Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 553 - 21 Red Fireworks_1

Chapter 553: Chapter 21 Red Fireworks_1

"Vroom vroom vroom," the magic-powered motorbikes split apart the grass, recklessly racing across the prairie. In such a vast, open environment, it was difficult to determine their actual speed. The surrounding landscapes remained consistent, creating a slow-moving illusion. However, there was no need to judge their speed here; the deafening roar of the motorbikes alone was enough to keep the surrounding wildlife at bay. The riders needed only to accelerate further, allowing their hair to flutter in the air while the desolate cool breeze on the prairie extinguished their burning passion for speed.

Ten minutes ago, Freya had already spotted a faint trail of smoke in the distance; the smoke was the sign of a tribe—the cookfire smoke during dusk. On the prairie, the Beastman herders would return to their tribe with their herds even before dusk. Even those unfamiliar with the environment needn’t worry about getting lost—following the direction of the cookfire smoke would always lead them home. Sometimes, two nomadic tribes would unintentionally get too close, causing the herding Beastman to wander into another tribe by mistake. However, this was not a big issue. During times of peace and not tribal wars, the hearty and enthusiastic Beastmen would welcome the lost herders as guests, treating them to the best wine and meat. The following day, experienced elderly herders would be asked to track the footprints and escort the wanderers back to their tribes.

However, the five adventurers, weary and hungry, had been traveling at high speed for five minutes but not yet reached the location of the smoke. This was another common illusion on the prairie due to its flat and open nature causing the distance to be incorrectly judged. Of course, this illusion would not cause much trouble unless for someone lost, confused, and on the brink of death. It usually only resulted in constant anticipation followed by disappointment, giving rise to a barrage of curses from the deceived party.

"We’re almost there this time," Pannis yelled, his vehicle running parallel with Freya’s magic-powered motorbike, "In another five minutes, you guys should be able to directly see the tents of the herders."

"This is the third time you’ve said that," Catherine complained, "We’ve decided not to believe you anymore."

"No, really this time," Pannis replied, "I can already smell the tantalizing aroma of roasted meat. I promise I won’t fool you guys this time."

"So what you’re saying is..." Catherine accurately pinpointed the crux of the argument and asked, teeth clenched, "You deliberately fooled us before?"

"Hahaha," Pannis responded with a dry laugh, "The wind tonight is really chilly, hahaha."

All four girls gritted their teeth in unison. If not for the fear of causing a vehicular accident, various cruel weapons would have already been launched at him. Even though that didn’t happen, in their minds, they were likely on the Beastmen Prairie, chasing Pannis around in circles.

"Something isn’t right; I don’t just smell the roast meat but also the scent of burning fur," Pannis suddenly stopped laughing, his face turning serious, "No herder would be stupid enough to roast meat with the fur still on."

"Whoosh." A firework suddenly shot up into the darkening twilight, exploding into a vivid red light in the sky, extremely conspicuous even at dusk. The ominous red glow reflected in the adventurer’s pupils.

"A distress signal?" Catherine mumbled uncertainly. Generally, red fireworks in the wilderness are used as distress signals, particularly during urgent situations. However, different factions will have different firework patterns; those familiar with this knowledge can often identify the party in distress through the pattern. But despite being acquainted with various influences, Catherine was unable to discern the meaning of the fireworks, so she asked, "Does anyone recognize this signal?"

The two riders instinctively slowed down their vehicles. Seeing an urgent red distress signal without knowing the situation was risky. Even if they had decided to provide aid, they needed to prepare for battle, or else, it would be akin to suicide. Pannis maintained a slow speed and frowned, "I don’t recognize it; I’ve never seen anything like it."

"Could it be a tribal signal?" Lina asked uncertainly, "Perhaps a tribe is in danger and is using fireworks to call for help from other tribes. This could be possible, right?"

"Impossible," Catherine shook her head, "These types of fireworks are quite special; they last a long time in the air and are typically only used by certain professions always prepared for combat. Herders would never have a need for them. Plus, think about it; the tribes on the prairie are so far apart from each other. Even on a fast horse, it would take one or two days to reach the next tribe. Even if a distress signal was sent out, by the time help arrived, they would probably only be in time for a burial."

"But..." Lina tilted her head, persisting, "There could be an inconspicuous old person in the tribe, who, in their youth, participated in a mercenary group or adventuring team. When his team was wiped out, only he managed to escape, and this distress signal is a relic from that time. It’s finally coming in handy now."

Catherine shot her a glance, clearly uninterested in any further conversation with her. Yet, it was Vivian’s voice that floated over from the front of Pannis, "I told you not to read too many trashy novels. Look what remarkable ideas you now have in your head."

"I still think that it’s very possible," Lina flicked her hair, saying discontentedly, "You guys just don’t get literature."

"I think I’ve seen a similar pattern somewhere." Without acknowledging the friendly exchanges between the girls, Freya maintained the same speed as Pannis, looking at the gradually disappearing blood-red signal in the sky, "It looks like one of the signals used by the army. However, I can’t recall which one it belongs to."

"If it’s the army, then it must be the Beastmen." Vivian leaned comfortably against Pannis and asked. On this journey, Vivian was the most at ease among the three riders. After being promoted to Legendary, both Vivian and Freya experienced a significant increase in their mana storage, which naturally extended the duration they could power the magic-powered motorbike. Therefore, for the past ten days, most of the time, Freya had been driving, only a few times when Freya was not in a good state did Vivian take over for an hour or two. Most of the time, Vivian was leaning against Pannis like now, putting even less strain on her Vitality than when she was resting at home.

"Pannis." Catherine thought for a moment and continued, "You have sharp senses; can you determine what situation lies ahead? If it’s really army-related, could it be a tribal war among the Beastmen?"

"No, sending a distress signal in a tribal war is pointless," Pannis made a gesture, and the two magic-powered motorbikes quickly stopped, ceasing their roaring noise. After everything around became quiet, Pannis closed his eyes and felt silently for a while before opening his eyes and saying, "We are too far away to hear anything, but it probably has to do with the magical beasts. We happen to be downwind, and I can smell the fetid stench of magical beasts, and quite a number of them at that."

"A pack of beasts?" Catherine asked puzzled, "This is the edge of the prairie, are there large groups of magical beasts here?"

"Of course, there are." Lina replied, "Spring and autumn are precisely the seasons when the packs are the most active, so it wouldn’t be strange to encounter a beast pack even here at the edge of the prairie. However, magical beasts of the prairie instinctively don’t want to leave it, so the more powerful the pack is, the less likely it is to approach the edge where food is scarce and they are not accustomed to the environment. Look, you dumb Vivian, this is also knowledge learned from novels. Let’s see if you dare to belittle me again."

"So, it’s a pack preparing to gather energy for the winter." Catherine automatically ignored Lina’s last sentence, nodding her head, "Let’s move closer and see, we can’t ignore it if it is indeed a beast attacking people."

"Or should I go and check it out first?" Pannis asked, "Confirm the actual situation?"

"No, that’s not necessary." Catherine replied, "The distance is simply too far, and the time spent going back and forth would be too long; let’s get closer first to see what’s going on. If we still can’t see what’s happening, you can go and check."

Pannis nodded his head, and together with Freya, started the magic-powered motorbike again. Accompanied by the sound of roaring machinery, the five of them resumed their approach to the location of the fire and smoke, although the speed was considerably slower than at the beginning, akin to a medium-speed horse gallop. Three minutes later, Pannis animated his expression and said aloud, "I know what magical beast it is - tailless dogs."

Another minute passed, and Catherine also nodded, "Indeed, it’s the sound of barking, and there are so many of them. It looks like it really is a pack of tailless dogs. Let’s approach a bit more, we should soon be able to see the battlefield. If it’s just tailless dogs, then it will be easy to deal with."

"Tailless dog, a species unique to the Beastmen Prairie, individual level varies from Iron Rank to Bronze Rank. High quantity group level fluctuates between Silver Rank and Gold Rank based on the number. However, tailless dogs have no symbiotic magical beasts and don’t have the habit of fighting in coordination with other magical beasts." Lina was flipping through the Magical Beast Handbook behind Pannis, sheltered by Pannis’s body from the wind, "If it’s tailless dogs, we don’t need to worry about other magical beasts. Their nature wouldn’t allow it."

As Lina suggested, the tailless dog is a very common species unique to the prairie, usually seen moving in family units of five or six. If there’s only one, even two or three ordinary people armed with weapons could chase it off. Even a family group of five or six only dares to attack livestock in the wilderness and can be easily chased away by the shepherds with torches. However, tailless dogs do have the bloodline of wolves. Once they gather into a pack, they undergo a transformation, not only does their fighting power greatly increase, but their courage does too. They will openly challenge species much stronger than themselves and occasionally there will be cases of tailless dog packs attacking tribes.

The five of them checked their gear while traveling to make sure nothing was amiss, then they headed for the source of the signal without delay. Before long, they could see in the twilight a large glow burning distant, with more than a dozen tents surrounded by a circle of flames.(To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to vote, and monthly tickets at Qidian (qidian.com) are welcome. Your support is my biggest motivation. For mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)