Treasure-hunting: Into the Unknown

About two hours later, all the stalls had been cleaned up, just as requested. By then, Zachary had gotten a general understanding of the treasure beasts' health, notably those kept in the inner barn.

"Ryder has been overfeeding these treasure beasts every day for a long time, and the beasts are suffering from various diseases because of it. They're lucky they're still alive," Zachary said in a disapproving tone, as he walked out of the last stall.

"He's been treating these treasure beasts as though they were his babies, which explains why he's been feeding them in this way," Jimmy quipped ironically.

His comment made both Zachary and Henry laugh out loud.

At that moment, the sound of footsteps could be heard coming from outside the inner barn. Seconds later, they heard people talking among each other.

"Steward Shaw, why hasn't the new manager of the beast barn arrived yet? Have you not received any news? I've been waiting for him for a long time now and I'm eager for his arrival."

"What? He isn't here yet? That's impossible. Yesterday, I asked Henry to bring Harley here in order to take over the job. I just saw Marcus not long ago, and he mentioned having handed his work over to him."

"Is that so? Well, speak for yourself. I haven't seen the new manager anywhere yet."

"Maybe he left as soon as the handover was taken care of. I mean, it's a pretty dirty and smelly place around. Nobody ever really wants to stay for long. One way or another, if Harley doesn't fulfill his duty, you'll have to continue taking care of the beast barn. But remember, don't cause me any trouble."

"Yeah. Don't worry about it. No problem."

"On a side note, how's my Flood Dragon doing lately? Better I hope."

"Don't worry about it. It's in good health. I took good care of it and made it my personal objective to ensure it was fed every day."

"Thank you. Good job."

"While we're on the topic actually, I should thank you for sending three more disciples here to help me. I was just lacking enough hands to get the job done right."

"Huh? What are you talking about, three more disciples? When did I send you three more disciples to work here?"

"Uh...are you saying you didn't? I swear, they said you sent them!"

"How is that even possible? Where are they right now?"

"Still in the inner barn, where I left them to clean."

"Waste no time! Show me the way."

At once, a burst of rapid footsteps broke the inner barn's silence. Seconds later, Zachary, Jimmy and Henry saw Shaw and Ryder along with a few disciples come

ou say?"

"Hmm, let's do it then." Despite hesitating briefly, Shaw eventually agreed. Although unhappy with Zachary's proposal, he had to agree because he was the steward.

"Great! Please bring your beloved treasure beast to the outer barn, then. I'll head out to prepare for the competition as well," Zachary said. He then led Jimmy and Henry to the outer barn at a quick pace.

"Steward Shaw, what do you think he's trying to do? I think all this is just an attempt to embarrass you!" Ryder warned in a sulky tone.

"I don't know what he's up to exactly. He's always been overconfident, so this is no surprise. He swelled with inordinate arrogance as soon as he became the manager of the beast barn. I'd like to see what tricks he has up his sleeve this time!" Shaw sneered as he wrinkled his nose.

At that, he walked off to release his Flood Dragon from its stall and led it to the outer barn. Following behind him was Ryder and his followers. The disciples who worked in the inner barn were overwhelmed with curiosity and they too, went outside to join in on the fun.

As soon as they reached the outer barn, they turned around and saw Zachary leading a very thin, undernourished, wolf-shaped treasure beast with dark red eyes out of its stall. This treasure beast, known as the Bloody-eyed Stone Wolf, was the weakest among its peers. It could produce a rare casting material called the Blood Red Stone, which was why it was also considered a treasure beast. However, due to its mediocre talent, it wasn't considered anything special, or even out of the ordinary. Seeing as it was incredibly inferior to the common treasure beasts, it was kept in the outer barn where nobody took care of it.