In the city of Oufu, there is no wine. The grain is not abundant enough to be used for such a luxury item, and the magical effects of this drink are too strong for the easily excitable beastmen, so even foreign merchants are not allowed to bring wine into the city. This is a great disappointment for the thieves, who were originally going to use wine to enhance their mood, but now they can only continue eating that mushy food with high spirits.

  But tomorrow morning they took those goods back to the empire, where there was no shortage of wine and meat. Just thinking about the gold coins that were about to be in hand, this originally hard-to-swallow thing seemed to have a noble flavor like apple juice-braised lamb chops inside.

  Asa was revered as the great contributor to this successful operation. After all, he is a special-class criminal who has seen big scenes and can even seduce a noble's lover, his demeanor is indeed extraordinary. If it weren't for his calm words and attitude yesterday at the critical moment, everyone would have probably become prey for the beast tamers, not to mention the goods. And today, in such a tense scene, he was also responding with ease. After the goods were moved back, he even went to find those officials and said a lot of things, many thieves thought he was negotiating, hoping to still get some more goods, but from his expression when he came back, it seemed not very successful.

  Asa completely ignored the thieves' high emotions and, after eating a few words of comfort, returned to his room.

  He spent the whole afternoon inquiring about those middle-aged men, and after asking around, he finally found out that Lord Sedros and General Gru were living together in a residence within the city.

  From the tone of the Lord of Sedros, he knew what that book was. Of course, he couldn't just reach out and take it, which would almost be telling others that he was a member of the Necromancer's Guild. And no matter who they were, they had no courtesy for the Necromancer's Guild.

  But his current identity is a professional thief, and a professional thief suddenly produced the appointment documents of the Archbishop and the Duke. The first thing that comes to mind is forgery. If you catch a few thieves and interrogate them, you'll know that he also has the stolen credentials of the Imperial Envoy, which would be ironclad evidence.

  After some thought, I still think it's best to solve the problem in my own way, so I'll just steal it and leave tomorrow. Alas, I feel like I might really be cut out for this thief business. No matter what situation I'm in, I always end up handling things with a fight, either by stealing or robbing.

  "Tomorrow we're going back, huh?" Xiao Yi sat in front of the bed, flipping through her notes under the lamp light. The lamp oil here was made from the fat of wild cattle caught and killed in the Lizard Swamp, burning with a bright red flame. She seemed to be distracted, flipping through her notes back and forth, occasionally staring blankly at the lamp fire. "Are we really going back?"

  "Yes." Asa sat down in the corner of the wall, where a pile of hay was his bed. Now he had to get some rest, and then go steal books later at night. He had developed a unique way of sleeping outdoors, where as long as he thought about what time he wanted to wake up beforehand, he would wake up at that exact time with just one stir. And as long as he wanted to sleep, he could almost fall asleep anytime.

  "Can you really sleep there?" Xiaoyi looked at Asa sitting down, suddenly asking. The fierce fire of the cow fat burning was bright red, also reflecting her face very red.

  "Yes." Asa leaned against the haystack, ready to close his eyes. The werewolf's night vision was unparalleled by humans. Although the security here had improved a lot, every night there were still werewolves patrolling the streets. This was the biggest obstacle to stealing books, and he had to be extremely vigilant to deal with it.

  Xiao Yi stared blankly at Asa, the dim light in her eyes flickering constantly. She said: "Although I also know that I must go back, but actually I don't want to go back."

  Aza closed his eyes and asked, "Why?" The best time would be when the workshops in this city had not yet closed, but other beastmen had already gone to rest. Let the sound of the workshop cover up one's own, wanting to sneak forward in complete silence without revealing any traces was impossible. Some wolfmen could even hear the breathing sounds of people within a hundred meters.

  Xiao Yi turned around and looked at the oil lamp, taking a deep breath as if to accumulate great strength, then said softly: "I'll get married after I go back."

  Asa's eyes suddenly opened, and he stared blankly at Xiao Yi. Only then did he remember that she indeed had a fiancé in the imperial capital. A sense of desolate loss surged over him, washing away all his thoughts.

  Until he quietly slipped out of the hotel and onto the empty streets, his mind was still muddled. Even in this short period from dusk to night, he had insomnia for the first time in his life.

  She is going back to get married.

  But thinking carefully, isn't this something that's been known all along? Moreover, it seems like this has nothing to do with oneself, this is the duchess's matter, and one can't seem to find any reason to intervene.

  No matter how good the feelings are between others and you, they are all just fellow travelers on the road of life for a short time, and in the end, everyone has their own path to follow. This is something that an old adventurer from his village once told him, and he always thought it made sense. Moreover, he had long since decided what kind of path he wanted to take.

  The thing that had been weighing on his conscience for a long time has also been made up for. After settling the matter here, he wandered around alone, while she was still the Duchess, and naturally there were things that the Duchess should do.

  This principle is indeed extremely perfect, even if a higher philosopher cannot have a more advanced interpretation, but Asa still has a vague and uncertain feeling in his heart.

  The dry monsoon winds of the barbaric highlands blew in, carrying with them the smell of charcoal and iron. The sound of hammering grew clearer beside his ears. Up ahead were the streets where the workshops gathered, inside which the craftsmen and beastman apprentices worked diligently. Asa suddenly thought of his hometown, and amidst his melancholy he suddenly missed the meals his father would prepare for him whenever he returned home; for the first time, he felt that a person's freedom wasn't necessarily a good thing.

  This isn't the time to think about that. Beyond this street of workshops is the City Hall, where Lord Sedros and General Gru are staying, he had already inquired clearly this afternoon. Asa calmed himself down, forcefully reminding himself that now was not the occasion for idle thoughts.

  As he walked down the street, Asa became more cautious. Ahead was already a silent and deserted area, the air of the desolate highlands was exceptionally clean, even on moonless nights, one could vaguely see the outline of the tall city hall in front by starlight. He tiptoed towards it.

  But since she's already about to get married, why did she come out? She said it was to retrieve her backpack from the swamp, but thinking about it, that's impossible to recover. Is she trying to come out and have fun everywhere? Why did she come find me? I like her, does she also like me...

  Suddenly a strange smell enveloped my whole body. It was a bit like the smell of urine and armpits mixed together, but the impact on the nose was hundreds of times more intense, it was a kind of stench unique to carnivores.

  This stench immediately awakened the deepest bloody feeling and fear in Asa's memory. In the lizard swamp, when death was closest, this smell filled his nostrils.

  Asa raised his head, and in front of him, within arm's reach, were two small green balls emitting a faint glow. The werewolf's breath was blowing right onto his face, and he almost bumped into the werewolf's chest.

  His two legs completely out of control, arbitrarily gathered the strength of his body and violently bounced backwards. However, before he even landed, he crashed into a fluffy torso, and both hands also fell into the tight grip of a pair of huge claws. The stench was even more intense.

  The werewolf behind him held his arms like a human would hold a toddler who had just learned to walk, letting his feet barely touch the ground. He could feel the hot air from the wolf's mouth slowly dripping down his ear and neck, slipping into his clothes. His usual fighting spirit was nowhere to be seen, he almost felt like he could hear the sound of his bones shattering into pieces in his hands, tension and fear stiffened every inch of his muscles, rendering him immobile.

  The wolfman in front walked closer, burying his face and almost touching Asa's face, the smell of residual fishiness and food feedback could be smelled from his mouth.

  The werewolf spoke, and due to the shape of its mouth, it struggled to speak human language. It said slowly and awkwardly: "Humans... at night... don't... wander around everywhere. Here... at night... no one is allowed to approach." The sharp fangs could be vaguely seen appearing and disappearing with each word.

  A Sa exerted himself to move his stiff neck and nodded. Then the two wolfmen picked him up like a little kid and put him down at the edge of the workshop street, pointing in the direction of the hotel, turned around and disappeared into the darkness again.

  Asa walked slowly towards the inn, cold sweat dripping down his face in big drops, and even the back of his heart was soaked.

  The inn is just up ahead. He could just go back like normal, sleep, and then follow the thieves back safely tomorrow. As long as he reports the situation here carefully, Sanduru won't really make him risk his life, and Bishop Ronis will surely nod and say "you've done your best". Indeed, who can steal a book in this kind of environment? They must have their own way to get the book back, it's not his problem anymore.

  Are you going back?

  Asa suddenly walked towards a house next to him, using his hands and feet to climb up the uneven outer wall and jumped onto the roof in just a few moves. The roofs here were all made of very thick wooden frames, with wooden boards on top and finally covered with a thick layer of dry grass, which was very comfortable to step on.

  As he lifted his head, everything else seemed to fade away except for the stars in the sky. The entire universe felt like it was wrapped around him by the starry sky. In the highland air, the largest stars were as big as thumbs, and the smaller ones were countless, densely filling every corner of the sky all the way to the horizon. Beyond that, there must be even more breathtaking beauty. Under this boundless and majestic scene, Asa's heart completely calmed down, and he sat cross-legged on the ground.

  I have degenerated myself.

  He originally had the vigilance of a wild cat, able to react greatly to even the slightest danger at any time, and also had the ferocity and fighting spirit of a wolf, always ready to pour out his fangs and murderous intent towards anyone who dared to threaten him. However, as he traveled from Braka to here with Xiao Yi, that strange and wonderful feeling began to envelop his sharp sensitivity, even his fighting spirit gradually becoming dull and lazy. Even when he first arrived in this city and saw so many beastmen, and then heard that the goods couldn't be delivered, although he was also surprised and vigilant, it wasn't enough to pierce through the gentle atmosphere that surrounded all his feelings, not enough to stimulate him to become tense. It was as if throwing stones into a bucket of thick honey wouldn't create any ripples.

  He had just learned that she would be getting married after her return, and his soul was not at peace. He didn't notice the two werewolves at all. If they wanted to kill him, it would be as easy as crushing a chicken. Not to mention the strength to resist, he didn't even have the slightest will to fight back.

  Death. This concept returned to his mind with unparalleled clarity, driving away all the thoughts that had been swirling in his mind just now without leaving any residue.

  It is only when one is truly faced with 'death' that one realizes that they have nothing. Any object in front of this concept immediately turns to dust. All human language, wisdom, and emotions are but a puppet show compared to the terrifying reality of death. Even the most beautiful feelings collapse under its power.

  But when a person dares to confront 'death' directly, it will wash away all the tiny and complicated particles in thoughts and emotions like a flood, leaving only the most simple and essential things. Then people can become stronger.

  This is strength like death.

  Asa knew he had to go get the book back. It wasn't a task or responsibility, but just a desire for self-recognition and affirmation, to make himself clearly aware that he was still alive, still the same as before, existing in this world with his own posture and way.

  Asa closed his eyes, straightened his waist, and placed his hands on his knees to start meditating.

  Ever since I heard from Bishop Ronis about the origins of this meditation technique, I haven't dared to practice it again. Now that I'm trying to get the book back, I don't care about that anymore.

  He soon became completely immersed in the ocean of self-consciousness, where he could see a brilliant sun rising from his lower abdomen, using its powerful heat to melt his entire body. He felt as if he was becoming boundless and infinite along with the starry sky above his head.