Way of the Knights

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"…and then there was much rejoicing." Arthur sighed as he looked at the excited faces of the people in front of him. 

"Well, we can't really blame them. We almost ran out of food despite our preparations. The new wave of Berserkers are also anxious to grow stronger so of course they'll react this way." Rosa replied, deep down she was sighing in relief as well. 

Vendrick had returned victorious from his trip. Well, his job isn't done yet but at least he bought some time for himself and tribe. Getting rid of the Forest Witch and her Hag Daughters made the Southern Continent less dangerous for them so he went back and told them that they could lift the seals and start hunting Demonic Beasts again. In fact, Arthur and Rosa just finished their announcement and people are already forming groups to hunt as soon as the sun rise tomorrow. 

"Where's Vendrick anyway?" Arthur asked, he looked around and saw that Vendrick isn't here. 

"Sleeping." Rosa replied blandly. "He said that the trip was draining so he'd have a good rest before setting off again. And it's not like you don't know him, he's not really a socialite." 

"Ah, right. I almost forgot about that." Arthur chuckled wryly when he was reminded. 

"Anyhow, everything's all fine and dandy. With the seals lifted, we can go hunt for game again. This means we can continue cultivating. This time, we should be able to reach a stage where our appetites won't be as big anymore." Rosa sighed, still feeling stressed about the close call. 

Thanks to Vendrick's unceasing work, he accomplished his initial goal earlier. Had he been delayed for a few more months, the situation of the tribe would be dire. 

They've grossly underestimated the appetite of growing berserkers. They thought that they already prepared well for the difficult times but it turns out that the food they gathered were not nearly enough. During this year, they tried to ration the food according to their initial plans but people were still hungry. It was really lucky that Vendrick arrived earlier. 

Although only a year and a few odd months passed since Vendrick set off, the tribe had grown larger in number. Due to the comfort and happiness of the people, the birthrate increased. The tribe is now filled with babies. In a few years, these babies will grow up into adults and will start a family on their own. 

Although the tribe has expanded, it would seem that this place won't be enough for them in future. Eventually, they have to consider moving out and settling down somewhere else. But, this is a problem for later. For now, the crises had been averted and the mood of the tribe eased up greatly. 

---

Vendrick slept for three days straight at the comfort of his own place. 

When he woke up, it's already late in the afternoon. Nobody was around, only him and the cold breeze and lush vegetation surrounding his home. 

Vendrick got up and stretched his body. He's still feeling quite lethargic but its not an excuse to ignore his grumbling stomach. He prepared a meal for himself, he took a bath, changed clothes and stared at a blank space for quite sometime, you know, the usual. 

His mind was relatively empty. He didn't think about anything and did things instinctively. He never uttered a word since there's no use to it. He just enjoyed the peaceful ambiance of the silence around him. 

Vendrick was like this for a week. And during this week, neither Arthur nor Rosa came to disturb him. The hideout wasn't sealed so they could've come whenever they liked, still they knew that Vendrick worked hard so they didn't want to burden him anymore than they already have.

"…four left." Vendrick uttered. 

This was the first words after a week long of rest. He stared at the sky and sifted information according to what he knows. 

After using Wendy to kill the Forest Witch and sending the sisters off, Vendrick officially eliminated one of his main targets. Still, there's something that's really bugging him. It's the Forest Witch's lover. 

Before she died, the Forest Witch desperately called for her husband. She ended up dying with a belly full of regrets since she couldn't uphold her promise. Recalling the situation, because Wendy believed that the Forest Witch took Maria as a hostage, Wendy seduced the Forest Witch's lover to basically cheat on her, falling under Wendy's complete control in the process. 

He never had the chance to know more about the Forest Witch's lover, only that she often refers to him as 'Big Brother' or 'Lord Husband'. Wendy obviously couldn't care less about him since she's just using him as a tool. Vendrick never had the chance to ask Wendy nor Maria about him but even with all this, he could at least come-up with a few guesses of his own, and he believe that his deduction isn't wrong. 

The Forest Witch's true identity is that of a Serpent born out of the Great Tree. As for how that happened, Vendrick truly doesn't care for the neither she nor the Great Tree exists currently. But with the knowledge of her true form, Vendrick believed that the lover she was referring to is the Overlord of the West. 

The Forest Witch and her Hag Daughters who ruled over the southern continent are no more. The only one's left are the Vampiric Serpent of the West, the Winter Troll King of the North, the Infernal Dragon of the East and the God who made its home at the Mouth of the Abyss located at the Central Continent. 

The lover of the Forest Witch is most likely the Vampiric Serpent of the West. Well, this is the most logical guess he could come-up with and also something that he believed in but he could be wrong. Either way, no matter who her lover is, the fact still stands that things must've gone a bit troublesome at this point. 

See, Wendy died. Along with her death, whatever curse or hex that she placed to place the Forest Witch's lover should been lifted the moment she disappeared. 

As with curses and hexes, it doesn't dissipate immediately. It could persist for quite sometime, the length depends on the density of the materials used. Only a week passed so there's no way that the victim had recovered from the influence just yet. 

Considering that the lover of the Forest Witch was most likely an Overlord as well, there's no way that Wendy wouldn't stuff him to the brim with curses and hexes. If she uses too little, then it wouldn't be effective, there's also the chance of her getting discovered so it's just a bad idea. 

On the other hand, using too much will undoubtedly kill him. Therefore, Wendy must've found the right formula that works against him. But like what was stated earlier, Wendy's death is a way of cutting off the supply of curses and hexes. 

In time, the curses and hexes will naturally dissipate and will lose its effects. The natural recovery will he slow yes but the better the victim's condition gets, the faster their recovery as well. What's really troublesome is the moment they regained their total freedom. 

The realization that he had been duped will undoubtedly anger the Forest Witch's lover. It wouldn't be a surprise if he suddenly decided to go all the way here to check the situation. And once he arrived at swamp and see the Great Tree missing as well as wife, he will undoubtedly scour the whole continent in his search. If he can't find her, then the Southern Continent will be the main target for its anger. That wouldn't be good. 

"...therefore I should be one step ahead of him." Vendrick declared softly over a bowl filled with warm soup. "In fact, it'd be better if I'm at least ten steps ahead of him and everyone else." 

Indeed, that will be for the better. At least this way, he could preserve his life and try again should he fail.

"I already have the power to stand-up against the Deity, additionally time is on my side. The God doesn't look like its overly concerned about the rest so this should be advantageous to me." 

Indeed. Vendrick is already powerful enough to go against a Continental Overlord. If things didn't go as smoothly as it went with Wendy and Forest Witch he had the capital to take the both of them head on. If he could do that, then the other Overlords shouldn't be a problem. 

"Still, I'd rather be over-prepared." Vendrick muttered, he looked up at the darkening sky as he thought to himself. 

"The next time I go out, I won't be returning unless I defeated that God." Vendrick muttered to himself yet again.

"Three-no, four months." He said, "I'll stay here for four months, training and trying to make another breakthrough." 

"Whether I succeeded after the time limit was up, I'll set out and visit the other continents. It shouldn't be a problem so long as I'm constantly on the move." 

"I just hope that Arthur and Rosa could hold down the fort while I'm gone."