Chapter 11

Sure enough, as Zhao Futu had expected, after Cain taught him swordsmanship, he extended an invitation to him.

At the same time, the mysterious nightmare space also issued a mission prompt to Zhao Futu: "You have received a request from the character Cain! Help him deal with the werewolves that are entrenched near Locktown. Mission reward: 1000 survival points, basic swordsmanship advanced mastery, and Silver Cross Swordsmanship advanced mastery. If you refuse this mission, your relationship with the character Cain and others will become hostile!"

Without a doubt, Zhao Futu immediately agreed.

He had actually played many online games before, and Cain's request was undoubtedly similar to a triggered mission in those games. Moreover, it was a mission that directly provided part of the reward upfront, and he had already gained a new ability. However, perhaps due to the nightmare space enhancing his memory, Zhao Futu found that he could remember all the moves of the Silver Cross Swordsmanship in one go. When he practiced, it looked quite authentic, and in reality, it would have taken at least a couple of months of practice to achieve this.

"Silver Cross Swordsmanship Level 1 [Silver Grade Swordsmanship]: A swordsmanship created by the Knights Hospitaller during the Crusades, one of the pinnacle works of Western swordsmanship. The sword techniques are characterized by broad and powerful slashes, with a fierce and overwhelming momentum, making it a high-level swordsmanship that relies on brute force. However, its drawback is the slow improvement rate, requiring a large amount of time for practice. Current proficiency: 1/10000. (Can be improved after returning to the space!)"

...

Because of teaching Zhao Futu swordsmanship, the group was slightly delayed.

On the way, Cain frankly told Zhao Futu that he felt this bounty mission might be a bit challenging, and the people he brought might not be enough. That was why he had the idea of teaching Zhao Futu swordsmanship and seeking his help. In this land, there lived a large number of giant wolves with some werewolf blood, and the leader of these wolves was particularly troublesome. Those capable of killing the leader could also kill the werewolves.

"It seems the space's arrangement is to have us work together with these bounty hunters?" Zhao Futu thought to himself.

Although he was chosen to enter this mysterious nightmare space, the people who came in with him were all ordinary people living in a peaceful era. Even if their abilities were enhanced and they had some powerful weapons, it was difficult for them to immediately change their mindset and face the upcoming battles as warriors.

How many people, when faced with an attack and feeling fear, would close their eyes in terror?

Combat is not something that can be adapted to just by talking about it; many conditions need to be accumulated and gradually evolve into instincts.

The human body has many mysterious instincts, and these instinctive reactions need to be gradually accumulated.

The people Zhao Futu encountered were undoubtedly the hidden assistance arranged by the space. If he had not stayed behind to bury the other two, he would have met them in Locktown. However, because he stayed behind to bury the bodies, he immediately gained their favor. Not abandoning his former comrades and staying behind to bury their bodies earned him the respect and partial trust of Cain and others.

This was a matter of character!

Warriors in the age of cold weapons would never easily abandon their comrades, leaving their bodies to rot in the wilderness.

However, as a trade-off for improving Cain and others' perception of Zhao Futu, those who left early would find it difficult to gain their recognition. After all, leaving Zhao Futu alone in the wilderness and departing first had already displeased Cain and his group. For these warriors, such behavior was a betrayal, a betrayal of comrades.

Any soldier who has been on the battlefield would understand how important it is to have a comrade who can be trusted with one's back!

"Seeing Cain's furrowed brows, this mission doesn't seem to be that simple?" Zhao Futu observed the group, and as the leader, Cain naturally attracted most of his attention. Cain had a furrowed brow and remained silent, seemingly feeling that the difficulty of this mission exceeded his expectations.

On the way, Cain asked Zhao Futu in detail about the time of the battle and the events leading up to it.

After learning the specific time of the attack and the number of giant wolves, he maintained this expression.

"They were attacked at dawn! Generally, giant wolves are nocturnal creatures. A group of giant wolves moving around the road indicates that the number of werewolves here is not small!" As an experienced warrior, Cain, with his remarkable intuition and insight, noticed some issues. A group of wolves moving around the road already indicated that the wolf infestation here was severe and almost out of control.

Why would the wolves appear around the road?

Naturally, for food.

What could be found around the road that could serve as their food?

Only humans!

Not solitary giant wolves, but a group led by a leader wolf. This undoubtedly indicated two points: the wolf infestation here was very severe. Either the number of giant wolves had increased, disrupting the ecological balance, forcing them to move near the road to attack passing humans, or the giant wolves no longer feared humans and had already included them in their hunting menu!

Wild animals would retreat from areas where humans were active, and the probability of wild animals appearing on roads frequented by humans would decrease. Around the roads, these giant wolves would find it difficult to find other food besides humans.

"Then, as the root cause of the giant wolves' appearance, how many werewolves are there here?" A shadow of doubt clouded Cain's mind.

At the same time, the cautious Zhao Futu also thought of this.

"How many werewolves are there here?" Zhao Futu pondered.

His main mission was to survive for 48 hours and kill at least one low-level werewolf. Seven people were selected by the space, and all had the same main mission. To achieve their mission goals, there must be at least seven low-level werewolves in this area. Considering the standard of killing at least one low-level werewolf and the associated title missions, the actual number of active werewolves could be quite troublesome.

Cain's group consisted of five people, plus Zhao Futu, making six.

Of the other people selected by the space, only two had combat capabilities. A conservative estimate would put the ratio of humans to werewolves at 1:2.

...

By evening, the group arrived at Locktown.

However, they were only a little late compared to the others. After all, Zhao Futu and his group were on horseback, while the four who left early were on foot and carrying the bodies of giant wolves. When Zhao Futu and his group saw the walls of Locktown, they also saw the four who left early being warmly welcomed by a group of townspeople and entering the town.

"What's going on? Why are the townspeople so enthusiastic about welcoming them?" Zhao Futu was slightly taken aback but quickly understood.

A bowman named Mada, who was beside him, also seemed to understand the reason, and with a twitching mouth, he said to Cain, "The townspeople seem to have mistaken them for us."

Cain's face darkened, and he led the group into the town.

The four who left early had the bodies of giant wolves and were armed, so the townspeople likely mistook them for the bounty hunters Cain and his group. Cain had mentioned that he came from the south after receiving the mission, and in medieval Europe, the range of human activity was very limited, with many people never having traveled more than a few dozen miles. They probably had not seen Cain and his group before.

It was not surprising that such a misunderstanding occurred.

However, for some reason, these four did not explain the situation and even accepted the townspeople's enthusiastic welcome under Cain's name.