Rudolph walked toward the site of the recent battle. According to the images transmitted from the spirit beast crystal, there might still be survivors. The ground was littered with the corpses of cavalry and horses. The werewolf saliva from the Level 1 werewolves had already been collected by Cooper—there was nothing left.

  Rudolph checked the fallen cavalrymen but found no survivors. Yvonne turned one over and said, “Captain, this woman is still alive.”

  Rudolph leaned in for a closer look—sure enough, Jennifer was still breathing. Two cavalrymen had fought to the death to protect her.

  “How can you refer to the esteemed Sir Jennifer as just ‘this woman’?”

  “Captain, she’s unconscious. She can’t hear your flattery.”

  Rudolph glanced at Jennifer again—she was indeed unconscious. It was a little awkward.

  “Then take her with us. See if any horses are still alive.”

  Yvonne found an injured horse, limping but still standing, and placed Jennifer on its back.

  Following the police department’s liaison map, Rudolph led the way to the nearest Druid settlement.

  A female Druid approached as they neared the settlement. Seeing that they were patrol officers, she relaxed.

  Rudolph was a little disappointed by her conservative attire—she didn’t even expose her waist. Most female Druids only wore breastbands, but this one, despite her youth, showed no respect for tradition.

  “I am Alma of the Cuckoo Tribe. Patrol officers, what happened to you?”

  At this moment, both Rudolph and Yvonne were covered in dried blood, yet to be cleaned.

  “Druid Alma, please take me to your elder. I have something important to discuss.”

  Rudolph then gestured toward Jennifer on the horse. “And if you could provide some treatment for the future Sir Jennifer, that would be even better.”

  Alma quickly ran back toward her tribe.

  Before long, the tribe elder welcomed Rudolph’s group into the Cuckoo Tribe.

  Life in the wilderness was harsh, so the police department and the various Druid tribes had a mutual defense agreement. The Druids took Rudolph’s identity seriously.

  Once away from the others, Rudolph and the elder observed from a distance as the Druids tended to Jennifer’s injuries. They spoke in hushed tones.

  The Druid elder was in disbelief. “Patrol Officer Rudolph, you’re saying you encountered another Level 2 werewolf?”

  “Yes.”

  The news was grim. The elder took a long moment to process it. The possibility of migration even crossed his mind.

  “And Jacques, the knight of Leimang Town, died in battle because of this?”

  “Yes.” Rudolph nodded. “That woman is his successor.”

  The elder’s expression darkened. A Level 2 werewolf was a serious threat. As a Level 2 Druid himself, he wasn’t confident he could handle it. If even a knight had fallen, the Cuckoo Tribe had no chance against such a foe.

  Seeing the elder’s face shift from red to pale, Rudolph asked, “Are you worried about the Level 2 werewolf?”

  “Worried? Very much so...”

  “There’s no need,” Rudolph reassured him. “That Level 2 werewolf was killed.”

  “Killed?” The elder’s expression lit up with hope. “Truly?”

  “I’m certain. The knight put up a good fight. However...”

  Rudolph’s tone grew serious. “I must warn you—if we’ve already encountered the first and second Level 2 werewolves, there could be a third, a fourth... We don’t know why, but the number of werewolves in the area is rising.”

  The elder’s brief hope faded again. The surroundings of Leimang Town were becoming increasingly dangerous.

  “Does the police department have a plan?”

  “I’ll report to Chief Claude as soon as I return. As for further actions, you should write to him for instructions.”

  The elder’s voice was heavy. “I hope the department can investigate why werewolves are suddenly appearing in such numbers. This isn’t traditionally werewolf territory.”

  Rudolph had no answers.

  Just then, Jennifer seemed to wake up. The Druids around her scrambled in response.

  Rudolph approached and found her fully conscious.

  “Undead! There was an undead! The undead killed the Level 2 werewolf!”

  Jennifer’s nerves were shattered. As soon as she awoke, she screamed in panic, clearly traumatized by the battle. She believed even the white wolf was another of the undead’s trophies.

  The Druid elder’s mood darkened further. Now there was an undead roaming the area—one powerful enough to slay a Level 2 werewolf.

  Rudolph still had to visit another Druid settlement, so after ensuring Jennifer was stable, he prepared to leave.

  The Cuckoo Tribe generously provided fresh horses, and it seemed Alma had been given a task by her elder—to accompany Rudolph’s team to the other settlements.

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  They also treated Jennifer with a wolf venom antidote, ensuring she had no lingering physical wounds. However, she remained grief-stricken.

  In a single night, the strongest force in the knight’s castle had been wiped out by werewolves. It was only thanks to the desperate sacrifice of two knights who admired her that she had survived.

  At some point, Jennifer suddenly burst into tears on horseback.

  The other three—Rudolph, Yvonne, and Alma—were at a loss for words. In times like this, nothing anyone said would make it better.

  Just as he had done when Yvonne had been at her lowest, Rudolph knew that sometimes, the best thing to do was simply to stay close.

  Jennifer wept for a while before falling silent. She wiped her tears and asked, “Patrol Officer Rudolph, what’s our next move?”

  This time, she spoke with much more courtesy.

  “I plan to inform all the Druid tribes, warning them about the potential emergence of more Level 2 werewolves.”

  “Yes, that is necessary.” A newfound determination appeared in Jennifer’s gaze.

  Alma spoke up, “I intend to visit the other Druid tribes and see if any are willing to temporarily unite against the werewolves.”

  Jennifer nodded. “That’s a good idea. The knight’s castle owns the largest farms in Leimang Town, employing over fifteen Druids from various tribes. I can act as a mediator to help bring them together.”

  She then turned to Rudolph. “Patrol Officer Rudolph, you chose the perfect moment to retreat during the battle. I don’t blame you—it was our decision to initiate that fight. This wasn’t your responsibility. In fact, I should thank you. If you hadn’t returned to save me, I would be dead now. Thank you, Patrol Officer Rudolph.”

  “You’re welcome, Jennifer... Sir Jennifer.”

  Hearing herself addressed as a knight, Jennifer straightened slightly, as though drawing strength from the title.

  The group soon arrived at the second Druid tribe they encountered, known as the Bison Tribe. Compared to the Cuckoo Tribe, the Bison Tribe had a much wilder atmosphere. When Rudolf entered the Bison Tribe, they were in the midst of a wrestling-like strength competition.

  The elder of the Bison Tribe sat on a tree stump, watching the match. With the increasing number of werewolves, the tribe was also looking for ways to strengthen itself—at the very least, they wanted to make their young warriors more enthusiastic.

  The elder noticed Rudolf’s group approaching and found their composition rather strange—a pair of patrol officers, a knight, and a Druid. The surroundings were noisy due to the ongoing competition, so Rudolf leaned closer to the elder and spoke, "Elder, I bring unfortunate news. The ones who occupied the former Elk Tribe’s territory are werewolves, led by a Rank 2 werewolf."

  "Another Rank 2 werewolf?" The Bison Tribe's elder was visibly shocked. He himself was only a Rank 2 Druid, and he wasn’t confident he could defeat a Rank 2 werewolf. The news was hard for him to digest. "How long has it been since a Rank 2 werewolf last appeared in Leimeng Town? As far back as I can remember, we’ve only ever encountered Rank 1 werewolves. And now, in such a short time, we’ve already seen two Rank 2 werewolves?"

  "I hope you can make preparations as soon as possible. As for the next steps, I suggest consulting our sheriff, Claude." Having delivered his message, Rudolf was ready to leave.

  However, Elma had more to say. "Elder, I bring a letter from the elder of the Cuckoo Tribe. I hope you will seriously consider it. Our two tribes, and even more tribes beyond, should unite."

  The Bison elder had already received too much information at once and couldn’t make an immediate decision. Elma, feeling impatient, unfolded the letter herself and held it up in front of the elder.

  The elder glanced at the letter briefly. It only outlined general intentions without providing concrete details. Standing beside him, a tall Druid spoke up in disapproval. "Every Druid tribe has its own territory, and those borders have remained unchanged for decades, even centuries. A tribal alliance? How would that work? Who would lead it? How would the land’s resources be distributed? There are too many unresolved issues—it’s not something we can agree on with just a few words."

  Rudolf thought he had a point. It made sense that the Bison Druids would be skeptical. This tall Druid clearly didn’t think much of the Cuckoo Tribe’s strength.

  The Bison Tribe had as many as three Rank 2 Druids, including the tall young man who had just spoken, who was himself a Rank 2 Druid—an undeniably powerful figure. In contrast, the Cuckoo Tribe only had their elder as a Rank 2 Druid. That was why they were much more desperate.

  "Druids of the same totemic lineage cannot marry within their own tribe," Elma argued. "For generations, the Bison Tribe and the Cuckoo Tribe have intermarried. Uchaar, in times of life and death, does territorial division really matter that much?"

  The tall Druid, Uchaar, was likely even distantly related to Elma. This was a strict rule that Druid tribes had developed over thousands of years—those who followed the same totem could not marry among themselves. If they did, the resulting offspring would be increasingly deformed.

  Because of this, neighboring Druid tribes were often much more connected than they appeared to be. They might fight bitterly over territorial boundaries, yet when they sent their daughters off in marriage, they would weep with heartfelt sorrow.

  Uchaar only said, "We should investigate the situation first before making any decisions."

  Rudolf didn’t say much. If Jennifer weren’t here, he might have used the dead knight to scare the Druids, forcing them to act under pressure. But with Jennifer present, he decided against it.

  Jennifer now stepped forward and addressed the Bison elder. "Elder, what Rudolf says is true. My father, Sir Jacques, has fallen in battle."

  The Druids of the Bison Tribe were stunned. Sir Jacques was a major figure in the town, and now he was dead?

  "Moreover," Jennifer continued, "a necromancer took my father’s body, along with the bodies of my two brothers. He also took the corpse of a Rank 2 werewolf. That necromancer is incredibly powerful and terrifying. He commands no fewer than seven Rank 1 apostle corpses, and now he has a Rank 2 werewolf’s body as well."

  Rudolf agreed with this assessment. The necromancer Cooper was extremely powerful—he was essentially a one-man army.

  The Bison elder finally grasped the reality of the situation. The wilderness had become far more dangerous than before. Frowning, he said, "I understand. I will send invitations to all the Druid tribes. The Druids must unite."

  Elma let out a breath of relief. She prepared to return to the Cuckoo Tribe, while Rudolf and his group could move on. They no longer needed to notify each Druid tribe one by one—this task would now be handled by the Bison Tribe.

  The three of them headed straight for Leimeng Town. None of them spoke along the way. Ivonne wasn’t much of a talker, Rudolf was lost in thought, and Jennifer simply wasn’t in the mood.

  Upon returning to the precinct, they immediately went to the sheriff’s office. Sheriff Claude, upon hearing the news of Sir Jacques' death, was so shocked that he sprang to his feet.

  He vividly remembered his recent conversation with the knight. Sir Jacques had planned to use the werewolf attacks as an opportunity to break through to become a Rank 2 knight. But instead of advancing, he had perished.

  After a few moments, Sheriff Claude finally spoke. "Rudolf, take Sir Jennifer back to the castle. I will report this to the Fabro City police headquarters and send someone to inform the baron. My condolences, Sir Jennifer."

  Jennifer did not refuse the sheriff’s offer of an escort. The three of them continued on toward the knight’s castle.

  As they stood outside the castle, Rudolf was about to take his leave, but Jennifer stopped him.

  "Rudolf, I’d like to invite you inside for a while. I imagine you must be exhausted."

  Rudolf was taken aback by the invitation but did not refuse. "Of course. Thank you for your hospitality."

  Entering the knight’s castle, Rudolf couldn’t help but marvel at Sir Jacques' immense wealth. The castle was the grandest building in Leimeng Town, surrounded by the town’s largest farmland.

  Before the Alchemist Council had taken power, all land belonged to the nobility. Even now, although the king had been forced to appoint an alchemist as prime minister, the nobility remained the wealthiest and most powerful people in their respective regions.

  The castle was not just home to Sir Jacques and his family—it also housed knights, servants, and others, making it quite crowded.

  As Jennifer entered the castle alone, her expression full of grief, the people inside began to suspect that something terrible had happened.