The howling of the Werewolves was making his GodForge pieces produce more Aubility Power! It was making him powerful!
"Do they have something special with those howls?" he asked the professor.
"Not particularly. I heard it’s just a motivating factor for them. Come on," said the professor. "Let’s speak to the Tribe Chief and get back to finding the Antique."
The professor led Michael inside the Goldblood Tribe, squeezing themselves past the Werewolves who were drinking some kind of liquid and getting drunk.
"Visitors! Come drink and worship the Moon!" said one of the Werewolf, handing Michael and the professor their own wooden cup.
"Don’t take it," the professor warned. "That thing is laced with Wolfsbane, which is mildly toxic to the Werewolves, allowing them to feel intoxicated. For normal humans, the result will be much worse."
That explained why the Werewolves looked a little too happy. The only thing that was missing from this was flashing colorful lights, and Michael would have thought that he was in the middle of a rave.
The men and women around them were dancing, celebrating without a care in the world. They probably didn’t even notice that they were just humans.
"Settle down, wolves. Let us give our visitors some space. They’ve come a long way."
The crowd parted ways as an old man with plenty of gold rings in his ears limped towards them. His left leg was noticeably thinner than the right, with barely any muscle or fat inside it.
Despite his disability, the old man wore the most lavish of gold earrings than the rest of the Werewolves beside him. It was easy to guess that he was the Chief of the Goldblood Tribe.
"Welcome. I see my son has succeeded in persuading you to have a little detour into our humble abode."
The professor cared not for pretenses and just went straight to the point. "He promised me that you have some information that I’d like, Chief Klaus. Is that true, or has he lied in front of the Full Moon?"
Klaus chuckled. "It is true, professor. Come inside and we’ll have our discussion."
They were led towards an unassuming log cabin near the raging campfire. Despite being a home for the chief, it didn’t look different from any of the other cabins nearby. It wasn’t extravagant either.
Once inside, Michael noticed that the furnitures around them were topped with skinned fur.
It made him wonder if those were from animals or their fellow Werewolves. If it was the latter, then he would have to rethink how he thought about these tribes.
"The Ancient Roar. Explain," the professor demanded as soon as he sat down.
Chief Klaus took his time as he limped towards the chair opposite the professor, asking for no help from his attendants.
"Truth be told, professor, we’ve been hearing about the Antique for a while now. And I also had plans to get it for myself."
The professor immediately turned protective of the Antique, eyeing Chief Klaus with suspicion.
"Hoho, don’t worry, professor. I’ve long abandoned those wishes when I found out that the Draconians owned it. I have no intention of having a long drawn out war with any of them, especially when I’m already so busy with the other tribes."
"But why would you want it?" the professor asked.
"The same reason why the Draconians want it, professor. It’s because I believe we’re the descendants of the Mythical Beasts."
Michael found it weird that all of these strong species want so badly to be the descendants of the Mythical Beasts. As far as he knew, it wouldn’t change anything.
Thankfully, the professor asked the very same question. "Why?"
Chief Klaus itched his bad leg. "According to the rumors, the Antique is not just a remnant of the past. It’s also a clue on how to evolve into the future. Some say that deciphering the Antique will lead its discoverers to awaken the Ancient Roar."
The professor laughed out loud. "Pfft. Preposterous. Only Mythical Beasts could use the Ancient Roar. Their specialized bodies are what produces that tyrannical sound that can even dominate Aubility Power.
No modern demi-human or Beastfolk can reproduce it. It’s physically impossible. That’s the same as someone saying that they could awaken the power of Unity in humans. We’ve long lost that power when we devolved into our current state. "
But Chief Klaus remained adamant. "Why do you think the Draconians want it so bad, professor? It’s because they believe that as well. They want to be the one to awaken the Ancient Roar."
Ancient Roar, Michael pondered. It dominated Aubility Power? No wonder the Draconians and the Werewolves want it.
Even he was tempted to get it for himself.
"I got a brief glimpse of the Antique, professor. It has leftover Aubility Power that pricks anyone who holds it for their blood."
"WHAT?!" the professor yelled.
"It must be testing the lineage of whoever holds it," Chief Klaus said. "Only those who have a clear heritage to the Mythical Beast are worthy to get the treasure inside the bone. That must be it."
The professor paced back and forth as he digested all of this information.
The fact that the Antique had that sort of security protocol meant that it truly must be hiding something worthwhile inside.
The Werewolves and the Draconians concluded that it probably contained the secret to the Ancient Roar.
"Why are you telling me this?" the professor asked. "What do you stand to gain from giving me this information?"
Chief Klaus shrugged. "If the Antique proves to be what we think it is, then a lot of people stand to gain a lot from it. Those that are allied with the Draconian Zovirru will find themselves in an extremely comfortable position."
The professor was able to read in between the lines. "Someone like your brother?"
The Goldblood Chief’s eyebrow twitched. "Ahem... yes. My brother is allied with Zovirru. And if his swordsman tournament goes as we expect, then he’s also going to be allying with the Aubert company. That will give him two very reliable allies that will give him a good chance in the All Tournament."
So the Brownblood Werewolf Chief is his brother!
As it turned out, the professor was right. There truly was bad blood between the two.
"I see your problem," the professor said. "But do you want us to do? I will not steal the Antique for you."
Chief Klaus shook his head. "I only want you to do what you’ve always wanted to do, professor. I want you to spread the knowledge about the Ancient Era."
The professor was confused, but Michael clearly understood what the Goldblood chief meant.
"You want to put the pressure on them," he said.
Chief Klaus shot an impressed look at Michael. "Yes. I don’t want to give them the time to figure out how to crack the Antique. By spreading this information, there’s going to be other factions within New Sparta that are going to be interested in it as well, meaning I don’t have to do a single thing to stop them."
The professor stayed silent for a moment. "What makes you think they haven’t cracked it yet?"
"Because we haven’t seen the signs yet, professor.
It is said that the Ancient Roar will make the very ground beneath our feet shake.
It will make people grasp their chests as their Aubility Power turns rampant.
And it will make the very air we breathe turn heavy for a moment to reflect a great shift in power."