40: The Flame Cow Breathing Technique!

"Could this be human..."

Lister, his face filled with shock, stopped halfway through his sentence.

Red nodded, his expression solemn. "Yes, Lord Lister. They all appear to be from females."

Hiss!

The onlookers couldn't help but gasp. Although the bag was small, the soft tissue inside clearly didn't belong to just one person.

The implications were self-evident.

For a moment, everyone's eyes couldn't help but gather on the tied-up man, curious about his identity.

At that moment, Red searched the man's person again. A few seconds later, a scroll made from an unknown animal skin appeared in his hand.

He didn't dare to look through it himself, but immediately handed it respectfully to Lister. "Lord Lister, please take a look."

Taking the scroll, Lister first examined it. Unlike the bag, the scroll was kept very clean and had no bloody smell.

Slowly opening it, he saw that it was covered in the Kingdom's script and a simplified drawing of a bull-like creature.

After a quick glance, his heart leaped with joy.

It was actually a scroll recording a Breathing Technique!

And it was the common-quality 'Blazing Bull Breathing Technique'!

He had previously been worried that the 'Wild Bull Breathing Technique' used by Red and Spartacus was of too low a quality. Since Breathing Techniques were categorized by quality, the higher, the better.

With equal talent, a knight practicing a low-quality Breathing Technique would certainly not progress quickly.

If Red and the others continued to practice the crude-quality 'Wild Bull Breathing Technique', it would not only limit them but also wouldn't be good for him.

After all, considering their loyalty and the current needs for development, he hoped they would become as strong as possible.

Thinking of this, his gaze shifted to the two of them. His voice was calm yet carried a hint of authority. "Red, Spartacus, in view of your loyalty, contributions, and talent..."

"...I formally bestow upon you today this scroll of the common-quality 'Blazing Bull Breathing Technique'. I hope you will go further and further on the path of a knight and remain true to a knight's heart."

"Thank you for your bounty, Lord Lister! Red (Spartacus) will certainly not fail your expectations!" The two were excited, their breathing ragged, and their hands trembled slightly as they took the scroll.

Seeing this, the surrounding people couldn't help but show expressions of envy and excitement, but there wasn't a hint of jealousy.

Red's merit went without saying, and Spartacus's monstrous talent had long since won them over.

Now, they had only one thought: to earn Lister's bounty through their own hard work.

As for whether Lister would be stingy, they had no doubts, only absolute faith.

Taking all this in, Lister's lips curled slightly. This kind of positive, healthy competition was exactly what he wanted.

Once everyone had calmed down, Lister looked at the tied-up man and said, "As for this man's identity, if I'm not mistaken, he should be the murderer who committed multiple crimes in the Emerald Territory."

At this point, he showed a smile that only appeared when he found money. "I recall Viscount Humphrey offered a bounty of 1 gold coin for his capture. We can't let him save that money."

"Red, arrange for two clever men to take this murderer to the Emerald Territory to claim the bounty."

"As you command," Red replied respectfully.

Nodding, he looked at Locke nearby. "Locke, take two men and head to Leny Town in the Black Bear Territory immediately. This afternoon, a merchant will set up a stall in the northwest corner of the market. You must buy all of his goods."

"As you command." Locke didn't ask questions and immediately complied respectfully. After all, this wasn't the first time he'd done this; he was quite familiar with the routine... After breakfast, Lister took Red and all the remaining knights toward the southeastern edge of the territory.

Daisna, who had completely unleashed her true nature in the Ironthorn Territory, naturally followed along.

The group slowly made their way to Ironthorn Town. Due to Lister's previous arrangements and regulations...

...the streets that were once filled with feces, sewage, and other nauseating things were now completely transformed, becoming clean and tidy.

When the regulations were first issued, the subjects didn't understand why Lister was doing these troublesome things. After all, the entire Kingdom had always been like that, and there was nothing wrong with it.

But as the streets became Cleaner and the air fresher, they realized that this was how life should be.

Not only that, the new position of 'Cleaner' provided jobs for the subjects. The pay of 6 copper coins a day made them scramble for the opportunity.

As for the matter of dignity, they didn't care at all; being able to earn money was the only thing that mattered.

This unique cleanliness of Ironthorn Town—the only one of its kind in the Kingdom—pleased Daisna greatly. At the same time, she admired Lister from the bottom of her heart for being able to conceive and execute such a plan.

Leaving Ironthorn Town and traveling under the endless blue sky and white clouds, one could see the busy figures of farmers everywhere in the Cultivated Land, working with intense fervor.

Through rigorous and methodical management, everyone performed their duties and collaborated with one another.

This method not only increased efficiency but also completely eliminated the previous sense of chaos.

Accompanied by heartfelt words of praise and greetings, Lister and the others slowly departed... "Moo~!"

Not far outside the edges of the Ironthorn Territory, several low bellows of cattle echoed through the air.

Rumble!

Accompanied by the heavy thud of hooves, over a dozen Wild Bulls galloped rapidly toward the Ironthorn Territory.

A hint of human-like fear could be seen in their eyes, as if some monstrous beast were chasing them from behind.

At this moment, from behind a small hill within the Ironthorn Territory not far from them, Lister and the others watched them silently.

Red said with some excitement, "Lord Lister, it's a herd of over a dozen Wild Bulls. Should we kill them immediately?"

"No." Lister waved his hand and said calmly, "I want to capture them all alive."

"Capture them alive?" Red looked puzzled.

Daisna, beside him, was also confused. "Lister, what do you want to catch them for?"

Lister smiled slightly. "The territory is currently sowing Winter Wheat, but the efficiency of plowing the land is insufficient. Therefore, I need them to serve as animal labor."

"Animal labor!" Daisna was somewhat surprised, then said admiringly, "You really have some ideas. Using Wild Bulls as draft animals is indeed a great idea. Compared to ordinary cattle, Wild Bulls have much greater strength and endurance. They can definitely speed up the plowing."

Red, however, reminded him, "Lord Lister, although those Wild Bulls are not magical beasts, they are easy to kill but not easy to capture alive in their entirety."

"Moreover, looking at them, they are clearly out of control. In such a state, it will be very difficult to capture them."

"Is that so?" Lister said, somewhat surprised.

He had originally thought Red and the others could easily capture these bulls alive, but given what Red said, it seemed unlikely.

His brow furrowed slightly. Just as he was feeling the difficulty of the situation, Daisna beside him chuckled softly:

"So, even you have times when you're worried."