Age of Beast Tamers and Exorcists
Chapter 70: A Dragon Perched on the Roof.

Chapter 70: A Dragon Perched on the Roof.

The team rode like fast-moving lightning. They altered their movements not because of any shallow bend or whatsoever. It was even more surprising that the three newbies all had the knowledge of how to ride a horse. And keep up at such a fast pace.

Luca had the meeting with the panel of judges at the back of his mind. He had had a few minutes with them after he ordered two of his men to get the accused, Zmey Ashbane, out of prison.

Seating with confidence along the long table in a room, five of the judges listened with focus to what he had to say.

Luca had told them, "I got the report on the individual tests the Task Recruits conducted on the chosen ones. Skyler Kingsley shows a good practice of archery.

She also can move fast, and she wins her opponents over by using certain moments to her advantage. That’s very thoughtful."

"Zmey Ashbane, as reported by Task Recruits 104, seems to have a good familiarity with his sword. He’s as though he was born with it, a heart forged from metal. One could see his aggressive fighting as a flaw, but it could also be an invaluable asset. Strange as it may seem, he’s an Abnormal Mage who killed two Greater Guardians. His human nature is questioned here."

"Callister Gallingwater seems to have studied the abilities well before entering the Sanctuary. As reported by Recruit 109, she’s a Runecrafter born to actually play a song of magic and glory with her spells. She could actually top the leaderboards of rare Runecrafters and the general one."

The panel of judges had raised an opposition against Zmey Ashbane. They wanted him locked up like others of his kind who were Abnormal Mages too. But, with his usual certainty and confidence, Luca had replied,

"I know. Someone like him is a great threat, and we can’t be sure if he will forever be on the side of humanity. But if he misbehaves, I will send his head back to the capital. Trust me, sirs."

That concluded their discussion.

***

The twilight evening had caught them on their journey. They took the countryside, deep inside the mountains and forests. Still, no one raised a word at all.

In the black woods, dry leaves crunched beneath them. Luca gripped his horse’s rope with light force. It snorted, then came to a halt. Everyone else did.

A man on the team with straight, ashy hair adjusted his glasses. He asked, "We usually head south-west, Captain Xero. I think having taken this path has prolonged our journey. Shall we turn the bearings now?"

Luca, pulling a long glance at the front for a while, replied with a gentle nod. "We take west then. North could be challenging for the newbies if they are not that good with their horses..."

"Yes, captain," the man replied. He urged the others to move on, "Head west."

Zmey felt the need to interrupt. But he stuck words in his own throat instead. Everyone else was following this man’s orders. If he wanted to act differently, the time for that change should not be now, as he was uncertain about Luca’s nature.

Luca turned his horse, beating it to a run towards the left direction of the woods straight away. Everyone followed him.

----

The journey wrapped them around the nocturnal night too. This was when the moonlight was the only illumination for the land. Insects whispered around the vegetation and fireflies were not hard to find.

Skyler was right before Zmey now. Their pace had decreased in comparison with the one they had been moving with.

Zmey saw Skyler holding her palm flat in the air, hoping for one firefly to land there. He could see the excitement in her face at seeing such, alike to most men and women on the team too.

This made him recall this was one of those things he used to do with Aura back in the day. He himself wasn’t fond of things such as play; he could tell that Aura was the only light in his life back then.

She forced him to go to a place in Infernosphere called the Dragon Valley. The tall grasses there attracted the most fireflies.

He then beat his horse with a gentle touch, making it close in on Skyler’s. He extended his own palm into the air; a firefly landed there, much to his relief. It was as tiny as a piece of grain.

"Hey," Zmey called Skyler, who glanced at him right away. "Here. You have been failing to catch one since," he said, extending his arm to Skyler.

She smiled, taking the firefly into her palm straight away.

Then, after looking at it for a while, she let it go just like that. It was for fun, after all.

She cleared her throat, looking at Zmey with raised brows. "Why did you bother getting it? Doesn’t seem like you."

In the end, Zmey managed a smile. He appreciated her: "You assisted Nero in getting inside the prison cave yesterday. Thank you."

"Thank you too. You helped me get the firefly," she returned it.

Zmey nodded. "Mm. Yes."

***

The spectacled guy warned against Flame Tigers before they entered a forest... through an ivy-woven gate. He seemed to be talking to the newbies.

As he said, these Flame Tigers were Greater Guardians kind of beasts. They were very hard to find in other places than the landmark to get to the Middle Kingdom. The Middle Kingdom was another name for their destination. No one had told the newbies anything yet.

They were about to cross a forest called the Glorious Wilds. It would be both daring and foolish for an ordinary man to consider the path they took to the Glorious Wilds.

Due to the scarcity of abundant trees and shrubs, Flame Tigers were mostly concentrated in the area.

One would expect them to say they should leave their horses and walk with caution. But the journey still continued.

That was until, after moving a few minutes around trees, those Flame Tigers blocked their way. Furs, defined claws, defined fangs or hairy collars? Not at all. Their appearance was like an ordinary flame coiling to take the shape of a tiger.

The caravan only stopped, but no one took action.

This stunned Zmey. Won’t they fight them?

He turned his head if anyone had disembarked yet, same as Skyler and Callister...

Slash, slash, slash...!

Thud!

They glanced forward right away. Their jaws dropped as the bodies of the Flame Tigers either flung to one side or fell over one another. The spectacled man stood atop the huddled body.

He was just returning his two daggers to their sheaths. Thick blood spread beneath the tigers, getting absorbed by the soil.

’How so fast?’ Skyler wondered, her eyes wide.

Callister only moved the back of her palm across her forehead, as though wiping sweat.

Zmey didn’t say anything nor react in any surprised manner. What else to expect from someone in Luca’s Elite Team? If you think otherwise, then you have no idea how strong the members actually were.

More of the tigers blocked their paths as they moved forward. The men and women disembarked one after the other, as though playing a game of eat and rest.

The experience was both impressive and motivating for new eyes in their midst. What a strong team they have joined. That means they will encounter more trouble soon enough.

....

Finally, the end of their journey came.

Everyone stopped their horses at high terrain at the end of the Glorious Wilds. In the distance was a castle with grand Gothic architecture. Skyler’s jaw dropped in astonishment. Callister, despite having a sense of neutrality, mumbled, "Wow," under her breath.

The moonlight of dawn illuminated the dark stone making the castle. The rooftops... ledges... Everything was so clean as though they had hired cleaners to take care of them over time.

Zmey swallowed as he saw the creature perched at the top of the castle. Chains were tied around the dragon like cobwebs.

That must be a depiction of him; he was sure of that—a symbol of humanity’s hope to conquer the other beasts.

The spectacled man announced, "Welcome to the Eagle Vanguard, newbies. Today makes you one of the family of knights in that castle too..."

Luca rode his horse down the slope of the terrain. "I don’t think so yet."