Vol 8. Chapter 7: None of This Has Anything to Do With Us

Orion supported the aged old city lord as he entered the reception hall.

The current city lord, Fuyan, who had still been wearing a faint smile just moments ago, immediately drew himself in. He stopped, bowed his head respectfully, and said:

"Old City Lord, what brings you here."

"My nephew’s honored guests have come from afar, how could I not come to see them?"

The old city lord was advanced in years, leaning on a cane with one hand and keeping the other clasped behind his back. His body bent halfway, he let Orion guide him as he slowly lowered himself into a seat.

No sooner had he sat down than he turned his gaze upon the husband and wife.

"Just now Fuyan was a bit discourteous. I ask the noble guests for your forgiveness."

"You speak too gravely, City Lord."

The couple let out a breath of relief in their hearts—thank goodness, finally someone who could talk properly.

And since the old city lord clearly intended to continue speaking with Leon and Rosvisser, Fuyan couldn’t just turn his back and walk away.

He returned to his main seat, right beside the old city lord.

But he knew full well—once the old man appeared, there wasn’t much need for him to speak. All he had to do was sit and listen, playing the red face or the white face as needed.

"Fuyan," the old city lord said in a low voice.

"Grandfather, speak."

"These two are heroes who once stood against the Void’s invasion, the saviors of our Samael Continent. Now that they have come to seek our aid, how can you reject them outright without so much as a hearing?"

The tone was not harsh, yet the authority in it carried a weight that allowed no defiance.

Fuyan quickly altered his demeanor.

"My deepest apologies, Old City Lord. I was offensive."

Leon nodded slightly, but when he glanced at Rosvisser, it was with the helplessness of a parent indulging a child.

They both could tell—the apology was directed at the old city lord, not at them.

It wasn’t proper to nitpick over that, or else they themselves would look like the ones being unreasonable.

But just from this brief back-and-forth, the couple had seen through their game. The old city lord’s words were soft, conciliatory, the role of the kindly red face; the current city lord Fuyan was strong-headed, domineering, all refusal, playing the white face. Their true stance was hidden inside this performance of red and white masks.

The couple tightened their hearts, then subtly exchanged a nod. Their tacit understanding was enough to know what the other was thinking at this moment.

"I already heard, outside the door, the purpose of the two guests’ visit."

The old city lord set his cane upright before him, folding his hands atop it, and spoke unhurriedly.

"To think the Void worms actually left behind a backhand... And from His Majesty the Silver Dragon’s description, it seems eliminating Atos’s remnants is no easy matter."

Leon nodded.

"Exactly so. Which is why we thought to seek the help of the Blazing Sun Сlan."

The old city lord stroked his long white beard, pondering slowly. He did not give a direct answer, but asked instead:

"Does the Prince know that hundreds of years ago, your dragon race once came to seek our aid?"

Leon was long accustomed, when speaking with those who didn’t know the truth, to hearing this odd phrasing of “your dragon race.” He immediately understood what the old man meant.

"Was it Sea Dragon King Poseidon? It must have been regarding relics of the gods used to suppress the Void, wasn’t it?" Leon said.

The old city lord nodded.

"Correct. Back then, Poseidon came to our Blazing Sun Сlan in search of the god’s relic ‘Aurora Shield,’ warning us that the Void would one day return to invade our world. Only by safeguarding the relics left by the gods could we continue to suppress the Gate of Void and prevent foreign enemies from entering.

As a relic of the God of Light, Apollo, of course we bore the duty to support such a great cause—"

At this point, Fuyuan suddenly blurted out,

"Even if, in the end, all the credit goes to you descendants of Tiamat, we would still be willing to lend a hand."

The words were edged, and this young current city lord no longer bothered to hide his aversion toward the dragon race.

"Fuyuan," the old city lord’s voice dropped.

Fuyuan gave a cold snort, turning his gaze aside. "I’m a blunt man—what comes to mind, I say."

The old city lord sighed, then forced a smile tinged with apology.

"Please don’t mind him. This child never can control his mouth. I’ll teach him a lesson when we return."

Leon only offered a faint laugh, choosing not to press the point.

As he and Rosvisser had guessed, the elder and the youth—one red face, one white face. The truth lay hidden in their courteous play-acting.

Fuyuan’s so-called bluntness, his slip of the tongue, was in fact the Blazing Sun Сlan’s true stance.

After all, the head of the Dukes family and his thinking was the clan’s thinking.

"Back to the topic." The old city lord went on.

"Back then, Poseidon sought us out, asking us to hand the Aurora Shield into his care. With the dragon race’s power at the time, indeed they could have protected the relic from Void’s destruction.

However... trust is a delicate matter, Prince, Silver Dragon King. If it were you, would you so easily hand over an ancestral sacred relic to be guarded by another race?"

Rosvisser’s gaze shifted slightly, and she inclined her head.

"True enough, Old City Lord. Unfortunately, Senior Poseidon once told us about those negotiations of the past. In the end, because you could not bring yourselves to trust the dragon race, you did not hand over the Aurora Shield to Senior Poseidon. Instead, Senior Poseidon left a Symbiotic Crystal with the Blazing Sun Сlan. If the Void came for the Aurora Shield, you could activate the crystal, and no matter how far away he was, Poseidon would come to your aid at once. And as I understand, a few years ago you truly did face an attack from the Void Realm."

Her tone calm, her bearing gracious and serene, the queen continued:

"Two came that time. One wielded a scythe, able to cleave space itself. The other carried a staff, able to command all tangible matter to obey his will. Because your clan could not withstand those two, you activated the Symbiotic Crystal. Senior Poseidon then led a host of dragons to your side, helping you drive back those Void warriors. Am I right, Old City Lord? All this, Senior Poseidon mentioned when we visited the Sea Dragon clan not long ago."

By speaking it outright, Rosvisser prevented them from being misled by the red and white mask routine.

The old city lord let out a hearty laugh and said:

"What the Silver Dragon Queen has said is indeed the truth. Yes, Poseidon kept his word and helped us defend the Aurora Shield."

At those words, Rosvisser’s eyes narrowed, and her tone grew sharper.

"But after that, you still did not hand over the Aurora Shield to Senior Poseidon and his team."

"Silver Dragon Queen, I just explained—trust is subtle. Even if Poseidon aided us, that does not mean the Aurora Shield must be kept by the dragons."

The old city lord’s voice was slow, deliberate.

"What’s more, after the crystal was used, Poseidon gave us another crystal capable of space transmission, allowing their support to be even swifter. That being so, we had even less reason to give up the Aurora Shield, don’t you think? Back then, when Leon and the others found the Five-Spirit Cores, Poseidon and his party also stayed here among the Blazing Sun Сlan for a time. But Leon hadn’t expected that things here would turn out to be so troublesome."

"Old City Lord, what you say is all well and good, but doesn’t it seem to have little to do with the reason we’ve come today?" Leon steered the conversation back.

This time, before the old city ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) lord could reply, Fuyuan cut in again.

"How could it be unrelated? You dragons come to us again and again asking for aid. You talk about protecting the Samael Continent, but in truth you just want to take all the credit for yourselves. When it’s all over, everyone says the dragons saved the world, everyone sings the greatness of Dragon God Tiamat. But who knows that, for tens of thousands of years, our Blazing Sun Сlan has guarded the god’s relic, the Aurora Shield? The outsiders don’t know—fine. But even Atos, who left behind this relic... our so-called ancestor Apollo, he also..."

"Enough! Fuyuan, that’s quite enough."

The old city lord struck his cane on the floor twice, and only then did Fuyuan fall silent.

But after playing the white face to such an extent, he couldn’t remain any longer.

He abruptly rose, strode to the reception hall’s doorway.

Standing there, he half-turned his head, glared at Leon and Rosvisser, and enunciated each word:

"If not for the mighty magics passed down by Dragon God Tiamat, would your dragon race ever have the status you enjoy today? Bah. A pack of parasites, living off the scraps of your ancestor’s legacy."

With that, Fuyuan flung the door wide and stormed out, his footsteps echoing away into the distance.

Leon gazed quietly at the door left ajar and murmured:

"So he’s projected his resentment toward Apollo onto the other descendants of the gods."

Rosvisser gently laid her hand over the back of his, and Leon pulled back from his thoughts.

Once again the old city lord offered apologies for Fuyuan’s outburst.

But by now, the hall was filled with the sound of buzzing flies.

"So then, Old City Lord, let’s not go around in circles. Tell us plainly—what is the Blazing Sun Сlan’s decision?"

At such a moment, the signal was clear as the closing note of a song. Leon and Rosvisser understood it well.

It was time to ask directly, and of course the old city lord could no longer pretend.

He slowly rose to his feet, lifted his head to Leon.

"Prince, I know your power. In this corner of the Samael world, there is likely no one left who can stand against you. Whether we aid you or not makes little difference to you, does it not. So let us, the Blazing Sun Сlan, this pitiful race abandoned by both the gods of old and the torrents of the present age, simply wait here in silence for the world to change. Whether the future be good or ill—has nothing to do with us."