Chapter 267
Arigatone~
The setting sun cast golden rays upon the lush green lawns of the Hisna Manor, while busy servants bustled about in the courtyard, making final preparations for the upcoming banquet.
Nacho stood on the corridor watching all this, toying with a silver coin in his hand.
The silver coin features the emblem of the Empire's Dragon Slayer Army – a pair of dragon wings flanked by two long swords crossed in an "X" shape.
Within the Empire's Royal Family, coins made of different materials represented different social statuses and the different powers they wielded.
From the bottom to the top, there are copper coins, silver coins, gold coins, and Unicorn Crystal representing being second only to the emperor and above all others.
It took Nacho Salaman nearly twenty years to turn the copper coins in his hands into the silver coins they are today.
Although it may seem like a situation where one is neither good enough for a high-end job nor good enough for a low-end one, it is already a height in life that most people cannot reach.
Further up, there lies the most chaotic vortex within the imperial power structure, where those who hold gold coins are all shrewd and calculating politicians and ministers.
Nacho knew he wasn't at that level yet, and that his greatest success was simply to protect his own territory and avoid losing his head.
Having come this far, Nacho is not most grateful to 'that person' who promoted him all the way.
It was a 'ghost'—a ghost that had disappeared twenty years ago.
Twenty years ago, Nacho witnessed the unprecedented and fierce battle and truly saw the Dragon Race's fanatical obsession with revenge.
That man named Leon Casmod was ridiculously strong. If Ravi hadn't sacrificed himself to take him down with him, life in the Empire would probably never have been as peaceful as it is now.
Nacho will not be promoted or awarded a position afterward.
At that time, Leon was a tempting target for the royal family and their nobles. Anyone who could achieve success in anything related to Leon was guaranteed a promotion and wealth.
So Nacho is very grateful to that guy; without him, he wouldn't have been able to climb to where he is today.
Of course—
Nacho looked at the silver coin in his hand, a slight smile playing on his lips.
He could only silently thank that monster who was so powerful that he didn't belong to this dimension.
It's impossible to thank you in person now.
At that moment, a burly waiter quietly passed through Nacho's line of sight, carrying a tray in his hand, his head unusually bowed.
Nacho's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the other person's footsteps.
He turned his head to look at the tall waiter's back, a thought flickering in his mind, and murmured, "Strange... I don't think I've seen this person before."
"Sir, the room is ready. Let's go and wait for them," another man said respectfully as he approached Nacho.
"Scott, have you seen that dark-haired waiter?" Nacho asked.
Scott is Nacho's current deputy, helping him with some of the day-to-day tasks.
Once Nacho gets promoted again, Scott will be able to take his place.
Following Nacho's gaze, Scott narrowed his eyes slightly, carefully examining the back of the black-haired waiter, then shook his head. "Never seen him before, probably a new hire. Hisna Manor has very strict standards for waiters and servants, so don't worry, sir."
Nacho nodded and didn't pay much more attention.
The two walked through the corridor and headed to the most luxurious restaurant in the Hessna Manor.
After taking their seats, Nacho asked, "How much longer until Gini and the others arrive?"
"About twenty minutes," Scott replied.
"Okay, go patrol the area again to make sure everyone here is one of our people."
"Yes, sir."
Nacho was cautious in his actions. He would always arrive at the manor early for each welcome banquet to arrange manpower and set up guard posts.
He enjoys the feeling of having everything under his control.
Twenty years ago, Nacho knew nothing of power;
Casmod's disappearance indirectly gave him a taste of power.
That feeling was like a poison that seeps into your bones; once you're hooked, you can't stop.
Nacho sat upright at the dining table, his eyes slightly closed, quietly waiting for the arrival of the Vanguard Special Operations Team.
Squeak—
The door opened.
Then came the dull, slow sound of footsteps.
"Isn't it still half an hour until we arrive?"
Nacho didn't open his eyes, and his tone carried a hint of displeasure.
He disliked that Scott got the time wrong, and he disliked that the planned itinerary was disrupted by those three idiots arriving at the banquet early.
This would give him a sense of unease about losing control of his power.
However, when Nacho questioned him, the other party did not respond.
He simply closed the door quietly.
Nacho slowly opened his eyes. "I'm asking you a question, Scott, you—"
Upon seeing the dark-haired man in the room, Nacho's words caught in his throat.
The other person was wearing a waiter's uniform and carrying a plate with a fork and knife on it.
But Nacho knew that with the opponent's strength, anything could become a weapon for killing, let alone a knife and fork.
At that moment, Nacho felt like he was dreaming.
Or perhaps, it was a ghost.
Fear exploded in Nacho's heart. He wanted to scream, but the oppressive aura emanating from the man in front of him rendered Nacho speechless for a moment.
It felt like a stone was stuck in my throat.
His hands began to feel numb, and the sensation spread all the way to his feet.
Nacho slowly widened his eyes, his eyes bulging as if about to burst, the whites of his eyes filled with bloodshot veins.
In the end, Nacho revealed the other person's name:
"Leon... Casmod..."
His name is like a key that unlocks the invisible shackles on Nacho's body.
It seems that just talking about it makes me feel a little better.
Nacho's heart was pounding, but he tried to remain calm.
He quietly lowered one arm and squeezed his fingers hard with his nails under the table, trying to use the pain to keep himself calm.
Leon wasn't particularly surprised that Nacho recognized him.
He slowly walked forward, pulled out a chair, sat down, and casually placed the plate containing the knife in front of him.
Leon leaned back in his chair, lazily watching Nacho across from him.
He remained silent, simply gazing at the other person.
Nacho didn't dare to meet Leon's eyes; he swallowed hard.
Damn it, where are the sentries? Where are the patrols? Where are the bodyguards?!
Why didn't any of these idiots report anything?!
Just then, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the restaurant.
Scott burst through the door, panting heavily, and cried out in a panic, "It's terrible, sir! Our men have been... killed...— Leon Casmod?!"
After a brief moment of surprise, Scott reacted quickly and immediately turned around to go get help.
However, as soon as he turned around, he ran into two tall girls.
They had their hands in their pockets, nodded slightly, and had kind eyes.
Snap—
Leon snapped his fingers. "What are you doing standing outside? Come in and sit down."
Noa stepped forward from outside the door, and a faint electric current suddenly flickered around her.
Having no other choice, Scott had no choice but to sheepishly retreat and go inside to sit with Nacho.
Leon stared at Nacho with a blank expression, revealing his unease.
After a brief silence, Leon said in a low voice, "I know you may be curious about why I'm still alive, but I don't have time to explain it to you. Now, I want you to tell me where the Heart-protecting Dragon Scale collected by the Empire are."
Leon's tone was calm, but it carried an irresistible pressure, which brought Nacho's fear to its peak.
He opened his mouth, trying to stall Leon for time until the arrival of the Knife Trio.
Regardless of whether Leon is as formidable as he was back then, he is nothing more than a vulnerable ant in front of the Knife Trio.
So--
Nacho was taken aback. He stared at Leon's face and was surprised to find that the man looked exactly the same as he did twenty years ago, without any signs of aging.
Could it be... that he also had a transplant—
"Nacho, we're all old friends, why waste time here?"
Leon stood up and slowly walked behind Nacho and Scott.
Snap—
He slapped Nacho and Scott hard on the shoulders with both hands.
The heavy slap made Scott, the deputy, tremble all over.
Nacho, however, remained staring straight ahead, motionless.
"Alright, since that's the case, I'll have no choice but to use some tough measures."
"Leon, you—"
With a swift chop, Nacho's vision went black, and he instantly lost consciousness.
"Sir, are you... are you alright?"
"Oh, I forgot about you."
Another chop to the neck, and Scott and his Lord Nacho were both slumped onto the dining table.
Leon carried the two men on his shoulders, one on each side.
Noa and Mu En also entered the room.
"The Knife Trio is here. Let's get out of here quickly."
"OK".
The father and his two daughters quickly walked out of the dining room and went around to the back door of the Hisna Manor.
Aurorla had already prepared a carriage, and once the group boarded, she spurred her horse and rode away at full speed.
At midnight, in an abandoned wine cellar, Leon and his daughters are discussing how to obtain intelligence.
Leon rubbed his wrist, his fist stained with blood. "Torture is probably useless now. If it could talk, it would have opened its mouth with the first punch; if it can't, no amount of hitting will make it open."
"Dad, is your punch comparable to a normal person's punch?"
Aurorla seemed to realize something. "No, I have to go check if those two guys are dead."
Leon pulled his youngest daughter back. "Relax, I was careful to control my strength. I've done interrogations before when I was leading troops in battle, but not many times."
Noa raised an eyebrow. "Intelligence must be very important during wartime, right? If you rarely interrogate prisoners of war, where do you get your intelligence?"
The old father shrugged, "Just push straight through, what intelligence do we need?"
Noa rolled her eyes, speechless.
"... Hmm, simple and straightforward, which fits my stereotype of my Dad perfectly," Aurorla concluded with an air of seriousness.
"However, we can't just push through this time. We're outnumbered and there are too many unknowns. If we want to know the exact location of the Heart-protecting Dragon Scale, we have to start with Nacho and his friend," Noa said.