"Why do you think so, master?"
Lady Donna initially looked back at Lann with a surprised expression, then seemed to realize something and laughed again with a cheerful tone mixed with a touch of irony.
"I see, I see, is your expression of... guilt?" Donna asked with a smile. "Feeling guilty for the Demon Hunter who killed my husband and is from the same school as you?"
The young man opened his mouth, but Lady Donna laughed heartily again without waiting for him to speak.
"Oh dear, for the sake of the plague, don't wear that expression."
"Killing demands a life in return, but my husband was an unrepentant drunkard, as fierce as a Water Ghost usually, and didn't work much. Frankly, whether he's here or not makes no difference to the household, perhaps even better without him?"
"Do you want to hear a tragic story? I don't have one here, and even if I did, it's got nothing to do with my drunkard husband."
Lady Donna waved her already wrinkled hand carelessly in the air.
"Oh, is...is that so?" Lann's upbringing made him feel he shouldn't talk about the deceased, yet despite the family's own words, he still felt somewhat awkward.
"Haha! Speaking of which, I really didn't expect that the life of a Demon Hunter is so different from ours, the ordinary farmers? From your appearance, before becoming a Demon Hunter, you must have come from a respectable and wealthy family, right?"
After saying this, for the first time, her cheerful smile had condensed into an expression Lann couldn't understand.
It was a calm and gentle expression.
What did that expression mean? Lann wondered inwardly, but even Mentos couldn't answer.
"I'm being looked down upon, despite doing endless chores a woman's body shouldn't endure," Donna said softly, "but that's village life."
"The village can't afford to support burdens. Honestly, I'm grateful to still be looked down upon here and have work to do. I'm also thankful to the villagers and elders because..."
"At least it allows me to raise my children."
In her gentle tone, Lady Donna likely didn't have the strength to speak forcefully anymore.
Yet these words struck Lann like thunder!
He suddenly felt that Lady Donna, this farmer who had begun to show signs of aging, was very beautiful.
This beauty had nothing to do with the abnormal hormone surges typical of young Demon Hunters; it was a beauty rooted in confronting life's harshness, accepting challenges happily, and resolutely striving forward.
Lann felt that he would remember this beauty for life.
~~~~~~
The Cotton Armor Outer Cover's tear wasn't very large, just rather fragmented. As Lann had expected, it took Lady Donna less than twenty minutes to finish the job with her craftsmanship.
Stepping out of the house, Lann walked on the wooden path with his eyes lowered.
"Actually... her words had many strange points, didn't they?"
The conversation in his mind began, and so far, Lann had only one person he could confide his feelings to in this world.
"Yes sir," Mentos's voice sounded lighter than usual, perhaps it was just Lann's illusion.
"The violent husband addicted to alcohol, yet there are no signs of violence around the house. On the day her husband was killed, his feet were still covered with manure and mud from the fields, yet she claimed he was lazy and didn't work... many suspicious points."
But the intention was simple—
She didn't want Lann to carry a guilt that wasn't his.
Even if it meant badmouthing her husband in private with Lann, she didn't want this young man to live burdened by guilt.
A good person indeed.
And precisely because of such people, he would return to Auridon.
Feeling invigorated, Lann hastily returned to the blacksmith shop, just in time to see Ivan sharpening the newly plated silver on the grindstone.
In less than two minutes, the young man was once again equipped with two longswords on his back.
At noon, Lann grabbed Bernie and launched the boat.
The two carried a sandwich made of bread, salted fish, and pickled vegetables, serving as their lunch.
"I feel like you're really... energized today?"
Bernie at the helm at the stern commented, slightly surprised, as he took a bite of the salted fish sandwich while steering, observing Lann.
Sitting in the bow, Lann had already finished his lunch in a couple of bites and was checking the fasteners on his armor and boots one by one.
"I need a lot more Water Ghosts for practice, Bernie. We could head west today, and if we're lucky, we might even find a Water Ghost nest."
"You're the boss, no objections from me."
Bernie shrugged indifferently.
After last night's drinking, he wasn't too concerned about losing a little catch every day.
Perhaps Lann's energy got Bernie going, making their journey swift.
It didn't take long along the shore of Lake Fick to reach their first tracking spot.
Unlike yesterday's muddy marsh, the terrain here along the coast consisted of dense woods.
The thick trees almost exposed their roots on the riverbank.
Lann made an ambiguous "tsk" sound.
The forest as a battle environment was a bit restrictive, but at the same time, Bernie was sure to showcase novel tracking skills in the woods. This made Lann have mixed feelings.
"The fish population here is also quite decent," Bernie said while steering the boat to slow down.
"If you go ashore and head northwest for a while, you'll reach Midcops. There's a locally famous blacksmith there, might interest you?"
"Forget it," Lann replied with a bland expression.
Ivan's craftsmanship had already revealed the level of craftsmanship in the land of Velen.
A locally famous blacksmith would likely be of Ivan's caliber, still far from master level.
Bernie shrugged, brushed off the bread crumbs from his hands, and put on his long leather gloves again, fastening the straps.
With a splash, the two jumped off the boat and headed toward the forest by the riverbank.
Bernie naturally took the lead, responsible for tracking traces.
"I say, Lann, can water demons nest in the woods?"
He was a hunter but had no understanding of monster habits, hence the question.
Though Lann "graduated" early without completing his training, he had still been taught.
With a swish, he slowly drew the Bear School silver sword, but unlike usual, he didn't hold the sword hilt to his side face.
Instead, he held the hilt with both hands naturally down, the sword tip facing backward, and kept the sword on the right side of his body.
Every move was with his weight on his toes, light and steady footsteps.
This was not an offensive stance but one for quick reactions.
"Water demons are amphibious creatures. Their nesting requirement is simply 'by the water,' whether it's a mudflat, forest, or even farmland, it makes no difference to them."
"These beasts sure are tenacious then."
"No doubt about that."
The two chatted idly, mainly to relieve the tension in the impenetrable forest.
The woods of Velen were fraught with dangers; packs of wild dogs, wolves, and brown bears were ordinary animals, and even more dangerous monsters liked to lurk among them.
Plus, due to the sound-absorbing quality of leaves and wood, once a person enters the forest about thirty meters, even their dying screams might not reach outside the forest.
Imagine, just thirty meters away, a distance that takes seconds to cover on flat ground.
You're being devoured by a monster, and passersby outside can't hear a thing.
That's why the Velen People had the habit of calling forests "green swamps."
The two continued forward. According to Bernie, "Because we're in the woods, the fragments of water demon scales and footprints are more conspicuous and easy to recognize."
But when they truly got close to the water demon pack, this part of the forest startled them.
Bernie was supposed to have them face the water demon pack directly, assess the situation, and then approach slowly.
However, after repeatedly losing and finding the trail, indeed, they saw a water demon...
Only when they saw it, it was less than ten meters from their side!
Almost brushing against them!
Fortunately, Bernie was an Old Hunter, moving through the forest lightly and quietly, preventing the water demon from taking advantage of him.
Lann and Bernie exchanged glances, Bernie already shivering with fear.
At this distance, it was impossible to see the full situation of the water demon pack, but relocating themselves was entirely impractical.
It's a huge taboo for Demon Hunters to fight without information.
Reality isn't a game; monsters don't arrange themselves by level, and a slight misstep can lead to death for Demon Hunters.
A regular Demon Hunter facing this situation would likely end their career.
Lann didn't have a handy "apprentice" to scout ahead.
"Tsk." But in this situation, the young man just clicked his tongue slightly.
With his current track detection skill level at 13%, had he assisted Bernie, they wouldn't have ended up like this.
However, while on the route earlier, his primary focus had been on staying vigilant and observing Bernie's techniques.
"No choice... Mentos!" Lann squinted slightly at the water demon gnawing on something beside him.
"At your service, sir."
"Activate Magic Seal auxiliary functions."