After a month of reconnaissance across the Tara Kingdom, the two dragons finally discovered a lead one night regarding the disappearance of the Andona sisters:
Traces of demonic energy had recently appeared within the kingdom—likely connected to the sisters’ vanishing.
The two dragons immediately set out to contact the Church, hoping to cooperate on investigating this demonic presence.
Unfortunately, the Druidic Church had just suffered the loss of a sacred relic and was currently on high alert.
When the dragons attempted to teleport to the Church’s front courtyard, they were inexplicably diverted by a spatial disturbance and ended up deep beneath the cathedral—right next to the stolen relic.
Soon after, Church personnel, drawn by the magical disturbance, swarmed the area and trapped them inside.
It didn’t take long for the dragons to realize they had likely fallen into a demonic trap. Behind this operation must be a high-ranking demon skilled in spatial magic.
But unfortunately, the furious Church members refused to listen to any explanations. Convinced that the two were the thieves, they ignored even the dragons’ claims of identity.
This only ignited the temper of the red dragon, who lashed out in human form.
Thankfully, both sides still retained a sliver of reason, mindful of each other’s status. The skirmish gradually moved from the cathedral into the mountain ranges west of the capital.
To keep the matter under wraps, the Church deployed magical barriers around the area.
In the end, it was the Red Dragon King Andala who arrived to mediate, using the dragon race’s honor as collateral to settle the dispute. The Church later punished the relevant personnel and issued a formal apology to the two dragons.
The clean-up process took most of the day, and only now was the farce finally resolved.
Once the whole story was made clear, Lu Qiuchen hurriedly asked, “What about Andona and Andora’s trail? Where exactly was the demonic energy detected?”
The red dragon replied with a name she was quite familiar with: Lendo.
Both leads pointed to the same location. That meant this place definitely warranted investigation.
The two dragons returned to the dragon realm to report to the Elders about the demon situation, while Lu Qiuchen and the two Dragon Kings prepared to explore the ruins of Lendo.
Lendo was originally just a small town under the domain of a marquess. Its fortunes changed with the discovery of nearby ruins.
Even though everyone knew that goblin cities rarely held anything of great value, the ruins were still large enough to occasionally yield antiques, which could be sold to eccentric collectors for a modest profit.
Thanks to this, and the establishment of an Adventurers’ Guild branch, Lendo gradually grew more lively.
However, everything had a flip side. The Adventurers’ Guild was clearly drawn to Lendo because of the ruins. One of the conditions for setting up shop here was being granted ownership of the ruins.
The local noble had readily agreed to this, padding his own pockets in the process. Since then, the ruins had been firmly under the Guild’s control.
This arrangement suited the local lord and residents just fine—but not all adventurers were thrilled.
With the Guild’s strict regulations, only qualified adventurers were allowed to enter. Previously, when the ruins were merely considered a mid-tier exploration zone, there had been no such restrictions.
But now that the zone had been reclassified as epic-level, the majority of adventurers had lost their access—including Lu Qiuchen, who wasn’t even a registered adventurer.
So she decided to first head to the Guild and register, aiming to gain entry to the ruins. While she was at it, she also planned to obtain any intel on Duke Sesis.
After a simple registration and paying the membership fee, she officially became a registered adventurer.
Now, she stood at the reception desk, asking the staff how she could quickly rise through the ranks and qualify for entry into the Lendo ruins.
“Adventurer ranks can only be upgraded by completing quests step by step. Even if my strength meets the requirements, can’t I take a test? You could conduct an assessment.”
“I’m very sorry, but adventurer ranks are different from professional class ranks. Besides meeting strength requirements, rank also depends on the adventurer’s quest completion record. Powerful adventurers are expected to possess both strength and character. Even for Epic-class professionals, these rules don’t change.”
The existence of such a system was only natural. If only strength was considered and not personal conduct, then in escort missions involving precious cargo or important individuals, there could be instances of betrayal, theft, or even murder.
Such incidents would severely damage the reputation of the Adventurer’s Guild and the entire adventurer community.
This was also one of the reasons why Epic-ranked adventurers and adventuring parties were so rare.
Lu Qiuchen continued, “Then is there any other way to enter the Rendo Ruins?”
Before the guild staff could reply, a new voice came from behind.
“Of course there is. You just need to join an adventuring party that has the qualifications to go.”
She turned around and saw Tryst, a member of the Courage and Justice adventuring party, walking into the hall and waving at her.
“Honorable Lady Cecília, your request has been successfully fulfilled. Our leader is awaiting your visit at yesterday’s location.”
Putting aside the current conversation, Lu Qiuchen followed Tryst back to the tavern. York was already sitting at the same table as yesterday, with a leather pouch on the table, though the other three members of the party were not present.
Sitting across from York, he spoke first: “Lady Cecília, all the information is here. Please forgive my rudeness, but I’d like to ask why you’re inquiring about Duke Cecis. If you refuse to answer, I’m afraid I’ll have no choice but to cancel our deal.”
Lu Qiuchen noticed that York’s demeanor had changed from yesterday. Recalling the exchanged glances between him and his companions, and their formidable strength despite their youth, she suddenly understood something.
Her thoughts raced, but she maintained a calm and easygoing expression as she replied, “I think you’ve misunderstood. I have no ill intentions toward Duke Cecis.
I’ve been seeking information about him purely because of my identity.
“I didn’t explain before, but I come from the Beastkin Kingdom in the northern continent. My tribe has been facing some troubles recently, and my father, the king, sent me to the Kingdom of Tara to seek the help of the dragonkind.”
“But after arriving in the capital, I found no news about the dragons. That’s why I turned to you for assistance. The information you gave me yesterday was very helpful. I went to that mountain range in the afternoon, but only found traces of the dragons—they had already left.”
“On my way to Tara, I’d already considered approaching the kingdom’s upper echelons to contact the dragons, but hadn’t found a suitable person to make introductions. Yesterday, I learned that Duke Cecis is highly praised by the people in his territory and is known for his upright character. I hoped to learn more about him and reach out to the dragons through his connection. I didn’t expect this would lead to a misunderstanding. For that, I sincerely apologize.”
This was, of course, just an excuse Lu Qiuchen made up on the spot. That whole story about being a princess from the beastman kingdom of the Northern Continent and being sent by her father to seek the help of the dragons—total nonsense.
From what she’d learned through the dragons’ inheritance, it was clear that none of these people had ever been to the beastman kingdom.
The Northern Continent was ridiculously far from Tara Kingdom in the south, and humans were unwelcome in beastman lands—hardly any would ever make such a journey.
The real reason she was asking about Grand Duke Sesis was simple. Over the past few days, she’d been gathering information from minor nobles who had attended the banquet.
With the help of the two Dragon Kings, she’d used a bit of magic to gently nudge their memories and steer the conversation toward relevant details.
According to their recollections, Grand Duke Sesis had been standing in exactly the spot from which she had felt that malicious gaze.
What she hadn’t expected was that the adventurer party she hired might actually have some connection to the Grand Duke.
But thinking about it again—how could such young adventurers have achieved Saint-rank strength without powerful backers? It would make perfect sense if they were connected to him.
Hearing Lu Qiuchen’s explanation, both York and Trist seemed convinced—for now.
“I never imagined that you were the princess of the half-dragon race,” Trist exclaimed, feigning shock.
“Truly, we’ve been terribly rude. Please accept my sincerest apologies for suspecting your intentions.”
“If you’re hoping to gain the assistance of Grand Duke Sesis, you needn’t go through such trouble. You could have just asked Trist. He—” York began, but Trist quickly cut him off.
“Allow me to introduce myself properly. Your Highness, I am Trist Wesley, Viscount of Tarleton.”
Lu Qiuchen didn’t know where Tarleton was, but she did know that Grand Duke Sesis’s full name was Romund Wesley. There was no doubt these two were blood relatives.
“Greetings, Lord Tarleton.” Lu Qiuchen nodded gracefully. Since she was pretending to be a half-dragon princess, she couldn’t afford to appear uncultured—at the very least, she had to observe proper etiquette.
“Your Highness, I believe I can arrange an introduction to my uncle. He’s always eager to assist those in need.”
Yeah, right! Who would believe that load of crap? Lu Qiuchen scoffed inwardly.
Everyone in Tara knows Grand Duke Sesis is a brilliant ruler, but the word ‘warm-hearted’ has absolutely nothing to do with him.
Outwardly, she smiled and replied, “That would be an honor. But for now, what I really want is permission to enter the Lundo Ruins.”
“And why is that?” York asked, puzzled.
“Because there are rumors of corrupted dragons appearing in the Lundo Ruins. Compared to contacting the dragons through Grand Duke Sesis, I believe going straight to the ruins is a more direct path.”
Everyone knew how dragons felt about corrupted kin. They firmly believed such abominations had to be destroyed to grant the souls of the young dragons true peace.
If there really were corrupted dragons at Lundo, the dragons wouldn’t let it go. They were bound to investigate.
It’s the perfect justification.
Seeing that York was about to say something, Trist quickly shot him a warning glance and then turned to Lu Qiuchen with a smile.
“As it happens, we were planning to head to the Lundo Ruins ourselves. If Your Highness is willing to overlook our earlier offense, you’re welcome to temporarily join our party. It’s just… your strength…”
At this point, he let just the right amount of hesitation show on his face.
Lu Qiuchen saw right through him but didn’t call it out. Instead, she put on an expression of pleasant surprise.
“That’s wonderful news! I promise I won’t be a burden. I’m fully capable of protecting myself. And if you’re still unsure, I can even hire your party with proper payment…”
Hearing her say that, York also seemed to realize something. His demeanor shifted instantly, a faint smile rising to his lips.
“How could we ever doubt the esteemed Princess Cecily? Trist, go find Aodi and tell him—we accept his invitation!”
Who are you putting on this act for?
Lu Qiuchen cursed inwardly. She had thought York was the more honest one, but now it was clear that even their scuffle yesterday had probably been staged for her benefit!
Bunch of money-grubbing snakes—birds of a feather really do flock together!