Chapter 153: Tracking the Bull.

Chapter 153: Tracking the Bull.

I do apologize, Lady Shrine Maiden, that I cannot allow you to ride with me. My partner is a little bit, uhm, finicky with whom he allows to ride him, Sir Antonio, riding on his proud hippogryph, spoke to me while we were walking on a road north of Firwood. His white-feathered armor glistened under the sun, matching in color with his white-brown mount.

You do not have to mince your words with me, Sir Antonio. I can feel that your hippogryph does not like me on an instinctive level, I replied, focusing on the glare the hippogryph was giving me with its right eye. The fire burning inside it was being projected to me with pure animalistic hostility, as if the beast was looking at a rival. Admittedly, my own instinct was being roused; not cause of my [Danger Perception], but cause of something a bit deeper inside me. I wasnt so sure what the reason for this feeling was, although I think its some kind of dragon instinct.

Antonios expression contorted, showing how uncomfortable and awkward he was feeling when I spoke the truth. Usually my chivalrous partner here would allow any fine ladies to ride him, but i-it is true that hippogryphs despise wyverns, and consequently any dragonkin in general, including dragonewts. Please forgive me, my Goddess, for I have sinned against one of your shrine maidens.

Lucky us that hes so religious; otherwise, we would have had to go with Saoris plan and tail him.

Cernust was our benefactor, since he was the one who taught Tasianna alchemy, something that has been benefiting us financially. So, it shouldnt come as a surprise that we would try to help him, or at least find out if he truly was a kidnapper or not. Which meant we needed to either accept the Quest that Antonio had posted in the mercenary guild or tail him after he departed.

Fortunately and unfortunately, nobody in the merc guild wanted to accept it due to something Saori told me about the mercenaries in Firwood despise taking Quests from Lecartiglio nobles like Antonio. Nobody wanted the Quest, so we didnt have to tail him, but another issue appeared. Our mercenary guild rank was only F, since we had done barely any merc Quests.

As an adventurer guild, the merc guild allowed their members to take Quests one rank above their own if they could prove their competence to the Quest giver; however, that didnt apply to people two ranks lower. Which we were. Rachael, one of the merc guilds receptionists, had to follow the rules and reject our application.

Certainly, if I were a normal person, I would have given up here and relied on tailing the knight, but I had connections. No, I did not call in any favors from House Helvas or House Sirius. I wouldn't want to be known as someone who abuses her status as a noble to get priority on quests. Instead, I remembered my discussion with Farron when he visited my restaurant, where he complained about a Lecartiglio noble that was annoying him. Saori and Tasianna even confirmed that Antonio was this person.

So, I had Farron write a recommendation for us. Quests could also be given to adventurers by referral, either through the Quest giver or guild master. He wasnt the guild master of the merc guild, but Antonio did ask him to help him in his search for Cernust. So, we were going for the clients referral, just like how Carine Villages head, Colwyn, gave us our first Quest, the bandit subjugation one.

Since Antonios house didnt have a home in Firwood nor was he willing to stay over at a nobles mansion, he had rented a room at a fancy inn in the merchants district, which was close enough to a hotel, quality-wise. Saori mentioned he was uncomfortable around, and possibly even racist against, beastmen and elves, so I was expecting issues, but it went well enough. I mean, he still scowled when he saw us, proving Saoris words.

What made him calm down were my robes. Once again, looking like a priestess of Aurena was a boon, despite this being a white mages robe and not a priestesss robe. Yes, I was being pedantic, but who cares? Anyway, as I was a priestess and looked the part of a shrine maiden, Antonio warmed up to me quickly, as he was apparently quite religious. The moment I showed him Farrons letter? That was when he turned completely friendly to us.

A letter from Sir Farron?! he exclaimed, looking very pleased, although I wasnt sure why he called Farron Sir. Wasnt that reserved for knights or something? Then again, Antonio showed he could be very polite and courteous when he wanted to be, so maybe this was his way to show respect to an A rank adventurer.

In the letter, Farron explained that we were the help he requested since we were mercenaries in addition to hunters, albeit with low ranks from our recent arrival and registration in Firwood. Furthermore, the letter also specified that Saori was a B rank tracker and combatant, and that she was part of the newcomer party Aurora, so Tasianna and I were included in the package. After Saori proved her qualifications by showing her profile to Antonio through her ID which meant we could hide certain information from him he readily accepted us.

We went back to the mercenary guild with Antonio where he referred us, which allowed us to take his Quest despite our low rank. He then went back to his inn, telling us that we would depart the next day. After he left, most of the mercs warned us we were making a mistake, but we told them not to worry. When we didnt budge, most of them wished us luck and bid us to come back safely, although I suspect that they did that simply cause some of them were regulars at our restaurant.

The curry had them trappedor maybe was my singing? I like to think it was that.

Unfortunately, since we were taking on this Quest, we would probably miss Ellaines departure to Griffonpeak, depending on how long this Quest would take. We had to say goodbye in case that happened, but we also made plans to meet up at House Helvass mansion when we reached the capital.

So, thats how we ended up here. We immediately left the town at the break of dawn, where we met Antonios hippogryph Bornelli, a white-brown feathered eagle-lion-horse hybrid monster. It had the head, wings, and forelegs of an eagle, the torso of a lion, and the hindlegs and tail of a horse. There was a mix of armor and horse gear equipped on the hippogryph, making it look as battle-ready as Antonio, who was sitting on the giant bird-horse in his armor.

Just like in various fantasy novels, the hippogryph was a relative to the griffon. However, unlike Lord Helvass griffon, Antonios hippogryph was only around the size of a horse compared to the griffons elephant-like size. If I were in my proper form, I would outsize this arrogant little pipsqueak, hmph!

Sir Antonio, we are used to the road. You do not need to slow yourself down for our sake, Saori stated, leading us from the front. Considering it is your sister, should we not hurry?

Well, I am very worried for my sister, but I cannot possibly ask the Lady Shrine Maiden to run. As her guard, should you not be more considerate of her health? Even walking like this is already a sin, ohhh, woe to my honor! How could you allow this to happen, Bornelli? Antonio complained like a drama queen.

Kiyyaaaaahhhh! somehow understanding him, Bornelli began to flap his wings wildly, looking like he wanted to knock his rider off; however, Antonio kept himself mounted like an expert bull rider. After he noticed that he couldnt do anything to his rider, Bornelli turned his head towards me and screeched Kiyaaaaahhhhh! at me. Was he venting his anger at me?

I do apologize for this shameful behavior that I am showing to a visitor from Loatryx, Antonio apologized. Hippogryphs are naturally more aggressive and feral than griffons. Even after breaking him when he hatched and raising him as properly as any honorable knight of the White Talon order should, I still have not gained his full respect yet. On my honor, I promise to raise you to become as valiant as your parents, Bornelli!

Mana Eyes.

Hippogryph

A savage feathered monster with the body parts of a majestic eagle, prideful lion, and stubborn equerochs. Hippogryphs possess a ruthless and terrestrial nature that makes them into powerful dogfighters and terrestrial hunters. Unlike the older and evolved adults, Younger hippogryphs compensate for their smaller size with savagery to intimidate and break potential enemies and prey. Rank D

I was expecting the hippogryph to be rank C, based on my memory of Lord Helvass B rank griffon, but I guess that wasnt the case in the end. I wonder if this hippogryph had just reached maturity?

Since Antonio had some sense of chivalry to protect a fragile maiden like me from marching like a common soldier, even though his sister was currently missing, I couldnt help but sigh. Were his religious beliefs and knights honor that much more important than the safety of his sibling? I couldnt say, but what I do know is my impatience.

Saori, reading my mood, signaled for Tasianna to get on her back. The moment that happened, Saori sprinted forwards, leaving Antonio and me behind. The knight, exclaiming What in the world?! in surprise, turned to me, to which I answered by running ahead of him, leaving dust in his mouth.

Your sister is in danger a noble at that, too and you are worrying for me? I then cast both [Haste] and [Swift Winds] on myself, drastically increasing my Agility even further. That is patronizing me, Sir Antonio. Fleur Mushroom Forest, correct? I know that place, so I bid you hurry up.

The Fleur Mushroom Forest was the hunting location I went to with Ellaine, a place filled with mushrooms and, consequently, fungi-loving monsters and animals like skorrs, the Peolyncian version of pigs. Antonio told us that Cernust was planning to bring his sister to the elven kingdom north of Firwood.

They would have to go through this forest, which borders the Belzac mountain, and then cross a river to the edge of Saelariel. According to Antonios sources, Cernust escaped Firwood on the same day Antonio arrived in Firwood, so they couldnt have made it to Saelariel yet; however, that didnt mean we should slow down so much for something as ridiculous as worrying about my Stamina. A sunfang dragon doesnt care while its still morning!

Kyiyiyiyi, the hippogryph turned its long neck to its rider, making sounds to make its intent clear.

Tch, Bornelli, we ride! Understanding his mount, Antonio picked up the reins and shouted with a loud Hiyaahh! before Bornelli galloped at a breathtaking pace. I was holding myself back but it was still impressive to see the hippogryphs top speed.

If we flew, we would have reached the forest before lunchtime; however, since my party couldnt really use our top speed due to the hippogryph, it took us until the afternoon. We would have probably needed a day if we went at the same pace we used to travel to Rashan Village. Then again, we departed from Firwood during lunchtime back then, not at dawn like today.

Unbelievable, I didnt think we would reach the forest in less than a day without riding Bornelli and some equerochs, Antonio stated with disbelief as he checked on his heavy-breathing hippogryph. It seemed like it had strained itself to keep up with our pace, but it was doing its best to not show any weakness. Prideful, indeed.

To allow him to recover, Antonio dismounted and unsheathed his sword and shield, saying he would handle any threats as he was a knight. Honestly, thats the first time that I heard somebody say this to me after I reincarnated as a dragon. Most of the time, I had the privilege to say something cool and dashing like that.

Nevertheless, I didnt say anything. Antonio didnt accept a party invite and most of the monsters in this forest werent worth the experience for my party anyway, so having him fight and do the hard work was fine in my book. I also wasnt in any danger of [Battle Frenzy] since I had just unleashed a full explosion on Davison a few days ago.

Most of the tracks are skorrs, loopabits, and other monsters, Saori noted as she analyzed the ground for tracks, commenting and pointing at any footprint she could find. Sir Antonio, would you possibly have anything belonging to the kidnapper or your sister for me to track them with? The forest has too many tracks on the ground that it would be quicker to use my nose.

Saori was a wolf, after all.

Antonio nodded, agreeing her plan sounded more efficient. He then opened up one of the satchels strapped on Bornelli and took out a handkerchief with an emblem on it. This handkerchief is Severas. It has the emblem of our house on it, and from what I remember, she always brought it with her wherever she went. After she suddenly left our mansion, the maids noticed she left this behind in addition to her rings. What a coward, kidnapping a fair maiden while she is inside her home.The initial instance of this chapter being available happened at N0v3l.Bin.

Huh, that does sound like a kidnapping. Cernust, what the hell did you do?

Saori sniffed on the handkerchief, noticing a slight perfume smell. I can see that you kept it washed and clean. Any traceable smell is long gone. Could I try the rings? While the handkerchief was a dud, the rings seemed to have retained the noblewomans smell. Saori began moving towards the smells direction while inspecting the ground for tracks.

[Saori, dont lead him directly to Cernust. We need to get his part of the story first,] I told Saori through [Telepathy]. Whether Cernust actually was a kidnapper or not should be determined after we talked with him, and hopefully without Antonio being with us.

Saori didnt look back as she responded, [Yeah, I understand. I have a feeling that it wouldnt end well if those two were to meet, especially with that hippogryph. Its like it is waiting for any hostility from us, any reason for it to pounce on us.]

As we started to move, curiosity finally got the better of me. Sir Antonio, if it isnt awfully rude to ask, how was your sister kidnapped?

He shook his head, saying it wasnt a problem, as his family had already asked the gods for forgiveness for this failure. He cleared up his throat and began recalling what he knew. When it happened, I was actually at the Order, so all this information came from my lord father and eldest brother. Severa, the fourth child of our parents, one day seemed to have met this criminal in our fief while he was doing some work. I do not know what beastman trick he used, but my sister somehow was infatuated by that brute. Oh, I do not mean any insult, Lady Shrine Maiden.

None taken. Please, continue. I couldnt help but believe he was a racist by now.

Thank you for your graciousness. It purifies my soul. He gave a quick prayer, thanking Aurena for sending her shrine maidens to him today before he continued his story. After we forbade him from seeing her, even resorting to a forceful removal, they somehow met in Gransromus and Cedaraille again and again. And then one day, she just disappeared while she was at our home. Simply vanished. Without any warning except for a letter which had I will leave written on it! Outrageous! How dare that vagrant take my youngest sister away from her house!

After allowing him to calm down a bit, I asked him what Gransromus was, to which he answered that it was the capital of the Lecartiglio duchy. Well, my party had no plans to visit that place, but knowing its name was fine, I guess.

Barely a scent and I cant find a single human or beastman track in the smells direction. Saori, despite her naturally strong nose from [Primal Senses], was having trouble finding our path through this place.

If you guys enjoyed this chapter then, please follow the story. If you guys want the story to grow, then giving it a rating or a favorite will do wonders: Rawr

Thank you for reading this chapter.

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Sunday, April 18, 2021 3:39:22 AM Germany [Member of Zard Skwad]

Bio: Hey there, AbyssRaven here. I'm just an avid Light Novel and Fantasy story reader who randomly thought of a story and began writing about it.

I eventually found out that I've been spending a bit too much time with building, planning, and researching for the story, that I've decided to just share it with others.

Writing is mostly a hobby for me, but I would still love any kind of criticism to improve on it.

I'm also german, so please excuse anything that sounds a bit weird...I wouldn't mind you pointing it out though.

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