Because he had done something similar in nature, Garos almost instantly understood the true purpose behind the Albert Family's passion for charity.
My thoughts changed rapidly.
Thinking back to the Albert private army not long ago, which was far beyond the ordinary aristocratic private army, with almost fanatical bravery and a disregard for death, the answer is almost ready to be revealed.
"You are blinded by lies without knowing it, and you even have to whitewash the lies... Knight, your stupidity makes even the most ignorant White Dragon look wise."
"If I were really a cruel Evil Dragon who only acted on instinct, you would have turned into a puddle of moss-rich mud at this moment, and not even a single intact bone would be left."
Faced with Red Iron Dragon's naked ridicule, Flower Knight Xia'er did not show an angry look on his face.
He just took a deep breath with a pale face, endured the severe pain from everywhere in his body, especially the dull pain from broken ribs and internal organs, supported the ground with his arms, and struggled to stand up.
Even though he was unsteady and his body was swaying slightly, he still tried to straighten his spine and solemnly performed a standard knightly etiquette towards the huge dragon in front of him.
"Dear Molten Iron King, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your mercy."
Xia'er said, "It is this kindness that exceeded my expectations that strengthened my belief that there must be a huge misunderstanding between the Molten Iron Tribe and Albert Family that has not yet been clarified."
Garos looked at Flower Knight carefully.
After a few seconds, he suddenly changed the topic and asked, "Do you think Albert Family will be willing to pay a ransom for you?"
Flower Knight barely hesitated and nodded. "Definitely!"
Hearing this, the giant dragon let out a deep laugh from deep in its throat.
He slightly turned his huge head to the side, staring at Flower Knight's pale face with interest with a playful look like he was observing a rare experimental object.
Then, Garos asked the second question.
"Then, Xia'er knight, please tell me again."
"If you have lost all your limbs and become a disabled person who can only rely on the care of others and linger on the hospital bed."
"If you lose your former powerful strength, handsome appearance and famous "Flower Knight" aura, you become an ordinary person who is worthless or even a burden."
Garos's voice slowed down and finally asked, "Albert Family, the philanthropic and kind-hearted Count Mills, will he still make the same decision as just now? Will he still be willing to pay a high ransom for you?"
The determination on Xia'er·Hines's face solidified.
He was slightly startled, and his pale lips moved subconsciously, as if he wanted to refute immediately, but some kind of intuition made the words stuck in his throat.
A deep hesitation and uncertainty clearly appeared on his face that was somewhat transparent due to blood loss.
"You hesitated."
Garos captured this moment of shaking.
"If Count Mills is as you believe, a good man with consistent appearance and noble moral character, he will never sit back and watch a righteous knight who once fought for his family through life and death, Damnation, be tortured to death in the so-called Evil Dragon lair."
Red Iron Dragon lowered his head, and a huge shadow completely enveloped Flower Knight.
"In that case, Xia'er Knight, tell me, where does that hesitation deep in your heart... come from?"
"No!" Xia'er suddenly raised his head and raised his voice a little. "I'm sure! Count Mills will never give up on his promise and friends!"
Garos let out a louder deep laugh that made the air buzz.
But the laughter quickly subsided.
Red Iron Dragon stared at Flower Knight and said slowly, "Very good, in that case, we might as well make a bet. The bet is your life and your future freedom."
Flower Knight was silent for a moment, as if he was making some kind of determination. Finally, he nodded slowly.
At the same time, the far south.
Within Raymond Duchy, at the core of the Albert Family territory, in the study room of a luxurious manor.
Mills Count stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, his usually well-tended hair looking a little messy.
Instead of bringing warmth, the dazzling sunlight outside the window made him feel an inexplicable irritability and chill.
He has completely lost contact with the elite family private army sent to Ser Wilderness to attack Molten Iron Tribe for a long time.
Whether they are trying to contact Dire Wolf General as the commander-in-chief, or contacting senior leaders such as Alchemist, defense Warding Mage, or even the middle-level cavalry captains... all the magic messages are like nothing, without any response.
This complete silence was like an ever-expanding boulder, pressing heavily on Count Mills's heart.
A cruel reality seems to be unavoidable.
Count Mills believed that he had sufficiently overestimated Molten Iron Tribe's strength. He knew that those wilderness monsters and dragons were not weak.
In his expectation, even if the family's most elite private army could not capture Molten Iron Tribe in one fell swoop, there was no way it would be completely annihilated or even completely controlled by the other party.
No matter how strong the opponent is.
Logically speaking, they are just a group of teenage dragons, plus some ragtag groups made up of different monster clans.
But.
The completely lost family legion hit his heart like a silent but heavy punch.
This cruel reality has made him unable to sleep or eat well in recent days.
He realized that he might have made a fatal mistake and seriously underestimated the Molten Iron Tribe, especially the Red Iron Dragon.
Those dragons and their tribes cannot be judged by common sense!
Just then.
A piece of Communication Artifact placed on his precious sandalwood desk, a clear crystal ball, suddenly lit up with a soft light.
The name displayed above is - Flower Knight Xia'er·Hines.
"Xia'er?!"
Mills Count's heart skipped a beat.
"He... he managed to get out of trouble and contact me? Or..."
He took a few deep breaths of air that was laden with expensive incense but couldn't calm him down. He suppressed his turbulent thoughts and pressed his fingers lightly on Communication Artifact.
"Hello, Count Mills."
A deep and rich voice, like rolling thunder, with an inhuman quality, came from the crystal ball and filled the entire luxurious and quiet study room.
This sound is definitely not something a human knight can make.
Mills Count's expression suddenly changed.
He stared at the crystal ball and took a few deep breaths before he managed to keep his voice from sounding too rude and asked, "Who are you?"
A low chuckle came from the other end of the crystal ball.
"Who am I?"
The thunderous voice said, "I think, as a wise and sophisticated Earl Mills, you should already have the answer in your mind."
"No need to waste time testing, let's get straight to the point - talk about ransom."
Mills Count was silent for a long time, his brain working rapidly, weighing various pros and cons.
In the end, he chose to face reality and began to negotiate with Red Iron Dragon on the other end of the communication.
"What do you want?" he asked succinctly.
"It's very simple."
The voice on the other end was crisp and clear. "Just like what countless defeated people on this continent have to face - cession of territory and compensation."
Faced with Garos's demands, especially when it came to formally ceding the sovereignty of Scale-Earth Rift Road and its surrounding areas, Count Mills initially resisted instinctively, but he did not persist for too long before gradually relenting.
The reality is before our eyes.
The Federation garrison cannot be counted on. An all-out crusade has failed. It is difficult to organize a force that can threaten Molten Iron Tribe again. Since Scale-Earth Rift Road has been essentially lost and difficult to recover, and can no longer bring benefits to the family, it is better to simply give it away as a bargaining chip in negotiations.
In the eyes of the calculating Earl Mills, the value of an uncontrollable enclave is far less important than that of the captured elite private troops.
Ordinary soldiers can be recruited and trained again if they are lost.
But those high-level leaders who spent a lot of time, resources and efforts on the family - Rune Knight, Alchemist, Warding Mage... each of these people are the backbone of the family's force.
If they are all lost in this damn Ser Wilderness, the military foundation accumulated by the Albert Family will be severely damaged.
Alliances between nobles have always been as fragile as a cobweb.
Once Albert Family shows an obvious decline, those noble lords who usually stare at them and have grievances with them will definitely swarm in like sharks that smell Bloodshed, mercilessly adding insult to injury and taking the opportunity to carve up and devour their interests.
Immediately afterwards.
Focusing on the specific compensation amount, delivery details, etc., the two parties began long and calm negotiations.
The attitudes of both parties in the negotiation seemed extremely calm. They did not look like two sworn enemies with a blood feud, but rather seemed to be dealing with a purely commercial negotiation.
The hourglass of time passes silently.
After repeated bargaining and testing of the bottom line, both parties finally reached an agreement on their demands.
Albert Family will sign a legally binding document under the witness of God of Justice to formally cede Scale-Earth Rift Road.
At the same time, a huge amount of gold coins, enough to make Count Mills's heart bleed, will also be paid as war compensation and prisoner ransom.
All this is in exchange for the captured family elites.
During the negotiation process.
Mills Count's attitude is extremely cautious.
He repeatedly and emphatically confirmed with Garos whether the key prisoners - especially Rune Knight, Alchemist and defense Warding Mage - were in good condition and whether their injuries were serious.
"I don't believe in any empty promises."
Earl Mills said, "I will send my trusted family envoy as soon as possible, carrying the formal contract document, to Ser Wilderness."
"To ensure the sanctity of the contract and the fairness of its execution."
"A senior priest from Scales Sanctum will accompany him and complete the final signing ceremony under the glorious witness of God of Justice."
Just then.
Garos's deep voice suddenly sounded again, changing the topic. "By the way, Count Mills, there is another... less important prisoner, I think it needs to be mentioned in particular."
"A poor guy who calls himself Flower Knight Xia'er·Hines."
His voice was calm and calm, as if he was describing an insignificant item.
"He is not a member of your Albert Family, but he claimed that it was for the just cause of your family that he mustered up the courage to launch that ridiculous challenge to me."
"Unfortunately, he failed, and failed miserably."
"Considering that he has had his limbs broken by my own hands, and most of his bones have been shattered, he will basically have to linger on the hospital bed for the rest of his life, becoming a complete cripple who relies on others to survive..."
"Only a hundred gold coins."
Garos randomly quoted a number and said, "I can show mercy and spare his life, and leave him to you Albert Family like a damaged luggage."
A loser in name only! A loser!
Thinking of the business ethics and astronomical figures of gold coins that his family was about to pay, the irritability caused by the huge loss filled Count Mills's heart.
He frowned and looked gloomy.
"This person's affairs have nothing to do with our family. It's up to you to decide whether he is alive or dead. Albert Family has no interest in it."
Hearing this, the giant dragon on the other end of the communication seemed to suddenly become careless. He bargained like a businessman who spends every penny. "Ten gold coins, as long as ten gold coins, I will keep him alive. Otherwise, in order to save food, I can only throw him to feed Gnoll."
"Believe me, it will be an extremely painful death."
Faced with a Evil Dragon being so entangled in the price of a waste, Count Mills felt bored and completely lost his pretense of patience. He didn't want to show any pretense anymore and said bluntly and indifferently, "A waste that has lost all its use value, Albert Family will not pay even a copper plate for him. His life and death are up to you."
Subsequently, this negotiation that determined the fate of many people finally came to an end.
On the other side, the distant Ser Wilderness.
At Red Iron Dragon's feet, Flower Knight Xia'er·Hines supported the cold ground and listened clearly to the conversation that determined his fate.
It turns out... that my life and value are not even as good as a gold coin in the eyes of the other party?
His eyes flashed with shock, disbelief, and bitterness, and finally turned into deep sadness and understanding.
After his eyes changed violently for a long time, he finally slowly regained his composure, and finally turned into a long sigh, as if a huge burden had been lifted.
So far.
Albert Family He has completely repaid the so-called kindness in the past with this action that almost cost him his life and the other party's ruthless abandonment.
From now on, the two owe nothing to each other.
Through the channel of the Gem Merchants' Guild, Molten Iron Tribe also has contract props in case of emergency.
According to the contract signed before, now, his life and future belong to the terrifying and complicated Red Iron Dragon in front of him.
"Xia'er·Hines."
Red Iron Dragon's deep voice sounded again, breaking the silence.
"Let's not talk about so-called righteous people like you who are easily deceived and used by lies."
"The philanthropic Earl Mills whom you say has secretly raised a large number of orphans and beggars, brainwashed and trained them into warriors who only know family honor and can die for it without hesitation, and then send them to the cold battlefield to squeeze out the last bit of their value."
He fixed his eyes on the knight and asked, "Now, do you still insist that he is a good and good lord? A truly good man?"
Flower Knight shook his head slowly and heavily, the last trace of illusion in his eyes completely shattered.
"Just like the contract we made, your life and freedom belong to me, but I will not force you to do evil things."
Red Iron Dragon's voice was calm and calm, and he said, "Then, get ready to practice the principles you believe in, punishing evil and promoting good."
"Target--Mills·Albert."
"Go kill him."