"Please, have a seat."

Anubis brashly swept the debris off the table with his sleeve before picking up Saphirette and setting her down on the long bench.

Hil raised his tail slowly as he sat, while the wolfman had brought over a cup of red tea.

"Thanks, though I expected alcohol would be served," Hil quipped, eyeing the liquid in the white porcelain cup.

"I heard that in high society, tea is the proper beverage to serve guests," Anubis strived to mimic the calm, reserved tone of nobility as he sat upright.

"At most it would be accompanied by a bottle of golden champagne. Spirits are considered uncouth."

Hil nodded slightly, pursing his lips.

"Grand leader, it seems Lady Zenny is quite displeased with master. Is it because he did not reward you all?"

"How could that be?" Anubis immediately denied it. "Though we are outsiders, we have long heard of crimson dragon's fearsome reputation. He is the incarnation of calamity, single-handedly destroying the capital of Morey with his power alone. To serve under such a mighty dragon is an honor for us."

After buttering up with those flattering words, the wolfman's expression darkened as he grumbled in a slightly wry tone, "But even the strongest conviction cannot fill an empty belly. My boys did indeed meet crimson dragon's demands - exhibiting no insubordination during the war and even sacrificing themselves to contribute to his cause."

"But now, apart from the humans providing us food, we have received none of the promised glory or rewards. Crimson dragon has not even summoned us. It truly makes us feel…"

Anubis couched and sweetened Zenny's intended meaning through tactful phrasing.

Ignoring the complaints, Hil went straight to questioning, "After the war ended, did you all come directly here? How did Alvis command you?"

The wolfman squinted one eye suspiciously, as if detecting something amiss in those words. He answered cautiously, "How could he command us? After cleaning up the battlefield and transporting the prisoners, we were dismissed on the spot. I brought my boys back here, while you dragon kin went to Pillar Mountain. He never showed up again after that."

"Oh…never came back…"

Hil fell into contemplation.

"By the way…" Anubis leaned in and spoke softly, "Lord Hil, I've heard crimson dragon obtained quite a fortune at Pillar Mountain - riches sprawling across the entire mountain…"

"Abandon such foolish notion!" The rat dragon immediately rebuked him, colour changing with anger. "If you attempt to covet those treasures, I cannot guarantee there won't be horrific consequences!"

The reprimand did not dishearten the wolfman. "So it is true then? Actually, I…"

"Anubis, do not entertain thoughts of that gold," an unexpected voice cut in, coming from the black priest Paladin.

"What would you know?" Anubis waved dismissively for him not to interrupt.

"Those are things that have existed for millennia, before civilization first arose in these savage lands," Paladin spoke darkly, his entire body concealed within his hood.

"They were cursed by the gods. Those with true foresight would never recklessly meddle - like the humans who were here before. Gray coils around the gold, representing death in the Book of Revelation."

Hil eyed the impudent fanatic coldly. "You're called Paladin? You mean to say my master would be led to death by some mindless metal? Even if someone did covet the wealth enough to attempt assassination, they would only be destroyed by his supreme power."

Anubis hurriedly stood and walked over. "Quickly apologize - now is not the time to peddle outdated, laughable church dogma."

Paladin also rose. "But your master is the exception, for those things were forged by molten dragons, his very ancestors."

"What are you talking about?" Hil wanted to inquire further, but the black priest had already withdrawn into the inner room.

"Esteemed leader, I think we need not fixate on material wealth. This place seems rather small, and those human administrators hardly seem openhanded or charitable."

Anubis tugged at the dazed Hil, who was still staring into the room, continuing the previous topic.

"We've been here quite a while now, so I understand the nature of humans. They fervently exclude outsiders, despising anything different from themselves. They only exploit us when absolutely necessary. But crimson dragon is different - I've heard he has already succeeded in suppressing those humans. This is still a dwarven regime here, which is truly reassuring!"

Hil very much wanted to pursue more details from that black priest, but now was clearly not the right time.

Glancing at the wolfman's all-smiles facade, he finally understood why the black dragon called him a puppy - that expression and demeanor was no different from a domesticated hound kowtowing to humans.

"So you just want to mooch off here with some title, huh?" Hil immediately grasped his aim.

Of course mercenaries need to be paid wages.

But Anubis seemed unwilling to return to the Strife Plain, instead attempting to use the prospect of payments to secure a chance to reside here long-term. Compared to his war-torn homeland constantly plagued by conflict and horrors, the largely threat-free Erl was like paradise.

"You can stay, it's not impossible," Hil replied with a smile.

Those words greatly buoyed Anubis, who immediately displayed an eagerness to listen intently.

"But the actual situation here is rather complex currently. The foundation is human, yet nominally it's a dwarven kingdom. The old nobility wields real power, but my master is the bedrock of the regime. Add to that the turbulent developments these past few days…you should understand this isn't as simple as pledging fealty at some dockside to join."

The obsequious smile gradually faded from the wolfman's face, replaced by a calculating glint and sharp edge. "You speak more truthfully than the humans, or even Alvis himself, which I appreciate."

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Hil held up a hand to forestall Anubis from continuing. "Don't be too hasty in deciding. Though in your eyes my master is simply a single-minded, powerful dragon, I won't be so naive as to think a few words could earn the allegiance of mercenary commanders operating for decades. Consider your future carefully and how to proceed before coming to me again."

With that, he departed, leaving Anubis standing in the room deep in thought.

…

That evening, Raphael received a series of reports delivered by the blood wyvern.

He had just woken from a sound afternoon nap and was considering heading to the peak to find Arnold and tease the golden dragoness Nicole when the stack of reports arrived instead.

Picking up the dwarven-made magnifying glass, he began laboriously deciphering the draconic script on the small slips of paper.

Evelina and Garry had remained at the palace keep, compiling Erl's daily administrative documents under isolation conditions for him.

"Alvis' reports have finally come. Hil's strategy seems quite effective…family…perhaps I can take a more extreme approach." He mulled over plots while reading the secret reports.

"These are insider details from the patrol squads. That human militia? The Komo family has completely uprooted the Vattier family's power base. To curry favor with the Komo family and solidify his own position, Alvis abused his executive authority to suppress the Vattier's attempt to report this to me!"

Raphael's eyes flashed golden with anger as he read this part, furiously lashing his tail to smash through a massive support pillar in the hall.

So there were these minor undercurrents flowing unbeknownst to him.

He remained standing as he continued reading: "…forcibly arranged marriages between human commoner women and patrol squad members, then redistributing the food I sent down as 'rewards' to reinforce their power base. As a result, the people are more inclined to believe the nobility are the true rulers. They have colluded to conceal the truth, letting the populace assume the food comes from the nobility, or was secured through their efforts…"

After staring at it for a while, Raphael gradually realized a fact - that he was merely a symbolic figure under this pretense, giving people a reason to convince themselves to obediently work.

"How can I both allow Erl to maintain its current vitality, while also ensuring my will is carried out in every corner? Transform them all into dragon kin? But the consequences of that are difficult to predict."

For intelligent life forms, dragon blood rarely played a positive role - aside from a few exceptions, most were quickly ruptured and killed by the overwhelming power that flooded their bodies.

Milmos' physical conditioning before his transformation was not poor, coupled with his mental breakdown, allowing for the slim possibility of success.

Raphael carefully considered his options. He was accustomed to autocratic rule, but did not want to upend the table and start over again.

"Nevermind, I'll think about it later." After pondering for a while without any good ideas, he could only continue reading.

The next parts were just some trivial details, with Alvis elaborating on the operations of each department in repetitive terms that left Raphael's head spinning - he would just leave it all for Hil to handle.

Finally was Hil's report.

"It says Heretic Wing mercenary group hasn't closely contacted anyone, and suggests I win them over?"

Only then did Raphael recall there was still a formidable force within his territory.

His first reaction was - why haven't these guys left yet? What are they lingering here for?

But Hil explained in detail that as a third party in Erl, the impact of Heretic Wing was not to be underestimated. If crimson dragon wanted to gather all his kin to Pillar Mountain and the old territory, isolating them from the outside world to maintain a pure powerbase, then he needed to find allies.

The non-human Heretic Wing was an excellent choice. The rat dragon even wrote down his observations of the inner thoughts of their various leaders.

"The wolfman Anubis, grand leader. Conducts affairs slickly and adeptly trims his sails to the prevailing wind. Though his two-faced nature is a concern, he is no fool and can distinguish long-term from short-term interests. He can be won over with enticements."

"The black dragon Zenny, suspected to be the second-in-command. Her schemes are shallow - she says whatever is on her mind. She can serve as a window to observe Heretic Wing's upper echelons' attitudes. She gets along well with the other leaders, so internal dissolution is not possible. Her strength is somewhat lacking, unable to take on a squad of battle dragons single-handedly. A minor show of force should bring obedience…"

Raphael reread the descriptions of the two characters before lying back down to recollect information about Heretic Wing.

Earliest was when Shena hired a wizard named "Lonu" to come to Oakenburg - at that time, they seemed to have good relations with the human nobility.

"Wait, if only that Lonu was Shena's contact, while the other leaders never made an appearance, then after Shena was forced to work for me, they lost their line of communication."

Raphael was wary of their deeper ties to the humans as a latecomer himself. But Hil's report made no mention of how the human nobles interacted with Heretic Wing - even the unguarded Zenny admitted no one was dealing with them anymore.

"In that case, they are essentially a blank slate - a vassals group yearning for acceptance…no, I should continue observing before deciding."

His many experiences had made him grow significantly - he would not readily extend his trust now.

"Lastly, the black priest Paladin - extremely mysterious, never showing his face…rumored that my gold is cursed, reeking of a deathly gray miasma!"

Raphael started in shock, the golden coins covering his body clattering down in a shower.

This was a secret Shena had told him about long ago. But merely because he was the immortal witness to these events, while all documented records and informed individuals had not passed it down - it should have been information utterly buried and sealed away.

Yet it was spoken aloud by this bizarre stranger.

Raphael leaned closer as he read on: "…Paladin also said this was forged by the molten dragons, my ancestors? So dragons would not be affected by the curse, only humans would suffer its bane."

Hil believed this was just delusional rambling to gain attention before cowering from the crimson dragon's might, which was why Paladin had made up an excuse to faint.

But Raphael noticed a crucial point.

"Molten dragon? My ancient grandmother Emin seemed to have mentioned that term before."

He released the ancient tomes inherited from his late father from his spatial ring - the legendary dragon's log records.

The abundant core-stone mines within the mountain faintly emanated a dusky, warmly-glowing light at night, causing the treasures to shimmer with golden ripples that reflected onto Raphael's scales in concentric waves of radiance.

Squinting his eyes in the faint illumination, the crimson dragon carefully searched the books for clues.

Finally, in a very early journal entry, he found the source:

"Today is the day of my coming-of-age. Long ago, grandfather told me that I am an exquisitely beautiful molten dragon, even more breathtaking than my grandmother back then. I am destined to be admired by dragons of my own kind, but I can only enjoy such reverence after journeying to the Loga Tsa mountains to find the truth."

"He is a true paragon who imparted much knowledge to me, yet seemed to want to tell me something but dared not. But this did not diminish my adoration and esteem for him."

"However, when I prepared to travel north to those mountains, my father found me and tried to stop me. I demanded to know why he would defy grandfather's teachings? Yet he claimed ignorance."

"After I told him those words, my father's expression became very grim."

"He first informed me that 'molten dragon' was a taboo term among dragonkind. Their generation had changed to calling themselves red dragon instead. From then on, I could only refer to myself and my descendants as red dragons, and never invoke the ancient name again."

"Additionally, the Loga Tsa mountains were forbidden ground. We should worship with utmost piety rather than foolishly attempt entry through our own power - that would be a grave mistake."

Raphael could not help but glance around at that. "A grave mistake? My word! Father never told me any of this! And traveling north to the Loga Tsa mountain range? My homeland was in what is now the Karuk Forest? Though that was over ten thousand years ago, the geography must have shifted dramatically."

The journal then went on to describe how his ancestral grandmother Emin fell out with her even more ancient grandfather, running away before successfully crossing the mountains alongside the equally ambitious golden dragon Ludovicus and silver dragon Heidrich.

After that, the diary gradually devolved into a melodramatic soap opera - Emin was infatuated with Ludovicus, while Heidrich pined for Emin, yet Ludovicus seemed to love no one, spending his days contemplating the mountains and seas.

"Then came their rallying of compatriots to ignite the war with orcs emprie…if the term 'molten dragon' only spread among our kind, how did humans come to know of it?"

Raphael furrowed his brow. Matters involving ancient events could implicate the orcs, perhaps providing a thread to explain Nana's unhealable wound.