Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
They were passing through a well-trodden path in a dark forest. The path had been packed down hard by a constant barrage of carriages, horse steeds, and footprints.
A large caravan was passing through the woods, with many alpacoids and guards trailing far behind. The Elias mechant team was quite famous within the Kingdom of Engido. It was quite large and conducted the most business. In fact, its enterprises were known to extend throughout all of the orc nations.
Lu Zhiyu was riding a horse. He was flanked on both sides by Golden Alpacas with twinkly eyes. It was an oddly embarrassing experience, as it felt like the alpacoids were somehow laughing at him. Lu Zhiyu had never thought that the Golden Alpacas and alpacoids would become so popular, back when he was designing them. Today, they had become so popular, they were common even in the orc nations!
The caravan left the shadows of the woods, encountering the sun once again. Just below the slope ahead, in the distance, loomed a huge city. It was the capital of Engido, the city of Primonius.
It was a large and exotic ancient capital. Lu Zhiyu could see many people gathering to enter the city. The collective line looked like a long river, filled with countless horses and alpacoids.
Within the city, there were many structures. These building were impressive, boasting circular domes and high towers. Stone castles and structures linked one by one as they got closer and closer. It was an awe-inspiring city indeed. Standing at its foot, it seemed as if the city wall extended even beyond the horizon, where the sky and clouds became one.
“Wow, I didn’t expect such a magnificent city to be found within an orc nation!” This was Lu Zhiyu’s first visit to Primonius, and he had not expected it to be such a majestic metropolis. It definitely would not be outdone, even by St. Sarl City of the Kingdom of the Church!
Elias’ steed trotted behind Lu Zhiyu. “Of course, the King of Engido is an ambitious ruler with grand ideals. He has developed the Kingdom of Engido to its current state over several decades. He brought it to this age of prosperity by building up the strongest army this country has ever known. We had once believed that he would be the next Emperor of the orc nations. It’s a pity!”
Lu Zhiyu was puzzled. “What’s a pity?”
Elias pointed to the sky. “He is too old, so he will soon have to return to God’s embrace. He is only a mortal, after all. No matter how ambitious we are, we can not defy fate or old age.”
Ever since the destruction of the Kingdom of Menkaure, after losing the title of the mayor of Ayers, Elias had become a merchant. By the looks of it, his business was thriving. As he had said, though, he had also aged. In fact, he was probably going to retire soon. In preparation for this, he had brought his second son this time around, who was to succeed his caravan and noble rank.
Passing through the steel spiked arch, sounds of the passing crowds were near deafening. People were bustling everywhere. On both sides of the crown, there were armored guards with spears, attempting to maintain order. Occasionally, patrol teams would flit through the passageways, also making their rounds.
Elias spoke to Lu Zhiyu. “We will rest here and purchase some necessities. We will then depart again in three days. You two can wander around in the meantime. Welcome to Primonius, my friend.”
After thanking Elias, Lu Zhiyu led away his horse and began touring the city with Verthandi. Lu Zhiyu was enhoying the local culture and architectural style, while Verthandi was more interested in finding souvenirs and good food.
Both of them carried longswords and were dressed very smartly. In this era, ordinary people were unable to purchase decent swords. At the very least, such luxuries were beyond the means of ordinary villagers and farmers. Furthermore, only a knight would be able to assemble a full set of armor. Normal folks definitely could never aspire to attain one. Of course, with the traveling pair’s attire, it was easy for them to be targeted by thieves. Hence, Lu Zhiyu remained vigilant.
The city was built against a mountain, so the roads were also rolling and uneven. Most of the roads were on curving slopes, causing any attempt to traverse them to be very tiring. As such, the buildings were also scattered in uneven heights, creating a beautiful asymmetrical skyline.
Lu Zhiyu and Verthandi shopped around before heading to the entrance of the palace. It was a large white palace, which was built with white marble and was guarded with many soldiers. A large number of archers and spearman were also patrolling above on the palace walls.
By the entrance, a poster of the head of the evil dragon was tacked. Many people crowded around it. Most of them were outsiders. Suddenly, a heated discussion arose among them.
“The bounty has risen again! Now it is officially up to 10,000 Gold Lycans, with the rank of Baron and any land desired to also be awarded to the dragonslayer. It’s a single step to glory!”
“So many people have died. Even One-Armed Duncan has died, along with all one hundred of his mercenaries. After taking this mission, not a single person returned alive.”
“Of course, they were facing the dragon, that evil dragon Frost!”
“According to the rumor, it is tens of meters long, with a wingspan of over twenty meters. Men can only reach its ankles, and it has scales that are impervious to swords. Its breath is the flame of hell, and it can manipulate ice to freeze people into sculptures. No one has been able to defeat it. All of those who have seen it, have ended up dead!”
“Over ten rounds of people have attempted this feat. Not a single one has returned, as they all perished in the Amos Icefield, becoming food for the dragon. All of them were famous adventurers and fighters, too. So, now, no one dares go, as it is only seeking death! No matter how high the bounty is, it is meaningless if it is unobtainable!”
Verthandi spoke from Lu Zhiyu’s side. “Then, why isn’t the king sending the army to kill it? Why is he offering a bounty reward instead?”
All of the people turned and saw that the speaker was only a runt. Not giving her a second thought, they all looked back in disdain, muttering.
“What does a kid know? The evil dragon can fly, so even great numbers do not help in defeating it. The king has sent his army and the Blood Knights to surround the evil dragon many times, but the dragon is quite sly and refuses to engage them in direct combat.”
Verthandi, seeing how she was being dismissed, became very peeved. “Isn’t it just an evil dragon? What’s the big deal?”
The crowd saw the arrogance of the runt, continuing to ignore her. Lu Zhiyu crossed his arms and stood behind Verthandi. “Go, take the bounty down for me.”
Verthandi turned to look at Lu Zhiyu with starry eyes. “Dad, you’re going to personally defeat the dragon and save the princess, like the heroes in the storybooks?”
Lu Zhiyu straightened his back and looked into the distance, as if he was possessed by a heroic aura. He let out a haughty harrumph.
“Hmph.”
Verthandi rushed forth with great enthusiasm, grabbed the bounty, then turned back towards the crowd. She then yelled at them in sheer delight. “Who dares to look down on us? You bunch of cowards are all talk and no action! This time, we’ll show you what real chivalry is! Dad, let’s go dragonslaying! Eh, Dad? Where did you go?”
Verthandi took down the bounty posting, but saw that the figure that was in the crowd had disappeared. The soldiers on the sides were approaching, surrounding Verthandi.
“Hello sir, the king would like to see you,” a soldier demanded.
Verthandi’s face paled. She tried to explain, then began to back away, only to discover that the road before her was blocked. She looked to her left and right in a panic, not knowing what to do next.
“Whoever takes down the bounty posting automatically makes a contract with the king. Whoever betrays that contract will lose their head, which will then be hung on the city wall.” The countenance of the soldier was extremely stern. He pointed to a flagpole on the city wall, where several severed heads were already hanging, each covered with dried blood. Their eyes were like dead fish, staring lifelessly at the ground.
Verthandi swallowed hard.