Chapter 6：The Lame Man
"The Goldwire Knife, tools, and news about the Swamp Dragon—all together, these make up for your surprise attack on me. We're even now!"
Allen said as he turned his back, picking up a River Wolf, and continued:
"Now, a hunting knife, a set of hunting tools, a River Wolf, and of course, your clothes. These for your joining my team, how about it?"
Bernice's eyes lingered on Allen's face for a long while, pondering over something, before she finally nodded solemnly, "First, untie me and give me back my clothes!"
Naturally, Allen nodded in agreement.
However, Allen had always been a man who placed desire after life and strength.
So long as his life wasn't at risk and his strength wasn't compromised, Allen was like a dog in heat.
Therefore, he changed the order a bit—returning the clothes before untying the ropes.
Allen took the opportunity of dressing Bernice to touch her inadvertently, which seemed inevitable.
After everything was done, "Not bad, not bad. You should take a bath."
Bernice clearly understood what he was thinking, but unfortunately, her injuries were too severe, and her complexion wasn't good.
At this moment, she didn't want to start a conflict with Allen.
Moreover, in a rainforest tribe that revered the strong, a male hunter who defeated a female hunter generally gained mating rights over the defeated female.
Next, Bernice stopped Allen's attempt to support her.
Under Allen's vigilant watch, she walked ahead, quickly heading towards the outskirts of the forest.
...
When Allen returned to his village with Bernice, to his surprise, he found Pete lying in front of his house covered in injuries.
Allen immediately became alert, grabbing his bow and arrows and scanning the surroundings, with Bernice also on guard.
After confirming there was no danger, he approached and woke up the unconscious Pete.
"Boss, it was the lame man, it was him!"
...
It turns out that after replacing Allen as the forest ranger team leader, the lame man had been constantly inciting his bastard, little O'Brien, to target Allen.
The reason was simple: any bureaucrat, regardless of rank, who didn't succeed the predecessor normally, would inevitably erase all traces left by the predecessor, from personnel to policies.
The most direct action was to target the predecessor himself.
But as a proud and miserly bastard, little O'Brien had agreed to have Allen whipped and had since forgotten about him.
Left with no other option, the lame man took matters into his own hands. Upon learning that Allen had awoken, he brought several new members and went straight to Allen's home.
However, they didn't encounter Allen but ended up beating Pete instead.
They even expelled Pete from the forest ranger team.
Allen knew well that the world of adult men often lacks apologies; it's either an immediate life-or-death struggle or a prolonged one.
There's no hope for peaceful coexistence, so Allen would not allow the lame man to live another day!
Thus, he prepared himself for the same.
"It seems I need to recruit teammates and start the rainforest logging earlier!"
Thinking this, Allen immediately took action.
People can't cover all bases and often commit laughable and stupid mistakes.
Even though the lame man's gang knocked Pete unconscious, they didn't inflict serious injuries, allowing Pete to move freely after an hour.
Had it been Allen, Pete would've been dead.
Fortunately, this left Allen with a loyal subordinate.
Allen had to send Pete alone to recruit a young but impoverished fisherman from a remote village.
Meanwhile, he took Bernice to recruit three other teammates he had been observing for a while.
A mason, a carpenter, and an apprentice blacksmith.
Skillful people in any era usually don't live in dire straits.
Unfortunately, in the Sequoia Kingdom, under the nobles' exploitation, their income barely met subsistence levels, let alone apprentices.
Knowing the feeling of poverty and weakness all too well, Allen understood in his heart that young people trapped in such a harsh environment but unwilling to submit were like a barrel of gunpowder.
Just a spark was enough to cause an explosion.
For their future, for wealth, they were willing to gamble their lives.
Death was but a mere consequence!
Thus, these four young men, pushed to the edge of a cliff by life.
Under the temptation of Allen's words as a smuggling magnate, and the shiny River Wolf pelts, immediately pledged allegiance to Allen.
In a leaderless state, anyone, even a robber, thief, or outright villain, as long as he claims to be the leader of all, would undoubtedly become the leader.
People are so easily swayed under the influence of interest and rhetoric.
Recruiting a few subordinates was effortless for Allen. But there was still one thing left to do.
...
As evening approached and the sun dipped into the forest sea, the remaining light was hazy, with light and darkness intermingling, and insects and birds chirping incessantly.
Humans in the Gondwana wilderness almost never move after nightfall; it's too dangerous.
However, Allen had already hidden near the lame man's dwelling early on.
He had helped build this straw hut years ago after saving the injured lame man on the way.
Thinking of this, Allen couldn't help but sigh at his predecessor's foolishness.
Several years of companionship, and yet he failed to see the lame man's ambitious nature.
...
As the lame man staggered from a distance, Allen was sure he had drunk quite a bit.
It seems he'd entertained little O'Brien well, even enjoying some alcohol.
Crouching low, nearly touching the ground, hiding in a bush.
Waiting until the lame man relaxed his guard to open the lock in front of the door.
Allen silently approached from behind.
His left hand tapped on the right shoulder: "Hey."
The drunk lame man, without any guard, unconsciously turned his head to the right rear.
A huge fist filled his view.
"Bang!"
A punch landed on the lame man's nose.
The impact dazed him, followed by another punch under the ribs.
With overwhelming force, the lame man gasped for breath, seeing stars, his hands clutching his stomach as he bent over.
Before the lame man could react, his skull was met with a heavy elbow strike.
In an instant breath, the lame man passed out.
By the time Allen returned home carrying the lame man in a sack, it was the middle of the night.
Pete, along with the newly recruited four members and Bernice, were preparing logging tools.
Each person had a hunting knife, six ropes, five sacks filled with supplies, two axes for chopping trees, and eight inflatable flat sheepskin bags.
Once the mahogany trees were felled, they would need the help of the inflated sheepskin rafts.
Allen dropped the sack from his shoulder onto the ground, the unconscious lame man showing no reaction.
"Come here, brothers. The rainforest is extremely dangerous. Before we enter, every man needs to show some courage!"
Allen smiled, pointing to the sack on the ground.
"Boss, what's inside?" Pete asked.
Allen continued to smile, "Who knows? Might be a wild boar, a colt, or perhaps a person. In any case, everyone needs to stick in a knife!"