Avi surveyed the panel before him, still adorned with the hints he received from the system.

"Long ago, vampires betrayed Nagash, the Lord of the Dead, the most formidable necromancer. Nagash cursed them, ensuring they could never triumph over the empire. This curse made them dread sunlight, transforming them into nocturnal predators lurking in the shadows. Moreover, vampires dread fire and silver, as both can consume their bodies, annihilating their immortal existence."

"Melkoth's mesmerizing mist falls under the realm of shadow magic. The caster summons a haze that ensnares foes, rendering them feeble and ineffectual, even inflicting physical harm from its toxins. The efficacy of the magic hinges on various factors, such as the victim's constitution, the caster's proficiency, the intensity of magical currents, and the surrounding environment."

Having vanquished the hyena pack, Avi's hunts and sporadic skirmishes elevated him to a new level. Before his arrival here, Avi had allocated his earned skill points to the lore skill, enriching him with knowledge about magic and vampires.

Guided by the lore skill, he seized the opportunity when the vampire let its guard down and plunged Eirian's silver dagger into its chest, extinguishing that 'eternal' decayed life.

As the vampire crumbled, so did the surrounding mist. Avi breathed in the forest air deeply, gradually recovering from hypoxia's grip.

Despite his efforts to hold his breath, some toxins infiltrated his body through his skin. Avi felt a slight discomfort but nothing severe.

He retrieved Eirian's dagger lying nearby and then dragged his teammates to a large tree, patiently awaiting their recovery from paralysis.

During this interval, he seized the chance to open the panel and assess his teammates' condition.

Their journey through the forest unlocked numerous skill points for Rafe and Eirian, Avi's companions.

The panel's explanation indicated that their bond had deepened, granting Avi greater authority to allocate their skill points.

Avi bolstered Rafe's combat prowess and redirected some of Eirian's skill points towards combat as well. With this adjustment, he had two formidable companions capable of confronting most adversaries.

Consulting the data organized on the panel, Avi learned that the bag of coins from the abandoned camp totaled four hundred. This substantial sum could equip Avi's entire team with some surplus.

Combined with hides and other items acquired during their forest foray, if they safely reached the Midengheim Mercenary Company, they could depart without enduring the hardships of scrimping and saving.

Pondering this, Avi felt relieved of the burdens that had weighed upon him. With funds in hand, he could elevate this mercenary company to greatness.

"Despite my journey to the grim and perilous world of Warhammer, things have been relatively favorable," Avi ruminated. "While chaos reigns here, the Mount & Blade system empowers me to forge these challenges into my followers and imbues me with the world's knowledge directly into my mind, tailor-made. But... who orchestrates it all?"

Moreover, what fate awaited him, a transmigrant, upon death in the Warhammer world? What would become of him?

Would his soul languish in this realm of despair, unable to transcend? Or would it return unscathed to the human world, seated before a computer, continuing his adventures in Warhammer Total War?

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

These questions tormented Avi until his teammates gradually awakened, liberating him from the grip of fear.

Set aside these worries, focus on living each day well!

At times, Avi pondered the possibility of forming a deep friendship with Rafe, perhaps due to their shared, unwavering optimism.

"Boss, where the hell did that bastard run off to?!

Rafe's abrupt awakening set off a flurry of activity as he grabbed his colossal sword and scanned the surroundings, sending shivers down the spines of his teammates.

"Yeah, Captain, that woman..."

"Already frightening enough in appearance, and she rendered us immobile, too terrifying!"

"Speaking in such a chilly tone, I don't even want to proceed with her around. Who knows when another ghostly creature like her might emerge and kill us while we're helpless?"

"By the way, didn't you guys notice that woman is actually quite attractive?"

"... "

"Alright, quiet down," Avi commanded, clapping his hands. He glanced at the morale display on the panel — 60 morale points, not exceptionally high, but within the normal range. This indicated that Rafe's newly acquired Level 2 Infantry Command skill was already effective.

"That was a vampire, and I've already dispatched it," Avi declared, pointing to the just-awakened Eirian. "Thanks to Eirian's silver dagger, that vampire has been utterly obliterated. It won't trouble us anymore."

Avi's proclamation elicited a chorus of reverence, with team members gazing at him with admiring eyes tinged with a hint of awe, as if he were the savior of the entire team.

Morale visibly surged at an astonishing rate, quickly stabilizing at '80', with the corresponding description changing to 'cheerful'.

Upon hearing the news of the vampire's demise, Eirian also breathed a sigh of relief, leaning against a tree and offering prayers. Avi noticed his expression and planned to chat with him later during the journey.

After a brief rest, the cheating mercenary company packed their belongings and set off on their journey once again. They didn't forget to collect any usable items from the abandoned campsite for their own use, including the large bag of coins.

The subsequent journey was relatively smooth, save for occasional minor orc raids; it was a safe journey all the way.

This was also thanks to Kees not completely losing his mind and planning a closer trade route along the edge of the Black Forest. If that fat man lost his mind and drew the trade route through the center of the forest, countless orcs would tear Avi and his team to shreds.

On the other hand, if Kees's route planning was indeed so foolish, no one would even consider undertaking this suicidal task.

After obtaining a large sum of money and cremating the corpses, Avi no longer wanted to continue along the previous route. He unexpectedly discovered that the "Lore" skill could provide him with information about the strength of magical winds on the panel, which greatly aided the team — they could finally discern directions.

With this advantage, Avi led the mercenary team to head east. After about three more days, the team finally emerged from the Black Forest — at the cost of all the accompanying merchants except Manid's lives, and the mercenary company lost two Empire spear soldiers.

The two team members perished during an encounter with a unicorn, standing at the forefront of the team; they were directly knocked down by the stubborn resistance of the orcs, with more than a dozen hooves stomping on their chests successively, crushing their ribs, piercing their lungs and hearts, causing the two unfortunate mercenaries to perish.

Faced with the first casualties, Avi didn't have time to lament or feel sentimental. He ordered the uninjured team members to bury the two bodies properly and erected a simple tombstone on top.

Despite knowing that the buried bodies would eventually be dug up and eaten by beasts one day, Avi still felt that he should do this, even if it was just to comfort himself.

During the time he had been transported to this world, he had gradually understood the laws of this world: every life would eventually perish, and people were just resisting and delaying the arrival of this end.

This wasn't just a game, but real lives fading away before his eyes. Yet he hardly felt any sadness, as if life was meant to be this way.

In the world of Warhammer, perhaps human life was the cheapest thing. Avi thought to himself, he didn't want, nor could he change all this, but he refused to become a bystander to the laws of this world.

As the team emerged from the forest, the tension that had gripped everyone finally eased, and they rested well for two days on the plain near the road to heal the wounded and regain their strength.

Avi originally planned to continue heading to Midengheim after three days, but he didn't expect that on the morning of the third day, an unexpected visitor interrupted the mercenaries' peaceful dreams, but also brought a decent invitation.