Don't Mess with That Dragon-Chapter 690 - 78 Sacred Artifact

Within the manor,

inside the grand hall.

"Your Majesty, welcome to your arrival."

A middle-aged man with a bushy beard, dressed in a gray robe, slightly bent to show respect for the king's arrival.

King Rufus nodded slightly, not speaking,

indicating for those around to withdraw.

As the surrounding people left and the door closed, soon only the blond middle-aged man and King Rufus remained in the grand hall, creating an atmosphere somewhat dark and spacious.

"The enemy is at the gates, the country's destruction is imminent, I assume you have something to say." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

King Rufus's face was calm, and he spoke in a mild voice.

The man before him belonged to a secretive and immensely powerful organization lurking beneath the shadows of the Central Earth World, responsible for contact within the Frandi Duchy.

How powerful was this organization?

King Rufus didn't know,

because even as a king, he only knew fragments about this power, aware only that it spanned the entire Central Earth World, a secretive organization far exceeding in strength those which operated in darkness and gathered numerous experts of the Dark World, unlike the Thief Guild.

More than a year ago,

it was this organization that facilitated the union of those foolish, greedy individuals who saw only profit, successfully suppressing the conflicts of interest among the Eight Southern Nations, forming an allied army to invade the Kawa Great Forest.

This was the beginning of everything.

However, the outcome was beyond anyone's expectation,

this war directly led to the annihilation of over a hundred thousand allied forces, allowing the Blue Dragon Kingdom to break through the defensive line of the Border Great Wall in one fell swoop, seizing that strategically significant Great Wall.

One could say that the condition of Frandi Duchy was in part an irrefutable responsibility of this organization.

As the master of the entire Frandi Duchy, King Rufus was naturally aware of all this.

After being in power for over a decade,

despite lacking the vision and knowledge for a complete turnaround or reform of the deeply entrenched Frandi Duchy, his long-held grasp of national power enabled him to achieve some accomplishments. The formation of the Eight-Nation Army a year ago was something he was aware of, otherwise, Frandi Duchy wouldn't have participated in the invasion of the Kawa Great Forest.

This move hinting at a surprising accusation aids in the negotiations to follow.

"Your Majesty, although the Saint Ten Illuminati was the spark of this matter, we also suffered significant losses in that scheme. Moreover, even without that event, the threat from the southern Blue Dragon Realm would inevitably have led to a northern military campaign to break the Border Great Wall and start this war within a few years. Our actions merely accelerated this process."

Having all the blame placed on them, the blond middle-aged man naturally wouldn't accept it.

He shook his head and refuted.

In the struggle for interests, whoever retreats damages their own behind-the-scenes benefits.

In the grand hall,

there was a moment of silence.

The atmosphere was somewhat tense, like a standoff.

For a long time, King Rufus took a deep breath.

"There's no need for small talk, just state your demands directly."

Ultimately, Rufus couldn't restrain himself and went straight to the point.

With the enemy at the gates, and the royal city surrounded, seeing the entire Frandi Duchy on the brink of destruction, the other side could afford to drag things out, but he no longer had much leverage.

The blond middle-aged man sighed slightly, but he did not show much joy on his face.

"Your Majesty, our Saint Ten Illuminati bears some responsibility for this matter. I've reported to the Grandmaster, and he agreed to dispatch more than five Legendary Lords, leading elite forces to support us. Coupled with Frandi's heritage, we should be able to overcome this crisis, and maybe even counterattack and reclaim the territory..."

At this point, the blond middle-aged man's words paused slightly, his eyes staring straight at the king.

"However, Your Majesty, as the price for mobilizing such a vast power, we need something."

Five legends, a formidable force throughout the Central Earth World.

Humans lack noble bloodlines naturally, achieving legend step by step through thorns and hardships. However, precisely because of this, once achieving legendary status, human legendary combat power is often higher than that of some higher-bloodline creatures of the same legendary status.

These humans relied on steadily improving themselves, experienced numerous battles, and ultimately broke through bottlenecks with unwavering belief, successfully mastering Law Power, marking them as elite among elites.

In the Legendary Realm, the path of cultivation is chiefly governed by Law Techniques.

On this path, the advantages bloodlines offer are nearly negligible.

Therefore, humans who break through to legendary status are often mightier than creatures of higher legendary bloodlines like those from the Giant Dragon Race that rely on their bloodlines to achieve legendary status.

This force is sufficient to relieve the present siege of the royal city.

The king nodded slightly in his heart, calming himself somewhat, though he did not display it.

He asked calmly:

"What do you want?"

"One of the Seven Holy Artifacts, the Thorny Crown!"

Boom!!!

The previously somewhat calm mood was instantly shattered like a meteor crashing down, stirring up immense waves in his heart!

Even after years as a king, having cultivated an unchanging demeanor, even with the face of disasters,

at this moment, Rufus couldn't contain his shock as a trace of fear flashed across his face. However, it quickly disappeared, much suppressed again.

"The Thorny Crown, what is that? I don't know what you're talking about."

His voice deliberately heavy.

As if trying to suppress the trembling within.

"Your Majesty, why feign ignorance? Since we have proposed this condition, we naturally already understand the truth behind certain things."

King Rufus's fleeting look of fear didn't escape the sharp eyes of the blond-haired man, whose eyes seemed to deepen and whose voice, laden with gravity, remarked:

"An ancient artifact of the Norman Dynasty, revered for seven thousand years by one of the Ancient Seven Kingdoms, was lost in a royal family turmoil a thousand years ago, its whereabouts unknown. Coincidentally, Frandi Duchy began to rise at that time, eventually annexing neighboring smaller kingdoms to become one of the Eight Great Dukedoms."

His tone slightly paused.

"Your Majesty, given Frandi Duchy's current situation, you cannot protect such a sacred artifact. Rather than let it fall into others' hands, it might be better to deliver it to us, in exchange for Frandi Duchy's existence... Moreover, based on calculations made by one of our organization's astrologers, even with more than five Legendary Lords, we wouldn't necessarily win against the southern kingdom."

"To protect Frandi, the power of the Thorny Crown must also rise!"

As his words concluded,

the vast hall,

plunged into a deathly silence.