Chapter 402: A Poor Fit

Coral Bay.

A U-shaped harbor facing the Munster sea.

Fragmented moonlight rippled back and forth across the restless sea, shimmering in broken light.

A dark elf woman with ebony skin and tasseled earrings on her long ears walked silently along the shore.

She did not stop until she reached a short distance from a small hill.

She was tall and lean, wearing only a thin linen shirt; her long, straight legs were bared directly to the air.

"I really can't figure out you dark elves — you always insist on doing it with so many people at once."

A muffled, broken-gong voice, deep and thick, suddenly rang out from the small hill beside her, startlingly loud.

The female dark elf brushed aside her wind-tousled white hair; the elven race's naturally exquisite features made her, fresh from a bout of lingering intimacy, all the more alluring.

"The way the children throw themselves at me with all their might — don't you think it's adorable? Red Dragon Nas."

The words had barely fallen.

With a tearing sound, the small hill, cloaked in shadow, suddenly split open in the darkness to reveal a single enormous eye that glowed with a faint red light.

"Don't try that on me, Natalie. Seduction doesn't work on me."

"Heh-heh, how would you know without trying?"

Red Dragon Nas gave a cold snort, displeased:

"Back to the matter at hand — why was I not informed of the attack on Shi Ying Town?"

Natalie pinched the collar of her shirt, lifting and lowering it.

Letting the winter wind pour inside the garment, cooling the restless heat within her body and lower belly.

"You understand — there are always some idiots who like to act on their own, especially with no way to contact that lord at the moment."

"Are you trying to say you knew nothing about it."

"Think what you will. Shi Ying Town will fall sooner or later, but not today. Those idiots may have stirred up the grass and alarmed the snake, but at least they've given us a clear look at Shi Ying Town's current strength."

Red Dragon Nas gave a humph:

"For the sake of the Archduke of Asmodeus, don't say I didn't warn you — the Guardian Array of Shi Ying Town is no trivial matter. In all of Coral Bay, perhaps only I can break through it."

Even the famously confident and arrogant red dragon had to use the word "perhaps" — enough to show how formidable the Guardian Array was.

Natalie undid another button of her linen shirt, revealing her collarbone and the modest rise of her chest.

A tremendous gulp suddenly rang out.

The corner of her mouth curved into a faint smile.

"That's not for you to worry about, my lord once said he had already found a way to deal with the Guardian Array. We only need to wait until contact with my lord is restored — the Guardian Array is nothing to fear. I don't mind telling you, this time stirring up the grass and alarming the snake turned out more interesting than expected. The bloodline node — we've found it."

"Oh? In Shi Ying Town?"

"Yes. A tiefling girl called Sechiel. Someone in the last attacking party made contact with her and successfully verified her blood."

Red Dragon Nas's pupils contracted slightly.

The bloodline node had been found — and on top of that, the Archduke of Asmodeus still held, in the blood-struggle of the Inferno, that single drop of blood bearing the sacred spark.

It seemed—

The first god-climber on the Spirit Continent was very likely to be this Archduke of the Inferno.

Then… I really must declare which side I'm on…

"Next time we attack Shi Ying Town, leave every strong fighter there to me."

"Oh? Are you going to avenge your black-dragon brother? Recently the bards' papers have been wild with ballads about the Warden driving off a black dragon."

"Mikhail doesn't deserve to be called my brother. He's a brainless fool. A Warden? In the end, just a fragile human."

"But I've heard he walked out unscathed from a dragon's breath. Nas, are you sure your breath can hurt him?"

"In an instant. In an instant he will melt into a puddle of rotting flesh."

"That would of course be best, but that Warden has made no small number of enemies. Not long ago a certain young lady of the winged folk volunteered — she said she could dispel that Warden's body-protecting spirit art."

Nas said coldly and proudly: "I don't need it. I don't need any help. Just hand over every combatant above seventh-tier in Shi Ying Town to me, and that's all."

"Really?"

Natalie laughed softly, undoing every button of her shirt one by one, revealing a beautiful body.

Her tongue swept lightly across the corner of her mouth, then slowly slid inward, bringing a faint coolness and wetness.

"Before that, as the dark elves' representative, I think I ought to test your abilities first, Red Dragon Nas."

Dragon and humanoid race.

Rosalia might be leaving Shi Ying Town.

That was not good news.

Dragons were already difficult to deal with, and now they were losing a seventh-tier combatant to boot.

And Rosalia's administrative abilities were also quite excellent.

With the influx of outsiders into Shi Ying Town, the clashes between old and new residents should have been severe, yet things had remained so steady — much of the credit was hers.

The witch Dimia was naturally capable as well — diligent, cautious, steady — but in the end she was still too young.

Even the old gentleman Humbert, in handling many matters, could not match Rosalia's brisk efficiency and shrewdness.

But for now, an outsider could do nothing about it.

In that night's conversation in the mine, Rod learned that Rosalia harbored a deep grudge over the matter of vengeance, and that her work for Baron Ram had surely been in order to investigate the hunting massacre of those years.

Asking her to give up investigating the great blood-feud that had wiped out her kin was, plainly, somewhat unrealistic.

"Why is there still an onion smell?"

Rod was sprawled out on the beast-hide sofa, and Tally, kneeling beside him, muttered a line.

Last night's party had carried on in wild revelry until dawn.

Just then he happened to wake from his afternoon nap, his mood lifting, so he went for another round.

He didn't know if it was Pan Ni's constitution or what, but the onion smell from the beastfolk restaurant had thoroughly soaked into her.

Even after washing her back and forth in various places with the girls, it was still the same.

Speaking of which.

After seventh-tier, the operating efficiency of his 【Second Heart】 seemed to have improved again.

Rod felt he was almost turning into a desire beast.

He patted Tally's head, signaling her to speed up.

Meanwhile, his hand held the brass spirit-measuring orb; the black crystal slab displayed: 【319 Ke】.

"Only 5 Ke?"

Last night's 【Bliss Party】 newly granted 【Light Footstep】, 【Poison Addiction Resistance】, and 【Enhanced Dark Vision】.

【Dragon-Type Special Attack】 had also reached +6.

The boost from 【Bliss Party】 wasn't all that large, but the advantage lay in its quantity and ease of acquisition.

There was potential.

But Rod was a bit anxious, that was all.

"Mm—"

Another 【Growth Spirituality】 onto Tally.

This time, once again no new skill emerged; 【Dark Veil Cloak】 reached +3.

If he could enhance 【Bliss Party】, that would be even better.

The buffs it brought would surely be stronger.

Tally was fed full.

Rod came to the jade tree at the eucalyptus grove.

Early this morning, the big squirrel Cui Qian had come knocking, saying that her Rotatosk grey squirrels had prepared a gift for Rod to deal with the giant dragon.

(End of chapter)