Repel

As the smoke gradually dispersed, Black and the others who had been struck came into view. Black had lost his left arm, and his wings were damaged as well, but his life was not in danger. The other five dragons were much the same. Though they had suffered some injuries, none were life-threatening. Sordil could not help marveling at the dragons' tenacious vitality. Fortunately, his side had twice the enemy's numbers, and the enemy was already on its last legs. If he still could not claim their kills now, it would be truly embarrassing.

"Prison!"

"Sand Shape: Rock Fist!"

"Wind Sickle!"

Sordil thus continued his grand campaign of picking off enemies and claiming kills. But with the experience from the first time, the other side had become wary, so his attack this time achieved very little. Still, it served as the signal for both sides to resume battle. Gilkunis and the other dragons each chose an opponent and fought fiercely, and combat erupted in an instant. Thanks to their initiative, Fostadu's dragons gradually began suppressing their opponents. Coupled with Sordil's usual hit-and-run ambush tactics, dragons finally began to fall as time passed.

"Boom!"

Just as his side gained the advantage, Sordil pulled back into the canyon, shattered the boulders blocking its exit, and helped the human companions trapped in the valley escape. At that moment, the man Zival had previously intended to assassinate came before Sordil, dropped to one knee, and held the cross-shaped sword in his hands before him.

"What are you doing?" Seeing the other man's strange behavior, a guess surfaced in Sordil's mind, but he still needed to confirm it.

"I pledge my loyalty to you, my master! From this day onward, I shall be your most loyal servant. My descendants shall forever be loyal to you and forever follow in your footsteps!" Seraf bowed his head deeply, offering the sword in his hands to Sordil as he spoke with utter sincerity.

"What is your name?" Sordil was genuinely dumbfounded. Were loyal subordinates this easy to find in ancient times? Or was his personal... no, his draconic charisma just that overwhelming?

"My name is Seraf, Master!" Seraf replied with his head lowered.

"Just Seraf? No family name?" Sordil asked in disbelief. Even commoners like Zeref had family names. In the world of Fairy Tail, Erza seemed to be the only person without one, didn't she?

"No, Master! I am a merchant from the Eastern Continent. In the Eastern Continent, the vast majority of people do not have family names," Seraf answered calmly.

"All right! I accept your loyalty. From this day onward, you are the loyal servant of I, Sordil. I grant you the family name—Kadra. From now on, you shall be Seraf Kadra." Thinking of his later plans, Sordil accepted Seraf's pledge. After helping him to his feet, Sordil began asking about the Eastern Continent.

Seraf told Sordil that he did not know the Eastern Continent's current situation. Three months ago, he had come from the Kingdom of Tsuyioru Xiu on the Eastern Continent to the Western Continent to gather magical materials. He had ended up being pursued by Koreita's dragons, only to be rescued by Woodman and brought back to Fostadu. As a result, he had been stranded on the Western Continent. But three months earlier, relations between the Eastern Continent's nations had been harmonious, without any sign of conflict. Relations between dragons and humans had also been relatively peaceful, which was why they had dared to come to the Western Continent. They had never imagined things would end up this way.

After hearing Seraf's account, Sordil felt that he did not have much time left. Dragons had begun attacking humans two months ago, and the news had likely reached Ishgar on the Eastern Continent by now. Before long, dragons hunting humans would spread throughout the Western Continent. At that point, Fostadu's dragons would become public enemies of the entire continent, so the plan he had prepared needed to be moved forward.

While Sordil pondered these matters, the battle in the canyon was already nearing its end. Of the six giant dragons that had come to lay an ambush, four were killed and one was captured alive, but Black the Black Dragon escaped. After instructing someone to guard the captured dragon carefully, Gilkunis went straight to find Sordil. However, seeing that he was deep in thought, Gilkunis quietly waited behind him.

When Sordil finally made his decision and turned to look for Gilkunis, he found Gilkunis behind him making faces at him. Sordil raised his right hand and slapped his forehead, then turned to leave with an awkward expression that seemed to say, Who is this person? I don't know him! Nor was Sordil the only one. The other dragons also turned away, unwilling to look at Gilkunis. The captured dragon stared at Gilkunis in utter disbelief, feeling that perhaps his greatest mistake had been getting captured by this idiot.

A short while later, Gilkunis led the dragons and the captive back to Fostadu first, while Sordil and Lindel followed behind with the humans from the canyon. Unlike on the journey there, when they had been forced to travel slowly, Sordil used Quality Magic to shrink them down and place them in large wooden baskets, which Lindel carried as he flew. The journey that had taken five or six days on foot took only half a day on the return trip. Experiencing flight for the first time, the humans cheered excitedly. After returning to Fostadu and meeting up with Gilkunis, Sordil immediately headed to the mountaintop and informed the four dragons stationed there of the details from Moens Canyon.

Over the next few days, every dragon in Fostadu entered a state of battle readiness. At the same time, teams of elite human fighters were sent out to scout the location of Koreita's dragon encampment. Sordil, meanwhile, prepared for the operation he would soon undertake, inscribing Magic Arrays all around Fostadu. Now, all that remained was to drive back Koreita's dragons, and Sordil could take everyone and flee together.

Three days later, after continued searching, Gilkunis and the others finally found Koreita's dragon camp. According to the intelligence they obtained, there were nine giant dragons in the camp, including Black, the Black Dragon who had escaped last time. This meant that all of Koreita's fighting strength was concentrated there. As long as they dealt with them, Koreita would lose the ability to attack Fostadu in the short term, and they could lead everyone to Ishgar without obstruction.

After discussing it, they decided that Hadessta would lead four dragons in defending Fostadu. Gilkunis and Radel would lead eight dragons in a frontal assault, while Sordil, Wattster, and Woodman would each lead two dragons to block the enemy's retreat routes. In addition, seven hundred human soldiers would be stationed at various high points to keep watch, preventing any stragglers from escaping back to Koreita. This operation mobilized all of Fostadu's strength, aiming to settle everything in one battle and completely cripple Koreita's harassment. Since they would leave the Western Continent after this battle, Sordil wrote a letter to Zeref before the fighting began, informing him of his plans as a farewell.