"Chief, there is no trace of them in the Lost Forest; perhaps they are not in the forest. I want to send more people to search around the Lost Forest."
Leo was not discouraged at all; he had a premonition that they hadn't left yet.
Because the Snow Season was approaching, it wasn't suitable for an Omegina to travel at this time. Moreover, they encountered them while hunting Iron-Horned Beasts; perhaps they were also preparing for the Snow Season.
Chief Raison agreed to his request, letting the Beastmen go back to rest for a day before setting off.
Leo didn't want to wait any longer, but the Chief held him back and said: "Your Papa is a bit worried about you; he hasn't slept well these past few days. Go comfort him first, and also let the other Beastmen rest for a while; we can't rush this."
Leo's Papa, Asa, had indeed been frightened out of his wits by his son returning covered in injuries to report the news; he couldn't be calmed down no matter what and was about to rush out with other Beastmen to search.
Actually, Leo wasn't injured too heavily; while fighting Owen, he tried to avoid vital points, and now he had recovered almost completely. A Beastman's self-healing ability was still very strong.
Leo had to go home to report his safety to his father first, then act like a spoiled child with him. Leo was raised single-handedly by his Papa and was pampered from a young age, making his personality too open; since childhood, he was more mischievous than ordinary Beastmen.
Fortunately, he wasn't spoiled rotten; there was still his strict Daddy, the Chief, keeping him in check, though sometimes his actions were a bit rash.
Meanwhile, Rowan still didn't know he was considered an object needing rescue; he was preparing supplies for the Snow Season with Owen.
Rowan noticed that these past few days, Owen had piled a lot of food and drink into the cave, almost filling up a corner.
Asking about it, he learned that this place also had a winter; after all, he felt the climate now was like summer, not looking like winter was approaching at all.
After living together for a few days, Owen also knew Rowan had no intention of leaving him, so he didn't restrict him as much as before. He no longer locked him up all day; as long as he was active within the cave area, it was fine.
He guessed that the last time Rowan went out without permission was probably because he wanted to wash up but was too shy to say.
It was just seeing Rowan almost harmed by the wild boar that he lost his cool for a moment.
Through the process of living together and understanding each other, Rowan was quite satisfied with this taciturn companion who only knew how to bury his head in work; the most satisfactory point was that he was very obedient.
A bit like his subordinates in the past; as long as it wasn't a request to go out without permission, he almost never objected.
This made Rowan, an Alpha always in a position to give orders, feel extremely comfortable. For example, right now, he wanted Owen to take him to find some more edible vegetables.
Owen didn't say a second word, immediately packed up, and led Rowan on the way.
This time Rowan asked Owen to help him identify some poisonous plants to avoid touching them, while for those non-poisonous ones that looked edible, he put them in his mouth to taste.
Except for a few plants that were too bitter or sour, he picked a little of all edible types to try cooking.
Owen wasn't interested in vegetarian food, but when Rowan needed it, he still helped test for poison.
This also helped him discover Rowan's little prank. When Rowan ate a plant that was too bitter, he would pretend not to distinguish whether it was good or bad with an extremely serious face, then give it to him to taste and choose.
At first, Owen didn't realize Rowan did it on purpose and gave very positive comments: "Throw it away, throw it far away."
He even secretly kicked it once more.
Many times like that, Owen realized something was wrong, but he happily accepted it, taking it to taste every time.
Even when his mouth was numb from bitterness, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve up slightly.
He didn't expect his Omegina to have such a cute side; normally, he looked cold and cool, carrying an inexplicably superior aura.
Unlike ordinary Omeginas who were gentle and delicate. If it were his Papa, he would have rushed into his Daddy's arms to complain about the hardship long ago.
Although he also really wanted Rowan to act spoiled with him, looking at Rowan's appearance, it was really hard to imagine.
However, Owen also admired and liked Rowan's strength very much.
Rowan felt the Beastman beside him basically had no sense of taste; he was so bitter he had to frown, yet Owen had no reaction.
Feeling his mood was still very good; it was really strange.
The two of them stopped and went like that; the plants in the beast-skin bag also gradually increased.
Just as they were preparing to return, a plant half the height of a person's leg with branches covered in bright red, sharp-tailed fruits attracted his attention.
Seeing traces of insect bites on it, it must be edible.
He gently picked a fruit to taste; Rowan had also wised up, only tasting a little bit, then giving the rest to Owen to eat.
Because he seemed to know what this was.
As expected, after chewing a few bites, Owen's face suddenly changed color, his whole face turning red from the spiciness. Even after spitting it out, the spicy taste still rushed to the top of his head, numbing his whole body.
"Pfft!" Rowan couldn't help but burst into laughter. True enough, no sense of taste, but luckily there was still a sensation of pain.
This was chili, but Rowan had never seen its shape, only having drunk water mixed with its powder.
Previously, when going to a place of ice and snow to ambush the Insect Race, many soldiers couldn't stand the cold but were afraid drinking alcohol would ruin the mission.
A comrade suddenly had the idea to mix chili powder with water to drink to ward off the cold; unexpectedly, drinking a cup had some effect, warming up the whole stomach.
After that, everyone in the army got a cup of chili water to ward off the cold; when fighting the Insect Race, their hands also had a bit more strength.
Seeing Rowan laughing happily, Owen didn't hold a grudge; instead, he stared blankly.
He didn't expect Rowan to look so vivid when smiling, as if glowing. He should smile more; it was very beautiful.
Owen's heart suddenly beat wildly; perhaps the chili toxin had soaked into his heart.
Waiting for Rowan to finish laughing, he patted Owen's shoulder: "Are you okay? This thing isn't poisonous; on the contrary, it's a good thing. Let's pick some to take back."
Only then did Owen come back to his senses, helping Rowan pick this thing that had harmed him quite a bit.
When the beast-skin bag was full, he took Rowan and flew towards the cave.
If they hadn't coincidentally met Leo and his group coming to save Rowan on the way today, this would have been a very happy day.
Unfortunately, enemies were bound to meet on a narrow road; halfway back to the cave, Owen and Rowan coincidentally bumped into Leo and his group coming to rescue Rowan.
This time the number of Beastmen coming was not small; as if prepared beforehand, they immediately surrounded Owen, preventing him from flying away.
Before Owen could land, they launched an attack.
Owen also knew a battle was inevitable today; his gaze locked onto Leo leading the charge, rushing straight towards him.
Leo was fearless, meeting the attack, opening his mouth full of fangs to rush straight at Owen's vital spot - the seventh inch. Owen flew to dodge, swinging his tail to sweep.
But because he was worried about Rowan on his back, he held back his strength a bit, so Leo dodged easily and even countered with a claw strike.
The scales on his tail were torn by Leo's sharp claws; drops of blood immediately oozed out.
The Snow Leopard Clan Beastmen on the side saw this and rushed up to besiege, fighting fiercely with Owen.
But fearing for Rowan, they didn't dare to strike too heavily, coordinating tacitly to use a rotational attack tactic to wear down Owen's strength.
Owen could only dodge while counterattacking, sweeping his tail across everything, not letting the Beastmen get close easily.
Both sides were at a stalemate, fighting for a long time.