With the swamps behind them, everyone woke up the next morning with a little more energy. The ground was still damp, but the broad rivers and lush vegetation made the landscape far more pleasant.
Leaving the horses tied up, Harry simply told Ater not to get into trouble before walking away.
With that, the twelve of them, along with one bear, began making their way into the swamp.
Howland had told them there had recently been an overpopulation of lizard-lions, and that many had migrated south.
From the southern end of the Neck, the terrain became less swampy, almost as if it wanted to give you hope that you could cross it.
Only to have you fall straight into its wide-open jaws.
The ground gave way slightly and bubbled with every step, while swarms of mosquitoes buzzed around, enough to make anyone shudder.
To keep them away, Harry uncorked a potion and handed it to Theon so he could walk at the front. A horrible stench rose from it, keeping the swarms of mosquitoes at a distance.
Not to mention Theon, who held the bottle as far away from his body as possible.
Advancing through the pools of the swamp, there was nothing to be seen but leaves, branches, and logs scattered everywhere.
That was when Harry's gaze settled on a log floating in one of the pools several yards away.
"Stop," Harry said, bringing the entire group to a halt.
Although Harry knew they had come looking for danger, he couldn't allow any of those who had come with him to die.
Not only because he could prevent it, but because they were all the heirs to their respective Houses. How would he ever face those Lords afterward?
They weren't at war. It had been his idea to come hunting lizard-lions. If someone died, their House would certainly blame him.
"Theon, put that away and take out your bow," Harry said, looking at Theon, who was leading the group.
Theon quickly corked the potion with obvious relief before taking his bow from his back and nocking an arrow.
"Shoot that log," Harry said, pointing toward it.
Theon didn't hesitate. He quickly drew the bowstring, took aim, and released.
With a faint whistle, the arrow shot forward and buried itself in the "log."
Suddenly, a massive head covered in dagger-like teeth rose from in front of the log, a terrifying growl rumbling from its throat as it stared at them.
A deafening roar erupted from its jaws as its enormous body rose from the pool.
The log had merely been part of the lizard-lion's back.
Before them stood a monstrous beast nearly three meters tall and over six meters long, its jaws large enough to swallow a man whole. Small branches of different sizes protruded from its back, serving as natural camouflage.
What they had taken for a log had actually been the creature's back.
A chill ran through the group as they remembered all the similar logs they had passed along the way.
If even one of them had been one of these...
They probably wouldn't have had time to react.
"Shit!" several of them cursed as they hurriedly drew their weapons upon seeing the creature charge toward them, their feet instinctively taking a few steps back.
Unlike his nervous companions, Harry's eyes lit up.
This would definitely make excellent material for potions and wandmaking.
"Come on, don't lose your nerve," Harry said with a light chuckle as he drew his sword and charged straight toward the beast.
The massive creature let out a low growl as it lunged at him, its jaws opening wide and releasing a foul breath before snapping shut with incredible speed.
Harry quickly leaped to the side, avoiding the bite before delivering a powerful slash across its flank.
His hands went slightly numb as a metallic clang rang out and a couple of sparks flew from his sword.
Feeling the powerful strike against its back, the creature quickly twisted its body, swinging its enormous tail toward Harry.
Harry waited until the tail was close enough before leaping, using it as a foothold to propel himself onto the creature's back.
His sword spun in his hands before he drove it downward with all his strength.
This time he had a little more success.
The blade sank several centimeters into its hide, drawing blood.
The creature let out a deafening roar of pain, its massive body thrashing violently and nearly throwing Harry off, forcing him to drive his sword in even deeper just to hold on.
With a low growl, the creature suddenly began rolling across the ground, sending Harry flying from its back.
Rolling across the muddy ground, Harry quickly got back to his feet while watching the lizard-lion continue to spin.
Somewhat confused, he turned to look at his companions, only to find them staring back at him with shock and horror.
As if they were looking at a lunatic.
One mistake...
And they were certain he would have died.
"Did I bring you here to watch? Or do I need to get you some pom-poms?" Harry nearly cursed as he saw the looks on their faces, but the enraged lizard-lion gave him no chance to say anything else before charging at him again.
Smalljon was the first to react, tightening his grip on his weapon as he cautiously searched for an opening.
The rest swallowed nervously as they circled the creature while Harry kept its attention.
Uru was visibly frightened, carefully staying behind Dacey. Much to her annoyance, she kicked the cowardly bear a couple of times, trying to make him help, but it was useless.
Uru wasn't stupid.
That mouth could bite his head clean off.
There was no contest.
Harry rolled through the mud to avoid another bite, the creature stumbling forward a couple of steps from the momentum.
That was when everyone saw their chance and charged.
Dacey swung her mace, smashing it into the creature's knee. A sickening crack echoed from its leg before she immediately retreated as the tail changed direction and whipped toward her.
Benfred took advantage of the opening, repeatedly driving his spear into the beast.
Even so, his shallow thrusts did little more than cause it pain.
Most of the others' swords simply bounced off its hide or sent harmless sparks flying.
Harry immediately understood why the people of the Neck preferred fighting with tridents.
Creatures like this were practically impossible to cut.
He couldn't help wondering whether Ice, his family's Valyrian steel sword, would be able to slice through its hide.
The lizard-lion roared continuously as it shifted from one target to another with every attack it received. The small wounds were painful enough that its head and tail lashed out constantly at anyone who came close.
Watching his companions' ineffective attacks, Harry suddenly remembered that crocodiles in his previous world had much softer hides on their undersides.
"Its weak points are its belly and neck! Aim there!" Harry shouted before quickly dodging another snapping bite.
"Tell it to roll over so we can hit it!" Dacey complained sarcastically as she threw herself into a roll, barely avoiding the creature's tail as it swept over her.
"Let's see if it's in the mood," Harry replied.
Taking advantage of the creature exposing its back to him, he leaped onto it once more.
His sword immediately found the wound he had made earlier, driving even deeper this time and making the beast roar in agony.
Having no other way to respond, the lizard-lion immediately threw itself onto the ground and began rolling again.
Even though they had been expecting it, only Benfred reacted quickly enough to drive his spear deep into the creature's belly, the shaft snapping under the force of the roll.
Even so, it only caused the broken spearhead to sink even deeper beneath the beast's own weight.
Roaring in agony, the lizard-lion seemed to go mad as it charged straight at Benfred, who hurriedly fled in panic.
Dacey seized the opportunity to strike its knee again.
With another sickening crack, the joint finally gave way completely, bending in the opposite direction.
"Watch its tail!" Harry warned as he saw everyone drawing closer before confirming it was truly finished.
Daryn, who had gotten too close, managed to react thanks to Harry's warning.
Even so, the tail clipped his shoulder, sending him flying several meters away.
His body rolled through the mud before a muffled groan escaped him.
"Fuck..." Daryn groaned as he sat up, his shoulder pauldron badly dented.
"Idiot. You were lucky it only grazed you," Harrion said, helping him back to his feet.
"You alright?" Domeric asked, looking at his shoulder.
"I think so," Daryn replied before letting out a quiet groan of pain as he tried to move his arm.
The lizard-lion roared in agony as it barely managed to drag itself forward, but doing so only drove the broken spear deeper into its abdomen.
Seeing it in agony, Harry approached with his sword and quickly ended its life, sparing it any further suffering.
"I'll take a look at your arm in a moment," Harry said, glancing toward Daryn.
Walking over to the creature's torso, Harry patted its hide, feeling its incredible toughness.
It was definitely a magical creature.
"A little help?" Harry asked after utterly failing to roll it over by himself.
Everyone quickly gathered on one side, heaving together until they managed to flip it over.
With a heavy thud, the enormous body crashed onto the ground, exposing its most serious wound.
"It was a good stab," Jon said as he walked over, pulled out the broken spear, and tossed it back to Benfred.
"Yeah. Good reaction," Domeric said with a nod and a smile.
"Damn it... I thought we were dead the moment that thing showed up," Roger said as he sat down on the lizard-lion's tail.
Everyone burst into laughter as they finally began to relax now that it was truly over.
All of them were still relatively inexperienced.
Their training had never actually put their lives in danger.
With no wars and no Ironborn raids, the North had been fairly peaceful over the past several years.
"There were quite a few close calls," Robin said, pulling out a waterskin and taking a drink.
"Pass me some too," Smalljon said, looking at him.
Robin casually tossed him the waterskin before letting out a sigh.
Harry didn't join the conversation.
Instead, he immediately slit open the creature's abdomen.
To everyone's astonishment, he reached inside and began feeling around among its organs, completely unfazed by the gruesome sight.
"It's purely for scientific purposes," Harry said seriously after noticing everyone staring at him.
"What's scientific?" Theon asked, looking confused.
"Forget it. You wouldn't understand," Harry replied tiredly as he continued examining the creature's organs and testing their magical properties.
He quickly found several that would be useful for brewing potions.
Then he felt a slightly stronger magical reaction.
Sliding his hand farther inside, Harry reached the creature's heart.
He could feel the magic slowly leaking away.
Drawing a dagger, he cut the heart open and noticed a small sphere at its center.
Pinching it carefully between his thumb and forefinger, Harry lifted it and examined it closely.
"That was inside its body?" Dacey asked with interest.
"Its heart, to be exact. Looks like we'll have to hunt another one," Harry replied with a smile.
Everyone's relaxed expressions immediately stiffened.
"Its hide would make excellent armor. It's tough, lightweight... but I don't think there's enough from this one for everyone," Harry said, the corners of his lips curling upward as he continued rummaging through the carcass.
Remembering how resistant crocodiles were to cuts and stab wounds, everyone couldn't help imagining how much safer they would be on a battlefield wearing armor made from such a hide.
But looking at the creature's enormous body—and still not entirely sure how they had managed to kill it—they couldn't help losing a bit of their courage.
"I need to capture one alive, so let's head back to camp. We'll try some lizard-lion meat, get some rest, and come back tomorrow with ropes. We're going to do something remarkable. The whole North will know our names when we return with one of these creatures alive," Harry said, turning to them with a smile.
Everyone's expressions shifted back and forth like a roller coaster.
But the thought of their names spreading throughout the North filled them with excitement.
Without saying a word, everyone stepped forward and tried to lift or drag the lizard-lion.
It was impossible.
Harry estimated the creature weighed well over a ton.
Without a proper way to grip it, even all twelve of them together couldn't move it.
In the end, they had no choice but to butcher it, separating its legs, tail, and head before finally managing to carry everything.
Stopping repeatedly to rest from the effort, they eventually made it back to camp close to noon.
"Theon, prepare the meat and cook it," Harry said, lying on the grass, thoroughly exhausted from transporting the carcass.
"Huh? Why me?" Theon asked in disbelief.
"You did the least damage. If you'd put an arrow through its eye, I'd have cooked for you personally," Harry replied without even opening his eyes.
Taking advantage of his exhausted state, Harry began absorbing the little magic that remained within the small sphere from the lizard-lion's heart.
For now, he intended to call it a magic core.
It seemed like a fairly natural conclusion.
There had to be something that converted biological energy into magic, allowing a creature to grow so enormous and develop such incredibly tough hide.
That small sphere appeared to be responsible.
It resembled a wizard's core, yet it was fundamentally different.
A wizard's core merely allowed one to manipulate magic.
It neither stored nor generated it.
The only reason Harry could store magic at all was because of Godric Gryffindor's spell.
Even then, "store" wasn't quite the right word.
The spell simply allowed magic to flow endlessly throughout his body, accelerating his physical training while saturating his entire body with magic.
It also allowed him to draw upon that magic whenever there was none in his surroundings.
Even if he cast no spells at all, the magic would gradually dissipate on its own.
That was why it naturally "recharged" every day.
The small sphere emptied of magic and immediately crumbled into dust.
The sound of something sizzling, along with the mouthwatering aroma of roasting meat, made Harry open his eyes. He looked over to see Theon turning the skewered meat over the fire.
Ignoring him, Harry walked over to his belongings and took out several small boxes he had prepared, carefully organizing the useful parts of the lizard-lion before storing them away.
The boxes had enchantments that would keep the ingredients fresh until he needed them.
"We need to skin it and preserve the hide," Harry said casually as he looked over the butchered carcass.
That was when Harry noticed everyone inevitably turning to look at Domeric. Domeric couldn't help but wear an awkward expression. Clearly, he wasn't too happy that his family's reputation preceded him.
"I'm not doing it," Theon declared before Harry could say anything.
Harry deliberately avoided looking at him.
He had, in fact, been about to volunteer Theon for the job.
"Any volunteers?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'll do it," Dacey said, raising her hand in an almost childish manner as she walked toward the lizard-lion.
She had seen—and skinned—quite a few bears for their pelts.
Bear fur was incredibly warm and sold for a good price, making it one of Bear Island's few reliable sources of income.
The meat was soon ready, and everyone was delighted by its flavor, similar to aurochs meat, though aurochs could only be considered somewhat magical creatures, unlike the lizard-lion, which definitely was one.
The group ate until they were full and rested after the intense ordeal they had shared.
Because of that, they naturally began opening up to one another.
They talked about their childhoods, their likes, and their aspirations
Harry also shared a little about everything he had accomplished—the crops, the livestock, and the mine in the North.
Naturally, he kept his methods to himself.
Even so, it was enough to leave them astonished.
Benfred and Cley had seen the most of the agricultural developments, as their Houses had been among the first to adopt them.
Domeric, Harrion, Daryn, and Robin had also seen the enormous livestock herds around Winterfell, since the ranches lay along the road leading to the capital of the North.
Even Smalljon had passed through the mining town under construction and had been greatly surprised by the sheer scale of the project.
Later that afternoon, Harry walked down to a nearby river to wash his clothes.
They were covered not only in mud, but in blood as well.
After enjoying more lizard-lion meat that evening, everyone turned in early.
Harry watched their courage slowly fade as they remembered they would have to face another creature like that the following day.
The corners of his lips curled upward.
He stepped into his tent and absorbed the surrounding magic until he finally drifted off to sleep.
----
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