Chapter Six: The Wolf and the Man

After sending away two prison guards, Ye Zheng turned around unexpectedly and found that Kahun was staring at him intently. His gaze was so strong that it was impossible to ignore.

Ye Zheng hesitated and asked, "Why are you looking at me?"

What he really wanted to ask was, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Kahun pushed the bowl of steaming bean rice toward Ye Zheng and said, "You eat first."

"...?" Ye Zheng was very confused. "What’s going on? Do you have someone test your food for poison before you eat?"

A wolf boy living so fastidious? That can’t be right. He had watched dozens of episodes of "Man and Nature" but never heard of such a custom among wolves.

Kahun didn’t understand the meaning of “testing for poison,” but from Ye Zheng’s expression and tone, he could tell they had a misunderstanding.

The boy said firmly, "I’m injured. The food is for you."

"You’re injured and yet you’re giving me your food..." Ye Zheng echoed with amusement, but stopped halfway through the sentence as realization dawned on him.

Of course.

There was no tradition of respecting the old and caring for the young in the wolf pack. The elderly, weak, sick, or injured would be left with scraps after the strong wolves had eaten.

Kahun was injured and therefore felt obliged to surrender his food to the "alpha."

Ye Zheng, finding it amusing, pushed the bowl of bean rice back to Kahun. The prison guards were not strict about food; everyone used large coarse pottery bowls, wide enough to fit the fist of a grown man. One bowl was enough for Kahun to eat without sharing.

When Ye Zheng sat back down in the corner, he suddenly felt uneasy.

From Kahun’s logic, if he was injured and surrendered his food, what would happen if Ye Zheng himself got hurt tomorrow?

Ye Zheng asked Kahun this question with a strange expression.

As expected, Kahun nodded without hesitation and straightforwardly replied, "Once, I ate six bowls every meal."

Ye Zheng: "..."

Six bowls... doesn’t that make you full?

Considering the environment in the fighting arena, the warriors there probably wouldn't be so considerate or friendly. Ye Zheng asked again, "When you say ‘give,’ do they just hand over their food to you?"

Kahun said simply, "I beat them up."

Ye Zheng: "..."

No food after being injured and also getting a good thrashing. No wonder Kahun’s former roommates are all dead. Looking at the life they've had, what kind of days were those?

For his own sake, Ye Zheng decided to give Kahun a little moral education while he was still injured and more amenable.

Whether it would work or not, it was worth a try.

"The rules among humans are different from those in wolf packs. For example, if I see you injured, I will clean your wounds but won’t take your food."

"You were born of a human woman. You are a wolf in the pack, but among people, why not try being human?"

Kahun furrowed his thick, dark brows and looked at Ye Zheng bluntly.

"You’re wrong. Wolves lick each other’s wounds; here, only you and the scholar clean my wounds. You say humans don’t steal each other’s food; here, only you two don’t steal my rice. The pack’s alpha sets the rules, and here, the boss does too. It’s the same."

After a moment, Kahun added, "This place is small and damp, and people are boring. It’s not as good as the wolf pack."

"..."

Ye Zheng was speechless for a moment.

Kahun was unsociable, didn’t understand human language or social graces.

But he had spoken the plainest truth about this ruthless world: the one with the strongest fist survives.

Looking around the stone-paved enclosure, like a prison cage, and reflecting on his own turbulent past three years, Ye Zheng sighed, "You’re not wrong... when hungry, human nature and wolf nature aren’t much different."

He had seen parents eating their own children and corpses scattered everywhere. Once, he had almost been caught to be cooked.

These refugees wandering the wilderness often trekked a hundred miles or more, only to be met by arrows and guards at the city gates instead of open arms or porridge kitchens.

Occasionally, carriages passed by, their brocade curtains lifted to reveal the rosy, well-nourished, carefree faces inside.

Those high-ranking adults looked at the refugees not as fellow beings but as a pack of unshakable jackals.

Before Ye Zheng could finish his thoughts, Kahun emphasized beside him, "You didn’t steal my rice, but you took my sword... well, wolves don’t have swords to steal."

Ye Zheng: "..."

Looking at Kahun’s calm and clear expression, she wasn’t sure if he was holding a grudge.

Given Kahun’s strong learning ability, she felt that if she got injured, life wouldn’t be very good...

——————————

The next day, Kahun’s condition improved somewhat.

After a peaceful night of non-interference, the tension, unfamiliarity, and testing between Kahun and Ye Zheng from their first meeting had eased considerably.

Ye Zheng examined Kahun’s wounds and found that even though she had only done simple dressing without any medicinal ointment, the young man’s injuries were already beginning to heal.

Youth was indeed a blessing.

Breakfast was again a big bowl of steaming mixed grain bean rice, accompanied by a dish of wilted greens soaked in salty brine. Ye Zheng and Kahun sat in opposite corners of the cell, each eating quietly without disturbing the other.

After the meal, Kahun wanted to lie down in the straw and nap, but Ye Zheng stopped him swiftly.

Such a harmonious atmosphere would be a waste not to gather some information.

She asked Kahun about the specific procedures of the gladiatorial fights and gained some insight.

There were two types of fights: single combat and group combat.

Single combat was usually decided spontaneously when the guards suddenly came to fetch someone, while group combat was announced in advance. But whether single or group, death was inevitable once you stepped into the arena.

In single combat, the opponent must die; in group combat, all opponents must be killed.

A particularly sinister aspect was that group fights often divided the occupants of the same cell into two opposing teams, meaning the battle began even before entering the arena.

Kahun’s former roommates, including the scholar who taught him to speak, had died in such internal conflicts.

Whenever someone was taken to the arena, guards would come to fetch them. According to Kahun, the arena was a sturdy building, about the time it took to burn an incense stick away from the cells.

Hearing this, Ye Zheng couldn’t help but wonder: Kahun had a sword and was escorted by only two guards—had he tried to escape?

Kahun answered honestly.

He had.

Shortly after arriving, on the way to the arena, he skewered the two guards with one sword each and ran off with his bloodied slender sword in hand.

Floating Life Island was quite large, and with his strong stealth skills and qualities, he managed to reach the edge of the island.

Then... nothing more.

Kahun said expressionlessly, "I can’t swim."

—Kahun, a forest-born landlocked wolfman.

Ye Zheng: "..."

Embarrassed, her first thought was: dogs naturally swim, so wolves should too, right?

But then she realized: no, Kahun isn’t really a wolf!

In any case, Kahun splashed about in the sea, nearly drowned, and barely managed to crawl ashore, where he began guerrilla warfare against the island’s natives.

He didn’t awaken any card talents but had a sword. He hid on the island for three days and nights, clashing multiple times with pursuing guards. He was injured, and many guards died.

Perhaps unable to tolerate his subordinates’ repeated failures, the fourth day someone finally captured Kahun with ease.

Kahun recalled and gestured, "That person... he was very flashy."

"Flashy?"

Ye Zheng quickly reviewed the images of the leaders she had seen during the palace trial, finally focusing on Mu Yaoguang, who was dressed in bright, elaborate clothes.

She imitated Mu Yaoguang’s gait and pretended to shake a fan. "Like this?"

"Yes."

So it was indeed Mu Yaoguang.

After seeing how the island guards feared him deeply, Ye Zheng had suspected Mu Yaoguang was formidable, but she hadn’t expected him to be this strong.

After being captured, Kahun was strangely not punished.

However, having blood on his hands, the new guards feared and hated him, deliberately making his life difficult by assigning troublesome roommates.

Then the roommates all died.

Kahun became the "wolf" whom the guards mentioned with wary expressions.

Since Kahun’s escape attempt, all fighters were shackled and heavily chained on the way to the arena.

Ye Zheng pieced together the information slowly.

She suddenly thought of something and asked Kahun, "By the way, when you fought, how many spectators were watching?"

"Spectators?" Kahun repeated.

Ye Zheng thought he might not understand the word “spectator,” but Kahun shook his head decisively.

"There were no spectators."

"Never any spectators."

"Not once."

Ye Zheng’s eyes widened in surprise.

Before she could ask more, the guards’ footsteps echoed down the corridor.

After a moment, a short guard carrying chains rounded the corner and lazily knocked on their cell door.

"Little girl, come out."

"This fight’s yours."

At the same time, Ye Zheng’s vision lit up with the system interface.

[Side Quest: Win a Duel

Quest Description: Suddenly, a spot in a duel has been assigned to you. Your luck is uncertain.

Even a wolfman like Kahun knows that duels have only two outcomes: life or death.

For your life, your future, and the dawn you wish to see, you must advance with your sword.

Please win the duel!

Quest Reward: Card Draw ×1]