began to chat.

Just as George and the other two were idly chatting, Bobby and Pascal, the old and young hunters, were rushing back with their hearts in their mouths.

Unlike when they were looking for prey before, now the two of them didn’t dare let the hounds get too far away.

Except for one exploring the way about 50 yards ahead, the remaining three hounds followed closely by their sides.

It seemed that if there was danger, these hounds would be their greatest help, as well as good tools for covering their retreat.

Don’t think that hunters have no feelings for these hounds; these dogs were raised from the time they hadn’t even opened their eyes.

But for ordinary Humans, the lives of other species could not be placed above their own kind.

Of course, in this world where diverse intelligent races existed, emotions or interests between intelligent races might have some influence on that previous judgment.

But no normal intelligent being would place the life of a cat or dog they raised above their own kind or even themselves.

Even the Mohists who preached universal love before transmigrating wouldn’t have such a foolish idea.

However, before transmigrating, George had seen such “dog dads” and “dog moms” who placed dog rights above human rights.

Those guys were truly the kind who wasted air while alive and wasted land when dead.

Perhaps it was because of rich material life but empty spiritual life; for those dog slaves, dogs were their parents, their true masters.

After Bobby and Pascal, the father and son, walked for a while with their souls settling down, they finally approached the location of George and the other two.

It should be said that the distance between the two groups wasn’t actually far, after all, the time they separated wasn’t long.

But the father and son’s overly cautious way of moving on the way back made the journey seem very long.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!” A series of cheerful barks reached the ears of George and the others.

Craig ran towards the direction of the dog barks, taking two steps at a time.

His cheerful movements and expression were like a child who didn’t understand anything yet.

“Cough! Cough!” Hiren, who had some concerns, coughed twice to remind Craig to be reserved.

Craig, who understood, pouted at Hiren, then smiled and waved at the hound.

The hound stuck out its tongue, raised its tail, and ran happily towards Craig.

But it only ran to a position about 10 yards away from Craig before stopping, drooping its head and lying on the ground, refusing to take another step forward.

Then it pressed its front legs against its head.

Because they heard the cheerful barking of the hound named Tom, the hunter father and son understood that their leaders and protectors were ahead.

Feeling that the danger was about to leave them, the two changed their previous slow movements and ran desperately towards the direction of the sound.

“Rustle—” The last bush blocking their way was pushed aside. Finally, the hunter father and son, dusty from the journey, saw the corpse of the giant tiger beside the three.

Pascal, running in front, felt his legs go soft and sat down on the ground, causing old Bobby behind him to fall as well.

Looking at the two who were paralyzed on the ground from excessive fright, George, Craig, and Hiren all showed strange expressions.

Hiren volunteered to step forward, hoisted the two limp hunters onto his shoulders and carried them back.

Inside the wooden fence that everyone saw yesterday, various tents stood tall.

In front of the tents, the flags of their respective masters fluttered.

Not far to the south of the fence, a large flat and neat lawn for resting appeared.

On a slightly elevated spot with a good view, exquisite wooden tables were placed, with four or five chairs arranged around each table.

To protect against rain and sun, dozens of wooden poles over three meters high stood around.

Now, a huge oiled silk cloth was supported on top of the poles.

The sunlight passing through the oiled silk no longer seemed so intense.

It was still a bit hot in early autumn, so the women sitting on the chairs were only wearing gorgeous dresses woven from silk.

On each table were six silver plates, on which were placed various exquisite snacks.

A plate of egg tart-like pastries clearly suited the tastes of the ladies gathered there, so there were very few left.

The slightly yellow sponge cakes didn’t seem to have been touched at all and were still stacked there neatly.

Several silver pots with a capacity of about one pint were also placed on the tables, containing rich fresh milk, mellow wine, or sweet freshly squeezed fruit juice.

Clean cups were neatly arranged there, waiting for people to take them.

The male servant standing nearby would occasionally pick up a cup and wipe it clean with a white silk handkerchief in his hand.

About 50 yards downwind from those wooden tables, there were several metal grills that had just been set up.

The grills were not only wiped very clean, but the specially applied anti-rust grease made them emit a dazzling light under the sunshine.

Also deep in the dense forest, sunlight penetrated the sparse or dense canopy, sparingly presenting mottled light on the ground covered with fallen leaves.

The light in the dense forest was somewhat dim, and the road was rugged, with tree roots and large rocks exposed everywhere.

This was the border between the Taiswei Mountains and the forest at the foot of the mountain, but those trees that had grown for hundreds of years still seemed so inconspicuous to the Humans shuttling through them.

Unlike the outer forest where George was, here, closer to the mountains, there was no real road.

Those places that were slightly flatter and allowed pedestrians to pass naturally became natural roads.

There were about eleven or twelve people walking through the forest.

The leader was a slightly thin middle-aged man wearing a folded deerskin hat and a yellow-brown hunting suit.

From the walnut walking stick wrapped in river deer skin at the top that he held in his hand, it could be seen that this gentleman’s skills were actually not very good.

Following him was obviously his servant, a middle-aged man with a straight back, carrying not only his master’s crossbow and arrows but also two large silver kettles.

This servant also led five huge hounds; their brown-topped and white-bellied fur, and their drooping cattail-leaf-fan-like ears were their greatest features.

In this dark forest, the hounds’ eyes radiated bursts of green light.

Besides this middle-aged man, among those following behind, there were obviously two others who also had Noble status.

One of them was a young man in his prime, and the other was obviously underage, only fourteen or fifteen years old.

However, it seemed that both had some confidence in their archery, as they were both carrying hunting bows and arrows themselves.

The older one wore thick leather gloves on his hands and led the hounds walking among the rocks and trees.

The younger one had one hand resting on the short knife at his waist at all times, looking at the surrounding vegetation with a mischievous and curious expression.

The hunting suit worn by the middle-aged Noble was made of cotton and Linen blend, which performed better in terms of breathability.

Due to craftsmanship issues, although the raw materials for this fabric were not expensive, the extremely low output and high demand kept its price high.

The young man and the teenager wore stiff leather hunting suits, which quite suited their status and age.

The servants following closely behind them wore thick Linen short jackets and carried many bits and pieces on their bodies.

Crossbows, arrows, walking sticks, kettles, umbrellas, felt blankets, and even canvas folding stools.

Having followed their masters hunting for so long, those servants were long used to the methods of carrying these things.

Crossbows, arrows, and walking sticks had to be held in their hands to facilitate the masters’ access at any time.

Kettles could only be hung on the sides of the body; if they swung to the back, it was best to move them back while the master wasn’t looking.

The distance from the master had to be neither too far nor too close, so as not to hinder the master’s movement, but also to be ready in case the master fell, at which point they would have to step forward to support the master’s body.

As a competent servant, all these things had to be paid attention to.

And an excellent servant needed to possess other skills; if he could become an indispensable helper during the masters’ hunting, then he would have an opportunity to rise in the world.

It seemed they had walked for a long time and were preparing to stop and rest; the middle-aged Noble tapped the ground with his walking stick in a clearing formed by large bluestones blocking the way.

A servant immediately stepped forward to clear the surrounding fallen leaves, while another servant chose a spot shaded by trees to set up the canvas folding stool.

After the middle-aged Noble sat down, someone immediately handed over a kettle and a towel.

After drinking some beverage from the kettle and wiping off some sweat, the middle-aged Noble asked the two young men: “This is the first time you two have participated in the Autumn Hunt. Tell me, how is this different from the hunts you have experienced before?”

“The main feeling I get is that there are many people. Also, it seems that those Nobles with real power aren’t very enthusiastic about the hunting itself.” The young man thought for a moment and gave a standard answer.

“And you?” The middle-aged man turned his gaze to the teenager beside him.

The teenager tilted his head and thought for a moment, then answered: “There are so many powerful Knights here! But under such hunting rules, not being able to let loose and fight freely must make them very uncomfortable!”