The system flashed a series of alerts before Jonn’s eyes, pointing out that the surrounding creatures’ disposition toward him had shifted dramatically from Indifference to Hate—a warning that many would stop at nothing to end his life.

Yet the creatures maintained their distance, circling menacingly, ratcheting up the tension for both Jonn and his companions.

While most of the beings stirring up clouds of black dust were ordinary, mana-less animals, fifteen Triceratops alone posed a lethal threat to his group. Though he had spotted no beasts yet, Jonn knew he faced a dire situation.

[Meteor] is my only viable option here. None of my other spells would even scratch creatures of this size. Perhaps I should take them all down with me? A meteor shower might be enough to wipe out the entire horde.

The system’s deduction of 7 points from his principal quest had shaken him, pushing thoughts of negotiation aside in favor of mutual destruction—perhaps the only way to save both himself and the village.

Amid his mounting tension, Cecys broke the oppressive silence, “You wanted a chance to speak, didn’t you? You’ll have it.”

Jonn glanced at the eagle, suddenly reminded of her continued presence.

Maybe I should stall for time? Being taken to the heart of their horde might work in my favor—I could maximize [Meteor]’s effectiveness from there.

With clenched fists, Jonn said, “That’s what I’m hoping for. I’m here to negotiate, Cecys. But don’t mistake that for weakness—I won’t go down without a fight.”

“Nobody expects you to,” she replied with her characteristic laugh, eyeing him with interest.

She then launched herself skyward, releasing a piercing cry that echoed for several seconds before joining her avian kin and the other beings surrounding Jonn, now hidden behind the swirling curtain of dust.

While enduring the tense wait and staying ready for both defense and counterattack, Jonn analyzed the surrounding creatures through [Arcane Sight] and his other abilities.

His vision filled with detailed information: the animals’ physical composition, their potential uses for consumption or crafting, and their vulnerabilities—all vital data for forming basic strategies.

“Stay alert,” he instructed Roulf, Windy, Ice, and Annabelle, though they were already more vigilant than himself.

Direct confrontation is definitely not an option. Even these wounded animals would exact a heavy toll if I engaged them directly—just one hit from any of them could prove devastating.

Beyond the ground-shaking Triceratops circling them, the scene was surreal: massive black-leather tapirs, armadillos resembling mobile boulders, and bears moved among the dinosaurs in an unlikely alliance. This bizarre formation included herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores, some towering three or four times larger than their smaller counterparts. Yet they moved with unexpected coordination, revealing something Jonn hadn’t previously encountered.

Beasts must possess superior animal-leadership abilities compared to humans. Controlling such a diverse group with this precision would be impossible for me. Could this be a [Race] bonus effect?

Unfortunately, Jonn’s abilities couldn’t reveal [Race] bonuses for other beings—likely due to his low level and the critical nature of such information. Still, he was convinced that different [Races] carried unique bonuses, and even members of the same [Race] could possess varying advantages.

His own [Race] bonus was [Dexterity], but he suspected Eliot’s might differ slightly. Other human mages likely possessed [Race] bonuses entirely unrelated to [Dexterity].

Though he lacked concrete evidence, as he could not see such information in other mages yet, [Essence of Life] had suggested a high probability of this theory being correct.

He strongly suspected the beast commanding this horde possessed a powerful [Race] bonus in either [Charisma] or [Wisdom].

In the midst of his thoughts, the circling animals parted, revealing their leader—a colossal Triceratops measuring nine meters in length and weighing, by Jonn’s estimate, around nine tons.

As Jonn met the creature’s penetrating gaze, he noticed its distinctive features: elongated head horns and a shortened nasal horn. The magical energy radiating from this being, demonstrating it was of a level far beyond his own.

Level 4! Cecys wasn’t exaggerating. It’s a true Mystic beast!

His eyes narrowed as cold sweat broke out in unexpected places, creating an unsettling sensation.

Yet before considering more aggressive options—which he doubted would even faze the dinosaur—he stuck to his original plan.

“I am Jonn Irondoom, representing my people under the white flag of peace!” he said aloud, his voice carrying across the gathering. He remained mounted on Windy, while Roulf stood vigilant on his right, Annabelle perched atop him, ready to strike. Ice maintained position on his left, head lowered, eyes locked onto the opponent’s vital points.

“Our relationship began badly. I’m here to fix that! I seek peaceful dialogue with the horde. My presence here isn’t for combat!”

The scene had frozen, with all ground-based creatures forming a perfect circle around Jonn’s group, while birds continued their aerial patrol overhead.

Cecys landed before the Triceratops leader, assuming a deferential posture.

“My leader…” she addressed the massive dinosaur, quickly relaying recent events.

Then a thunderous male voice emanated from the Level 4 Triceratops. “You destroyed our missing bird patrol?!”

Though prepared to unleash his powers if necessary, Jonn responded carefully. “Yes. They attacked us. We had no alternative.”

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“You were approaching our camp! What response did you expect, interloper?”

“I could ask you the same!” Jonn countered with matching intensity. “What would you expect when creatures prowl near my people’s homeland?”

The creature’s facial features contorted, becoming even more fearsome.

Tension escalated on both sides—Jonn’s beasts began emanating combat-ready mana while the horde’s animals and beasts assumed aggressive stances.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Jonn’s group consisted entirely of magical beings. The horde, meanwhile, counted only seven beasts among their numbers, including Cecys and the Triceratops leader, most ranging between levels 1 and 2.

Though Jonn preferred dialogue, he couldn’t show weakness before these creatures—beings notorious for respecting strength above all else.

Death seemed increasingly likely, but he was determined to take some of them with him if it came to that!

He deliberately projected both his tone and magical aura to show he wouldn’t simply bow to their demands.

And even the most primitive creatures present understood the universal language of mana. Jonn’s magical presence made it clear to the entire horde that he was far from harmless!

Sensing the escalating tension, Jonn chose to de-escalate, drawing a deep breath before speaking. “But that’s behind us now. I regret our previous conflict and seek to discuss our future. Mystic Beast, accept this token of respect and grant me the chance to speak of our peoples!”

With these words, he summoned from his spatial ring a wagon-sized wooden box brimming with green and blue crystals.

The assembled creatures instantly recognized the offering—Aether Tears, an essential resource for magical beings.

“Accept this as my apology and allow us a fresh start. My people are beginning a new era in the Barren Hills of Deepshadow. Join us, and let’s grow stronger together!”

Using [Air Palm], Jonn pushed that box that had cost him so much effort over the last few weeks, sending the leader of the horde enough to turn at least a dozen animals into beasts in a few hours.

Cecys hadn’t expected this and couldn’t help but narrow her eyes, not having foreseen such a thing, let alone heard from Jonn that it was part of his plans.

Yet she recognized his cleverness. “You actually listened to my complaints…”

Cecys was a talker. Amid her two months of threats and curses, she had mentioned the challenges of beast transformation without mana crystals, given the world’s contamination from ancient mages’ battles. In the old days, all a beast had to do was breathe and live its life to get stronger. But nowadays, with toxic mana overwhelming pure mana, absorbing ambient energy posed significant risks. While Cecys’s people had many with mana cores, evolving them into beasts proved increasingly complicated under current conditions.

Given their current situation, the level 4 beast looked at the box with harmless, pure mana crystals, remaining at an impasse.

Jonn observed the creature’s silence, knowing it wouldn’t refuse the gift, but he was uncertain whether it would grant him a chance.

Typically, beasts were less deceitful than humans, their nature inclining toward honest action. Yet anything was possible with powerful creatures, whose intelligence and experience with mages often made them more unpredictable.

The Mystic Triceratops might give him a chance to talk—or simply seize the crystals and end him without warning!

“Where these crystals came from, there are more,” Jonn added. “This exchange could become regular. Just hear my proposals and share your concerns. Surely we can reach an agreement!”

The creature’s brown eyes shifted from the Aether Tears to fix Jonn with a penetrating stare. “Why should I trust a mage?”

Jonn sighed, hating having to carry the burden of magical history on his shoulders, even though he himself had hardly done anything to sustain it.

“I may be a mage, but my closest bonds are with beasts, not mages. In fact, I’ve slain more mages than beasts!”

Beasts were much more sensitive to words than humans. Not only did the level 4 Triceratops realize Jonn was telling the truth, all the animals in the surrounding area understood his intentions.

With a hard look on its face, the level 4 Triceratops said, “Very well. You’ll have your chance, mage, but don’t mistake this for trust. Your fate will be decided once our conversation ends!”

Jonn sighed in temporary relief, after which many of the beasts retreated. The level 3 and 4 beasts of that group advanced closer to Jonn and his animals, staying only 50 meters away from each other.

Jonn was still surrounded, and the horde still posed a great danger to his group. He didn’t get the chance to be taken to the creatures’ camp, but at least the enemy beasts didn’t seem as hostile as Cecys had painted them.

Either my offering was more valuable than anticipated, or there’s something else at play here… Perhaps both.

While he was thinking, Jonn placed his weapons and spatial ring on the ground in front of him, fulfilling the beasts’ requirement for them to have this conversation more closely. He could keep his armor, however.

Maybe this behavior has something to do with what I discovered earlier?

Jonn remembered the mana cores he had found near the carcasses of dead creatures at his research site earlier. After that day, he had given the mana cores to Roulf and the other animals in the village and had seen a rapid growth in his companions. But strangely, the horde had abandoned those mana cores. Jonn had speculated about this before, but thinking about it now, he went one step further before this conversation with the beasts began.

Is there another player in this? An unknown enemy?

“You have your time, mage. I’ll listen to what you have to say and answer your questions. You have until this wood turns to ash,” said the level 4 Triceratops as it threw a piece of wood into the space between their groups and then hit it with its own mana, causing the wood to burn.

Fire affinity, interesting… Jonn noted mentally.

“Before I make my proposal, I’d like to hear your group’s side of the story. As I said, I’m part of the Barren Hills of Deepshadow community. We have a way of negotiating with your group about regular Aether Tears, which is expensive for us, but something we would be happy to do if we can avoid a confrontation or even start a good relationship with your people. But I need to understand your objectives and situation in order to offer something more specific. To begin with, I’d like to know, what are you doing in the Barren Hills of Deepshadow?”

The horde leader bristled at the questioning but, true to its word, answered while watching the wood smolder. “We’re migrating.”

“May I ask why?” Jonn narrowed his eyes. “You came from Arcanis, right?”

“Right. We heard that there’s an interesting area for our people in Lost Treasures,” The beast replied vaguely, not making it any easier for Jonn.

Undeterred, Jonn probed further, looking for something that might give him a good proposition for these creatures. “Are you fleeing from something… or someone?”

The beast’s silence spoke volumes, encouraging Jonn to pursue this line of thought. “Mages or beasts?”

“Bah! Mages are but a shadow of their former selves. Your kind will be extinct within a generation at most!” The creature snarled.

“So, beasts then…” Jonn’s mind raced with this revelation. “In that case, what I offer your people is strength. Let’s forge an alliance. I’ll help your group grow more powerful, permitting you to stand against your enemies. In return, initially, I ask only that you leave my people in peace. Should trust develop between us, perhaps you’d consider fighting alongside us against our own adversaries.”

Jonn maintained a humble demeanor, positioning himself as the weaker party naturally required to offer more in such an agreement.

He gazed hopefully at the dinosaur, seeing that the burning wood was almost completely turned to ash now.

That was the best proposal he could construct, given the limited time and vague responses from the Triceratops.

The three beasts exchanged glances, communicating in sounds incomprehensible to Jonn.

Fortunately, Annabelle was there. “It seems they will accept, master,” the little one said softly as she relaxed her feathers.

+1 progress point on the [Exotic Animals] quest!