Chapter 38: 10 So I'm a Beast Tamer

Chapter 38: 10. So, I'm a Beastmaster

In the evening, at the Night Watch Castle dining area, Dacus was eating with great relish, while Walt, having returned, hadn't even eaten and had gone straight to his room, not to be seen since.

"Are you the Druchi, or am I the Druchi? What a lack of spirit."

The next morning, the Black Ark Nagor arrived at Krakalond. A welcome banquet would be held at Night Watch Castle that evening to welcome the arrival of Admiral Barnes Barre. Under the guidance of Butler Dia, the servants began the preparations.

At the family training grounds, Dacus had been beaten all morning, subjected to all sorts of fancy beatings. Kingsley used a curved executioner's blade, leaving Dacus with no way to defend himself. Kingsley's footwork was concise and efficient; once he attacked, the curved blade would move so fast it left afterimages, relentlessly striking him.

There wasn't much to say about it—one simply had to train. After all, the man had undergone hundreds of years of training and frequently fought on the edge of life and death. It wasn't as if Dacus was supposed to defeat him right upon his debut; that would be like a mule and a donkey singing—completely absurd.

In the afternoon, Dacus took Walt to visit the underground breeding chambers of the Tower of Destruction. His Cold Lizard had perished at Leonis, so he needed to pick a new one.

As soon as they descended, he saw Yegel, a high-ranking Beastmaster, sitting on a stone chair in the corridor, staring blankly into space. He only had a patch of hair left on the very top of his head, tied into a sky-high braid even more exaggerated than Calion's, which poked directly against the stone wall behind him.

"Good afternoon, Young Master."

"Good afternoon, Yegel. Thinking about the next Claw Tournament?"

Yegel stood up, sighed, and shrugged.

Dacus understood. Rakas of the Kalond Kar Thousand-Eater family was too prominent. Previously, before the tournament, all sorts of tactics like drugging, assassination, and negotiation were used, but there was an unspoken understanding during the competition to keep the Witch King entertained. Victories were shared between families, but Rakas's emergence had broken that unspoken rule. If they lost the next Claw Tournament, Krakalond would suffer a three-consecutive-loss streak, and even Calion wouldn't be able to shield him. Yegel would have to bear the responsibility; his seat on the Druchi Council of a Hundred would be hard to keep, and he might even end up being sacrificed to Aes Lema.

Dacus wore an expression of helpless sympathy. He wasn't a Beastmaster himself; what help could he possibly offer?

"Young Master, do you wish to select a new Cold Lizard?"

Yegel began to lead the way.

"Yes. And pick one for him while you're at it."

Entering the Cold Lizard breeding chamber, Dacus looked at the dense rows of cages and asked, "Yegel, how many Cold Lizards are here?"

"Young Master, there are 346 adults and 123 juveniles."

"Good heavens, that's enough to arm six squads."

As Dacus mused, he began to wander. Because he hadn't applied any medicinal potions, the Cold Lizards in the cages became extremely agitated upon seeing him, letting out frenzied roars and instinctively biting and slamming against the cages.

After circling most of the area, Dacus stopped in front of a particular cage to inspect it. This Cold Lizard was relatively small, with dark grayish-green scales and a single small horn protruding from its head. It wasn't making any noise in the cage, instead tilting its head to observe him quietly.

"Hey! That's strange, Young Master. This Cold Lizard is a hybrid of a Hygge Greve and a Lucia. Usually, it's the most violent one here; even with potions, one cannot get close to it. Furthermore, its development is very slow, and its horn is somewhat deformed. We were planning to dispose of it."

Dacus turned to look at Yegel in astonishment, confirming he wasn't joking. He couldn't help but wonder: *Are sub-species this rare? Even a high-ranking Beastmaster can't tell? Isn't this actually Lucia's Great-Horned Cold Lizard? Then again, the Druchi can barely control standard Cold Lizards, but a Great-Horned one might truly be beyond them.*

Dacus turned back to continue watching the Great-Horned Cold Lizard. This little "runt" continued to tilt its head and watch him silently, its pupils filled with curiosity. Suddenly, as if struck by divine inspiration, Dacus reached his right hand toward the cage, spread his fingers, and said with great bravado, "Nod if you understand me."

The Great-Horned Cold Lizard raised its head in surprise, froze for a moment, and then nodded. Dacus froze, Walt froze, and Yegel froze.

Yegel began to tremble all over, saying in a trance, "By Aes Lema, by Aes Lema! Young Master! Young Master! Try it again!"

Dacus maintained his pose and said, "Can you understand what I am saying?"

The Great-Horned Cold Lizard froze again, tilting its head as if wondering why it was being asked the same thing, and then nodded again.

Ignoring all Druchi etiquette, Yegel rushed to the cage, struck the same pose as Dacus, and said, "Nod if you understand!"

The Great-Horned Cold Lizard turned to look at him as if looking at an idiot, snorted, and, losing interest, looked back at Dacus.

At this point, Dacus withdrew his hand, stood straight, and said, "If you can truly understand me, then make them be quiet! It's too noisy."

After about ten seconds, just as Walt and Yegel thought it was a lost cause, the Great-Horned Cold Lizard let out a loud, piercing roar. Instantly, every Cold Lizard in the entire breeding chamber fell silent.

"Holy crap! Make them rowdy again!"

The Great-Horned Cold Lizard stared blankly at Dacus, seemingly puzzled. After about half a minute, the Great-Horned Cold Lizard let out another roar.

The Cold Lizards in the entire breeding chamber began to go wild.

Yegel looked at Dacus in shock, then reacted, turning and walking quickly toward the exit, shouting as he went, "Young Master, I must go inform the Young Lord!"

At that moment, Calion appeared out of nowhere, guarding the door. The Beastmasters in the family were all very clever; aside from those in the Cold Lizard breeding chamber, no one would run over just to watch the spectacle.

Dacus also felt this was inexplicable. He turned back to the Great-Horned Cold Lizard and asked, "Can I ride on your back?"

The Great-Horned Cold Lizard reacted quickly this time, nodding immediately.

Dacus turned to look at Walt. Walt was also wearing a face of pure shock. Dacus said to him sternly, "You understand!"

Walt reacted instantly, dropping to one knee and saying, "My Lord, I understand, I understand! I understand!"

Dacus asked a few more questions: "You're a bit malnourished, aren't you? Do you like eating beef? You won't bite me, will you? Can you swim? Can you fly? Can you stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the sun? Are you male or female? Can I call you Nico?"

The questions became increasingly ridiculous, but no matter how absurd they were, the Great-Horned Cold Lizard either nodded or shook its head, tilting its head with innocent eyes as if wondering what kind of nonsense these questions were.

Dacus was deeply confused. Although domesticated Cold Lizards were excellent at coordinated combat, they would treat you as one of their own as long as you applied that slightly foul-smelling musk, even if there were obvious differences; it was clear these creatures were brainless. But what kind of method was direct communication with a Cold Lizard? Could it be that this Great-Horned Cold Lizard possessed intelligence? Was it blessed by the Old Saints? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

"You clever little thing, you actually have intelligence!"

Having said that, Dacus pressed his hand against the cage. The Great-Horned Cold Lizard extended its tongue and gave his hand a light lick—a direct warning of tetanus.

Dacus instantly pulled his hand back, looking wordlessly at the bleeding wound on his palm.

*I named the book wrong. It should be called "Seeking Death in Warhammer Fantasy."*

*More coming today _(:з」∠)_*

*Feel free to join the group to chat.*

*(End of Chapter)*