Hearing this, Matthew looked toward the carcass of the dead Shadow Wolf. He saw another slightly smaller Shadow Wolf rapidly approaching its companion's body, its fangs bared as it attempted to drag it away.
Startled, Matthew felt a surge of irritation. He immediately notched an arrow and drew his bow in one swift, fluid motion.
The arrow tore through the air!
But the Shadow Wolf seemed to have been on guard. The moment the arrow drew near, it twisted its body violently. The arrow tip grazed its hind leg, only striking its ankle.
“Awooo—!”
Yelping in pain, the Shadow Wolf let out a short howl. It no longer attempted to snatch the carcass, instead using the momentum to flee into the forest.
At the same time, a higher-pitched howl echoed from the wolf pack, sounding like a retreat command.
The remaining Shadow Wolves moved upon hearing the signal. No longer lingering, they quickly turned and vanished into the forest fog and snow, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Seeing this, Matthew did not pursue them.
He slowly lowered his hunting bow, his gaze sweeping over the depths of the forest fog where the wolves had vanished. Then, he warily scanned the surrounding woods, especially the direction where the wounded Shadow Wolf had fled, ensuring there were no lurking threats.
“Whew...”
Aidan's tense body finally relaxed, and he panted heavily, lingering panic still written on his face.
“Brother Matthew, those shots were absolutely incredible!”
“But why didn't we press our advantage and chase them? After all, there are six of us.”
Hearing this, Matthew simply waved his hand dismissively, his eyes still warily scanning the direction where the wolf pack had vanished and the surrounding woods as he said, “Never corner a desperate foe; we must watch out for traps. Let's deal with this dead Shadow Wolf first.”
With that, he placed his hand on his sword hilt and walked toward the massive boulder.
Seeing this, Aidan nodded thoughtfully and hurriedly followed.
On the surface, Matthew appeared calm, but he had already coolly weighed the situation in his mind.
Although it looked like they had six people on their side against five Shadow Wolves, giving them the apparent advantage, Matthew was not confident he could handle a siege by five Shadow Wolves on his own.
More importantly, he could not be sure that the four people by the boulder would be willing to share the burden in a moment of crisis. They might even choose to hold back to avoid putting themselves in danger.
He was unwilling to place his life in the hands of others.
Secondly, they already had one Shadow Wolf carcass before them. It was best to quit while they were ahead; greed was a dangerous thing!
Meanwhile, the four people saw two young men stepping out from the shadows, and shock crashed through their minds like raging waves!
They had originally thought that anyone capable of firing an arrow powerful enough to pierce straight through a Shadow Wolf's body had to be an experienced, muscular veteran hunter, or perhaps some hidden elder expert.
Yet, emerging from the forest fog and the twilight were two exceptionally young youths!
Dawson, being well-traveled, was the first to snap out of his daze.
Enduring the agonizing pain in his left shoulder, he took a step forward to greet them. With a face full of gratitude for surviving the ordeal and an undeniable look of amazement, he thanked Matthew, “Brave warrior, if not for you, the four of us would surely have lost our lives here today.”
“I am Instructor Dawson of Oak Village. May I ask your name, brave warrior?”
As for how Dawson distinguished the archer between the two, it was easy to tell from their bearing and attire.
Of course, the most direct and simplest detail was their positioning.
Matthew walked in front while Aidan followed behind. Who the leader was was clear at a glance.
Looking at Dawson, who was enduring his pain to thank him, Matthew's gaze paused slightly on the gruesome wound on his shoulder. Thoughts spun in his mind:
‘An instructor from Oak Village? What is he doing here? Although both villages are under Anda Town's jurisdiction, the actual distance between them isn't close, separated by a vast stretch of forest...’
‘Still, twilight is falling and the fog is thickening. Now is not the time to probe into this.’
Though he had doubts, Matthew did not show it on his face. He replied in a calm tone, “It was nothing. Matthew, from Stone Mill Village.”
His gaze then fell back onto Dawson's deep, bone-deep wound on his left shoulder.
“Instructor Dawson, this is an emergency, and we shouldn't linger here. We should treat your wound and head back as soon as possible. Aidan, get the hemostatic herbs we brought.”
At those words, Aidan quickly rummaged through his cloth bag, trying to pull out the hemostatic salve.
Hearing that they were from Stone Mill Village, a flash of understanding crossed Dawson's eyes. After all, the nearest village was indeed Stone Mill Village.
Yet, when he realized that the terrifying power of those arrows had come from the hands of such a young village youth, his heart still surged with unbelievable shock.
Snapping back to reality, he quickly raised his uninjured right hand and waved it to stop them.
“Wait, wait! You two have already saved our lives; how can we use up your herbs as well? We brought some of our own, which should be enough.”
Matthew nodded and said no more, walking over to the carcass of the Shadow Wolf.
Looking at the massive carcass lying dead before him, a surge of uncontrollable joy rose in his heart:
Magical beast meat!
This was genuine, high-quality stuff. Not only did the meat contain energy, but it was also an excellent nourishing resource for him as a Black Iron Rank expert.
Ever since his breakthrough to the Black Iron Rank, although the total amount of life energy in his body had significantly increased, his daily consumption and the energy required for recovery had also risen dramatically. Relying solely on ordinary dried meat, even if he stuffed himself to the brim, would make it difficult to satisfy his need for rapid life energy recovery.
This Shadow Wolf in front of him would not only effectively replenish his energy, but its pelt, bones, and other materials could also be exchanged for plenty of supplies.
‘Its size is indeed a circle larger than the wolves of my past life, with full muscles and thick bones...’
Matthew lifted it slightly to gauge its weight and quickly made an estimate: ‘After skinning and gutting, the net meat should be around a hundred pounds...’
‘If I were to exchange it for money, that would be... thirty gold coins!’
At this thought, his heart trembled slightly, but a doubt immediately surfaced in his mind:
‘Since a single Shadow Wolf can yield so much meat, why are resources like this still so scarce?’
Matthew's brow furrowed slightly as he thought rapidly, a rather pessimistic guess forming in his mind:
‘Could it be that the true "essence" portions—those rich in life energy and highly beneficial to Class holders—only amount to a few pounds?’
Although the remaining meat was better than that of ordinary beasts, its energy density might be much lower, serving primarily to satisfy hunger and aid in slow recovery.
If that were indeed the case, then the majority of this Shadow Wolf's meat value was likely concentrated in that small portion of "essence meat."
That would explain its scarcity.
Low yield—each wolf only had a small amount of essence.
Highly difficult to obtain, making it naturally incredibly precious.
This guess flashed through his mind, but he did not dwell on it.
After all, the most important task right now was to take their spoils and leave this dangerous place as quickly as possible.
Just then, Aidan had already nimbly fashioned a simple travois using thick branches and tough vines he found nearby.
Dragging the travois over to the Shadow Wolf's carcass, Aidan looked at Matthew. “Brother Matthew, do you think this will work?”
“Nicely done. You're a clever kid.”
Matthew withdrew his gaze from the forest and nodded.
With the travois, they wouldn't have to carry a hundred-pound wolf carcass all that way. It was indeed a great labor-saver.
Matthew immediately set to work, and together they lifted the heavy Shadow Wolf carcass onto the travois, binding it securely with vines.
Rate on N.U.
