"Let me go, please forgive my ignorance and offense."
As the Red-Iron Dragon approached, Edmond saw that he was the backbone of this group. He knelt and begged for mercy, his previous elegance and pride completely gone.
That once-arrogant face was now twisted into a humble, fawning smile.
This so-called son of a noble.
At this moment, he looked no different from the Kobolds under Garros's command.
"Noble Dragon Your Excellency, my father's vault contains seven tons of Northern Ice Stones, three crates of Mithril, and many magic scrolls. As long as you say the word, I guarantee he will bring them all."
Edmond said ingratiatingly.
No matter what, he had to find a way to save his life first.
He still had a bright and vast future. He swore in his heart that once he became a Legendary Mage in the future, he would definitely hunt Dragonkin everywhere to wash away this current humiliation.
Sorog and Samantha's eyes flickered. Driven by their instinctive greed, they couldn't help but feel a bit tempted, but they didn't agree directly. Instead, they looked toward the Red-Iron Dragon in tacit understanding.
Garros's face was as cold and hard as cast iron, unmoved by this plea for mercy.
Using Edmond's life to blackmail the Viscount certainly offered a chance for a hefty ransom, but it would inevitably involve a dangerous game of chess behind the scenes.
He didn't believe the other party would honestly hand over the ransom without doing anything.
Garros also had an instinctive desire for wealth, but compared to his own safety, that desire was suppressed in an instant.
Survive and grow stronger.
This was Garros's greatest desire; nothing else could compare.
"Next time you want to collect taxes from Dragonkin, remember to bring a coffin."
Garros said, glancing at the Iron Dragon.
At his signal, the Iron Dragon revealed a cruel smile and raised his claws, which looked as if they were cast from steel and iron.
The young spellcaster's face turned deathly pale.
In his desperation, he actually had a flash of wit. Recalling the arrogant nature of Dragonkin, he suppressed his fear and shouted, "Killing me only proves your cowardice!"
His voice suddenly rose: "You Evil Dragons are neither brave nor have any glory to speak of!"
The Iron Dragon's claws paused in mid-air.
Edmond took the opportunity to stand up. Although his legs were still shaking, he forced himself to straighten his back. "I am a mage destined to become Legendary, a rising star of magic. You know very well that as long as you let me leave alive—"
His gaze swept across the three Dragons.
"One day, I will make you pay for what you've done today!"
Samantha let out a low growl: "Lowly reptile! Even if I gave you a hundred years—"
"Then let time prove it!"
Edmond interrupted, his voice filled with desperate resolve. "Let's see who will be the one kneeling and begging for mercy in the end!"
Garros's vertical pupils narrowed slightly as he sized up this human who had suddenly become defiant.
In his eyes, this so-called son of a noble was just a pathetic gambler who had staked his last chip at the moment of life and death, appearing fierce but weak within.
And in his impression...
This person hadn't cast even a single Spell throughout the entire battle and had zero combat experience, to the point where Garros had almost forgotten he was a spellcaster.
"Human, you are quite interesting."
Garros said with a faint, mocking smile, "Run. I'll give you a chance to live."
Edmond was stunned for a moment, then his pupils dilated slightly at the sudden pardon, and an expression of unbelievable ecstasy appeared on his pale face.
His backward steps were initially cautious and slow, as if he were afraid of startling a sleeping beast.
But when he confirmed that Garros really wasn't pursuing him, the young mage suddenly exploded with survival instinct.
The way he turned and sprinted was so pathetic; the sound of his expensive mage boots sinking into and pulling out of the mud was exactly like a prey struggling in its death throes.
"I told you to run, and you actually ran?"
A cold whisper pierced Edmond's spine like an icicle.
The young noble froze in place and slowly turned around, a ridiculous hope frozen on his face.
That expression reminded Samantha of a frog stared down by a snake.
The moment the dragon claw fell, Edmond's lips moved as if he wanted to recite a protection Spell, but until the last moment of his life, the Spell failed to take shape.
Before absolute power, a body of flesh and blood was ultimately just a fleeting and fragile existence.
The heavy rain washed away the radial bloodstains, flushing the minced meat mixed with bone fragments into the soil.
Iron Dragon Sorog toyed with a half-piece of gold-embroidered clothing with his claws and laughed: "He said he would become Legendary."
Samantha grinned and said, "Now he has become Legendary—" The Red Dragon added maliciously, "—the stupidest spellcaster in history to die like a Mortal."
At the same time...
The sounds of shouting and fighting had completely dissipated, but the wind and rain continued to howl.
Without the need for the dragons to act, the remaining knights were all slaughtered by the monsters, not one left. The torrential rain poured down, washing away the traces of the battle.
"Karu, lead the troops and migrate north immediately. Go to the Quenchfire Highlands first and rendezvous with the Molten Iron People who went ahead."
Garros gave the command to the Gluttonous Ogre.
As for the scattered weapons, Alchemy Golem and Frost Giant remains, and the like—to prevent them from containing tracking-type mark Spells, and because there was no time for a careful inspection—Garros did not intend to let his subordinates pack them up.
The monsters who had just finished the battle did not stay put. They set off immediately, beginning a large-scale migration toward the Quenchfire Highlands in the rain.
Those here were all elite troops.
Although they were leaving later, they might arrive even faster than the subordinates who had packed up the territory and left earlier.
"Samantha, Sorog, come with me."
Garros flapped his wings and soared into the sky against the curtain of rain.
The Red Dragon and Iron Dragon followed closely.
The three of them soared together among the dark clouds.
"Are we not going to the Quenchfire Highlands?"
Noticing that the current direction was not toward the Quenchfire Highlands, the Iron Dragon was somewhat puzzled.
Garros lowered his eyes to scan the gloomy earth and said, "After this battle, we will be exposed immediately and enter the field of vision of the Thousand Snake Scars garrison. We can't stay here any longer."
No longer backing down, slaughtering the enemies who offended him.
This feeling was good.
But in the end, a price had to be paid. He had to abandon the territorial foundation he had managed for many years. Compared to a giant like the Lothern Federation, the current Young Dragon was still too weak to face them head-on.
"However, since we've already decided to migrate..."
"Before that—"
The Red-Iron Dragon bared his formidable fangs and said in a low voice, "We might as well make more people understand that we Dragonkin are not objects to be bullied at will, even if we are only Young Dragons!"
After years of endurance...
Now, erupting all at once, he revealed his sharp edge to the world.
Garros's heart was still surging with emotion, so he decided that since they were already exposed, they might as well do something big before the army could react, trying to recover the subsequent losses caused by the territorial migration.
"What are we going to do next?"
Samantha asked, following behind the Red-Iron Dragon's right side.
"This direction..."
The Iron Dragon said thoughtfully, his eyes brightening, "Are you planning to raid the Sky-Anchor Stone Mine?"
Sky-Anchor Stone was no ordinary Ore; it was a type of wind-element magic gemstone.
The Holden Empire's Firmament Magic Academy was constructed from a massive amount of Sky-Anchor Stones supplemented by magic; it was a magic academy suspended high in the air, standing amidst the flowing winds and floating clouds.
Having been entrenched here for many years...
Every time Garros soared in the sky, he would observe the ground, knowing the distribution of surrounding mineral veins like the back of his hand. The Iron Dragon also understood the importance of the surrounding mineral vein distribution and had a general understanding of it.
This Sky-Anchor Stone Mine was of a miniature scale and belonged to the Duchy of Raymond.
Through Edmond, the Tax Collector, the attire of those knights, and the patterns and marks on the golems, Garros could determine which country they belonged to.
Since a grudge had already been formed, he might as well offend them even more deeply.
Because it was a miniature gemstone mine...
Although there was a garrison guarding it, the scale was not very large. At the very least, with Garros's mobility, as long as he didn't linger in the fight, the garrison could not kill him.
The current rainy weather also served as perfect cover for them.
"Robbery, robbery!"
"I want to rob! I want to set fires! I want gemstones!"
Samantha grew excited, flames puffing from her nose.
As a pure Evil Dragon, she certainly didn't hate the act of robbery; she just didn't like being the target of one.