Chapter 114: Fame

Chapter 114: Fame

While Bran was still worrying about his own small territory, his influence had already spread to the capital of the Anya Kingdom—Lava City.

Lava City had received Tirui’s detailed report long ago. First, a message was delivered by carrier bird, then that lucky, yet unlucky, surviving prisoner was rushed back on horseback under heavy guard. The sparse information about Bran became a document in the hands of every noble in Lava City. A major event like the killing of Captain Wood could not be covered up. Everyone agreed that an explanation had to be given.

Bran had cleanly solved his trouble, but he left a bigger trouble for others. The person he killed was no stray cat or dog. Among the information sent back, one detail left many speechless. When Tirui tried to negotiate for the return of the bodies, he was told that after being picked over, the good meat was fed to wolves, and the scraps were thrown into the river to feed turtles…

This was too insulting! Although Wood’s behavior at the time was somewhat rude, it did not deserve death. Even if he died, some dignity should have been preserved. Bran left the impression of an unreasonable and stubborn child. It would have been better if he had at least left Wood alive. What was the point of leaving just a lowly soldier alive?

Looking at the information in their hands, everyone frowned. From the news obtained from the people of Green, this child did not value human life at all. First, he arrested wizards on a large scale in his own territory in the Northlands, then he killed all those who tried to capture him. This time, he showed some progress by leaving a survivor. But leaving this survivor was clearly a show of force!

No one wanted to deal with such a stubborn child. Reasoning with him probably would not work. Fight? Any fight would be a big problem. Another concern for the higher-ups was that the Northlanders had mastered the secret of wizard evolution. If a stubborn child could display such power ful strength, then even if they dealt with this youngster, what if they provoked the elders? That would likely give them an even bigger headache.

They needed to save face but also had to gauge the situation carefully, leaving room for negotiation. They also needed to use this incident to increase mutual understanding, deepen friendship, and lay a good foundation for obtaining the secret of wizards. This difficulty was somewhat high…

For the first time, the nobles of Anya discovered that there were too few capable people in the kingdom. Although they were currently in a state of having no one to send, they also could not delay the matter for too long. Their delegation was still waiting for news in Green.

So, all the big and small figures in Lava City turned their attention to Wood’s family and the others involved. They could only wait for them to speak first. As long as they said they would not pursue the matter or handle it discreetly, things would be easier. But the pain of losing a loved one, how could others understand!?

Finally, someone stepped forward and pointed out that the information showed the Northlanders respected the strong and did not refuse challenges. That stubborn child Bran, although he was not a good person, when he killed Wood and the others, he gave a clear warning first and acted openly. So, those seeking revenge could gather a team and let the Northlands witness the bravery of the Anya People. Since it was a challenge, based on the principle of friendship first, or a more shameless saying—the honor of Knights. It should be fair, just, open, and witnessed by both sides.

There was another more important thing: finding a way to save face and get a suitable explanation. If the challenge truly demonstrated bravery, all would be well; there would be no need to find a way out, it would already exist. If it demonstrated the opposite…

Then, for the sake of face, they would still need to find out what that stubborn child Bran liked, what conditions he needed? Only then could they offer a meaningless apology.

…

This kind of muddled handling method let things get a bit out of control. The families who lost loved ones, although eager for revenge, were not fools. Even if some people were blinded by hatred, there would always be clear-headed relatives and friends to advise them. To deal with Bran, these people began to call on friends and allies.

During the struggle against the Demon Clan, Anya had established alliances with many factions. The experience of fighting together forged life-and-death bonds among people of different factions. Initially, Wood’s family and the others limited their calls for help to within their own families. But as the news spread, the situation gradually got out of control, and some people actively came forward.

The spread of news inevitably involved loss and distortion of information. After being passed from one mouth to another, the message eventually became distorted, turning into outright rumors. That stubborn child Bran was also spread in various images, and this spread from the higher-ups to the lower levels. He had now become the spiritual sustenance of the gossips in Lava City. These people felt their tongues were cut short if they didn’t discuss the latest tidbits about Bran with someone every day.

At this point, whether it was Wood’s family and the others, or other people, everyone had some regrets. The situation was heading in an uncontrollable direction, which no one wanted to see.

Someone must have been stirring things up. The Anya People had allies, but also enemies. They had made a bad move. Faced with differences in interests, their mutual hesitations and actions hindering each other gave someone an opportunity. Now, the upper echelons of Anya finally reached a consensus. Things could not be delayed any longer; the sooner they set out, the sooner they could calm this storm.

So, a strange, patchwork delegation set out from Lava City. This delegation gathered all kinds of people, and during the journey, there were constantly people rushing to join in support…

No matter how things ultimately turned out, the Anya People had already lost a great deal of face this time. Since they had already lost face, they appeared more composed instead. A thought occurred to everyone: Why bother?

…

Bran also felt, why bother?

City construction required a large amount of manpower. Obviously, without exploiting these Remnant People, there would definitely not be enough labor. Finally, with reminders from Earl and others, Bran turned his attention to Twofold Mountain.

Zack led the newly formed, not yet full-strength Knight Order on a relaxed but unpleasant hunt. They caught a bunch of mountain folk and fugitives carrying various biological weapons. Among them were several bold and daring individuals with the spirit of “Give me liberty, or give me death.”

Bran first had these few washed. It must be said, after removing a body’s worth of grime and without the accompanying biological weapons, the few of them didn’t look too bad. Then Bran, with over a dozen White Wolves, demonstrated a truth to everyone based on facts—wolves eat people.

After a pack of White Wolves devoured those few individuals alive, Bran began to explain softly. Based on the principle of voluntariness, those willing to stay and work should first go wash in the river, then come back to have some food and a sip of soup, and start working.

To show he was a civilized person who valued hygiene, Bran personally wiped the blood off the White Wolves. Then, he left with the clean, beautiful White Wolves…

Zoya was very happy today. Excited, she bent down and kissed a White Wolf lying beside her as she was leaving. Although this caused the beast to growl in dissatisfaction, with Bran there, she wasn’t afraid. These past few days, she hadn’t had much time to talk with Bran, and they were always interrupted, which frustrated her. But today, after waiting eagerly in the City Manor, she finally saw Bran return, and no one came to disturb them anymore.

She wished tomorrow could be like this too.