Chapter 648 Tombstone

A Winter Wolf's fur was like the fine snow of early winter—cool, soft, and flawlessly crystalline.

Living year-round in the Highland Snowfield, their icy white coats served as natural camouflage.

Even if the fur was stained with mud and blood during combat, a gentle wipe through the mane with a damp gauze was enough to clean away the grime. It was incredibly easy to maintain.

She was an acknowledged traveling companion. Just as he set aside time after every battle to carefully maintain his weapons and equipment, Xia Nan didn't mind sparing a little extra time to help Fanny clean the mud from her fur.

Of course, he also had to admit that Fanny's icy white coat felt absolutely incredible to touch.

It was fine and dense, yet each strand was distinct. Like the silky hair in shampoo commercials from his past life, his fingers brushed through it with almost zero resistance.

The surface of her fur was refreshingly cool, but closer to the roots, he could feel her body heat. Pressing down slightly with his fingertips, he could faintly trace the firm, elastic contours of her muscles beneath the soft undercoat.

"Awoo—"

Fanny let out a subconscious whimper of comfort.

She half-closed her eyes and affectionately rubbed her head against Xia Nan's thigh.

By now, the group had already returned from the forest to Ice Tree Village.

The banshee was fundamentally a "mechanic-based monster." Although it possessed comprehensive resistances and the Lethal Shriek, as long as they were prepared, it wasn't particularly difficult for an elite Adventurer Squad with an average class level of Iv3 or Iv4 to handle.

The recent battle in the cave had proven exactly that.

However, the group had still been affected by the terrain in the end.

No one had expected a banshee to appear inside a Goblin Lair. At the end of the battle, when the banshee used its Etherealization to float upward and phase through the stone ceiling, the group had no way to stop it.

By the time the four people and one wolf chased it out of the lair and reached the surface, the banshee had long since vanished into the depths of the thick fog.

None of those involved in the battle were seriously injured. Even the Rogue, Treebrook, who had engaged in extensive close-quarters combat with the banshee, only suffered minor negative energy erosion on the skin of her arm. A sip of a Healing Potion, or a request for free Holy Water at the Church upon returning to Bloodcast Keep, would completely cure it without any side effects. It didn't affect her combat readiness at all.

But the unlucky half-orc, Gank, failed to survive the impact of the [Withering Wail] and died on the spot.

His body was stripped of its equipment and buried nearby under a fir tree.

Unfamiliar with the terrain, with her tracking ability—which had originally guided them to this Goblin Cave—now on cooldown, and reeling from the shock of a teammate's death, the half-elf Treebrook had lost the will to continue the mission. She proposed returning to Ice Tree Village to rest and carefully plan their next move before making a decision.

Under normal circumstances, Xia Nan certainly wouldn't have agreed to her request. Given his usual style, he would have continued the mission even if he had to pursue the target alone.

But inexplicably recalling the banshee's final behavior right before its escape, he felt deeply intrigued and formed a few theories. Thus, he complied with her suggestion and headed back together with the Winter Wolf Fanny and the Ranger Tal.

In the courtyard of the wooden cabin temporarily provided by the villagers of Ice Tree Village, Xia Nan sat on a low wooden stump stool. Blood-stained, damp gauze lay on the ground by his feet.

The Winter Wolf Fanny lay quietly and contentedly in front of him, occasionally licking his palm with her warm, wet tongue. Her tail wagged gently behind her, relishing their time alone together.

The bald Ranger, Tal, claiming he felt he hadn't contributed much during the battle, volunteered to hunt some game in the nearby woods to add to the group's meals shortly after returning to Ice Tree Village.

As for the bard Uriah and the Rogue Treebrook—

All Xia Nan could say was that, based on his observations, the atmosphere between the two of them was quite tense right now.

With his Perception, he hadn't sensed any movement inside the cabin for a long time. The two of them had barely exchanged a word on the way back, either.

Unlike a temporary teammate like himself, the members of the Sulfur Dragon Breath Squad clearly had a long history of fighting side-by-side. Their teamwork was flawless.

Under these circumstances, the sudden death of a companion they spent every day with was naturally a massive psychological blow.

Not to mention that, to some extent, the half-orc Gank's death could have been entirely avoided.

Judging by how the Rogue Treebrook had survived the banshee's Lethal Shriek relying solely on a Deafness Potion, if Uriah had chosen to cast [Silence] on the half-orc back then, the bard himself likely wouldn't have been significantly affected either. They could have all survived.

But—

Everyone on the battlefield had seen what he had done instead.

Truth be told, setting aside camaraderie and professional ethics, Uriah's instinct for self-preservation was somewhat understandable.

But by the same token, he naturally had to bear the consequences of such actions.

"Creak."

The cabin door was pushed open from the inside.

The half-elf Treebrook walked out, expressionless and completely silent.

A few steps behind her was the bard Uriah. Knowing his previous actions had been inappropriate and feeling deeply guilty, he wore a fawning expression.

"Treebrook, do you want a drink? I heard from the village chief yesterday that he still has some stash left. There might be a blizzard in the forest recently. Maybe we can rest in the village for a few days before considering our next plan. Don't worry, Captain might already be waiting for us at Bloodcast Keep. In a few days—"

Uriah kept his posture exceedingly humble, trying to ease the tension with his teammate.

But Treebrook remained silent, not offering a single word in response. She just kept her head down and walked forward—until she heard the word "Captain" come from his mouth.

"Captain!?"

The half-elf suddenly stopped and spun around.

Unsuppressed anger flared across her icy face.

"How do you even have the nerve to bring up Captain Gretchen? If it had been her casting spells on that battlefield, what do you think the Captain would have chosen? To sacrifice a teammate to save herself, just like you did?"

Treebrook's sudden outburst caught Uriah off guard.

His mouth opened and closed as if he wanted to argue back.

But in the face of her fierce questioning, his lips merely quivered. In the end, he couldn't force out a single word.

After all, he knew Treebrook was right.

If the one casting [Silence] in the underground cave today had been Gretchen, the missing true captain of their Sulfur Dragon Breath Squad...

Even if they repeated it a hundred times, that magical soundproofing barrier would have landed on the half-orc, Gank, every single time.

The atmosphere once again plunged into a dead silence.

Guilt-ridden, the bard Uriah had no face to speak further. He simply lowered his head, his expression bleak.

The Rogue Treebrook seemed to have completely vented her dissatisfaction through her outburst. Though she said nothing outwardly, she silently felt that her words might have been a bit too harsh.

After all, having been together for so many years, how could she not be familiar with Uriah's character?

To put it bluntly, on any normal day, if someone had presented this exact dilemma to her and asked her to guess Uriah's final choice, she almost certainly would have predicted this exact outcome.

Understanding his nature was one thing, but witnessing it firsthand was another. As a fellow teammate—one who had also been left completely outside the silencing barrier just like Gank—it was perfectly normal for Treebrook to feel emotional about it.

"Give me some space. I want to be alone for a bit, and think about what to do next," Treebrook said after a long silence. She then turned and walked straight out of the courtyard, leaving Uriah standing there all alone.

In a terrible mood and looking utterly despondent, the bard had no desire to chat with Xia Nan either. He gave a distant nod in greeting before turning around and heading back into the wooden cabin.

"Slam."

The dull sound of the door closing echoed behind him.

Recalling the scene of the two erupting in conflict, Xia Nan, who had witnessed the whole thing while sitting in the courtyard, withdrew his attention.

Surprisingly, he noticed that the Winter Wolf Fanny, who had been napping on the ground in front of him, had pricked up her long, sharp ears at some point.

A distinctly human-like look of lingering fascination was visible in her half-squinted, expressive eyes.

Finding it quite amusing, he rubbed her head vigorously. "What, haven't heard enough yet?"

He then stood up, glancing at the increasingly gloomy sky overhead.

"Get up, let's go for a walk too."

Xia Nan had many thoughts weighing on his mind.

When he first accepted this mission in Bloodcast Keep, he thought it was no different from his usual tasks.

A dangerous monster had attacked a passing Adventurer Squad. That was all.

But as he actually arrived at Ice Tree Village, noting the villagers' vague, evasive attitudes and sensing the strange atmosphere lingering in the air...

Xia Nan gradually realized that this attack might be far more complex than he had imagined.

Walking along the muddy paths of the village, he watched the villagers passing by, casting awe-filled glances his way.

His mind unconsciously drifted back to the banshee's reaction in the Goblin Cave earlier.

After suffering mental damage, instead of displaying the bloodthirsty ferocity of a typical monster, it had shown a momentary flash of clarity. Then there was that complex expression when it saw the Ice Crystal Flower Bracelet on his wrist.

'Why?'

'What connection does this bracelet have to it?'

'And why did it abandon its attack near the end of the battle and actively flee?' Xia Nan could tell through his Perception that while its severe injuries might have played a part in its retreat, some other, more significant factor was influencing it.

Deep in thought, he kept his legs moving purely on muscle memory.

When the chilling evening wind of the approaching night swept past him, his consciousness snapped back to reality.

Before he knew it, Xia Nan had arrived at a small clearing on the western edge of the village.

Having scouted the surroundings earlier, he knew this was a small cemetery.

He was just about to turn and leave when a figure suddenly caught his eye.

"Sarah?"

The young girl in a patched cotton coat, lacking her usual lively and open demeanor, was standing quietly in front of a tombstone, her head slightly bowed.

His gaze subconsciously swept over the felt hat pulled down tightly over her ears. Surprised by the appearance of the hunter's daughter, his mind unwittingly recalled the banshee's reaction to seeing the Ice Crystal Flower Bracelet she had gifted him.

Thinking he would ask her a few questions, he walked closer and called out in greeting.

Unexpectedly, it startled the girl so badly that her entire body gave a violent flinch.

She spun around in a panic, realizing it was Xia Nan.

She hastily shuffled two steps to the side, trying to block his line of sight toward the tombstone.

But a second later, realizing her actions were too obvious, she tried to act natural by standing perfectly still. Forcing a somewhat awkward, enthusiastic smile, she replied, "Mr. Xia Nan! What a coincidence. Why are you here?"

His eyes flicked toward her slightly reddened eyes, which she hadn't had time to hide.

Xia Nan's expression remained unchanged. He nodded amiably. "I just brought Fanny out for a walk. What about you? It's getting late. Why are you all alone in the cemetery?"

Hearing this, Sarah's face suddenly stiffened. Her eyes darted around as her mind raced.

"Uh—I, I—I was just taking a walk too."

Her hastily concocted lie was far too clumsy. Anyone with even a little bit of observational skill could see how unnatural she looked, let alone someone with Xia Nan's keen Perception.

Looking at the girl who was feigning calm but actually full of holes, Xia Nan found it amusing. However, he didn't expose her directly.

Instead, he played along. "Is that so? That's nice."

The immense pressure radiating from the black-haired adventurer in front of her made Sarah temporarily lose her ability to think. Completely missing the wicked teasing in Xia Nan's tone, she just smiled stiffly and chimed in, "Yeah—that's nice, that's nice."

She raised her left hand, instinctively trying to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Her fingers were halfway across her cheek, nearing the base of her ear, when she seemed to realize something. Her fingertips suddenly froze. Shifting her movement, she very deliberately scratched her cheek instead, before pressing down on the felt hat covering her ears.

"Oh, is it really this late?! Mr. Xia Nan, it's almost time for dinner. Let's head back together!"

The girl's naivety was almost endearing. Xia Nan sighed silently in his heart.

His face retained its peaceful expression, but his gaze now openly shifted to the space behind her.

A tombstone stood right there.

In terms of shape and material, it looked no different from the other headstones in the cemetery. But it seemed someone regularly cleaned and wiped it down—its surface was spotless, without the slightest trace of moss or frost erosion.

Several clusters of ice crystal flowers, arranged in a ring, lay quietly on the ground in front of the gravestone. This magical flora, which never withered in the freezing climate of the Rime Forest, possessed a unique beauty distinct from other flowers. Their crystal-clear petals, as if carved from frost, refracted a soft, watery glow in the twilight.

The face of the monument was equally neat and unadorned. It didn't bear the usual dates of birth and death, nor any relational titles like "Loving Mother" or "Beloved Wife."

It only bore a few short, clean letters carved in Elvish:

[Allirella].