Swearing fealty was a vital ceremony for a knight. Only after taking the oath could one become a lord's follower.
An oath was a contract, and any who broke it would be spurned by the dragons.
A follower was like a lord's confidant and limb, fighting for the lord's glory.
Therefore, only after Eric swore fealty and became his follower could Russell sincerely accept him and share his glory and authority with him—by granting him the right to contract the Half-Ghost Beast Wolfhound that the Little Dream Dragon had painstakingly healed.
Of course, the Wildcat Sisters were not here, so Russell could not ask for their opinion.
Nor was there any need to ask. Katie had already said that if Kevin was healed, the Wildcat Sisters would be at his disposal. Even if he did ask, unless the Wildcat Sisters offered themselves up as payment, they could not afford the price of healing Kevin.
Besides, there was no need to consider whether Kevin should become an ordinary wolfhound or an intelligent Phantom Beast.
Moreover, the laws of the Grand Duchy stipulated that all magical creations within a territory belonged to its lord!
Having received Russell's permission, Eric took a deep breath and slowly approached the wolfhound in the kennel.
Yet the wolfhound still resisted Eric. The moment it saw him reach out to touch it, its fur bristled all over as it let out a howl.
"My lord, I..."
Eric's face darkened, and his mind buzzed. He had never imagined that the wolfhound would reject contracting with him.
For a Great Knight to advance into a Phantom Beast Knight, it was not enough to simply obtain a Phantom Beast and form a contract. Their hearts had to be in harmony, and both sides had to acknowledge each other before a contract could be established. As long as the Phantom Beast resisted, the contract could not succeed.
Though this wolfhound was not yet a Phantom Beast, it likewise rejected Eric.
And Eric did not have enough time to build rapport with the wolfhound, because the Earth Power within it could fade away at any moment.
Once that happened, the wolfhound would no longer have any chance of evolving into a Phantom Beast.
Russell frowned, feeling somewhat awkward as well. He had also made the matter too simple in his mind. The wolfhound was not an object that could be handled however he pleased.
Still, he quickly soothed him. "Eric, stay calm."
"Yes, my lord," Eric replied gloomily.
Russell walked to the kennel, intending to personally train Kevin the wolfhound. Then he suddenly turned around and asked one more question. "Eric, do you regret it?"
He had gained Eric's fealty by offering him an opportunity to contract a Phantom Beast, but now that opportunity had clearly gone up in smoke.
Eric did not hesitate in the slightest. He simply replied in a low voice, "No."
There were no embellished words, nor any trace of resentment.
Of course, his complexion really was rather dark. Such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to form a contract had vanished just like that. Any Great Knight in his position would have felt his heart bleed.
"Very good!" Russell said with a smile. "Do not lose heart. There may yet be a turn for the better, and even if this attempt fails, there will be another. Eric, this is a promise I make to my follower in my capacity as lord."
"My lord, there is no need for you to promise me anything. I believe in you!" Eric nodded heavily. "I am willing to follow you and accomplish great deeds!"
"We will accomplish great deeds," Russell replied solemnly.
Then he turned toward his four Knight Retainers and said calmly, "When you become Great Knights, I will give you opportunities as well."
The Knight Retainers were overjoyed and struck their chests with their right fists. "Yes, my lord!"
After dawdling for a moment to win over some hearts, Russell faced Kevin in the kennel once more. He gently stroked the relatively intact fur on its head. "Kevin, your name is Kevin, right? You are a very obedient wolfhound."
"Whimper." Kevin turned its head and extended its tongue to lick Russell's palm, gentle and affectionate.
Clearly.
Kevin could sense something—perhaps the Little Dream Dragon's aura on Russell, or perhaps some instinct of animals in the unseen.
In any case, it did not resist Russell at all.
If Russell had been a Great Knight at this moment, the contract would have followed naturally. Unfortunately, he was not. He had not cultivated Battle Aura Chain and could not contract a Phantom Beast.
"Kevin, you understand that I will not hurt you, don't you?"
"Whimper."
"Good. What a good dog." Russell praised Kevin, then beckoned Eric over. "Come. I'll calm Kevin down, and you can try forming a contract with him."
Seeing this, hope rose in Eric once more. He crouched down, activated his Battle Aura Chain, and prepared to touch Kevin.
Kevin was about to resist when Russell hurriedly rubbed its head. "Do not resist. Contract with Eric; it is the only way to help you. Kevin, you do not want to remain a muddleheaded beast for the rest of your life, do you? This is your chance to change your fate."
It was impossible to tell whether Kevin understood.
Under Russell's soothing, it gradually relaxed and allowed Eric to stroke its body before injecting Battle Aura Chain into it.
A bridge formed between it and Eric.
Eric's surging Battle Aura began using the Battle Aura Chain to guide the Earth Power within Kevin, which had already begun to wither.
With that assistance, the Earth Power flowed through Kevin once more like a cheerful stream. Whenever it passed through a tumor-covered area, it worked like a miraculous medicine, swiftly drawing out the restless force within the tumors and making them vanish as if by magic.
One minute, two minutes... Eric guided it for a full quarter of an hour.
By then, every tumor on Kevin's body had disappeared. Its Earth Power had reached a critical threshold and was transforming into the primal power of a Phantom Beast.
Its fur regained its luster, revealing a handsome grayish-brown wolfhound.
But it was still one step short.
"Awoo!" Kevin painfully churned the unfamiliar power within its body. It had never experienced anything like this before.
"My lord, just a little more!" Sweat beaded on Eric's forehead. He had maintained the Battle Aura Chain for too long.
Russell did not know what else he could do at this moment. He could only soothe Kevin as best he could. "Be good, Kevin. Be good. Contract with Eric. Once you do, you will leave the ranks of ordinary beasts and become a stronger Phantom Beast!"
As if those words had worked.
A flash of light passed through Kevin's eyes. Then it turned around and bit Eric's arm. It did not use much force, but it still drew blood.
As the blood dripped down, the intertwined power between Eric and Kevin seemed to trigger a chain reaction. In an instant, it underwent an unfathomable transformation, becoming an entirely new power that no longer distinguished between them.
Essence Breath!
The power formed from the fusion of Battle Aura and primal power, belonging exclusively to Phantom Beast Knights!
Boom!
Essence Breath burst forth. Russell was shoved away by that powerful new force, staggering back several steps before steadying himself.
"Ah!" Eric roared.
Kevin immediately howled as well. "Awoo!"
Then its body seemed to inflate, expanding from the size of an ordinary wolfhound to the size of a leopard. Its fur grew longer and brighter, while fangs jutted out from its lips, as imposing as an Earth saber-toothed tiger.
Most unusual of all, two beams of light shone from its eyes like flashlight beams.
When the light faded, its eyes had become one gold and one silver—gold on the left and silver on the right—with an exotic beauty to them.
Its evolution was complete, and Essence Breath surged within it.
Kevin, the wolfhound with gold-and-silver eyes, could not help throwing back its head and howling at the sky. "Awoo awoo awoooooooo!"
"Oh, heavens!"
At the entrance to the manor's side courtyard, Charles, his hair a complete mess, had just stepped forward with his left foot when his mouth fell open. "What happened here? Can someone tell me what is going on?"
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