Chapter 41: Black Dragon (2)

“Boom! Boom! Boom!!!”

An overwhelming fury soared into the sky.

The Black Dragon’s eyes were bloodshot red as it roared fiercely.

Its two wings plunged into the ground, and it actually stood up.

The wing membranes began to tear into shreds, and purple blood seeped from various parts of its body.

The attached scales were torn apart one by one by the slanting gravity.

The once smooth surface was now completely covered in blood, making the entire dragon look terrifying and savage.

Yalbera raised an eyebrow and sneered, “You do have some guts, but I never gave you permission to stand up.”

She pressed her fingers lightly, and an even more terrifying gravity assaulted the Black Dragon, knocking its newly raised body back down to the ground.

The Black Dragon continued to roar furiously, its pupils blood-red like that of a Vampire.

Yalbera smiled slightly and said disdainfully, “As a house dog, you refuse to serve your master and instead insist on dying here just to find someone irrelevant to you. Should I call you loyal or ignorant? It’s utterly ridiculous that a noble Fafnir Dragon would spawn such an aberration like you.”

She smiled with amusement and walked up to the Black Dragon.

Even the head of the dragon lying on the ground was several times bigger than Yalbera.

“You wanted to find Bai, didn’t you? Heh.”

She teased as she waved a slender finger in front of the Black Dragon’s eyes.

With a flash of cold light, a blood mark appeared on her pale skin.

Yalbera laughed as she placed her finger just before the dragon’s nose.

“Come on, take a good sniff. See if there’s any part of Bai’s blood mixed in here. You’ve been drinking quite a lot these past few days; maybe the scent is similar. What do you say?”

Originally, it was expected that the Black Dragon would continue its impotent rage, but surprisingly, it fell silent, its pupils calmly fixed on her.

“Oh? No reaction? How about this: if you can touch me, I’ll give you a chance. How’s that?”

Yalbera continued.

Yet the Black Dragon remained motionless, as if dead.

Yalbera showed a bored expression and said disappointedly, “Hmph, thought I could have a little fun, but like Bai, you’re not much of a player.”

She turned around, and a purple fireball appeared at her fingertips.

Just as she was about to burn it to ashes, the Black Dragon suddenly roared behind her.

It tore its own wings apart and used all its strength to charge forward, mouth wide open, ready to bite Yalbera without caring for its own life.

Yalbera’s eyes narrowed.

With a flick of her mind, a barrier instantly rose, blocking the incoming Black Dragon.

“That’s better,” Yalbera said with a satisfied expression.

The flame in her hand vanished as she snapped her fingers to lift the Prohibition.

The massive dragon’s body suddenly relaxed but still stared furiously at her.

“Now then, want to see your Bai? I can tell you her location, but I have one condition.”

Yalbera leaned close to the Black Dragon’s ear and said softly, “I want you to ‘watch’ her for me.”

The Black Dragon seemed stunned and growled in protest, but Yalbera sneered and said coldly, “You have no right to refuse.”

In the next moment, a scarlet liquid flickered in her hand and formed a blood pillar that stabbed into one of the Black Dragon’s eyes.

“Roar!!!”

The Black Dragon roared angrily as thick scarlet liquid oozed from the pierced eye, like a stream of bloody tears.

It covered the wounded eye with a massive claw.

When it opened it again, the red pupil had turned as bright as Yalbera’s own eyes… no, it had completely become Yalbera’s eye.

Yalbera smiled, a faint glow shining in one of her pupils.

Now, she had obtained—or rather, deprived—the Black Dragon’s vision.

With a casual wave of her delicate hand, the wounds on the Black Dragon’s body completely vanished, even its torn wings regrew.

“Don’t try telling her, alright? I know you don’t care about backlash, but if she learns the truth, I’ll kill you first. Then, when that child returns, I will punish her. You wouldn’t want your Bai to suffer worse than death because of you, would you? Heh heh heh… Now, go. I’ll tell you where she is.”

The Black Dragon growled softly, no longer attacking.

But it still looked at Yalbera with rage, as if it wanted to tear her apart.

It flapped its wings and soared into the air with a thunderous roar that echoed across the Domain before disappearing over the horizon.

Yalbera watched quietly, a sick smile curling on her lips.

“Next, it shouldn’t be boring anymore… heh heh heh.”

***

The scorching sun hung high in the sky.

From before dawn until noon, the Broken Blood Knights had not stopped their march.

The hot, humid forest tormented the men clad in heavy armor, while the rugged and muddy forest paths greatly tested their stamina.

But the one suffering the most was Bai.

“So hot…”

Bai panted laboriously, feeling as if the air around her was too thin to breathe properly.

“Can you still walk, little one? Want me to carry you for a bit?”

Uncle Skarn asked with concern.

Throughout the journey, not a single drop of sweat appeared on his face.

Truly befitting the Broken Blood’s Captain.

Bai shook her head and said, “Bai’s not tired. This much, it still… doesn’t count.”

“Haha, good kid. Stronger than my knights,” Skarn laughed heartily, giving Bai a solid pat on the back, which almost made her stumble and fall into the muddy path.

“Captain! Be careful! Bai is already like this,” Aurelia hurriedly grabbed her hand and said sternly.

“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t hold back,” Skarn chuckled carelessly, showing no remorse on his face.

“Really, Captain, you’re over forty and still a bachelor. If only you were a bit gentler, you wouldn’t be worrying about this,” Aurelia said without holding back, pulling Bai a little closer.

“Pfft.”

Bai couldn’t help but laugh.

Skarn’s face reddened and suddenly the smile disappeared.

He cleared his throat seriously and said, “In times of national crisis, how can one care about romance? Finding a wife isn’t urgent.”

“Pfft—Uncle Skarn is so lame,” Bai whispered with a smile.

“Ahem, enough of that. Where are we now?”

Skarn turned his head to change the subject.

“About halfway there. That elf girl volunteered to scout ahead alone. She should be back soon,” Aurelia replied.

“Vera, huh?”

Bai asked, wondering why she hadn’t seen Vera along the way—it turned out she was eager to prove herself.

“Yes.”

“That’s reckless. What if she encounters a Vampire Beast? How could she possibly handle it alone?”

Skarn sighed.

He liked the vigor and vitality of the young, but sometimes their zeal turned into trouble.

They had been walking for nearly five hours since morning.

Fortunately, they hadn’t encountered any Vampire Beasts.

But this eerie silence made Skarn uneasy, as if some trap awaited them ahead.

Just then, a knight’s shout came from the front.

“Ambush!”