Chapter 101

Chapter 101
Chapter 101: Never Mind The Heir, I’ll Focus On Healing

Barg trudged forward, his legs moving on their own momentum.

His worst suspicions had materialized.

Not a single crumb of food was in sight within the Knight Order.

*Grrr!*

Thinking about eating only caused my stomach to rumble with greater fury.

“Huuuuh.”

Must I truly make the trek to the well?

I had foolishly believed becoming an apprentice knight would spare me from starvation.

After all, it meant I wouldn’t have to depart the Asteri Family!

“If you officially enter the Knight Order, departure from this estate will not be required.”

That proposition held a temptation few could resist.

Barg felt its pull even more acutely.

He possessed no home to return to.

‘Had Rikson-nim not intervened to rescue me back then…’

Barg briefly glanced back into the memory of his past before shaking his head.

Regardless, my life belongs to him, making it imperative that I repay the debt eventually.

Yet, an unexpected door opened.

The Knight Order recruitment drive!

It wasn’t an invitation extended to just anyone, and despite his inherent timidity, Barg felt a spark of certainty.

I am strong! Surely I can manage this somehow, right?

Thus, he responded with his utmost vigor, letting enthusiasm color his voice.

“I, I wish to enlist in the Knight Order…!”

“Splendid. Shall we commence immediately with a change of attire and the initiation rites?”

“…Pardon?”

Rikson let out a hearty laugh and set the wheels in motion without delay.

Before Barg could recover from his daze, he was handed a personal wooden sword, allocated a chamber, and thrust into training following a brief rundown of safety rules.

Scarcely a week had passed since he gave his reply.

‘Things were wonderful up until that point…’

Though the physical conditioning was brutal, the meals were magnificent!

Furthermore, nobody raised an objection even if he gorged himself endlessly.

The fellow apprentice knights proved remarkably welcoming as well.

Initial worries about facing ostracization due to entering via a personal recommendation proved entirely unfounded.

“Eh? What’s there to mind? Anyone clumsy wouldn’t survive here anyway.”

“They only take on those capable of enduring wherever they’re stationed, so who cares about a recommendation?”

“True enough, true enough. Chin up. Don’t go trying to run away.”

“Stuff yourself whenever the chance arises.”

They even offered words of encouragement as if pumping him up.

‘They are genuinely good souls…!’

Unaware of the underlying reality, Barg enjoyed a blissful week.

Even the agonizing muscle soreness and conditioning that threatened to induce vomiting felt sweet in comparison.

I can handle this!

Moreover! Absolute freedom from heavy-handed discipline prevailed.

Manage your own duties well, and zero interference came from above!

Best of all, meat appeared on the table every single day.

A luxury I rarely tasted prior to setting foot in this place!

Barg shook his head, brushing away the memory of the past seven days.

Right. Even if I missed out just now, dinner will be provided soon enough, meaning excessive despair is unwarranted.

Besides, compared to former days, enduring a single skipped meal is hardly a hardship.

‘I must hold my ground here no matter what comes!’

Unwaveringly! Most definitely!

“And an apology is owed to Jake…”

In a moment of absentmindedness, I might have harmed him without realizing it.

Extreme caution is required on that front.

A catastrophic mistake could occur otherwise…

“My meditation sessions need to be extended.”

Renewing his inner vow, he made his way toward the vicinity of the well.

*Sniff sniff!*

A rich, savory aroma drifted into his nostrils.

“Hmmph. Mmm.”

What could that fragrance be?

Directing every ounce of focus to his nose, Barg slowly scouted the surrounding area.

A scent reminiscent of grain, carrying a faint sweetness…

“What is this?”

Drawing near as though hypnotized, Barg spotted something concealed beneath a piece of cloth.

Lifting the fabric slightly revealed a container filled with water-logged grain.

“Could this be barley?”

Judging by its appearance, some variety of barley lay soaking within.

Yet what was the purpose of soaking the grain in water?

As Barg cast his gaze about, a realization struck him.

“No way!”

Was this an act of consideration from the Knight Captain?

Indeed. Following such punishing physical trials, they surely wouldn’t leave a newcomer to starve.

They must be providing accessible nourishment while teaching the importance of discovering survival methods independently!

Had Lion overheard these inner musings, he likely would have wept and bellowed denials, but alas, only Barg occupied the space now.

“It remains within the boundaries of the Knight Order, after all…”

Barg’s expression lit up instantly!

Meat would have been preferable, but indulging in that might detract from the significance of the initiation, making grain a logical substitute.

Besides, whereas others might struggle to chew raw grain, Barg possessed no such limitation.

‘Still, consuming it right here feels a bit reckless.’

Quickly scanning his surroundings, Barg scooped up the basin of soaked barley and retreated to a secluded nook.

And then…

*Crunch! Masticate!*

The sharp sound of raw grain being ground down echoed briefly, followed by silence after a short while.

“Heh heh.”

Sporting a beatific grin, Barg returned the basin and cloth to their original spot and ambled back toward the training grounds, rubbing his distended stomach.

And promptly.

“Ah, there you are!”

“Hey, where on earth did you wander off to? We’ve been searching everywhere.”

“Eh?”

A handful of apprentice knights who had placed wagers on Barg’s victory converged on him.

Clutched in their hands were… dried meat and hastily roasted potatoes.

“Here. Your share.”

“M-My share…?”

“Yeah. Usually, newcomers wander around for a bit before returning, at which point the seniors prep some grub for them. But you were nowhere to be found…”

The apprentice knights offered apologetic explanations regarding the cooled-down potatoes.

“…”

Wait. If that’s the case, what did I just eat?

Barg’s eyes widened in horror as he stared at the dried meat and potatoes.

“Don’t tell me you filled up entirely on water?”

Water was nowhere near it.

Every last drop of the barley-steeped liquid had been dumped onto the dirt.

Catching the panic in Barg’s trembling stare, the senior apprentice knights pressed the food into his arms.

“We’re good, so just eat up.”

“Hurry and finish that, then come join us. We’re heading back to training.”

Watching his departing seniors and comrades, Barg felt all color drain from his face.

“Oh… what have I done?”

It appeared he had mistakenly pilfered and devoured someone else’s prepared meal.

—

A full twenty-four hours later, Lion returned to the spot where he had left the barley.

Whereupon.

“Huh?”

An empty basin greeted his eyes.

Correction, it wasn’t entirely empty.

A few scattered barley kernels remained at the bottom, some of which were crushed and severed.

“Was it some wild creature…?”

While wildlife within the Asteri Family grounds was supposedly nonexistent, these markings undeniably pointed to a wild beast.

Could a squirrel manage a quantity this large?

Birds could be ruled out since the grain was soaked, and the volume far exceeded what a single avian could consume.

“There’s no sign of the water being spilled outward.”

Hm. Folding his arms, Lion surveyed the vicinity.

Moments later.

『 Barley Grains 』

* This is barley that has undergone soaking.

Spotting stray kernels littering the ground, Lion followed the trail.

Like a deliberate path, occasional grains marked the route.

Leading him straight into a secluded thicket…

“Hmm?”

Signs of crushed and scattered barley grains came into view.

Someone had clearly hauled the heavy basin of barley away, drained the liquid, and consumed the contents right here.

‘An animal would have dragged the whole container off.’

No such disturbance was visible upon closer inspection.

Which meant the culprit was human.

Could a human truly ingest that volume of raw barley, even in its partially swollen state?

Hardly likely.

Furthermore, the servants serving the Asteri Family knew better.

They understood that touching anything belonging to the family, under any circumstance, was strictly forbidden.

So a servant could be safely eliminated from suspicion…

“Suspicious.”

“Peep.”

As if echoing Lion’s sentiment, Nature fluttered downward, darting about to inspect the terrain.

“Nature. Do you spot anything?”

Moving with the precision of a hawk trailing prey, Nature thoroughly searched the perimeter before lunging forward to snatch an object from the dirt!

It turned out to be.

“…Fur?”

A clump of fur, carrying a reddish hue.

Lion retrieved the strands from Nature’s grasp to inspect them closer.

『 Beastman Fur 』

* This is the rare fur belonging to a ‘Red Wolf’ Beastman.
* The quality of the fur is sub-par. Could it be suffering from an affliction?

A Beastman?

Moreover, Red Wolf Beastmen held a reputation as powerhouses among the Beastfolk races.

Yet, to the best of Lion’s knowledge, Red Wolf Beastmen…

‘Weren’t their numbers nearly depleted?’

Lion’s extensive knowledge regarding werewolves stemmed entirely from his choice of sub-character.

The Druid character’s racial background happened to be a werewolf.

* Druids are werewolves capable of wielding both ‘Spirit Arts’ and ‘Beast Taming’ through the affinity of nature.

This exact description greeted players upon the Druid’s initial release.

Perhaps to justify mechanics allowing them to comprehend animal speech and converse directly with spirits, Druids were designated as a Beastfolk-exclusive class.

Consequently, Lion—despite showing little interest in the overarching plot—wound up retaining a fair grasp of Beastfolk lore.

…Even so.

‘This situation differs entirely from standard lore.’

For one thing, Red Wolf Beastmen were an extreme rarity.

On top of that, his grandfather was well aware of the Druid’s true identity.

Had a Red Wolf Beastman been residing within the estate, wouldn’t his grandfather have identified and sheltered them immediately?

Leaving them to scrounge for survival by stealing outside grain was entirely out of the question.

Therefore, only two possibilities remained.

Either they were living in strict concealment.

Or they had wandered in while roaming in wolf form!

‘At any rate, an encounter might prove worthwhile.’

The total loss of the batch of barley posed no major setback; he could simply prep and soak another round.

“How does one go about initiating contact?”

Uncertainty lingered, though it seemed clear the individual wished to keep their identity under wraps.

After all, being identified as a Beastman invited unnecessary complications anywhere one went.

“…Ah!”

An idea struck Lion, causing him to sit upright abruptly.

“No need for undue worry.”

A viable method already came to mind.

Preparing snacks favored by Beastfolk!

For whatever reason, this particular werewolf appeared to be starving.

Not to mention his physical condition seemed less than stellar.

Which explained why he had resorted to chewing and swallowing even hard-to-digest raw grains!

Pure survival instinct at play.

The solution? Entice him with something undeniably delicious.

‘Right. Wolves share plenty of traits with dogs anyway.’

Lion nodded in silent agreement.

Plain meat might fall slightly short… but what about exceptionally flavorful meat?

Resistance would likely prove impossible.

Without wasting a second, Lion departed the spot.

Meanwhile…

“Yikes.”

Appearing belatedly upon the scene, Barg watched Lion walk away carrying the empty basin.

‘This is a disaster!’

Secretly pilfering someone’s rations was bad enough.

Stealing the personal provisions of the presumed Young Master of the Asteri Family crossed into far graver territory!

‘An apology is urgently needed… Hm? Where is he heading? Regardless, I must trail after him.’

Missing training sessions for the first time in a week posed a significant issue, yet offering a proper apology took precedence, right?

‘Forgive me, Knight Captain!’

Keeping a vigilant eye on his surroundings, Barg shadowed Lion with utmost caution.

Maintaining as much stealth and speed as the situation permitted.