"Oi! To yer left! Don't ye let it escape!" Coming out of the tree line, Drogo roared.
"Don't worry. I won't." Answered Claus, his crossbow already aimed at the fleeing monster. Pressing the trigger, a crossbow bolt flew through the air. His aim true, it hit the beast, unfortunately, instead of hitting the wounds that Drogo managed to inflict upon it, the beast sensed danger and it nimbly turned its body, the bolt hitting its hard scales and bounced off instead.
Claus clicked his tongue. Even with a severed leg, the oversized lizard is still quite nimble.
The monster that they were chasing is a Larcerlion. A giant lizardlike creature about two and a half meters tall and fifteen-meter long from head to the tip of its tail. The distinguishing feature of it besides its large physique is the long hard scales in its neck that look like a mane of a lion. Although his attack didn't work, it enraged the Larcerlion and it roared in anger. It lashed its powerful tail which brought down the trees that it hit.
Claus zipped through the tree branches all the while he reloads his crossbow. The hunt was a disaster. The traps that he painstakingly set are getting further and further away, unused, and became basically useless. All because the old man chased the Larcerlion the wrong way. Suspicion sprung on his mind that the old man did it on purpose but confronting him could wait for later, at the moment...
Upon arriving at a small clearing Claus let out a sharp, long whistle. Then, from above, a piercing cry answered, and a pair of eagles swoop down and their sharp claws wounded the Larcerlion's eyes. "Good job! Jiro, Jora! I'll take it from here." With the eagles flying away, he began charging the crossbow bolt with his mana. With the bolt glowing with focused energy, he then fired it towards the Lacerlion's head. "Time to put you down."
The bolt whistled through the air as it flew towards its target. Even after being blinded, the Lacerlion's instinct was still sharp and although it was able to keep its life by moving its head a few centimeters to the side, a huge chunk of its face was still torn off.
Claus clicked his tongue once more. He wanted to kill the beast painlessly, but it was putting off quite a hard struggle. Normal beasts would've died on the spot after getting almost a quarter of their head blown off. The Lacerlion truly earned its reputation as a resilient monster.
"Wow! That was one hell of an attack! Why don't you use that often?" The old man complimented him from twenty meters away. "Time to end it! Here I come!" He roared while brandishing his sword over his shoulder.
The Lacerlion roared in reply, the scales in its neck vibrating. Seeing this, Claus shouted in warning. "Get back old man! It's going to attack!"
"Huh?!" Just as the old man replied, the Lacerlion spun around, its tail brought down and flung the trees away, creating a small clearing with it at the center. Good thing the old man was able to block the attack with his sword, but the force behind the tail attack was so fierce that he was blown a few meters back. "Whoah! That packs a punch! Bahaha!" He laughed as he pushed away a fallen tree that is pinning him down.
"No time to laugh! Charge at him now! Before he regenerates!" As he shouts those words, Claus charged another crossbow bolt with his mana. As he reloads the crossbow in his hands, he charged towards the Lacerlion who has now stood on its hind legs. The beast towered over eight meters above them. The scales on its neck now stood upright, its sharp spear-like strands pointing in every direction.
It is the Lacerlion's last-ditch attack dubbed as the Lion Quill Explosion named after its ability to shoot the now hardened scales that act as its mane, sending the spear-like scales in all direction with enough force to puncture through solid rocks like it is butter in the least a twenty-meter radius.
There are only two places safe from this attack.
Directly above or two meters near the beast.
Whistling to signal Jiro and Jora to flew directly above the Lacerlion, he and Drogo continued to charge towards the beast. The bestial roar of the overgrown lizard signals the beginning of its attack. First, it will use the regeneration gland in its body to heal itself, then the new scales that will grow in its 'mane' a few seconds after will trigger the Lion Quill Explosion. Before his eyes, the regeneration process has already started. As if exploding outward, a new foot sprung out of the stub that the old man hacked off earlier. Its gored face also healed up to a point where one may wonder if the image of it on the brink of death just seconds ago was just an illusion.
No. This is not the time to be amazed. I should end it now before it gets any more dangerous. Claus shot the charged-up arrow towards the exposed chest of the Lacerlion. Whistling through the air, the bolt pierced through its chest, leaving a hole where its heart should've been. It would damage the hide, lowering its price when sold to the traders, but it is better to be safe than dead. But even before he could celebrate, his eyes went wide with what he saw. The supposedly dead beast roared and the hole he has created, his supposed killing blow suddenly closed up. "What a resilient bastard." He cursed as the scales on the Lacerlion's mane started to fly in every direction. Thankfully, he was able to reach the two-meter safe point in time. That is when he heard a loud laugh from a few meters behind him.
Don't tell me! Claus looked back and saw the old man.
"Bahaha! Tough luck lad." The old man laughed as he swats away the scales that flew towards using Voracity. Although seeing the sharp quill-like scales that he wasn't able to parry bounce off harmlessly off his Aura Reinforced body, Claus wonders if the old man even has the need to dodge.
Damn it old man. If you are already this tough, why do you even need armor for? Claus thought. If not for the risk of getting blacklisted by the craftsmen guild, the two of them wouldn't have to bust their asses so hard to cover for his obligations. While they ought to thank Guild Master Anderson for his help in securing enough quest to cover their expense, even going as far as pulling enough strings with the nearby Adventurers Guild branches in giving them the high paying quests, it seems that Anderson is not doing it with the goodness of his heart, instead, the youngest Adventurer's Guild Master in history plans to bolster the upstart branch's renown and attract new members by using the old man's reputation. Knowing that Paul Bret Anderson is doing them a favor for a future favor, put Claus' heart at ease.
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After all, he can't trust someone who does things for nothing.
Unaware of the torrent of thoughts that is going on Claus' mind, Old man Drogo's roaring laughter boomed through the forest. "That is not how ye kill a wild beast." Not minding the quills flying his way, the old man continued to gather his Ki. With his enormous Aura covering his whole body, the ground beneath him begin to crack as the old man leaped ten meters high above the air, the monster. "Always go fer the head!" Like a whirlwind of death, the old man spun mid-air, then, the head of the Lacerlion was lopped off and was flung high up in the air. With a thud, the giant head landed on the ground with its quill-like scales puncturing deep within the forest floor. Hefting his great sword upon his shoulder, he walked towards the Lacerlion's lifeless head with a wide grin stretched upon his face. "That's how ye do it. Wasn't I amazing! Gahahaha!"
"Yeah. I know that you're so great, old man. But you know... The carcass would've been worth ten times more in gold when sold to the merchants than one without." Especially for a beast this size. Collectors near and far would gladly throw away hundreds of gold pieces, maybe even a thousand if placed in an auction for an undamaged 'whole' hide of a great beast. The wide smile on the old man's face slowly turned into a gasp expression as he froze after realizing that he just lost a lot of potential earning made Claus smile. The old man should be knocked down a peg or two once in a while unless he becomes an insufferable braggart for days. The old man has achieved so much that he can boast about it for days.
But to listen to it for days on end, that is another matter.
With this mission done, they have already accomplished half the quests that Guild Master Anderson has given, and along with the hides and the other things that they have scavenged along the way, they would've earned at least four thousand, almost half their goal. Although they have to go out of their way to hunt a rare beast or two for their priceless pelt and other body parts to earn what they have, this is for the old man, so he couldn't help it.
"Erm... Could ye just sew the head back?" The old man mumbles as he picks up the severed head of the Lacerlion and trying to stick it back to the headless body.
Claus let out a sigh. "That is not how it works, old man. That is called fraud. I am not in a hurry to get blacklisted by the merchant guilds." Claus sighed. If it was Mikaela who the old man brought with him, she wouldn't think twice and obey his ridiculous request and have their party blacklisted in every merchant guild in the whole kingdom. The length she is prepared to go to earn the old man's praise isn't something to be underestimated. Even thinking about the things she has done in the past to pursue her goal to be recognized, not to mention that she won't hesitate to punish anyone who slights her and the old man, may it be direct confrontation or with an underhanded ploy, and what Claus had to do to clean up her mess is giving him a headache.
He doesn't even want to think about what's going on in her mind right now with her new obsession with gaining fame that matches the old man's.
He was pulled back to reality after hearing a thud. The old man seems to have given up on the beasts' hide and tossed away the severed head. "Bah! I don't need an intact corpse anyway. After all, the real money is on its regenerative gland." A renewed smile formed on his face once more.
True. The regenerative gland of a Lacerlion is a sought-after ingredient in crafting. A potion mixed with the regenerative juices increases the potency of the healing potion where it can even regrow missing limbs. If used in crafting a piece of armor, even if the wearer receives a grievous wound, it will only take a single day for it to heal even without the help of healing potions or healing spells. If it is used in leather armor, it also automatically repair any damage the armor receives. One of these regular regenerative glands would easily be worth three hundred gold pieces.
What more is a gland from this gigantic Lacerlion? If intact, it wouldn't surprise him if the price goes up to a thousand gold pieces.
Unfortunately...
"Yeah. But I wouldn't get my hopes up if I were you. He did use it earlier, so it is more likely empty and worthless." Claus stated as he studies the fallen beast's corpse.
"Well, now that ye said it, it sure would! By the gods, lad. You of all people should know not to call it before opening a treasure chest. T'is bad luck." The old man plopped on the ground.
"I didn't know you believe in such a thing. You always say that we make our own luck." Part of the reason why behind the old man's carefree attitude is a vigilant man. Although how someone could be so vigilant and at the same time appear so carefree still puzzles Claus.
"How times have changed. The wee lad is now talking back at me. If I knew ye are in yer rebellious phase, I would've took Mimi with me instead." Old man Drogo sighed and shrugged his shoulder in an exaggerated manner.
"We both know that you won't especially not right now. Not only because the missions we take are risky, but because most of the time, we have to sleep out in the wilds." Claus took off his cloak and placed it inside his dimensional bag since he doesn't want it to get smeared in blood once he starts skinning the beast. His slightly pointed ears are revealed after he tied his long blond hair in a ponytail. "Honestly, you coddle her too much. How will she become stronger if you continue to patronize her? Even when the two of you spar you go too easy on her. How would she know her limit and learn how to overcome them?"
"Yer one ta talk when. Ye also go easy on her in spars ye know." The old man replied with a grin.
"I'm doing that so that she will have someone who she can fight as an equal. It is said that one's strength advances faster when fighting a rival." While he won most of the time they sparred, it is mostly due to Mikaela's fighting style not being suited for a head-on clash. Her lies with her superb footwork and knack to find and take advantage of an opponent's blind spots, making her a serious threat in a chaotic clash where it is impossible to keep tabs on the location of every opponent. Claus himself could be considered skilled when it comes to stalking and hiding before dealing with the killing strike, but that is when he is using his crossbow while hiding in the shadows. Meanwhile, Mikaela can do it in the middle of a fight.
She might've detested how harsh her childhood is, but without the experience from it, she wouldn't be what she is now.
"Is that why yer hiding that ye have already Awakened? Then we're on the same boat, lad." He took out a piece of mutton and took a bite. All the while he chews his food, he continued. "However, what if she finds out that yer holding back? Won't it hurt her feelings even more?"
"I am not showing my strength to avoid getting myself probed by that hateful woman again." Claus paused from skinning the Lacerlion corpse and shivered as he recalls the various things that Porsha tried on her when she found out that he has in him the blood of the elder race, and his earlier inability to manipulate mana while normal elves could like it is breathing air, piqued her curiosity even more.
"I know Porsha can be quite too eager when it comes to her interests. But it couldn't be possibly that bad? Innit?"
"You can only say that because she more or less behaves whenever you're around. Anyway, what do you think are the others doing right now?" He replied while pulling out the bloody innards of the beast. Porsha might probably want these. Claus placed it inside his dimensional bag, thinking that he could use these to bargain with the woman when he needs something of her.
"Probably something boring. We already did all the interesting missions near Mukala. What else would they do?"
"Aside from reporting that she hit a dead-end on her mission of finding out where Gen and his ilk got their supplies and high-end tools, Mikaela also reported that there were a lot of incidents where whole villages were mysteriously empty with no clue on what happened to the inhabitants." Mikaela not being able to get more information about those incidents was also weird. She's usually reliable when it comes to gathering information, how aggressive and somewhat violent her ways may be.
"They probably just went out for a picnic or sumthin." Taking another swig from the bottle, he continued. "Adam's there, so we have none to worry about. I would worry more that the lass would get into trouble with her temper. Especially since she has to watch over not only Porsha but also lad, Artreus. Gods know her temper is worse than usual when she's with him." Scratching his chin, he continued. "Maybe I should've made them come with us."
"Worried? Don't worry. I'm, sure Mikaela won't do anything stupid." After all, if there is something she wouldn't ever do, it is to do something that would shame the old man. "By the way, old man. Regarding our hunt. Did you deliberately chased the Lacerlion away from the traps that I painstakingly placed for hours?"
Seeing a shameless wide grin upon the old man's face confirmed his suspicion and Claus can do naught but sigh.
♦♦♦
"Guh!" The sound of her falling on her back can barely be heard over the loud clamor of the audience.
The pain from the kick that sent her on her back is nothing to her. It is the shame that she got from getting hit that is ten times more devastating to her as she glared at her slowly approaching opponent.
"Is this all an A-rank adventurer could do? Can say I'm disappointed. Who would've known that members of the famous White Wolves are this weak?" The hateful man declared.
"Mimi, don't fall for it! Just fight normally!" Little Juliet cried from the side of the stage.
But the pleas of the children were drowned out by the churning flame of hatred from within her.
How dare he!
Gripping her daggers so tight that her hands drew blood, she once more charged at her opponent.
No one disrespects the party her old man had painstakingly formed and get away with it!
NO ONE!