Starting with the defeated female knight

Orc, nine years old, almost two meters tall?

Aurora composed herself, sat up, and pondered seriously for a while.

"Yes, there is, but it's information from a long time ago."

"Furthermore, logically speaking, there shouldn't be any 'large beasts' near the empire, even in your area..."

Where did you see it?

[My pet]

Answer at your fingertips.

Aurora: "......"

"?"

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P.S.: I've reached 12,000. I'll keep pushing and see if I can reach 12,000 more.

Book 1: Chapter 92: The Great Beasts and the Little Pokémon

Large beasts.

As the name suggests, they are a large orc race.

Larger size, greater strength, longer lifespan, and often possessing special abilities.

In the context of the Empire, they are roughly equivalent to nobles among the orcs, and due to racial differences, their upper and lower limits vary greatly.

Large beasts that are not good at fighting may not be able to defeat nobles who have undergone normal training, while those who are good at fighting are not afraid at all, even when facing top royal bloodlines who are well prepared.

Orc royalty, minor ancient gods, or some other random name...

The Empire had used many names for these orcs, but in the end, based on their common characteristics, they settled on the academic name 'Great Beasts'.

But today, not to mention those messy names, even the academic name 'Great Beast Species' has almost disappeared from the Empire's understanding.

As for the reason?

Very simple.

Because there are no 'large beast species' anymore.

The existence of the Great Beast has always been a mystery; not only the Empire, but even the Beastman tribes themselves are not entirely sure.

Although orcs' normal reproduction also involves drawing cards, probability still applies no matter how many cards are drawn.

Two hundred years ago, when the Age of Gods had just ended, the number of orcs was far less than it is now due to various other reasons.

In terms of total numbers, it is probably less than a third of what it is now, especially around the empire, due to years of war and the empire's xenophobia.

In terms of both the number and quality of orcs, as well as the size of their tribes, they were far fewer and more dilapidated than they are today.

Even back then, orc tribes could randomly produce several large beasts.

On the contrary, as the empire gradually declined, the orcs multiplied and increased in number, and the tribes grew larger and of higher quality, not a single large orc species appeared again.

The scholars of the empire were not without doubts about this, but no matter how much they studied it, whether it was a survival crisis, population size, or something else, they couldn't help.

No matter how I test it, no matter which angle I look at, it just doesn't seem to make sense.

Especially afterwards, even looking at the orc tribes outside the empire, it seems that only one or two large beast species have appeared sporadically.

Because it's impossible to study something that doesn't exist, and with the Blue Blood Heart shattered, the Empire is preoccupied with its own problems.

Over time, the concept of large beasts gradually faded from the history of the empire.

Not to mention the Empire, even the orcs themselves were unaware that a category called 'Great Beasts' existed within their race.

Especially since Aurora had never been to Dawn City, when she chatted remotely with Uri, because magical remote communication technology wasn't so easy and could be monitored or intercepted by other factions, they basically only talked about important and encrypted things.

So, although she could chat with Uri, Aurora didn't actually know much about Dawn City. Although she had heard that Green had taken in some orcs, she never imagined that such a small place with so few orcs could produce a 'great beast species' that was almost extinct in history.

Especially after Green described the situation, she was even more certain that it was definitely a 'beast-type' large beast.

If you really raise them, their combat power will be at least at the level of the Blood of Glory, and at the highest level, they might even be comparable to top-tier royal bloodlines.

only......

[The light might be powerful, but it's unlikely that the light will be incredibly powerful.]

Although it might sound like a battle between the left and right hemispheres of the brain, and even caused Aurora to crash for a while, what Green said was actually quite accurate.

The reason people say Deng is a strong fighter is because, with her physique, even though she's only eight years old now, she'll be nine after the New Year and could easily beat most people in Dawn City.

Even the nobles from the original investigation team who hadn't been trained in the Tentacle Dungeon might not be able to defeat her if they really fought to the death.

The problem is, given Deng's timid and shy personality, you don't even need to fight her; just standing there and staring at her is enough to make her crouch down in defense with her hands on her head...

It's hard to comment.

However, Green didn't care about large beast species or combat power.

After all, he never expected Deng to go to the front lines. Once he confirmed that the child was developing normally, had no illness, and had no hidden dangers, the topic ended.

However, after receiving news about the large beast species, Green went to talk to Morphia again.

Because of a gap in knowledge and the fact that the great beast species had not appeared for a long time, despite visiting many places and learning a lot about beastmen, she was unaware of the existence of the great beast species.

but......

"I've heard a legend."

Mofia spoke as she conducted the experiment.

“An old orc on his deathbed once told me that before the tribe, even before the gods, there was an ‘Age of Giants’.”

“I used to think it was just nonsense, but if what the guild leader said is true, and there really are beastmen like ‘Great Beasts’, and the probability of their emergence increases the further back in time, then perhaps there really was an era of Great Beasts in the past.”

But this is just speculation.

Moreover, whether it ever existed or not has no impact on the present.

After all, it's been over two hundred years since a single large beast has appeared. Even if a new beast like the Eye Lamp appears now, it can only be considered a last gasp before the flames die out.

Instead of thinking about the age of behemoths that we don't even know if they exist, we should think about how we'll live when Deng grows up.

After all, although they are very powerful, if they were to grow to several meters or even more than ten meters, their size would not be suitable for activities in Dawn City.

Not to mention performing, the stage would probably collapse the moment he stepped on it.

This is indeed a problem.

The tentacles nodded in agreement.

In fact, he was also thinking about this matter.

He didn't really care about the Age of Giants or the Great Beasts, since these things existed, but they weren't the problems he was facing right now.

The problem is that, let alone growing into her full size, even at her current height of nearly two meters, she already bumps her head when entering certain places, often when she goes out to play with other children.

Halfway there, while everyone else was still chatting and laughing, she suddenly crouched down, tears welling up in her eyes, and covered her head in her hands.

If the child is already not very bright, and then gets hurt and becomes even more mentally challenged, that would be a real disaster.

However, since there was still a long time to go, and it was Chinese New Year today, Green and Morphia didn't discuss the topic much. After a brief chat, they were done.

only......

[They were sticking their tongues out at noon, how come they've started again in the afternoon?]

The tentacles lightly touched the skin, sensing the body's instantaneous tension, and gently scraped against it.

[Besides, haven't I said this many times already?]

No unauthorized overtime work during rest periods.

"Sir, I just wanted to be of more help..."

Oh? You're making excuses now?

It seems a more severe punishment is needed...

Once again, on the same day, the orc girl suffered two inhumane tortures.

And amidst this torment, she gently embraced the tentacle in her arms, and together they sat by the window, welcoming the New Year's bells in the glow of fireworks.

On the hillside outside Dawn City, the church sisters sat side by side, gazing in the direction of Dawn City, talking with the tentacles in their arms about the stories from when they first met until now, with occasional soft laughter.

Tanya was soaking in the tentacle pool, her face flushed as she fiddled with the little yellow duck in her hand. Instead of laughing at her, the tentacle opposite her picked up a toy and played with her in a very generous manner.

Ella ran wildly through the wilderness, so fast that the tentacles tied to her neck flew off, leaving her looking utterly helpless.

Lantern is currently unaware of the challenges she will face in the future. At this moment, she is watching the fireworks with Yves outside the cathedral, her eyes sparkling.

After hearing the bell and lulling the light to sleep, the gentle girl entered the room and, facing the tentacles in her hand, asked for a 'gift' that was especially meant for her.

The thousand-legged god hid in a corner, looking at the distant fireworks with a mixture of fear and gleam, clutching the tentacles in his arms, muttering, "I'm not afraid," "I'm an adult."

Meanwhile, in the capital, a small chapel was dimly lit, and in the warm holy light, people hummed hymns before slowly drifting off to sleep.

Inside the Stuart family's secret room, two figures, one large and one small, had fallen asleep sometime earlier. Tentacle shook his head and went outside to fetch two more blankets for them.

The little figures hiding in the shelter were all asleep, except for Grace, who was still awake. She stared at the tentacle in front of her with her blood-red eyes for a long time. After hesitating for a while, she lowered her head slightly and gently bit the tentacle in front of her with her little tiger teeth as a return gift.

Inside the association, Aurora held the tentacle in her arms, repeatedly asking him if he wanted to check her body, since she was past her "expiration date" after the New Year. As she relaxed, she eventually drifted off to sleep.

Even within the church, the tentacles of the newly split branch wrapped around the High Sister's waist, poked their heads out, and while conveying Cecilia's longing for her, chatted about random things.

At the same time, they were all secretly mocking each other for being so stubborn.

Amidst all that is beautiful, the old year has come to an end.

The new year has begun.

Dawn City resumed operation, and the tentacles, which had been resting, began to rise again.

The happiness in the capital city lasted only a moment, followed by the harsh reality that followed.

However, not everything has remained unchanged.

After the New Year, the nobles from the original investigation team began to take action.

Using the basic information given to them by Green and the various goods of Dawn City as a brand, they gathered the family members together and began one negotiation and plan after another, with interests at the core.

John's memory was deteriorating more and more, and as the temperature warmed up, the chapels began to disband one after another.

But although everything is returning to normal, the people who have experienced all of this, whether they are the pastors who have returned or the poor people in the slums, seem to have something more in their eyes than before, even though it is faint and almost invisible.

The story of "The City of Dawn" became increasingly widespread and well-known, and even several other versions circulated. Meanwhile, amidst the increasingly enthusiastic exchanges and anticipation among the people, the second wave of caravans was also formed and set off once again toward that legendary ideal city.

Green also received the news and began preparations to receive them before their arrival.

However, what he didn't expect was...

Before the second caravan arrived, he was greeted by a group of unexpected guests.

"Hi, hi, hello there, Mr. Tentacle."

A small green sprite flew in mid-air, followed by a silent army of great elves.

“I can feel that my daughters are with you.”

"Can I see them?"

Please~

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P.S.: I got writer's block, and it's been going on for so long, but at least I finished it. Another 15,000 words a day. Goodnight.