The Rock-Armored Crocodiles usually stored their eggs in the bushes near the stream, and the more meticulous ones would even dig a pit to bury them.
But when Wotru arrived at the scene of the crime, he found the place in complete disarray.
Most of the crocodile eggs were gone, leaving only seven or eight scattered and lonely eggs rolling around.
The egg thief seemed to have acted hastily, perhaps fearing discovery. Some eggs weren't held firmly and had fallen to the ground, shattering and spilling egg whites and yolks everywhere.
"Bolikri, clean up these broken eggs. Leave the spilled egg whites and yolks alone, but keep the ones still intact inside their shells safe for me."
Wotru swallowed a mouthful of Dragon Saliva, planning to make a special "otherworldly egg soup" for his precious Anna later.
It wasn't because he wanted to drink it himself—these were his subordinates' children, after all. Even though they hadn't hatched yet, how could he bear to eat them?
He was, after all, a kind-hearted variant of a Swamp Black Dragon.
Once Bolikri had tidied up the broken eggs, Wotru began carefully inspecting the crime scene.
Before long, he found a brown feather, about the size of an adult's palm, in one of the egg pits.
The knowledge inherited from his dragon bloodline told him that this feather belonged to a Harpy.
The inheritance from his dragon ancestry always recorded creatures that were either edible or capable of reproduction, and Harpies clearly fell into the latter category.
Harpies were humanoid monsters aligned with the chaotic evil faction.
Their legends could be traced back to the Elves, but most of those were baseless fairy tales concocted by bards.
They possessed sweet singing voices but were among the most ruthless predators, delighting in hunting and sadistic torture.
Now that the identity of the egg thief was clear, Wotru summoned Grey Wolf, who was more familiar with the Silvermoon Forest.
"The ones who stole the crocodile eggs were Harpies. Grey Wolf, do you know where their nests are located nearby?"
Grey Wolf pondered for a moment, recalling the distribution of local monsters, but ultimately shook his head regretfully.
"Great... Master, there are no Harpy nests nearby. However, a group of Harpies did come out of the Silvermoon Mountains not long ago. They might be wandering without a fixed home now."
"Without a fixed home?"
Wotru scratched his chin and exhaled a smoke ring tinged with Sulfurous Breath, recalling the habits of Harpies in his mind.
In summary, they were treacherous, vicious, cowardly, vindictive, and had a penchant for collecting shiny objects and remnants of corpses.
Harpies generally wouldn't steal eggs; they were formidable predators, even more ruthless than Gnolls.
These eggs were far from enough to satiate them.
This could only mean that the Harpies were either few in number or injured, making them unwilling to confront his subordinates head-on.
He could roughly deduce why these Harpies had suddenly resorted to stealing eggs.
Yesterday, while he was searching for potatoes, Grey Wolf and Banana Wolf had led a group of ferocious monsters to capture a herd of Rock Goats.
The Harpies, deprived of their food source, might have acted out of revenge, lurking near his dragon lair to launch a surprise attack.
They never fought fair, only attacking when they had the upper hand. If things went awry during a fight, they would flee immediately, preferring hunger over continued combat—a classic "backstabber" species.
So, upon discovering that herbivorous monsters like Bugs Bunny were near his lair, these Harpies, fearing discovery, could only settle for stealing the Rock-Armored Crocodile eggs.
Finding the Harpies wouldn't be too difficult.
The clumsy method would be to search nearby towering cliffs, while the smarter approach would be to set up bait and traps.
And among his subordinates, what could be more suitable as bait than a Fireflame Rabbit?
A simple yet feasible plan began to take shape in Wotru's mind.
...
Hana was a happy Harpy leader.
But lately, her mood had been anything but cheerful.
Her Harpy clan had been living comfortably in the Silvermoon Mountains, with plenty to eat and drink, occasionally descending to hunt female adventurers and collect their jewelry.
But then, out of nowhere, a group of Hippogriffs from the Silvermoon Forest attacked the mountains.
Even worse, they had taken over the Harpies' nest.
Hippogriffs harbored intense hostility toward humanoid creatures, forcing Hana to lead her remaining clan members in a hasty retreat, abandoning their cliffside home.
More than half of the Harpies were killed by the Hippogriffs, their hearts ripped out and devoured.
Hana had no choice but to lead the surviving dozen or so Harpies to find a new territory.
After much deliberation, they were forced to descend into the Silvermoon Forest.
At first, they managed to survive by preying on a herd of Rock Goats on a cliff.
But yesterday, when Hana returned to that cliff to hunt, she found a group of mixed monsters knocking out the Rock Goats and taking them away.
Hana couldn't understand why powerful Gnolls would team up with Kobolds and even Fireflame Rabbits, but that didn't stop her from feeling enraged by their actions.
Losing their home to Hippogriffs was one thing—they were both flying creatures, and defeat was understandable.
But land-dwelling monsters stealing their food? Unforgivable!
Furious, Hana returned to their temporary nest and rallied her clan.
Under the cover of night, the Harpies planned to seek revenge on the monsters.
Hana had already scripted the scene in her mind.
When the monsters were fast asleep, the Harpies would swoop down, blind them, and drag them back to their nest to toy with, torture, and dismember them.
They loved listening to their prey's screams, believing it made the meat taste better.
Hana swore that even if a dragon protected those monsters, she would lead her clan to exact vengeance.
But her scholarly knowledge soon left her in despair.
There really was a dragon—a powerful variant of a Swamp Black Dragon, no less.
It was absurd.
She couldn't fathom why such a proud creature would confine itself to a small patch of the Silvermoon Forest.
It was like finding a king hiding in a human slum—utterly ridiculous.
Under the oppressive Dragon's Might in the night, the Harpies didn't dare breathe.
Hana chickened out, as did the rest of the Harpies. But their vindictive and impulsive nature still drove them to raid a group of oblivious Rock-Armored Crocodiles' eggs.
After the deed, they fled in panic, circling countless times before finally finding a hiding spot—a dark cave.
They didn't dare return to their temporary nest.
Once a species that soared freely along cliff edges, they were now reduced to living in damp, dark caves—a pitiful existence.
Lying in the dim cave, Hana grew increasingly frustrated.
Those eggs weren't even enough to eat.
Her stomach growled, and her feathers, sticky and damp, made her feel miserable.
"Maybe that dragon doesn't even care about losing a few crocodile eggs. After all, it's not a crocodile."
"Such lazy, legendary creatures do nothing but eat and sleep all day. How could it possibly care about its subordinates?"
With this thought, Hana decided she wouldn't keep hiding. She would go out and hunt. She would eat meat! """
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