Chapter 140 : Chapter 140

Chapter 140. Dragon Knight!

In the early morning, Eli was awakened by a faint itching sensation and a noisy voice.

He opened his eyes in a daze and saw Gulu bouncing back and forth on his chest with her little paws.

“Hey! Wake up! Lazy human! The sun is already shining on your backside! Get up!”

Eli sighed helplessly, reached out, picked up Gulu, who was still frolicking on his chest, and sat up.

Dim light streamed in through the stone chamber’s window, showing that dawn had only just broken.

“I know, I know.” Eli rubbed his eyes.

“I should be going back too. Goodbye, Gulu.”

But Gulu twisted in his hand. “No! I want to go back with you too!

“Her Highness the Princess has fallen asleep again! Who knows how long she will sleep this time? Lord Gulu will be so bored here alone!”

Eli frowned slightly. “My territory may have some major movements soon.

“It might not be safe outside. You should obediently stay in the sanctuary. That would be more secure.”

“Hah!” Gulu snorted disdainfully. “Danger?

“Lord Gulu’s perception of danger is ten thousand times sharper than that of you humans!

“If there really is danger, I will definitely be the first to run! Bah, retreat!”

Looking at Gulu’s shamelessly clingy manner, Eli knew that he could not persuade her otherwise, so he could only helplessly agree.

“Fine, fine. You can follow me, but you have to behave. You are not allowed to cause trouble.”

“Do not worry! Lord Gulu is the most obedient!”

Gulu immediately beamed with joy and climbed along Eli’s arm onto his shoulder.

Eli straightened his clothes, walked to the corner of the room, and carefully picked up the dragon egg that was more than half a person tall.

The eggshell was cold and heavy in his hands. He took a deep breath.

Then he followed the silent corridor out of the lake-bottom sanctuary and returned to the shore through the water corridor bridge once more.

The air by the lake in the early morning was fresh, carrying the scent of grass, trees, and dew.

Just as Eli was about to identify the direction back to Obsidian Territory, the lake surface suddenly splashed.

Valerian’s enormous blue dragon head emerged again, her dragon eyes curiously looking at Eli, who was holding the giant egg.

“Human Eli...” Valerian’s clear voice rang directly in Eli’s mind.

“Do you... need me to give you a ride? It must be tiring to walk back while holding such a big egg.”

Eli’s body instantly froze, and his heart gave a fierce leap.

Give me a ride? A dragon... a dragon knight?!

An indescribable excitement and anticipation surged into his heart.

“May... may I? Esteemed Valerian?”

“You may.” Valerian’s voice carried a hint of delight.

“But Her Highness forbids me from leaving the range of Nightsong Forest, so I can only send you to the edge of the forest.”

“Then... then I will have to trouble you!” Eli agreed in high spirits. This was already an enormous surprise!

The moment his words fell, Valerian’s massive body lightly rose into the air.

She circled gracefully in the sky for half a turn, then slowly descended onto the open ground beside Eli, bringing a gust of wind with her.

She lowered her body and presented her broad dragon back before Eli.

“Come up.”

“Hmph!” Gulu grumbled unhappily from his shoulder.

“Valerian! Who allowed you to be even more impressive than Lord Gulu? You spotlight-stealing stupid dragon!”

Eli hurriedly covered Gulu’s mouth, afraid that she would anger this kind-hearted dragon.

With one hand, he tightly held the dragon egg, and with the other, he grabbed the relatively smooth scales near Valerian’s neck.

Clumsily, he climbed onto her dragon back, which was as broad as a platform.

Once Eli had sat firmly, Valerian let out a low dragon’s roar, and her body twisted.

Her enormous wings suddenly beat, bringing a howling gale as she instantly rose from the ground and rushed toward the blue sky!

“Whoa—!” Eli could not help crying out in surprise. He tightly gripped the scales and looked down.

The forest beneath his feet was rapidly shrinking, the dense canopy turning into a green sea, while the distant mountains could be faintly seen.

This feeling of riding a dragon through the sky and looking down upon the earth was an unprecedented shock and freedom!

Valerian was extremely fast, and the biting air currents at high altitude rushed straight toward him.

They whipped Eli’s white hair into a wild dance and made his robes snap loudly in the wind.

“This is incredible!” Eli faced the wind and could not help shouting at the top of his lungs.

The oppression and planning of the past few days were all released into the high sky.

Meanwhile, Gulu, who was in his arms, buried her entire head in Eli’s clothes and let out muffled shrieks.

“Slower! Slower! Lord Gulu is going to fall!

“Damn you, Valerian! Fly more steadily!”

The dragon’s speed was unmatched. Almost in the blink of an eye, the edge of Nightsong Forest had already appeared below them.

Just then, Valerian suddenly became playful, and she abruptly flipped in the air.

“Goodbye! Human Eli and Boss Gulu!”

“Waaah—!”

Eli had not expected this at all. Caught off guard, his grip loosened.

Together with the dragon egg and Gulu in his arms, he was flung off the dragon’s back and began plummeting rapidly toward the ground!

The terror of weightlessness instantly seized Eli’s heart.

The raging wind battered Eli’s entire body!

“I was not trying to say goodbye to this world!”

“Valerian! You stupid dragon! Who wants to play this kind of deadly game with you?!”

Gulu’s scream nearly pierced Eli’s eardrums.

Just as Eli was falling at high speed, a huge, soft water bubble suddenly appeared out of thin air.

It accurately wrapped him, the dragon egg, and Gulu together.

The water bubble cushioned most of the impact from the fall.

Like a light parachute, it swayed back and forth as it delivered them to the ground.

The moment Eli’s feet touched solid earth, his legs went weak, and he could not help dropping directly to his knees.

Those short few dozen seconds had been even more deadly than the most thrilling bungee jump.

Still shaken, he looked at the dragon egg beside him and confirmed that it was safe and sound. Only then did he let out a long sigh of relief.

“As long as it is fine... as long as it is fine...”

He struggled to his feet, hoisted the heavy dragon egg again, identified the direction, and hurried toward Obsidian Territory.

...

When Eli returned to Obsidian Territory carrying the giant egg on his back, he inevitably drew the startled and curious gazes of the territory’s people.

He had no time to explain and went straight back to the lord’s keep.

After carefully placing the dragon egg inside a sturdy storage room near his bedroom, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He had just settled the dragon egg when Captain Buck, who had received news of his return, arrived right after him.

The loyal Knight Captain looked at the giant egg in the storage room, his face filled with confusion and curiosity.

“My lord, you have returned.

“This... what beast’s egg is this? It is so enormous. I have never heard of such a thing.”

Eli did not want to explain too much about the dragon egg’s origins, so he casually said,

“Oh, I happened to find it in the forest. It looked rare, so I brought it back. It is probably the egg of some kind of large beast.”

He changed the subject. “By the way, Buck, I was just looking for you. Let us talk in the study.”

The two of them came to the study and sat down, and Eli’s expression became serious.

“Buck, I heard Aika report that you led troops to support Lucerne City a few days ago. What exactly happened?”

Buck nodded, and his expression also became grave. “Yes, my lord.

“The matter has already been resolved. It was indeed a group of reckless bandits who came wandering from who knows where.

“They actually tried to attack our Lucerne City. But...”

He paused, his brow tightly furrowed. “I keep feeling that there was something unusual about them.”

“Unusual? What exactly do you mean?” Eli pressed.

“Their weapons.”

“They were not the blades, swords, or spears commonly seen in the kingdom, but a strange kind of weapon similar to a ring, with an extremely sharp edge.

“Moreover, it could be used both for throwing and close combat. It was very tricky.

“I have never seen this kind of standardized weapon among any force within the kingdom.”

Eli thought for a while. “You mean... they might be from the Federation?”

“I suspect so,” Buck said in a low voice.

“Although there were not many of them, and their equipment was also mixed, the style of that weapon should be characteristic of that side.”

Eli sighed and rubbed his brow. “It seems the situation is more complicated than we imagined.

“Buck, there is one more matter I must formally inform you of. Sir Lucius has already decided to begin preparations for a military operation to recover Storm City and the other lost lands of the Western Frontier, and he has ordered me to participate.”

When Buck heard this, his brow instantly twisted into a knot. “Recover the lost lands? Storm City?

“My lord, forgive my bluntness, but this... this scale is too large! Are we relying on our current strength alone?”

He clearly believed this was almost a fantasy.

Eli waved his hand and explained, “No, you misunderstood.

“The main force will be the regular army corps of the Western Frontier. Marquess Marcus and the others will be responsible for the central main battlefield.

“Sir Lucius’s intention is for me and Baron Ron of Runestone City to be responsible for the southern front. The main targets will be Kael City and Emerald City.

“Our task is more to assist, contain the enemy, and clear the outer perimeter.”

After hearing this, Buck clearly breathed a sigh of relief, and even revealed a strange smile.

“So that is how it is... assisting on the southern front... My lord, this is an enormous opportunity!

“Because Lady Aila... oh no, she is Miss La Roche now, is she not?”

Clearly, news regarding Aila’s identity had already reached his ears as well.

Eli gave a wry smile and did not deny it. “Perhaps.”

Buck continued, “There is one more thing, my lord.

“The merchant caravans that previously came to the territory for trade have all been spreading a piece of news.

“They say that His Highness Aiden in the royal capital has already formally ascended the throne? Is this... true?”

Eli patted his own head. “It is true. Look at me, I completely forgot about this matter.

“His late Majesty King Augustus died unexpectedly, and His Highness Prince Aiden inherited the throne as Aiden I.

“Grand Duke Federico of the Western Frontier is serving as Regent and overseeing all affairs of the kingdom.”

After Buck heard this, he fell silent for a moment, then sighed softly.

“A king of only nine years old... On top of that, the transfer of royal power has been at the center of storms since ancient times... Yet it actually passed so smoothly.

“It seems your father and most of the nobles of the Royal Domain stood firmly on... Lord Federico’s side this time.”

“Oh?” Eli looked at Buck, indicating for him to continue.

Buck analyzed, “Lord Leon served as Captain of the Royal Capital Garrison for more than ten years and held the core defensive forces of the royal capital in his hands.

“Even if his post was taken over by Marquess Toscana, the people’s hearts and his prestige are still there.

“Without his tacit approval, or even his support, Lord Federico likely could not have stabilized the situation in the royal capital so quickly.

“His Highness Aiden’s ascension might not have gone so smoothly either.”

He rubbed his chin and revealed a meaningful smile.

“Perhaps... this also has something to do with you and Miss Aila’s identity?

“In any case, for our Obsidian Territory, it appears to be a good thing at present! Hahaha!”

Eli chuckled and looked at Buck with some surprise.

“I would never have thought, Captain Buck, that you were not only extraordinarily brave, but also saw the political situation in the royal capital so clearly.”

Buck waved his hand, humble yet somewhat emotional.

“If you stayed in the royal capital for a while and witnessed the twists and turns of those noble lords, you would probably understand it even better than I do.

“Alas, I merely learned a little on the surface because Lord Leon forced me to while I followed him.”

As they were speaking, Eli leisurely summoned the World Intelligence Support System interface in his mind, preparing to conduct his routine intelligence draw.

A streak of purple light flashed through his consciousness, and a new piece of intelligence surfaced.

【Purple Intelligence: The Wanliu Federation remnant forces occupying Storm City have joined with some other Federation personnel left behind.

After a meeting, they secretly gathered most of their elite troops, intending to launch a surprise assault on Thorne City.

Their aim is to reverse their passive situation and attempt to rescue an important Federation figure currently being held in custody.】

The instant he saw this intelligence, Eli suddenly shot up from his chair, his expression changing drastically.