Chapter 100: Lecture on Beast Taming
The figure of the flying Griffin slowly grew larger, or more accurately, it descended on the ground, its wings lifting the dust off the earth and ruffling back the clothes of Max, Vlad and Chloe, the only trio standing outside the forest. The powerful downdraft sent leaves and debris scattering backward.
It landed on the ground with a heavy thud, its massive paws breaking the ground beneath it, its towering figure reaching the same height as the trees of the forest behind it. The impact sent tremors through the clearing, the grass flattening under the sheer weight of the creature. As it retracted its wings, a figure sitting atop it was revealed.
It was a man with a long beard styled into multiple braids, each one woven with small metallic rings that clinked softly with his movements. His head was cleanly shaved from the sides with auburn hair at the top styled into a thick and long braid resting on his back.
The griffin and the man sitting on it both looked at the trio with a terrifying gaze, their expressions hardened. The beast’s golden eyes narrowed, while the man’s dark gaze swept over them with a mixture of curiosity and intimidation. Shifting on his rear, the man moved both his legs to one side and jumped off the griffin, landing with surprising grace for someone of his size.
He walked towards the trio, his towering figure casting a long shadow that covered all three of them. He did not even wear the formal attire of the professors. His large figure was covered in a tent-sized shirt while on his legs he wore shorts that seemed barely adequate for his massive frame. With his brown skin and stone-like hard muscles, he did not even seem human. To Vlad, he seemed more like... a Barbarian?
Vlad was 5’11 and he only reached half the height of the man. He was easily above ten feet.
"Why did ya not hide in the forest like other kids?" The man asked with a raw accent that Vlad had never heard before.
"Because we recognised your beast, Professor Bjorn," Max answered in a respectful tone. He had heard of the professor from his seniors, but now that he was actually seeing him, he could not help but feel intimidated. It felt as if he was standing before a mountain.
"Yer mistakin’ somethin’, kid," Bjorn muttered in a heavy tone. From his storage ring, he pulled out a large piece of mutton, the raw meat glistening with fresh blood.
The Griffin behind him snapped its head towards them, its eyes narrowing with predatory focus. The moment Bjorn let the meat fall to the ground, the griffin bolted at them with incredible speed, vibrating the ground beneath it. The earth shook with each powerful stride, the beast’s claws tearing deep gouges into the soil.
The piece of meat had not even fallen to the ground before the griffin caught it between its beak, snapping it up with surgical precision.
"Ace is only obedient to me, not ya brats," Bjorn revealed with a smirk, only to realise there was just one person standing before him.
Chloe was hidden behind Vlad, holding his coat tightly, while Max was even behind her, tugging at the edge of her blazer. Unlike her, whose expressions were neutral, Max was completely terrified, his face covered in sweat and turned pale. His grip on Chloe’s blazer was white-knuckled, his legs trembling.
"The life-saving friends you are?" Vlad muttered, giving the two a sharp glare as he turned his head from his shoulder. "Chloe, did you not say you want to become strong to protect me? You did not think twice about using me as a meat shield."
"I’m not strong yet," Chloe replied, her tone even. She glanced at the beast that was tearing the thick skin of the mutton, the sight making her grip on Vlad’s coat even tighter. "It looks like you. So I thought it will not attack you."
"You being serious right now?" Vlad’s crimson eyes narrowed at Chloe in annoyance.
"Kid, are ya not scared of Ace?" Bjorn asked, amusement laced in his voice.
"He does not seem hostile to me," Vlad said with a shrug.
"What’s yer name?"
"Vlad Lumberjack."
"Oh, someone from the wild like me," Bjorn chuckled, the playful smile on his face turning into a genuine one, as if he had found a long-lost little brother.
"Fifty credits to Vlad Lumberjack for not gettin’ scared," he announced, repeatedly patting Vlad’s shoulder.
Vlad had to tighten every last fiber of his muscles to keep his shoulder from being dislocated by Bjorn’s massive arms.
’I-is he do-doing it deliberately?’ Vlad muttered inwardly. ’Nonetheless, he is very generous. He gave me 50 credits just for standing.’
Bjorn pivoted on his heel and walked toward the forest, leaving the griffin to its meal. Vlad, Chloe, and Max followed behind him.
"Come out, ya scaredy brats!" he ordered the students peeking from behind the tree trunks at the edge of the forest.
At first, they seemed reluctant to come out, and why wouldn’t they? A giant man who looked like he could swallow them in a single gulp was the one giving the order.
"Agh..." Bjorn groaned, his jaw tightening in annoyance. "Ay will cut one credit for every second ya spend in the forest."
"One..."
"Two..."
"Thr..."
Everyone was already out, standing in a straight row before the forest. They were already broke because of a certain someone. Having their credits deducted was the last thing they wanted.
Vlad, Max, and Chloe joined the row at the edge.
"Ay am Alaric Bjorn, Barbarian from the Bjorn Tribe. Ay’ll teach ya the art of Beast Taming!" Bjorn’s declaration rumbled through the row, reaching every ear. "Now follow me."
’He is really a Barbarian,’ Vlad gasped inwardly, curiosity filling his face as he looked at Bjorn.
From what he knew, there were no Barbarians on the mainland of Argentum. Was he a foreigner from another continent? Vlad wondered but kept his curiosity to himself.
As Bjorn stepped forward, the students instinctively moved aside, parting to let him enter the forest.
Now they wondered why the heck he had ordered them to come out of the forest if he was eventually going to take them back inside.
As he walked at the front, he explained, "There are three kinds of magical beasts. Higher races that can metamorphosize into human forms, called Shifter Beasts. This includes werewolves, phoenixes, and the infamous... dragons. They are highly intelligent beasts, with some surpassing even humans in both power and intelligence.
"Then come the beasts with the same level of intelligence as humans. They are called Beastfolk and often possess traits of both humans and animals, like Centaurs and Lizard-men.
"Obviously, if ya try to tame either of them, ya might not return in one piece. Since they have the same or higher level of intelligence as humans, they would not tolerate being treated like pets."
With a light chuckle and an amused tone, he continued the lecture as they walked through the green grass and dry stems. "The final category is Feral Beasts. These include Snow Wolves, Flaming Birds, Griffins, Hellhounds, and Chimera Tigers."
A wide smirk curled across his face as he revealed, "This will be the category ya’ll learn to tame. But be mindful. They might have low intelligence, but they ain’t stupid. Treat them as yer companions, not yer pets. Or don’t blame me when ya end up in their guts."
The students murmured among themselves, their excited voices echoing through the forest as they eagerly anticipated getting beast companions of their own.
Bjorn continued explaining the basic things they needed to keep in mind while approaching a beast. By the time he finished the lecture, they were standing before the restricted area of the forest. The path beyond was sealed by an invisible barrier, while iron fences physically blocked the entrance. Numerous signboards marked Restricted Area were placed along the fences at regular intervals.
Bjorn looked back over his shoulder, his eyes sweeping across the students as he ordered, "Stay close to me, kids. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
With that, he took out his identity card and slammed it against the invisible barrier before him.
The air around his palm rippled, and a door-sized opening appeared in the barrier.
He stepped aside and ordered, "If ya remember everything that Ay told ya along the way, step inside, one at a time."
The students nodded and formed a long line. Vlad could not help but notice that as soon as each student stepped through, they vanished in a splash of light.
His brows furrowed in annoyance as he muttered inwardly, "Don’t tell me there’s a teleportation array set into that entrance."
A hand gently tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned to find Chloe looking at him with eyes full of pity.
She rose onto her toes and whispered, gently patting his head, "I won’t be upset that you spill the apple juice I bought for you. So go ahead and vomit with all your might."
’Th-this piggy...’ Vlad muttered inwardly, the veins on his forehead bulging. ’She is getting bolder with her insults.’
