A Dragon against the Whole World-Chapter 148 - 142: Galos: It’s Just a Pity the Viscount Is in Federation Territory, Making Him Hard to Deal With
Viscount Ironthorn stood on the scorched earth of Needleleaf Valley, rain sliding down his armor and dripping into the soil.
His gaze was cold and resolute, as if he no longer felt any hesitation.
"Begin."
He said.
The Curse Master nodded, took out a pitch-black bone dagger from his robe, the blade etched with twisted runes, glimmering with a dark red light in the rain.
The other members scattered back, leaving an open space.
The Curse Master signaled for the Viscount to extend his wrist.
Viscount Ironthorn did not hesitate, unfastening his armguard, revealing his veined, muscular arm.
The Curse Master chanted an obscure incantation in a low voice, the dagger trembling slightly at his fingertips, as if it were a living thing eager for blood.
He swiftly cut the Viscount’s wrist, and blood surged forth, not dripping down, but instead pulled by an invisible force, suspended in the air, forming a constantly spinning blood bead, drawing more of the Viscount’s blood.
"By blood as the guide, by hatred as the flame..."
The Curse Master’s voice became hoarse, the air around seemed to freeze, raindrops halted in mid-air, even the sound of the wind vanished.
The blood bead began to boil, tiny cracks appeared on its surface, as if something inside was struggling to break free.
Suddenly.
It exploded violently, turning into a crimson, arrow-like mark.
"Only you can see the tracking mark. Where does it point?"
The Curse Master asked.
Viscount Ironthorn, pale-faced, took a bottle of healing potion from his robe, tilted his head back to drink it, color gradually returning to his face, then gazed northward.
"We now have a general direction."
"But the wilderness is vast and fraught with peril. To track the target precisely, we’re bound to face considerable difficulty."
The Curse Master suggested, "Why not request a military company to accompany us?"
Viscount Ironthorn shook his head, "The Raymond Duchy’s forces stationed in the wilderness are limited, and my connections within the Duchy’s military are primarily at the border. The garrison here does not heed my orders, nor would the Federation Guard care about my concerns."
The stations of the various countries’ garrisons in the Sel Wilderness, and the guards of the trade routes, among others.
Their task is to defend the strongholds, not to recklessly move away from their bases, especially the Federation Guard, who only move out when a major incident occurs, which requires a substantial cleanup effort. It’s not easy to mobilize them.
At least.
The three juvenile dragons have not yet reached a level that the Federation Guard considers a critical threat that must be dealt with immediately.
Granted, causing significant casualties and raiding mining outposts has crossed the line, but Galos did not kill indiscriminately, and the attacks were directed solely at the Raymond Duchy.
In this situation, although the Federation Guard has also issued a bounty on the few juvenile dragons, they are not entirely committed.
The Raymond Duchy’s wilderness garrison will not stand idly by; otherwise, news will spread, and more dragons, or other intelligent monsters, will come to plunder their mines.
But they now need to assess the losses, organize their bases, answer to higher authorities, and wait for reinforcements.
The pursuit of the juvenile dragons cannot be launched immediately.
And Viscount Ironthorn could not wait any longer.
Regardless of when the garrison would take action, he first sent word about the juvenile dragons’ whereabouts in the north, then prepared to take the Dragon Hunting Squad there first, hopefully to exact revenge personally.
"We’ll need to be patient and cautious."
The Curse Master said, "Do not underestimate the dangers of the wilderness."
Meanwhile.
North of Shattered Stone Beach.
"Galos, don’t you think you’re overestimating those humans?"
In the light rain, the Red Dragon flapped its wings, saying, "We should be fine once we retreat to the Quenching Highlands, so why continue north?"
The northern region here is close to the Eternal Frost Tundra.
The further north, the lower the temperature in the air, which the Red Dragon found somewhat unpleasant.
Galos did not answer, casting his eyes down on the ground.
Ogres, Jackal-Wolf Folk, Kobolds... these followers migrated across the ground like ants, forming long streams, the young followers in the center, with strong, formidable combat units on the flanks and front and rear.
The Iron Dragon explained to Galos: "During this period, they will certainly crack down hard, so we should lie low and stay away from the Thousand Snake Mark."
The likelihood of the Federation Guard pursuing them is low, but they will not tolerate the Monster Race repeatedly appearing on trade routes. Once they sense any trouble, they will strike, unlike before when they couldn’t be bothered to clean up unless it was absolutely necessary.
This was the price for flipping the table previously.
"But there’s no need for us to venture deep into the north."
Samantha said, "Finding a new territory in the wilderness and lying low for a while is better than heading into unfamiliar areas."
At this, Galos shook his head and said, "To lie low means losing access to resources, and our growth speed would slow down."
He said seriously, "Remember, weakness is the greatest risk."
The small Elf Dragon among the juvenile dragons blinked and asked in confusion: "Galos, didn’t you say time is on our side?"
Galos nodded and said calmly, "Yes, but that doesn’t mean we can completely retreat into our shells and remain weak for long."
Growth and development versus lying low and enduring.
There must be a balance between these, a consideration of trade-offs.
One must not lean entirely to one side.
In order to lie low and endure, Galos chose to abandon the previous territory, while for growth and development, he chose to head north.
This was not a random choice.
After meticulous discussion with Solrog, Galos decided on the border area north of the Estonian River as their revival land.
This region combines the wilderness’s savagery and the tundra’s chaos.
Although the Estonian River is not as flourishing as the Thousand Snake Mark, as a broad waterway connecting and dividing the wilderness and the tundra, it sees countless merchant ships stopping by each year, and the guard forces are concentrated at dam gates and the like, not part of the same system as the Thousand Snake Mark’s guards.
Upon arriving at the border area, being active on the waterway.
The ’sin value’ of Galos and the other dragons resets; unless they attack those dam gates and key chokepoints, they need not worry too much about threats from the guard forces.
Further north in the border area, it is primarily monster territory, with no garrisons from civilized realms.
The juvenile dragons no longer need to lie low, and can appropriately display their presence.
The only downside is that the border area is barren, unlike the wilderness with its inexhaustible mineral resources. Finding a sustainable source of wealth is necessary to engage in normal trade and obtain growth resources.
After some time communicating.
Samantha also understood the reasons, yet she still preferred the dry, scorching wilderness, albeit not during the wretched rainy season.
"Will we ever return to the wilderness?"
She asked.
"We will."
The Red Iron Dragon said with deep eyes, "When we are fully grown, we will return to the wilderness and remind those who call themselves civilized, of the fear once instilled by the Dragon Race."
"Yes, yes, let them know the might of the Ignatius Brothers!"
The Elf Dragon exclaimed, hands on hips, as if it were also one of the Ignatius Brothers.
Due to the followers’ slow marching speed and occasional attacks from wild beasts and monsters, to quicken the pace, Galos had the Red Dragon and Iron Dragon lead the way ahead, using Dragon’s Might to deter the wild beasts and monsters.
The followers of the Molten Iron Clan have all been proven by time.
Their presence greatly facilitates the lives of the dragons, and with the influence of The Prince’s methods, their loyalty is guaranteed.
Re-establishing followers would take time to cultivate and train.
Unless absolutely necessary, the juvenile dragons would not easily abandon these followers, as they too are part of their wealth.
Galos circled at the height of the sky, scanning the surroundings with a broad view.
In case any legion pursued them, he must ensure he could spot the target at the first opportunity, and then decide whether to flee or fight.
As he flew leisurely between the high-altitude clouds.
Galos turned his gaze southward, towards the territory of the Lothern Federation.
"It’s a pity that Viscount Ironthorn, who disrupted my peaceful life and forced my migration, making it impossible to focus on my training, is within the southern Federation borders, and I can’t do anything about him in the short term."
Galos thought to himself, regrettably.
