Chapter 5: Run!
"Lord, these mules are still alive—this is great news."
"The food and clothing are also undamaged, but the axle we just repaired seems to have broken again. I’ll have Old John fix it right away..."
After iing the supplies they had left behind, Steward Ralph finally rexed, a barely cealed smile on his lips.
Ange also let out a sigh of relief, occasionally casting curious g the little creature sleeping soundly in Matthew’s arms.
"Much cuter than the Earl's most cherished summoned creature, the Wind Serpent King!"
"Ahem, five my disrespect."
Standing before the body, Matthew noticed at least three or four valuable magical items.
Whether kept for himself or sold through the right els, they could signifitly speed up the development of his territory.
However, Matthew didn’t dare to touch them!
The hidden dangers of Luck +4 made Matthew too cautious to gamble!
So, he ighe corpse and, to prevent others from getting any ideas, sternly instructed the still-shaken Ange:
"His death has nothing to do with us. No one is allowed to take anything from his body—let’s not invite unnecessary trouble."
With the example of Luck 4 before him, Matthew was on high alert for the impending Misfortune 4. All he wanted was to safely reach his territory.
Ange nodded, still shaken, and warily sed the members of the voy.
She clearly remembered how some people’s gazes turned odd when the Lord was f a pact with the dragon whelp.
"I will bee the Lord's sharpest sword and stro shield, defending him from all dangers and malice, and annihiting all his enemies!"
This was Ange's vow and her unwavering belief!
Because everything she had was given to her by the Lord!
Matthew was naturally unaware of Ahoughts, and even if he knew, he had no time to discuss them with her.
He was now looking solemnly into the dista the billowing smoke and the ruins of Sweetwater Town, now a living hell, and said resolutely:
"Abandon the supplies; take only the mules. We must leave quickly—the bck dragon could return at any moment!"
Steward Ralph nodded without hesitation and immediately began giving orders:
"Abandon the cargo in cart 3. Old John, repce the mules, let them rest for an hour, and then repce the weakest mule."
"Numbers 1 and 10, take up your ons and shields, lead the way at the front of the voy. The rest of the group from cart 3, take their positions..."
Watg the old steward expertly mahe situation, Matthew gently patted the little creature, nodding in approval.
He returo the carriage, notig that the little one hadn’t caused any disfort to the mules, immediately realizing it was the Time Dragon's doing.
"I hope the dragon is okay. If this Time Dragon really has the time, it would be the best support and ally I could ask for..."
Thinking this, Matthew looked at the increasingly distant Sweetwater Town, imagining the tens of thousands who had died without resistance or struggle.
Most of them probably didn’t even know who killed them as death approached.
An indescribable sense of crisis and anger surged in his heart, only to be buried deep inside, waiting for time to ferment and strength to grow.
As the voy passed by the ruins of Sweetwater Town, most of the others remained silent.
Seeing the broken walls, the crumbling buildings, and the charred bones scattered around, it was hard not to feel a chilling fear.
Gng warily at the ruins, Matthew frowned in suspi, vaguely sensing some dangerous eyes watg.
There shouldn’t be any life left in the ruins after the bck dragon’s corrosive breath!
But whatever it was, Matthew had no desire to provoke it. He had no i in the remains of Sweetwater Towher.
The crisis in the back of his mind urged him to leave quickly, to run!
Matthew acted as if nothing had happened, suppressing the sense of danger, as he gently stroked the staff made from fire dragon wood.
This was a gift from his father, t André, when he was six years old as a reward for being an arist.
Spell enha +1, daily casts of Fireball 3/3!
It should have been just a childhood toy for Matthew Serre, a keepsake like a stuffed panda, but now it was the only magical item he had.
The soft golden sunlight fell on Matthew's face, but the long-lost warmth brought him no fort, failing to dispel the ess in his heart.
The ruins of Sweetwater Town gradually receded, until they disappeared beyond the horizon.
Not long after the voy left, a twisted spatial ripple appeared in the smoke-shrouded ruins of Sweetwater Town.
The inexplicable pressure seemed to have vanished.
Everyo an unexpinable relief, and the thoughts and words they had been holding in began to e out in light banter and versation.
In no time, the voy was filled with the sound of quiet discussions.
Smiles gradually appeared on everyone's faces, and they occasionally g the little creature in the Lord's arms.
"The strohe Lord bees, the safer we are!"
"You're right, as long as we follow the Lord, our future will be bright."
"When the Lord's dragon grows up, it will protect us and our desdants for hundreds of years. Who knows, we might even be able to expand our territory, and we could bee knights ourselves..."
"Hey, you're dreaming! You think you could bee a knight with that attitude?"
"Why not? When our Lord bees a Duke, a merciful lord like him won’t fet my tributions..."
"That little dragoo have grown a bit bigger. It’s growing so fast..."
"That’s a legendary dragon after all. Most people won’t see one in their entire life, let alohis close..."
"e to think of it, thank goodhe Lord didn’t rush into Sweetwater Town, otherwise..."
"Do you think we boast about surviving a bck dragon attack to others ter?"
"Haha, good point!"
"..."
All sorts of quiet voices reached Matthew’s ears, and his vision was getting sharper, his body and strength gradually increasing.
Whether this sudden ge had just begun or had been happening all along, only now accumuting to a noticeable level, Matthew didn’t know.
Matthew evehat with each breath, his body became strohan before, and so did the little one in his arms.
Matthew unsciously became immersed in the feeling, unaware of the passing time.
His ptive expression caught Ange’s eye, and to her, it appeared incredibly charming.
The sun was setting, the distant sky painted with red clouds.
The dark green Misty S gradually began to stir.
The road beyond Sweetwater Town, due to a ck ur maintenance, became increasingly difficult to traverse.
Fortunately, after surviving the bck dragon's attack, everyone was more resilient to such things.
Having crossed the threshold between life ah, these minor issues seemed insignifit.
Steward Ralph hesitated, lig his lips, before carefully studying the map. The wrinkles on his forehead deepened as he seemed to make up his mind, gently tapping the map with his finger.
Then, Ralph put the map away and quickly walked over to Matthew, relutly interrupting the Lord's thoughts:
"Lord, our inal pn was to rest for the night iwater Town ahrough tonight's Scarlet Moon..."
"At our current pace, we will reach a military outpost in about 30 minutes, around 5 PM."
"Normally, a 10-man garrison would be statiohere, and under normal circumstances, we could rely opost’s tower and walls to safely get through the Scarlet Moon."
"However, if there are too many mutated creatures in the wild, there's a risk of the epost being overrun..."
"If we only rest for half an hour at the outpost, we could reach the territory around 9 PM."
"But before that, we would have to ewo hours uhe Scarlet Moon's light, a very dangerous time..."
Mattheed out of his thoughts, fog on Ralph's hesitant face, and saw the familiar blue light fsh in his vision once again.
He expected another fate choice, but it was somethiirely different!
Instead, the long-lost character attribute panel appeared.
Just a gnce was enough to make Matthew's eyes widen in disbelief as he excimed:
"What the hell? Are these the stats of a 1st-level arist?"
Sed chapter of the day.
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