Entering the old man's house, he led us to the couch before disappearing, only returning a few minutes later with a tray of snacks and tea. "Please, help yourselves." The old man set the tray on the table while he sat opposite us three, though while I wasn't interested in his snacks and tea, that couldn't be said the same for Cana and Gray, who took it upon themselves to eat and drink for me. "So where is this beast?" Furrowing my brows, I stared at the old man while folding my arms, getting straight to the point.
"Y-Yes, about the beast. It attacks our livestock every few days, and as we're just a village, it's killing our livelihood." Nodding at the man, I was about to ask a question, but Cana beat me to it. "When was the last time the beast attacked? Have you or anyone else seen it? If so, can you describe it?" Raising an eyebrow, I glanced at Cana, who took the lead in questioning, causing me to lightly nod in approval. I never did such thorough questioning; all I wanted to know was where to go or what to do to complete the mission, though I also knew my way of doing things was terrible; after all, it's backfired several times.
"Um, the beast attacked last night, so it will probably be a day or two before it strikes again. I-I was lucky enough to see it from my tower; the beast was enormous, easily the size of a house. I couldn't accurately describe its appearance as it was night, but it seemed to have wings and a long tail… I'm sure if you visit the farms, you'll see the footprints of the creatures." Frowning at the old man's words, I glanced at Cana, hoping she'd know something as she was smarter than me, but she also seemed stumped.
Inwardly clicking my tongue, Cana asked a few more questions while Gray continued to stuff his face with snacks before we eventually decided to call it a night. "I have two guest rooms upstairs; please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything." Nodding at the old man, who took the empty tray and left, I smacked Gray while leaping off the bed. "What was that for!?" "Tell me a single thing the old man said." Eyeing Gray, who promptly froze at my words before awkwardly averting his gaze, I scoffed while shaking my head; grabbing his arm, I led him and Cana to our rooms on the second floor.
"Since someone did a good job, you'll get a room by yourself." Glancing at Cana, who beamed at my words, she waved at Gray and I before entering the room while I tossed my easily distracted little brother into the room adjacent to hers. "Tsk, dammit! Be gentle unless you want a fight!" Blankly looking at Gray as he entered his fighting stance, I grabbed him by the face and stuffed him onto the bed. "Be quiet and go to sleep."
Ignoring Gray, who quietly cursed under his breath, I exited the bedroom and sat outside, taking watch to ensure this job wasn't a trap. I haven't taken a job like such, but given how much I tend to target dark mages and dark guilds' business, I wouldn't be surprised if one of these days I happen to take one. 'I'll just need to be strong, that's all.'
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When morning arrived, we first had the old man, who was the village chief, lead us to the spots where the beast had attacked; however, other than a broken fence and large footprints, there was nothing else noteworthy.
"Woah, this footprint is huge! It's bigger than my whole body!" Looking at Grat lying sprawled within the footprint, I closely inspected it, which involved me sniffing and licking it, earning looks of disgust from Gray and Cana, though I merely scoffed. With how strong I could make my senses, they told a different story from my eyes.
'Tastes like a reptile and is strong.' Clicking my tongue, I looked at the forest in the distance where the footprints led; whatever the beast was, it lived in that forest. "Cana, Gray, you two stay here in the village; I'll explore the forest and follow the beast's tracks." "Okay, be safe, and don't be reckless, big bro." Nodding at Cana, I narrowed my eyes at Gray, who begrudgingly nodded, prompting me to leave the village as I dashed into the forest, following the beast's scent.
After several minutes, I found corpses of old livestock littered beside the tracks I followed, which meant I was definitely going the correct path; however, my luck was promptly cut short as I came across a lake where the scent ended. Frowning, I circled the lake a few times, trying to find the smell, but it was a dead trail, causing me to narrow my eyes as I sat atop a branch, looking down at the lake.
The old man had mentioned wings, so I'm not surprised the beast's tracks disappeared, but its scent also vanished, which was weird. "This beast, it's intelligent, isn't it? I've never encountered a beast smart enough to remove its scent." Staring at the lake, I faintly smirked, eager to face this beast in combat, but I quickly shook my head as I remembered my adopted siblings.
Standing up, I left the forest and returned to the village an hour later, where I informed Gray and Cana of my findings, and although the former didn't seem concerned, the latter was a bit more cautious, which I appreciated. "So what? A beast is a beast. I'll freeze it to death." Growling at Gray's arrogance and stupidity, I glanced at Cana, who used her cards to predict when the beast would next attack.
"The beast will most likely attack tomorrow night, but I don't know, big bro, a strong and smart beast, we might not be able to handle this." Listening to Cana, who looked concerned, I sat cross-legged with a deep frown as I contemplated what to do next since she spoke the truth. If I were alone, there wouldn't have even been an option, but I wasn't alone, and their safety was my responsibility; still, since the beast was merely interested in eating, we could watch it from a distance and then judge our next move. "It's fine; we'll watch when it attacks and judge then; if I think it's too much, we'll retreat and call it off." Cana was still a bit hesitant, but she nodded in agreement, trusting my judgment and me, something I had no intention of betraying.
Since we had nothing to do until night, I spent the rest of the day training while being forced to beat up Gray once; as for Cana, she was interacting with the villagers. Once night came, the three of us stood watch since although the beast was most likely to attack tomorrow night, according to Cana, that didn't mean it wouldn't show up tonight. However, thankfully, it didn't show for the whole night, as I was a little sleepy after staying awake for two nights; when morning arrived, I used that chance to sleep; as for my injuries, they had all healed, so I was in tip-top shape for the fight that will hopefully happen.
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Standing atop the clock tower, Cana, Gray, and I overlooked the village, observing the livestock farm as we awaited the beast's arrival; minutes ticked by, and the sun eventually set, making it hard to see for Gray, but Cana and I had our ways. "See anything?" Shaking my head at Gray, who groaned, Cana and I continued to search, and it wasn't until midnight when I finally sensed something.
Spotting a group of birds flying out of the forest, I narrowed my eyes, using my enhanced vision to see what was happening; though the forest mostly blocked my vision, I could see the trees being pushed aside; clearly, it was something large. "You two stay here; I'm going to get a closer look." Stepping onto the railing, I leaped off the tower and crash-landed just outside the front door before dashing towards the livestock farm, where I hid within the haybales. After a few moments, I could feel the ground shake from the beast's footsteps, and it wasn't long before a massive, scaled lizard with wings for arms emerged from the forest.
However, immediately, I felt my hair stand on end as I stared at the beast. I had never seen this creature before, but I could tell it was incredibly strong, too much for me to handle; fighting it would be suicide. 'I probably couldn't even crack its scales, let alone damage it.' Clicking my tongue in annoyance, I grumbled under my breath and remained hidden while it approached the farm, breaking the fence and using its huge, powerful jaws to grasp one of the animals before turning around.
Though just as it was about to quietly walk away, my eyes widened when a sizable icicle slammed into the beast's back, prompting me to shift my gaze to the right, where Gray was seen using his Ice-Make magic to create a few more icicles that he slammed into the beast's face. "Take that, you stupid beast!"