The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

“Puff out your chest, and muster your spirit!” Marcus’s roar echoed through the forests at the edge of Thorn Ridge, his riding whip cracking sharply from time to time.

Thirty young boys, gripping wooden sticks, nervously surveyed every corner of the forest.

They could hear the calls of various birds and beasts deep within the woods; among those calls might have been the roars of magical beasts. For boys who had grown up on terrifying tales of magical beasts, every extra moment spent here felt like a chill down their spine as if a magical beast could pounce and sink its teeth into them at any moment.

Tony was one such fearful boy.

Clenching the wooden stick tightly, he leaned against a large tree, his calves trembling slightly. Last winter, a Wind Blade Wolf attacked Little Wheat Village, devouring two serfs and causing him to have nightmares for several nights. Now, those nightmares resurfaced in his mind, and he prayed incessantly.

“Please don’t let it eat me…”

He kept glancing at the adults who were chopping wood outside, as if that would make him feel safer.

Suddenly.

There was a loud snap above his head. Without notice, Marcus had ridden his horse over to him, his whip lashed against the trunk, stripping away the bark.

“Tony, I told you to watch the forest, not the lumberjacks!”

“Yes, yes, Mr. Marcus.”

“Show your manliness, and do not disappoint me or Lord Landlord,” Marcus said coldly.

Tony quickly responded loudly, “Yes, I will not disappoint Mr. Marcus, nor will I disappoint Lord Landlord!”

Marcus then rode away.

Seeing him go, Tony breathed a sigh of relief. He feared this cold and ruthless Earth Knight; during the past few days of selection, he had received his fair share of lashings.

Real lashings, where each strike immediately left a bloody welts on his body.

If it weren’t for the chance to become a Retainer Knight and the opportunity to change his fate, he wouldn’t want to face Marcus, let alone confront magical beasts here.

What he didn’t know was that Marcus had shaken his head as he left.

This Earth Knight had already written him off. A knight who could not face his own fears, who could not overcome the pressures of the environment, held no potential in his eyes. To Marcus, a commoner becoming a Noble was only possible through a baptism of blood and fire. If one was not prepared, it was better to go home early and farm in peace.

Otherwise, they might end up as corpses under the hooves on a battlefield.

Moving continuously through the woods, Marcus not only monitored every movement but also assessed the boys. The morning passed without incident, and he had more or less decided on the twelve members of the squad.

So, at noon.

He reported his selections to Liszt, “Lord, Philip Wool, Zavier Dung, Jacob Sole, York Baldy, Wayne Haystack, Zachary Pinky, York Cobbler, Evan Handkerchief, Sean Redface, Tracy Hunchback, Mullen Crotch, Theodore Rottensock; these twelve boys will become your Retainer Knights.”

“Zavier Dung, sounds a bit like the brother of the servant Jim Bull Dung; York Baldy, York Cobbler, with the same name, one as Big York and the other as Little York then… Well, inform their families that from this moment, these twelve boys will be excused from production, supported by the castle.”

“Yes.”

The Knight Squad’s selections had been decided, and at noon, Liszt found a moment to summon the Smoke Mission.

Indeed, the mission had been completed and updated.

“Complete the mission, reward the hatching Wind Falcon.”

“Mission: Besides drift bottles, the seaside might also bring unexpected surprises. Now, there’s a sailing ship carrying surprises drifting toward the East Coast. Please find and rescue the distressed ship. Reward: A portion of population.”

“Hmm?”

Liszt didn’t immediately pay attention to the reward of the Wind Falcon.

Because he saw “population,” which is what Fresh Flower Town is currently lacking the most. The small town has less than two thousand people, not even as many as a slightly larger village in his hometown. Without population, as a landlord, he couldn’t unfold any plans; what he desired most was population.

“A population reward related to a ship in distress, does this mean a ship carrying population is about to drift to the East Coast?” Thinking of this, Liszt eagerly called for Goltai.

“Liszt, what do you need?”

“I just realized, the fishermen of Oyster Village face the sea where there are numerous sea monsters, which is very dangerous and must be taken seriously.”

“Sea monsters… shouldn’t come to the shore, right?” Goltai was somewhat skeptical.

Sea monsters indeed posed a danger and frequently attacked ships, but they rarely came to the shore. Once the tide went out and they were stranded, it could lead to their certain demise.

His mind not really on the conversation, Liszt emphasized, “We can’t be careless about even a bit of danger. Inform the patrol team immediately; they must focus on patrolling the East Coast during this period. Report any unusual activity to me. Hold the line for a while, and if truly no sea monster comes ashore, then readjust the focus of the patrol.”

“All right, I’ll go inform them.”

Once Goltai left, Liszt finally had the mood to pay attention to the reward for the previous mission—the egg of the Wind Falcon.

He had heard about the Wind Falcon; it was a type of falcon magical beast, considered a low-level magical beast, often appearing by the sea, feeding on fish from the sea. Being a small animal, it rarely infringed on humans, and comparatively speaking, was less dangerous, but that didn’t mean it was weak. On the contrary, it had strong combat abilities.

It could release magic—Wind Blade.

This magic was the same as that of the Wind Blade Wolf, but as a falcon, it had the natural advantage of flight, allowing it to strike from almost any direction.

In other words, it could use hit-and-run tactics, wearing down its opponent without taking damage.

“So where is my Wind Falcon?” Liszt cast his gaze towards the large trees being cut down, alert in his heart, “Could it be hiding in one of the trees that is about to be chopped down?”

If there was indeed a Wind Falcon, the threat would be tremendous.

He quickly called for Marcus, “We can’t just watch out for the terrestrial beasts in the forest; we must also be vigilant of the sky, as there may be flying magical beasts here.”

Marcus took down the bow and arrows from his back, holding them firmly in his hands, “Lord, compared to ground beasts, flying magical beasts have more fragile bodies, and my arrows are always ready for them!”

His confidence infected Liszt.

“I had wanted to learn archery from you but never had the free time.”

“Lord, you can learn anytime.”

“Hmm, once I’m through this busy period, I will start learning archery,” Liszt decided. Learning archery was a must, as ranged attacks suited his nature, eliminating the enemy from afar.

Close combat was too crude and came with a high risk of injury.

As a landlord who came to this world, he was supposed to enjoy life, not suffer.

In the afternoon, Liszt kept looking up at the trees, hoping to find out which one held his reward. However, as the sun set in the west, Goltai rushed over, bringing unexpected news, “There’s a Fragrant Coconut Tree at Oyster Village that is currently the scene of a major battle between monkeys and birds.”