Chapter 66
I pondered for a moment, and I realized that no matter which branch of druids they belonged to, they did not know spells like Charm Spell. Only witches from the North or some sorcerers with unusual bloodlines could master such spells, so I was somewhat relieved. Moreover, Ms. Angela was the warden of the Federation's prison, a highly respected figure, and she was unlikely to break the law or commit any crime such as forcing someone to sleep with her.
Just then, Lusien walked towards us, so I pulled my wandering thoughts back and looked at him.
He still bowed to us respectfully. If one didn't fully understand knights, one would definitely think that Lusien was difficult to get along with. How could he be so distant after going through a fierce battle together? But based on my experience, a knight... even if he and his lover go to a hotel, he would probably bow before getting into bed and say to his lover properly, "Please take off your clothes before getting into bed, thank you."
He stood there with a face so imposing it could be printed on a knight academy recruitment poster, and said to us, "We'll take care of things here. The Federation Central Committee has learned of Speaker Reynold's kidnapping, but the details are still unclear. So, the two archmages' mission is complete; you can take your apprentices home."
"Aren't you going to rescue Reynold?" I asked.
"Of course we'll rescue them, but the terrorist organization has switched to public television signals to broadcast live, and we haven't yet ascertained their true intentions. If we act rashly, it might make the situation worse," Lusien replied. Then, he paused, and asked, "Are you two willing to participate in the rescue operation?"
Mel and I both nodded, Lusien immediately beamed with joy, quickly pulling out his phone to make a call—which diminished much of the rigid demeanor that knights had passed down through generations.
After talking on the phone for a while, he told us, "The higher-ups are responding actively, but it will take some time. Besides, we've been fighting continuously for a long time, especially after we were separated... So I think, why don't you go to the city and rest for a bit? I'll let you know immediately if anything happens."
Mel and I thought about it and agreed. Lusien led us out of the base building under the cover of the legion's soldiers—to avoid the reporters who had come with us. We then discovered that this base was some distance from the mine we had entered, located in an open valley. We roughly judged our location by the vegetation; we were probably further east than in the previous dwarven territory, almost reaching the Holy Dragon Empire.
"I can't drive you because we're short-staffed," Lusien said apologetically.
That's alright, because we fly much faster than cars.
He pulled two cell phones from his magical bracelet and handed them to us. "These are special cell phones issued to Shield of the New Star. Besides normal cell phone functions, they also allow free calls between Shield of the New Star members and Magitech Corps commanders. The signal is very stable; as long as we don't encounter any interference in the mine, we'll definitely be able to find each other. I've fully charged and turned them on, and registered our respective phone numbers. Please accept them!"
We took the phone, and then Lusien pulled out a handwritten and illustrated instruction manual... It was clearly drawn by Mr. Knight himself; he was incredibly thoughtful.
I hadn't noticed before, but now that I've relaxed, I suddenly feel very tired. It's not that I'm physically tired, but rather that my mind needs to relax. So after Lusien left, Mel excitedly told me:
"Let's go find a hotel and then try out our plan!"
Hmm... good idea! I nodded, Mel immediately started studying map positioning on his new phone... Hmm, this phone's functions are indeed quite good, and Mel is really skilled; after glancing at the instruction manual, he's already got it working quite well. He opened a mobile app and started searching for nearby hotels with high ratings.
I couldn't help but smile, thinking about what was about to happen, I was really looking forward to it!
Chapter 66
So we quickly activated our Invisibility Spell and prepared to leave before the reporters noticed us. As we walked, Mel said, "The phone really is useful! Look, there's even a map here! Because we're now in Holy Dragon territory, the map even marks the location of the dragon's nest!"
A dragon's nest! I couldn't help but take a second look. In the early days of the legendary era, this was a treasure trove that countless mercenaries would have gone to great lengths to plunder! Not to mention the dragon eggs hidden in the lair, given the dragons' love of treasure, which dragon's nest wasn't overflowing with gold? However, things are hard to say now, because I remember a few years ago a reporter interviewed a dragon strategist, and his lair...
... It was stuffed full of cheap, low-quality glow sticks, probably picked up from some concert venue... Basically, that's when everyone realized that the dragons weren't really greedy. The title of misers that had stuck with them for thousands of years was a misdeed. In reality, they just liked shiny things.
--After all, there were no glow sticks in ancient times. The only shiny things besides gold and jewels, luminous sorcerers and knights were princesses from various countries who dressed themselves up as walking jewel carts. That's why various legends and stories contain plots like: a dragon and his evil sorcerer descend from the sky and destroy a city; a dragon and his corrupted knight descend from the sky and destroy a city; a dragon itself descends from the sky, kidnaps the city's princess, and destroys the city...
The dragon being interviewed cried out that he was wronged—"Who told human buildings in the past to be such shoddy constructions!" As he said this, he angrily breathed out a mouthful of fire, which unfortunately burned the reporter's camera lens.
Besides the usual place names and transportation routes, the map also featured animated mini cartoon dragons. Clicking on one would bring up a description; for example, clicking on the blue dragon closest to us would say—
"Nest Affiliation: Blue Dragon Ice Clan. This clan is notorious for its pettiness, vindictiveness, fussiness, and endless troubles—known to all dragons and humans alike! Don't come here unless you're sure you'll be frozen solid. The Holy Dragon Empire will not be responsible for thawing you. -- Holy Dragon Empire Foreign Affairs Office."
... Looking at this line of text, Mel and I couldn't help but feel worried for the Holy Dragon Empire.
--This empire is quite capable of managing so many enormous, troublesome dragons so well, earning praise from the international community. At least, since the modern era, I have never heard of any dragons running amok and robbing jewelry stores in the news.
While we were studying the map, the two apprentices following behind us were fighting and scrambling to grab Ruiduo... They were so engrossed in their struggle that they seemed to be turning against each other...
"You two, stop fooling around!" Mel scolded.
Moli and Anna hurriedly withdrew their hands from pinching Ruiduo's cheeks. The little elf covered her face, looked left and right, and suddenly stretched out two small hands, one on each side, pinching Anna and Moli's cheeks and twisting them back and forth, looking at me with a particularly innocent expression.
Hmm... this little guy has quite a temper!
The little fairy didn't pinch them hard; instead, it made the two girls' eyes light up with happiness... Just before, she was being held by Anna, and Moli was trying to snatch her from her arms. I seriously doubt that even if you locked them together and starved them for three days, and then gave them a sandwich, they would risk their own lives to let the other eat it. But for a little fairy to almost "ruin their friendship" while in her arms is quite a novel thing.
Seeing the three girls fighting, Mel and I lost our initial excitement and stood by with a headache, knowing that our scolding wouldn't have any effect whatsoever.
However, after only a short while, the two apprentices reached an agreement again and began to take turns holding Ruiduo. The little one, who was being carried around by the two apprentices, had a helpless little expression. She pouted, propped her cheeks up with her little hands, and looked at the two older sisters who were making a fuss with love. Mel and I couldn't help but go over and pinch her little cheeks.
"Alright, stop fooling around, let's go to the nearest city." Mel said, lingering on Little Ruiduo's cheek. "The Holy Dragon Empire allows free low-altitude flight, so we can get there quickly!"
He seemed very interested and looked at me back and forth with an expectant gaze. I almost suspected that Mel had mastered some new magic that allowed him to undress people with his eyes.
"Don't be in such a rush..." I felt helpless too, and I took Mel's hand. "Their investigation will take some time. Let's eat something first, then find a place to stay... Um, okay, let's find a place to stay first. We can just have Moli order takeout for us."