The moment the giant roosters were stunned, the guards continued their assault. Seizing the opportunity, the captain swung his sword down hard on the neck of one of the roosters.
"Cluck! Cluck! Cluck!"
Blood sprayed everywhere.
The three roosters snapped out of their terror.
They had no intention of continuing the fight against these humans.
Two of them lifted the injured rooster and, flapping their wings, fled into the forest as fast as they could.
Watching the ground littered with rooster feathers and the sight of the giant roosters retreating, the captain was filled with confusion.
He had expected a bitter battle to the death, perhaps even for all of them to end up in the roosters' bellies, becoming fertilizer to nourish the land.
Who would have thought that these roosters would just run away?
"Was it my fearless bravery that scared them off?" the captain could only speculate.
Lady Cerdo, watching from the carriage, let out a sigh of relief.
The captain opened the carriage door, and the two of them whispered to each other for a while, becoming more puzzled the more they discussed it.
An arcane beast wouldn't retreat without reason, especially since everyone here combined wasn't a match for them.
It was only a matter of time before the guards were defeated.
Lady Cerdo pondered, "There are two possibilities. One, someone nearby intervened to help us. Two, those roosters suddenly needed to lay eggs and left to protect their nests."
Owen, who had relaxed after the crisis was over, burst out laughing when he heard this.
"What are you laughing at?"
"Didn't you notice? Those three were all roosters."
Lady Cerdo's face turned awkward.
The captain quickly defended his master's dignity.
"What do you know? She's never set foot in a kitchen or a barn in her life, so of course she's never seen a live rooster."
This made Owen laugh even harder, his shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
"Could it be him?" Lady Cerdo and the captain exchanged a glance, scrutinizing Owen.
After a moment, they both shook their heads.
It definitely wasn't him.
The young man in front of them looked like an ordinary person through and through.
He was thin, with a weak frame, clearly lacking any physical training.
Someone like this, who could be captured so easily and only knew how to sing, couldn't possibly be a mysterious master.
Lady Cerdo thought it was more plausible to believe that roosters could lay eggs than to believe that Owen was some sort of master.
The guards quickly cleaned up the scene.
They picked up the scattered rooster feathers, collected the arcane beast blood, and tidied up any traces.
"What do you need rooster feathers for?" Owen asked curiously.
"Bolton wastes nothing," Lady Cerdo replied. "Your Azul Kingdom is rich in resources, so you wouldn't understand our customs."
After the earlier leg-hugging misunderstanding, her attitude toward Owen had softened considerably.
"Pet, you can call me Sadie from now on. Remember, that's my name."
"Silly Dan?" Owen scratched his head. "Your parents must've hated you, huh? Had a rough childhood? Don't tell me you wet the bed until you were eight."
"You scoundrel! Want a beating?" Lady Cerdo's face turned bright red with rage.
"Okay, okay, Sadie it is."
Finally, they knew each other's names.
"So, Sadie, where exactly are you headed?" Owen asked. "If you just want someone to sing for you, I can write down the sheet music and lyrics. You can grab any bard off the street."
"Could you let me go home? I've got a lot of vegetable plots to tend to."
Sadie looked conflicted. "Actually, there's a reason I'm bringing you along."
"Have you fallen for my good looks?" Owen asked. "Sorry, you're a nice person, but—"
"What!" Sadie screamed. "Owen, do you want me to tie you up and hang you upside down?"
Owen quickly surrendered and apologized.
He even promised to sing a few new songs for her later, which finally prevented Sadie from really resorting to violence.
"It's not a big deal to tell you." She sighed. "Everyone from Red Stone Hill has a condition called Blood Fury, which makes us prone to anger and getting into fights."
This was the first time Owen had heard of such a thing.
Isn't that just being hot-headed?
No wonder Sadie acted so impulsively—wanting to kidnap someone, she just went and did it right in the middle of the street.
"Blood Fury may be beneficial in some cases, but I'm about to study under a legendary knight," Sadie said with a hint of frustration. "The knight's code requires one to remain calm at all times to discern an opponent's weaknesses."
"I was quite troubled over this issue until I heard your singing."
"Instead of soothing my agitation, it made me even more restless."
Owen was completely bewildered.
What exactly are you trying to accomplish?
"So I thought your singing might have an effect on me. If you sing some sorrowful, melancholic songs, maybe it'll calm me down."
Finally, Owen understood.
So she wanted to use him as a human tranquilizer.
"Did it work?"
"No…" Sadie said regretfully. "You sang several sad songs, and while I felt moved, I didn't feel any calmer."
"Forget it. If you really want to leave, you can go."
She pulled out a bag of red stones and handed it to him.
"Consider it a tip for the songs."
Owen's face lit up with a smile.
He thought for a moment. Lady Cerdo, or rather, Sadie, might be impulsive, but she wasn't a bad person. He might as well do one more good deed.
"My hometown has a way to help people calm down. You can give it a try," Owen said, adopting a 'better than nothing' approach. He softly sang, "Duérmete, duérmete, mi querida bebé~."
Since listening to him sing didn't help her calm down, maybe singing it herself would have a deeper effect.
Every time Owen heard this lullaby, he couldn't help but feel sleepy, and his mind would be put at ease.
Sadie listened to the long string of strange-sounding "incantations" she couldn't quite understand, and imitated the chant.
She originally intended to give it a try.
Unexpectedly, after reciting it just once, her previously agitated mood actually calmed down.
Sadie's eyes lit up.
"It works!" she said, her expression calm. "I should feel happy, but the effect is so strong that my heart is suddenly at peace." She even felt a slight drowsiness creeping in.
Owen laughed. "Great, as long as it helps. Now I'll be on my way."
He had to hurry back home.
Who knew what might happen if someone dropped by while he was away?
"Thank you, Owen," Sadie said expressionlessly. "Just know that I'm very excited on the inside."
Is the effect really that strong? One chant and she's so calm she can't show any emotion?
"It's nothing. Just try to kidnap people a little less in the future."
With that, Owen quickly took his pets and fled before she could change her mind.
He jogged for a while, only stopping when the carriage was out of sight.
"Yes! Finally free!"
But barely three seconds into his joy, Owen realized a serious problem—he was lost!
It was completely dark outside, and he stood alone in a field, with no buildings in sight.
Terrified, he clutched the cat and the rabbit even tighter.
"This is it, we're definitely going to be eaten by some wild beast out here!"
The rabbit looked at him with disdain.
Avel rubbed its head against the panicked Owen as if to comfort him.
"Mew~" It lifted its head and let out a call toward the sky.
A moment later, a dark silhouette swooped down over Owen's head.
A giant rooster arcane beast landed in front of him.
Owen was startled out of his wits.
"Damn, it must've come back to get revenge after losing to that silly captain. It couldn't beat him, and now it wants to eat us because we're alone."
Hearing this, the massive rooster took a deep breath, wanting to say something.
But the moment it met the cat's icy gaze, it instantly cowered and obediently lay down, spreading its wings.
The cat jumped out of Owen's arms and onto the rooster's back. The white rabbit followed suit.
Seeing that the giant rooster showed no intention of attacking, Owen cautiously climbed on as well, gripping its feathers tightly as he felt himself lift into the air.
"Slower! Slower!"
Owen screamed in the sky.
It was his first time flying in this strange world.
Hearing Owen's scream, the giant rooster suddenly sped up!
There seemed to be some sort of mana in this human's voice, making it want to fly even faster.
On a nearby hill, two roosters quietly watched the sky.
One, with a bandaged head, said softly, "Hey, do you think our little brother will make it back alive?"
"Hard to say. He was called over by a cat arcane beast, after all. It's definitely going to eat him. We'd better dig a grave in advance."
The two roosters exchanged a glance and sighed in unison.
The sky gradually brightened.
Meanwhile, the House Bolton carriage finally came to a stop.
Sadie, who had recited the lullaby once more before stepping out, walked down with eyes as calm as an undisturbed lake.
"Let's go," she said, her words succinct and direct. "Find that master."