Chapter 4

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Chapter 4: The Annoying Rat Dropping

Akka stared wide-eyed at the sudden emergence of the golden giant dragon and the long blade-like edge less than a foot from his face, turning pale with fear. He had heard about the golden dragon’s reputation as the “Dragon of Slaughter,” but he never expected it to be so close, ready to attack right in front of his partner, the fire dragon Misael.

“What do you want, Gold Coin? Just because you think you’re strong doesn’t mean I’m afraid of you! I’m not easy to mess with!” Misael roared loudly, furious at Gold Coin, who had always rubbed him the wrong way. Darn it, this unpredictable golden giant dragon almost killed his partner right in front of him! The dragon deity should never have included the golden giant dragon in the list of contractable dragon species.

Misael unleashed a scorching wall of fire to protect his knight, the intense heat turning the sharp edge extending from Gold Coin’s wing glowing red, even causing it to emit light. The flames’ high temperature made Gold Coin feel a tingling sensation in its metallic body; after all, extreme heat would weaken its control and reaction in those metal parts.

However, the golden giant dragon merely smirked and retracted its blade, disdainfully lying back down.

“Let me see, let me see! Haha! Here you are, two dragon knights, Morin and Akka, waiting to be killed by your own dragons! Are these two disobedient dragons fighting amongst themselves? You’re the disgrace of the Dragon Knight Legion!” A bothersome voice rang out from above the snow peaks, interrupting Morin and Akka’s conversation, having witnessed the whole scene.

Morin and Akka’s expressions changed, their eyes flashing with disgust as they looked up to see a bipedal dragon carrying a young man clad in extremely flashy armor soaring over the snowy peaks.

This guy was Glan, the only son of Minister Harrison, who wielded immense power and connections through his father. With those advantages, he managed to score a bipedal dragon as his mount, donned in finely crafted mithril armor, and a magnificent cape. He forced his way into the Dragon Knight Legion and claimed the title of Air Knight, often using this title to flirt around.

Now here he was, sent to the battlefield to earn military merit, wearing his overly gaudy mithril armor and showcasing a battle energy that was barely useful. He acted like a huge target in the sky, appearing to pick up scraps while the real Air Knights fought.

There was no help for it. His father was one of the four ministers in charge of finance, law, civil affairs, and military affairs in the empire. Count Mukolib, the supervising officer of the Dragon Knight Legion, was a sycophant who eagerly courted Minister Harrison, while Commander Ruger, although upright, had to bow to power, secretly instructing every dragon knight to cater to this arrogant brat, even letting him take some credit to make him leave sooner.

As soon as Glan appeared, Morin and Akka exchanged glances, feeling as if a rat dropping had spoiled a pot of porridge.

“Akka, you’re a noble! Don’t get too close to the commoners! Be careful not to tarnish your status.” Perhaps wary of Akka’s noble background, Glan, riding his dragon, hovered unsteadily above, directing his ire at Morin. “Morin! Just remember, today you will take down ten enemies for me and count them as my military achievements. If you disobey, you’ll face consequences. You ought to be grateful to me, a noble like me! Don’t think just because you’re a dragon knight, you can disregard me. Bah! Commoners will always be commoners!”

Coming from nobility, Glan loved to show off his noble bloodline in front of the common-born dragon knights, pointing fingers arrogantly, acting recklessly, and even extorting military achievements and spoils.

It’s as if the divine was controlling things from the shadows; those who could sign dragon deity contracts tended to come from common backgrounds a bit more frequently. Glan, however, could not even establish a scrap of soul resonance with any giant dragon. He could only ride a pitiful sub-dragon enslaved by a contract, masquerading as a dragon knight in the legion. Even the few other Air Knights riding non-giant dragons avoided him, keeping their distance.

Glan cursed and threatened Morin, this wasn’t the first time he acted like this. His father’s favoritism and the obsequiousness of those ambitious officials only worsened the situation.

This guy was a real jerk.

“Glan, I’m not afraid of you! If you threaten my friends again, I’ll knock you out!” Before Morin could get angry, Akka jumped up, flames swirling around him. The temperature around him surged as he resonated with the fire element of the dragon beside him, the ground sizzling beneath his feet.

Seeing Akka suddenly lose his temper, Glan, the minister’s son, wisely pulled back his dragon, not forgetting to retaliate: “Akka, just because you’re a dragon knight doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want. I’m not afraid of you. Mind your business! We’ll see about this!” With that, he hurried off, fearing that if he lingered, Akka’s fist would find its way to him.

In comparison to giant dragons, bipedal dragons really fell short, and Glan couldn’t help but feel envy and jealousy.

“Morin, don’t let a person like that get to you; it’s not worth it!” Akka seethed, watching the jerk fly away on his bipedal dragon, clenching his fists tightly, planning to deal with this ungrateful fool the next time they crossed paths. If things continued like this, the reputation of dragon knights could be tarnished because of him. He added indignantly, “Who would’ve thought to meet someone like him in this battle? Like a disgusting fly! What bad luck. Morin! You must be careful; don’t let this useless guy bring you trouble. His battle skills are mediocre, but he’s exceptional at causing chaos!”

“Forget it, can a dog bite back at a human? I’ll be careful!” Morin, who had grown up as a street child, had seen both the warmth and coldness of humanity. He had dealt with noble oppression before, and as long as it didn’t threaten his survival, he wouldn’t be troubled by it. There are good and bad people among commoners, and the same goes for nobles. Akka was one of the few nobles he got close to.

Hearing Morin say this, Akka felt a bit more at ease. However, Morin was indeed the most cautious dragon knight in the Dragon Knight Legion; otherwise, he wouldn’t have successfully partnered with Gold Coin up to this point.

Suddenly, Gold Coin and Misael both lifted their heads, looking southeast. In the sky, a bright red light began to rise, climbing higher and higher, piercing through the clouds and reaching an extreme altitude. It eventually exploded into a ball of fiery cloud.

The playful expression drained from Akka’s face, and he muttered, “Big trouble! The Texi Empire is going all out.” This signal indicated an urgent military situation.

“Let’s go! Misael, let’s make a big hit!” Akka exclaimed, like a bandit spotting a fat, easy target. He couldn’t wait to leap onto the back of his fire dragon Misael, steering far away from the dangerous golden giant dragon. Only someone with Morin’s steadiness could tolerate such a volatile dragon as a mount and still be alive; managing to stay alive was already an unprecedented record against the high-risk nature of their partnership.

Misael twisted its body, flapping its enormous wings as it stirred up a scorching wind. Flames erupted fiercely along its scales as it pushed off the ground with all four claws, shooting into the sky towards Morin, “Morin, hurry up! If you’re late, Commander Dorsey will go mad!”

“Gold Coin! Are you coming or staying here to nurse your wounds?” Morin asked with a slight smile, looking back at the golden giant dragon, unsure if this unpredictable beast would play dirty and leave him behind.

“Less chatter! I want to show those Texi bastards my strength!” The golden giant dragon Gold Coin could no longer endure the shame of having suffered a loss from a ninth-level spell. Suddenly reminded of its previous defeat, it roared and sprang into action.

Morin smiled slightly as he quickly donned his helmet and leaped onto a colossal rock, soaring into the air. Gold Coin flapped its wings, producing an explosive sound as it lifted Morin into the sky. With a single sweep of its wings, it created a series of booming shockwaves, quickly catching up to Misael and Akka, who were already a hundred meters ahead.

The two giant dragons moved swiftly, reaching the area where the signal had risen in no time. From the height of a thousand meters, they looked down and saw a massive gathering of troops on the ground, dark like an ant swarm, only occasionally revealing small patches of brown earth. More dark dots flowed like water, continuously surging from both camps, leaving a narrow strip of confrontation space between the two sides. The tightly packed formation reflected scattered glimmers of sharp weapons, resembling stardust.

Warm, humid air from the distant ocean piled up beneath the snow line of the Helar Mountains, thickening the atmosphere with heavy clouds, intensifying the oppressive mood between heaven and earth.

“Zzz!”

Good heavens! It was like poking a hornet’s nest, causing both Morin and Akka to suck in cold breaths. This was the largest troop gathering since the two nations began their battle, as if a massive powder keg had been upended. Even the smallest spark could ignite an unimaginable situation.