"Alright, now put a drop of your blood on his head," Damian ordered.
The Gryphon was paralyzed and couldn't move, but its eyes glared at Dave who was attempting to tame it.
Since he didn't have an ounce of magical power, it was quite impossible for him to form a contract with a beast on its own. Fortunately, Damian was a competent Beastmaster and acted as a bridge to make the Gryphon submit to Dave.
The boy poked his fingertip with a dagger until blood flowed from it. He then smeared it on the forehead of the Gryphon while Damian worked the contractual magic to bind the Gryphon under Dave's control.
"Now it's a battle," Damian said. "You need to make him approve of you through a battle of wills. Gryphons are prideful creatures and don't like to become someone's mount. Even those that pull the carriages of nobles had to be won over before they agreed to work for anyone."
Dave grimaced because he could feel the Gryphon's fierce resistance. In the end, the connection broke because the Gryphon was able to overpower Dave's will.
The chubby boy almost collapsed on the ground because he received a strong backlash from the contractual ceremony. It was a good thing that William was standing beside him and hurriedly supported his body.
"I-I can't do it. It's too strong," Dave said as he panted for breath.
The Gryphon had a smug expression on its face as he looked at the chubby boy. Deep down, it was sneering at him for trying to bite off more than he could chew.
"Don't worry." William patted his shoulder. "I promised to help you get a Gryphon, and I will keep my promise. Someone bring me a spear!"
One of the students hurriedly took out a spear from his storage ring in order to get into William's good graces. He felt envious of Dave's lucky break and he hoped that he would get the same treatment if he showed his loyalty to William.
"Sir, here is a spear bought with two thousand gold coins," the young noble said with a smile. "I hope that it can be of good use to you."
"Mmm. This spear has a good quality," William replied. "Thanks. Because you acted swiftly, I will allow you to be the first to choose which Hippogriff you want to be your mount after they are fully healed."
"Thank you, Commander!" the young noble bowed and backed away with satisfaction.
William pointed the tip of the spear to the eye of the Gryphon. The latter looked back in defiance and gave William the "Go ahead and kill me! I'd rather die than become a human's mount!" glare.
"You have two options," William announced. "Submit and become Dave's partner or suffer!"
The Gryphon uttered a screech in defiance. It would rather die than submit!
"Good. Let's see how strong your resolve is." William grinned evilly as he walked towards the rear of the beast.
The red-headed boy twirled the spear until the blunt end of the spear was facing the Gryphon's bum.
"Requiescat in Pace!" William shouted as he thrust the spear towards the Gryphon's b*tthole without mercy!
A loud shriek filled with pain and shock reverberated in the Whimsical Forest. The beasts who heard it unconsciously shielded their rear because they somehow felt that it was the appropriate thing to do.
"You dare to reject a knight of my order? Who gave you the courage?" William roared as he thrust the spear for the second time. "You think I'll let you die? I have plenty of healing potions here! We can do this all day. Let's see how long you last!"
The Gryphon's pitiful shrieks echoed in the Whimsical Forest for a good fifteen minutes before it stopped completely.
Damian's and Gideon's hands were shielding their bums and their expressions were filled with fear.
"Godd*mn it! He is really the commander's grandson!" Damian gasped.
Gideon nodded his head in agreement. "Both of them are shameless bastards who will do anything to get their way."
The girls of the Order had long ago averted their gaze. Even Priscilla wasn't able to stomach William's approach to taming Magical Beasts.
The young noble who had given William the spear couldn't stop his lips from twitching. If he only knew that his two-thousand gold spear would be used in this manner, he would have given William a cheaper one instead!
"I'll ask you again," William grinned as he faced the pitiful Gryphon. "Are you going to submit? Or must I continue?"
The Gryphon hurriedly nodded like a chicken pecking rice. It threw away its dignity and submitted to William's will.
The Hippogriffs, on the other hand, were all shivering. All of them were thinking of the same thing.
'If I had rejected his offer to be tamed, would I have ended up receiving the same treatment?'
The magical beasts felt that they had saved themselves the trouble of getting hurt by agreeing to be part of William's herd. If not, they might have suffered the same fate as their mortal enemy.
Damian did the contractual ceremony once again, and this time, the Gryphon didn't resist. It was even giving Dave the "hurry and just get it over with! I don't want that crazy bastard to peg me again!" eye signal.
After the contract was established, Dave and the Gryphon felt a strong connection to each other. This was the bond that was shared between the Beast Companions and their Masters.
William patted Dave's shoulder and gave the Gryphon the antidote to overcome the paralysis. After the magical beast was able to stand up again, the red-headed boy then walked towards the noble that gave him the spear.
"I'm returning it," William said. "Thank you very much."
The young noble looked at the "dirtied" spear in his Commander's hand and almost cried a river. He knew that he wouldn't be able to wield that spear again due to the scene he'd just witnessed. His mental trauma would not allow him to be able to accept holding such a weapon in his hands.
"Y-You can have it, Commander," the young noble replied bitterly. "Consider it as a gift from your subordinate."
William looked at the young noble and felt that the boy was a very good person. Because of this, he decided to give him a reward at a later time.
"Very well, since you feel that way then I will keep this spear as a token of your friendship." William nodded and stored the weapon inside his ring.
"Let's return to the camp," William ordered. "We will continue our exploration tomorrow."
""Yes Sir!""
Cid, Aerith, and Henry looked at William with complicated expressions. Just like Cid and Aerith, Henry was there to observe William's actions. He would then report these happenings to the Sword Saint as per the latter's order.
The Sword Saint was very curious about William's potential, so he allowed him to hunt freely inside his domain. Also, he deemed that it would be best to equip the new Knight Order with mounts so that they would be able to perform well in the war that was estimated to happen in just a few short months.
-----
"Ahhh!"
Dave fell off the Gryphon's back for the umpteenth time as the latter walked towards the encampment.
William suggested that Dave get used to riding his new mount as part of his training. However, since he was a commoner by birth, he wasn't able to get the opportunity to ride domestic animals like horses and the likes.
The Gryphon looked at his new partner in disdain as if telling him "you can't even sit on my back properly and you wanted me to become your mount? What an idiot!".
William grinned when he saw Dave's pitiful expression. He then ordered the rest of the group to continue walking to the camp while he had a private talk with Dave.
Damian and Gideon also stayed behind. Their orders were clear and they were to observe their Young Master and make sure he didn't get into trouble.
When the other members of his group were no longer around, William walked towards the dejected Dave.
"Dave, do you want to be able to ride your partner without falling down?" William asked.
"Yes," Dave replied. "Sir, can you help me do that?"
"Well, it's not like I can't help you, but I don't know if it will work. Are you willing to give it a try?"
"I trust Sir William. I am willing to try anything as long as I can be a proper knight!"
William's expression suddenly became serious. "Damian, Gideon, make sure that no one will be able to spy on me. What I am about to do is confidential. Make sure that no one will witness it."
"Very well, Young Master." Damian agreed.
"Alright." Gideon nodded.
Both of them disappeared from where they stood as they created a protective perimeter around William. Ezio, who was hiding in the shadows, also extended his help and made sure that no one would be able to interfere with whatever William was about to do.
"Dave, before we start, you are going to sign another contract," William said as he presented a scroll in his hand. "You are not allowed to tell anyone anything about what you are going to witness today. That includes you, Mr. Gryphon."
The Gryphon hurriedly nodded its head in understanding. It already knew how unreasonable William could be, and it didn't want to experience it a second time.
"Okay, I need both of your blood," William ordered.
Both the boy and the Gryphon obeyed without question and allowed William to get some of their blood. After the scroll glowed and the contract was completed, the red-headed boy took out a spear from his storage ring.
This spear was not the common spear that was used in battle. Instead, it was a jousting lance used by mounted cavaliers.
The main body of the lance had a silvery blue color with runic patterns and looked utterly majestic. Its handle was golden in color and had several runic patterns inscribed on its body.
William held the lance upwards using both of his hands. The Half-Elf was wearing the clothing of a nobleman and with the lance in his hand, he looked like a noble who held a lot of authority in his hands.
"Kneel," William ordered.
Dave had an understanding look on his face, and kneeled with his left knee like a proper knight and bowed his head.
William lowered the lance and lightly tapped Dave's left shoulder.
"In the name of the God of all Trades, Gavin, and the Goddess of Knights, Astrid, I give you the right to bear arms and the power to mete justice," William said with a righteous countenance. "May you protect the innocent and use your strength to uphold the honor of your Sovereign and people."
The lance glowed once as if empowering William's words.
Dave saw a string of words appear inside his mind and said them out loud.
"I, Dave Cornwell, hereby solemnly obey as a Knight of the Angorian War Sovereign."
William smiled and lightly tapped Dave's right shoulder before raising his lance once more towards the sky.
"Rise, my Knight, and uphold the oath that you have made today," William stated. "May your courage, and bravery, illuminate the world for eternity."
Rhongomyniad, the lance that illuminates the world, showered Dave with a golden brilliance. The King chess piece within William's Sea of Consciousness glowed thrice before returning to its normal state.
A series of words appeared in William's status page which caught him completely by surprise.
-----
< First Knight of the Angorian War Sovereign has been registered >
< Name: Dave Cornwell >
< Bestowing Knight Title....>
< Appropriate Title Found! >
< Dave Cornwell: The Crusader of the Sky >