Chapter 16: Dog barking one after another

"Fear not, Beast of Earth!"

Marcus's heart raced, his knightly lance trembling in his hand.

But in the next instant, he realized with astonishment that his lance had pierced the Earth Beast precisely, creating a small bloody hole in its body. The beast's fierce charge was halted by his strike, causing it to crash heavily onto the ground.

As the fallen Earth Beast attempted to turn and pounce again, Marcus seized the opportunity. Discarding his lance, unsuitable for close combat, he drew his single-handed sword, mounted on his horse, and began hacking wildly at the beast's head.

The Earth Knight possessed astonishing physical prowess, and he had also honed his skills in single-handed swordsmanship through systematic training.

In the blink of an eye, the colossal Earthshaker Hound was howling in pain, its sporadic counterattacks utterly disorganized. From beginning to end, it didn't cast any magic; it was merely engaging Marcus in a one-on-one melee battle.

Why is Thorns Ridge's mightiest magical beast, the Earthdog, no different from an ordinary wild beast? It's incredibly weak. A thousand questions swirled in my mind.

Yet, the longsword in his hand showed no mercy, and moments later, the furious earthdog was severely wounded, collapsing to the ground with blood pouring from its wounds.

Only a faint breath of life remained.

Marcus didn't dare to let his guard down. He picked up the lance on the ground and aimed at the raging earthdog's throat, striking with precision.

Thrust!

"Woof...!"

The enraged earthdog's eyes went blank as it drew its last breath.

Marcus skillfully retrieved the rope he carried and tied it to the beast's tail. Then, he mounted his dun-colored horse and rode back the way he came, hastening his pace. He dared not linger in Thorns Ridge, especially with the bloody scent of the earthdog that could attract wild beasts or even magical creatures.

According to noble law, all produce within a territory belonged to the lord.

Hence, even if Marcus had killed the raging earthdog, it still counted as Liszt's property. He rode swiftly and soon returned to the small castle with two stories.

"Teacher Marcus," Carl Hammer was on duty, for squire knights were responsible for safeguarding the castle.

"Hurry, inform Baron Sir that I've hunted a magical beast!"

"What? A magical beast!"

Swiftly, the entire castle was stirred. Squires, servants, maidservants, and even the butler and cook followed Liszt in haste to witness the magical beast. Magical beasts weren't rare, for Tulip Castle did have some in captivity. However, in this small town, they were still considered exotic creatures.

Not to mention, magical beasts were valuable, with every part of their bodies being useful!

"Lecturer Marcus, is this the King of Thorns Ridge, a powerful low-level magical beast, the Earthshaker Hound?" Liszt's eyes flickered as he pondered.

"It indeed is an Earthshaker Hound. Normally, not even two of me would be able to defeat it. It can cast earth attribute magic—Rock Spikes, which are impossible to guard against. One could only flee upon encountering it. But the one I hunted only knew Beast Charge and didn't use any magic at all."

"It didn't use any magic? What do you think is the reason?"

It was evident that Marcus had observed and pondered during his wait. "I think I might've encountered a female Earthshaker Hound that had just given birth. Look at its belly—it's shriveled and loose, which is a sign of childbirth. It's still lactating. Also, I found many bite wounds on its body."

"Lactating? Bite wounds?"

"Here, here, and here, there are tooth marks. Do you still remember the Windblade Wolves we encountered previously, my lord baron? These bite wounds are healing, so they're not very visible, but I believe they were inflicted by the Windblade Wolves."

"So it seems…" Liszt felt much more reassured. "This Earthshaker Hound must've been attacked by the Windblade Wolves while pregnant. It might've won and given birth to its offspring, but the battle drained its energy and magic, forcing it to rely on its beastly instincts to hunt. Then, it encountered Lecturer Marcus?"

"Very likely."

Liszt suppressed his excitement and said calmly, "If that's the case, Teacher Marcus, I believe that the value of the Raging Earth Hound's corpse is insignificant compared to its offspring. Are you still capable of fighting? Would you accompany me into Thorns Ridge to search for the puppy?"

"Always ready for battle," Marcus puffed out his chest. Then, he added, "But Thorns Ridge is very dangerous. I can go in alone to search for it."

"Together, I am also a Knight of the Earth."

"Milord..."

"Don't forget, nobles must fight as well. Consider this my practical knight training session," Liszt declared with an air of righteousness.

In reality, he was thinking that the quest reward was just waiting there. How could he not go after it?

Moreover, the fact that the weakened Raging Earth Hound had managed to survive and attack Marcus indicated that there were no other magical beasts in the area that posed a threat to it. Otherwise, it would have already been reduced to feces.

No one could dissuade Liszt from his decision.

Marcus placed a hand over his heart in a gesture of chivalry, expressing his respect for Liszt's bravery.

The butler, Carter, bowed deeply and said, "My Lord, your courage is clad in armor, and glory shall forever be at your side!"

"Certainly."

Liszt donned his wyvern hide armor and mounted his horse, exuding an air of valor: "Let's set off!"

...

Two Earth Knights, followed by four squire knights, rode swiftly, soon entering the territory of Thorns Ridge. Under Marcus's guidance, they arrived at the spot where he first sensed the presence of the Rampaging Earth Hound.

"Baron, this is the place. I sensed its aura here, and then it pursued me for a mile before ambushing me," Marcus reported.

"In that case, its den should be nearby. Let's begin our search," Liszt proposed.

The landscape was dotted with mounds, and the woods were disordered.

After half an hour of searching, the party of six found no trace of the Rampaging Earth Hound's lair. Frustration and disappointment began to seep in.

"Milord, perhaps the Rampaging Earth Hound was just passing through. Its den might not be in this area, or it might not even have a fixed den," suggested Carl.

But Liszt remained resolute: "I believe its den is right here."

The reward for completing the Smoking Task couldn't be missing; that was his confidence.

After some thought, he asked, "Does anyone know how a Rampaging Earth Dog barks?"

"Rampaging Earth Dogs are still dogs. Their barks wouldn't be too different from regular dogs," Marcus answered.

"In that case, Carl, Rohm, Gray, and Auden, you four should continuously imitate dog barks. If there are any young Rampaging Earth Dogs here, they will definitely respond—they wouldn't understand the meaning behind your imitation of their mother's call, but they'd think it's their mom calling out to them."

"A good idea," Marcus agreed.

Immediately, he joined the four vassal knights in imitating various dog barks as they continued searching the surrounding area.

Fifteen minutes later.

Marcus suddenly raised his hand. "Silence!"

Once everyone fell quiet, he cupped his ear and whispered, "Baron, listen."

Liszt focused his attention. After a few seconds, he heard a faint "ah-woof" sound behind the chirping of an unknown bird—it was indeed a dog's bark.

"It's over there."

"Yes, right there." Marcus gestured to Carl, "Your barking is the closest. Keep going."

Carl obeyed.

With each of his barks, a faint "woof" echoed from not far away. Following this inexplicable conversation, Liszt and the others finally discovered the lair of the Raging Earth Hound – hidden in a thicket.

Pushing aside the grass at the entrance of the den, Liszt reached in and scooped out an incredibly tiny puppy that hadn't even opened its eyes yet.

He carefully handed the puppy to Liszt. "My lord, it's a Raging Earth Hound cub, priceless! It hasn't opened its eyes yet; once it does, it will recognize its master!" Not all magical beasts would acknowledge a master, but canines had this behavioral habit.

Whomever they saw first was whom they acknowledged.

Most of the time, it was their mother— perhaps acknowledging a master was just acknowledging their mother.

The puppy trembled in Liszt's arms, occasionally whimpering in fear. It must have sensed the unfamiliar scent on him, which wasn't the smell it knew from nursing.

"Hang in there, you'll be able to nurse again soon," Liszt stroked the puppy's fluffy fur and climbed back onto his horse. "Let's go!"