Chapter 216
"After you left, the Empire also relentlessly pursued Rebecca and me, but this intense pursuit only lasted for about a month."
"A month later, the empire poured even more manpower and resources into the Dragon Slayer Army, and the number of battles against the Dragon Race increased." —Bah
"And according to the information Martin gathered within the royal family, the Dragon Slayer Army hasn't launched any further attacks on your Silver Dragon Clan. They're probably afraid of your strength; after all, killing Constantine is a topic that practically everyone in the Empire's Royal Family trembles at the mention of."
"Even so, Leon, you and the Silver Dragon King cannot let your guard down. The fact that they went so far as to send Constantine to invade the Silver Dragon Clan shows their unwavering determination to eliminate you."
"Perhaps the current Dragon Slayer Army is just feigning an attack on other Dragon Race; their real target is you, understand?"
Leon nodded. "I understand, Master."
"Hmm. So, what follows are some deductions that Rebecca and I have made based on the clues we've gathered over the past three months. They're unrelated to the Dragon Race, but they should involve some behind-the-scenes aspects of the Empire's Royal Family."
Tiger said, ⑨
"Do you remember when the last King died?" Lin
Leon was taken aback, not expecting his master to ask such a question, but he still thought for a moment and then said, "More than thirty years ago, it was mentioned in the textbooks and some biographies of people from the Dragon Slaying Academy."
"Yes, thirty years ago. A while ago, Rebecca and I went through all the newspapers, documents, and records from before and after the death of the previous King, and we discovered something very strange." (Nine)
Leon lowered his brow. "What strange thing?"
"There are no photographs of the King's body in any of the records concerning his death."
Tiger's tone was serious, and his pace quickened slightly.
"When the King died, the people should have paid their respects to this great leader. However, at the funeral, the King's body was sealed tightly, and not only ordinary people, but even some close confidants were unable to see the King."
"In addition, Rebecca and I collected newspapers from other years and were surprised to find that not only the previous King, but also many members of the royal family and ministers, had their lives recorded only in words when they died, and their bodies were not photographed at the funeral."
"If this is to protect the privacy of the royal family and not to disclose it to the public, then how do you explain the fact that photos of the bodies of every previous King could be seen in the news media at the time of their death?"
Tiger sighed, looked into his apprentice's eyes, and uttered his bold conjecture, "So I suspect... those who truly hold power in the Empire's Royal Family now are the people who should have died decades ago."
Leon was somewhat bewildered.
He struggled to process his master's speculation, scratched his head, and said...
"A clue like a photo of a corpse is probably not enough to support your idea, Master."
Leon knew the old man was a rather eccentric person;
But this speculation is a bit too crazy, and we should not make any conclusions lightly.
"Of course not."
Tiger said, "The reason I thought of going through the newspapers and records from that time is because during my time in the Empire, I suddenly realized a problem: the current King's policies for governing the country are basically the same as those of the previous King, with no significant reforms."
Leon's mind stirred slightly, and he glanced at Losweiser was sitting quietly to the side, out of the corner of his eye.
He has learned a lot about the ways of kingship from Losweiser lately.
Based on what his master had just said, he quickly realized what his master meant and added,
"It is very abnormal for those in power not to change policies or other governance methods. Every newly appointed ruler will try to erase everything left by the previous ruler in order to consolidate his position, because from the moment he ascends the throne, the country belongs to him, and he will not allow any ruler other than himself to interfere with the country."
To put it bluntly, a new broom sweeps clean.
The first fire was used to burn away all the enemies he had encountered along the way.
The second step is to burn away all the incriminating evidence left behind in the past.
The third fire was to burn away all traces of the previous ruler's existence.
Leon's words made Tiger's eyes light up, and he opened his mouth in surprise.
My dear disciple, didn't I tell you not to know about these power struggles and such before?
How come you can talk about these things so knowledgeably now?
After listening to Leon's reasoning, Losweiser was sitting quietly to the side, also quietly revealed a barely perceptible smile.
I didn't expect this idiot to learn so quickly.
"Yes, you think the same way I do."
Tiger said, "Since the current King's coronation, the empire's economic system, social system, culture, education, welfare policies, and so on, have all remained unchanged, which is absolutely abnormal. So I thought of the previous King and wanted to investigate him. That's how I found out about the body at the funeral."
Leon pondered for a moment, then said quietly, "If it's really as you said, Master, that the previous King and other ministers faked their deaths and are still in control of the empire behind the scenes, then they must all be at least... over a hundred years old, right? Very few normal humans live to be over a hundred years old."
Let alone whether a normal human being can live to be over a hundred years old, even if they did, their physical functions and cognitive abilities would be far from sufficient to control a country.
"Eternal Life, my child."
Tiger sighed heavily.
"Eternal Life is something those in power have been pursuing for hundreds of years."
Eternal Life...?
Leon savored the word.
In fact, he believes that Eternal Life is a somewhat contradictory thing.
In their entire lives, many people may never have mentioned, or seriously considered, what "Eternal Life" really is, how to achieve it, or what the price of Eternal Life is.
But when life comes to an end, many people lament and regret why they can't live longer, even at the cost of money, health, or something else, just to live a little longer.
Eternal Life rarely appears as a serious topic in most people's lives, but after everyone has lived a mediocre or glorious life, they always want to seek more lifespan from this definition that they have never seriously thought about.
Take Leon himself, for example. Before forming this fake family with Losweiser, he had never considered things like Eternal Life or lifespan.
Because Leon received proper death education when he was a child.
The nuns at the orphanage and his seemingly rough but actually meticulous master both taught him how to face death properly.
After this fake family was established, Leon did indeed think about the difference in lifespan between humans and dragons.
He thought and thought, but he couldn't come up with a reason.
Dragon Race have a longer lifespan than humans, but they will eventually be buried in this land.
Therefore, Leon believed that no one could escape death.
The so-called "Eternal Life" is nothing more than wanting to leave a little trace of oneself in this bizarre and wonderful world.
Just like Master's bold speculation, the previous King may not have died, but has retreated behind the scenes and become the true ruler who secretly controls the country.
So much so that even after thirty years, the empire still bears the marks of the previous King's rule.
Leon snapped out of his thoughts and asked, "If the previous King really faked his death, how did he manage to extend his lifespan?"
The master also had some speculations about this. "Eternal Life or longevity has been a research topic for royal alchemists for hundreds of years, so... perhaps the research has made progress?"
"But if it really is the work of the royal alchemist, then why would the King need to fake his death to cover up the results of this experiment?"
Leon said, "A longer lifespan means more resources can be accumulated, and his rule will be more firmly established. He can also showcase humanity's magical achievements and demonstrate his strength to the outside world. But faking death means he can only retreat to the background. Although he still holds real power, it is still inconvenient in many things, isn't it?"
This was a point Tiger Leon hadn't considered before.
The old man stroked his chin, frowned in thought, and murmured, "Indeed... then what do these doubts and clues really mean...?"
New conjectures brought new questions, and Leon, quick-witted, immediately uttered a sentence.
"The means and costs behind this so-called Eternal Life may never be made public."
After a pause, Leon added, "Of course, groundbreaking research like Eternal Life or lifespan extension is understandable if it's not publicized, either for secrecy or to conceal one's capabilities. But..."
"I'm still more inclined to believe that the Empire's research into the 'Price of Eternal Life' is something that can't be brought to light. And... it might also involve this epic, protracted Human-Dragon War."
Tiger was a little confused by his apprentice's train of thought. "What do you mean?"
"Think about it, Master, the war between humans and Dragon Race has lasted for thousands of years. There are just too many things involved. Every step taken and every decision made by both sides may be related to the other."
Leon explained, "That's why I think the former King's Eternal Life, or rather, extended lifespan, is inextricably linked to the Dragon Race and even the entire war."
Tiger remained silent, pondering Leon's thoughts.
At this moment, Rebecca, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, her tone quite serious, "I think what the captain said makes sense."
The usually carefree and crazy girl suddenly joined in such a serious conversation, and both Tiger and his father couldn't help but cast their gazes at her.
"Oh? How does that make sense? Tell me your thoughts."
Tiger thought that young people probably think faster and don't have an age gap, so it's easy for them to communicate. Rebecca should also be able to understand what Leon is saying more quickly than he does.
Rebecca looked very serious and said,
"Because the captain talks a lot, following his ideas must be the right thing to do!"
Tiger: "..."
Leon: "..."
Losweiser: It's hard to hold back, I want to laugh.
No, I can't laugh. I have to hold it in. I'm the Queen; I have to be serious.
Leon slapped Rebecca across the face and shoved her aside, saying, "Go away, go play somewhere else. Kids shouldn't interrupt adults."
Rebecca took a few steps to the side, then stuck her tongue out at Leon. "You're only a year older than me, you stupid straight man!"
Leon ignored the child and turned to continue discussing the next plan with his master.
Seeing that the father and son were chatting enthusiastically without including her, Rebecca suddenly had the idea of going solo.
The Weak and Sickly Combo are not worthy of receiving this medal!
The little girl chewed on bubble gum, her hands in her pockets, her head down, kicking pebbles on the ground listlessly.
Suddenly, a pebble rolled away uncontrollably.
Rebecca was about to kick it when she realized that the pebble was rolling toward Losweiser, as if by some terrible twist of fate.
Snap—
A pebble gently tapped on Losweiser's high heels. She slowly opened her silver eyes, looked down, and then looked up at the person who had kicked the pebble.
The moment Rebecca met Losweiser's vertical dragon eyes, she couldn't help but feel a little nervous.
She didn't have the captain's courage; not only did she dare to confront the Dragon King, but she also married him and had children with him.
She was just a 22-year-old female gunner. She was a bit crazy, but she knew that the person calmly staring at her at this moment was not some aloof beauty, but a genuine dragon king.
In Rebecca's mind, Dragon Race were still synonymous with brutality. 8.
This Dragon King is the captain's wife, not Rebecca's. Who knows what she might do to her? Umbrella
However—neighbor
The Dragon King wouldn't be so petty... It's just a small pebble, no need to get angry, right? (Nine)
Rebecca was still mentally replaying the events, but Losweiser remained remarkably calm. (The rest of the text appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated.)
She turned her gaze away from Rebecca, then extended her tail and discreetly swept the small pebble at her feet back into place. (Qi)
Then close your eyes again to rest (eight) IIIling kick the neighbor VII Jiu Wu Ba Shen. Jiu
The pebble rolled back to Rebecca's feet, and she secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Whoosh
Looks like the captain married a very gentle Dragon Wife. (Scar)
The little interaction between the crazy girl and the Queen went unnoticed by the master and apprentice.
After exchanging intelligence and finalizing the next course of action, Leon inquired about his master's wife.
"Is my master's wife still with her family?"
Tiger pursed his lips, seemingly hesitant to speak, but finally replied, "Yes, it's still there, and it's safe."
Leon scratched his head and said, "Master, why don't you tell me where my master's wife's family is? I'll go visit her when I have time. It's been a long time since I've seen my master's wife."
It's been a long time since I've seen a donkey.
"Well... her family home is quite remote, it's hard to explain verbally." The master was a bit vague. "I'll take you there after the affairs of the Empire are settled."
Why does that old man seem reluctant to let me see my master's wife?
Leon had some doubts, but he didn't say anything. He just nodded in agreement, "Okay, we'll talk about it later."
"Um."