Chapter 164: The Caravan

"Ding-a-ling-a-ling!" The clear sound of bells floated in the wind, as a not-so-small caravan slowly made its way on a path cleared through the dense jungle.

This was a caravan with over ten lizard wagons, yes, lizard wagons, because the creatures pulling the wagons were not horses but giant lizards nearly four meters long, with black and yellow wrinkled skin. Each lizard's neck was adorned with a large copper bell.

"Leader Sandro, have your men be more careful. We can reach Black Rock Town before nightfall today, and I don't want any mishaps. Work harder now, and tonight, I'll treat your people to a big meal with the money earned from selling our goods," shouted the leader from atop a lizard wagon, a fat man leaning against three meters high stacks of goods, to a burly man riding a horned horse at the forefront of the caravan.

"Boys, did you hear that? The merchant Gland says he's treating us to a big meal tonight, so keep your spirits up and don't let any mishaps happen, or you won't get to eat," the burly man turned his head and shouted back at the caravan.

"Got it, leader!"

"Don't worry!"

...The adventurers scattered around the caravan on horned horses, armed with swords and bows, all responded energetically, their spirits lifted by the promise of a big meal, their attentiveness heightened.

"Gland, we've worked together before, you worry too much." At that moment, a slim figure darted out from the roadside bushes, landing next to the merchant Gland in a few leaps, resting a dagger-holding palm on the merchant's shoulder, speaking cheerily.

"Oh, you bastard, get your hand off me, the blood's going to drip on me," the merchant Gland, far from scared upon seeing the dagger just inches from his neck, instead grew angry at the sight of the blood on it, smelling the stench of blood.

"So what if it drips?"

"Do you know how expensive this outfit is? If it gets dirty, you owe me at least one gold coin."

"One gold coin, who are you trying to fool? This ragged outfit of yours, worth no more than a copper."

"A copper? I'll give you a silver coin, buy me ten outfits like this one, and the rest of the money is yours, how about that?"

...The merchant and the slim figure bickered, while the drivers, helpers, and adventurers watched the scene with amusement, filling the caravan with a lively atmosphere.

"Alright, Baren, stop messing around. Tell me, is there anything big in the jungle?" The leader of the escorting adventurers, Sandro, turned his head to ask the slim figure, their group's only thief, their "eyes".

"No big creatures, boss." The thief Baren retracted his hand from the merchant's chubby shoulder, "Only encountered a few goblins, all taken care of."

"That's good then!" Sandro nodded. Encountering no big creatures was normal; this route had been cleared by strong beings when it was established. He had led his team along this road several times without encountering any fatal dangers.

And the constant traffic of caravans along the route further ensured that any potentially dangerous creatures, such as ferocious species, were cleared out.

But nothing is ever constant. Just when Sandro thought this escort mission would end smoothly, the horses ridden by the adventurers and the lizards pulling the wagons began to grow restless, then "Boom! Boom! Boom!" the ground trembled. In the distance, trees fell one after another, a new path being forcefully cleared through the jungle.

"Heavy cavalry!" Such a commotion made the rugged Sandro's face change instantly. He recalled a scene he had once witnessed, a noble's cavalry unit with nearly a hundred heavy cavalrymen charging together, a terrifying sight.

But even that could not compare to what he was witnessing, for even heavy cavalry could not charge through the jungle like this. So, the rugged man, raising his voice, bellowed.

"Enemy attack, defend!"

The entire caravan sprang into action... but before they could form a defensive formation, the force charging through the jungle broke through the dense foliage, appearing in front of the caravan.

A giant blue wolf, nearly ten meters long, leaped out, landing in the middle of the road, its paws causing the ground beneath to slightly indent. Then, the giant wolf turned its head, giving the caravan a look, its deep wolf eyes showing a hint of extremely human-like disdain.

"Rustle rustle!" One after another, blue giant wolves followed, landing in the middle of the road. In a blink, dozens of wolves, ranging from six to eight meters in length, appeared in front of the caravan.

Behind them, countless trees were knocked down, bushes trampled, creating chaos. They had forcefully "walked" a path through the jungle.

"Roar!" The largest wolf growled softly, bending its limbs, ready to leap into the jungle on the other side, but its back, where a pale hand held onto its golden neck fur, gently tugged.

"Awoo!" The majestic wolf with a ring of beautiful golden fur around its neck whined, its tail, now golden, wagging like a dog's.

Then, the giant wolf, following the hand tugging at its neck fur, walked towards the defensively positioned caravan.

"Step!" "Step!" "Step!"... The giant wolf's massive body made each step it took leave a deep paw print in the ground, producing a significant sound, imposing a heavy pressure on everyone in the caravan.

As the giant wolf approached, all the lizards pulling the wagons lay down, trembling, and the adventurers' horses let out uneasy neighs.

Leader Sandro drew the heavy sword he carried on his back, his face pale as he watched the giant wolf slowly approach. A creature of this level was beyond the capabilities of their adventurer group.

But he did not give the order to flee, and no one in the caravan attempted to escape, even though many were trembling with fear at the sight of the suddenly appearing wolf pack.

It wasn't because these people were exceptionally brave, but because as the lead wolf moved, the rest of the giant wolves slowly encircled them, creating a formation that seemed to say, "The first to run dies."

"Gulp!" Inside the caravan, someone heavily swallowed saliva. The wind passed, and a faint scent of fear spread among the caravan, as if someone had been scared enough to urinate.

"Baren, is this what you called 'nothing big'?" The fat merchant looked at the encircling giant wolves with a hint of despair, "If this isn't 'big', then what isn't? How did you scout? You're going to get us all killed!"

"I've scouted all around the caravan!" The slim thief Baren's voice trembled, "It's not my fault; they came from somewhere else."

"With such a big wolf pack coming, and you didn't notice anything in advance, if not you, then who?"

"I..." Just as the thief was about to argue.

The giant wolf had already stepped in front of the group, looking at them with contempt, and slowly lowering its head.

"Can anyone tell me where this is?" At that moment, a very young voice came from the back of the giant wolf.

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