Red Dragon Monster Hunter Template.

Now, not only those who can't survive, but even those poor farmers who can barely make ends meet and have a little surplus food at home are starting to get restless.

As a result, large numbers of people began to head towards the wilderness in groups, and some remote villages even relocated their entire villages there.

Such a large-scale population loss quickly attracted the attention of local authorities.

Before long, a large pile of letters was delivered to Saul. He randomly picked out a few and saw that they were all strongly condemning his behavior.

This made Thor disdainfully exhale a hot breath from his large nostrils, and the letter presented by the dragon-blooded kobold in front of him instantly burst into flames without fire. He burned the rest to ashes without even looking at them.

Please, he's a red dragon, so isn't it only natural for him to act domineeringly?

Moreover, if the people within one's own territory can be easily lured away by a dragon, it can only mean that their own governance is truly terrible.

So instead of stopping, Thor publicized the matter even more, and his men were no longer limited to the border between humans and the wilderness. They simply rushed into human territory and plundered large numbers of people in a way that was half-tempting and half-coercing.

The exodus of people from the lower classes has undoubtedly severely shaken the foundation of the ruling class's rule.

Living things need to eat to survive. If the number of farmers decreases, food production will also decline, and the resulting chain reaction will be devastating.

Countless lords, large and small, hated Thor's actions with a vengeance, yet dared not rashly start a war.

After all, the Red Dragon's power is undeniable; even ordinary legendary experts are no match for him. Perhaps only by gathering the strength of multiple nations can they possibly contend with him.

Chapter 276 The Bottom

West of Blackthorn Town, which borders the wilderness, lies a small village. The houses, built of clay and wild grass, are scattered around a wall made of long thorns.

It was around four in the morning, and the sky was still dark, with only a faint purplish-black light shining through the eastern horizon.

Old John, however, had already gotten up from the thatched floor. The cold wind seeping in through the cracks in the wall made him shiver, and he tightened his rough linen clothes, instantly sobering him up.

Looking up and around, the room, less than thirty square meters in size, came into view. Apart from a few old chairs, a broken wooden table, and some old pots and pans, there was nothing else.

A murky smell filled the air—the stench of decaying grass, mixed with the odor of poultry, the stench of feces, and the earthy smell of soil.

Two hens huddled together in the corner, with his wife and son lying beside them, their brows furrowed even in their sleep.

Just yesterday, the town's tax collector brought the lord's order: this year's land tax will be increased by another 10%, reaching 40%.

This may not seem like much, after all, more than half of the grain was left.

However, the taxes levied on farmers at the bottom of society are not limited to just this one type.

In addition to the land tax, there was also the church's tithe. To grind wheat into flour, one had to borrow the lord's mill, which incurred a mill tax.

Firewood is essential for cooking and heating in winter, and water is indispensable for both people and crops.

Everything within the territory belongs to the lord, including the forests and water sources.

Want to use it? Then you must pay taxes! Otherwise, even if it's theft, once caught, you'll be fined and have your tools confiscated, or worse, be demoted to slavery.

Individually, each of these taxes may not seem too heavy, but when they are added together, they are enough to squeeze every last drop of blood and sweat from a peasant at the bottom of society, like draining their marrow from their bones.

Originally, the old John family could barely make ends meet under these heavy taxes and levies. Now, with the land tax increasing by another 10%, it became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

They simply couldn't survive! In Thor's previous world, the lower classes still had the option of rebellion.

But in a world where great power belongs to the individual and the strong can defeat thousands single-handedly, this path is destined to be impassable.

Moreover, the truly impoverished people, due to malnutrition from childhood and their isolated upbringing, generally have weak physical constitutions and cannot even become adventurers, effectively blocking their path to upward mobility.

After all, the minimum requirement for becoming an adventurer is to be physically strong, and preferably have a certain professional level.

This means that at least several months, or even years, of arduous training, along with ample supplies of food and meat, are required. Ordinary farmers can't even afford enough to eat; where would they find such conditions?

This is a world far more desperate than reality; the truly impoverished people are less alive and more like being kept in captivity.

But now, an opportunity has presented itself to old John, one that will allow his family to truly live from now on.

There was a rumor that originated from who-knows-where. He didn't know what a red dragon was, but he knew that if he kept walking westward, he would find that in that vast wilderness, someone would promise them a piece of land of their own.

Even the slightest glimmer of light in the bottomless abyss is precious. He couldn't be sure if the rumor was true or false; he only knew that when the next tax collector arrived, his family wouldn't be able to pay the full amount of taxes.

They were already on the verge of losing everything, so naturally they weren't afraid of losing any more. They would hold on tightly to any glimmer of hope.

……

After vigorously rubbing his rough face with his dry, cracked hands, old John carefully woke his wife and son. The family took the little food they had left, and cradled two old hens in their arms, covering their eyes, and quietly left the house.

The village, still shrouded in night, was rather quiet, which made the family's heart race, and they dared not utter a sound.

In this world, farmers are, to some extent, the property of the lord. Running away without permission is a serious crime, punishable by death if caught.

They made their way towards the outskirts of the village, their eyesight generally poor at night due to long-term malnutrition.

As the village behind them receded into the distance, just as they breathed a sigh of relief, several dark figures suddenly appeared ahead.

Caught completely off guard, Old John and his family were terrified and nearly collapsed to the ground. The other party, clearly not expecting to encounter anyone else there, turned and ran without looking back.

The other party's reaction relieved Old John and his companions. After calming down and thinking about it carefully, they realized that the figures looked vaguely familiar and seemed to be residents of the village as well.

It seems that it wasn't just his family who wanted to escape; many villagers had the same idea.

That's good news. In dangerous wilderness, the more people there are, the safer it is, and they can look out for each other along the way.

The two groups continued their journey in silence, one after the other. As time passed and dawn broke, the surrounding scenery gradually became clearer.

Once they cross that hill ahead, they'll be completely out of the village's vicinity. At that point, even if the lord discovers some of his subjects have escaped, he won't bother with a large-scale search for these few lowly people.

Just then, old John suddenly felt something flash before his eyes and looked up in confusion. Immediately afterwards, a sharp whistling sound rang in his ears.

That was the sound of air being torn apart by a high-speed object, followed by a muffled thud, and then a painful scream came from ahead.

One of the villagers running ahead seemed to be struck by a heavy object, and suddenly fell backward to the ground, with a still trembling arrow stuck in his chest, and blood staining his tattered hemp clothes.

A small squad of guards clad in worn leather armor emerged from behind the bushes on the hillside. The leader held a longbow almost as tall as a man, and his half-armor gleamed in the sunlight.

"That's amazing, Captain! You hit the target with just one arrow!"

"As expected of the captain, he guessed they would escape from here."

"One, two, three, four... This time we should be able to earn a lot of money and have some fun."

There was no communication, no pity whatsoever; what followed was the creaking sound of the bowstring being drawn.

Judging from this, the other side clearly has no intention of leaving any survivors.

Realizing this, old John felt his hands and feet turn cold, but his will to survive made him grab his wife and children's hands and run away.

With his path blocked and turning back a dead end, he could only hope to find a way around it from the side.

Excited shouts, painful screams, and dying pleas echoed continuously, like the footsteps of death closing in.

But how could the malnourished bodies of the peasants outrun well-trained soldiers? Soon, the group of villagers who had been walking in front of them fell silent, while the heavy footsteps grew closer and closer.

This filled old John's family with despair, as they could hardly see any chance of survival.

Just as they rounded a thicket of bushes, several creatures covered in crimson scales and resembling upright lizards suddenly came into view.

The leading creature, which looked particularly majestic and ferocious, glanced at them with its shattered golden pupils, then raised its claws and let out an ancient and solemn roar.

A spark suddenly lit up, flashed past old John's ear, and disappeared into the pursuing group behind him.

Chapter 277 Negotiation

Faced with the Red Dragon's act of siphoning off its own people, the lords, as those in power, naturally would not sit idly by.

Their first thought was to block the news, but after that failed, they immediately sent out adventurers and troops to cut off all paths to the wilderness.

Their plan was simple: if they slaughtered all those who fled to the wilderness, and killed a large number of them, the remaining people would naturally not dare to think about escaping again.

However, the border between the wilderness and the human kingdoms is too long, and a large number of people would be needed to completely intercept them, which would highlight the problem of supply.

The noble lords were clearly unwilling to pay this amount, so they had no choice but to levy more taxes on their subjects.

This only exacerbated the oppression and led to further population loss, creating a vicious cycle.

This outrageous move made Thor want to burst out laughing, and he immediately sent more of his men deep into the human territory near the wilderness.

Their task is simple: to remove all obstacles that hinder the movement of people.

As adventurers and soldiers fell to the monster's claws, what began as a mere act of plundering people escalated into a far more intense conflict.

Faced with Thor's blatant and unreasonable provocation, how could the powerful lords of the human kingdoms, large and small, who had long held high positions, tolerate it? Naturally, they had to launch a counterattack.

No one dared to provoke the red dragon that dwelled on Mount Doom, so they could only vent their anger on the creatures under his command and take revenge on him.

Thus, the army began to assemble and set off, with organized legions converging like streams into rivers, vowing to wipe out all monsters that dared to set foot on human territory.

……

What happened to Old John's family was just a tiny ripple on this long border.

A deafening explosion came from behind them, and a scorching wind carrying a shockwave slammed into their backs, knocking them to the ground.

The violent impact with the ground made Old John feel a burning pain in his hands. As soon as he raised his head, a pair of bright red claws came into view.

Looking upwards along the scales that burned like flames, one could see a pair of long, curved legs, a robust body, and a majestic head with small horns.

He clearly remembered that it was the spark that flew from this creature's hand that triggered the terrifying explosion behind him. Intense fear gripped him instantly, causing his entire body to tremble uncontrollably.

I'm doomed! This time I'm really doomed!

Even the mighty warrior was instantly killed by this monster, so how could these lowly commoners possibly resist?

However, the expected death did not come; instead, a strange sound mixed with the barking of a dog suddenly rang out.

"Humans! Do you wish to venture into the territory of the great red dragon, the crimson tyrant, the red emperor of the wilderness—Sol Heliozog…?"

Old John's mind went blank with fear, and he nodded without thinking. Then he noticed that the monster's expression suddenly softened.

“Very good! As per the great Dragon Lord’s command, we will escort you to a safe place, but before that, tell me where your village was before, and whether there are any other people nearby…?”

Farmers who have toiled in the fields all their lives, living in this medieval context and facing a life-or-death crisis, would hardly dare to lie. Naturally, they would tell everything they knew without reservation.

Thus, the small group of kobolds, gnolls, goblins, and orcs, led by old John, brazenly barged into the village where he once lived.

What happened next was predictable: all the villagers were forced to relocate under duress.

By the time human reinforcements arrived after receiving the news, the entire village was already deserted.

Some teams successfully raided and captured people, while others failed.

Some of Thor's men were unlucky enough to be ambushed and killed by the army as soon as they stepped into human territory.

For a time, both sides suffered casualties, with Thor's men even suffering more losses. After all, the ragtag army living in the wilderness could not match the combat skills of a regular army.

However, Saul's ragtag army also had its advantages as a ragtag army: strong reproductive capacity, short maturation time, and extremely strong adaptability.

A goblin can grow into a qualified cannon fodder in just a few years, while a human soldier needs more than ten years of training.

Thor doesn't even need to supply his men; they can find food in the wilderness on their own—whether it's the corpses of their own kind or the corpses of enemies, they are excellent food sources for some monsters.

Humans obviously can't do that, so even though Thor's side suffered more casualties, the first to give up will be the humans.

Sure enough, after only a few months, the lords, both large and small, were already struggling to survive. Furthermore, the poor people living near the wilderness had been almost completely plundered by Thor, so they simply chose to give up.

The large army that had been dispatched was forced to retreat in disarray, and the sealed border was reopened, allowing Saul's men to come and go freely.

After some time, almost all the inhabitants of the nearby wilderness were plundered by Thor's men and taken to his territory.

With no people around, the land that originally belonged to humans naturally became new wilderness.

As the wilderness expands, the border naturally shifts, creating new areas adjacent to it.

What else is there to say? Naturally, we should push our luck and continue to move forward.

Now, the surrounding human kingdoms were truly in an uproar. They never expected that the damned red dragon would be so greedy, showing no restraint even after they had backed down.

If he continues like this, after a while, not only remote villages and towns, but also some large cities will likely fall into the Red Dragon's control.

So, should we go to war? And in what form should this battle take place?

As the powerful figures perused the information about Thor collected from various places, paying particular attention to his terrifying super-fast flight ability, they felt a headache coming on.

With such incredible speed and destructive power, it's likely that sending out even more troops would be futile.