Chapter 60: That’s It

    [If you hand me that dragon, I will help you.]

    A voice echoed in his head.

    Ian was startled by the strange voice. Of course, he wasn’t too surprised because he had experienced it.

    ‘Is this telepathy?’

    Ian knew it well because he had experienced it during the war in the past.

    Moreover, such a clear voice must be the highest grade of telepathy magic. Only the best wizards could pull off this magic.

    Therefore, Ian couldn’t help but be surprised.

    ‘No way...’

    The man presumed to have sent the voice had long red hair. At the same time, Ian could be sure of that since his senses were heightened with Faith.

    His energy was similar to the dragon they caught. Of course, it felt a lot fiercer and more powerful than the one they caught.

    But Ian asked back, not showing his fluster.

    Surely, telepathy worked by communicating through thinking.

    ‘Help? How are you going to help?’

    [Will you hand me that dragon?]

    ‘Are you asking for it to be intact?’

    [Be sure to keep it alive. No dismembering.]

    Ian frowned.

    What was with this “no dismembering”?

    ‘Why did we come here in the first place?’

    Moreover, even if they let the wizards that destroyed the territory off, they could not just hand over the dragon without doing anything.

    Thus, Ian smirked as if to shoo him away.

    ‘No, we can stop it without your help.’

    [That’s an explosion magic circle. Without my help, everyone will die.]

    ‘It’s dangerous only when it’s activated.’

    [?]

    ‘Why, am I wrong? They have not completed the installation of the most important core part yet.’

    One of the dragon’s eyebrows rose at Ian’s words.

    It was strange how a human child knew such information. Because this was the Kingdom of Swordsmen with little information about magic.

    But Ian just smiled.

    ‘It was so scattered that it took me a while to find out, but I know for sure how to break it.’

    He himself wasn’t from the Kingdom of Magicians, so he didn’t have deep knowledge of magic, but he was certain of one thing.

    ‘The center of any magic circle is dangerous.’

    It was usually the case because it was the core.

    That was why Ian ordered them around so that it never got completed.

    Even when he forced the wizards to work and deliberately made them move here and there pointlessly, he also held on to the wizards who were likely to be in charge of the core.

    ‘Usually, the most talented people take charge of the core.’

    He had instructed the deputy lord to get in the way of the man who appeared to be the leader.

    Anyway, he was not in a situation to comply with that condition even if he had to face some unknown risk.

    And in the first place...

    ‘I really need dragon meat. I have to entertain the envoy.’

    [...]

    Ian turned his back calmly.

    The voice was no longer heard in his head. It felt as if telepathy had been cut off.

    But at that moment, Ian’s heart thumped as fast as it could.

    It was inevitable.

    ‘There’s one more rare dragon.’

    That was not all. Presumably, if that person was a dragon, it would not have been a Lesser Dragon or an Earth Dragon. Ian had seen the two dragons a few times in his previous life.

    However, dragons that morphed into humans were simply creatures that came from myths and legends.

    And he might be mistaken, but if that’s a dragon...

    ‘A Celestial Dragon class at minimum or higher...’

    Nowadays, Lesser Dragons and Earth Dragons were lumped together and called dragons. Those above the Celestial Dragon class were even highly valued in the Kingdom of Magicians. Some research results also pointed out that they were the masters of magic.

    However, Ian immediately shook his head.

    ‘They couldn’t have made such a request.’

    Recalling dragons’ characteristics in the first place, if they went their own way and just took it with their own strength, wouldn’t that be enough? It’s the magic that humans had, and it could be broken down with just a blow of breath.

    But that wasn’t the point now.

    “Sir Nathan, how is it going?”

    “Haha, who do you think I am, Prince? All of them have been thoroughly inspected by checking the size and even touching them. None of them had strange stones in their chests as you said...”

    “There was none.”

    “Oh, then Sir Fiosen must be sure.”

    Feeling wronged by his words, Nathan tried hard to appeal for what he did, but Ian didn’t care.

    ‘Are there no Self-Destruct Wizards?’

    Senior knights could deal with wizards without much problem, but the problem was those guys.

    ‘There are some who commit suicide by stabbing their chests.’

    They were called Self-Destruct Wizards. They were crazy bastards who caused massive damage in future wars.

    The principle behind it was unknown, but the scale of the damage was lethal enough to take the lives of knights who used Oath.

    Oddly enough, there had been knights who would take up bows because of those guys.

    That’s why Ian only watched the wizards without attacking them.

    Anyway, he didn’t know if it hadn’t been developed yet or if they were not related...

    “But don’t forget that they have rune engravings.”

    “I will deal with it before they use the finger seal, Your Highness.”

    “Don’t worry. If Sir Nathan fails, I can handle it.”

    Nathan glared at Fiosen as if he was being unbelievable, but Ian ignored them and turned around.

    ‘I can leave the dragon to Galon.’

    He was the most reliable and trustworthy of them all.

    And Ian commanded Albert, the deputy lord, to move.

    “We could have gone in. Was it even necessary to explode it?”

    Why didn’t he believe in them? Besides, that lord castle was the building that Ian would definitely use.

    It was such a waste.

    But Ian was adamant.

    Those fellows were from a kingdom that had a contrasting way of thinking from theirs.

    “Never let your guard down. They must have been on high alert by now. It’s better if my people didn’t get hurt instead.”

    Then Fiosen looked at Ian with a slight surprise on his face.

    He looked as if he had never seen a lord who cared so much for his own people before.

    It was then.

    “Cough...”

    The wizards crawled through the collapsed building. They must have been bewildered by the unexpected weapon.

    But there was one who seemed fairly decent among them.

    It was their leader, Giovanni.

    Sure enough.

    “You repay kindness with ingratitude. What have you done to us just now?”

    “That’s what we are asking instead.”

    “What are you saying?”

    Ian smiled nonchalantly.

    “Do you really want to buy the dragon? I checked your bags and it looked like you didn’t have any money.”

    “...!?”

    Giovanni hesitated for a moment but soon smiled fishily.

    “Oh, that’s great. Well, I don’t know how you will stop that.”

    And at that moment.

    ROOOAARR!!

    “!”

    A great roar swept through the territory. It wasn’t simply deafening.

    “Urk!”

    The soldiers were swept away by a strong shock wave. The dragon began to run berserk all of a sudden.

    As evidence of that, thick blood vessels bulged all over the body, and the scales began to burn and melt the steel chains.

    The knights immediately lifted their swords.

    “Tch, that bastard!”

    But Ian stopped them.

    “Not that one! Catch that wizard!”

    “What? But the dragon—!”

    “That wizard must be controlling the dragon!”

    “!”

    At the words, the knights immediately moved as if they had noticed something, and Giovanni gritted his teeth.

    ‘That... Damn you brat!’

    The swift Nathan appeared before Giovanni.

    “Where are you going!”

    But then.

    “!”

    Giovanni’s figure disappeared in an instant. Nathan was taken by surprise.

    ‘Teleportation?’

    The knights shrank back after witnessing the skill they had only heard of in books. Ian frowned as well.

    Obviously, the only ones who could teleport were the wizards who had reached the apex among the three-star wizards.

    That meant he was never an easy foe.

    The moment everyone finally stopped moving and had no choice but to focus their senses.

    Only one person moved.

    That was Ian.

    ‘How dare you use petty tricks!’

    Ian knew how the wizards fought. The characteristics of the wizards who used [Teleportation] were particularly obvious.

    And so, Ian immediately took out the royal sword and swung it backward.

    Then.

    Shii—iing!

    “Argh!”

    “Your Highness!”

    Along with Giovanni’s scream, an arm flew up.

    Giovanni teleported behind Ian and tried to kidnap him. Among these people, Ian must have been the most valuable hostage.

    ‘There is no way this bunch can attack the knights in close combat.’

    At his appearance, the knights immediately moved.

    Ian saw something flying along with Giovanni’s arm. It was the object used to control the dragon.

    ‘That’s it!’

    Ian grabbed the object without hesitation. This could solve the dragon problem.

    Seeing that, Giovanni, having teleported again, clenched his teeth.

    Flames rose from his other hand. It was the ultimate flame magic. Giovanni’s life was all in that magic.

    “I will kill you for sure. If I kill the heir of King Kaistein, he will like it.”

    “Stop him!”

    The knights and Ian made a move, but the teleporting guy was a little faster.

    Ian also activated Faith, but he instinctively felt that this power could not be stopped by it. The other power, Humility, had already disappeared.

    The very moment the flames that seemed to scorch the earth aimed for Ian’s life.

    Tap.

    Someone grabbed Giovanni by the shoulder. In an instant, his magic vanished.

    And.

    “That’s it.”

    The suffocating bloodlust of a beast overwhelmed the surroundings.