A Kaba Beast?
Kroya stared at the magical beast. It looked remarkably like a capybara... just as unruffled, just as leisurely.
And that was indeed its nature-this level-one magical beast was gentle and had a tough hide. It spent every day either eating or on its way to find food, and its droppings carried a special kind of mana after digestion.
That was why small animals and magical beasts would follow it around, picking up its droppings to eat...
Over time, some intelligent animals and magical beasts would even seek out food for Kaba Beasts, then wait for them to produce dung.
They were quite famous social butterflies.
But how had this one ended up at the entrance to his castle? It was still a magical beast, after all.
He immediately asked, "Why is that Kaba Beast here?"
Batos sounded a little odd. "My lord, this Kaba Beast probably likes eating the vegetation at the castle entrance. The White Ironstone Mine runs right beneath it."
"The plants growing above the White Ironstone Mine should contain iron too, shouldn't they? This creature actually likes eating them? Even for a magical beast, wouldn't they be hard to digest?"
Could that peculiarity be what makes inscription possible?
With that thought, Kroya walked straight over.
"!!!"
When Batos saw what Kroya was doing, worry immediately crossed his face, and his thick, pudgy fingers clenched tightly.
Rob, the steward who had been watching him all along, looked thoughtful.
Oblivious to this, Kroya had already reached the Kaba Beast. Even with him approaching, the level-one magical beast continued leisurely munching on grass.
A green glow from the first-tier Beast-Calming Spell gathered at his fingertips as he gently stroked the Kaba Beast's head.
It did not feel rough at all. On the contrary, it was exceptionally smooth, like fine silk brocade, and cool to the touch.
The Kaba Beast paused, then went on eating.
"Be good. Let me take a look..."
Kroya stroked it again, then activated the Astral Body Inscription Technique.
That nearly drained all the mana he had recovered.
The magical beast's Astral Spirit Body was far more complex than that of the first-tier sunflower. Beneath a dense covering of pale green threads lay a Kaba Beast that resembled an anatomical diagram.
The whole thing was pale green as well, a color that put him at ease.
Once again, he could faintly hear a voice.
But this time, there seemed to be several-
"Can't chew for long..."
"Aaaaah! I want to digest iron ore!"
"I don't want them chasing after my dung to eat it..."
Kroya: "???"
Why are they coming from three different places?
He focused and examined it carefully, discovering that the voices seemed to come from the Kaba Beast's mouth, stomach, and anus.
The discovery left him with a decidedly strange feeling.
There was something bizarrely wondrous about realizing that organs could actually have minds of their own.
So this is how I should modify the Kaba Beast?
The teeth want to stand up to chewing, the stomach wants to digest iron ore, and the anus doesn't want magical beasts chasing after its dung to eat it...
Meeting those three conditions did not seem difficult.
The problem was that it seemed to require a combination of spells.
For example, Steel Hardening could strengthen its teeth, while Magic Refining could process iron ore-the former enhanced things, while the latter removed impurities and turned raw ore into refined ore.
If his expectations were correct, those two spells would let the Kaba Beast eat some iron ore, then turn its dung into iron. Naturally, no animals would chase after it to eat that.
And if it worked, wouldn't the Kaba Beast become a walking, beast-shaped iron ore processing furnace?
Kroya's heart immediately stirred with excitement.
To fetch a good price, ore from the White Ironstone Mine had to be processed using extremely hot flames or certain magical reagents, removing the impurities to produce refined iron ore.
But the problem was this impoverished island's production capacity...
Just thinking about it made him want to cry.
Batos had already told Kroya that plenty of unprocessed white iron ore was sitting in the storeroom, waiting to be refined.
If the Kaba Beast really could do the job, it would certainly be good news for him. He could even turn the stockpiled ore into cash quickly.
That was better than toiling away on his own, spending materials or constantly draining his mana to serve as a laborer refining ore.
As a lord, he naturally needed to find others to work for him.
If people couldn't do it, magical beasts would do just fine.
"It seems worth a try, but..."
Kroya sighed softly.
Both were level-one spells, and fairly basic ones at that, but the original owner of his body had not known them.
Besides, with his current mental strength, merely viewing the Kaba Beast's Astral Spirit Body was already extremely difficult. Drawing spell models was clearly beyond him.
For now, he could only have this Kaba Beast watched over and try again once he had learned the spells.
Having made his decision, he ordered, "I like this Kaba Beast very much. Have someone keep an eye on it. By the way, are there any others on the island?"
Batos seemed to grow even more respectful.
He replied, "Yes, around ten more. They all live in the lake in the hills behind the castle."
Kroya glanced at him, and a teasing smile suddenly appeared on his face. "You must be rather fond of these Kaba Beasts, aren't you? Otherwise, they wouldn't be so brazen about grazing right outside the castle gates.
"Since you like them, you can take care of them. Make sure you look after them properly. Don't let them die."
With that, Kroya turned and walked straight through the castle gates.
Rob and the four knights immediately followed, leading their horses. Batos bowed and hurried after them as well, unmistakable relief showing on his plump face.
Inside the castle, maids and manservants stood in a row.
They all had their heads lowered, and the moment Kroya entered, they dropped to their knees and cried, "Master Mage!"
Their cries were certainly well synchronized.
But Kroya continued walking without so much as looking at the deferential servants-all these servants of the previous lord would have to be replaced.
With Rob, a former nobleman, around, he did not need to worry about training maids. Nor did he expect a little place like this to offer servants who suited him perfectly. Obedience would suffice.
As a mage, loyalty and obedience were what he needed most from his servants. Everything else could be taught, but loyalty had to be established from the very beginning.
He climbed the steps inside the rather gloomy stone castle and soon reached its terrace garden.
"A good view, and plenty of sunlight."
After standing there and looking around, Kroya decided to plant the sunflowers here.
He had no intention of planting them outside. Such a precious Magic Plant was better kept under his supervision.
He immediately sent people to dig up soil suitable for growing crops, and also told the knights to settle their horses in the stables.
As for Batos, he casually sent him off to work.
What came next was not something Batos should see.
Kroya then crouched down and took three crystal-clear Magic Crystals from the spatial pouch he carried, holding them in his hand.
"The Magic Field Method... I've practiced it for quite a while. It should be fine, right?"
After muttering a few words, he picked up a crystal pen, dipped it in mana solution, and began drawing on the Magic Crystals. Intricate, mysterious patterns took shape on each one.
They looked like the roots of a plant.
Once he had finished drawing on all three Magic Crystals, he tossed them onto the ground.
Clink!
With that crisp sound, the Magic Crystals rapidly began to change.
Before you continue