Gerlen City, Vagrian Empire The most dazzling pearl in the east. The city is located on the plain at the confluence of two rivers.
Viewed from a distance, the entire city looks like a carefully cut gem set in the gray-green field - the city wall is made of milky white stone. There are towers at regular intervals on the city wall, and the red dragon flag of Vagria is flying on the top of the tower.
The buildings in the city are mainly white and light yellow, and the roofs are covered with red terracotta tiles, which glow warmly in the afternoon sun.
City Lord Hermann von Grimm is sitting on the terrace on the second floor of the City Lord's Mansion, with a small round table covered with a snow-white tablecloth in front of him.
There was a fine white porcelain plate on the table, which contained several pieces of golden pastry. The surface of the pastry was sprinkled with crushed nuts and icing sugar.
Next to it was a matching tea cup. The black tea in the cup was steaming, and the aroma of tea mixed with the aroma of desserts slowly wafted in the afternoon breeze. He picked up the tea cup and took a sip, then picked up a pastry and took a bite. Then he closed his eyes and let out a contented sigh.
This kind of pastry was transported from the far southern country. It was transported by dozens of wyverns and traveled thousands of kilometers of mountains and rivers before it could be delivered to his table from the place of origin within three days.
This kind of speed is unimaginable in human countries. The cultivation and domestication of wyverns is one of the most precious gifts Red Dragon Emperor has given to this empire.
Vagrian has the largest wyvern transportation network in the continent. From east to west, from south to north, emergency documents can be delivered to any major city within three days, and personnel and materials can be delivered within five days.
It is not far from the capital - at the speed of a wyvern, you can fly there in about an hour. Moreover, Gerlen City is also known as the "eastern gateway" of the empire. It is connected to many important passages in the eastern part of the empire. Whether it is leading to the border mines in the north, the coastal trade port in the south, or the capital in the west, all must pass through Gerlen City.
Therefore, this place naturally became one of the richest cities in the empire. Rich businessmen gathered, nobles gathered together, and even the air was filled with a "rich" smell.
But now something not so good happened. Hermann pushed the pastry plate aside, picked up the document on the table that had just been speeded up by the wyvern, and read it again.
The document was sealed with wax. The emblem of the empire Senate was embossed on the wax, and the word "urgent delivery" was written on the cover. He had read it several times, hoping every time that he had read it wrong, but he confirmed every time that he had read it correctly.
The new emperor of the empire, His Majesty Caesar.
Hermann is still a little confused now, wondering if he didn't wake up. He did not go to bed early last night, but the quality of his sleep was very good. He slept until dawn without even a dream.
This morning he woke up full of energy and had a strong appetite. He drank three cups of black tea and ate five pieces of pastries. He was very sure that he was awake.
But being sober is sober, and understanding is understanding. The empire has changed its emperor, how is that possible? How could His Majesty the Red Dragon give up his position?
It wasn't someone who kicked me off, I was "given up".
This is what the document says - "His Majesty Valerirus is entrusted to His Majesty Caesar, and from now on he is entrusted with the title Governor Valerirus, Yongzhen Dongfang".
The official wording is high-sounding, and there is no trace of coercion between the lines. But surrender? Hermann has been in the imperial officialdom for most of his life, and he has never seen anything like this.
He has seen nobles fighting for inheritance, businessmen fighting for business, and bureaucrats competing for positions. The only thing he has never seen is that an old emperor who has been on the throne for more than a thousand years took the initiative to give up his position to a stranger who no one has ever heard of.
Impossible.
Did His Majesty the Emperor pass away suddenly? What happened?
Hermann is a little anxious. He has sent people to the capital to investigate the situation, but they have not come back yet. The Wyvern Knights who went to the capital just set off this morning and will not be able to return until the afternoon at the earliest.
He could only wait in the city lord's palace. He was not in the mood to drink tea and had no appetite for pastries. When he put down the tea cup, it almost fell off the ground, but fortunately his eyesight was quick and his hands caught it.
The new majesty is a golden dragon. This is what is written in the document - "Your majesty Caesar, golden dragon, his current age is unknown. He recently arrived at Valerilus City and was enthroned with the support of all the people."
Golden dragon.
Hermann squinted his eyes and began to think about which golden dragon it was. There had been several golden dragons in the history of the empire, the most famous of which was the emperor who was called the "Wise King" by later generations.
That was before Red Dragon Emperor came to this land. The wise king unified many races in this area and established a short-lived kingdom headed by the golden dragon.
The wise king died, the kingdom was divided, the red dragon came, and everything in this land was inseparable from the "dragon".
Are they the descendants of that virtuous king? Impossible. The descendants of the virtuous king have long since disappeared in the long river of history. It is not even sure whether the bloodline has continued. Or is it some reclusive golden dragon?
Hermann was running through these thoughts in his mind when he suddenly felt that the light outside the window dimmed. It wasn't that the clouds had blocked the sun, but a more specific and heavier shadow that was created when something huge flew over the head.
He subconsciously raised his head and looked at the sky through the glass window of the terrace. There was nothing left, only a gray-blue, clean sky and a few slowly moving clouds.
Strange.
Just as he was about to look back, the window darkened again. This time he didn't wait, he stood up and walked to the window, pushed open the window, and stuck his head out. There was something flying in the sky - no, it couldn't be called "flying". The size of the thing was more appropriate to be called "floating".
A golden, huge thing, like a bat wing magnified countless times, slowly slid over the city.
What the hell?
Before Hermann's mind could turn around, the door behind him was suddenly pushed open.
His secretary, a middle-aged man who was usually as steady as a rock, almost fell into the room. His face was as white as a newly painted wall, his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, his lips were trembling, and he pointed out the window.
"My lord! There is a giant dragon--"
"Why are you panicking?" Hermann frowned and sounded unhappy. How could the city lord of the empire behave in such a panic when he saw the giant dragon? Vagria What kind of country is it? It is a country ruled by giant dragons.
Among the nobles, officials, and civilians here, who has never seen a giant dragon? His Majesty the Emperor is a dragon, the princes are dragons, and the Lord Protector is also a dragon. Dragons flying in the sky are as common as horses running on the grassland.
"Who is here?" Hermann said as he walked from the window to the door. He knew all the famous dragons in the empire, and he had a general account in his mind. No matter who came, he would receive them with the proper etiquette.
The secretary's lips trembled even more. "It's... a very big golden dragon that I've never seen before, and... it has three heads!"
Hermann's footsteps stopped.
"... Three heads?"
The secretary nodded hard twice, so hard that his chin almost hit his chest.
Hermann was silent for a moment. Then he ran out the door so fast that the corners of his robe flew up, and his boots made a series of rapid, heavy muffled sounds on the corridor floor.
King Ghidorah looked at the city in front of him in the air. He had no definite destination when he set off from the palace. He just wanted to come out and have a look. Unexpectedly, he saw a quite big city while flying.
White city walls, red roofs, and row upon row of buildings extend out in all directions from within the city wall, and you can't see the end at a glance.
There are towers and squares in the city, and there is a magnificent building with a pointed dome that is much higher than the surrounding buildings. It looks like some kind of religious place or city hall. The farmland outside the city is neatly divided into squares, like a huge chessboard spread out on the ground.
Well. This is the second city in his country that he has seen. The first one is the capital, and the second one is here. It looks pretty good, about the same size as the capital.
King Ghidorah's eyes swept over the city. There were many flying, small things flying around there. They were not birds - they were much bigger than birds, with wings, a tail, and limbs. The whole body was covered with dark brown scales, and the wing membranes were translucent in the sunlight. Pterodactyl.
King Ghidorah had read about this kind of thing in the empire briefing sent by Sangis - the empire's main air transportation force, the "air carriage" used by nobles and wealthy businessmen to travel. Each wyvern carried one or two riders on its back, some were carrying packages, some were carrying something like a mailbox, and some were taking a leisurely ride with their hands empty.
Several of the wyverns flew in the direction of King Ghidorah. They suddenly stopped mid-flight and hovered in the air for a moment. Then, as if they were frightened by something, they suddenly turned around and flew towards the city.
King Ghidorah doesn't pay attention to such small things.
Hermann was riding on the back of the wyvern, holding the reins with both hands and leaning forward slightly. The wings of the wyvern flapped in his ears, making a whistling sound.
The wind was so strong that it blew his hair upside down and narrowed his eyes. He lowered his head and saw the city retreating rapidly below him, and the roofs of the buildings slid past his field of vision piece by piece.
Then he raised his head and saw the huge golden figure.
Hermann's breathing stopped for a moment. He had seen giant dragons, many giant dragons. Red Dragon Emperor Valerirus--He had seen them before, and they were already huge.
The Protector--he has also seen it. It is a huge monster second only to Red Dragon Emperor. But the one in front of him is much bigger than Red Dragon Emperor. It is so big that you have to raise your neck to the limit to see the whole thing.
The golden scales glowed dazzlingly in the sun, and the three heads swayed slightly in the air, like three suspended golden peaks. When those six vertical pupils looked down from high altitude, Hermann felt like a sparrow held under the claws of a tiger.
No way... Hermann said something in his heart, and then pulled the reins. The wyvern made a short, complaining cry, flapped its wings and flew forward.
The wyvern flew very reluctantly, and its wings flapped much faster than usual, as if it wanted to end the flight as soon as possible and leave the airspace as soon as possible.
Hermann flew in front of the golden beast and stopped a little way away. His wyvern was unwilling to fly any further and stopped in place, its wings beating rapidly and an uneasy whimper coming from its throat.
Hermann did not urge it anymore, but straightened up on the back of the wyvern, holding the reins with one hand and pressing the other hand on his chest. He raised his head and shouted loudly towards the golden beast, "Hello, may I ask -"
"I am your emperor."
A voice sounded in his mind. It was not something he heard from his ears, but it felt like someone had carved a sentence into his consciousness.
The voice was neither high nor low, had no emotion or warmth, it was just stating a fact.
Hermann's mind flashed with countless thoughts at that moment, and then his body reacted faster than his brain. He released the reins, pressed his hands on his chest, and bent deeply on the back of the wyvern.
The movement was so big that the wyvern was startled by his sudden shift in weight, its wings flapped violently, and it bumped in the air before it stabilized.
"Your Majesty--Caesar Your Majesty!"