"The Albert Family, this dark cloud hovering over my head, has finally dissipated."
When the news of Earl Mills' assassination reached the Serel Wilderness and the Red-Iron Dragon's ears, he smiled with satisfaction.
It wasn't just the fall of an enemy, but the removal of a potential hidden danger that could cause long-term trouble, making him feel much more at ease and relieved.
Honestly.
Even if Earl Mills had only sent his private army to the wilderness for revenge, Garros had every confidence in wiping them out entirely, causing the Albert Family heavy losses.
However.
For an Earl deep within the Duchy of Raymond in the south, enjoying noble privileges and legal protection, Garros felt a bit out of reach.
He couldn't just fly to the Albert Family's territory and slap the Earl to death.
Evil Dragons who acted so simply and brutally were not without precedent, but they basically never left the human federation's core regions alive.
Garros never believed he could break out under those circumstances.
Instead, the unexpected arrival of the Flower Knight Charles opened up another line of thought for Garros, providing another possibility.
Clearly.
Earl Mills overestimated his own manipulative skills and severely underestimated the independent will and initiative of the tool that was the Flower Knight Charles Hines.
He firmly believed that this young, famous hero would, like most adventurers blinded by fame and kindness, be easily seduced by the Earl once he described the immense prestige and glory to be gained from slaying an Evil Dragon, and would rush into the wilderness without thinking, becoming a sharp but mindless blade in his hand.
Unfortunately.
Although the Flower Knight was young and inexperienced, and indeed blinded by the Earl's hypocrisy and instigated by carefully fabricated lies.
He was by no means stupid or pedantic, and did not act according to the script Earl Mills had expected.
"However, I really didn't expect the Albert Family's behind-the-scenes methods to be darker than mine."
"They were probably trying to filter out those children with talent, making them regard the Family as their only belonging and faith from the bone, dedicating everything without reservation. Therefore, after selecting suitable targets, they would personally plan accidents, artificially create orphans, and then appear as saviors to adopt and brainwash them."
"By comparison—"
The Red-Iron Dragon curled his tooth-filled mouth: "—I, this Evil Dragon in the eyes of the world, seem too upright, and could even be called kind."
Some nobles, beneath their gorgeous and decent robes, indeed hide unimaginable evil and filth.
It's no wonder that the first lesson many Paladins learn after entering society is being strictly forbidden from using Spells like Detect Evil at will, under the pretext that this severely infringes on personal privacy and violates the basic principles of a Paladin.
Thinking about it now, the deeper meaning is intriguing.
But regardless, the Albert Family affair can mostly come to an end here.
Those Rune Knight Rhode, Alchemist Sienna, and others who once viewed the Family as above all else and were willing to dedicate their lives to it, after learning the cruel truth of their tragic backgrounds, would be as eager to tear it apart and burn it to ashes as they were fanatical in supporting Albert in the past.
It is foreseeable.
Having lost their backbone and facing internal collapse, the Albert Family will soon be unable to take care of themselves, and will no longer have the strength to attend to affairs in the Serel Wilderness.
"Charles, come back."
"There is a new mission for you to complete."
Garros contacted the Flower Knight, who was out, via the Communication Stone.
At this moment, Charles Hines was in the midst of an escape.
Although he had sealed the space at the scene with Border Walker skills when assassinating Earl Mills, and the operation was clean, leaving no traces of himself.
However.
In an extraordinary world where magical power is ubiquitous, as long as those in power are determined to investigate at any cost, even if no substantial clues are left at the scene, there are still ways to lock onto the target.
The Albert Family was, after all, a rather influential Earl Family within the Duchy of Raymond.
Its head was attacked and killed in the manor, which caused quite a stir in noble circles, and people were in a panic.
The higher-ups ordered a strict investigation into the murderer, so they spared no expense to hire powerful Divination Spellcasters to track him, finally locking the target onto—the famous Flower Knight.
During the subsequent investigation, the Albert Family's hidden, unspeakable dealings also gradually surfaced.
However.
To maintain the decency and reputation of the entire noble class, other authorities chose to cover up and seal the news, simply characterizing the incident as a vendetta, and after randomly fabricating a reason, they launched a nationwide wanted notice for the Flower Knight.
Fortunately, Charles practiced both Arcane Knight and Border Walker paths, and had considerable experience in spatial movement and anti-tracking.
Although he encountered several thrilling encirclements during his escape, he resolved them all without danger, and the wilderness was getting closer and closer.
The flow of time felt both long and fast during the escape.
Finally, one morning, the Flower Knight, dusty but with even more determined eyes, crossed the final boundary, and his figure reappeared on the desolate and familiar horizon of the Serel Wilderness.
Finally, he stopped at Ximu Town.
Green Dragon Ludwig, following the instructions above, officially handed over the power and responsibility of managing this increasingly prosperous wilderness town to Charles Hines.
In the overall planning of the Molten Iron Tribe, this small town on the edge of the wilderness would be further expanded and developed in the future.
Since its main target group was intelligent creatures like humans, and there is a natural estrangement and distance between humans and dragons.
Therefore, having a powerful, upright, and deeply trusted human lord as the spokesperson for the dragon's will, responsible for maintaining the town's daily order and communicating and executing policies, was undoubtedly the most ideal choice.
Whether in terms of strength, reputation, or current situation, the Flower Knight was the most suitable candidate.
After this.
As news spread that the Molten Iron Tribe had legally obtained the right of way for the Scale-Earth Rift Road rather than by barbaric robbery.
Coupled with the Molten Iron Tribe's continuous clearing of ferocious beasts and dangerous monsters in the surrounding area, and the strict prohibition of any form of robbery or extortion, the safety and order of this place became famous, attracting more and more people.
The number of merchant caravans traveling through the rift road increased significantly.
The number of adventurers, mercenary groups, and merchants choosing to rest, resupply, or even stay long-term in Ximu Town saw a continuous wave of growth.
Even more remarkably, this place even attracted Metallic Dragons known for kindness and order.
A young Gold Dragon visited Ximu Town, praised the local order, and publicly stated that the Molten Iron Tribe did not belong to the evil camp as rumored by the outside world.
The head of the Metallic Dragons, a powerful, noble Gold Dragon symbolizing order and kindness.
For the vast majority of humans, this was a creature that almost only existed in legends.
His visit and endorsement brought huge positive reputation to Ximu Town and the Molten Iron Tribe, and many adventurers came from thousands of miles away just to see the true face of the Gold Dragon.
And the Gold Dragon seemed to quite enjoy this attention.
He would often have a whim and elegantly land in the central square of Ximu Town, or stroll leisurely along the newly paved streets, satisfying people's curiosity and bringing immeasurable positive reputation to the town.
Where there are people, there are bound to be disputes, but what follows is the circulation and gathering of wealth.
Days flowed by, intertwined with noise and tranquility.
The traffic on the Scale-Earth Rift Road became increasingly busy, the scale of Ximu Town quietly expanded, facilities were constantly improved, presenting a unique prosperity that was growing wildly yet orderly.
In addition, the Molten Iron Tribe did not take the opportunity to expand its territory massively.
On the contrary, the tribe chose a more robust strategy, shrinking its strength, deeply cultivating the core area, and concentrating a large amount of resources and strength into the operation and defense reinforcement of the Scale-Earth Rift Road and Ximu Town, making this place impregnable.
In the Serel Wilderness, known for chaos, danger, and survival of the fittest.
This territory under the rule of the Molten Iron Tribe presented a rare and precious peaceful scene, as if time were quiet and good.
However, many insightful people understood that this tranquility was likely just a short gap before the storm.
As time passed, the situation within the human federation was accelerating into turmoil and deterioration.
Following the initial outbreak of war between the Duchy of Abel and the Duchy of Haltai, several other duchies successively tore off their masks and brazenly declared war on each other.
More dangerously.
This melee did not stop at the level of each fighting for itself, but quickly evolved into a confrontation between two major camps centered on the Duchy of Abel and the Duchy of Haltai.
The flames of war began to spread and burn wantonly along the long border lines between the duchies, showing a trend of a prairie fire.
And just when other duchies were busy attacking each other, looting the rear, and destroying each other's war potential, the Molten Iron Tribe in the wilderness was also quietly participating in it in its own way.
Including but not limited to:
Striking the logistics supply lines of the Duchy of Abel, attacking and harassing their resource strongholds on the edge of the Serel Wilderness, etc.
Although these actions were not fatal, they were constantly consuming the war potential of the Abel camp and intensifying the pressure on their front line.
And as time passed, the clouds of war continued to accumulate, roll, and brew greater destruction on the southern land.
Finally, the ruthless footsteps of time stepped into the new calendar year 258.
At this time, the Molten Iron Tribe's rule over the Scale-Earth Rift Road was as solid as a rock, the territory was in good order, and its strength was steadily improving.
Garros briefly left the noisy wilderness and returned to The Borderlands.
At this moment.
He was standing quietly on the terrace of the Burning Steel Fortress, his eyes reflecting the scene in the valley.
White Dragon Tereshi was training a newly joined White Young Dragon there.
That little guy was accidentally discovered by the tribe's Kobold scouts in the northern ice fields a few months ago.
When discovered, it was baring its sharp teeth, fighting and tearing with an equally hungry old ice wolf for half a frozen, hard animal carcass, in a sorry state.
After being brought back to The Borderlands.
The other dragons showed consistent indifference and disgust toward this ignorant, noisy, and weak Young Dragon.
Only White Dragon Tereshi showed great enthusiasm.
She reduced her attention to the other few Young Dragons that were gradually growing and whose ecological niches were steadily improving, and instead invested more energy into this ignorant White Young Dragon.