Mercenary Wars

Chapter 72 Eating Cocoons
Thanks to the effective work of the Goblin Governance Association, goblins on the continent of Farallo have become much rarer and are no longer a common sight.

For a fairly elite mercenary squad, goblins are like silver coins waiting to be picked up from the ground.

So, it was first come, first served; several goblins vanished in an instant, and Gaugano, walking at the back of the line, didn't manage to grab a single one.

After clearing out the goblins, the mercenaries continued deeper into the forest, soon taking down several more wild beasts, including a level one giant antler deer.

They then sat down under a large tree to rest and deal with the animal carcasses.

“Boss,” Daryls called out.

She was unwilling to call Gao Jiano "master", so she came up with the awkward title "boss".

"What's wrong?" Gao Jiano turned his head to look.

Daryls pointed and saw a fist-sized white blob in the grass at her feet, which looked like it was made of bones and broken feathers.

Upon closer inspection, Gao Jiano, being a level two hunter, quickly recognized the white ball: "Cocoon Eater?"

Daryls nodded: "The owl's cocoon."

Eating cocoons is a trace of life for some birds.

Due to their feeding habits, some birds often have some indigestible food clumps in their stomachs. When these clumps accumulate to a certain extent, they will spit them out, which is called "food cocoons".

Although Gaogano recognized it as a cocoon, he couldn't tell that it belonged to an owl.

He couldn't help but be a little surprised: "You're a hunter?"

Daryls shook her head: "I used to own an owl, so I'm very familiar with their habits."

Gaucano laughed and said, "I thought the rumor that witches liked to keep owls was just that—a rumor."

Daryls looked slightly nervous and subconsciously glanced to her left and right.

Gaucano immediately reassured him, "Don't worry, even if someone hears you, no one will send you to the court. It's not fashionable to persecute witches these days."

Daryls then whispered, "Owls are nocturnal and make excellent night watchmen. It's their breeding season now... I suggest you come and check tonight; you might find some owl eggs."

Gao Jiano was also somewhat tempted after hearing this.

He then looked at the cocoons on the ground.

The cocoon was as big as a fist, something no ordinary owl could create; it could only have been made by a magical beast.

Gaucano estimates it to be level two, at most level three.

"What level do you think this owl is?" he asked Daryls for her opinion.

Darlis stared at the cocoon for a while and said, "It should be level three. I used to raise a level three magical beast owl, and the cocoons it produced were similar to this."

Gaucano immediately decided to go up and take a look.

He figured that if he came back at night, the owl would most likely be gone, making it easy to collect the eggs, but the chances of something unexpected happening in the forest at night were also greater, so he didn't plan to make another trip at night.

Even if something goes wrong when we retrieve the eggs now, with so many teammates around, the risk isn't too great.

What's more, he also wanted to experience eating owls.

"Get your Frost Arrows ready." Having made up his mind, Gaugano instructed Darlis before starting to climb the tree.

Daryls was a little surprised, but she nodded, her wand glowing slightly.

The other mercenaries couldn't help but ask, "Gaucano, what are you doing climbing that tree?"

“There might be a magical owl up there,” Gao Jiano said. As a hunter, he climbed the tree quickly and soon reached the top.

A tree hole came into view.

The tree hollow was roughly the size of an adult, and at this moment, a huge owl was perched inside, occupying most of the space. Judging from its undulating body, it was sleeping.

However, it quickly realized the arrival of the uninvited guest. When Gaogano climbed to the edge of the tree hole, it moved slightly and then opened its sharp eyes.

"call out--"

With a flap of its wings, it flew outwards, and at the same time, a wind blade shot out.

Fortunately, Gaucano reacted quickly, dodging in time and then throwing out Swift Breeze.

After reaching level four, he could simultaneously control eight swift breezes, extending the control distance to eight hundred meters.

Eight wisps of swift breeze clung to the owl, causing no harm but greatly disrupting its flight, drastically reducing its speed and bringing it to a near standstill.

Taking advantage of the owl's inability to move, Darius's Frost Arrow shot out and hit its mark precisely.

"Coo!" A layer of frost appeared on the owl's body, and then it plummeted downwards.

With his longsword in hand, Gao Gano leaped into the air and instantly killed the owl in mid-air.

Kill a level 3 monster, experience +75

"Gaucano!" The people on the ground were all taken aback, and John quickly made a move to catch him.

Gao Jiano remained calm and composed. Eight swift breezes supported him from below, greatly reducing his falling speed. After adjusting his posture, he finally landed steadily.

Then he climbed back up and looked at the tree hole that was no longer occupied by the owl.

Four eggs!
Of course, the egg may not be alive, and it may not hatch into a monster.

For low-level magical beasts, their offspring are mostly ordinary wild animals, and only in rare cases can they directly produce magical beast offspring.

Determining whether a low-level monster's egg can hatch into a monster is not technically difficult, but it is often not economically worthwhile—no hunter is willing to waste four spell scrolls on a low-level monster.

Fortunately, Gaucano was blessed with "cognition," which allowed him to easily acquire more information about anything within the scope of his cognition.

He reached out and touched them, and information from the four eggs flooded into his senses one after another.

Item: Owl Egg

[Level: Level 0]

[Status: normal]

……

All three owl eggs are level 0, and one of them is in a "dead" state.

Level 0 owl eggs mean that they can only hatch ordinary wild animals.

Although they are descendants of magical beasts, they are still more likely to become magical beasts after birth—at least compared to pure ordinary beasts whose ancestors were ordinary beasts for three generations—the probability is still not high, only slightly higher than the probability of a human obtaining the first holy name.

Just when Gaogano was feeling disappointed, the information from the fourth egg brightened his eyes.

Item: Owl Egg

[Level: Level 1]

[Status: normal]

Level 1!
A level 1 egg will inevitably hatch into a Warcraft owl, which is far more valuable than a level 0 egg.

Gao Jiano returned to the ground with four eggs. Because it was inconvenient to carry them—his storage ring couldn't hold living creatures—he "generously" gave the three level 0 owl eggs to his teammates, keeping only the level 1 owl egg for himself.

(End of this chapter)