When Red Hawk left the Old Continent, she stationed a group of her subordinates, as well as her biological brother, in Red Cliff City.
Upon hearing this, Charlot Mecklenburg could only console the female Saint-rank warrior. He truly didn’t know if Red Hawk’s subordinates and brother had survived, but Red Cliff City, situated on the northern shore of the Red Dragon Strait, was one of the most disastrous cities in terms of casualties. The geographical conditions made escape almost impossible.
Red Hawk, while filled with grief and anger, also became curious about this mysterious group. She had been away from the Old Continent for so long that she hadn’t even heard of the Beast God Transformation, but she could guess that these "beastmen" were likely humans in disguise. However, she couldn’t fathom how the Golden Ram Herolf ended up in this group, and he didn’t even seem to be the leader.
It didn’t take her long to discern that Antonio and Charlot held the highest ranks within the group. Yet Antonio was merely a first-rank Transcendent, and Charlot a second-rank Transcendent—neither of them particularly powerful.
Red Hawk even speculated that Golden Ram Herolf might have pledged allegiance to the Fars Empire and was now working on behalf of its emperor.
Out of caution, she refrained from asking directly. Herolf clearly had no intention of speaking, and Charlot saw no reason to divulge his military plans to a stranger. As a result, Red Hawk remained puzzled.
However, with the addition of a Saint, Charlot felt more confident about the upcoming Battle of the Lion’s Slaughter.
...
It wasn’t long before Charlot heard the sound of wings cutting through the air. He immediately leapt out of his hiding place, and this time, it was finally Leopardman Tumisan descending to meet them.
Upon seeing Charlot’s group, Tumisan said, “I’ll take you into the beastman camp!”
When he noticed Red Hawk, he froze for a moment. Likewise, Red Hawk was visibly shocked to see Tumisan. She remembered him as one of the rare Fleshless Creed beastmen who had visited the New Continent, and as one of the only two women among the legendary Ten Great Pirates of the past.
Unable to hold back, Red Hawk exclaimed, “You’re a beastman! How could you also have sided with Fars?”
She knew Tumisan belonged to the Fleshless Creed, a faction of beastmen friendly toward humans, but her distrust lingered.
Tumisan gave an awkward chuckle. “I didn’t side with Fars. I serve Mr. Charlot Mecklenburg. He promised a future for the beastmen. Not just me—Black Dragon and Choudrou have also pledged themselves to him.”
“Indeed, even Golden Ram Herolf and Sabastine have followed him,” Tumisan added.
Sabastine didn’t object. To her, Menielman Soumet’s ambiguous relationship with Charlot meant they were bound to become allies eventually.
Red Hawk, however, was utterly stunned. She glanced repeatedly at Charlot and whispered, “Is he the emperor’s illegitimate son?”
Tumisan quickly interjected, “No, Mr. Charlot Mecklenburg is a man of extraordinary talent and impeccable character. Spend some time with him, and you’ll see. For now, let’s focus on the task at hand.”
Despite Tumisan’s reassurance, Red Hawk couldn’t believe him. She simply couldn’t fathom how Charlot had managed to gather so many Saint-rank allies.
If he wasn’t the emperor’s illegitimate son, could he be the evil god’s? Or perhaps the illegitimate child of some benevolent deity? Otherwise, none of this made any sense.
...
Knowing that Red Hawk didn’t have the ability to use Beast God Transformation, Tumisan handed her a Mask of the Cat. “If you wish to infiltrate the beastman camp with us, use this artifact.”
Taking the mask, Red Hawk was once again astonished. She began to feel that the world had changed entirely during her time away from the Old Continent. Everything felt unfamiliar and bizarre.
Had she not encountered two acquaintances, she might have suspected she was on the wrong continent altogether.
...
Charlot led the group as they followed Tumisan into the beastman camp. Using his Eye of Insight, Charlot quickly noticed that the camp held tens of thousands of human prisoners—clearly being kept as a food supply for the beastmen.
Charlot felt a surge of anger but suppressed it. Acting rashly now would jeopardize the greater plan. The top priority was to kill the Lion King Amisfida, and everything else had to wait.
Amisfida, who had consumed the Eye of Fate, had spent the past few days feeling a constant discomfort in his stomach. Despite attempting to resolve it with combat energy, he found no solution. As a beastman with a tough constitution, he dismissed the issue.
Meanwhile, he struggled to devise a strategy against Samson the Bull Demon. Frustrated, he eventually gave up.
Though not a leader of great vision, Amisfida was undoubtedly an exceptional military commander. It was his insistence that led to the occupation of the northern shore of the Red Dragon Strait. Given its strategic significance, seizing the area provided an opportunity for the beastmen’s future expansion.
However, after the occupation, the beastmen faced severe food shortages. With more and more beastmen flocking to the camp, resources had been stretched to their limits. Amisfida decided it was time to launch an attack to secure additional supplies, including human prisoners as food.
Previously, he had held back due to internal strife within the beastman camp.
Now that Samson had left and the remaining Saint-rank beastmen had either departed or pledged loyalty to him, Amisfida faced no further obstacles. His target was one of the wealthiest regions of the Fars Empire. The Lion King even entertained grander ambitions.
...
During a military meeting with his subordinates, Amisfida suddenly felt a wave of intense hunger. He ordered his men to bring him a man and a woman from the prisoner stockpile. Dousing them with bizarre beastman sauces, he let out a roar and bit off their heads, gnawing on them with relish.
Hiding nearby, Charlot and his companions had difficulty containing their fury at this gruesome sight.
Charlot reminded himself not to act impulsively. The Eye of Fate within Amisfida had not yet fully activated.
Just as Charlot was about to leave to avoid watching further atrocities, Red Hawk gasped softly.
Several lion beastmen were dragging a young boy and a woman in her thirties to the center of the camp. As the beastmen began smearing sauces on them, Red Hawk could no longer hold back and whispered urgently, “That’s my brother. I must act now.”
Charlot did not stop her. How could anyone anticipate such a cruel coincidence—that Red Hawk would encounter her brother here? And worse, the boy was already being prepared as Amisfida’s next meal.
Charlot signaled to the Saint-ranks under his command.
Antonio was the first to act. With a shiver, he shed his beastman disguise and returned to his human form. From his ear, he pulled out the Dragon Hammer, one of the ten legendary weapons of the beastmen. With a sharp cry, he shouted, “Amisfida, your end is here!”
The Lion King Amisfida turned pale as he recognized Antonio. It was as though he had seen a ghost. He had fought this heir of the Bretagne family once before and suffered a significant defeat. But what baffled him now was why Antonio was here in the beastman camp—and how he had come to wield Choudrou’s Dragon Hammer.