Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 397 - 23 Welcome Party_1

Chapter 397: Chapter 23 Welcome Party_1

"Whoosh." The flames roared even fiercer, to loud cheers from spectators. Seven or eight shirtless Cow Clan men gathered around the fire pit. Dressed in traditional beast fur attire around their waist and adorned with beautiful trinkets wrapped around their twin horns, their gleaming golden horn-tips were noteworthy. With torches held high in their right hands and unique dance steps trod by their horn-like feet, the rhythmic clattering against the earlier laid stone slabs, creating peculiar percussions, added an interesting flavor to the lively evening party.

"Roar, roar, roar!" Cow Clan men roared in unison, torches raised to the sky. Spectating Beastmen, men and women alike, let out deafening cheers. Pungent liquor flowed into the mouths of the tribespeople like water, yet they seemed unaffected, still bellowing in excitement.

In the most prestigious place around the fire pit, there were no beast skins hastily laid out for seating like those of the Beastmen. Instead, to accommodate human habits, tables and chairs were used. Several narrow, rectangular tables were arranged in a concave formation, each person occupying one. This tradition of accommodating humans with such tables dated back over two thousand years and is still upheld in this secluded tribe where human visitors were rare.

Five people, including Marcia, sat smack middle of the banquet. Accompanied by the tribe leader, the priest, and a few elders on either side. As for Parqi from the Tiger Clan, who had interacted warmly with everyone after a few days of togetherness, he was fortunate enough to join the table at the very end. A fire pit, separate from the concave banquet, had a stag hunted by Diana, now moved here after initial roasting, being meticulously attended to by the tribe’s finest Rabbit Clan female chef. The butchered stag was meticulously smeared with secret oil and spices, allowing the flavorings to easily permeate the meat, making it tastier and tender.

In reality, in accordance with the initial arrangements, the guests’ hunt was supposed to be exclusively for them to savor, and the accompanying individuals were to consume their tribe’s food. However, Pannis decided to have their hunt shared with others. Despite the elders’ repeated opposition, Pannis insisted on her request. Unaware of tribal customs, the girls initially were puzzled, even worried that such insistence might cause a conflict. However, putting their trust in Pannis, they didn’t stand in her way and let her proceed.

Unexpectedly, after Pannis’ insistence, the elders found joy in accepting their proposal, their attitudes and reception manners escalating in intimacy. Only after Pannis quietly explained did the girls realize that in Beastmen customs, although everyone’s hunts should be shared, the hunts of the most distinguished guests should be enjoyed by them alone without others’ covetous. However, correspondingly, if the distinguished guests insist on sharing their hunt with the tribespeople, it means they regard the Beastman as intimate friends instead of strangers. This makes the Beastman incredibly delighted, even seeing those who do so as their blood brothers through thick and thin.

Thus, when Pannis directed the chef to cut up the robust stag and had it distributed to each tribal member, the entire tribe got riled up. What seemed like a procedural welcome event turned into a revelry participated in by every member of the tribe due to this gesture. In gaining countless sincerities, Catherine, Lina, and Vivian inadvertently garnered a table full of food. Every Beastman family that received deer meat brought their best food to the fire pit assembly, intending to share it with their human brothers and sisters. If it weren’t for the elders’ loud reprimand and the girls’ earnest persuasion, the mountain of food would probably drown everyone’s table. To manage the situation, Catherine proposed to have everyone’s food around the fire pit so everyone can share. Then the welcome party transformed into a grand feast by the entire tribe.

Inevitably, Katherine’s impromptu handling suits the Beastmen’s preferences—a fact evident by the Beastmen elders’ degree of smiles on their faces. The grinning white-haired old men unsettled the girls, who were worried about the likely hilarity-induced tragedy.

"Come, my brothers and sisters." The tribe leader, despite his full head of white hair, was a picture of firm steps. He was holding two large bowls of strong drinks with youngsters behind him carrying additional bowls. Walking over from his designated seat, he said to the adventure team, "We don’t know how to express our gratitude for your willingness to accept our commission and help us deal with this life-or-death issue, and for regarding us simple Beastmen, who are not even professionals, as brothers. Please drink to your heart’s content. After this, if you need help with anything, be it within or beyond this mission, don’t hesitate to ask. We will not decline as long as we are capable."

"Many thanks, chief." Catherine took a bowl from the old man. Although the old man called it a cup of wine, it was larger than the soup bowls usually found in Western-style restaurants. The brimming bowl of wine weighed at least half a kilogram, maybe more, and it had a potent smell. Luckily, Lina and Vivian had valid reasons to abstain from alcohol. The Beastmen respected the special requests of Caster Professionals. Nobody would force a Beastman shaman to drink, for shamans, although sometimes they did drink, had to strictly control the quantity lest it was tantamount to murder. Consequently, nobody served Lina and Vivian alcohol, and the two girls could enjoy the entertainment leisurely. Meanwhile, Pannis’ eyes lit up. The majority of booze-bearing Beastman were blocked by Pannis who chugged large bowl after large bowl like water. Yet, the more she drank, the brighter her eyes got, and the faster she drank, earning the rough Beastmen’s admiration. But there were always people whose toasts Pannis could not intercept. For instance, the old leader this time, Catherine had to take the enormous bowl with a bitter smile, drank it down in one gulp and pretended as if all was normal, and said, "Resolving these issues is our job, so we don’t need your help. We will do our best to solve the issue this time. All you need to do is wait patiently. Rest assured, chief, if there is a need for help, I will definitely come to you and will not be modest."

Catherine did not particularly hate drinking. Or rather, she enjoyed drinking more than most women and could even outdrink many men. But it didn’t mean she liked being fed such strong drinks, let alone having to gulp down half a kilogram or more in one go. In fact, she preferred softer, more mellow spirits or wines with endless aftertaste. So, when the old leader returned to his seat satisfied, Catherine was rinsing her mouth with the fruit juice Pannis had stealthily handed over, a grieved look on her face.

Thankfully, there was food, food served in good time. The chef who had been meticulously roasting the venison finally served up the cooked meat. Each table received a platter. It was a large piece of golden roasted meat, selected from the choicest and most tender parts of the stag’s waist. Right in consistency, the muscle had been cooked to perfection. Cutting into a piece, the golden surface revealed every spot inside had been seared by fire, yet each spot was charred to just the right extent. Simply looking at it could make one savor its juicy texture.

Catherine quickly cut off a piece of meat and shoved it into her mouth to alleviate the spiciness. Only then could she recover her strength. She said to the elderly, "Esteemed elders, we plan to set off for the mountains tomorrow. So, if you could kindly advise our beastman brothers to continue drinking once we are back. Otherwise, if anyone gets drunk, I’m afraid we would have to delay by another day."

Catherine’s reasons had the elderly beastmen worried. After a brief whispered exchange, an elder hastily rose and left. Soon, the elder’s loud reprimands could be heard from the direction of the fire pit. Catherine finally put down her worries. Rubbing her cheeks, which had turned red due to the sting of the wine, she said earnestly, "As for this task, Brother Parqi has already briefed us about the basic situation. I was wondering if the elders have any additional information or special requests?"

The elders looked at each other and finally turned their gaze to the tribe leader. The elderly leader slowly put down his wine bowl and bone and said softly, "Actually, we just want to restore the undead’s territory to what it was two years ago. As long as they don’t disturb the surrounding tribes’ grazing and day-to-day life, we would be satisfied."

"Where did the undead used to roam?" Catherine asked, "Can you tell us the approximate range?"

"Well..." the elderly leader said awkwardly, "Actually, we aren’t too clear about this. After all, whether for grazing, daily life, or travel, no one wants to get close to the place where the undead are active. So, it is really hard to pinpoint the exact location."

"That’s a problem," Catherine explained. "We can only deduce the exact location that has triggered the undead’s ripples if we know where the undead were originally located. Even though Marcia has been inside before and found the gathering point of the undead, considering the subsequent information, that scope is quite large indeed. If we cannot further narrow down the range, I’m afraid it will take quite a bit of time to search."

"The most specific location can only be narrowed down to Blood Mist Mountain, White Ridge Mountain, and Ghost Cry Mountain," the elderly leader said, "For many years now, the undead have frequently appeared on these three mountains. As a result, fewer and fewer people approach them. As to whether the range has changed beyond that, no one knows."

"Uh..." Catherine asked awkwardly, "Where are those three mountains exactly?"

"I know." Marcia lifted her head from the unusually large amount of meat, "I will lead you there tomorrow." (Wait for the next part, and if you like this novel, please support by casting recommendation votes and monthly votes on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users can read on m.qidian.com.)