Berserk: The Prophet

Looking out the window, Green saw a large black bear slowly approaching the yard, its target clearly a few pieces of meat that were not yet completely dried and were hanging on the drying rack.

The black wolf named Luke was baring its teeth and warning it. Upon hearing the sound, Abain grabbed his bow and arrows without hesitation and rushed out.

Green quickly pulled him back: "Don't be reckless."

But Aba Ying said confidently, "This bear often comes to cause trouble, so today is a good day to teach it a lesson."

Left with no other choice, Green found a suitable spear in the room and followed them.

For an archer whose archery skills are already superb, having a wide field of vision and being within range is the key.

Abain was confident that he could kill a robust black bear with a single arrow.

Green's heart leaped into his throat as he nervously watched the scene outside. The black bear ignored Luke's warning and continued to approach the drying rack, its eyes fixed on the few tempting pieces of meat.

Meanwhile, Abain had already silently formed a pincer movement with Luke around the black bear, and had drawn his own specially made arrows from the quiver behind him.

Abayin was completely focused, his fingers gripping the bowstring tightly, his eyes sharp, ready to fire at any moment.

Luke howled incessantly, revealing his sharp teeth and baring his teeth in a fierce manner, trying to scare away the black bear. His fur stood on end, displaying a strong defensive posture.

The black bear seemed to be enraged by Luke's roar, and it let out a deep growl that made the leaves around it tremble slightly.

Just as the black bear's attention was drawn to Luke, Abain took a deep breath and suddenly released his grip. The arrow shot out with a "whoosh," flying straight towards the black bear.

The arrow pierced the black bear's right eye with pinpoint accuracy. The bear cried out in pain and frantically swung its front paws, trying to remove the arrow from its eye. However, this only caused more intense pain. The bear could no longer care about anything else; it just wanted to escape from the place that had caused its injury. In its panic, it smashed against the wall, deforming it slightly, before finally scaling the wall and fleeing in disarray.

Luke sniffed the blood on the ground and was about to give chase when Abain called out to him, "Never mind, let it go. It looks like it won't live much longer."

As a top hunter, one can judge a black bear's condition simply by hearing its scream.

Green breathed a sigh of relief: "Your archery skills are indeed superb."

Abain smiled and looked at Luke: "Thanks to Luke's cooperation, we were able to defeat the black bear so smoothly."

The two tidied up the slightly messy courtyard, put the pieces of meat on the drying rack into the house, and then, with some dry rations, they set off again on their journey to the "Dragon's Nest".

......

Meanwhile, Madwood had no intention of letting the matter rest. But there were more important matters for him to attend to, and during his retreat, he met up with several shadowy figures who were monitoring Edward.

Madwood carefully considered the matter. It would take at least two days to reach the dragon's lair from this deep forest, and even if Green's message were to be delivered to Gurenberudo, it would certainly be too late.

Moreover, he had no idea about the Grand Duke's specific plans, so they certainly wouldn't have time to react.

However, it's always good to be on guard. Madwood ordered the shadow hunters who were originally there to monitor Edward to hunt down Green. He observed the conversation between the two for a moment, and seeing Edward's condition had clearly deteriorated, Madwood's eyes flashed. He then quickly rode towards the secret passage leading to the Grand Duke's room.

"My good-for-nothing son... he almost showed the spirit of a king!" He Kun murmured as he listened to the message sent back by Mad Wuxiu.

The falling out between Edward and his mother was expected; the plan to sow discord had succeeded, and everything proceeded as planned by Hokun.

It just... didn't make him happy.

When Hokun heard that Edward had almost strangled Folda to death, only to be interrupted by a Judas spy, he was absolutely furious!

He only had three sons. Due to inbreeding, his eldest and second sons either had personality defects or physical incoordination. Sometimes they even stuttered and would occasionally have convulsions.

Such a severe disability... it's simply impossible for him to be accepted by the people; how could he possibly become the king of this country?

But he was somewhat unwilling to pass the throne to that harlot's son!

Who knows if that mysterious boy is actually the offspring of Fulda's one-night stand with someone else?!

Hokun's eldest and second sons were as short and stout as him, while Edward had long limbs, inherited Folda's good looks, and was not as short as Hokun.

Whether or not they were his offspring... no one knew better than Folda.

He Kun never cared how many children he had, because he never thought he could hold the position of Grand Duke until the day he died of old age, and he lived in fear every day.

Whether the heir is his child or not is no longer important, because he is struggling to survive and has no time to consider cultivating a qualified successor.

Right now, as long as they sell out this country and become a member of the Juda royal family, they can rest easy.

The common people don't matter at all! They're just a bunch of stubborn guys who don't listen to his leadership!

...Go to hell, all of you!!

He Kun thought viciously, cursing the nobles who always wanted to kill him.

Just as Hekun was about to continue fantasizing about how Juda would deal with the nobles after conquering the Duchy of Grant, a guard outside announced, "Your Highness, His Highness Edward requests an audience."

He Kun waved his hand impatiently, "Let him in."

Edward entered the room, his posture upright. He gave a slight bow, but his eyes subtly revealed a hint of suspicion and scrutiny towards the Grand Duke, yet he still spoke, "Father."

Everything is too coincidental...

Edward even had a strange intuition that several major events that had recently happened around him were all orchestrated by Hokun specifically for him.

Seeing his disappointing son's seemingly unaffected and stoic demeanor, He Kun felt a pang of regret. He snorted inwardly, but still maintained a facade of composure and slowly said, "Come with me."

Edward followed Hokun to the Grand Duke's bedroom. As Hokun activated a mechanism, a passageway slowly opened behind a bookcase. This was his first time entering this secret escape route, known only to the Grant royal family.

He Kun walked ahead, while Edward followed silently behind, his doubts growing stronger.

Entering the secret passage, it was dark and damp, exuding an old and worn atmosphere.

...and there seemed to be a slightly strong smell of blood.

The two entered a secret room in the passage. He Kun stopped and turned to look at Edward, slowly saying, "Do you know why I called you here today?"

Edward was silent for a moment, then replied, "Your subject does not know."

He Kun sneered, "Hmph, you don't know? You think you can hide your thoughts from me?"

Edward's heart tightened, but he still tried to remain calm: "Father, I don't understand what you mean."

A ruthless glint flashed in He Kun's eyes: "Don't play dumb with me. Do you think I don't know what happened between Fulda and Gurenberdo?"

Edward gritted his teeth: "Father, Mother..."

"Enough!" He Kun interrupted him. "I don't want to hear you defend her."

The raw, unhealed wounds in his heart were reopened, and Edward felt the pent-up resentment in his chest grow even more suffocating. His heart ached again. He truly hated this family dynamic of mutual scheming...

So he clenched his fists, his hands and feet turning ice-cold, and said nothing more.

He Kun continued, "The situation is complicated now. If you don't want to end up in a miserable state, you'd better obey my arrangements. No matter what, you are still my only son who can inherit the throne!"

“!” Edward’s sharp eyes seemed to show a hint of disbelief upon hearing the Grand Duke’s reply.

...The only one capable of inheriting the throne?

However, Edward's eyes quickly turned to He Kun with suspicion. In the dimly lit room, apart from the faintly flickering torch by the door, the kerosene in the hand lamp provided extremely limited light, barely illuminating a small area around them.

In such dim light, Edward couldn't see the expression on He Kun's face at all.