The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

Chapter 886: Chapter 0883: Descent of the Emperor (First Update)

Traveling upstream along the river valley, after a month-long journey through dense jungles, the Knight Squad led by Yevich finally found a human settlement.

It was a small village where there were neither Knights nor Elves, and they did not engage in farming crops. The men in the village hunted for a living, while the women gathered wild fruits from nearby mountains and bred a clumsy bird that resembled a chicken but was larger in size and had brighter feathers.

Confrontation and communication.

The language barrier made communication difficult, but, by combining gestures and drawings, they managed to get across some basic information.

The villagers did not know which country they belonged to and none could write. They only knew that they were under the authority of the “Lord of Huzha,” and every year they needed to submit a large number of furs and “Fritillaries”—the colorful large chickens with delicate and smooth meat.

After handing over a few colorful shells, hunters willingly led Yevich and others to the small town where the Lord of Huzha resided.

In a dilapidated castle near the small town, Yevich met the Lord of Huzha.

Another session of gestures combined with intimidation, and this barely an Earth Knight landlord disclosed his identity—he followed an Honored Knight who served a Viscount who followed an Earl in the Snowstorm Mountain Duchy; he was not a native of the Eagle Kingdom but belonged to a duchy that had never been heard of.

“Snowstorm Mountain Duchy?” Yevich sketched out his new question on the paper he was carrying, “Which kingdom does this duchy belong to?”

The Lord of Huzha was utterly amazed by the white paper in Yevich’s hands, then took it and drew an abstract complex family crest on it, along with some unfamiliar writing. He tried his best to translate the meaning of the text, which roughly referred to a vast yellow stone plain.

“Yellowstone Kingdom?” Yevich immediately caught on.

He had heard of this kingdom, to the southwest of the Eagle Kingdom, practically a neighboring country. However, the year-round snow-covered plateau between the Yellowstone Kingdom and the Eagle Kingdom, which was also home to a host of Magical Beasts, created an extremely harsh environment that led to very little interaction between the two kingdoms.

There were a few duchies arranged between the two kingdoms that traded with the Eagle Kingdom.

However, Yevich had never heard of the Snowstorm Mountain Duchy—the southern border of the Eagle Kingdom was still undeveloped and the environment harsh, so it was no surprise he was not aware of the duchy’s existence here.

He continued to communicate a lot of information with the Lord of Huzha, but in vain, as the lord, being a stay-at-home Honored Knight, had limited knowledge. He was unclear about their exact location, only knowing that his Viscount landlord lived even further to the west, a day’s horse ride away.

When he followed his Viscount to help the earl they served in a war, they had to ride for five days and cross several mountains.

As one went westward the climate became colder, but the land grew more fertile, and to the far west lay the Marquisate’s territories, and further beyond was the true highland heartland of the Snowstorm Mountain Duchy.

“This is a bit awkward. Sailing west from the Third Archipelago, other than discovering a large island, we went straight to the mainland coastline. His Highness wanted me to clarify the distribution of power here, but within hundreds of kilometers of the coastline, it’s utterly desolate. How are we supposed to launch a war in the future?”

He referred to the model of the Sapphire, which developed by looting the Eagle Kingdom.

The Flame Kingdom would also have to follow a looting model in the future, but now it turned out that the mainland coastline directly opposite was undeveloped. Venturing deeper inland would only lead to the highlands where the climate was as cold as in the Flame Kingdom, which implied that robbing the Snowstorm Mountain Duchy would be very difficult.

“Let’s contact His Highness first and inquire about his next instructions.” He occupied the Lord of Huzha’s castle and indicated to the Magician who had come with him to send a message through the Magic Platform.

…

While Yevich was blending into the Legendary Continent, gathering intelligence on the surrounding national forces,

Liszt had already left Mind Island and quickly entered Blue Dragon Island and flew toward the city of “Blue Dragon City,” flying high above without alarming the humans below.

When he entered the vicinity of Blue Dragon City and sensed the Sapphire Dragon nesting in the valley’s Dragon Nest, only then did he signal Grey Iron Dragon Ornn to lower the flight altitude.

He also signaled Formless Dragon Bard to reveal itself and summoned Little Fire Dragon Leo, forming a three-dragon formation.

During the low-altitude flight, they just happened to sweep over Blue Dragon City. The appearance of a grey-white Grey Iron Dragon, a red-and-black Fire Dragon, and a transparent crystal-like Formless Dragon in the sky above the city threw the first major city of the Sapphire, with a population of two hundred thousand people, into a frenzy of chaos.

“Dragon! Dragon! Dragon!”

“What’s this, a dragon!”

“There are three dragons!”

“By the knight’s honor, what am I seeing!”

“Is this a Dragon Knight invasion?”

“Too terrifying, three dragons… Are these dragons here to destroy Blue Dragon City!”

The peasants were terrified at the sight of the dragons, and many of them even crouched on the ground, holding their heads, afraid to look up at the dragons overhead. Many women quickly took their children and hid inside their homes, fearing that the evil dragons would come to plunder the city. Of course, there were also some brave civilians who shouted at the three dragons, their excitement uncontrollable.

Even the residents of Blue Dragon City might not have seen a Sapphire Dragon, let alone three unfamiliar dragons all at once.

The nobles in the city, however, immediately thought of the recent edict from the Sapphire Duke and quickly recognized the Fire Dragon that showed its might in the Dragon Slaying Battle near the waters of Iron Hoof Island.

“It’s the Fire Dragon!”

“His Highness Liszt, His Highness Liszt himself has come to the Azure Sky Peak Palace!”

“By the knight’s honor, what am I seeing? That’s the Marquis of Flames’ dragon in the middle, the Fire Dragon, over there is the holy Formless Dragon, and there’s the Light Green… Huh, isn’t that a Light Green Gemstone Dragon? That’s an Iron Dragon, isn’t it?”

“When did His Highness Liszt get another Iron Dragon?”

“Great Dragon Knight!” Some knights worshipped fervently.

The stories about Liszt that circulated in the market were so unbelievable and enviable that listening to them was more exciting than even the best Knight’s Novel.

“Has the Marquis of Flames come to Blue Dragon Island for something, could it be…” Some knights instantly considered conspiracy theories, immediately growing anxious.

“My god, His Highness Liszt is on those three dragons, right? My god, is he watching me from the sky right now? My god, if I could ride the same dragon as His Highness Liszt, I would do anything he asked!” Countless noble young ladies watched the dragons in the sky, their cheeks flushed with excitement.

The three dragons simply swept past Blue Dragon City and flew towards the peaks in the distance, heading for the Azure Sky Peak Palace.

But the commotion they left in Blue Dragon City was long in subsiding; the nobles hustled to tell each other, speculating on the significance of Liszt’s arrival; the peasants prayed silently, boasting about the Dragon Knight stories they had heard; the young ladies either gathered to talk about Liszt or secluded themselves in their rooms, lost in daydreams.

It was as if a stone had been thrown into a lake, its ripples spreading outward endlessly.

The Blueblood Knight Order stationed outside the city had already quickly assembled, ready to respond to the Sapphire Duke’s call—at once the glory and the fall of the Sapphire Family affected them, and they were ready to offer their loyalty, no matter how dire the situation.

But this was bound to be a false alarm.

As the Sapphire Dragon rose to meet them, Liszt had already landed with the three dragons in the square in front of the Azure Sky Peak Palace.

He jumped down from the back of the Grey Iron Dragon, catching Ach as he leaped from the Formless Dragon.

They walked leisurely toward the grand and majestic palace, which seemed like the focal point of the sky and the mountains.

The knights guarding the palace had already been alerted and quickly formed a guard of honor, nervously approaching the three dragons and surrounding Liszt and Ach.

At the palace gates, the Sapphire Duke himself came out to welcome them.