The Dragonborn Village's mournful wailing abruptly ceased. He stared incredulously at the board, at the words carved into it with a sharp object, imprinting them firmly in his mind.
What exactly happened...?
The village chief's brain, already lacking intelligence, began to Overload. Since the delivery date hadn't arrived and there were no unexpected events, Dragonborn Village stopped sending messengers to the cave after the incident where the priests of the Tree Worship Church committed suicide.
But only a few days have passed? If something unexpected happened in between...
The village chief inevitably thought of Ed, of Ed asking him about his master, and of the two people using dragon coins being the other's subordinates.
Although he hadn't yet connected everything in his mind, the village chief already knew where to find the answers to his questions.
At this moment, an unprecedentedly vigorous aura erupted from this middle-aged half-dragon, but this power was not used for combat, but rather for a forced march that would push him to his limits.
On a slightly muggy night, the half-dragon village chief left only a fleeting shadow as the wind cut through him.
The castle, now.
What was that sound?
Zhongde, who was the first to realize something was wrong, suddenly shouted:
"Watch out, something's coming!"
"Bang!"
[ Zhongde ] had barely finished speaking when a massive object plummeted down just four or five meters from the campfire, crashing straight to the ground and creating a shockwave.
"Be on alert! Prepare for battle!"
[ Howling Pothos ] could see a huge figure faintly visible through the dissipating smoke and dust.
Although he didn't know what they had provoked, he could tell from their aura that the newcomers were no ordinary people.
As the smoke cleared, the nearly three-meter-tall half-dragon body was revealed.
At this moment, the village chief's Dragon Transformation was quite evident; his skin had turned completely crimson, and white mist surrounded him, indicating that his blood was nearing boiling.
[ Shit Appraisal Master ] and [ Good Times Don't Last ] stared blankly at the scene, completely failing to recognize that this was the village chief who had been chatting and laughing with them that afternoon.
The six men now held short spears in their hands, ready to confront the enemy who appeared even more powerful than the Rat King.
Ed, who was at the bank counter in the distance, was explaining to Seraphina how to cook tail meat, when he also instantly sensed the murderous aura emanating from the creature.
Having had a previous confrontation, Ed easily identified the newcomer.
Seraphina was clearly not surprised; she peeked her head out from beside Ed and muttered softly:
You were right.
"Whee."
Ed, who was watching the show, made a smug sound:
"If we follow the plan, you won't be shortchanged on your commission."
In the distance, on an open space, the village chief suddenly swung his right paw, clearing away the dust and smoke from the area.
The village chief felt something was very strange. The closer he got to the castle, the stronger he could sense the master's presence, but... where exactly was the master?
That enormous, imposing body couldn't be easily hidden. Could it be that the master has already entered that ancient castle in mid-air?
But even that ancient castle couldn't contain it all...
He completely ignored the six players in front of him who had entered combat stance, or rather, he had come here simply to visit Seraphina and had no interest in fighting whatsoever. It was only when he activated his berserk state that the surrounding players felt wary of him.
His gaze swept over the players, but he found no clues.
Just as he was about to ask the two merchants from the afternoon or the young man from yesterday, he suddenly felt a fear that came from his very instincts.
That was a feeling that only arose during an audience with the emperor, but... he looked up at the sky, yet he couldn't see his master's circling figure in the clouds at all.
The next moment, the village chief felt his heart being gently squeezed by an invisible hand. His breathing, his heartbeat, and his blood flow were being forced to synchronize with a force.
A voice rang in his ears and mind at the same time:
"Since you have come to pay your respects, why are you so rude?"
The village chief's gaze instantly fell upon the somewhat ugly stone hut a dozen steps away. Upon seeing a glimpse of gold, he abruptly lowered his head, not daring to look a second time.
His body gradually returned to human form, his back slowly bent down, and he began to slowly approach Seraphina.
He didn't see the humanoid creature's appearance clearly inside the stone hut; he only confirmed its identity based on its aura and its control over him.
The players, who had already entered battle stance, were all stunned for a moment, wondering why this murderous half-dragon had suddenly been silenced by Seraphina's words.
Only [ the Good Times Don't Last ] was still savoring Seraphina's grand and layered interrogation.
" Dragonborn Village... Dragon... Dragonborn Village... Dragon..."
Suddenly he understood everything, [ Good Times Don't Last ] and he quickly called out to his companions in a low voice, mouthing his discovery:
"The 'dragon' in Dragonborn Village refers to Seraphina!"
After receiving a few eye rolls, he suddenly realized that he was the only one who had just realized this, so he could only shut up and watch the scene unfold with the others.
The village chief walked a few steps away from the bank but could go no further, so he knelt down with a thud.
He still dared not look up; besides the bank counter, all he could see were a pair of legs in an old formal suit.
He vaguely remembered the clothes; they were exactly what the young man from yesterday had been wearing.
"What do you want from me so late?"
Seraphina looked at the Dragonborn bowing respectfully before her and asked.
The village chief quickly took out the three dragon coins from his pocket and held them up with both hands:
"The village received this this afternoon; we're worried something might have happened at the sacred mountain..."
The three silver coins slowly floated up and returned to Serafina's hands in a graceful arc. She looked at the silver coins with her own ferocious face and sneered:
Are you worried about me?
"I wouldn't dare!"
The village chief buried his head even deeper.
"... Are you still worried about yourself?"
"Master... is wise."
Faced with such a potentially fatal question, the Dragonborn Village dared not answer directly and could only express his awe in this way.
"Want to know what happened?"
Seraphina asked again.
"We implore our master to inform us, otherwise... the Dragonborn Village will be filled with sleepless nights and unease."
Seraphina flicked a silver coin into Ed's hand and lightly tapped Ed arm twice with her elbow near him.
"Please explain this to me, my..."
"Business partner."
Ed very naturally took the initiative in the conversation.