Berserk: The Prophet

Chapter 294 Qualified Leaders

"Hey, you've come to the right person, young master."

A smile suddenly broke out on the old man's wrinkled face, and a glimmer of light shone in his cloudy eyes. He reached into the cloth bag beside him and took out a yellowed animal skin, which he carefully unfolded.

“When I was young, I was also a patrolman in this village. This is a map passed down from my ancestors, which marks the most hidden paths in the mountains. Even the Midland army and lords do not know about them.”

“However…” the old man’s tone shifted, his eyes becoming meaningful, “this map isn’t just for show.”

Green frowned slightly, alarm bells ringing in his mind. He remained outwardly calm, reaching for the money pouch at his waist. "How much do you want? As long as it's within my power."

The old man waved his hand, "Money isn't very useful to our poor village. Aside from paying taxes, it's not even as valuable as a bag of grain..."

"I have only one condition: when you leave, take one person with you—my grandson." With that, the old man called out to a boy chopping wood nearby, "Loran, come here!"

The boy named Loran put down his axe, dusted off the wood chips, and strode over.

Green looked up and saw the hideous old scar on the boy's neck, and the way the boy looked at Green had a sharpness and wariness that didn't belong to his age.

The old man sighed and slowly said, "This child really couldn't stay in our village anymore. His father offended the lord and was beaten to death, and his mother too..."

"...Alas, ever since we changed lords, the entire village has been under surveillance. Disaster could strike any day now. Loran has always been clever. If he goes with you, he might have a chance to survive."

Loran clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, saying, "I can fight, I can scout, and I can even find food for you in the mountains! Just let me leave here, I don't want any wages!"

Green remained silent for a moment.

His team did need manpower, but not a boy not much older than himself...

A familiar that wasn't summoned by him would only make him feel constrained in his actions...

However, the map was too important to him, and he saw something familiar in Loran's eyes—a burning desire for revenge.

“…This.” Green looked hesitant and was about to refuse when he was interrupted by the village chief’s words.

"You must be lacking a good servant and playmate, right? I'm begging you on my knees, please give this child a way out!" Seeing that Green's expression was not right, the old man immediately prostrated himself in front of Green.

"He can read; he will surely become your most loyal right-hand man in the future!!"

Green was startled and hurriedly went to help the old man's hunched back.

The rough linen sleeve brushed against his wrist, and the calluses on the old man's palms, like sandpaper, gripped his still small wrist more firmly than iron clamps.

Those were cloudy and numb eyes, but now they were filled with tears, making him look as if he had been driven to the brink of despair.

That was an expression that no one could refuse. They truly had no other choice. Who would willingly entrust their bloodline to a complete stranger?

“I beg for your mercy, young master.”

Although the reason was far-fetched, the old man had already said so much that Green had no choice but to sigh.

"Alright, I'll let him join my team, but I don't need a teammate who's blinded by revenge."

Upon hearing Green's words, Loran nodded firmly with a determined look in his eyes: "I will control myself and will not let my personal problems affect the team."

Green looked at the stubborn boy in front of him and nodded, hoping that he would keep his word.

Seeing that Green had agreed, the old man gratefully kowtowed to Lorraine, then stood up and pulled Lorraine aside, whispering, "Child, work hard with the young master, and don't waste this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Lorraine responded emphatically.

Green took the map from the old man, examined it carefully, and a new plan formed in his mind. He looked at Loran and said, "From now on, you're a member of my team. Go pack your things and say goodbye properly. We'll set off in a few days."

“...Hmm.” Loran quickly ran back into the house to check her few belongings.

Meanwhile, the surrounding villagers were also watching Green's side with numb indifference.

The team members, though somewhat surprised by Loran's addition, didn't say much as they gathered around the campfire, while Jacob remained lying on the stretcher.

"...Mommy, when can we eat? I'm so hungry." A little girl's soft voice broke the silence.

It was already late, and in order to entertain the unexpected arrival of Green and his group, each family had saved up their meager food and did not eat dinner.

“…” Green fell silent.

...Maybe I should leave tomorrow. I was originally thinking of replenishing my supplies and resting here, but I didn't expect these villagers to be living in even more difficult circumstances than I imagined.

Indeed, the mountainous area is rugged and remote, and this village is almost completely isolated from the world. Presumably, they rely entirely on self-sufficiency for food and are still exploited by the lord. They have to think about whether they have enough wheat seeds for next year before they can eat any.

"...Ugh."

Green finally understood the true meaning of the saying in his textbook, "When a dynasty prospers, the people suffer; when a dynasty falls, the people suffer."

“…Go and get the rations left on the horses and cook them. Let the villagers eat with us, and we’ll try to set off tomorrow.” Green flipped through the map. His intuition, from his time as a spy under Cadi, told him that this seemed to be the border between Midland and Juda.

He also remembered that when he bypassed the defense zone from the Fierce Bear Regiment and reached the border between Midland and Juda, there were such mountainous areas nearby.

It's very similar to the area around Orl and Rhinewood Castle, but it's currently under the control of Juda... It really is a bittersweet memory.

Since there's internal strife in Juda and I'm being hunted down as a spy, I should put the search for Guts on hold for now. As one of the main characters in this world, I shouldn't die so easily.

...Moreover, he inadvertently solved the problem of helping Gus change.

Let's just head straight to the Midlands and open two factories to secure a stable source of income.

As soon as Grimm finished speaking, the griffin rider in the group hesitated for a moment, then spoke up to dissuade him, "Sir, those rations aren't enough to last until the next supply point..."

Before he could finish speaking, Green raised his hand to interrupt him.

"It's alright, this is my own decision. I won't let you go hungry on the road because of this." Green naturally knew what they were worried about. After all, it was these soldiers who were truly fighting for him, not these poor farmers.

"And please do not forget the honor of being a griffin rider."

He couldn't let the soldiers fighting for him go into battle hungry, but he also wouldn't oppress a group of impoverished farmers.

...This is the awareness of someone who was born under the five-star red flag.

Money isn't always everything; at least for this remote village, readily available food is even more important than money.

"...Yes, Your Excellency."

"I will abide by the code of chivalry that I made with the late king, and follow your teachings." The knight lowered his head in shame, beating his chest with his right hand in repentance.

“It’s alright, Corribipo. That’s just how the world is, and we should both do our part to be kind.” Perhaps having gained some insight, Green spoke from the bottom of his heart.

The knights and villagers around him were also watching Green at this moment, as if his figure was no longer as immature as his physical body, but had gained a unique radiance belonging to a leader.

[Gained Trait: Qualified Leader, Charisma +3, (Troop Cap +60, Personal Guard Cap +6)]

Hearing the system notification, it seemed that good deeds had finally been rewarded.