Chapter 82: The Hunt Begins
The first day of the hunt...
Waking up early, Bedivere quickly ate breakfast with Thomas and then prepared his equipment and supplies, and came to the entrance of the manor to meet with Usher and Pierce.
"Good morning Lord Bedivere, we are all ready to go at any time!"
As soon as they met, Pierce spoke to Bedivere with full vigor.
'He is quite the spirited young man.'
Bedivere did not dislike the young man's enthusiastic and energetic attitude. Nevertheless, the perils of this journey made him issue a final warning to Pierce in a serious tone.
"Mr. Pierce, you do realize how dangerous this mission is, don't you? Our enemy is the infamous Fakurax, a dragon with the wits of a man. He is powerful and cunning in a way that even I have not faced before. Are you and your companions sure you want to embark on this mission with me?"
"Of course!"
Unsurprisingly, Pierce nodded without thinking. Young adventurers like him always had an impulsive spirit, willing to challenge the unknown. Although Pierce's other two female companions were not as excited as Pierce, they also nodded their heads without much hesitation.
Usher nodded his head in satisfaction at Bedivere's final confirmation. In his opinion, this knight from the capital showed great maturity and reliability beyond his years. If it wasn't for his youthful appearance, Uther would have thought he was looking at a seasoned old knight!
Confirming that his teammates had made up their mind, Bedivere led them away from the manor with confidence. With the guarantee of the old hunter, Bedivere could at least make sure that Pierce and his party would not be involved in the battle with the dragon
.
On the other side, as he watched the knights and adventurers leave from the doorstep of his home, Thomas wished them victory from the bottom of his heart. Not only for the sake of his lands and his people's survival, but also because he didn't want a young hero like Bedivere to perish young. The mere fact that he was willing to challenge Fakhurax alone made Thomas respect his courage. In last night's conversation, Thomas had recognized the young knight as a rare talent through his wisdom and humility. If he managed to defeat the dragon, he would surely accomplish great deeds in the future.
"I wish you good fortune, Lord Bedivere."
After embarking on his journey, Bedivere did not immediately ask Usher to search for the traces of Fakurax. Instead, he relied on the map provided by Thomas and went along the road to investigate the suspicious village on the border of the kingdom first. After spending half a day, the group arrived at the village on foot.
"As I suspected, there's no sign of casualties here..."
Pretending to be ordinary adventurers passing by, Bediverel and his group silently blend in and observe the situation in the village. Although this place was as poor as most of the kingdoms' villages due to the high taxes and oppression from the officials and soldiers for years, there was no sign that it had been ravaged by a dragon. The villagers and guards didn't even look as if they were afraid of the dragon, as if they knew in advance that the dragon wouldn't come. Such an abnormality made Bedivere feel even more suspicious.
After that, they bought some simple goods in the village to cover up their real motives, and then left quietly.
"It seems that this dragon attack is indeed the work of the Inrudians."
Coming to the forest far outside the village, Bedivere muttered to himself, analyzing what he had seen and heard in the village today.
"What? The Inrudians! What's going on? I thought Falcurax is a wanted criminal!"
Ann exclaimed. Growing up in the church of Angels, Ann was aware of the current state of affairs in Inrud, but her church upbringing had kept her from suspecting that the royal family of Inrud would be willing to conspire with that evil dragon.
"No, as you have just seen. That village is clearly supposed to be within the Fakurax's sphere of activity, there's no reason why it wouldn't be attacked. But why do its villagers and guards look so carefree?"
"Well..."
Speaking of which, Anne couldn't think of a reasonable explanation that could absolve Inrudians for a moment.
"That village was under Inrudian's rule... Lord Bedivere, do you mean to say that... The Inrudians bribed Fakurax to attack only the villages of the Kingdom of the Erd Tree?"
Euphie said with a serious face, her usual frivolous smile long gone.
"Damn it, those bastards! How could they do such a thing!"
Pierce, who had always been a hot-blooded person, immediately felt a burst of anger when he realized the real situation. The destroyed villages were home to many of his friends and family.
"Unfortunately, we don't have enough evidence. Unless there is some physical evidence that proves the transaction between Falcurax and the Inrudians, they will no doubt deny their involvement. It seems that we are unable to make their crimes public for now"
Said Bedivere regretfully. It really upset him that the culprit in this incident was able to get away with it.
"Well, our top priority now is still to find Falcurax. We have to find his tracks quickly while it's still daytime, otherwise it will be difficult to find him at night. The night is that monster's territory..."
Uther reminded everyone. According to intelligence, Falcurax is covered in dark dragon scales, making him almost indistinguishable from the night. Even an experienced hunter would not dare to search for his trails at night.
At that moment, Bedivere suddenly felt a strange sense in the distance, as if they were being watched. Bedivere quickly placed his hand on the sword at his back and gazed into the distance of the forest.
There!
Bedivere's eyes once again caught a dark shadow. It seemed to be something very tall...
Bedivere tried to use his mana to strengthen his eyesight so that he could see what the dark figure in the forest was.
"Is that... a black plume? And black armour? And the figure looks like it's riding a horse. Could it be..."
Seeing these familiar features, Bedivere recalled a special group of warriors.
"Prince Morgott's night cavalry?
Bedivere was slightly surprised, but after a moment's thought, he let his guard down and his hand on the hilt of his sword loosened. The Night Cavalry were a special group of knights loyal to the Second Prince Morgott, and they worked with the intelligence department to carry out covert operations with high levels of difficulty. And since Morgott is completely obedient to his mother, it goes without saying who sent these knights.
"Master really is worried… When I am finished with my mission I'll have to properly apologize to her."
Knowing that he can be at ease, Bedivere couldn't help but feel a warm feeling of Marika's concern for him, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Lord Bedivere, is something wrong?"
Uther asked, concerned, noticing Bedivere's unusual behavior. There were quite a few other monsters in the forest after all.
"It's nothing. Let's go, Mr. Uther, please lead the way."
Shaking his head, Bedivere chose to ignore the appearance of those knights. After all, they were friendlies, so there was nothing to worry about.
In the distance, the Black Knight who had been following Bedivere silently put away his binoculars, sighing in his mind,
"He spotted me from so far away? He is truly worthy of being the personal bodyguard of the goddess... It seems that we can count on him for this mission."
Nearing nightfall...
After spending the rest of the day searching the forest for the whereabouts of Falcurax, Bedivere's group finally set up camp in a cave in a small mound before nightfall.
The cave was not too big, but not too small either, just big enough for Bedivere and his companions to camp and sleep without worry. Before long, when night finally fell, five tents and a campfire with hot soup were set up. Sitting in front of the campfire, the group drank hot soup and chatted idly.
"By the way, what position does Lord Bedivere hold in the capital?"
Euphie asked curiously, but at the same time deliberately leaned into Bedivere, her intentions almost written on her face.
Bedivere could only awkwardly lean to the side, averting his eyes Euphie's delicate figure as he replied,
"I don't hold any particularly noble position, I am just a personal bodyguard."
"Hmm.. That's suspicious! How could a "small" bodyguard be assigned such an important task?"
Euphie said with a long intonation, her curiosity evident in her eyes.
"Euphie, stop bothering Sir Bedivere,"
Ann was dissatisfied with her companion's bold approach.
"Awww, but I'm so curious!"
Euphie deliberately cooed as she intentionally shook her breasts, hoping to catch the knight's attention.
"Oh, Lord Bedivere, I have a question too!"
The lively Pierce also raised his hand to ask a question.
"Yes, please ask, I will answer within the limits of what I am allowed to."
Bedivere smiled at the inquisitive young man.
"My Lord, how did you lose your right arm?"
Pierce asked, his eyes shining, his head no doubt young man's chivalric fantasies. His mind was full of all kinds of reveries about the knight's missing arm. Perhaps he lost his arm in a thrilling, blood-boiling battle, after fighting hundreds of enemies?
However, Pierce's question was met with a resounding snap of his grandfather's finger against his forehead.
"Pierce, your question was also very rude!"
Usher laughed, his energetic young grandson was just too curious.
"It's fine, there's nothing to hide,"
said Bedivere, waving his hand. After a moment of silence, he took a sip of his hot soup. When everyone was waiting impatiently for his story, he took another sip of his hot soup before he began.
"There was really no particular reason, except that I was careless and got injured by my enemy while fighting with my companions."
"Companions?"
"Yes. We were a close-knit group of friends. We call ourselves the Knights of the Round Table. We served King Arthur of Britain, fighting for his vision of a peaceful kingdom. Although I lost my right arm, it was worth it to be able to follow that great king."
"The Knights of the Round Table? That sounds like a pretty awesome group of people!"
Pierce exclaimed with admiration.
"What happened then? You are now serving under the Golden Dynasty, aren't you?"
Uther asked.
"That was because there was a traitor among the Round Table Knights, King Arthur's bastard son, Mordred. Mordred triggered a tragic civil war, a battle that dragged Britain into ruin. King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, all died in that war. Perhaps it was heaven's mercy that I became the sole survivor,"
said Bedivere, his eyes wandering, as memories of his companions played over and over in his mind.
"Hmph...the son backstabs the father. No matter where you go, the nobles are all the same..."
Uther sighed. His home country Inrud was also a victim of such a familial tragedy.
"After that, I spent a long time wandering. Until I met... her."
Bedivere's face unconsciously lit up with a happy smile.
"You mean Her Majesty Queen Marika?"
"Yes, she gave my life new meaning. When I was at a loss for the future, she took me in and gave me a new ideal to follow. I am very grateful to her."
Bedivere said, and the tenderness and love that Marika had given him over their time together, as well as a heartfelt sense of duty, came to mind.
"That must be quite the burden to carry my lord. If you ever feel lonely, my tent is always open for a chat!"
Euphie's teasing invitation interrupted the slightly heavy atmosphere.
"Euphie, how many times have I told you not to flirt with Lord Bedivere? I'm going to teach you a lesson!"
Ann angrily went up to stop Euphe's advances, and the two girls started playfully fighting. The whole camp echoed with laughter and chatter.
Bedivere enjoyed the sense of adventure, the feeling of joking and chatting with his companions. He remembered when he too had gathered around a campfire with his fellow knights, chatting and joking in the forest at night. Now, at the sight of a similar scene, he couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat. Thoughts of nostalgia welled up beneath his calm exterior...
The next morning...
The group packed up and once again set out in search of the dragon's trail.
"Look there!"
As the group crossed a small stream, Usher suddenly stopped them and pointed to the treetops next to the stream. Everyone looked in the direction Usher was pointing, and saw several broken branches in the treetops.
"Broken branches?"
said Ann, puzzled.
"Exactly. We are deep in the forest, so the branches could not have been broken by the wind. That means..."
"Something huge must have passed here! A dragon, for example!"
Pierce exclaimed, understanding what his grandfather was trying to say. When he heard Pierce's answer, Ursus nodded with satisfaction.
"Very good, just as I have taught you all these years. Remember, Pierce, dragons are like the bears we hunt. They will nest in caves and other natural shelters to hide their spoils and sleep, even one such as Falcurax. If we find signs of his activity, we are not far from him.
Uther was about to impart more of his knowledge to his grandson when he heard a faint noise coming from the trees across the stream.
"Something's coming!"
Bedivere also felt the movement on the other side of the river, and immediately drew his sacred sword Balmung from his back. This was the first time he had shown the sacred sword in public. The silver-white blade was beautifully decorated with a cross-shaped pattern on the guard, and the grey leather-wrapped hilt was inlaid with a dark blue gemstone in the centre.
"It's beautiful..."
Ann couldn't help but exclaim in admiration at the peerless sword in front of her.
At that moment, a low growl from the opposite bank was heard again. As the growl gradually approached, the enemy of Bedivere and his party appeared!
"Sabre-toothed wolves!"
It turned out to be ten ravenous wolf-like monsters! With their long fangs, black and red fur, and fierce appearance, they were known to be a group of malicious monsters!
Everyone looked at these dangerous beasts and took out their weapons.
"I'll slow them down!"
Euphie shouted, and then swung her staff inlaid with green magic stones. Some sturdy vines suddenly broke through the ground and immediately wrapped around four of the wolves, immobilizing them for a short period of time.
The remaining six wolves, seeing their companions under attack, immediately attacked, leaping across the stream and charging towards the adventurers.
Seeing this, Uther and Pierce immediately drew their longbows and knocked an arrow. The grandfather and grandson watched as the monsters drew closer and closer, and let their arrows fly at the right moment.
"Hah!"
Uther's arrow hit one of the wolves right on the head! The arrowhead sank deep into the beast's skull, and bright red blood flowed into the stream, adding a touch of red to the flowing water.
Pierce' archery was slightly inferior, and his arrow only hit the shoulder of the other saber-toothed wolf. This level of injury is not fatal to magical beasts that are different from ordinary animals.
Seeing this, both Pierce and Uther quickly took another arrow from their quivers. But before they could shoot, another figure rushed towards the enemy like an arrow!
It's Bedivere! He's holding a sword in both hands, the tip of which is slanted to the side of his right body, and he's charging at the wolves at a speed that's hard for ordinary people to match. He's sprinting so fast that it's causing ripples in the stream. In an instant, the wolves are within sword-swinging distance of him. Can Bedivere cut down the beasts?
The answer is yes! Easily!
As Bedivere's figure passed by each saber-toothed wolf, a burst of blood spurted from them! Before the wolves could react, Bedivere, with superhuman speed and strength, had already left a fatal sword wound on each wolf! Strengthened by Marika, Bedivere's swordsmanship was able to truly shine!
"Wow—that was amazing!"
Pierce couldn't help but exclaim in awe. Bedivere was able to outrun the swift saber-toothed wolves with his own body, killing all the monsters before anyone could react! The three adventurers couldn't help but look at Bedivere with increasing admiration.
After killing the saber-toothed wolf, the group quickly left to avoid the corpses attracting more monsters. Using the tracks that Uther had just discovered as a starting point, the group searched and found similar signs upstream, some broken branches on high ground. Falcurax is indeed better at hiding than an average dragon, but a dragon is ultimately a large creature, its huge body makes it impossible to hide all the traces it leaves behind.
Day 3...
After spending another day tracking down Falcurax, Bedivere and his party casually took care of nearby monsters. However, it was more like Bedivere quickly slaying the monsters before anyone else could react.
Following the trail, they finally found a cave leading deep underground. The path down the cave took the form of a ramp, obviously to facilitate the entry and exit of something huge, and there were many huge scratches on the rock wall.
"This is the spot,"
said Uther, whose hair stood on end at the mere sight of the darkness at the cave's depths.
"Pierce, this is where our journey ends. We'll leave the rest to Lord Bedivere."
"Huh? What are you talking about, Grandpa? Aren't we supposed to help Lord Bedivere defeat that monster?"
Pierce looked at his grandfather in confusion.
"Silly boy, our mission is simply to help the lord find the location of Falcurax. Do you really think that we can help him?"
"I—!"
Piers wanted to argue back, but he knew very well that with his own strength, he could not even chip off a single dragon scale. However, his pride would not allow him to let Bedivere face this crisis alone. In his frustration, he cast a pleading glance at Anne and Euphie, hoping to gain their support. However, the two of them simply shook their heads helplessly at him. Although Anne and Euphie also wanted to help Bedivere, they were also aware of their own strength. They would only drag him down.
"How could this be..."
realizing his own powerlessness, Pierce lowered his head in humiliation.
"My friends, thank you for your company and help these past few days. However, the next battle is one I must face alone. I hope you can understand,"
Bedivere patted Pierce on the shoulder in consolation. Then Bedivere walked alone into the cave. But before his figure disappeared into the darkness, Uther suddenly called out to him.
"Lord Bedivere!"
Bedivere looked back and saw everyone waving and shouting at him:
"Please come back safe!"
"Give that damn beast a good beating for me!"
"Please have a drink with me when you're done!"
"May the Creator grant you strength!"
Facing the blessings of the crowd, Bedivere returned a simple smile and nod,
then turned around and disappeared completely into the darkness of the cave.
