Chapter 51: Call Me The Archery Genius (1)

Humans and beastfolk didn’t have a great relationship to begin with, but their full-scale confrontation began with the Samael Empire.

Two hundred years ago, there was a craze for beastfolk slaves in the Samael Empire. Various sports involving beastfolk became popular, and nobles who didn’t own a beastfolk slave were unable to participate in high society.

Despite such oppression, the beastfolk were unable to resist. There were various species of beastfolk, but they didn’t communicate with each other, and each species had less than a hundred people because of their insistence on living in tribal units.

Moreover, the dominant belief among the carnivorous beastfolk was that being enslaved by humans was also a part of survival of the fittest. As such, the herbivorous beastfolk, who had weaker combat abilities, had no choice but to live as human slaves.

However, a certain event triggered the collective fury of all the beastfolk tribes.

The Letwood Beastfolk Racetrack Mutilation.

The incidents of this event were so horrific and brutal that the records were erased. However, the atrocities reached the carnivorous beastfolk through a rain horse that escaped from the beastfolk racetrack.

“They are not just looking down on the Rain Horse Tribe; they are looking down on all the beastfolk.”

The elders of the Flying Wolf Tribe and the Nine-tailed Fox Tribe, the two leading factions of the beastfolk, went to the emperor as representatives and delivered an ultimatum: abolish the beastfolk slave system immediately, or they would destroy the empire. That’s how the war between the beastfolk and the empire began.

The war lasted fifty years and ended in the defeat of the beastfolk. The emperor and his army showed no mercy, and during this time, many beastfolk tribes were driven to extinction. Fearing the same fate, some tribes chose to surrender, and the emperor welcomed them, calling them subjugated tribes.

The emperor gave these subjugated tribes three choices: live as slaves forever, join the Imperial Army and serve for fifty years to earn their freedom, or capture the remaining members of the seven beastfolk species, known as the Seven Cursed Species, who had led the war of humans and beastfolk.

Most of the subjugated tribes chose to enlist in the Imperial Army. Though they had surrendered to the emperor, they didn’t want to hunt down fellow beastfolk and deliver them to the emperor. They judged that it would be better to serve in the army and kill humans instead. Moreover, for beastfolk, who generally lived for three hundred years, fifty years of service did not seem like an eternity.

However, this was a dangerously naive underestimation of the emperor. Only three out of one hundred beastfolk who enlisted completed the full fifty years of service and were discharged. Although they were called soldiers, they were never treated the same as human soldiers. They were forced into unreasonable missions, deadly battles, old tents with holes, and scarce food and military supplies.

In such harsh conditions, there was only one way to survive: accepting that they were nothing more than pets for humans. One of the tribes that survived this way was the Blade Bird Tribe.

“Father, what are you saying? You want us to join the military?!”

“Why should we bear the sins of our ancestors? I won’t accept this!”

Deo and Derant, the twin brothers of the Blade Bird Tribe, were furious. Their wings, which were soft, suddenly stiffened, becoming as hard as steel.

Their father, however, calmly continued to persuade them.

“You won’t be discriminated against even if you join the military because we have sworn loyalty to General Carlos. You’ll be assigned directly under him. As long as you follow his orders, nothing will happen. In fact, you’ll live a far more comfortable life than the other beastfolk.”

“A comfortable life? Look at yourself, Father! Is this what you call living comfortably?”

Their father, at ninety years old, was still considered young by the standards of their species, yet he was on the brink of death. The years of harsh military service had nearly destroyed him. The twins didn’t even know their mother, as they were not born out of love but out of necessity.

“Deo, I may look like this, but I’m happy. I hope you can see that.”

“Whatever. We’d rather find the Seven Cursed Species. We don’t want to end up like you, Father!”

So, Deo and Derant recklessly left the empire to find the Seven Cursed Species, but it wasn’t easy. All the Seven Cursed Species that had been discovered and captured were executed, their heads mounted on stakes in front of the palace gates. There were even occasional rumors that the entire Seven Cursed Species had been exterminated, as their numbers had completely dwindled to nothing.

The twin brothers were given a ten-year grace period, a result of their father pleading with General Carlos, to whom he had connections. The Blade Bird Tribe was one of the beastfolk who had been officially pardoned by the emperor, so they were treated as semi-nobles. Because of this, it wasn't difficult for them to receive cooperation in the search for members of the Seven Cursed Species. The problem was that they were nowhere to be found.

“We’ve done enough. We don’t have much time left anyway. Why don’t we look for another way or something?”

Derant, the younger twin, had given up by the ninth year, but Deo didn’t.

“There are traces of the Flying Wolf Tribe in the Adeus Kingdom, but there’s no record of finding their corpse. Those bastards must be alive. We chased them right up to their throats.”

“Deo, I heard that from witnesses too, but those flying wolves are dead. They suffered fatal wounds and fell off a cliff thousands of meters high. The reason we didn’t find bodies on the ground is because the animals ate them.”

“Still, it doesn’t make sense that not even a single piece of flesh or a bone fragment was found. They’re alive!”

“If they escaped alive, there should be traces! But there aren’t any; that’s why the humans closed the case!”

“Shut up! If you want to go to the army, go by yourself. I’m going to keep looking!”

Deo held on tightly to the faint clue. He could clearly see his future self becoming just like his father. Derant couldn’t bear to leave his brother behind. After all, there was only one year left. They had already wasted nine years, so enduring one more year wasn’t impossible.

And so, a year flew by in the blink of an eye.

“Deo, today is the last day. We’ve searched the entire mountain range.”

There weren't any flying wolves in the mountain, but Deo sounded even more certain.

“Over there. Look at that village. They have to be there, I’m sure of it. They’re probably disguised as humans and hiding there.”

The village Deo pointed at was Hacose, a village in the Sefira estate in the Lillian Kingdom.

Sighing, Derant said, “Deo, you think the humans haven’t searched there? Of course, they did. The Empire Intelligence Agency can find things even if they don’t exist.”

“But the Empire Intelligence Agency is just humans in the end.”

“

Sigh

.”

Derant decided to humor his brother’s stubbornness. After all, there was only one day left; once this night ended, Deo would give up too.

As they were watching over Hacose Village from above the clouds, they saw humans fighting in the middle of a bean field. Derant had no interest in human squabbles, as human battles were beneath him and their techniques were insignificant.

But to his surprise, his brother Deo was watching the humans' fight intently.

“Hahahahahaha! Hahahahahahaha!”

Suddenly, Deo burst into wild laughter. Derant began to wonder if his brother had finally gone mad.

“You’re not thinking of not returning to the empire, right? If you do, Father will...”

“No! I’ve found it! I’ve found the Seven Cursed Species!”

“What are you talking about? I don’t see anything about the Seven Cursed Species. They’re all human.”

“Look at the humans fighting on the bean field!” Deo shouted.

“I know. I’m looking at them.”

“You can’t see it? I guess you won’t be able to see it, but I did.”

This wasn’t the first time that Deo had hallucinated.

“It’s the Moon Rabbit Tribe! That’s the Moon Rabbit Tribe’s spear technique! It’s exactly the same as what I saw in Father’s study. I wasn’t sure before, but after seeing that human, I’m certain. That man is a disguised moon rabbit!”

Deo was pointing at Jordic.

“You stay here. I can handle this on my own!”

Before Derant could stop him, Deo folded his wings and quickly descended to the ground.

* * *

"You've been found, moon rabbit. If you surrender willingly, I will spare your human accomplices."

Of course, Jordic denied Deo’s accusation.

“I’m just a human being,” Jordic replied.

“I knew you would deny it. But you don’t think I would recognize that technique you’re using? That’s a spear technique used by the Moon Rabbit Tribe. You used a weaker version of it, but you can’t fool me.”

“...”

Jordic’s eyes went cold. If they found evidence of the Moon Rabbit Tribe in his spear technique, there was nothing he could say. Besides, it didn’t seem like they could be persuaded. The only choice was to kill them and get rid of the evidence.

Reading Jordic’s intent, Deo put on a creepy smile.

“My name is Deo. I will capture you and get my life back!”

Deo flew up without any preparation. A rain of steel feathers poured down with a beat of his wings.

Jordic had underestimated Deo and was caught off-guard.

Th-this is...!

These weren’t just feathers that looked like steel; they were as hard as real steel and coated with a sticky aura.

Ting ting ting ting!

Jordic moved his spear desperately, deflecting the steel feathers. Though he used up quite a bit of his stamina and aura, he smiled.

I can take this.

But just being able to endure this wouldn’t be enough to defeat a member of the Blade Bird Tribe. However, Jordic had a plan: Keter. If he teamed up with Keter, the odds of winning would increase. They would have nothing to fear if Jordic took the lead and Keter, the archer, provided support. It was a flawless plan—from Jordic’s point of view, at least.

“They say the Blade Bird Tribe is the strongest in aerial combat among the beastfolk. So, these feathers must be their secret.”

Instead of fighting, Keter seemed more interested in the feathers that had fallen down.

T-this guy...?

Jordic was about to shout for Keter’s help when he quickly rolled forward. It was because Deo’s attack came crashing down on him. Deo wasn’t just shooting feathers from the air; he swooped down like he was gliding, attacking with his sword as well.

Slash!

Jordic suffered a long cut on his arm.

“Ha!”

Jordic thrust his spear at Deo’s back as he passed by, but the spear tip sliced through nothing but air. Deo soared back into the sky, out of range, and unleashed more feathers relentlessly. Whenever an opportunity arose, he would dive down and strike with his sword. Every time Deo descended, Jordic was left with another wound.

This was no longer a fight; it was a hunt—a hunt that clearly carried the intent of capturing the prey alive.

“Keter!”

“Lord Keter!”

Luke and Karon, who were slow to grasp the situation, called out to Keter, their voices full of confusion as to why he wasn’t joining the battle.

Keter shrugged and said, “I don’t know him.”

To that, someone answered from above, “A wise decision.”

Without a sound or warning, another blade bird descended from the sky. It was Derant, Deo’s brother, who had been watching the situation from above.

Arms crossed, Derant calmly said, “My name is Derant. I am a noble from the empire, officially authorized to hunt the Seven Cursed Species. You know what that means, right? If you interfere with the hunt for the Seven Cursed Species, you’ll be making an enemy of the empire.”

“Two blade birds...!”

Veins bulged on Karon’s neck. Among the various subjugated tribes, it was the Blade Bird Tribe that had found and killed the most members of the Flying Wolf Tribe. How could Karon maintain his composure with a blood enemy standing before him?

Of course, someone completely uninvolved, like Keter, could remain calm.

“Yeah, yeah, we get it. Just hurry up and take that guy away. We really have nothing to do with this.”

For Keter—and by extension, the Sefira family—this was a golden opportunity. Jordic didn’t have to be part of the Moon Rabbit Tribe. If they found out that Jordic was connected to the Moon Rabbit Tribe, they would soon figure out that the Bydent family was too. Even a powerful high noble family like the Bydents wouldn’t be able to survive the emperor’s influence.

This is a chance to handle things without lifting a finger.

Luke also caught on to the situation. He knew that if Keter wasn’t stepping in, it was because he had something to gain from staying out of it, but he wondered what that gain exactly was. He understood that helping Jordic wouldn’t be beneficial, and even his instincts were screaming against fighting the blade birds.

But Luke felt this boiling anger in his heart. He didn’t know why he was feeling this rage towards the Blade Bird Tribe, who he had just met today—was it anger toward those who betrayed their own kind, or was it because of his values of a knight who couldn’t tolerate injustice? This incomprehensible fury made Luke’s blood boil.

“Damn it! Keter! You think I’m going to die alone?!” shouted Jordic, barely catching his breath amidst Deo’s relentless attacks.

It was a threat—if Keter didn’t step in to help now, Jordic would reveal Karon’s true identity.

Keter clicked his tongue in frustration.

Go ahead, try it. You came to save the Flying Wolf Tribe, and you’re going to sell them out?

If Jordic had that kind of resolve, he wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place.

It’s over, you fool. Just surrender quietly.

Even if Jordic was captured and spilled everything about the Flying Wolf Tribe, it didn’t matter as they could just hide them during that time. Unlike the Bydent family, who left trails by learning the Moon Rabbit Tribe’s spear technique, Sefira didn’t leave any evidence linking them to the Flying Wolf Tribe.

It’s just wishful thinking, though. I’ll only know for sure once I feel it out with Reganon. Anyway, they’ll never be able to find this flying wolf in front of me right now if I send him to Liqueur. I’ll deal with the next steps when the time comes.

Seeing Keter, the leader of the group, choosing to remain passive, Derant nodded.

“You’ve got good instincts. You’re free to leave. I’ll allow it.”

Derant turned his back. Jordic, utterly exhausted, was pierced by countless steel feathers.

Deo flew up higher and faster, gripping his sword tightly. It was clear that he intended to finish Jordic off with this final blow. Of course, he wouldn’t kill Jordic—it was just to sever his limbs to leave him powerless.

With no way out, Jordic prepared for his final attack,

the Lunar Eclipse.

“Gwaaaahhh!”

Then, something unexpected happened. Karon let out a beast-like howl, and suddenly, his body grew larger, covered in fur. In the blink of an eye, he had transformed into a werewolf. Karon leaped toward the Derant, who was turned away from him, completely off-guard.

Hearing the wolf’s howl, Derant turned his head, his eyes widening in shock.

“The Flying Wolf Tribe!”

Derant folded his wings to block Karon’s sharp claws.

“I will tear you to pieces here and avenge my ancestors!” Karon roared, declaring his vengeance.

Keter, on the other hand, rubbed his forehead and muttered under his breath, “That stupid mutt... I swear, I’ll season him with salt and pepper and marinate him...”

Keter had refrained from fighting the Blade Bird Tribe not because they were strong, but because of their mobility. If he wanted to kill them, he had to do it thoroughly to prevent any information from leaking out. But if they decided to fly thousands of meters into the sky, not even a demon arrow could reach them. It would be a huge headache for Keter if they escaped and brought back the imperial army.

I need to make sure they don’t even think about running away.

If Keter revealed the demon arrows too early, the two of them would surely flee. It would be over if they missed even one of them. So, the plan was to put up a fight, pretend to be at a disadvantage, and then, at the critical moment, use the demon arrows to finish them off in one strike.

Without hesitation, Keter snatched the remaining arrows from Luke and shot one.

Twang.

The arrow Keter fired was aimed at Deo, who was still fighting Jordic. Keter now had to fight for his life, thanks to Karon’s foolish move, but he didn’t look angry at all. In fact, he was actually smiling. Fighting wasn’t always the best option, but if he had to fight, he didn’t back down.

Survival of the fittest and surviving and growing stronger—that had been the essence of Keter’s life and the source of his strength.

Deo, leaving the nearly-dead Jordic behind, hurled his steel feathers toward Keter. To Deo, Keter was nothing compared to Jordic—barely worth his attention.

Keter smiled as he let the arrow fly.