"Now!" Arvind ordered as he charged. Their formation flowed like water around the disoriented beasts. Their strikes might not penetrate the stone-like hide, but they didn't need to. Each hit disrupted another energy pathway, another connection to the earth beneath.

The female Razorbacks began to show signs of fatigue, their movements becoming erratic as their elemental control wavered. One attempted an Earthquake Stomp, but the coordinated response from the knights shattered the energy wave before it could propagate.

The Alpha, sensing the tide turning, gathered its power for one final, devastating attack. Its amber eyes blazed like miniature suns, earth energy coursing visibly through every spine. The ground beneath the wheat field began to tremble, not from a single stomp but from a deep, resonant power.

Aldric recognized the danger. "Everyone, fall back!" he shouted, but Arvind held his ground, eyes fixed on the Alpha's movement pattern.

"Aldric," Arvind called, his voice steady despite his apprentice status, "on my mark, strike here, here, and here," pointing to three critical junctions where the Alpha's spines connected to its massive body. "Gunners, converge your fire on its left flank, where the energy flow is weakest!"

The Alpha charged, the very earth warping around its form in a last desperate attempt to protect its remaining family. But in its rage, it had overextended its elemental connection. The coordinated attack struck home—Aldric's enhanced blade severed the energy channels while the knight guns' bombardment shattered its remaining control.

The beast's momentum carried it forward, but its power was broken. It crashed through the wheat field, its stone-like hide cracking, its earthen armor falling away in chunks. The two females, sensing the Alpha's defeat, turned to flee, but their own disrupted energy channels made them vulnerable. The knights' next volleys found their marks.

Within moments, the battle was decided. Three massive forms lay still in the ruined wheat field, their amber eyes dimming, while the juvenile Razorbacks huddled together, their own weak earth energy flickering uncertainly.

The wheat field fell silent, save for the rustling of damaged stalks in the wind and the soft, frightened whimpers of the juvenile Razorback Grazers. Despite his exhaustion, Arvind surveyed the aftermath—great furrows of crystallized earth cut through the field like frozen waves, while the bodies of the adult Razorbacks lay like fallen earthen monuments.

"Secure the perimeter," Aldric ordered, his voice hoarse from shouting commands. He dismissed his fighting spirit, the glow fading from his blade, leaving it notched from the intense combat. The apprentice knights moved with weary precision, their earlier fear replaced by a complex mixture of pride and solemn respect for the fallen beasts.

Arvind approached the juveniles carefully, noting how their small spines flickered with weak earth energy—more like gentle ripples than the overwhelming force their parents had wielded. Two of the braver apprentice knights, still gripping their knight guns, flanked him protectively.

"Lower your weapons," Arvind commanded softly. "They're sensing your hostile intent through the earth." He knelt, placing his palm flat on the ground. The juveniles' amber eyes tracked his movement, their humming shifting to a lower, less threatening frequency.

"My lord," one of the knights ventured, "how did you know? About their energy pathways?"

Arvind smiled slightly, never taking his eyes off the young beasts. "When you study the land, you learn to see how everything connects. These creatures weren't just using earth energy—they were living channel of it. Their spines weren't armor, they were... roots, in a way, anchoring them to the elemental forces around us."

Aldric approached, wiping dirt and crystallized wheat from his armor. "The implications are significant. If we can understand how they channel energy so efficiently..." He left the thought unfinished, watching as one of the juvenile Razorbacks cautiously stepped toward Arvind.

"More than that," Arvind replied, slowly extending his hand. The juvenile's snout was warm against his palm, its amber eyes studying him with wild intelligence. "Think of what we could learn about fighting spirit itself. These creatures naturally do what knights spend years training to achieve, and we can use them as food to increase our training efficiency and supplement our depleted food reserves."

The apprentice knights gathered around, their earlier battle formation now a loose circle of curiosity. One of them had already pulled out a parchment, sketching the patterns of spines on the juvenile's back. Another was examining the crystallized wheat, noting how the earth energy had transformed it.

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"We need to raise them as livestock," Arvind continued, now gently stroking the juvenile's bristly fur. "Earth-reinforced walls, specialized feeding areas. And we'll need to document everything—their growth, their energy patterns, their behaviors."

"And the knights will need new training protocols," Aldric added, his tactical mind already working. "Today showed us how vulnerable traditional combat formations are against magical beasts. We were lucky to have your insight, my lord."

Arvind stood happily from Aldric's praise, and the juveniles clustered around him, their humming now almost melodious. "Not luck, Sir Aldric. Knowledge. The same knowledge these little ones will help us expand." He looked at the apprentice knights, seeing how differently they carried themselves now. "Today wasn't just about victory in battle. It was our first step toward understanding something much bigger."

"Take the dead beast's body; it's our precious harvest of today," Arvind instructed the knights. The battle had shown his growth as a leader, and he felt excited by this realization. He clenched his fist in declaration and murmured, "My legend starts today."

As they began the careful process of herding the juvenile Razorbacks back toward Anika and the others, Arvind made mental notes. He'd need Faelan the scholar's help and perhaps even ask his father to send beast tamers. This discovery could revolutionize everything—elemental energy, knight training methods, and perhaps even the relationship between humans and magical beasts.

The sun tilted to the west, its light catching on the crystallized wheat and the metallic spines of the juvenile Razorbacks, creating an almost ethereal scene. In the destruction of the wheat field, Arvind saw the seeds of something new beginning to grow—something that would leave a mark deeply in the history of Atheron.

---

"Will Lord Baron be safe and sound?" a serf asked his friend.

"Yes, there is no question about it," the older serf replied, excitement appearing on his face. The younger serf listened closely, but no words followed. He turned to the older serf, seeing his excitement, but didn't understand what he saw that made him so ecstatic. As he turned, he realized.

"Lord Baron's team is coming back!" he cried in excitement.

The others reacted immediately, smiles finally appearing on their tense faces—whether knights in defensive stance, farmers, servants, or Anika.

"I did not disappoint you. We have killed the beasts, and we also have a huge harvest today. Let their meat be the symbol of Ravengarde's awakening from darkness," Arvind said as he approached Anika's side.

Anika, in tears as she listened to his voice, felt her worries and tension melt away. She replied, "You have grown up, my lord." Her eyes turned to the faces full of joy. "They were worried about you. We are happy to see you and the knights safe."

Arvind listened intently, his heart warm and happy, learning that they worried and cared about their safety. His hard work and ambitious determination had made an impact.

After a while, Arvind instructed the knights to work with the farmers. It was already 2 p.m., and they had to finish harvesting before nightfall. With the help of the powerful knights, they and the farmers were finally able to harvest all the wheat before 4 p.m.

"Everyone, let's rest now. The servants have finished preparing our meals. Today we celebrate our hard work despite the challenges we faced," Arvind said with a happy smile.

The harvest team listened attentively as he spoke. They sighed with relief and happiness despite their exhaustion. Cheers rippled through the fields.

---

"Everyone, before you start eating your meals, let me say thank you to you all. We have finished harvesting our wheat, which will solve our food shortage. I won't waste your time. Let..." Arvind spoke with a smile, his face turning golden in the evening sun.

Everyone cheered without waiting for him to finish. Anika and Aldric smiled at Arvind, happy to see his growth and success today. The knights and farmers busied themselves eating, laughter rippling through the field.

As servants served food, Arvind said with a smile, "Pity Shankar is not here."

Anika replied with a smile, "Yes, and Faelan."

Bramir, excited as his hard work paid off, raised his cup of ale to Arvind. "Cheers, my lord."

"Cheers," Arvind responded, and everyone followed, their cheers rippling throughout the field.

A serf lamented, "Lord Baron is really good. We even have a full meal today. This is my first time eating to my heart's content."

Another serf emphasized his words, "Yes, you are right." Placing his left hand on his heart, he continued, "Now I realize how fortunate we are to have Lord Arvind as our leader."

Others murmured in approval.

After a few hours, Arvind instructed the servants to pack up as night began to fall.

Despite being in a drunk state, Bramir approached, driven by responsibility. "My lord, I have to inform you that we need to replant the wheat again before the weather starts to change."

Arvind replied, knowing that planting would not stop despite the good harvest today. "Yes, you are right. Proceed with planting this week."

Bramir, happy with Arvind's words but worried about the challenges, said, "My lord, what about the magical bird and weather change issue, and also the water wheel construction?"

Arvind replied with a smile, "Don't worry, we will find their solution."

Before night fell, Arvind was back at the top of the castle, gazing at Ashford in a silent moment. Reflecting on his first fight with a magical beast, he felt the happiness of courage to face his inner fear and the joy of seeing smiles on everyone's faces. The hope that he saw reawaken in Ravengarde made him look at the shining star. He murmured as he placed his left hand on the pendant, "Look, Mom, I did not disappoint you. If you see me, please bless me as I navigate the future ahead."

"Ding" rang in his mind, snapping him out of his thoughts. He opened the system interface and noticed a tip.

**System Panel**

- Tip: Beast bodies can be converted into magical crystals, a valuable resource for purchasing system assistance.

Excited by this discovery, Arvind realized how to get assistance from the system. "Finally, my system is not as useless as I thought. With this, I could speed up my territory's development," he thought. His mind started making plans to develop pesticides, construct water wheels for irrigation, and further reforms like freeing some serfs from slavery.

He planned to transform Ravengarde from a backward region into a modern magic industrial domain. While this plan came with dangers and challenges, he imagined the backlash he would face from the traditional noble faction and the church. Fortunately, he could form alliances with non-traditional nobles. He didn't know how the territory's border traditional baron would react, but he mused with a smile, loving to see it.

After a while, his eyes turned to the northeast direction of the Warcraft forest. "Perhaps you are my first obstacle toward my goals," he murmured.

In Atheron, magical energy was just a general term for elemental energy and its derivatives. Elemental energy was divided into two: active (free) elemental energy, which was the source of magical power, and inactive elemental energy, which was fundamental to the world, just like atoms.

**To be continued...**