Chapter 508 - 280: Blood Faction

’The Dragon Witch... So they really believe I’m involved with her.’ Baron sighed inwardly. ’Looks like this accusation won’t be easy to shake off anytime soon.’

He said, "So, is the Dragon Witch truly the object of your Dragon Eater Association’s faith? If I’m not mistaken, this attack on Traitor’s Cliff was ordered by Elder Pence, wasn’t it?"

"The Dragon Witch in the Dragon Tide was just a frame-up by you lot, just like what you did to me. She and I are both scapegoats pushed out from within your Dragon Eater Association... You attacked Traitor’s Cliff to release the Mad Dragon. Your goal was its body and its Dragon Heart."

But Roy’s reply caught Baron completely by surprise. "Elder Pence? What does the Witch’s will have to do with Elder Pence?"

"As for the Dragon Tide you mentioned," Roy said, "do you really think a few Cultists from the Dragon Eater Association could have broken the seal on Traitor’s Cliff without the Witch’s command?"

"You mean..."

"The Dragon Witch has always been the faith of the Dragon Eater Association. We never framed her."

A chill ran down Baron’s spine. It wasn’t because he was on the verge of death, but because something solid within his mind had begun to crack.

He said, "You mean... the Dragon Witch... was the one who planned this operation..."

Roy nodded. A fanatical expression, one Baron had seen on the faces of many Dragon Devourer Cultists, appeared on his face. Seeing such a fervent look on Roy was jarring for Baron; in his memory, Roy wasn’t the type of person to show such an expression.

Roy answered Baron’s question, "This was, of course, also the Dragon Witch’s command. Since you’re in collusion with her, you should have known this already."

Baron’s heart sank. His expression went blank, like a smooth sheet of paper.

The turn of events was so far beyond his expectations that his mind plunged into a maelstrom of thought. However, he quickly reined himself in, reasoning:

’If Carmen was behind all of this, why would she go through the trouble of disguising herself to steal the Red Dragon Reverse Scale at the auction? She could have just ordered the Hestia Family to pack it up and ship it over. There was no need to put herself at risk.’

Baron felt there was still something fishy, but he was out of time to think. He could feel his strength fading as his chest was torn open. A sense of emptiness washed over him, starting from his limbs and gradually filling his entire being.

He was running out of time.

He asked quickly, "So, are you a Dragon Devourer Cultist?"

Roy nodded.

"Is the entire Hestia Family composed of Dragon Devourer Cultists?"

"A part of it."

"Is Jill one?"

"No... Why are you asking for so many details?"

Roy tightened his grip on Baron’s neck. His Sharp Claws tore open the other man’s chest completely, fully exposing the Dragon Knight’s heart.

The heart was blood-red, perfect, and powerful. It was even covered in faint red Dragon Scales.

On the hillside, a glint of ravenous desire flashed in the eyes of every Dragon Attendant, Dragon-man, and even the Griffin Knights who saw this heart.

Clearly, they could sense just what kind of power the Dragon Knight’s heart contained.

They also understood that if they were to obtain this heart, they would gain something beyond ordinary comprehension.

Roy found it strange. Baron was contracted to Flying Dragon Bad, a member of the Pure-blood Dragon Race, so why were the Dragon Scales on his heart red? Logically, Flying Dragon Bad’s Reverse Scale was silver-white, so Baron’s scales should also be... He frowned, subconsciously about to ask a question.

But at that moment, Baron said, "Who killed Bill?"

"Why are you suddenly bringing up Bill?" Roy said.

"Sorry, Roy..."

Baron suddenly started grinning, his smile like a child’s. This made Roy begin to suspect he might have accidentally scrambled the Dragon Knight’s brains during the fight.

"I’m just having a bit of PTSD. The way you’re torturing me right now reminds me of how that bastard Bill used to torture me. But still, thank you."

"What are you talking about? Thanking me?" Roy frowned instinctively.

But Baron just smiled, even though his smile looked weak and bloody. "Of course, I’m thanking you for letting everyone know the truth."

Roy felt something flash nearby. When he had a Griffin Knight retrieve it, they found it was a... mirror?

At that very moment, on every object with reflective properties within a ten-mile radius of the mirror, the image froze on the scene just before the mirror shattered, capturing the sound of Roy Hestia’s questioning voice.

C Level Taboo Object, the [Mirror of Full Communication]. It was the Taboo Item that Baron and Jack had obtained from the Beowulf Family’s collection room.

Its Authority was that, for a short period of time and depending on the amount of Spiritual Power input, it could broadcast the image reflected in the [Mirror of Full Communication] to all objects with ’mirror’ or ’imaging’ properties within a ten-mile radius.

For instance, at Traitor’s Cliff, Isabella saw this scene in the pool of blood formed by the Dragon Devourer Cultist corpses she had slain.

For instance, Elder Pence, who was rushing toward Traitor’s Cliff, saw this scene in a lake he was passing. He immediately ordered his forces to change direction and head to the ruins of the Dragon Family estate to capture Baron Constantin, that collaborator with the Dragon Witch, as well as Roy Hestia, the Traitor who had shamed the Hestia Family.

Or the guests and Law Enforcers at the auction hall, who were all stunned as they watched the broadcast images appearing on the polished, reflective marble floors, the multicolored glazed jewels, and even the gold-and-jade-inlaid crystal glass mirrors in the restrooms.

"Wasn’t Roy Hestia rumored to have been killed by Baron Constantin? How is he still alive, and looking like that... Is that Beastification? But isn’t he a Contract Knight?"

"Wait, that Cross Scar on his face... Is that the Dragon Knight, Constantine? Why is Roy Hestia strangling him?"

"What? Roy Hestia is a Dragon Devourer Cultist?"

"So Dragon Knight Constantine isn’t the one who murdered Knight Commander Anthony? He was framed by the Dragon Eater Association?"

"Roy Hestia is actually a Cultist of the Dragon Eater Association, and there are other Cultists in the Hestia Family! Could it be those Griffin Knights?"

"Roy has torn open Baron Constantin’s chest... Did he go to such lengths just to prove he was framed?"

"The Dragon Knight isn’t the murderer! He was framed... The masterminds are the Dragon Eater Association and the Dragon Witch!"

"But this doesn’t prove the Dragon Knight isn’t colluding with the Dragon Witch. Have you forgotten? The Dragon Witch is the one who killed the Red Dragon guarding the Mad Dragon! She wants to use the Mad Dragon to bring [Madness] to the whole world!"

"But aside from that, Baron Constantin is innocent! He definitely didn’t kill Anthony. It was all a frame-up by the Dragon Eater Association!"

As they spoke, they stopped their whispered conversations and turned their gazes toward the stunned-looking Jill Hestia in the center of the hall, as if wanting to see his reaction.

From the information broadcast through the mirrors, they now knew that Roy Hestia was a Cultist of the Dragon Eater Association.

And in reality, his identity was not only a Knight Captain of the Griffin Knight Order, but also a descendant of the Hestia Family and Jill’s younger brother.

Although the broadcast confirmed from Roy’s own mouth that Jill was not a Dragon Devourer Cultist, they were still uneasy. This was especially true because the Griffin Knights with Roy in the broadcast clearly seemed to be Cultists as well, and they didn’t know if the Griffin Knights currently patrolling the auction hall were also involved.

At the same time, the guests wanted to see Jill’s reaction to his own brother, Roy, being a Dragon Devourer Cultist.

But Jill Hestia’s reaction was beyond everyone’s expectations. After learning this cruel news through the mirror broadcast, Jill Hestia didn’t show much agitation. Instead, he ordered all Griffin Knights to assemble before him and then began to publicly screen them one by one to determine if they were Dragon Devourer Cultists.

This was to dispel the guests’ suspicions about the Griffin Knights, because Roy Hestia was—

The screening method was simple: have the Griffin Knights swear an oath in the name of the Dragon God, even though the Dragon God was one of the few among the Seven Old Gods who was truly dead.

But to devout believers, he still lived on in their faith.

And a common saying throughout the world is that faith must not be defiled.

The Griffin Knights, including Jill Hestia, all swore their oaths under the watchful eyes of the guests. Fortunately, there were no Dragon Devourer Cultists among the Griffin Knights who had remained on duty here.

At least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

Afterward, Jill Hestia called over the Lion-eyed Knights who were patrolling outside. To prevent the guests from becoming suspicious or distrustful, he requested that they switch shifts with his knights.

The request to switch was approved. The Griffin Knights were led by Jill Hestia outside the auction hall to face the treacherous creatures in the darkness.

Then, Jill Hestia summoned his most trusted second-in-command and put him in charge of leading the knights on patrol.

The second-in-command said, "Commander Jill, are you planning to..."

A Griffin’s wings sprouted from Jill Hestia’s back as he said coldly, "I will prove the honor of the Hestia Family."

After speaking, he flapped his wings and plunged into the darkness alone, like a solitary owl.

***

"What did you do."

Looking at his own face reflected in the mirror shards in his hand, Roy was suddenly overcome with a terrible feeling.

"What did you do!"

Without waiting for Baron to answer, he used his Sharp Claws to rip the man’s chest open completely, his hand plunging in to seize the throbbing, searingly hot heart. The Dragon Knight let out a muffled grunt; the pain of having one’s heart squeezed was truly unbearable.

But just as Roy was about to rip the heart out, one of the Dragon Knight’s hands shot out and grabbed him in a death grip!

’How is this possible!’

Since the beginning of the confrontation, this was the first time an expression of shock had appeared on Roy’s face.

He clearly remembered breaking all of the Dragon Knight’s limbs. Even if he was a Bronze Tier Dragon Knight with a superhuman healing ability, it couldn’t possibly be this fast!

’What’s more, I’m holding his heart in my hand!’

’Even Silver Lion Wilder wouldn’t be able to do something like this if someone were squeezing his heart!’

And Baron, whose neck he was still choking, slowly raised his head. His dazzling, piercing Golden Eye blazed to life once more, too bright to look at directly.