Griffin

Chen Nuo rose from the inn's bed; the feeling of being alone in the room wasn't great, feeling a bit lonely, cold, and empty.

This was the price of bringing the Young Lady along.

This young miss was terrified that the Witch would sneak into his bed in the middle of the night. She preferred to share a room with her rather than give the other party any opportunity, sleeping with both eyes wide open to watch the Witch like she was guarding against a thief.

It gave the Witch a bit of a nervous breakdown, and she woke up the next morning yawning repeatedly.

She had originally thought about secretly casting a spell to make the Young Lady fall into a deep sleep, but later felt that doing so wasn't right, so she gave up on the idea.

Well, it was mainly because the Young Lady was already on guard against this; she had suffered plenty in that regard before, to the point that her magic resistance had increased quite a bit.

One learns from their mistakes; a person can't fall into the same pit one, two, three... eight, nine times in a row, right?

Of course, the Young Lady herself wasn't doing much better, with several bloodshot streaks appearing in her eyes.

After the three of them washed up and finished breakfast together, they set off for the town's Adventurers Guild. They needed to obtain the latest intelligence regarding the Griffin to decide their next move.

In the very beginning, the Adventurers Guild was actually just a tavern where a group of Adventurers frequently gathered. It only developed into a Kingdom institution after being integrated by the Kingdom.

Currently, its primary responsibility is to act as an intermediary platform and to discover and recruit talent for the Kingdom.

It is responsible for connecting clients with Adventurers, managing quest postings and reward distribution, conducting Adventurer rank evaluations and reviews, and gradually developing training facilities to improve Adventurers' survival capabilities.

The guild was as lively as ever, and one could even see many Adventurers of demi-human races.

The civilizations of different races blended here, giving birth to a unique trend exclusive to Adventurers.

Although the Kingdom is said to be a multi-racial union, humans still make up the vast majority. It is only at the Adventurers Guild that so many demi-human 'outcasts' can gather.

Here, they all share a common identity, and discrimination based on race rarely occurs—at least not openly.

After all, most people who choose the path of an Adventurer come from commoner backgrounds; those with connections or background have no need to take this route.

"Welcome. Is there anything I can help you with?"

The guild's receptionist was a dignified Young Lady with long chestnut hair, and she was the most popular person in the guild. Seeing Chen Nuo's arrival, she inquired in a gentle voice.

"I need all the intelligence regarding the Griffin that appeared in the Misty Forest."

As Chen Nuo spoke, he took out his Knight's Medal. This status gave him greater authority to access intelligence from the Kingdom's subordinate institutions, and it also gave him a twenty percent discount.

"Please wait a moment."

The receptionist verified it, and once she confirmed everything was correct, she turned around and efficiently searched for the latest relevant intelligence.

"The day before yesterday, a team of Adventurers spotted the Griffin again in the heart of the Misty Forest, and they discovered what is suspected to be the location of the Griffin's nest."

Upon hearing this, Chen Nuo set down a gold coin, took the intelligence scroll from the receptionist, and went to a private booth in the guild with the Witch to read through it together.

The intelligence collected by the Adventurers Guild was very detailed. After all, it concerned a high-level magical beast, which posed a significant danger to the town and naturally required focused attention.

Judging by the information provided by the witnesses, the Griffin they spotted should be a male that has already reached adulthood.

More importantly, the frequency of this Griffin's recent hunting is clearly abnormal.

While a Griffin is not a gentle magical creature, it isn't exactly bloodthirsty either; it wouldn't hunt more prey than it needs without reason.

The only likely explanation is that it has found a mate, and she is currently gestating offspring.

This was good news. Signing a contract with a young Griffin is definitely much better than with an adult, as one can gain more feedback from the mount's growth.

But by the same token, it would attract even more competitors.

If it were just a young Griffin, there are too many magical means to forcibly capture and tame it.

There are plenty of smart people in this world. If Chen Nuo could analyze this conclusion from the intelligence, others naturally could as well. It would then depend on each party's speed of action.

"Let's hurry and set out."

Having confirmed the area where the Griffin appeared, Chen Nuo immediately set off.

Just as he was about to head out, a reckless figure crashed toward him. Chen Nuo sidestepped to dodge, but the other person's reaction was two beats too slow; they pushed at empty air, stumbled, and fell to the ground.

The reckless youth cried out in pain, then hurriedly stood up and brushed off his backside, acting as if nothing had happened.

On his first day as an Adventurer, falling flat on his butt right in front of the guild's main gate was truly a bit embarrassing. Fortunately, there weren't many people around to notice what had happened.

"Are you alright?"

Chen Nuo looked down at the other person. Their eyes were clear and foolish—no mistake about it, this was a fresh-out-of-the-oven rookie.

"I'm fine, of course I'm fine!"

The reckless youth shook his head hurriedly, laughing with a bit of silliness.

"It's good that you're fine. Be more careful next time and pay more attention to your surroundings."

Chen Nuo offered a word of advice. Being careless this time only resulted in a fall, but if one were this careless while fighting a magical beast, they might not get another chance to stand back up.

"I will!"

Looking at Chen Nuo's tall, straight posture and his restrained, steady aura, the reckless youth couldn't help but feel a sense of aspiration.

That is the kind of man I want to become when I grow up.

"Are you okay? You idiot, why were you running so fast?"

"We really need to give him a lesson he'll remember."

Two young girls arrived behind the reckless youth one after the other. Although their tone was reproachful, the concern within it was easy to hear; it seemed they were a team.

One was a Mage, the other a Brawler.

They were all equally green and young. It was unknown how many professional skills they had even mastered before daring to come out and adventure. They probably hadn't even seen blood yet; they were truly like newborn calves who do not fear tigers.

Years ago, before Chen Nuo first stepped out of his castle, he had tempered himself with the city guards for a long time to accumulate enough experience.

Three greenhorn rookies huddling together wouldn't result in two negatives making a positive; their end seemed already fated.

Chen Nuo had indeed seen their kind of ending before. He stopped his pace and asked,

"What are you all planning to do?"

"We've accepted an urgent commission. A group of Goblins attacked a village; they not only stole food and livestock but also kidnapped several girls. We have to hurry and save them!"

The reckless youth was high-spirited and full of a sense of justice.

"Just the three of you are going to clear out Goblins?"

Chen Nuo asked in a calm tone without any extra emotion, but to the ears of the three sensitive young people, they could sense a hint of disdain.

"Don't look down on us too much. She is an outstanding graduate of the Sage Academy!"

The reckless youth didn't have the confidence to talk about his own swordsmanship in front of Chen Nuo, so he pushed forward the most impressive member of the three.

The girl in standard mage attire gently pushed up her glasses to hide the guilt and trepidation in her eyes. In front of the Witch, she truly couldn't summon the pride of an outstanding graduate.

But she couldn't help that her companion was such a liability, insisting on pushing her forward.

"I..."

Before the magical girl could think of an explanation, the Brawler beside her spoke up impatiently.

"It's just a group of Goblins. Don't look down on people too much!"

Hearing this, the Young Lady couldn't help but let out a scoff. Her eyes swept over the three of them; their clothing and equipment screamed one word—poverty.

The front-line Swordsman didn't even have a decent piece of plate armor, and the female Brawler was even bare-handed. These two rookies didn't leave themselves any margin for error; did they really think Goblin weapons couldn't hurt people?

"You—!"

The female Brawler was stung by the scoff as if her tail had been stepped on. She glared at the Young Lady but found herself unable to continue speaking.

Compared to the glamorous noble lady, she truly felt inferior.

Setting aside appearance and status, the equipment alone was enough to create an incomparable gap between the two sides.

"Newbie Adventurers should stick to tasks like clearing out giant rats and cockroaches. Clearing out magical beasts is no joke."

Chen Nuo gently patted the boy's shoulder, offering one last piece of advice. Of course, he also knew the other party wouldn't listen.

Every year, many newcomers like them choose to become Adventurers, but half of them struggle to survive past the first month.

The waves wash away the sand; the Kingdom only wants the elites who survive.

"We can do it!!"

The reckless youth shouted loudly at Chen Nuo's departing back.

Chen Nuo waved his hand and mounted his warhorse, heading toward the Misty Forest. From the intelligence he just acquired, three teams were already ahead of them.

"Maybe we should give it some more thought?"

The magical girl tentatively suggested.

The Swordsman boy and the Brawler girl hesitated. To put it bluntly, they had acted on impulse, and now that Chen Nuo had thrown a bucket of cold water on them, they inevitably regained some composure... In the mountainous heart of the Misty Forest, sharp and piercing cries similar to a falcon's rang out repeatedly.

Approaching the direction of the sound, one could see that the source of the cries was a Griffin. Its wings were bound by a large net, making it difficult to break free for the moment.

The Griffin's appearance was exceptionally handsome, with plumage and fur colored like the sun. Its front half was covered in golden eagle feathers, while its rear half was the powerful torso of a lion.

It stood over three meters tall and weighed nearly a ton. With its wings fully spread, it could reach a length of eight meters.

Its eyes were like burning flames, shimmering with jewel-like brilliance.

This kind of magical creature has an extremely strong affinity for the wind element. Even if it cannot cast spells, its every move can stir up a violent storm.

The ones who had laid this trap were two cooperating teams of Adventurers.

They used an injured horse as bait to lure the Griffin down and took the opportunity to throw the rope net.

"I didn't expect the rumors to be true; Griffins really do love eating horses."

Seeing the Griffin caught in the trap, the hidden Adventurers emerged one after another. There were ten people in total between the two teams, standing in distinct groups facing each other.

The archer among them raised his bow and aimed at the Griffin, but not at its vitals. The arrows were coated with anesthetic; they wanted to capture it alive.

"Don't forget what we agreed upon. This male Griffin belongs to us."

One team of Adventurers said with a wary expression, fearing the opposite team would turn hostile and go back on their word.

After all, the existence of a female Griffin was only a possibility they had inferred. Before seeing it with their own eyes, who could guarantee there would be one?

Mature Adventurers are utilitarian people, difficult to judge simply as good or bad. After all, from the moment they entered the profession, they were in the business of doing work for money.

"Of course."

The captain of the opposite team nodded, and the atmosphere eased slightly.

Originally, three teams of Adventurers had entered the Misty Forest. Now only their two teams remained, and the reason was not hard to guess.

After these two teams reached a cooperation, they had eliminated the weakest remaining team from the competition.

They didn't go as far as killing them to silence them; they simply made their stance clear, and the gap in strength naturally made the other party retreat. This was considered a common tacit understanding among Adventurers.

However, the two teams, thinking they had already succeeded, did not notice that the anesthetic toxins on the arrows had no effect on the Griffin. In fact, the arrows were merely stuck in its outer skin.

A Griffin's flesh is exceptionally tough; ordinary arrows simply cannot cause effective damage to it. In the past, people needed to use ballistae to effectively harm one.

As for the anesthetic toxins, that was laughable. Even if this dosage were actually injected into its body, it wouldn't have much of an effect.

High-level magical beasts not only have a good immunity to magic but are even more so against various toxins.

The metabolic capacity provided by an extraordinary physique can easily burn it off.

These Adventurers clearly were not aware of this; their knowledge of Griffins was far too shallow.

It made sense; no one had seen a Griffin in so many years, so it was normal not to know its power.

Moreover, they were just a group of low-to-middle-tier Adventurers who hadn't even reached Silver Rank.

According to the Adventurers Association's rules for quest commissions, a high-level magical beast like a Griffin should at least require a team of Silver Rank Adventurers to handle.

But Adventurers are Adventurers; if they don't take risks, can they still be called Adventurers?

It might also be the net that gave them confidence. This was woven by Elves and had once snared a Troll, which was also a dangerous existence rated as a high-level magical beast by the Adventurers Association.

To borrow this net, they had paid a heavy price.

However, the difference between a Griffin and a Troll is that a Griffin is very intelligent. When it realized that brute force couldn't free it, it stopped its meaningless struggling and began to observe carefully.

This action instead made the Adventurers believe the anesthesia was working, causing them to relax their guard further. They completely failed to notice that the Griffin's lowered, prone body was moving closer and closer to the opening of the net.

By the time they reacted, half of the Griffin's body was already free from the net's restraint. It was too late to try and tighten it.

The Griffin suddenly leapt out from under the net. At the same time, it beat its wings forcefully, fanning out a hurricane that knocked the group of Adventurers over. It successfully escaped into the sky, looking down at the Adventurers below with cold eyes.

"Not good!"

"Retreat, retreat immediately!!"

"..."

Panic-stricken voices rang out one after another. Seeing the operation fail, the group of experienced Adventurers immediately made the most correct choice. However, the furious Griffin naturally would not let them off so easily.