Chapter 228: Lynx Evolution

Chapter 228: Lynx Evolution



Inside the Alchemist's Room.

Lady Jennifer, a beautiful woman, explained the contents of an invitation letter to Rain.

"Alonso invited you and me to a banquet?" Rain couldn't help but feel a bit strange.

Was the other party trying to mend their relationship?

Rain pondered.

To be honest, he wasn't very interested in this matter because he was about to leave for Minster to take the 'Sword Bearer' assessment.

So, the social interactions among the nobility in Myester County were no longer of much significance to him at this point.

On the contrary, his time was now quite precious, as Rain wanted to increase his skill points and enhance his strength again within a short period.

On the one hand, the Alchemist profession didn't offer him any core skills, but he believed that the extraordinary level of Deathmaster should not be underestimated, and there was a high probability that it could bring him some kind of improvement or benefit.

Of course, he could decline Alonso's invitation, but he would definitely not refuse the invitation from the highest official in the county, Baron Habsburg.

After some thought, Rain spoke to Lady Jennifer: "I politely decline the invitation."

Lady Jennifer naturally had no objections and readily agreed, "Alright, my dear."

"By the way, what's the theme of this banquet?" Rain asked casually, tilting his head.

Jennifer flipped through some papers and explained with a light laugh:

"Many times, the purpose of noble gatherings is to appreciate a few paintings from the Eagle Federation, which can become the theme of a banquet."

"Well, this..." Rain was speechless, realizing the spontaneity of the nobility.

When Alonso heard that Rain had declined his invitation, he didn't get angry or disappointed. Instead, he smiled slightly.

These networks of connections among the nobility were the reason for Alonso's confidence.

A large portion of the distribution channels for the Divine Blood of the Black Flame Church was through him, to various levels of nobility.

In simple terms, a significant portion of the nobility in Myester County formed a large interest group with the Black Flame Church through Alonso as the connecting thread.

In some aspects, they could stand together in solidarity.

If he had done this in the past, he would have had some concerns because his conflict with Rain was more personal. But now, with the Black Flame Church's assurance that they would personally deal with Rain, he could use these nobles to put pressure on Rain without incurring any criticism.

---

Sunday.

Baron Habsburg's Study.

Rain met Baron Habsburg again, the highest official in Myester County, whose face exuded a sense of dignity.

With his increased strength, Rain could now sense Baron Habsburg's power, which seemed to rival Captain Baran of the Leviathan Squad.

Similarly, when Baron Habsburg saw Rain, he couldn't help but let out a soft 'oh' sound. Then, he said, "I thought that the most promising knight in the entire Myester County was Kraya, but now that I've met you again, Rain, I think Kraya should make way for you!"

"Thank you for your praise, Baron. Kraya will always be my guiding light on the path of knighthood." Rain bowed slightly, smiling.

"Rain, I thought this young eagle needed more time to learn how to soar through the skies, but I didn't expect you to take flight so soon."

"I've received a letter from Minster. Rain, with your current strength, I believe you will pass the Imperial Sword Bearer assessment without any issues."

"Thank you for your encouragement, Baron."

"By the way, if you encounter any difficulties in Minster, you can take this letter and seek help from my old friend. Perhaps you can gain some assistance from him." Baron Habsburg took out a letter from his desk drawer and handed it to Rain.

Rain took the letter, which was already sealed with red wax and imprinted with the Cali Bird emblem, representing the Habsburg family.

Apparently, Baron Habsburg had prepared this in advance.

"Thank you, Baron!" Rain bowed slightly.

Rain understood the Baron's intentions were clear to Rain, who expressed his gratitude and respect.

So, the lavish banquet was enjoyed in a harmonious atmosphere, and soon after, Rain returned home.

The next morning, Rain, as usual, came to the backyard of the villa to feed and record the growth of his pets, the lynx 'Cookie' and the Bloodfeather Horned Eagle, 'Bloodwing'.

However, this time, Cookie started devouring the food in front of him frantically after letting out a painful howl!

At this moment, the system prompt sounded:

【Host's pet lynx, under the long-term influence of the mutagenic growth potion, begins to mutate and evolve!】

【Mutating and evolving...】

This immediately delighted Rain, who turned to the servant beside him and said, "Quickly go to the kitchen and get more meat. Bring a large basin."】

"Yes, Baron!" The male servant immediately started running towards the kitchen.

"Wait, go to my study and bring the bear meat on the desk as well," Rain called out to the servant.

Cookie's voracious eating at this moment indicated that its evolution required a large amount of energy, and the brutalized beast meat was rich in energy, making it the best choice at the moment.

"Yes, sir!" The male servant hurried off again.

Soon, two strong servants carried over a large basin of steaming hot meat.

Before long, Cookie had devoured most of the meat in the basin. Rain watched as its slender body somehow managed to accommodate such a large amount of meat.

At this moment, a small basin of bear meat was also brought over!

After devouring ten pounds of bear meat, Cookie seemed to be full. It lay on the ground, constantly growling and scratching the ground with its four claws, seemingly enduring some kind of drastic change within its body and the intense pain that came with it!

Rain knew that this wasn't a normal evolution because the lynx was a relatively stable breed.

If it weren't for Cookie's long-term consumption of the mutagenic growth potion, it would have been almost impossible for it to mutate and break through its limits.

Cookie's skin visibly turned red, and its muscles trembled and swelled!

If one had to make a comparison, Cookie's evolution was like a cheetah's slender and agile figure transforming into that of a tiger, both being felines.

Suddenly, the system prompt started flashing:

【Host's pet lynx has successfully evolved into a brutalized beast, the 'Lynx Battlehound'!】

【Your Beast Taming skill has improved, gaining 535 experience points】

【Your Beastmaster (Extraordinary) profession experience increased by 321】

(Note: Lynx Battlehound has awakened the innate ability 'Swift Healing')



【Do you wish to rename the Lynx Battlehound? Yes/No】

Seeing the successful evolution in the system prompt, Rain was overjoyed!

After some thought, Rain chose 'No'.

Rain felt that the system's name for the evolved lynx, 'Lynx Battlehound', was quite accurate, as it was a brutalized beast evolved from a lynx.

But this was just a minor matter.

At this moment, Rain's attention was focused on the innate ability 'Swift Healing'.

He had assumed that, given the lynx's characteristic of being a fast runner, it would awaken an innate ability like 'Agility'. He never expected it to be a healing ability like 'Swift Healing'.

However, after some consideration, Rain nodded.

It was very likely that the word 'mutation' in 'mutagenic growth potion' represented a lot.

Additionally, there had been signs of this earlier. Previously, Cookie had injured its spine but was able to heal and stand again.

This subtly revealed its innate ability.

It was unclear whether this ability had been awakened since the beginning of Cookie's consumption of the mutagenic growth potion or if it was a result of the mutation.

Of course, this wasn't important.

What mattered was that Cookie's evolution from a regular beast into a brutalized beast meant that Rain's Beastmaster (Extraordinary) promotion to Beast Tamer (Legendary) had fulfilled the fourth condition: 'Successfully raise at least one regular beast into a brutalized beast'.

Additionally, the third condition, 'Have three or more brutalized beasts as pets', was also completed (2/3). From now on, Rain only needed to wait for the black horse's mutation.

Once it evolved, Rain could immediately become a Beast Tamer (Legendary)!

At this moment, Cookie, having completed its mutation, stood up from the ground.

Rain was surprised to find that the height of the Lynx Battlehound, Cookie, had reached 1.2 meters at the shoulder, and including its head, it was nearly 1.6 meters tall.

This was no less impressive than a smaller horse.

Cookie affectionately rubbed against Rain's calf, then raised its head to look at its owner, its eyes shining with vigor!

Some of the male servants nearby curiously watched from the side, but their eyes showed more fear than curiosity, as such a large dog was intimidating.

Rain was still unsure of the extent of Cookie's innate ability 'Swift Healing'.

After all, he couldn't possibly strike Cookie with a sword and then observe its wound's healing speed, could he? This wasn't urgent; there would always be opportunities in combat.

Over the next few days, Rain successfully raised his Alchemist profession level to lv. 7, gaining one skill point and one attribute point.

This left Rain with 7 remaining attribute points and 3 remaining skill points.

Meanwhile, Jennifer was quite troubled. She had received invitation letters from over a dozen noble families, all hoping for her and Rain's presence at their events. From a family interest perspective, it was clear that she couldn't afford to offend any of them.

After some thought, Jennifer once again came to Rain's alchemy lab to report this matter.

Hearing that over a dozen noble families had sent invitations, Rain's first thought was that it was indeed worthy of Baron Habsburg.

In the Myester County, many nobles were influenced by him, and he sent an invitation to the banquet to Jennifer.

Rayne pondered for a moment, knowing that the Crowley family had business dealings with several other families. He turned to the beautiful woman and said, "Jennifer, you respond to them, and I'll accompany you to the banquet."

"Okay, dear," Jennifer replied with a delighted expression. For her, if Rayne didn't agree, she naturally wouldn't attend the banquet.

But what touched her deeply was Rayne's consideration of her difficulties and his willingness to support her.

"By the way, do you have the invitation?" Rayne asked, sensing something amiss as he pondered.

"Here it is," the beautiful woman handed over a stack of various banquet invitations.

Rayne quickly skimmed through a few of them and furrowed his brows.

Indeed, there was a problem. Among the dozen or so invitations, several didn't invite Jennifer at all but directly invited Rayne himself.

Is this a trap? If it's just a normal banquet meant to curry favor with him, then inviting Jennifer, a familiar figure like the Baroness Crowley, should be sufficient.

But there seemed to be an underlying intention to have Rayne attend. This left Rayne with a strange feeling.

After some thought, he summoned the short servant Matteo.

"Matteo, go to the town of Flashing Gold and find Sheriff Hamilton. Ask him if there's any secret connection between Alonso and these dozen or so nobles. Have Hamilton get back to me as soon as possible."

Upon hearing Rayne's request, Matteo immediately replied, "Yes, sir! I'll go right away!"

Rayne then turned to the beautiful woman and said, "Jennifer, I'll attend this banquet alone."

Jennifer's eyebrows knitted slightly as she asked, "Dear, is this a trap?"

Rayne shook his head and said, "It's not certain yet, but my intuition tells me there might be a problem here."

That evening, Rayne received Matteo's reply.

To be precise, half an hour later, Hamilton arrived at Rayne's manor in person.

After some pleasantries, Hamilton's expression turned solemn. "Rayne, do you remember the divine blood you confiscated before?"

"Divine blood?" Rayne certainly remembered.

The reddish liquid in the test tube-like container left a deep impression. Hamilton had previously mentioned that this divine blood had the miraculous effects of slowing aging and accelerating cultivation.

But what was the connection between the divine blood and the Black Flame Cult?

"What do you mean?" Rayne instantly grasped the implication of Hamilton's words.

Hamilton nodded. "Exactly as you suspect."

"Since that incident, we conducted a discreet investigation and found that many noble families in the county had rumors of either possessing or purchasing divine blood. Alonso and these dozen or so noble families were on the list Matteo provided."

"Additionally, the investigation revealed that the source of the divine blood leak seemed to point to Alonso. But since he is the eldest son of the Habs Count, the investigation stopped there."

Hamilton looked at Rayne seriously and said, "Rayne, although I know your strength is far beyond what it used to be, and I can't match you anymore."

"But my advice is that you shouldn't go. After all, there might be a plot from the Black Flame Cult behind this."

"Perhaps, after you join the Imperial Swordsmen Organization, you'll have the strength to deal with the Black Flame Cult."

Rayne nodded.

Hamilton's words were those of a wise and experienced man, and Rayne understood this.

But the fact that they pressured Jennifer through so many nobles indicated their determination.

This was just the first step.

If Rayne refused, they would certainly have a backup plan.

After some thought, Rayne bowed slightly and said, "Sheriff Hamilton, thank you for coming in person."

Hamilton waved his hand and stood up. "Rayne, I've made the situation clear to you. The final decision is yours. If you do go, let Matteo know!"

After Hamilton left, Rayne crossed his arms and paced in his study.

Previously, the Black Flame Cult had tried to deal with Rayne through various means like assassination and ambush. But this time, Rayne had a hunch that they seemed to be setting a trap.

"Is there some special arrangement at the banquet that I should be aware of? In that case, it's best for Jennifer not to go, and I should attend alone."

Of course, if the matter was simply Alonso wanting to mend their relationship face-to-face, then it would be best.

Additionally, there was another reason for Rayne's decision to go personally. He had been diligently training and improving his combat power, all for the purpose of one day being able to face these pests head-on and break through the obstacles! He didn't want to follow the saying of taking revenge after ten years of being a gentleman.

Who could take revenge immediately as a gentleman?

However, there was a difference between charging head-on and being rash. So, there was one more thing he needed to do.

Rayne turned to the door and said, "Matteo, prepare a carriage, and let's go to the town of Monsoon and Ocean."

"As you wish, my lord!"

Ever since Rain returned, Matteo had been by his side, and his quick-wittedness often relieved Rain's concerns.

"Baron, this..." Matteo hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"If you have doubts, why not send me to investigate during these days?"

Rain shook his head with a smile, "If they are indeed connected to the Black Flame Cult, they must have employed some mysterious side methods within their manor. Even I might not be able to enter without alerting them."

"This could lead to unpredictable changes!"

"I understand, my lord," Matteo said with a look of realization, bowing slightly before heading to the stable.

Soon after, Rain arrived at the Goddess Church in a carriage.

In Archdeacon Rudolf's room, Rain and Rudolf sat facing each other.

"Baron Rain, I heard you were appointed as the magistrate in Fishing Harbor Town. What brings you back to the county town this time?" Rudolf smiled.

"Archdeacon, there's something I need to trouble you with," Rain said without much small talk, glancing at the Templar Guard behind him.

Rudolf looked at Rain's expression and waved his hand, and immediately, a Templar Guard closed the door.

At this moment, Rain spoke, "Next Sunday, I will attend a banquet, and it's highly likely that the Black Flame Cult is behind it."

"The Black Flame Cult?" Rudolf's eyebrows furrowed.

Then, Rain explained Hamilton's analysis.

This made Rudolf's eyes widen in surprise. "You mean Baron Alonso? The eldest son of Baron Habsburg?"

"Yes!"

If it were the Rain of the past, with his identity, status, and influence so different from Alonso's, such words would have been hard to believe.

But now, things were different. Rain was undoubtedly the rising star of Myester County, and his words carried significant weight.

Although Rain's explanation was clear, it was still just a guess.

After a few seconds of silence, Rudolf's expression changed to one of realization. "No wonder the Black Flame Cult has been hiding so deeply in the county town. It's because so many nobles are covering for them. Baron Rain, what you've told me is of great importance. I must report this to Bishop Shane immediately."

"Wait, Archdeacon Rudolf, it's just my personal guess. There's no need to involve the bishop, is there?"

"No, Baron Rain, I believe your analysis is reasonable."

Immediately, Rudolf brought Rain to the prayer hall of the Goddess Church, where they met the elderly man in a water-blue robe with thick golden borders, holding a staff—Bishop Shane.

After Rain's explanation, Bishop Shane nodded, "So, Baron Rain, I understand your concern. You're worried that when you attend the banquet, they might use some kind of evil spell to harm you."

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Your concern is not unfounded. Do you still have the Silver Conch Medal with you?"

"Of course, Your Grace."

Rain took out the silver conch medal from his inner lining and respectfully handed it to Bishop Shane.

"The silver conch medal has a single divine spell for detecting evil. Now, I will add another divine spell—the God's Blessing. It can counteract curses or any negative influences from evil forces."

At the same time, once this divine spell is triggered, we will all sense it, and I will have Rudolf come to support you immediately.

"Your Grace, thank you for your generosity!"

"Baron Rain, please rest assured. Next Sunday, I will personally lead an elite group of Templar Knights to wait nearby. If it's confirmed to be a Black Flame Cult stronghold or if they are planning something, we will come to support you right away."

"Archdeacon Rudolf!"

Rain's visit to the Goddess Church wasn't due to a lack of confidence in his abilities but rather to add an extra layer of insurance. After all, he currently had limited means to counter the mysterious and evil spells and curses of the cult.

In comparison, the Goddess Church had more experienced and comprehensive countermeasures.

Additionally, Rain was already very satisfied with the level of expertise that Archdeacon Rudolf and Bishop Shane had demonstrated.

After all, it was just his guess, and the Goddess Church couldn't immediately send Templar Knights to surround a noble's manor without evidence. Doing so would be a provocation to the Dragoon Empire's imperial authority.

However, if the divine spell on Rain's body was triggered that day, it would prove the existence of evil, and the Goddess Church would have a legitimate reason to intervene.

A few days later.

On the second Sunday of the Vitality Moon.

As the sun set, Rain, dressed in formal attire, boarded a carriage.

It was a brand-new luxury carriage, with a striking noble emblem engraved on both sides—a pair of crossed war hammers and two-handed swords enveloped in red flames.

Inside the carriage, a large dog, almost the size of a small pony, lay at Rain's feet, enjoying the caresses from its master.

This was Lynx, the battle hound, with a war hammer and a dimly glowing greatsword hanging on either side of its body, and its head, joints, and vital areas protected by the sturdy beast armor that Rain had newly crafted.

Matteo took the role of the coachman, firmly pulling the reins and skillfully driving the carriage towards Baron Elliot's Manor.

High above, hundreds of meters in the sky, a giant lavender eagle carried something on its back, soaring and weaving through the clouds.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end