Chapter 180 116. The Mysteries of the Centaur Race
“Xiatu?”
The centaur girl appearing before Fisher is indeed Xiatu from the New Party’s Southern Continent Protection Association. Fisher did not expect to see her here, after all, the geographical location of Klein Mountain, although in the direction of Saint Nali University, is still very far away.
At this moment, Xiatu is wearing the characteristic tight hunting attire of the centaur race. This outfit fits perfectly, wrapping around both their human and horse bodies while minimizing the resistance faced by centaurs when running. Additionally, female centaurs, like Xiatu, often tie their long hair into a secure bun.
Such a centaur, compared to the typical serene lady, carries a wildness akin to the vast grasslands of the Southern Continent, presenting another kind of beauty.
“Fisher! What are you doing here? Wait, this person’s appearance looks a bit familiar, isn’t she the girl who walked into the office last time?”
Ignoring the changes in Jasmine’s appearance, Xiatu scrutinizes the shy Jasmine before her, suddenly recalling something and asking Fisher.
This statement startled Jasmine, as she knows there are still many humans hunting her. She quickly covers her face, flustered, and shakes her head in denial, saying, “No, no, I’m not the girl you saw in the office before!”
This “situation of not finding three hundred taels here” made Xiatu laugh. Fisher walked over to Jasmine’s side and gently patted her head, causing her to emit a small “squeak” and immediately hide behind Fisher, preventing Xiatu from seeing her face.
Fisher explained to Xiatu the situation regarding himself and Jasmine, and he had no idea how Xiatu made it so far to Klein Mountain.
“I’ve already resigned from Saint Nali University. Because of her subhuman status, she is being wanted by the Nali authorities. How did you end up all the way here from so far away?”
“Ah, looks like we’re all in a tough spot.”
Xiatu looked at Fisher with sympathy, then placed the curved bow she was carrying over her shoulder behind her. The quiver on her back swayed, containing several arrows of different lengths, and she had two hunting knives strapped to her waist.
She trotted over to the dead wild boar and pulled out an arrow, looking up at Fisher as she said, “I managed to hunt a prey. How about we have dinner together at night? I can’t finish it by myself, and it’s too far to take it back.”
Fisher nodded and walked to her side, helping to drag the wild boar toward their camp, which was not too far away—they arrived in no time.
Once they reached the camp, Xiatu placed her hand on her brow, surveying the orderly campsite, and complimented Fisher’s camping skills, saying, “Wow, your hands are very skillful! Usually, I can just toss some branches together in the wild to get through a night.”
Fisher tossed the boar onto the ground and finally had the chance to ask her what she was doing here.
“So, why are you here?”
“Why else? Like you, I’m unemployed.”
Upon mentioning this, Xiatu’s little face turned bitter. While saying this, she pulled out a small bag from her waist, which contained not only tools for butchering but also several small bottles. According to Xiatu, they contained salt and spices from the Southern Continent.
Jasmine squatted beside her, watching Xiatu skillfully bleed and skin the dead boar. Jasmine couldn’t do such things easily; even hunting made her hesitate for a long time. She, indeed, was more suited to waiting in the ocean for fish to be thrown down from above.
However, her mother once said that the Whale Folk are at the top of the food chain in the ocean, and she just needed to exercise to become a qualified Whale Folk.
So, Jasmine forced herself to squat beside Xiatu, watching her bleed and process the pork, trying to train her courage, though she wasn’t sure if it would be useful.
“Unemployed? Can you also be unemployed? Did the New Party call you back from the Southern Continent?”
“Well, to be precise, it’s not really unemployment. It seems that the New Party has encountered some troubles recently, with many people auditing them. Although it seems nothing significant was found, everyone has been busy running around. Who can remember that a cute centaur girl is waiting for them to deliver food next to Saint Nali University?”
Wow, it turns out the New Party has completely forgotten about having a centaur subhuman living nearby due to the royal audit.
Without food deliveries, Xiatu cannot survive on the vegetables she grows in her courtyard, so she has had to return to the Southern Continent’s tradition of hunting for food.
“And you? How did you end up in this broken mountain? By the way, what kind of subhuman are you?”
“I-I’m a Whale Folk!”
“Ah, a Whale Folk! No wonder you look a bit like the whale I saw in the Nali Museum. Coming from the sea, this is the first time I’ve seen you.”
Xiatu glanced at the beautiful whale tail and ears on Jasmine and said. In fact, the Southern Continent is not devoid of aquatic subhumans, but those subhumans all live in fresh water and cannot survive in the sea.
Having never met a dominant species like Jasmine, which can live in both fresh and saltwater, while also thriving on land makes her intrigued.
“Pleased to meet you, I’m Jasmine.”
“Ah, I’m Xiatu. No need to be so formal.”
Xiatu was amused by Jasmine’s shy and adorable demeanor and smiled warmly at her, causing Jasmine to blush and relax a little.
Fisher, on the side, did not elaborate much, simply informing Xiatu that he and Jasmine were training in the deep mountains for battle, which might come in handy.
Hearing this, Xiatu nodded and did not ask further, continuing to process the pork.
Soon, the pork was prepared into a state resembling raw meat sold in markets. Xiatu quickly worked, seasoned with spices on the raw meat, claiming it enhances the flavor when roasted.
Fisher, who cannot cook, watched Xiatu’s every move as if reading a textbook, feeling that Xiatu’s food is likely much tastier than what he could create. The only thing he could do was help Xiatu start a fire on the side.
“Pork is ready!”
Before long, Xiatu placed the prepared wild boar on the fire, proudly telling Fisher and Jasmine, “Soon you will get to taste the culinary skills of the best chef in the centaur tribe. Watch closely.”
She skillfully turned the skewered pork over the fire, while Jasmine, unable to help but swallow saliva at the sight of the sizzling meat, seemed unable to tear her gaze away, constantly looking at Xiatu, inquiring silently, “When can we eat?”
Seeing how eagerly Jasmine was looking at her roasting meat, Xiatu gave her the first portion once it was ready.
“Hmm, it’s about ready. Jasmine, this one is for you.”
“Ah, thank you!”
Xiatu handed the largest portion to Jasmine, then took a share for herself and gave a piece to Fisher. He took a small taste and found the flavors of the Southern Continent’s spices to be quite good, though they were a bit intense and required time to get used to.
Understanding Xiatu’s consideration, she reduced the amount of seasoning, so Fisher found the flavor quite pleasant.
“By the way, Fisher, can you treat illnesses? After being in the Western Continent for so long, I feel a bit unwell.”
While eating the meat, Xiatu suddenly put down the bone, washed her hands in the stream, and asked Fisher who was beside her.
The flames of the fire flickered slightly as Xiatu knelt on the ground, her horse hooves visible due to her posture, but she still wore a snug robe over her horse body.
“What feels uncomfortable? I’m not very familiar with the anatomy of centaurs, but I can take a look.”
Fisher also set down his food and walked over next to Xiatu. Meanwhile, Jasmine, still eating meat beside them, looked at Fisher as he approached the smiling and kneeling Xiatu. The centaur lady’s fit form and her flowing horse tail exuded a wild beauty.
Jasmine’s ears twitched in alert, and her cheeks puffed up as she quickly finished her food, silently trailing behind Fisher, closely watching his actions.
Fisher turned back to glance at Jasmine, only to find no expression on her face as she “stared” at his fingers and movements, feeling a sense of being monitored.
He couldn’t help but smile wryly at Xiatu, who pointed to her own belly and said somewhat troubled, “Recently, I feel my stomach sometimes discomforts me, and I’ve been feeling unusually fatigued. Could it be because I haven’t exercised in a long time? Whenever I do exercise these days, my entire body feels unwell.”
Fisher didn’t directly touch her body, to avoid Jasmine knocking him out from behind. Instead, he gently touched her body with his glowing staff. The next second, a faint light began to spread along her body, soon illuminating her magical circuits and various organs.
When checking Raphael’s body back in the Southern Continent, Fisher had used this technique before, allowing him to see the internal structure of living beings clearly.
This time, Fisher finally understood the physical structure of the centaur race.
A centaur’s body consists of two parts: a human-like upper body and a horse-like lower body. The organ structure of the upper body is quite different from that of humans. Their reproductive and urinary systems are located in the horse body below, making the upper body appear somewhat vacant.
Additionally, centaurs have two hearts, each responsible for the physical exertion and blood supply of their respective parts. It seems that ordinary running and movement put a significant load on them, accounting for this unusual situation.
When at rest, the heart in the upper body beats normally, while the second heart’s pace slows down. Once they begin to move, both hearts work at full speed, providing explosive physical capabilities like the core of a steam engine. Furthermore, their body structure is indeed quite suited for running.
From the glow returning from the staff, it seemed that the heart within her horse body beat erratically, as if it was activated suddenly and not adapting well, similar to how humans feel uncomfortable and unadapted after a long period of inactivity followed by vigorous exercise.
Fisher’s gaze moved downwards, scanning her other internal organs for any additional problems. When he approached the rear towards the reproductive system, Xiatu noticed Fisher’s gaze and immediately became shy, her face turning red as she quickly stood up, shaking off the staff he placed on her, causing the shapes of her organs to vanish.
“So, how is it? Any results?”
She asked somewhat awkwardly, her hooves shifting slightly, redirecting the atmosphere’s temperature.
Seeing her embarrassment, Jasmine slightly pouted, glanced at Fisher, and seeing his expression without any particular change, she finally let out a sigh of relief after he picked up his staff.
“Um, basically, it seems your discomfort is due to having two hearts. The second heart has rarely been used during your time in the Western Continent, so it’s somewhat unaccustomed to entering a state of movement again. I didn’t identify any other issues.”
Fisher retracted his staff, giving a simple conclusion about her condition, but he couldn’t guarantee it was correct. He merely told Xiatu to seek him if it worsened later, especially since the New Party couldn’t be relied upon now.
Xiatu sighed, somewhat troubled as she stroked the muscles on her horse body, lamenting, “Looks like I’m better suited for survival on the prairies of the Southern Continent. Back then, I would run on the grass every day, while also teaching young centaurs to learn combat and running. It’s much better than being stuck here eating dirt!”
“Combat?”
Jasmine suddenly caught onto the keyword in her words, shifting her gaze from Fisher to the poised and spirited centaur girl before her.
To be honest, Jasmine feels envious of such a brave lady, as she herself cannot be as courageous as her.
Since Fisher helped her, Jasmine secretly vowed to work hard to become stronger, which prompted her to instinctively voice her question.
Jasmine’s words piqued Xiatu’s interest; she nodded and smiled, saying, “Hehe, don’t be fooled by me being a female centaur; I’m quite skilled in combat and teaching others. Just now, Fisher said he was teaching you combat? In my opinion, you don’t need to learn combat techniques right away; instead, you first need to establish the courage to fight.”
Fisher’s gaze flickered slightly. In fact, he brought Jasmine here specifically to train her courage because only with the courage to face facts without running away could Jasmine achieve true balance.
Previously, he had only briefly mentioned their combat training to Xiatu, not expecting her to perceive Jasmine’s issue.
Fisher had no objections to Xiatu’s evaluation, focusing intently on her thoughts.
After all, Fisher himself was just an amateur in hand-to-hand combat. Otherwise, Eil wouldn’t have sighed over his training. Having a professional teacher to provide feedback might well be a blessing since he didn’t want to end up with no results over the days while taking Jasmine, who could lose control at any moment, to the Healing Room.
After hearing this, Jasmine glanced at Fisher. Upon seeing him nod, she then turned to Xiatu seeking advice, “Then, how can I have the courage to fight? I… I always want to hide at the thought of fighting. I don’t want to have any conflicts with others at all.”
“Courage isn’t about encouraging you to conflict with others but is about cultivating your ability to meet challenges head-on. The physical structure of centaurs is, in fact, quite unsuitable for running; you see, our upper body resembles humans while our lower body is equine. When those young foals start running, the scenery flashing by, the fierce winds assaulting their faces, and the force of falling backward as they lose control all become sources of their fear.”
From Xiatu’s description, Fisher realized that centaurs were not inherently good at running. Unlike natural horses, these subhumans require training to run normally. Once they begin running, their human-like upper body, which is not suited for horse-like movement, encounters discomfort. They need to train to use the correct running posture.
“Therefore, they have to fall repeatedly on the grass and get scraped by the wind before they can learn to run. From initially being rooted to the spot, to running with closed eyes and not daring to face forward, to eventually being able to accelerate proficiently.”
“You have to believe in yourself, just like centaurs can’t hide their desire to gallop when they see the prairie. Since Jasmine is a subhuman from the ocean, claiming to be a dominant species like a whale, she definitely won’t remain stuck in cowardice and fear.”
The more Jasmine listened, her eyes brightened, as if she were moved by Xiatu’s description of the centaur’s training spirit for running. Her tail swished, eagerly awaiting Xiatu’s guidance.
Xiatu smiled slightly, looking towards the Klein River below the mountain, then looking back at Fisher, speaking somewhat awkwardly, “Well, in short, not that I’m saying Fisher’s combat training is bad, but is there a possibility that since Jasmine is an ocean subhuman, wouldn’t it be much better to train in the water?”
Fisher found himself at a loss for words, unable to refute Xiatu’s seemingly casual question, as he felt she made a valid point.
Whale Folk cannot stay on land for too long; living on land imposes a huge burden on them. After a while, they must return to the water and soak for a long time, and to conduct combat training is even more impractical.
Grasping this logic, the atmosphere fell silent. Only Jasmine blinked at Fisher, then glanced at Xiatu.
Then she seemed to realize something, immediately blushing and explaining to Xiatu on behalf of Fisher, “Teacher Fisher’s training has been effective and has helped me a lot. I’ve become much braver than before!”
“I know, I’m not saying Fisher’s teaching is bad.”
Once Xiatu finished speaking, Fisher sighed slightly and glanced at Jasmine beside him, simultaneously stating, “What Xiatu said is correct; I really don’t know much about combat training. After all, I’ve only just stepped into this field myself. From tomorrow, let’s follow Xiatu’s suggestion and try training in the Klein River.”
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(End of Chapter)
