In the early morning, the little birds chirped melodiously. Weya slowly opened her eyes and saw Mina packing up the sleeping bags.
“Good morning!” Mina greeted, efficiently stuffing the sleeping bags into the backpack.
“You’re up so early, Mina,” Weya said as she quickly crawled out of her sleeping bag, carefully unzipping it while swaying unsteadily.
“Hehehe… Let me do it, you don’t want to fall down,” Mina said, supporting Weya as she swiftly packed the sleeping bag into Weya’s backpack.
“Thank you!” Weya took the backpack. Her balance was poor, and she was slightly afraid of heights.
“Wait here, I’ll tell you when it’s safe to come down,” Mina instructed.
Mina went to the place where the blade ropes were tied and saw bloodstains on them. She had heard the cries of animals last night and thought that some animals had been caught in the traps. It seemed like that was indeed the case.
“You can come down now!” Mina waved to Weya in the tree.
“Okay!” Weya hugged the rope and slowly slid down, swaying her hips as she descended.
Mina climbed the tree to retrieve the rope, and the two set off. On the way, they ate some compressed biscuits to stave off the hunger, with no time for anything else, as they needed to focus on traveling.
This was also why Liu Feng had prepared the compressed biscuits for them- both beastgirls had big appetites. Filling them up with buns and similar items would require several large bags.
Too much stuff would slow them down. For instance, the buns Weya had brought only a few of had already been eaten on the first day. The morning passed uneventfully, but as they neared Weya’s tribe, their expressions became grave.
Especially Weya, whose face turned pale and brows furrowed deeply. She had been within the tribe’s vicinity for some time, so she was perplexed as to why she hadn’t seen a single guard. “Where are the guards? How come there isn’t a single one?” Weya trembled, having a bad feeling. Previously, when she had been captured by slave traders, it was the guards who had discovered it and reported it to her parents. It was odd that there were no guards now.
“Don’t panic. Maybe the guards are switching shifts,” Mina reassured. As the second-in-command of a team, she understood how things could be.
“Mhmm!” Weya took a deep breath, and her light red eyes narrowed. She led the way toward the tribe, anxious to check things out.
Mina followed behind, taking out a compound bow and nocking an arrow, sensing that something was amiss. Hopefully, it’s not what I think, otherwise… Mina thought to herself, her blue eyes fixed on Weya’s tall figure.
The next moment, Mina’s expression changed. She quickened her pace, covering Weya’s mouth and pulling her behind a nearby large tree.
Immediately, they heard voices nearby, from two people.
“Hehehe… Didn’t expect such a big haul this time.”
“True, there are so many little beastkins. Those perverted merchants and nobles will surely love them.”
Two slave traders were chatting under a tree not far from them, completely unaware of Weya and Mina.
Mina covered Weya’s mouth and watched her tearful eyes closely. She whispered, “Don’t rush. The slave traders are still here, which means the tribe’s beastkins are still around.”
“…” Weya fought back tears and nodded heavily, and only then did Mina then this she dare to release her hand.
“Mina, what do we do now?” Weya asked quietly, growing anxious. This tribe was Weya’s only source of strength. If even the beastkin of the tribe had been captured, her life would truly fall into darkness.
“You hide here. I’ll check the situation,” Mina instructed seriously. “Be sure to stay hidden and don’t get found.”
“Mhmm!” Weya nodded repeatedly.
“Take this for self-defense. Point the arrowhead at the enemy, pull this trigger, and the arrow will fire, understand?” Mina handed Weya a small crossbow from her backpack and briefly explained.
“Mm-hmm!” Weya carefully accepted the crossbow.
Mina then nodded and moved silently through the tree’s blind spots, quickly approaching the two slave traders.
“Do these beastkin’s heads have lumps on their heads? Aren’t they just wasting food for taking care of so many little beaskins?”
“Who knows? It’s a good thing they raised these little beastkins. I heard some big city slave auctions are desperate for them. The quality of these little beastkins are excellent.”
“Hahaha… They’ll definitely fetch a good price. I’ve heard some beautiful women have arrived at the Black Alley. I’m going to book two of them!”
“Hehehe… You sure you can handle it? Don’t end up dead on the women’s bellies…”
“How could that be? I’m very strong. You know that. Didn’t we have some fun together last time?”
As the slave trader spoke, he didn’t get a response from his companion and turned to look, only to find a pair of blue eyes staring back at him. Before he could react, a knife was pressed against his throat, silencing him in fear. His peripheral vision saw his boasting companion lying on the ground with a slit throat.
“You have three chances to answer. If I’m not displeased or if you make too much noise, this will be your fate,” Mina said, pressing the knife slightly forward, making a cut on his neck
“I’ll speak, I’ll speak!” The slave trader nodded rapidly, terrified to the point of nearly wetting himself. The pain on his neck made his eyes narrow.
“How many of you are there?” Mina stared intently at the slave trader’s eyes. Any sign of wavering would indicate he was thinking of lying.
“32 people!” The slave trader quickly answered.
“When did you arrive?” Mina frowned slightly. Though she didn’t detect any lies, the number still concerned her.
“In the morning!” The slave trader, frightened by Mina’s frown, thought that his answer might have displeased her.
“Did you take any beastkin with you?” Mina’s eyes flashed.
“No, absolutely none!” The slave trader insisted desperately, treating Mina as one of the tribe’s beastkin.
“Is that so? Unfortunately, your bad breath is quite displeasing to me…”
With a horrified look from the slave trader, Mina cut through his throat. He felt a chilling breeze as darkness swallowed his sight.