Chapter 172

Chapter 172

Lorant took Maomao to the place where the Energy-devouring Frogs were and checked them out one by one as they worked.

This was the first time the Energy-devouring Frogs had undergone such an intense energy infusion, and Lorant couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. He was worried that his "children" might feel uncomfortable or something might go wrong.

So he came specifically to take a look.

Fortunately, the Energy-devouring Frogs were all in great condition. The twice-a-day energy infusions were no burden to them at all, and they looked more spirited than when they were lazing around in the backyard of the Animal Pet Shop.

Mo'er, who was next to the frogs, was busy to the point that his feet barely touched the ground.

Compared to the morning, he was much calmer now. The squad leader of the team that Ed had assigned to assist Mo'er in feeding and watering the frogs hadn't left after finishing their tasks. The squad leader, who wore a wolf emblem, was a very sociable person and had become familiar with Mo'er in just one afternoon.

The two of them were close to becoming sworn brothers.

With the morning's experience, Mo'er was efficiently managing the team, conducting ten groups of energy infusions simultaneously with high efficiency.

The first to notice Lorant was Hanhan. When Mo'er got busy, the little guy had nothing to do and could only lie on the side with his eyes half-closed. When he saw Lorant, he stood up with his big tail wagging and ran over to Lorant, rubbing his head against him.

Lorant laughed and patted Hanhan's head, who was whining and acting spoiled. Looking at Mo'er's busy figure, he felt a little relieved.

This once silly kid who used to follow him around with a runny nose had now become someone who could hold his own.

When Mo'er saw Lorant, his eyes lit up. He quickly handed the task he was doing to the squad leader and ran to Lorant, his eyes shining brightly like a puppy who had just seen its owner.

Lorant amusedly rubbed his head.

Mo'er's fluffy hair was stained with the dust of Pokara, and sand would fall off when he moved, but the happiness on his face was genuine.

"Bro! What brings you here?"

"I came to see if you're working hard enough," Lorant said with a teasing smile. "I'm here as a supervisor, you know."

Mo'er laughed foolishly and scratched his head. "Everything's going smoothly, bro. Mr. Ed has been very helpful here, and there's nothing wrong."

Lorant nodded. He knew his younger brother had a good personality. Back in the Lopulo mountains, he even pleaded on behalf of others.

So he wasn't entirely convinced by his younger brother's boast of 'everything going smoothly.'

He had to see for himself to be reassured.

Lorant's gaze swept over the professionals who were methodically managing the Energy-devouring Frogs' energy infusions, silently memorizing their appearances.

"What time did the first energy infusion happen this morning?" he asked after some thought.

When it came to serious matters, Mo'er immediately became serious. He quickly replied, "The first one started at 6:30 in the morning and was all done by 7."

"After the energy infusion, I fed each of the Energy-devouring Frogs a nutrition biscuit." Mo'er counted on his fingers. "But these big guys didn't really want to move. I tried to take them for a walk, but they weren't keen, so I couldn't do much."

He couldn't help but twitch his mouth as he recalled trying his hardest to drag one of the Energy-devouring Frogs.

"At noon, they had another proper meal, and I gave them water twice and a spray in between."

"We've just started the second energy infusion, and all the Energy-devouring Frogs have fully rested."

Mo'er finished and looked at Lorant with expectant eyes.

Lorant nodded and didn't hesitate to give praise. "Well done. You'll have to keep up the hard work for a while. Without someone trustworthy here, I can't rest easy leaving these Energy-devouring Frogs alone."

After all, these were still animals, and even though they were intelligent, they couldn't speak. If they were bullied, they might not even know how to complain.

"Don't be afraid. If anything happens, you can go to Ed. If Ed's not around, you can go to Lance. If they can't solve the problem or someone tries to bully you, just teleport back and find me," Lorant patted Mo'er's head and said.

"No one should dare to bully the people from the Animal Pet Shop."

His voice was cold and clear. Although he wasn't speaking loudly, Lorant knew that the squad leader who seemed to be working diligently could hear every word.

Part of this message was specifically for him to hear.

By sending people to assist Mo'er, Ed might have had some monitoring intentions.

To most people, the animal companions were still shrouded in mystery, so it wasn't strange for someone to try and secretly learn something.

Lorant wasn't ready to question Ed's motives just yet, but he needed to tighten the screws in advance.

He wanted to avoid some clueless individuals who might try to test Lorant's limits, even if it didn't cause any real harm, it was still annoying.

Even during the beast tide, Lorant wouldn't mind showing those people the capabilities of the Animal Pet Shop.

He could be generous and voluntarily contribute his share.

But he wouldn't accept any threats, no matter who or what they came from.

Lorant knew he hadn't reached a high enough position yet. In the eyes of many, he might still be considered someone who 'hasn't put on shoes.'

So he had to act like someone who wasn't afraid of losing, always like a fierce young beast, showing its fangs to the world.

Worst case scenario, they could all perish together, and no one would have a good ending.

Mo'er didn't think that far. He scratched his head and said with a foolish smile, "Don't worry, bro. I'm doing great here. If someone tries to bully me, I'll definitely fight back."

"On the yellow sands of Pokara, not fighting back means getting beaten!"

The boy's innocent words carried a hint of ruthlessness.

Lorant didn't say much more. Having lived in the slums of Pokara for so long, he didn't think of his younger brother as a naive sweet person, which was one of the reasons he confidently sent Mo'er here.

"Alright, enough of that. You probably haven't had dinner yet." Lorant turned around and took the food box from Maomao's mouth. "I brought you food. Aunt Martha made braised pork and steamed fish today. They're both delicious."

Lorant took out one layer from the large food box and handed it to Mo'er.

"I still need to deliver food to Lance, so you should find a place to eat first."

Mo'er hugged the food box and nodded obediently. After watching Lorant walk away, she placed the box next to Hanhan and threw herself back into the empowerment work of the Devouring Frog.

Although he hadn't been here many times, the structure of the fortress was mostly the same. Lorant knew roughly which way to go when he saw the staircase leading upwards.

However, this wasn't an outpost, and Lorant wasn't sure if he could just casually go up.

He looked up at the sky, where many winged professionals were still fighting flying beasts not far away.

But Lorant couldn't tell if Lancelot was among them.

After thinking about it, he decided it was best not to wander around and cause trouble for others.

Walking around the Devouring Frog, watching the busy crowds on the grass, Lorant chose to take shelter temporarily along the fortress's edge corridor.

From there, he could see Ed's position and planned to ask him after the logistics officer finished his work.

He took Maomao and walked a few steps along the edge, only to see an incredibly busy hall.

Lorant took a closer look and saw that the people coming and going were all wounded soldiers covered in blood.

This was the fortress's infirmary.

The infirmary was located at the outermost corner of the fortress, where a small door was open.

From here, going forward and around the entire fortress would lead to the high wall that connected all the fortresses, erected not long ago.

There was also a small door there, and beyond it was the bloodiest place on the battlefield.

The battle in the beast tide wasn't just between high-level professionals flying in the sky with wings and high-level beasts in one-on-one combat.

That was the battle in the sky, seemingly bloody, but more about the clash of strength and skill, something many could never reach in their lifetime.

Most people fought on the ground.

At the Black Forest outpost, they would let the beasts inside and fight them in a confined space.

But that was only when the scale of the beast tide was small.

Once the beast tide grew larger and the level of beasts increased, letting them into the fortress became a very dangerous option.

It was a last resort when there was no other way out.

Under normal circumstances, the fortress would keep the beast tide outside the walls.

If one could look down from the fortress or the high wall, Lorant would have seen that in front of the stone walls, it wasn't the beasts charging directly.

There, walls of human soldiers formed another layer of defense.

A true wall.

The shields of the shield knights, the giant axes of the berserkers, and the long swords of the sword knights formed a wall of blood and flesh amidst the gushing blood.

This was a true meat grinder.

Here, any human effort seemed particularly insignificant.

Individual strength was like a small stone thrown into a river, unable to create any waves.

Even high-level professionals had to deal with possible high-level beasts on the upper platform, leaving these average level-four professionals to hold their ground against level-five and six beasts.

Every moment, someone was stabbing their weapon into a beast's body and roaring as they slashed.

And every moment, someone was torn apart by a beast.

Here, blood and flesh were the only themes.

Lorant had always been curious about why, during the beast tide, the death of so many beasts didn't bring as much money as he had imagined.

This place was the answer.

Whether it was a beast or a human, anyone who fell would be instantly swallowed by the terrifying tide of bodies and trampled into the dirt.

Only the extremely lucky could survive falling on this battlefield and still leave alive.

Some said that after each beast tide, the soil at the Lopulo mountain pass would become two layers thicker.

Those added layers were silent corpses.

At this moment, besides the professionals who were not seriously injured and could still move, there were many wounded being carried back.

Lorant stood there stunned, watching a knight who had lost his left arm being dragged into the hall by two people.

The two knights threw him down and rushed out again without a word.

Outside the small door, there were more wounded waiting to be rescued. The more people they brought in, the more chances someone had to survive.

However, the knight who lost his left arm didn't receive timely help.

In the hall, there were over a hundred priests in white robes, each running back and forth.

White lights emitted from their hands, pulling the dying back from the brink of death.

But it wasn't enough. The number of priests was far from proportional to the number of wounded.

They could only use their limited divine power to try and save those most likely to die, while the rest had to rely on luck.

To the left of the one-armed knight, a young priest was kneeling on the ground, desperately casting a white light on a warrior whose belly had been stomped open, revealing the white bones and a section of his intestines.

Lorant stood at the main entrance of this makeshift medical area, hit by the bloody stench mixed with a foul odor.

As he looked at the scene before him, he felt a heavy weight in his heart.

This was Lindbergh's fortress. As Diana's husband, Lorant had every reason to believe that there would be more priests here compared to the other four fortresses.

Yet, even so, the hellish scene before him made Lorant feel cold all over, his mind blank for a moment.

Faced with such a situation, he wanted to do something, but felt utterly helpless.

Lorant quietly sat down against Maomao under the corridor, waiting for a long time until Ed approached first.

"Boss? What are you doing here?" Ed looked at Lorant, surprised by his pale face. "I was so busy just now. Next time, feel free to come find me directly. It's okay."

If it weren't for the wolf-head squad he had sent out earlier informing him, he wouldn't have known that Lorant had come to the fortress.

Lorant looked up and forced a smile. "Ed, are you done with your work? I came to bring food for Lance and Mo'er. But I thought since Lance might be on the upper platform, I'd just wait here."

Ed glanced around and immediately understood why the young boss looked unwell.

Normally, no one would want to come to this place. Anyone who had seen it would end up in a somber mood.

"Boss, how about I take you up to the platform? I can't say for sure where the young master is, but let's go up and check."

Lancelot had returned to the fortress these past two days, reverting to the way he was when he was on the frontlines.

Every day, he was constantly fighting, almost to the point where he was hard to find.

However, Lindbergh, who knew him well, sensed something different.

His once reckless son, who used to fight as if he was trading his life, no longer had that crazed look in his eyes, even during battle.

But to others, the change wasn't so obvious.

Thinking of Lancelot's past feats, Ed wasn't even sure if he could find the young master for the boss today.

Lorant followed Ed up the stairs inside the fortress. The fortress had several layers of wall platforms on the outer side.

The lowest level was just over five meters high. Ed didn't take Lorant out through the stairway, but Lorant caught a glimpse and realized that the height was just about level with some tall monstrous beasts, reaching only to their waists.

The visual effect here was definitely oppressive.

As they climbed higher, the upper part of the fortress narrowed inward, leaving a terraced outer corridor.

From this level onward, there were guards stationed.

Climbing higher, level by level, they eventually reached a wide platform.

Ed first found a place for Lorant to sit on the platform and then went off to look for Lancelot.

Sitting there, Lorant resembled a somewhat melancholic little mushroom, half-leaning against Maomao with his head drooping, lost in thought.

After a while, Ed returned, unsuccessful in his search, prepared to tell the boss that he couldn't find his young master.

But as he turned around, he saw Lancelot descending with his huge wings retracted, landing gently in front of Lorant.

Having just taken down a level six flying monstrous beast, Lancelot spotted the little guy crouching there among the chaos of the platform.

Landing beside Lorant, Lancelot saw his gloomy expression and his bloodshot eyes softened, his whole demeanor becoming gentler.

The tall knight in iron armor awkwardly crouched in front of the young boy, tilting his head to look at him.

"What's wrong, young boss? Bad mood? Who upset you?" Lancelot teased.

Lorant slowly looked up, seeing the concern in Lancelot's icy blue eyes, and shook his head gently.

"I... I'm fine. I just thought you might not have eaten, so I brought you some food," the boy said, pulling the food box over to Lancelot.

The knight, feeling delighted, accepted the food box. The military, of course, took care of their meals, but under such circumstances, there wasn't much to speak of in terms of taste.

Certainly, Lancelot wasn't the type to demand a meticulously prepared meal with wine even in these conditions.

But back when he was in the Lopulo mountains, every day as he ate large chunks of half-cooked monstrous beast meat, he would watch his father proudly show off the food his mother had sent him separately.

Separately!

Even though there was another son here, the couple managed to completely forget about him.

If it weren't for how much he resembled his mother, young Lancelot might have started to wonder if he was adopted.

And now, finally, someone had come to bring him food too.

But the sweetness in his heart was fleeting, and Lancelot's troubled emotions soon made Lancelot worry as well.

He pulled Lorant up from the ground, holding the food box in one hand and the boy's hand in the other, leading him to the side.

"Is there something bothering you that you can't tell me?" The knight's voice was soft but clearly reached Lorant's ears. "Can't we really talk about it, Lorant?"

Lorant and Lancelot walked to the very edge of the platform.

The platform was so high that Lorant felt a bit dizzy looking down from the edge.

And perhaps because of the height, Lorant could hardly hear the shouts of battle from below.

"I, I just came from the medical room," said Lorant, hanging his head.

He didn’t elaborate, but Lancelot quickly understood what he meant.

The knight carefully put his arm around Lorant’s shoulder, unsure of what to say.

Should he tell him this is battle? That casualties are inevitable?

Or should he tell him that even those who are injured are volunteers and are prepared for it?

It seemed that no matter what he said, it would sound too preachy or too pompous.

Didn’t Lorant already understand these things? Lancelot had known him long enough to know that his store manager was not just a naive child.

Lorant had seen darker and bloodier things.

Lancelot wouldn’t admit just how fast his heart raced when he saw Lorant playfully run a knife across the cheek of Blood Fang and others.

If before, Lancelot had always been unsettled by his feelings for Lorant—always worried that this white flower wouldn’t be able to accept his blood-stained hands—after that day, he no longer had such concerns.

He understood that he was completely smitten.

Lorant, however, didn’t have this realization.

Half-embraced by Lancelot, trapped between the wall and the knight, he didn’t notice the increased aggressiveness in the knight compared to usual.

"It’s okay, I just suddenly felt a bit emotional!" Lorant quickly adjusted himself. "Seeing those people, it just feels too cruel."

Lancelot softly murmured in agreement.

"This is something no one can change."

"The number of priests in the Church is far from enough, or rather, the number of people awakening to become priests is far from sufficient."

Lorant suddenly thought of Jeremy, who had been complaining before he left, and couldn’t help but ask, "If this place is so lacking in healers, why isn’t the Church willing to send more priests?"

Lancelot sighed, "The Church first needs to maintain its normal operations, and on top of that, deal with other potential issues."

"The massive beast tide in Pokara doesn’t mean there are no monstrous beasts in the Black Forest. Most of the priests in the fortress are from the Holland Church. The Holland and Mauplan Churches are similar in scale, and even if they were to send all of their priests, it would only be three to five hundred at most."

"Not enough, no matter how you look at it, it’s not enough."

Lancelot was also helpless. Whether it was priests or mages skilled in healing, they were the rarest among professionals, their numbers alarmingly scarce.

Once casualties reached this level, they immediately found themselves overwhelmed.

Lorant looked into the distance, at the black tide continuously surging from the horizon, and couldn’t help but mutter to himself.

"If only there were beast pets capable of healing..."

‘Ding!’