Velin withdrew his gaze, his calm demeanor stirring an inexplicable irritation in Ola Stonebeard.

"Our data still lacks a key physical specimen for validation." Velin descended from the high platform, his boots landing on the muddy ground without a single extraneous sound.

"I need to know the resistance thresholds of their various body parts to direct physical harm, as well as their behavioral patterns under duress."

He stopped at the edge of the clearing, and the others gradually gathered around.

"The plan," Velin said, "is very simple." He casually picked up a branch and squatted, sketching a crude map on the ground.

"We’ll use the scent of blood to lure a lone individual over."

He pointed to a thick cluster of bushes nearby.

"My Bader Dung Beetles will lie in ambush there. Once the target enters the predetermined zone, they will handle its containment."

"Ryo, you and your men will be responsible for tying up the target. That way, we’ll have ourselves a live specimen."

Velin’s casual, almost nonchalant, tone did the unexpected, dispelling the last traces of fear from their hearts.

Indeed, fear had long been replaced by exhaustion and numbness.

Two days of lying in wait had wrung the last ounce of fear for the giant crocodiles from them, along with any surplus energy.

In their eyes, the behemoths of the swamp were no longer dangerous Magical Beasts, but merely beasts that followed fixed patterns of eating, excreting, patrolling, and mating.

No one voiced any objections.

Ola merely grunted and averted his eyes from the crude sketch.

In a corner of his heart, he was even looking forward to a real battle, something to wash away the stifling frustration of hiding like a bedbug for the last two days.

Ryo gripped his white ash Magic Staff, fingers tapping lightly against the wood as he muttered an incantation.

Velin stopped Ryo, his expression serious as he commanded, "Before you prepare the Magic, go to the carriage and get the ’cargo.’ Take Sarah with you and set up some ’security measures’ in the surrounding area."

The execution of the plan was as tedious as a well-rehearsed play.

Several gutted rabbits were placed at the designated spot. The thick scent of blood drifted on the humid breeze.

A Gray Swamp Giant Crocodile, noticeably smaller than its kin, was drawn in by the scent of blood and cautiously edged its way forward.

Its movements were hesitant, filled with the wariness of a young creature in an unfamiliar territory.

It stopped ten meters from the rabbits, its amber, slit-like pupils scanning the surroundings. Everything was calm.

Ultimately, it couldn’t resist the temptation of food and began to move.

The instant it stretched its head toward the rabbits...

SHUFFLE, SHUFFLE, SHUFFLE—

The ground beneath its feet came alive.

Ten Bader Dung Beetles burst from the earth. Their movements were perfectly synchronized, and in an instant, they formed a seamless circle with the Gray Swamp Giant Crocodile at its center.

There was no hissing, no roaring—only the sound of carapaces and claws scraping against the mud.

The young giant crocodile let out a terrified roar, but it was too late.

The beetles swarmed forward. Some used their massive horns to pin its lower jaw, preventing it from biting; others used their heavy bodies to press down on its limbs and tail, pinning it fast to the ground.

The young giant crocodile thrashed wildly, sending mud flying, but its every struggle was met and neutralized.

A moment later, its strength was spent. It could only let out frustrated whimpers.

An insignificant, yet flawless, capture.

Ola strode forward with several men. He grabbed the giant crocodile’s upper and lower snout, the veins on his arms bulging as his face suddenly flushed red.

"HNNNGH—!"

Ola actually managed to pry the giant crocodile’s mouth open by sheer force!

The others helped hold it while stuffing cloth soaked in a potent sedative inside.

After all that, Ola finally pulled his hands away. Though it had only been a few seconds, he was drenched in sweat as if he had just run a marathon.

The rest of the group wasted no time in trussing up their quarry.

Just then—

"ROOOOAR—!!!"

A roar, thick with fury, erupted from the heart of the nest deep within the swamp.

The sound was so powerful it felt tangible, a shockwave that swept across the area and made the surface of the water tremble violently.

Everyone’s ears were ringing.

Beneath the water, a shadow as massive as a hill suddenly raised its head.

The slumbering crocodile chieftain had awoken.

It was fully twice the size of any adult giant crocodile. Its dark green Scale Armor was covered in vicious scars, and its enormous eyes, which seemed to glow like molten lava, were locked onto its captured kin in the distance.

Behind it, a dozen of the most powerful adult giant crocodiles were also jolted from their semi-hibernation, forming a wedge formation around their king.

WHOOSH!

Without a moment’s hesitation, the crocodile chieftain led its elite guard charging from the nest.

"Fuck! The chieftain can sense its young! Quick! Grab it and retreat!" Ola was the first to react, his voice cracking with tension as he roared at his men.

Velin, however, was unnaturally calm. "Swarm, execute Plan One. Delaying action."

Behind him, Sarah’s antennae waved rapidly. She led the main contingent of Bader Dung Beetles, carrying the bound giant crocodile, as they retreated toward the high ground.

The fifty that remained formed a black shield wall on the spot.

The crocodile chieftain and its guard charged through the marsh. It wasn’t crawling so much as gliding through the waist-deep water at a despair-inducing speed.

Before Ola and his men had run more than a few steps, the two torrents collided violently.

Yet, at the moment of impact, the bodies of the dozen elite giant crocodiles simultaneously lit up with a murky, earth-yellow halo.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

An elite giant crocodile slammed into the shield wall. The earthen halo on its body flared brightly as a Bader Dung Beetle’s nigh-unbreakable horn struck it. The impact produced a teeth-grating SCREECH and a shower of sparks, but the halo only dented for a negligible instant.

The next moment, the giant crocodile’s massive, fang-filled maw snapped open and shut like a hydraulic press, clamping down on a beetle’s carapace.

CRACK!

With the sharp crack of shattering shell, the beetle’s black ichor sprayed out.

With a single charge, the formation Velin took such pride in was completely shattered, his swarm thrown into disarray.

"Fall back! Get to the high ground!" Ola roared, dragging a subordinate whose legs had turned to jelly as he sprinted for his life.

Mud flew from their heels. Every step was a desperate struggle against the mire’s pull.

Ola felt like his lungs were about to burst. Behind him, the heavy footfalls thundered like war drums, and with each beat, his heart threatened to stop.

He risked a glance over his shoulder and saw a dark-green tide rolling over the mud at an incredible speed.

Bushes were flattened like straw in its wake.

Ryo pointed his Magic Staff, and a [Slow Skill] shot out. The purple-black Magic enveloped one of the giant crocodiles, but the earthen halo on its body dispersed the spell in less than five seconds.

The high ground was within reach. Solid, dry land meant survival!

The crocodile chieftain clearly realized this too. He let out a low, furious growl.

"Watch out! The aether in its body is boiling!" Ryo’s warning was all but lost in the chaos.

Everyone looked back to see the chieftain’s entire body light up with a cyan-blue magical radiance. The tempo of its running legs abruptly quickened, and its whole body shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow, its speed surging!

"It’s getting up here!" a guard shrieked in despair.