Chapter 317 - 208: Only Fools Trade for Food

Chapter 317: Chapter 208: Only Fools Trade for Food

Bartel the Deer God?

’Sounds pretty impressive.’

Lin Chen was secretly amazed. That storm had been the most intense he’d ever experienced in his life.

To not only find a safe place to survive in the wild under such extreme conditions but also pick up the trail of his prey again—that kind of skill was nothing short of a miracle.

But what he found strange was, if this guy’s tracking skills were so strong, why hadn’t he just made his move sooner? Even without tools, it shouldn’t have been hard to set a few traps to lure the prey in.

’Why would he track it for two whole days?’

As if sensing Lin Chen’s confusion, Erica, who was standing beside him, nudged him in the ribs with her elbow and gestured for him to lean in.

Lin Chen blinked and leaned over, puzzled.

"I’ve heard the name Bartel the Deer God before. He’s quite famous in the Hunter Realm. Just like his nickname suggests, he’s a walking encyclopedia on deer, with over twenty years of specialized research."

"Almost no deer he sets his sights on ever escapes."

"Then why did he..."

"His marksmanship is excellent."

Erica pinpointed Bartel’s weakness. "You know how it is. Hunters usually hunt with rifles. Very few people use bows and arrows anymore—it’s mostly archery enthusiasts or indigenous people."

"With the involvement of animal protection societies, Hunters are required to carry firearms for culling hunts. That way, they can kill the prey instantly and prevent any excessive pain."

"Bartel is a Hunter who excels at sniping. He finds and tracks a deer to pinpoint its exact location, then takes it down with a single shot from a distance."

"You mean he’s not good at making tools or attacking deer with melee weapons?"

"Something like that. At least, I’ve never heard any stories of him fighting up close. Every photo I’ve seen of him, he’s carrying a sniper rifle and wearing a hat, which is why I didn’t recognize him at first."

Lin Chen glanced up at the Black man in front of them. He didn’t look any different from other Black men, at least not in Lin Chen’s eyes.

The guy looked furious, clearly dissatisfied that someone had swooped in and snatched the prey he had painstakingly tracked for two days.

"How about this?"

After a moment of thought, Lin Chen took a step forward and said, "Without your continuous pursuit, this black-tailed deer wouldn’t have ended up here, nor would it have been so exhausted that it lost its footing and fell."

"But on the other hand, it had already shaken you off and was a long way away. If it hadn’t run into Andre, it probably would’ve been long gone. And without my intervention, it wouldn’t have been captured."

"In other words, all four of us had a hand in hunting this animal. To be fair, we should discuss how to divide the spoils."

"Huh?"

Erica pointed at her own nose. "I get a share? I didn’t do anything. By the time I opened my eyes, you’d already caught it. Whether by a Hunter’s code or by common sense, I shouldn’t be part of the distribution. You three go ahead and discuss it."

"Erica’s right. She didn’t contribute any labor, so she can’t be part of the split," Andre said, nodding in agreement. He then pointed at himself. "While I did block its path, causing it to turn back, run, and ultimately fall in front of Lin, I wasn’t intentionally standing there. I just happened to turn around when I heard a noise."

"Even if I were to take a share, it couldn’t be more than ten percent at most. Besides, as a Hunter, I don’t really approve of getting something for nothing. So I’ll waive my share. You two can split it."

After saying his piece, he waved his hand and walked away without another word.

With two people consecutively bowing out, Bartel’s expression visibly softened.

"Since you’re both being reasonable, I’m not an unreasonable man myself."

"It’s true that I spent two days trying to capture it, but I’m not skilled with melee weapons, especially blunt instruments like clubs. Deer are extremely skittish creatures; it’s almost impossible to get close enough to use a melee weapon on one."

"My strategy was actually simple: wear it down. By tracking it relentlessly, I planned to completely drain its stamina and energy until it lost the ability to escape."

"If you hadn’t acted just now, it probably would have escaped into that forest. Just give it half an hour of rest, and it would have been able to keep running. In that case, the tug-of-war between us would have been far from over."

"Can I cut in?" Erica suddenly raised her hand and pointed toward the woods with the mango trees. "If you keep going that way, you’ll hit the Mangrove Forest. American Crocodiles live in there. If it had run in that direction, it might have ended up as dinner for one of them."

"American Crocodiles?!"

Bartel exclaimed, his face changing dramatically.

If that had happened, the exhausted black-tailed deer really wouldn’t have stood a chance of escaping the jaws of an American Crocodile.

The Mangrove Forest is a terrain of half mudflats and half shallow water, which is not suitable for fast movement. A creature with slender legs like a deer could easily get stuck in the mud and be unable to move.

Faced with this reality, he couldn’t help but lower his head and sigh.

"Alright, an even split it is. It’s better than nothing."

Only then did he finally calm down, his gaze falling on Lin Chen’s face.

"You’re that chef from Great Xia who won the last season of the show?"

"Yes, that’s him! You can call him Lin!"

"You talk too much," Lin Chen said, rolling his eyes at Erica. He extended a hand to Bartel. "Winning last season was mostly just good luck. If Andre hadn’t dropped out, it’s hard to say who would have won."