Chapter 472: Display

The crocodilian Jeroen watched his subordinates' faces turn pale and then blue.

He stepped forward, and his heavy, boiling spiritual pressure held back the cold, icy negative energy.

His deep brown, strikingly irised crocodilian eyes radiated a primitive, ruthless aura.

He glared at Lyle, the word "trash" practically on the tip of his tongue.

To actually be outclassed by a mage a whole minor rank below him—once they're back, he'll have to give them a good thrashing.

"Mr. Rod, slaying a dragon has never been about numbers. This ghoul Young Lady's forces are indeed formidable, but necromancers have always suffered from a lack of elite troops. Against a flying dragon's breath and scales, I doubt they'll gain any advantage."

Jeroen stepped forward once more.

Lyle's defeat in the contest of strength earlier had left him deeply displeased.

This commission was in a remote border town, where the locals were generally less experienced than their well-traveled mercenary band.

So he had to prove his strength, in order to take the opportunity to strike and extort more Jin Along.

Boom—

The pressure of spiritual force came crashing toward him.

"Many people think that slaying a dragon requires high-tier spells, high-tier items, or offensive treasures to weaken and break through dragon scales. But that's not the only way.

Slaying a dragon is about experience, about understanding a dragon's habits, about the coordination of suppression and endurance!"

She felt the terrifying aura erupting from the crocodilian before her.

"Eighth-tier?"

Pan Ni's face changed.

She instinctively wanted to retreat.

But as the forest's head of security, what would it look like to retreat in front of her master?!

Her cashmere greatcoat stirred without wind, as pitch-black and icy coldness rose together.

"You take a rest."

Just as she was about to exert her strength, her master beside her pulled her back with one hand.

"Master."

"Every trade has its specialty. Pan Ni, your advantage lies in mass-producing troops on the large battlefield—no need to fuss over this little thing. Besides, you're not the only girl in the forest, you know."

"Huh?" Pan Ni's face was adorably innocent.

The words had barely fallen.

The friction between magic and spiritual force thundered through the air.

Compared to the negative energy Pan Ni had just unleashed, the sky now darkened completely.

In its place, a vast projection of the tree realm that blotted out the sun appeared.

The tree spirit Vivian's eyes blazed with brilliant white light as she looked down at her opponent from above.

"Forest. Violence. Forbidden."

Bang!

A sudden explosion rang out in the distance.

The female beastfolk Amy blasted the earth from afar, took an ultimate leap, drew a parabola through the sky, then crashed back to the ground with a thunderous impact.

Her crystal cleaver resting on her shoulder, she grinned ferociously with surging battle intent.

At the same time.

The shadows on the ground churned like a gathering, surging ocean whirlpool, as magical darkness drew everyone present into its shadow domain.

As it swirled, Tally stepped slowly out of the shadows.

Today she was dressed as a maid with her hair pinned up—a black long dress with a frilled white apron. Conservative as it was, her chest was even more ample than before, wrapped round and firm.

"Why didn't you wake me up~ That's mean, Master~~"

Saying so, she bumped Pan Ni aside with her backside and smoothly squeezed into Rod's arms.

Meanwhile, the drider Yona had somehow already arrived at his side.

She happened to steady the falling ghoul Young Lady, then gave Rod an elegant bow.

Zombie Selina, with the mind flayer Hart behind her, silently appeared at the forest's edge.

She sighed and slowly floated up.

On her two brass prosthetic limbs, blue translucent force-field spells shimmered into motion.

Not far behind, the rabbit-kin Ona's wary gaze followed the mind flayer Hart as it moved.

When she reached the edge of the woods, she smiled and waved at Rod.

Behind her.

The banshee Kris poked out half her head and also greeted her master.

This one was sly, deliberately following right beside the highest-ranked Ona to make her entrance.

"Human, don't just bring people into the forest."

On the other side.

A voice, clear and cold as a mountain spring, came over.

The elf Caliste, accompanied by Rat Girl Number Thirteen, walked over unhurriedly.

The same sour expression as always.

But she suddenly raised her eyes toward the hillside to the side, and her face softened; she gave a slight nod.

It turned out the halfling Lily had appeared there, kicking her feet forward in an adorable goose step.

She also gave Caliste a nod, then looked down at the crowd below.

"Is there trouble, Rod?! Looking for help?!"

As more and more girls gathered around.

The crocodile man Jeron's expression shifted.

His gaze toward Rod grew heavy and tense.

Eight seventh-rankers,

each no ordinary soul, possessing more stable and solidified mana or spiritual power than others of the same rank.

And then there were the Tu Ren Zu Fa mage and the mind-flayer monster, whose true strength remained unclear.

Could this truly not be an ambush by our enemies?

Besides, why does Rod have so many girls backing him up?!

Is he living off women? On what grounds?

Oh. He does look quite handsome.

His figure is not bad either, seventh-rank mid-tier strength, spiritual power... hmm? Something is concealing it; even I, an eighth-ranker, cannot see clearly?

Jeron's expression changed.

Pressing through the pressure, he said again:

"I have said that slaying a dragon does not require experience, coordination, or knowledge of its habits. I admit you possess strong individual capabilities, which can indeed make dragon-slaying easier, but... never mind. How about a reward of one million five hundred thousand?"

Rod smiled.

It was cut in half at once.

Such a huge reduction; it seems your bottom line is still far from reached.

It also proves this fellow was merely bluffing with an outrageous demand before.

"To be honest, the reinforcements from Shi Ying Town are not limited to the few you see here. Moreover, all your dragon-slaying techniques... hehe, I must mention that the lovely Young Lady half-elf over there recently dealt with a vigorous young green dragon in Waterdeep. Besides her, a Mr. Elf has also had experience slaying dragons.

Mr. Jeron, everything you mentioned we can perfectly replace; we simply require a more secure and fully committed approach to resolve this."

Rod took two steps forward.

He slightly released the spiritual pressure, his momentum steadily overpowering the crocodile man before him.

Jeron's expression changed.

He looked at Rod as if seeing a ghost.

He discovered in terror that he instinctively felt fear toward the man opposite him.

As a beastman,

he possessed powerful beast instincts from birth; someone capable of making him feel such fear must likely possess the strength to defeat him.

A seventh-rank mid-tier defeating me, an eighth-ranker?

You must be joking.

Sss—

At that moment.

A wooden arrow without an arrowhead shot out from the depths of the forest, slicing through the sky, and landed steadily between Rod and the crocodile man Jeron.

A small magic ring hung on the arrow shaft.

With a crack, the magic ring split open.

It immediately began playing the clear yet trembling voice of the half-deer Miss Xiao Ke:

"Don't misunderstand! I am not doing this for you! Little Little Bangde begged me, so I prophesied! Honestly! I am not doing this for you!

Listen well, Captain of the Blizzard Mercenary Company, the crocodile man Jeron, eighth-rank early stage;

Vice-Captain Blanche Jones, seventh-rank early stage;

Company Commander Lyle Ford, seventh-rank mid-stage;

Squad Leader Coder Olsen, seventh-rank early stage; Squad Leader Wiley Reynolds, sixth-rank late stage

Eighty-two heavy-armored warriors, thirty-three archers and crossbowmen, eighteen wolf riders, eleven mages..."

Jeron listened and grew increasingly uneasy.

Isn't this the configuration of our mercenary company?!

Prophecy? There is someone proficient in prophecy within the forest?! This damn thing has exposed my entire bottom line!

The audio continued playing:

"Among them, Company Commander Lyle Ford and Captain Jeron spent all their savings from the past half-month on gambling last month... Vice-Captain Blanche Jones was discovered by her husband for having an affair and..."

"Enough!"

Jeron roared.

(End of this chapter)