Chapter 62

"Listen! Listen! The words of the Slan knight in front of him made Mosrig shudder all over."

"From his voice and his appearance, it was clear that he meant what he said."

"Truly a ruthless man, even if injured, he was not someone Mosrig could resist!"

"Because of this clear understanding of the situation, the young Portland commander suffered much less."

"Lin Mo cut the carriage's harness and reins, then slapped the two draft horses' rumps hard, and they immediately bolted like they were startled, galloping farther and farther into the wilderness."

"‘They’re gone!’"

"Lin Mo retrieved the water bag, shouldered the packages left by the Gemini sisters and Usig, and led the Portland captive away from the main road, heading southwest on foot."

"A short while later, more than ten warhorses galloped up."

"The group exuded a surging battle aura, their expressions solemn, and they were all powerful high-ranking warriors. Among them, one person had a subtle and mysterious elemental energy fluctuation, and a magic staff was slung across the saddle."

"‘Whoa! Stop!’"

"The lead rider pulled the reins, patted the neck of his warhorse, and calmed it down."

"‘What’s wrong, Lord Glen!’"

"The riders behind him controlled their horses with one hand and held their weapons with the other, ready for battle at any moment."

"They saw an abandoned old carriage by the roadside, with only an empty carriage bed and harness, no people or horses in sight."

"‘Look!’"

"The lead rider pointed to a piece of fabric, about the size of a palm, pressed under a pebble near the carriage, which seemed rather strange."

"One of the riders dismounted, ran over a few steps, picked it up, and shouted, ‘This, this... is not commoner’s clothing, it might be a mark left by Lord Mosrig!’"

"The small piece of fabric was quickly passed around, and with a pinch, they could tell it was of high quality. The riders showed signs of joy, as they had finally found an important clue."

"‘They must have switched to single horses!’"

"Someone quickly deduced this, and it was immediately agreed upon by most. Although single horses could not travel as far as a carriage pulled by draft horses, they were more flexible and faster, making them ideal for evading pursuers."

"Glen looked around, gently shook the reins, and spurred his horse, shouting, ‘Chase them!’"

"As always, he was sparing with words, but no one dared to question the Sword God, who had reached the second tier of power."

"The cavalry followed the hoof prints of the two draft horses and quickly disappeared into the distance."

"——"

"‘You! Cunning bastard!’"

"On a hill not far from the abandoned carriage, Mosrig glared angrily at the Slan knight beside him."

"Just now, he had wanted to shout to attract the attention of his own people, but the killing intent from the knight beside him tightly locked onto him. Perhaps just opening his mouth would have cost him his head."

"If exposed, although the Slan knight would certainly die, it would not be worth it to trade his life, the heir of a baronial family, for the knight’s."

"He could only watch helplessly as the people who had come to rescue him galloped away, heading in a completely wrong direction."

"‘Don’t treat others as fools!’"

"Lin Mo snorted coldly. Although he had been meditating with his eyes closed, the small movements of the Portland captive had not escaped the ‘Dragon General’s’ notice."

"He did not expose it but pretended to be unaware, and instead used the opportunity to mislead those who would come to search for the captive."

"Binding Mosrig’s hands with a rope to prevent him from causing trouble again, Lin Mo carried him like a piece of cargo under his arm. The Dragon Knight kicked off the ground and, as if defying gravity, landed lightly over ten meters away."

"His battle aura and physical strength had not fully recovered, but he was relying on the ‘Dragon General’s’ mobility."

"The SEG core unit activated an anti-gravity field, making Lin Mo, even with a person on his back, as light as a feather. He could leap over ten meters in a single step, and the time he spent in the air grew longer, eventually moving as if in low-altitude flight, touching the ground lightly like a dragonfly skimming water."

"Although not as fast as galloping on horseback, it was more enduring and left fewer traces."

"The ‘Dragon General’ did not activate the magnetic plasma engine to provide additional thrust for Lin Mo. After the night raid on the Portland main camp, where the presence of lasers was detected by the enemy’s high-ranking mages, Lin Mo was more cautious about using these advanced war technologies, to avoid tying his own hands."

"After all, true strength comes from within."

"‘You, are you not injured at all?’"

"Mosrig, incredulous, watched as he was carried under the knight’s arm, leaping an incredible distance as if he had springs on his feet."

"He shuddered involuntarily. The Slan knight’s cunning was too deep, and he had clearly held back. Fortunately, he had been cautious, or he might have been deceived to his death."

"Lin Mo did not know that the last bit of hope in Mosrig’s heart had been shattered by his own assumptions."

"——"

"‘Damn! We’ve been tricked!’"

"‘Only two horses! There’s no sign of Lord Mosrig nearby.’"

"The Portland ‘Bashan Lion’ army and the Bird family, several miles away on the main road, saw the two draft horses contentedly grazing on tender grass and roared in frustration."

"‘Bastards!’"

"Sword God Glen’s hand on the reins bulged with veins, and the air suddenly filled with a sharp sound as a cold sword light returned to its sheath."

"Looking at the two draft horses, their large heads had been severed by the sword aura, and blood gushed from their necks as their headless bodies collapsed."

"‘Lord Glen, the one who abducted Lord Mosrig should be only one person. They must have changed direction where they abandoned the carriage. We can still catch them if we split up and search in different directions, which will make it easier to find Lord Mosrig.’"

"Another Portland Sword God, Marton, thought for a moment and suggested to Glen."

"Strength represents status. Glen was one tier higher, so Marton naturally followed his lead."

"‘Good!’"

"Glen, with a somewhat grim expression, slowly nodded."

"The cavalry turned and galloped away again."

"——"

"The capital of the Slan Empire, Delan City, with a thousand-year history."

"‘I apologize, noble dragon, since the battle in the Helar Central Mountains between our country and the Tesi Empire, we have lost many dragon knights, and even some dragons have fallen in battle. If not for those damned Tesi people, Lord Morin and Lord Gold would not have been consumed by their great taboo spell. On behalf of the Slan Empire, I express our sincere apologies to the dragon race and are willing to make compensation. We hope that the damned Tesi people will not affect the long-standing friendship between our country and the dragon race.’"

"Emperor Cyril Saint Slan of the Slan Empire sat silently on his throne, listening to his chief steward, Vans, speaking diplomatic words to a massive dragon."

"This was an informal meeting between the Slan Empire and the Sky Dragon City of the dragon race. Out of sincerity and cooperation, the Slan Empire treated this meeting with great respect, holding it in the imperial council hall where state affairs were discussed."

"When the dragon entered this hall, which represented the highest authority of the Slan Empire, the hall, despite the dragon’s enormous size, did not feel crowded or narrow. Even if more dragons entered, it would still be spacious."

"The use of ‘damned’ twice in reference to the Tesi people was a clear attempt to incite hatred against the Tesi Empire."

"‘Gold has returned to Sky Dragon City!’"

"The wind-type Storm Dragon, Wuyin, lowered its head and looked at the tiny human, suddenly saying."

"‘Gold? Of course, compensation in gold is acceptable. Five million gold coins as compensation, wait, what did you say?’"

"Vans was taken aback, suddenly realizing something was amiss, and asked hesitantly, ‘You mean...’"

"By the Dragon God, why did the dragon choose such a name? It almost made him commit a grave mistake."

"‘Yes, the gold dragon Gold, as a dragon knight’s contracted dragon, has returned to the Sky Dragon City. Our law enforcement captain, the silver dragon Tesseraphilia, brought it back from the temporal rift.’"

"Wuyin snorted, disappointed by the other’s reaction."

"Vans, the fool! He was talking nonsense to a dragon, disgracing the human race."

"Emperor Cyril of the Slan Empire rolled his eyes in private, but the news of a missing dragon knight’s dragon returning from the Helar Central Mountains battle improved his mood."

"This was good news. If too many dragon knights’ dragons fell, it would certainly affect the dragon race’s support and cooperation with the Slan Empire."

"Without dragons, could they still be called dragon knights?"

"Of course not. At best, they would be slightly more powerful than ordinary knights."

"This was no different from fighter pilots in Earth’s civilization, where the performance of the fighter directly affected the pilot’s capabilities."

"‘By the Dragon God, this is indeed good news.’"

"Chief Steward Vans’s voice was filled with joy. The other party’s attitude did not seem to be about demanding compensation, and five million gold coins were equivalent to a province’s annual tax revenue."

"‘Indeed, it is good news, but the contract between the gold dragon Gold and your country’s dragon knight is terminated. It will no longer serve your country. This is a decision made by our king personally!’"

"The wind-type Storm Dragon stated one of the reasons for his visit."

"‘Understood! Understood! We can fully understand! Our country will pay an additional 20,000 pounds of black iron to Sky Dragon City as an apology for the unexpected incident involving Lord Gold.’"

"Vans was very respectful. The mobilization of 20,000 pounds of black iron was still within his authority and did not require additional authorization from the emperor behind him."

"The early termination of a gold dragon’s service was not a significant loss for the Slan Empire, especially since it was a very dangerous dragon, and the black iron rations provided by the empire were also important strategic resources."

"Even if they paid so much black iron now, in the long run, the Slan Empire would still save a considerable amount."

"‘That’s good. Additionally, I am here to ask if the dragon knight Morin, Gold’s contracted knight, has returned to the Royal Dragon Rider Corps?’"

"Besides notifying the Slan Empire of the termination of the gold dragon Gold’s service, Wuyin was also here to inquire about the dragon knight Morin."

"Of course, this was also an instruction from Dragon King Igresor."

"‘What? Dragon Knight Morin? He didn’t die?’"

"Vans remembered that the Dragon Rider Corps had reported that Morin and his dragon Gold were both consumed by the Tesi people’s ‘Spatial Absolute Prison’ great taboo spell."

"Now, hearing that the missing gold dragon had been rescued by the dragon race, this made sense, but the news that the dragon knight Morin was also alive surprised both Vans and Emperor Cyril of the Slan Empire."