Because of this painful experience, Leng Yue dared not let Andrew cook anymore.
Every mealtime, Leng Yue would pull Lili aside to help. Actually, Lili wasn't much of a help; Leng Yue just wanted to teach her. If Lili learned to cook, not only would she be spared the torment of terrible cooking in the future, but it would also help her find a better role.
Along the way, Leng Yue had noticed that Lily was in a rather awkward situation. Although they were all ordinary Blood Hunters, Lily lacked skill points, which made her hesitant and insecure in her actions.
Although Sam and Andrew take good care of Lily and don't boss her around, it also makes Lily seem useless and difficult for her to fit into their group.
Lily herself was also feeling uneasy, always appearing timid and hesitant, afraid of offending others. Leng Yue could tell this was exhausting. However, the skills for hunting vampires couldn't be mastered in a day or two, especially since Lily herself wasn't particularly keen on learning them.
In that case, Leng Yue felt it would be more appropriate to position Lily as a support character. So, let's teach Lily to cook first. Once she gains everyone's approval, at least she'll be considered a useful person, right?
"Look, this one takes longer to cook, so we need to put it in earlier. This kind of green vegetable cooks faster, so we'll put it in last." Leng Yue explained to Lily while demonstrating. "Once you have these ready, you can bring it to a boil over high heat. This will contain starch, so you'll need to stir it with a spoon if it cooks for too long. Then you can add salt, taste it, and it should be ready."
Lily looked at Leng Yue with admiration, "Leng, how come you can do everything? You're so amazing!"
Leng Yue tasted it and thought it was good enough, so she placed the pot on the wooden stake. "You can do it too, just do as I say, it's not difficult."
And so, after Leng Yue and Lily cooked their first meal together, and everyone enjoyed it, Lily became Leng Yue's little shadow. Andrew wasn't idle either, constantly pestering Qian Chen to teach him magic.
Suddenly, the person with the most free time in the entire team changed from Lily to Sam.
By now, Lily had completed her apprenticeship, and Andrew could use basic techniques. Qianchen hadn't taught him magic, just some simple martial arts skills. Of course, they weren't just fancy moves; they were all practical close-combat techniques.
They traveled for a whole week before finally reaching the south from the central region.
They had arrived at the Rhine Valley, as mentioned by the Blood Hunter headquarters. However, due to the continuous heavy snow, all tracks on the ground had been hidden. After searching for a long time, they found nothing.
"Uncle Sam, are we just going back like this?" Andrew asked Sam.
Sam shook his head. "Of course not. If we just go back like this, no one will give us our commission. Let's look around some more; maybe we can find something!"
Their main purpose in coming out this time was to gather information. If they went back empty-handed, it would be a wasted trip. Forget about the commission, they wouldn't even have enough money for food.
After listening to Sam's words, everyone chose a direction to search. However, the Rhine Valley was simply too vast, and it was impossible to find anything out of thin air.
After walking through the mountains for a week, they ran out of food. So, they descended the mountain before dark to find an inn to stay in.
When they arrived at the town at the foot of the mountain, it wasn't completely dark yet. However, the entire street was quiet, as if no one was there.
Sam pulled Andrew behind him. "Stay behind me and don't wander off." After saying that, Sam looked at the others behind him. "This town is strange, so you all need to be careful."
Sam arrived at a hotel he frequented and knocked on the door. "Hello, this is Sam. Is Julia home?"
The hotel was still quiet. Sam knocked on the door again. "Julia, it's me, Sam. I'm here to stay."
A moment later, as Sam was about to knock again, a voice came from inside. "Who are you?"
"Hello, this is Sam. Is Julia home?" Sam said again, and just then the door creaked open.
The door opened a crack, and a woman peeked out. Seeing it was indeed Sam, she exclaimed excitedly, "God bless, it really is Sam! Come in, come in!"
Sam led his people inside, and the woman rushed over and hugged him. "It really is you! Thank goodness! I was so scared!"
Sam pulled the woman down. "Julia, what happened?"
Julia cautiously checked the doors and windows, and only after confirming that everything was alright did she open the inner door and lead everyone inside.
Julia asked the waiter to prepare food and milk for everyone. "Are you from the Midwest? Have you seen that?"
"That? Is it a vampire?" Andrew asked anxiously. "We're here to investigate this."
“Are you sure?” Julia ignored Andrew and looked at Sam. “This time is different from before.”
Sam nodded. "We were sent by them, you know, we can't refuse."
“Look at my place, business was so good before. And look at it now, after so many days, you are the first wave of customers.” Julia said, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. “The whole town is in a panic now, and many people are considering leaving.”
"What exactly happened?" Sam put aside the bread and milk the waiter had brought him, his mind solely focused on finding out about the vampires.
“About two weeks ago, the people in town were attacked by vampires when they went up the mountain. Since then, no one dares to go up the mountain anymore. But since we don't go up the mountain, the vampires have started harassing the townspeople,” Julia said with a sigh. “At first, the vampires only appeared at night, but later they started appearing during the day too. Many people in the town have already died, and our lives are getting harder and harder. I really don't know what to do.”
"Have you ever seen vampires? Are there many of them? Are they very powerful? Didn't you use garlic and holy water to attack them?" Sam asked, frowning as he pondered.
Hearing Sam's words, Andrew and Lily also stopped and stared at Julia. Leng Yue and Qian Chen, on the other hand, didn't touch the food at all, and were also watching Julia.
Julia noticed everyone staring at her and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I've never actually seen a vampire. It's just what people in town say; I've only heard about it." As she spoke, Julia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
Sam nodded. "It's not your fault, but since you said they'll be back tonight, we'll keep watch then, so you can all get a good night's sleep."
Sam was somewhat disappointed, but he didn't intend to blame Julia. He knew that this matter had nothing to do with her in the first place.
Julia was delighted to hear this, walked over to Sam and kissed him, saying, "You're such a good person, God will bless you."
Sam said, "Julia, are you cold? Your hands feel so cold."
“Yes, I’ve been so tired lately, I always feel cold. I’m going back to rest now, goodnight, dear Sam.” Julia said, then turned and went upstairs.
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