Bell Island Lake

Earl grinned, the fat on his face jiggling. "Of course. Bone Bull meat, eleven Gold Coins per pound."

"Eleven?" Duke had not expected it to be so expensive. He had originally estimated that even High-Tier Magical Beast meat would only cost eight or nine Gold Coins per pound.

"This is Bone Bull meat. It's better than ordinary High-Tier Magical Beast meat. We only have this batch on hand right now, and High-Tier Magical Beasts aren't easy to get," Earl said.

Duke knew Earl was not lying. High-Tier Magical Beasts were all very powerful and usually dwelled deep in forests or uninhabited places, making them difficult to hunt.

"But if you're willing to wait, we might get a fresh batch after some time. Things have been unsettled around Moonlight Forest lately. Magical Beasts occasionally appear on the outskirts, and we've already sent people to hunt them," Earl added.

"Moonlight Forest..." Duke thought of the Cave Dwellers from before and felt that the two incidents had to be connected somehow.

The Cave Dwellers had migrated from the depths of Moonlight Forest to its outskirts. Now Magical Beasts were running out from within as well. Something must have happened deep in Moonlight Forest.

With that thought, Duke became even more eager to raise his strength as quickly as possible.

After some consideration, he gritted his teeth and paid fifty-five Gold Coins for five pounds of Bone Bull meat, enough to last him a month.

The blood essence in High-Tier Magical Beast meat was more abundant, so he could not eat too much at once.

Inside Habs Manor.

[You have completed one session of Whale Breathing Method cultivation. Proficiency +4]

[Whale Breathing Method: LV3 (467/1500)]

Duke looked at the information before him, confirming his guess. After his strength increased, he indeed needed higher-tier Magical Beast meat for better cultivation results.

Three days later.

George handed Duke a document and said, "Duke, wild beasts and Magical Beasts have been harassing the nearby villages around Bell Island Lake lately. We need to send additional men to guard the area, and you'll need to be stationed there for a while."

Duke accepted the document, read the details, and nodded. "All right."

The document bore Vivian's signature. As a member of the Nightingale, carrying out missions was part of his duty.

Bell Island Lake lay west of Maple Hill City, on the edge of Moonlight Forest. There were many villages and towns nearby, with a large population.

The lake covered a vast area and was one of the most important water sources in the region. Count Hardy had always stationed men there.

Now that more men were being sent there, the situation clearly was not optimistic.

After receiving the assignment, Duke made preparations that same day and set off with the group.

Two Squadrons, more than twenty people in total, were heading to Bell Island Lake. Every one of them possessed at least the strength of a Mid-Tier Knight Squire.

The group traveled on horseback and reached Snowridge Town after less than half a day. It was the closest town to Bell Island Lake.

From Snowridge Town, one could see the snow-capped mountains far in the distance. They were located deep within Moonlight Forest, and they were the source of the town's name.

The water in Bell Island Lake actually came from those snow mountains, then flowed eastward from the lake, supplying water to the people around Maple Hill City.

Duke and the others rested in town briefly, replenished some supplies, then continued onward into Moonlight Forest.

From the entrance onward, more than a dozen of Count Hardy's personal guards stood watch. Security was extremely tight.

Outsiders were currently forbidden from entering the forest to hunt or gather. The forest was under lockdown.

Entrances elsewhere could still be used, but they were all far from here.

Duke rode forward at an unhurried pace. The forest paths were difficult to traverse, making rapid travel impossible.

It took the group half an hour to reach the shore of Bell Island Lake.

Duke swung down from his horse, the reins leaving a faint mark across his palm.

He raised a hand and pushed aside the branches and leaves before him, revealing an azure lake.

The lake stretched as far as the eye could see. Where the water met the sky, the entire surface became a mirror, reflecting everything above.

More than a dozen wooden huts stood by the lake, surrounded by a wooden wall that was presumably meant to defend against wild beasts.

Duke and the others were assigned to several newly built wooden huts. The timber was still fresh, making it obvious they had been built only in the past few days.

Their duties were simple: patrol several nearby routes in shifts and stand watch at night.

There were more than eighty people at the entire outpost. Most were Nightingale Knight Apprentices, while some were personal guards assigned to miscellaneous chores.

Duke received a patrol assignment that very day, responsible for patrolling the eastern side of Bell Island Lake along a fixed route.

Though it was called a mission, it was really the veterans showing them around the area and explaining what they needed to watch out for.

Duke adapted quickly. There was nothing difficult about these tasks, and he soon settled into life here.

Five days later, late at night.

Duke stood atop a simple watchtower, a blazing torch beside him and pitch-black night all around.

The past few days had been peaceful, with nothing happening, so he quietly cultivated and ground proficiency as usual.

The frustrating part of being here was that he could not exhaust all his Battle Qi every day. He had to retain at least forty to fifty percent in case of an emergency.

As a result, the progress of the Burning Wave Sword Art had slowed considerably. He could not freely grind proficiency.

The distant lake was calm when a sound of water came from the darkness.

The sound was faint. If Duke's hearing had not been exceptional, he would never have noticed it.

Water sounds from the lake were normal; fish often leaped from its surface.

But tonight was unusual. Duke soon heard a dense patter of tiny splashes. He immediately blew the horn in his hand, waking everyone sleeping in the camp.

"What happened?" George donned his leather armor at lightning speed, drew his longsword, and rushed out first.

Duke said gravely, "Listen carefully. Something seems to be approaching through the lake, and there are a lot of them."

The others did not have Duke's sharp hearing and could not hear anything at first.

But after hearing what Duke said, they all fell silent and listened intently. Before long, they heard it too.

A soldier climbed a watchtower and hurled his torch forward with all his strength. By its light, he saw the scene ahead and shouted, "Fishmen! Fishmen! There are probably two or three hundred of them!"

Everyone faced the threat as if confronting a powerful enemy. George immediately began arranging a defensive formation and assigning everyone their tasks.

"Damn it! Fishmen!" someone cursed under his breath.

Fishmen usually lived together in tribal groups, and whenever they appeared, their numbers were enormous.

These creatures generally built their nests around a water source. They had clearly set their sights on Bell Island Lake and regarded Duke and the others by the shore as enemies competing with them for nesting grounds, so they launched an attack.

A single Fishman was not frightening. Its combat ability was generally only a little stronger than that of a militiaman, and some were even weaker.

But Fishmen were too numerous and reproduced quickly.

More importantly, Fishmen had no brains. They were violent, fearless of death, and would fight desperately even when they could not win.