[Ding, Lilia's affection for you increases by 1]
The prompt message rang out again.
Leo met Lilia's gaze and furrowed his brow. "I can't help but feel like you're not looking at me in a good way."
"No," she quickly denied, sitting up.
At that moment, a barbarian ran over and spoke with her.
Lilia nodded and turned to Leo. "The priest has prepared the ritual and wants you to come help light the fire for the worship of the God of Flame."
"Okay, let's go," Leo said without hesitation, standing up and heading toward the barbarian village.
But once he arrived, he regretted it.
These barbarians were actually using human heads for their sacrifices.
He looked at the bloodied heads and swallowed hard, forcing himself forward to light the fire.
A group of barbarians surrounded the fire, singing, dancing, kneeling, and worshipping, performing the ritual to the God of Flame.
Leo and Lilia stood at the back of the crowd, watching the absurd ceremony. They didn't understand it, but they showed respect.
Soon, the ritual ended.
The old priest ordered the lighting of more fires, and then three piglets the size of calves were brought out. A few barbarian warriors skillfully dismembered them.
At that moment, several barbarian women approached Leo, bowing and speaking in their language.
Lilia translated again. "They want you to teach them how to make roasted meat."
"That's simple," Leo agreed quickly. He stood by the fire, demonstrating while explaining the cooking techniques.
He talked about how to control the fire, how to season the meat, and how to know when it was done.
Soon, the aroma of roasted meat filled the air. A lot of barbarians gathered around the fire, staring at the meat and drooling.
"Okay, this meat isn't hard to make. You can try it yourselves," Leo said once the meat was ready, handing it to Lilia.
"Thank you," she said, something rare for her, taking the meat and taking a small bite.
Since she had once eaten raw fish on the sea, she had accepted meat. Especially the food Leo made, it was even more delicious than fruit.
The barbarians swallowed their saliva and scattered to try making their own roast meat.
But they weren't successful-some burnt it, others left it undercooked.
Still, compared to their usual raw meat, it was much healthier and tastier.
Leo also ate a little of the roasted meat, leaning back by the fire, watching the excited barbarians, and feeling a small sense of achievement.
It seemed that teaching these barbarians wasn't so bad after all.
At that moment, the priest walked over, followed by the barbarian girl.
Leo had learned that the girl was the priest's granddaughter, named Ava.
The priest spoke with Lilia, frowning and giving a cold look at the shy Ava nearby.
"What's wrong?" Leo asked, confused.
"Hmph!" Lilia snorted, saying, "The old priest wants to marry his granddaughter to you and have you stay here."
"Ah?" Leo was stunned, looking at Ava, who was blushing and looking down.
She was beautiful-sun-kissed skin, a curvaceous body, well-proportioned face, and a pure, sweet appearance.
If it were the human world, he would have definitely accepted without hesitation.
But this was a remote island, a backward tribe. He still longed for the civilization of human society.
Leo said, "Lilia, help me refuse. Tell him I can't stay on this island."
"Okay," Lilia said quickly, speaking to the priest.
Ava looked at Leo, then ran away crying.
He was completely confused, asking, "Lilia, what did you say?"
Lilia said, "Nothing, I just said you don't like her."
"Whoa? How can you reject someone like that?" Leo was speechless. But in a way, it was better-this way, the girl wouldn't keep chasing him.
He continued, "Tell the priest that in gratitude for their kindness, I'm willing to teach them how to start a fire, how to farm, even how to make cloth and improve their fishing nets."
Lilia looked at him in surprise, her eyes flickering with something unreadable.
Leo felt that look again-something not quite friendly.
Before he could ask, Lilia turned to the old priest and relayed his words.
"Ah," the old priest sighed, nodded at Leo, and then turned and walked away.
"Leo, how much longer are we going to stay here?" Lilia asked, clearly annoyed.
Her heart was still with the princess, and she wanted to leave as soon as possible. But she didn't want to lose Leo either.
Leo said, "I have something to do. Tomorrow, you and I will go to the volcano. I need to make something."
He had decided-to make gunpowder.
This world was too dangerous. He needed a way to protect himself.
"Are you going to the volcano?" Lilia frowned. "I heard there are Flame Sprites around the volcano."
"Flame Sprites?" Leo asked, curious. "What are those?"
Lilia explained, "They're a type of Beast. Though they're the weakest, they're still not something you can fight."
So there were Beasts in this world?
Leo was fascinated. He had never seen a Beast before.
He asked, "Can you fight them? Come with me. I need to collect some things near the volcano."
Lilia looked at him and said, "Remember, I'm not your bodyguard. I can protect you, but you owe me a favor. You have to repay it someday."
"No problem," Leo said quickly.
"Time to sleep. I'll take you there tomorrow morning." It was already late at night, and Lilia stood up, heading toward a nearby hut.
"Hey, where am I sleeping?" Leo rushed to ask.
The barbarians had only prepared one hut for the two of them.
"Outside!" Lilia's voice came from inside, and the door was shut and locked.
Leo sighed, moved the fire to the front of the hut, laid down some dry grass and leaves, and managed to get some sleep for the night.
...
The next morning, Leo was once again woken by loud noises.
Lilia was arguing with the old priest, and the tension was high.
He quickly got up and asked, "What's going on again?"
Lilia's face was cold. "They sank the boat last night."
"What?!" Leo gasped, looking toward the sea. Indeed, the big ship was gone.
It was their only way off the island. No wonder Lilia was so angry.
She continued, "They want to keep you here. I can leave. They can build me a raft."
"No way," Leo said firmly. "The sea is stormy. A raft can't survive. And you don't know how to swim. You'd die if you went out to sea."
Lilia frowned. She knew, and she said, "What are we going to do? I have to leave."
Leo comforted her. "Wait a little longer. This island is obviously discovered, and there must be other big ships coming."
He turned to the priest and said, "I will also teach you how to grow crops and use fire. But next time a big ship comes, I have to leave. If you stop me again, I won't help you."
Lilia reluctantly translated for him.
The priest bowed and said nothing more. He and his people left.
"Leo, what do we do next?" Lilia had no idea what to do now. She looked at Leo, asking for help.
This island might have more people coming, but she didn't know when.
She was worried about the princess's safety. She didn't want to stay here forever.
Leo comforted her. "Don't worry, there will be a way. Let's go check the volcano first. I'll finish my own business. If no ships come, we'll think of something else."
"Okay," Lilia said reluctantly.
They changed into some leather armor and took steel knives with them. They went toward the volcano.
These weapons were taken from dead soldiers. They were all high quality.
The temperature around them kept getting higher. There was nothing but bare rock. No plants at all.
Leo regretted wearing the leather armor. It was too hot.
But Lilia still looked calm. A little sweat came out of her forehead, but she didn't look tired at all.
Soon, the two of them reached the base of the volcano.
Around them, there were groups of floating flames.
Ghost fire?
Leo looked at the moving flames, which seemed to have a life of their own. A new message appeared.
[Flame Sprite: Level 1 Beast, Danger Level 10]
What does "Danger Level" mean?
Leo wasn't sure.
Whoosh!
At that moment, Lilia pulled out her steel knife and rushed at the group of Flame Sprites.
She was angry and wanted to take it out on these weak creatures.
The Flame Sprites screamed and cried. They were hit by the long knife, their flames broke apart and fell to the ground. Their flames disappeared, and they turned into nothing.
Are they spirits? They don't have a real body.
Leo didn't fight the Flame Sprites. He felt like he couldn't beat them.
He was looking around for something.
Soon, he found what he was looking for-a yellowish rock.
Sulfur stone!
There really is this kind of thing here.
Sulfur stone can be used to make sulfur, which is a necessary material for making gunpowder.
There's also saltpeter. Making this stuff isn't hard for Leo, just a little bit of work.
"Leo, I found a cave," Lilia said. She had found a secret cave entrance.