Proofread by Thomas F
"I still wish you had taken the carriage, my lord," said Colonel Rain as we rode out of the city. "It would have taken too much time, Colonel," I replied to the man responsible for my security.
He looked like he wanted to say something, but closed his mouth with a sigh.
It is afternoon, and the meetings took longer than I had thought. I planned to leave for the Beast Scout Academy in the early afternoon, but couldn't.
As we moved to the main road, the beasts we were riding picked up speed.
I didn't use my skills; I didn't need to. Those around me activated their own. I want to use my new skills on Tempest first.
Speaking of Tempest, I closed my eyes and focused on Monster Link.
Immediately, I sensed him and felt the powerful, wild emotions. I instantly cut the connection.
I had a major headache earlier when I kept it on for several seconds.
Monster Link creates a powerful connection to the monster, but it is not without drawbacks. Especially at this time, when Tempest is advancing.
I don't know how long it will take, but I hope it's soon.
I am going to leave tomorrow. If it doesn't happen by then, I will have to leave him here; he is at a stage where I can't move him in the cart, as I did yesterday.
We moved fast on the road, passing the carriages.
Soon, over an hour passed, and we had crossed the boundary of the Lauryl and reached Morland. It is one of the five unclaimed baronies and the most important one among them all.
As I rode through, I could see a clear difference between it and Lauryl and other unoccupied baronies.
The road is narrower, and there are fewer farms here. There are only a few villages in this barony; people are a precious commodity, and every noble person has their own territory.
If not for them wanting to keep from being completely empty. They wouldn't have created a village here.
Since I took over, I created another village.
I do not plan to create too many villages here. There are other unclaimed baronies for that; this will remain restricted for another reason.
Forty minutes passed, and we saw a large manor appear on the horizon.
It's beautiful even from a distance.
It was built by a previous council as a guest house to woo important guests. Though they never got to use it, it was finished barely a month before I conquered the baronies.
It is secluded, with a view of the forest and hills around it.
Soon, we had reached its massive compound, with large wrought-iron gates. It is the only modification we built; the last compound was too small for our needs.
Watchtowers, patrols, and the beasts guard it tightly.
If one looked at the trees or in the sky, they would see the beasts. There are very few people who could sneak into this place without being detected.
The gate opened as we reached it, and there stood a handsome young man in uniform.
I smiled at him before looking at the manor behind him.
It's large, that's why we chose it. We needed something big, and this place.
It's made from stone from a local quarry, laid in thick load-bearing walls that provide insulation and defence. The masonry is precise, not ornate.
It has a rawness that makes a person feel as one with the wild.
Around it are three more buildings; they are much smaller but made in the same style and material as it.
"Welcome to Beast and Scout Training Academy, Lord Silver," Eli welcomed, bringing my focus back to him. "Thank you, Commandant," I replied and dismounted from the beast.
I could have done that inside, but I want to observe the place I am spending so much money on.
I looked around and saw people, a lot of them. Many among them were teens, and a lot of them hadn't even received a class yet.
It isn't just the people, but also the beasts, not only avian beasts, but also the land beasts.
"I hope your journey has been well?" he asked as we walked inside. I nodded.
"Tell me about this place?" I asked a moment later as I looked around.
"We currently have thirty-eight trainees, along with twenty-nine teaching staff and one hundred and twelve beasts of different types," Eli informed.
I read the information and reports, but I listened without interrupting.
The academy is so different from Eli's initial proposal, which was only for training aerial scouting beasts. Still, we soon expanded to include the scouts themselves and land beasts.
As we walked inside, I saw people and beasts moving together. Some are walking with, some are playing.
Though most of them are training with them.
"Over 70% of the recruits are below fifteen, and they are good." "If we trained them well, they should be able to get a Beast Scout or at least a Beast Companion Class. Instead of simple Scout or Soldier," said Eli, looking at the young recruits and beasts.
"How are they doing?" I asked. "Better than I had expected, but it will take a few months before we will see the tangible results," he replied.
It had been a little over a month since we started the academy. It will be a while before we can see the results.
Soon, we reached the big house.
"We have built every facility from vet to grooming for the beasts; there are teachers who will train the beasts and trainees in everything they need to become a good scout." He informed us as we entered.
He showed me the hospital and the beast training rooms.
I stopped at one in particular, where a half-elf woman is training the cubs of a shadow wolf. We have hired the best trainers we could.
Many, like the half-elf, were quite expensive.
This one had an oddly particular condition: she wanted two spa trips per year. I agreed.
A Legacy is really useful for hiring talent. If I add its services as a sweetener, I could attract talent who would not otherwise come to places like Renwell, despite a premium salary.
They could obtain a good salary anywhere, but not many places could provide them with access to the legacy.
I looked at every room before coming out in the back, where I saw a group of birds moving in formation. "Is that yours leading it?" I asked, looking at a small bird at the front.
"Cloud surfing sparrows don't usually like to lead the birds of other species, but Charlie loves it," he replied with a smile appearing on his face.
I smiled as well, seeing the little bird leading the birds, which were many times bigger than her.
"Is the academy ready to handle the next batch of recruits coming next month?" I asked. He shook his head. "Not right now, but we will be by next month," he replied, sounding confident.
The place is huge, with different sections. He led me toward each, until we stopped in front of a small lake.
There are a couple of little monsters playing in it with recruits while the trainer watches.
"I didn't hear about the Manor having a lake?" I asked. "It didn't, until we expanded the compound." He replied. I activated Instant Recollection, and soon a map appeared in front of me, with a lake marked on it.
I nodded and watched for a while before moving to the other area.
'He is doing well,' said Zela telepathically. She rarely comments on such things, but Eli is her friend.
'He is,' I replied.
I am kind of impressed by how orderly it looked. Everything looked professional; I could not find a single fault.
Like many, I had underestimated him because of his age, but seeing the academy in operation, my doubts vanished.
He is doing well; he might make some mistakes, but that is normal. The most important thing is that he learn from his mistakes. I will be keeping an eye on him, but I believe he will not disappoint me.
I was watching a group of small brown monsters digging through the hole when a horn sounded.
"That bastard!"
Eli cursed as I saw a few birds taking off into the air, while he looked up. I activated Lord's Eyes and looked up.
"It is a lightning razedove, a new scout beast, that the south Baronies had got; it's really fast. We have trying to kill or capture it, but it's too fast," said Eli with a hint of regret.
I have heard about it in my report and even provided special mounted crossbows.
"Also, the scout had evading skill," he added with a sigh. I could hear the frustration in his voice.
It's not good for enemies to spy on us.
This is a military asset; I have restricted this area for civilians. Only those with access or permission could come here.
A few seconds passed, and I finally saw something. A purple bird, it's so high that I could not see more than a blur. I was thinking about attacking it when Zela shot dozens of light bolts and balls.
They moved really fast; the bird seemed to sense it, and as it increased its speed, but Zela's attack is of light element; it is the fastest element.
The lightning bolts reached the bird, and I thought they would hit it, but I saw it disappear and reappear a few meters away.
"It is a very annoying skill," he said, seeing that, and I could see why; the bird just teleported.
The light balls reached it, and I found it disappearing once more, but as it did, the light balls exploded, turning everything bright for a moment.
When it cleared, I saw a bird falling toward the ground. There seemed to be something white wrapped around it.
"When did you learn Hylisar's Net?" asked Eli, turning to Zela. "A few months ago," she replied with a pleased smile.
I didn't even hear about the spell, but I am sure it is one of the spells we had bought. We spent a lot of money on buying spells. I also gave Zela a budget to buy the spells she needs.
Soon, the bird reached us, and she captured it with a handmade net of water, before caging it in a cage made of water and light.
"Now, that bastard won't be able to spy on us," said Eli, holding the box with a big smile on his face. "Unless he has more of these birds," she replied, and his smile deflated.
I watched the interaction while making a note to have mages learn more capturing spells.
We cannot have enemies spy on us.