The quiet valley at dusk.

The red sun hovered above the ridge, and the afterglow shone in the dense forest, giving the trees and branches a mysterious yellow color. This place has been so quiet since ancient times, only the cheerful cry of grouse courtship and the gurgling water in the mountain stream after heavy rain, which occasionally breaks this eternal tranquility.

But at this moment, an extremely miserable voice echoed in the valley. "Help! Help!"

The wolves wandered under the trees and refused to leave. Hunters familiar with this beast understand that the wolf is incredibly cunning and patient. They can chase their prey for dozens of miles away, and can wait for a few days and nights in a certain area suitable for ambush without moving.

Their target is a human on the tree. From time to time, wolves try to jump up to bite the prey on the tree. The branches are very high, and the wolf's attempts cannot succeed. However, this behavior can still make the girls on the tree scream after screaming.

The girl was wearing clothes that the mountain girl would never wear. She wore a long lace skirt - something expensive and out of place. She wore pure white clothes with a straight neck cut to her neck. Whether it was the clothes or the skirt, the materials were very exquisite, and the intact parts were so smooth that they were almost glittering.

But the girl didn't look good at all. She was still young, and she could even be said to be young, but at this moment she looked pale, frightened, and looked tired. Her dress was covered with sweat, blood and stains, and her cloak was torn, revealing her left arm. There was a long and deep wound cut from a branch on her arm, and blood was constantly oozing out.

"Help..." The girl held the branch and shouted for help in despair.

However, there are no villages, no hunters, no forest visitors, and no business travelers passing by. It is getting dark.

The wolves suddenly made a commotion. These cunning animals turned their heads and looked into the distance, as if something was there. The movement was so consistent that the panicked girl also noticed the abnormality.

The forest suddenly became quiet like a dead silent. The girl looked in the direction of the wolf pack, as if she saw a black shadow covering the ground and flying over the trunks and leaves. She couldn't help but tremble all over. The wolf pack made a hurried, sharp scream like a whistle. The birds fled from under the leaves, chirping like an alarm.

A figure appeared at the top of the hillside not far away. Although it was far apart, it was still obvious that it was a man riding a horse.

"Help!" Seeing the reinforcements appear, the girl screamed almost with joy. "Save me, sir!" She even forgot that for single travelers, the wolves are very dangerous. Even experienced hunters dare not fight against a whole group of wolves alone.

But the man immediately rushed over, charging and drawing his sword out of the sheath. The horses wade through the stream, causing splashes of water. The wolves became timid and scattered and flew. Their movements were quick, and they ran away quickly along the gap between the shrubs and the woods, and disappeared into the dark dense forest in a blink of an eye.

"It's okay." The stranger walked around and confirmed that the wolf had all escaped, and came to the tree. The girl missed her hand while trying to climb down the tree and fell down. But the stranger was quick to catch her in time and held her in his arms.

"Thank you... kind-hearted gentleman." The girl blushed and her voice became as light as a mosquito.

The stranger put her down, and now she finally had the opportunity to look at the other person. This strange man is very young, probably in his twenties, with a clear and angular, cold and serious face. If he had a straight face, he should have a momentum of not being angry. But at this moment the smile on his lips made him look quite friendly and not cold at all. He was wearing a set of leather clothes, which was the choice of a traveler, making people unable to see the status. But he carried a long sword and rode a tall horse - a horse that could act normally in front of a wolf pack and was not afraid of it. Only war horses with excellent bloodline and strict training can do this. Generally speaking, only aristocrats can have such a horse.

However, there were no seals on the clothes and weapons of this stranger. From this point of view, even if he was a noble, he was not a local one.

"Little girl, what's your name? Why are you here?" The stranger didn't care about the girl's looking up and down. His eyes only stopped on the girl's exquisite clothes for a moment, and then moved away immediately.

"My name is...Aqiu. I was attacked by a wolf pack, my mount was frightened, and I got separated from my companions. Kind Sir, who are you?"

"My name is Ashu Rufate." The stranger introduced himself. "I am not a local, I am just passing by."

"Aqiu, where is your companion? If possible, I can take you there."

"...After I was separated, I didn't know where they were. I didn't know how to distinguish the direction..."

"So, where were you going?"

"I was going to Berleon, where one of my elders lived. And I was going to visit him."

"Berleon... I remember going there is still a long way to go there. But I have nothing to do, so I can send you over. Come up." He reached out to invite him, but Aqiu did not refuse, and sat on his horse and sat on the saddle. She noticed that although the Ashrufate's horse was tall and handsome, the saddle was very worn. The two seemed inconsistent.

In a blink of an eye, the sky was already very dark. In such wilderness, it was easy to get lost at night, so we should stay in camp at this time. But Ashu Rufate seemed to be able to distinguish directions in the darkness. He drove the war horses at will without any intention of staying. His confidence was not without cause, because under his control, the big dark horse went up the hill through the forest, which was both fast and stable, and was not blocked by the night at all.

Moreover, Ash Rufat gently hugged Aqiu's soft waist, leaving her without any chance of falling.

"Master Ash Rufate, may I ask, are you a noble?"

"Aristocrat? It should be counted. But you don't need to call me 'Master', call me Ash Rufate."

"It should be counted?"

"I once received the title of a noble from a certain king. But time has changed, and no one has admitted it. Haha."

"So, Lord Ashurufat, what are you doing here? Since you have been given the title of a noble, you should serve a certain lord."

"I'm just wandering around now. Because no one needs me to serve him." Ashu Rufate shrugged, as if expressing his regret.

"Aqiu, do you need a rest? If we travel overnight, we will be able to arrive in Berleon in the afternoon. Otherwise, I'm afraid we will not be able to arrive the day after tomorrow."

"No...I can go to the night." The girl's urgent answer would never be misunderstood.

But then, her body could not support her determination. Although she was immediately bumpy, her irresistible sleepiness eroded her spirit bit by bit. She was not a person who had been strictly trained. After a long period of running around, she was already exhausted. In addition, she was attacked by a wolf pack today and was physically and mentally exhausted. Before she knew it, she was drowsy and leaned on Ashrufate's chest obliquely.

"Aqiu, Aqiu..." She heard someone whispering in her ear.

"No...want..." she replied in a dream, but the next moment, an instinctive fear overwhelmed all the sleepiness. The girl opened her eyes and saw everything in front of her.

It was already early morning, and they were now on a relatively empty flat ground. A group of men, wearing simple leather armor and holding spears, were surrounding them.

These people were dressed in dirty clothes, wearing simple leather armor, and without helmets, and they looked more like bandits than soldiers.

Ashu Rufate stopped the horse and sat calmly on the horse to confront them, but the sword was already in his hand.

"Ahh, it seems that I'm here to go." A man with a thick beard shouted happily.

"Boy, come down here. We're going to make a decision on this woman!"

"It seems..." Ashe Rufat spoke. "I don't know you all. Isn't it too much to make such a request? Besides, this one is not my female slave, but a free man."

One, two, three... six, seven... seven people, too many. In the midst of horror, Aqiu grabbed Ash Rufate's hand tightly. "Sir... please don't hand me over to them..." She begged in a very low voice. But she also knew that the situation was not good. Ash Rufate did not wear armor, and there were as many as seven of these guys.

"Bah! Don't be ungrateful! This woman's head is worthy of a duke and a fief of a province in Paroco!" The bearded roared. "Save the woman to get away with the uncle!"

"Then I can't give up!" Ashu Rufate replied coldly.

"Looking for death! Brothers!"

Ashu Rufate's body did not move, but the war horse under his crotch jumped forward. Now the two bandits secretly surrounded him were no threat, and the bandits on both sides were caught off guard and could not stop him. Now there was only a bearded man in front of him.

Only soldiers who have been trained can face the horses that are galloping without fear. The beard proved that the beard was not the former. He retreated in a hurry into the slanting thorn, hoping to temporarily avoid the front of the horses, but it was too spacious here. There was no dangerous terrain for him to hide.

The shadow of the war horse flew past the side of his body, and the sword broke through the air. The bearded screamed in a shrill voice, and his whole body fell softly to the ground like a broken pocket.

"Master, I suggest you must eliminate these guys. Otherwise, unnecessary risks will be added." In my mind, Carrie's suggestion rang out.

"Aqiu, come down first. It seems that I have some small episodes that must be completed." Ash Rufate used one hand to send the girl off the war horse. When Aqiu realized that the lower part of her skirt was stained with a bearded blood, she collapsed to the ground.
Chapter completed!