Translator: Pai_

Turan was eventually able to obtain information in exchange for a single mug of beer.

If he wanted to find the Magical Beast with the bounty, he simply had to go to City Hall and inquire with the official in charge.

When Turan asked what exactly a City Hall and an official were, the waitress burst into laughter.

"You don't even know that? Oppa, you really must be from the countryside!"

Giggling, the waitress explained that City Hall was the building located in the center of the city where various public administrative tasks were handled, and that officials were individuals employed by the city's lord.

Since it was already fully dark outside today, it seemed best to visit City Hall the following morning to gather more information.

"By the way, why are you looking for a Magical Beast? Don’t tell me, oppa, are you a Beast Hunter too?"

"What is a Beast Hunter?"

"You know, those people who believe that if they hunt Magical Beasts, they can become wizards."

When he asked what she meant, she explained that a superstition had spread claiming that ordinary people could gain magical power by hunting Magical Beasts. Because of this belief, some people risked their lives to hunt them.

Although most people treated them like lunatics, it was said that there were still a considerable number of individuals who pursued this goal in hopes of improving their social status.

While listening to her explanation, someone placed a hand on Turan's shoulder.

"Hey, Lena. The idea that you can become a wizard by hunting Magical Beasts isn’t just a superstition. It’s the truth. I’ve seen it with my own eyes."

The speaker was a man who looked to be somewhere between thirty and forty years old.

With unkempt hair and a scruffy beard, he gave off the impression of someone who didn’t care about his appearance. However, his eyes were surprisingly clear and sharp.

"Midan ahjussi! You’re alive?"

"Did you think I was dead? I already told you, I’m not going to die until I become a wizard!"

"Sorry about him, Miss Lena. Our boss is always so rude."

Three men approached behind the man called Midan.

Armed with long spears, bows, and even hammers that looked like they were meant for smashing buildings, these men were all large and muscular.

When Turan brushed off the hand on his shoulder, the man flinched and took a step back.

"Oh, my bad."

"It’s fine. But could I hear more about what you just said earlier?"

"About what?"

"About becoming a wizard by hunting Magical Beasts."

"Oh, so you're interested in that too, young friend?"

Midan grinned, seemingly pleased by Turan's curiosity, and began explaining.

Wizards kill Magical Beasts and absorb their power to grow stronger. By the same principle, ordinary people who kill Magical Beasts can obtain their power and become wizards.

He claimed to have personally seen several wizards who gained their power this way.

"That’s why the four of us are hunting Magical Beasts in order to become wizards."

"We’ve already taken down three of them!"

"We're almost there now."

Midan’s subordinates, who seemed to consider themselves as sworn brothers, added their comments one by one.

Turan was startled to hear that they had already hunted three Magical Beasts.

The only Magical Beast he had ever encountered had possessed such overwhelming power that even dozens of ordinary humans grouped together would have been easily torn apart.

"Three of them? Does that mean someone among you has already become a wizard?"

As soon as Turan finished speaking, everyone on the first floor of the inn burst into laughter.

"Of course not! In this city, there are only four wizards: the lord and the three knights under his command."

"If even one of us became a wizard, it would make helping the rest of us a lot easier."

"Honestly, we almost died multiple times just taking down those beasts."

In a city that seemed to hold at least ten thousand people, there were only four wizards?

Turan began to understand why Keorn always lamented the scarcity of wizards in the world.

Just then, Midan glanced at Turan’s bag and asked,

"By the way, you said you’re hunting Magical Beasts, didn’t you? But your equipment seems way too lacking for that. Do you not have any weapons?"

"Weapons?"

Turan pulled out the slingshot made of lambskin that he had been carrying in his pocket, fully expecting them to mock it.

After all, compared to their metal weaponry, it was bound to look unimpressive.

However, contrary to what he had expected, the Beast Hunters showed a surprisingly positive reaction.

“Oh, do you use this to sling stones?”

“Judging by the wear, it seems like you’ve used this a lot.”

“What size stones do you usually use with it?”

“I use stones about the size of an egg.”

“With that size, it should be more than enough to smash the skulls of those transformed from rabbits or foxes.”

From their words, it became clear that they weren’t targeting Magical Beasts like the leopard Turan had killed, which originated from predators.

Instead, they were hunting Magical Beasts that came from herbivores or relatively smaller animals - the kind of creatures that, if they were ordinary animals, could be defeated by a human bare-handed.

Of course, even such Magical Beasts could easily kill an ordinary person depending on their innate abilities.

“Say, would you be interested in joining us for a hunt? We’ve been wanting to recruit an additional marksman.”

“No, I’m fine.”

Turan declined the offer without hesitation.

He had no intention of revealing that he was a wizard, and in the first place, his goals didn’t align with theirs, they were chasing after Magical Beasts of a much lower caliber than the ones he was after.

Fortunately, Midan didn’t persist and merely expressed some regret as he stepped back.

“Tch, that’s a shame. But let me know if you change your mind.”

After chatting a bit more, Turan received a room key from the waitress and headed up to the second floor.

As he lay in bed trying to fall asleep, he could hear the voices of the Beast Hunters talking from the first floor through the wooden floorboards.

[Midan hyungnim, why were you trying to include that rookie kid? Honestly, he doesn’t seem like he’d be much help.]

“Exactly. He’s so scrawny that one good hit would have him bawling.]

Midan’s subordinates, his so-called sworn brothers, were ridiculing Turan with mocking tones.

Just a moment ago, downstairs, they had acted like such friendly people.

This kind of two-faced behavior was something Turan had already experienced plenty of times back in his village, so he wasn’t hurt by it.

He simply sighed and let it slide, thinking, That’s just how people are.

A moment later, Midan’s voice came in response.

[Tsk, it’s just that seeing him reminded me of my younger days. Wandering around outside with nothing but something like that to rely on? Even ten lives wouldn’t be enough to survive like that.]

[Seriously, big hyungnim, you’re way too kindhearted.]

[Who’s saying otherwise?]

Listening to their conversation in silence, Turan eventually closed his eyes.

Indeed, the world was full of both good people and bad people.

* * *

The next morning, after having a breakfast of dark bread and soup provided by the inn, Turan went to City Hall.

Located in the center of the city, City Hall was a four-story building bustling with citizens handling various tasks.

After weaving through an elderly man and an old lady quarreling over a building lease issue, Turan finally found the official in charge of bounties.

"What do you want?"

The middle-aged official gave Turan a look of disdain, as if he were some worthless bum, when he said he was looking for a Magical Beast with a bounty.

If Turan revealed that he was a wizard, the man would immediately fall to his knees, but he chose not to.

If he pretended to be some mediocre knight, the city’s lord might drag him into work, just as he had feared in the past. If he revealed himself as a noble-level wizard, he’d waste time being treated as some kind of exalted guest.

It was common knowledge that among nobles, hospitality was considered a crucial form of etiquette, and refusing such treatment could be seen as rude.

In the end, the best course of action was simply to quietly hunt a Magical Beast in the vicinity and leave quickly.

There was no need to risk his life just to keep his identity hidden.

"No taking it out, look at it and hand it back."

A moment later, the official handed Turan a document. On it were descriptions of the Magical Beasts, including their appearances, sizes, characteristics, sighting locations, and the bounties offered for them.

For the weaker, non-hostile Magical Beasts, the bounty was only paid if they were captured alive. On the other hand, the more aggressive ones that were hostile to humans could be killed, and their corpses brought back for the reward.

Weak Magical Beasts undergo less mutation, which makes their corpses indistinguishable from regular animals. This is why there are many people who try to fraudulently claim bounties by bringing in ordinary animal carcasses.

“You need to be careful. Even if you accidentally kill a Magical Beast, don’t leave it behind, bring it back to the city. If the knights don’t disperse its magic power, it could turn into a dangerous Undead Spirit. Abandoning a Magical Beast corpse after killing it is punishable by death under city law. Keep that in mind.”

“I understand.”

Having already experienced firsthand the horrors that could occur when a Magical Beast corpse was left unchecked, Turan took the official’s warning to heart and engraved it deeply in his mind.

“But some of these creatures seem quite dangerous for ordinary people to handle. Don’t the knights come to deal with those?”

The official responded with a tone that suggested he was amazed at Turan’s question.

“Do you think they have that kind of free time? The role of the knights is to maintain the city’s public order and defend against enemy invasions. Hunting Magical Beasts is the kind of thing left to drifters like you.”

At those words, Turan looked down at the paper he was holding.

~~~~~~~

Blade Crow

A crow with feathers that are partially as hard and sharp as blades. It can use these feathers to deflect arrows and other projectiles, and attacks humans by dropping its feathers from high altitudes.

It has a habit of preying on dogs or young children near the outskirts of the city, eating them, and scattering their remains...

~~~~~~~

If wizards were supposed to be humanity’s protectors, shouldn’t they prioritize hunting such creatures? Yet it seemed there weren’t many wizards who took pride in defending humanity.

Feeling somewhat bitter, Turan left the City Hall building and headed toward the outskirts of the city.

The number of buildings gradually decreased, and when he finally left the city’s boundaries, the familiar wilderness greeted him.

‘Let’s get started.’

After confirming that there was no one else around, Turan recalled the Magical Beast he had seen listed at City Hall.

Blade Crow, a man-eating Magical Beast that preyed on children...

“Crow Detection.”

The moment he cast the spell, hundreds of sounds filled his ears.

The sound of feathers brushing together, wings flapping, and beaks pecking at things.

“Ugh.”

The overwhelming variety of noises coming from all directions made Turan frown as he canceled the spell.

The sheer number of crows lingering near the city rendered the detection spell ineffective.

‘This method won’t work.’

What could he do to locate only the Magical Beast?

‘A crow that possesses magic power?’

He attempted to filter the search that way, but the spell didn’t activate at all. It seemed that the presence of magic power couldn’t be used as a condition for the detection spell.

Next, he tried narrowing it down to crows that had eaten humans. However, this time, far too many targets were identified.

It was likely that crows that had scavenged human corpses were being included as well.

“This is tricky...”

Back on Hisaril Hill, where animals were scarce, he rarely faced such issues.

If he wanted to find a lost sheep, he’d simply detect sheep and locate the one wandering alone. If he wanted to find a wolf, only one or two would typically be detected at most.

As Turan pondered for a long time, he suddenly had an epiphany and activated the spell again.

‘A crow larger than a young child.’

Even though a Magical Beast was stronger than a normal animal, it would still need to have a basic level of size to carry off a child.

As expected, only a single crow was detected, its feathers rustling faintly.

Additionally, there was a faint scent of human blood lingering in the air.

“Found it.”

Due to obstacles in the way, even though Turan looked in the direction of the sound, nothing was visible. However, once a target had been detected, there was no way he would lose it.

The distance was one that would take an average person at least ten minutes to sprint.

But with the full-speed sprint of a noble-level wizard, three to four minutes were more than enough.

As the forest where the target resided came into view, Turan cast another spell.

It wasn’t the perfect Concealment unique to the House Zahar bloodline, but rather a simpler Invisibility spell that merely rendered him unseen.

The reason for this choice was twofold: Perfect Concealment consumed far too much magic power, making it burdensome to use, and based on his experience, a bird’s sense of hearing wasn’t particularly sharp.

When Turan arrived at the large tree where the Blade Crow resided, a tree so enormous that it would take three people with outstretched arms to encircle it, he immediately used flight magic to lift himself up into the air.

‘It’s huge...’

The Blade Crow was over a meter tall even when sitting.

Its folded wings were sharp as blades, living up to its name, and faint traces of blood lingered on its razor-sharp beak.

The nest it perched on was littered with bones, some from various animals and, occasionally, ones that appeared to be human.

As expected, the Blade Crow was too absorbed in grooming its feathers to notice Turan’s presence.

‘Now, how should I deal with this thing?’

The simplest method would be to kill it outright with a well-aimed slingshot to the head. However, Turan wanted to use this opportunity to test out a few other spells on the creature.

If he grew too reliant on the slingshot’s ease of use, he wouldn’t have any options when faced with an opponent immune to physical projectiles.

Keorn had often taught him to prepare as many methods of response as possible.

When Turan glanced up at the sky, he noticed that it was quite cloudy, perfect conditions for a particular spell.

It was a technique he had only studied in theory, never having been able to use it on Hisaril Hill due to unsuitable conditions.

Standing a short distance from the nest, Turan raised his finger to the sky and recalled his training.

Years ago, during a rare thunderstorm on Hisaril Hill, a place where rain was scarce, he had witnessed it for the first time.

The massive pillar of light that connected the heavens to the earth, accompanied by a deafening roar that seemed to shake the world itself.

‘Come.’

With a strong invocation, magic power surged out of Turan’s body. A moment later, a low rumble of thunder echoed from within the clouds.

The Blade Crow, sensing that something was amiss, looked up at the sky. But by then, it was already too late to escape.

A bolt of lightning, faster than sound, struck the bird’s nest with devastating force.

[Ka-ga-ga-ga-kak---!!!]

The Blade Crow shrieked in agony as it attempted to flee.

However, its once-proud blade-like feathers had all burned to ashes, leaving only the metal-like remnants behind. With its ability to fly now gone, the creature could do nothing but fall helplessly to the ground.

It crashed to the earth with a thud, flailed weakly a few times, and then fell still.

To ensure it wouldn’t move again, Turan cautiously observed the bird for about a minute before descending to the ground.

Once there, he absorbed the magic power of the fallen Magical Beast.