Work Prophet
Chapter 449 - 67: Follow the Light

Chapter 449: Chapter 67: Follow the Light

To avoid unnecessary complications, Jude and the others left Lake City at the crack of dawn the next day, resuming their journey to the Royal Capital.

Abus had awoken the previous night and had since become a different person. He no longer clamored about becoming a knight’s attendant, and became quiet and withdrawn, barely touching the food and water given to him.

Ireya had Ruby take care of him for two days, but no matter how much Ruby tried to persuade him, Abus remained indifferent.

Therefore, the group stayed half a day longer in a small village where Thomas found a herbalist nearby. The herbalist checked Abus and forcefully administered several bowls of herbal medicine, yet his condition showed no improvement.

Since they still needed to press on to the Royal Capital, the Lady could not spare more time to treat Abus and decided to leave him in the village.

They found a generous-looking family to take him in and left them with seven gold coins.

Lady Ireya went to bid farewell to Abus and found the boy with sunken eyes and a vacant face in the mud-and-chicken-dung-covered longhouse.

Miss Rabbit stepped closer and said, "We are leaving now. Your body is in no condition for long journey, so stay here and get some rest.

"Whatever you decide to do in the future, whether it be seeking revenge or still wanting to become a knight’s attendant... you must first stay alive. Because only by living can there be hope."

After speaking, seeing Abus still silent on his straw mat, the Lady did not stay longer, turning and walking out of the house.

But at that moment, the space beside her suddenly twisted.

If Abus hadn’t been staring blankly ahead, he might have missed that fleeting fluctuation.

It was as if an invisible force had frozen the drifting dust in the air right there.

Then, a figure clad in a black suit from a foreign land appeared beside Ireya.

The exact spot where he stood coincided with a hole in the roof.

A beam of sunlight shone through the hole, casting a golden outline on his face.

Abus paused for about half a second, then suddenly knelt down and burst into tears.

Before Li Yu could grasp the situation, he asked Ireya beside him, "Who is this?"

"A child we found in Lake City. Both his parents are dead, and the Marier family’s guards were after him, so I took him out of the city," the Lady explained.

"Oh." Li Yu thought for a moment, pulled a chocolate bar from the "Traveler Exclusive Type III Backpack", unwrapped it, and handed it to Abus.

"You look a bit hypoglycemic, have some chocolate to fill your stomach for now."

Even though Li Yu spoke in a language foreign to that land, strangely, Abus could clearly understand the meaning of his words.

Though he did not know what hypoglycemia or chocolate was.

Abus instinctively reached out, took the suspicious-looking dark stick, and placed it in his mouth.

It was a bizarre taste the boy had never experienced before: a bit bitter, a bit astringent, but mainly sweet, with the richness of nuts and a certain indescribable soft, sticky texture.

After giving out the chocolate bar, Li Yu left the longhouse with Ireya.

He didn’t pay much attention to the young boy in the house. However, as they walked a distance, Li Yu realized that Abus was still unsteadily following them.

"What is it, do you need something else?" Li Yu asked.

"I, I wish to follow you," the youth mimicked the manner of the Lord Knights he had seen, kneeling on one knee.

It had been two days since Abus had first spoken, and though his body still wobbled, his tone was very firm.

"Do you know who I am?" Li Yu raised an eyebrow.

"You are Merlin, Prophet Merlin of the Double Rest Sect! The representative of Saturday in the mortal world."

"You must be a follower of Pisya. Knowing who I am, do you still wish to follow me?"

"Yes," Abus replied without hesitation.

"Why?"

"Because... light."

"Light?" The youth’s answer also surprised Li Yu.

"There is light about you—I saw it. Last year, my father took me on a trip, delivering pigs to the neighboring Gray Pine Castle. One night, we missed the village where we could stay and had to sleep in the wilderness."

"As dusk approached, my father planned to collect some firewood from a nearby forest and instructed me to watch over the pigs. I was scared, scared that once he left, I would get lost in the darkness.

"But my father told me not to fear, that when lost, I should simply follow the light."

Abus paused, "So, I wish to follow you."

"A fascinating answer."

Li Yu looked at the wobbling youth and thought of the stray dog he had encountered not long ago in the park’s green belt.

Li Yu had casually thrown the half-eaten roast sausage to it, and thereafter, the little yellow dog followed him all the way to the office building, reluctant to leave.

So, Li Yu had Zhang Yanlin contact the park’s property management to inquire if anyone had lost a dog.

Upon receiving a negative response, Li Yu had Zhang Yanlin take the mongrel to the hospital for a full check-up, prescribed medication, bought pet supplies, and eventually kept it in the office building.

"How are you feeling now?" Li Yu asked Abus. "We still have to go to the Royal Capital, and cannot delay too long for you."

"My body’s fine. With food and water, I should recover quickly," Abus said.

"Then all right, get yourself ready, have some food, and then we will leave," Li Yu said.

Adding one more follower might not seem too significant for the current state of the Double Rest Sect, but Li Yu had no reason to refuse.

About half an hour later, the group set off again from the small village. Afterward, they increased their pace and left the western frontier in approximately half a month.

Once out of the western frontiers, Ireya and the others heaved a sigh of relief, visibly more relaxed, for this meant they had left the territory influenced by the Blood Moon Association.

Although there were still some followers of Pisya outside the western frontiers, they were fewer in number, and the risk of assassination and ambush was significantly lower.

The group traveled for another half day and arrived at a place called Rich Corner, where Ireya decided to rest for two days, giving everyone a break.

Even while traveling, the followers of Saturday still needed to adhere to the church’s various rules. Of course, if pressed for time, they could record and make up for it later.

After finding an inn in the town, Abus insisted that Thomas teach him horse riding and swordsmanship, while Jude decided to find a tavern for a drink and see if there was any fun to be had there.