Chapter 80: A Monster's Massacre
Michael was glad that his subjects began practicing the Sun Soldier techniques on their own.
Their initiative allowed him to use his full military might to fight the huge Frenzy Deer, instead of leaving some Warriors behind to safeguard the territory.
Interestingly, no monster had attacked his territory since the protection barrier had been lifted. It was almost as if the monsters had been traumatized by watching their brethren die near Michael's territory.
That was a good thing since it allowed Michael to be a little bit more at ease and not worry about his territory getting razed to the ground while he was away.
Thus, he gathered his forces, finished a few preparations for the upcoming battle, and ordered Blaire to guide them to the clearing.
Just like Blaire reported, they spent roughly an hour traveling southward until they came across a huge clearing in the middle of the Untamed Jungle.
The clearing was much bigger than the clearing in his territory, and there was a small stream as well. The stream passed through the middle of the clearing, providing water to the horde of Frenzy Deers.
Michael was just about to climb a tree to look at the surroundings from an elevated position when the earth beneath them trembled.
A horrifying roar reverberated through the clearing, and they all looked around hastily as a big monster charged out of the thicket less than a hundred meters away from Michael's position.
His heart skipped a beat, and his body froze for a moment.
'A Black Bear? Are there monsters like that in the Untamed Jungle?'
Michael was confused for a moment, but he regained his composure quickly. He gestured for the others to hide in the thicket around the clearing and remain silent. In the meantime, he climbed the tree and activated his Eagle Eyes.
Once he found a thick branch, he flung himself on top of it. The tree was wide enough to walk on, but Michael didn't bother. He used his Eagle Eyes to observe the chaotic scene beneath him.
The tranquil and beautiful scenery of the clearing was replaced by sounds of snarling.
A huge black bear with long sabretooth-like fangs appeared in front of a group of Frenzy Deers letting out a ferocious roar. It dug its fangs deep into the closest Frenzy Deer and thrashed around violently. The Frenzy Deer could do nothing but bleat in horror as it was tossed and turned for two seconds before it was mercilessly thrown aside.
The Black Bear left the severely injured Frenzy Deer to die and did not bother looking at it again. Instead, it attacked the other Frenzy Deers that bleated out in horror as they scampered for their lives. However, the Black Bear was too fast.
It appeared next to the second victim in an instant and tore it apart with its razor-sharp claws. The Frenzy Deer didn't even get the time to process the pain before it staggered and slumped to the ground lifelessly. A puddle of blood formed on the ground around the Frenzy Deer and the bright shimmer in its eyes turned dim and disappeared a moment later.
Yet again, the Black Bear didn't cast a look at its victim.
'It is not hunting to feed itself. No, it doesn't even seem to enjoy playing around with its prey. The bear is simply tearing the Deers apart. It's a brutal massacre, nothing more!' Michael realized in shock.
It was not as if Michael was taken aback by the Black Bear's massacre, but it was rather uncommon for something like that to happen. The mindless massacre was not something ordinary monsters would do under normal circumstances.
Even Lords killed monsters to collect their bodies and sell them. Michael was the same. He wanted the energy influx of the huge Frenzy Deer, its horde, and the resources he could procure by killing them, not killing them and leaving their bodies to rot.
Though it did not make him any less of a killer, and it was not necessary to hunt the Frenzy Deers, every part of their body was quite valuable, including the energy influx they provided upon getting killed.
'Is it also after the energy influx? But I thought that monsters of the Origin Expanse would absorb the energy in their vicinity through their Cores. They don't absorb the energy of other monsters by killing them!'
Hunting the Frenzy Deer Horde didn't seem to provide the Black Bear with any gains, yet it slaughtered them mindlessly.
Michael didn't have to care about the reasoning behind the Black Bear's actions, but he felt that something was amiss. Unfortunately, he couldn't find out what it was.
Michael climbed down the tree and returned to the others while the Bear was busy slaughtering the deers. Then, he and his team used the densely grown vicinity to walk around the clearing.
The huge Frenzy Deer and the vast majority of its herd were on the clearing's left side. Michael wanted to get as close as possible to them before revealing himself.
The noises of the angry battle raging inside the densely grown Untamed Jungle echoed loudly. Michael and the others could clearly hear the desperately bleating Frenzy Dears and the enraged bleat of the huge Frenzy Dear, followed up by the thunderous roar of the Black Bear.
They clashed not long after, but Michael and the others weren't able to see what was happening. Only after Michael, the Archers and the Aero Crosbowmen climbed the largest tree in the vicinity were they able to get a better view of the clearing.
More than thirty Frenzy Deers had been killed, and half of the remaining horde had disappeared in the Untamed Jungle.
The rest of the horde was uncertain about what they should do. Some stared at the Black Bear in hatred, while others were sniffing the bloody corpses of their brethren and trying to make them move.
However, the Black Bear was not completely unharmed. It had two big wounds on his chest where the huge Frenzy Deer's antlers had pierced through its body. It had used its entire strength and massive size to pick up the Black Bear on its head and hurl it to the side. In retaliation, the Black Bear clawed the huge Frenzy Deer, inflicting two more deep gashes in its shoulder.
Fountains of blood gushed out of the huge Frenzy Deer's injuries as it staggered back, while the Black Bear got up from the ground again.
It had been pierced through its chest and lost a massive amount of blood as well. Nonetheless, it was clear who was at an advantage.
"Prepare to attack the Black Bear once it gets closer!" Michael ordered the Archers and Aero Crossbowmen as he retrieved the Hardwood Bow and the Return Arrow.
He channeled enough energy into the Hardwood Bow to enhance it to the limit. This increased pulling force increased drastically. Michael could barely pull the bowstring back after the Return Arrow was nocked and in position.
His Eagle Eyes were fully unleashed, and able to detect the finest details of the Black Bear that was clashing with the huge Frenzy Dear 200 meters away from their location.
Michael adjusted the bow's angle a few times from his elevated position of more than twenty meters above the ground before he released the Return Arrow.
A loud hissing sound rang through the vicinity as the arrow was released.
The arrow cut through the air with terrifying velocity in the next instance and approached the Black Bear's head rapidly.
The Black Bear's maw was wide open, and its fangs were about to dig into the huge Frenzy Deer's neck when a sharp bolt of pain erupted through its mouth.
From one moment to the next, something sharp pierced through the inner side of its mouth, making it roar in pain!
The pain distracted the Black Bear, and it lost its footing. Enraged, it crunched down on the object, intending to break it.
However, the object had already disappeared from around the Black Bear.
The Return Arrow dematerialized, returning to Michael's hand where he nocked it on the bowstring once again.
"Let's have some fun, you violent bastard!"