The Elder Council's senior ministers, along with the three young masters, entered Shadowflame Volcano together and began a direct conversation with the Shadowflame Dragon.
Meanwhile.
On the trade road outside Furious Wind City, two young men embraced in farewell.
"Welim, when will you be back after going home this time?" Gelontan Baimai Gen asked reluctantly.
Standing opposite him was Welim Jinnali, who swung himself onto his contracted Phantom Beast—the Pseudo-Jinnali Dragon, Lily.
Waving from Lily's back, he said, "My teacher said the Pseudo-Dragon Horn is very important for Lily's advancement, so I plan to take some time to search for one on the snowfields where my great-grandfather died in battle... Tentatively, I'll return in a year. Then I'll come back to seek my teacher's guidance."
"Mm, all right." Gelontan also mounted a Phantom Beast.
This Phantom Beast resembled an enormous antelope, its fur exceptionally stiff. Only knights protected by Battle Aura would avoid having their backsides pricked raw.
"Then I'm off," Welim said.
"All right!"
"Train hard. When I come back to the Shadowflame Grand Duchy, we must have a match." As Welim spoke, he was already racing down the trade road atop the Pseudo-Jinnali Dragon.
Watching Welim's receding figure, Gelontan let out a wistful sigh.
Perhaps because they had both been born into high noble families—one from a family on the verge of decline, the other the younger son of his family—he and Welim had become the closest under Russell. They ate, slept, and trained together almost all the time.
"We won't meet again for another year." Gelontan stroked the neck of the antelope Phantom Beast beneath him. "Antelope, we need to train hard and form our contract as soon as possible. When Welim comes back, we'll give him a big surprise."
"Baa." The antelope Phantom Beast answered.
It