Chapter 89: The Search for Glory!
Asra took a deep breath and reported the last piece of reconnaissance information she thought was important.
"Master, on my way back, I saw a small black pool gathering in the wilderness near that human lord's lands."
Asra described everything she'd seen in detail.
"The sight was strange, so I flew down to check. I found it was a thick, sticky black liquid. At first I thought it looked like the Purification Pool the Master has, but the smell was completely different... a truly foul odor was coming off the pool, similar to the smell that comes from outhouses." A clear expression of disgust spread across Asra's clean-loving face.
Unlike her, the moment he heard the description, Kaiden's face lit up with joy and worry all at once. He stood up eagerly, his body trembling slightly, and pushed the map toward her.
"Asra, point out exactly where this pool is!"
Asra felt a bit puzzled — she hadn't expected such a big reaction from her master — but she didn't waste time hearing the urgency in his tone, and quickly tapped her claw on the map, pointing to the exact spot, silently wondering to herself what could possibly be so special about that foul black pool.
Kaiden drew a circle at the spot she'd pointed to and looked at the location. Just as Asra had said, it was near the human lord's lands, slightly to their north.
He didn't even need to think or doubt it — this pool was without question an oil field! Every detail matched. Even though he'd never worked in this field before, he'd watched several documentaries and still remembered that raw, unrefined crude oil smelled like sewage.
Kaiden hadn't expected to discover an iron mine and now an oil field, even before he'd started searching for a water source. Thinking about it... these finds were all thanks to his pet beasts.
"The information you brought back is incredibly valuable to the Territory. Well done, Asra." Kaiden patted her head, and he didn't even need to promise her a reward — he'd already decided he'd take excellent care of her and meet all her needs from now on.
"I didn't do anything major, I just followed the Master's instructions." Asra felt a wave of joy, warmed by her master's affectionate touch.
"Rest here a while, Asra. I'll have Sidra personally prepare you a delicious meal. We'll head out right after lunch — we still need you for this trip."
Asra nodded without refusing her master's kindness. Hours of flying under the sun's rays had left her hungry and worn out.
Kaiden left her to rest in the Lord's Hall and stepped out quickly toward Sidra's restaurant. He needed to reach that defenseless human lord's territory quickly, worried the opportunity might slip away to someone else. On the other hand, he also needed to secure the oil field and keep it hidden from sight, without drawing the attention of other races.
Upon arriving, he found lunch had just been prepared. Sidra had been about to send his meal over to the Lord's Hall. Kaiden took a small portion from her and asked her to send the rest to Asra.
His forces were eating at their defensive posts on the walls, so none of them were present in Sidra's restaurant. Kaiden sent a few people to tell all the Emerging Heroes to gather in front of the southern gate the moment they finished eating, then began eating his own meal as well.
His meal included Rare-rank beast meat, fried to a golden brown, white bread made from a blend of fine flour and dairy, along with a salad plate, and of course, not forgetting the sauces for dipping the meat, and side dishes like soup.
Kaiden cut off a decent-sized piece of white bread, placed a piece of meat on it, and dipped it lightly in the sauce, mildly spicy to his taste.
"Ahh~ delicious!" Kaiden nearly teared up from sheer pleasure. The bread melted in his mouth alongside the crispy Rare-rank meat, its warmth spreading through him and making every cell in his body cry out with joy.
Kaiden had never eaten food this delicious in his entire life, especially now that ingredients were plentiful and Sidra's culinary skill had advanced — the food quality now rivaled, if not surpassed, the finest renowned restaurants from his previous world.
In this moment, Kaiden forgot everything about the oil and the coming attack, and focused entirely on happily eating. No one was happier than Kaiden at that moment, except Ibla, who stood in the square nearby, where half of Sidra's kitchen staff had worked hard to roast the massive boar beast.
The happy moments passed quickly. After a quarter hour, Kaiden patted his stomach contentedly and looked out at the square, finding that the giant roasted boar had vanished completely without a trace. All that remained was Ibla, who'd flopped onto her back and let out a massive belch, her face smeared with grease. Kaiden imagined that if she'd had hands, she'd surely be patting her belly right now.
The moment Kaiden stepped out of the restaurant, Asra came flying in as well, landing smoothly on his shoulder. After eating and drinking, she'd returned to full energy.
Asra looked at Ibla's grease-covered face and let out a small laugh only her master could hear. To her, even though she'd been the last to arrive, she considered herself the elder sister.
Without further delay, both Kaiden and Asra climbed onto Ibla's back after she adjusted her posture, and they set off toward the southern gate.
Waiting for them was a crowd of Emerging Heroes, numbering 29 — the full count.
Rob also stepped forward, having just reached the rank threshold. Kaiden smiled a happy smile — from Militia soldier all the way to Emerging Hero rank, Rob had truly come a long way. Right after his promotion, a system notification chimed.
[Quest "Three Strong Squads!" completed. Reward sent: ×3 Emerging Hero-rank soldiers]
Three new Emerging Heroes appeared — an archer, an assassin, and a broadsword wielder, who, by the way, was only the second person of this rare class, after Josh.
Even better, they arrived with their own gear. Though their armor and weapons weren't made of mithril, it still pleased Kaiden — anything was better than tattered rags.
With the quest reward, he now had 33 Emerging Heroes. Time was pressing, and there wasn't much need for extensive preparation — the place wasn't far, and they weren't about to face a powerful enemy, so the catapults were left in place.
Of the pet beasts, only Piedra came along, and of the mages, he brought only Nora, the light mage, keeping fire mage Fred and earth mage Qasim behind to help with defense.
In the end, Kaiden took 20 Emerging Heroes with him and left the rest for defense under Golan's command. Among those staying behind were the four archers with their eagles, kept back for two reasons: first, they'd only just begun bonding with their beasts and still needed several more days of training; and second, they were kept behind to alert Kaiden in case of a major attack on his Territory, so he could return quickly.
Within ten minutes, everything was ready.
"Open the gate!" Kaiden's powerful voice drowned out every other sound.
The moment the gate opened, Ibla, carrying him, moved forward, and the terrifying beast bearing the Lord on her back was followed by a formation structurally reminiscent of Sparta's mighty soldiers, setting out on their first expedition in search of glory in the chaotic world of Orandra!
End of Chapter 89.
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