After hearing Yun Zhe's words, Jia Li's mood quickly plummeted. Yun Zhe, also in a bad mood because of Akdina's departure, had no desire to comfort the girl before him. He bowed and said, "You must be from the Hunter Association. If there's anything, just talk to Gao. I have other things to do, so I'll be leaving now." With that, he left hastily, ignoring Jia Li's hesitant expression.

Because of his extremely poor attitude towards Baron Yun Zhe, although Yun Zhe did not express displeasure, Glass still made significant concessions in the subsequent negotiations. Even the headcount fee was nearly 20% less than in other cities.

Gao was pleased, but considering that he was indeed short of money and Yun Zhe had given him specific instructions, he agreed to everything except for the money.

However, Glass wasn't willing to buy into it. Gao's attitude meant that the Hunter Association had to first fund its own establishment in the city before it could sustainably exploit the resources. If Glass agreed to such conditions, he would be ridiculed by his peers. Moreover, the Hunter Association wouldn't agree to it either.

It wasn't until this moment, seeing Glass's amusingly angry yet helpless expression, that Gao understood the deeper meaning behind Yun Zhe's words, "As long as it involves money, just drag it out as long as possible."

That sentence basically means "no." Gao scratched his head, deeply regretting his own stupidity.

Clearly, the plan to establish a Hunter's Guild in Dorgnitzburg had fallen through. To show his goodwill, Gao told Carrie that Gerald was not only alive but also working under Lord Yunzhe. However, this news did not cheer Carrie up. She merely nodded mechanically and offered a professional smile.

Yun Zhe, who had already fled far away, returned to his tent. He did not ask Ellie why she had lied to him, but instead told her that Akdina had already left.

"What reason did you use to convince her?" Ellie asked, a little nervous but still trying to remain calm.

“There’s no real reason. If she stayed here and was fighting and killing every day, it wouldn’t be good for anyone. Obviously, she didn’t want to live in such a fearful environment. Besides, if I didn’t take good care of her and something happened, I would be very upset. So I persuaded her very easily.”

Ellie nodded, not wanting to put Yun Zhe in a difficult position. Sure enough, her judgment was correct; that was exactly what the woman was thinking.

But then she thought, wouldn't that make her seem very petty? With that thought, Ellie became cautious. She secretly glanced at Yun Zhe, who still had that expressionless demeanor, revealing nothing about him.

“Then, I’ll go talk to Gerald. I haven’t seen him in a long time. I wonder how well he’s been controlling himself lately,” Ellie said tentatively.

“Ah, go ahead, it’s perfect that the three of us can have dinner together tonight. And then there’s something else, I have to leave here again to go south to fight. If you’re not in a hurry to go back, how about staying and helping Gao?” Yun Zhe replied in a low voice while tidying up his table.

Ellie's heart, which had just settled, was immediately gripped by anxiety again. "Southward? Who are they going to fight this time? I heard the Belvedere army had already withdrawn?"

“Duke Asini, go and test him out. Don’t worry. I know my own limitations.” Yun Zhe gave a big smile, but this did not put Ellie at ease.

With a woman's intuition, Ellie knew that Yun Zhe was controlling his emotions. And the fact that he had invited her and Jerok to dinner alone that evening made her imagination run wild. She felt she couldn't stay in the tent any longer, so she nodded and hurriedly left the scene.

"Oh right," Yun Zhe called out as Ellie was about to leave, "Akdina apologizes to you. She really didn't mean it. At the time, she was just a young vampire who had been transformed for less than two years."

Ellie stopped at the tent entrance, neither turning around nor speaking. She remained silent for a full half minute before nodding and leaving the tent.

Seeing Ellie leave, Yun Zhe slumped into his chair and pulled out the letter Akdina had written to him. He stared at the letter, lost in thought, pondering whether what he had just done was right.

The letter briefly recounted Akdina's experiences over the past two days and her realization that staying by Yun Zhe's side would likely cause him trouble sooner or later. It made no mention of an apology.

Yun Zhe let out a long sigh of relief, suddenly feeling envious of those skilled at smoothing things over and mediating disputes. He wondered if things would be different if he were like them.

Meanwhile, Akdina quietly left Dorgnitzburg and headed north, intending to visit Donicburg, which Yun Zhe often mentioned, to see the country established by the Aruru people, and then return to her homeland.

This route was a suggestion Yun Zhe had given her during a casual chat. This route is far from the battlefield and relies on the Elf Forest. Although it is a bit roundabout, it is relatively safe.

Not far from the bustling construction site, Akdina saw countless makeshift tents and wooden houses lining both sides of the road. The houses stretched along the road, a vast expanse that seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see.

Akdina stopped in her tracks, pondering whether to cross now or wait until nightfall to sneak through. She genuinely had no intention of disturbing anyone, but her striking figure and appearance always drew unwanted attention. Now, traversing this crowded, seemingly endless stretch of land required careful consideration.

After all, Yun Zhe once said, "It's better to avoid trouble than to cause trouble."

Just as she hesitated, a cheer came from the tent area. Akdina looked into the distance and saw three carriages slowly approaching, loaded with all kinds of food.

A group of children and women quickly surrounded the three carriages. The driver seemed used to this and remained calm, simply shouting at the children not to secretly take the food.

The carriage stopped on the side of the road and began distributing various kinds of food. Women and some elderly people lined up to receive the food, unlike the earlier rush.

Akdina was curious. The orderly and disciplined appearance looked very familiar to her, but she had only seen it in the army. The fact that she could see it in such a chaotic place, which resembled a refugee camp, piqued her interest.

As if explaining to Akdina why everyone was so neatly dressed, a disheveled man suddenly darted out of a tent, ran towards a nearby carriage, grabbed a huge loaf of bread, and sprinted towards Akdina, tearing pieces of bread and stuffing them into his mouth as he ran.

Akdina squinted at the unlucky fellow running towards her, and revealed her first smile of the day.