Chapter 346 Flight

The two mercenaries ultimately chose to work for the People's Party—of course, they essentially had no choice. How would two freelance mercenaries handle the Imperial Army's search? Afterward, calming down, Ethan suddenly realized he had no idea when the ghost had started targeting him. Whether it was all coincidence or a conspiracy, the more he thought about it, the more terrifying it became.

Mr. Ghost spoke with Miss Emilia Carleton for a long time. Before she left, her eyes were red, but her expression didn't seem sad, but rather relieved. Because Stone Creek was located on the front lines, at risk of being caught in the crossfire, she had to be transferred to a safer area in the rear. Before leaving, she worriedly reminded Mr. Ghost to be careful.

For some purpose, and at the instruction of the ghost, Miss Caledon did not deliberately conceal her whereabouts. Soon, rumors that Emilia Caledon, the Countess of the Caledon family, had been "kidnapped" by the People's Party spread like wildfire. Many young nobles who "admired" this beauty swore indignantly that they must rescue her from the dirty slave army, especially the ghost.

The professor who suddenly became a demon king who wanted to snatch the princess: "..."

Very good, the villain filter adds another touch of color.

However, he really didn't have the time to care about these messy rumors - at least there was no rumor that the People's Army gouged out the genitals of young boys and girls to make atomic bombs - according to the battle report, General Basso, who was guarding the Blood River Ferry, led the Imperial Fourth Army to directly cut off the iron chain bridge across the river, as if they were determined to live and die with the ferry, and the situation was temporarily deadlocked.

The Blood River Ferry and the Frost Valley Corridor offer only one waterway and one land route to Osiris City. Thanks to the natural advantages of its topography and the vast and powerful military forces deployed by the empire, Osiris City has become a fortress that guards the western border of the royal city, easily defendable and impervious to attack.

The previous fall of the Frost Valley Corridor allowed the elite troops led by Greven to attack Osiris City directly. However, this tentative surprise attack did not achieve much success. Amid the huge roar of artillery fire and magic, the not-so-rich people's army had to retreat temporarily.

And Orel had already rushed to the Blood River Ferry and personally commanded the battle.

However, Mr. Ghost, the commander-in-chief, was surprisingly calm. He stayed in the border town and showed no worry or impatience that the precious troops of the People's Army might be counterattacked and encircled by the enemy at any time.

"What are you looking at?"

The professor looked up bewilderedly and caught sight of the dragon knight's smooth, fair face. One hand was resting on the table, the other resting naturally on his shoulder.

"I'm very interested in this place." He came back to his senses and tapped a spot on the unfolded map with the tip of his pen. This map was covered in traces of hand-drawing and markings, created by the Savior. He rode a dragon, which could easily serve as a surveying drone. He did this while inspecting the mining area. The Great Demon King always made the most of his resources.

"I need to see it with my own eyes." The black-haired young man looked at his lover beside him and said seriously: "Please take me there."

Azuka followed his fingertip and landed on the location marked with charcoal on the map - the Crescent Mine.

Due to the rugged terrain of Osiris City, which lacked large tracts of flat land for the main granary, and to prevent the enemy from cutting off the main city's food supply in the event of a siege, the Crescent Fort granary was located in the flatter river valley behind Osiris City, allowing for large-scale resupply via transport convoys. The Crescent Mine, located between Osiris City and the Crescent Fort granary, was a mining area long since depleted by the Empire and marked "abandoned," and a necessary route for Greven's group.

"The Crescent Mine has been abandoned for years, and the Empire has long since withdrawn its garrison." The Savior's brow furrowed slightly. "Do you think there's something wrong here?"

"Very strange." The professor drummed his knuckles rhythmically on the map. "According to the latest news from Greven, for over three months, the supply convoys from Crescent Castle's granary to Osiris City have deliberately avoided the old mining route, preferring to take two extra days to go through the Frost Valley Corridor. The official explanation is that a mudslide has cut off the road—Greven's point is that the convoys can't go, but people can."

"But according to the map," he traced with his fingertips, simulating the course of the river, "the main rivers and tributaries nearby flow roughly parallel to the old path, rather than perpendicularly cutting through the valley where the old path lies. Even if a flash flood occurred, the impact would generally follow the river course rather than destroy the old path. Furthermore, the valley slopes on the map you surveyed are not steep, and there are no obvious gaps in vegetation."

"Even if the old road was truly destroyed by a mudslide, it's been over three months. Given how much Osiris City values ​​and relies on this vital supply route, why didn't Marquis Ravel organize manpower to clean it up and repair it? With the presence of sorcerers, it wouldn't be a difficult task." The professor's brows slowly furrowed. "And a two-day detour would be a huge loss and inefficient for frequent supply transport. It's completely unreasonable."

The Savior sharply asked, "Are you saying that the mudslide was just a deception? Perhaps something major happened near or beneath the Crescent Mine, or perhaps something is hidden somewhere?"

"That's right." The professor gave him an approving look. "If something drastic happens to Greven's team, it could directly lead to the collapse of the entire plan. But it's too late to send people to investigate now."

Those smoky gray eyes stared calmly at the dragon knight's face. "So, Azuka, I need you to take me to see it with my own eyes. Only your height, speed, and stealth ability can allow us to make a timely judgment before Marquis Ravel reacts."

"You must take me with you. You are not allowed to go alone." He emphasized bluntly, trying to stop someone's overprotectiveness: "I can see more than you."

The Savior was slightly stunned, then said helplessly, "You've already said this much. If I refuse you again, wouldn't it seem like I'm being overbearing?"

"Well, you're the most reasonable one." His nemesis stared at him seriously. Seeing that he seemed to be thinking, he hesitated and added, "If you want me to kiss you first..."

“…”

Azuka endured it for a long time, but finally couldn't help it. He pinched the man's neck lightly, not too hard, and rubbed it angrily, making him shrink his neck subconsciously. Before the other party could frown and scold him, he let go as if nothing had happened.

"I'll save this kiss for when you're feeling lost and confused." The Savior replied with a smile, "And I hope next time you won't ask me and just kiss me directly. I'll be happier than I am now."

"oh."

The professor blinked, grabbed the blond young man's collar with an expressionless face, and pulled him to bend over. When a slight surprise appeared on the guy's face, he raised his head and kissed him on the lips without hesitation, making a loud smacking sound - then he pushed the man away with extremely ruthless attitude, and took out his coat and put it on himself.

"Let's go. Time is running out." He straightened the collar of his coat and stood at the door. He first greeted the Shadow Chasers in charge of security, then urged the dragon rider, "Should I ride you or your dragon?"

Dragon Knight: “…”

How did this guy manage to make a serious statement so evocative and funny?

"I think Ezra would agree." He glanced at her helplessly, took off his cloak and draped it over his lover, carefully adjusting the loose collar. "You can also rest a little on the dragon's back. We will probably be flying for nearly two hours. Put it on and don't take it off. It's very cold out there."

Nova frowned and looked at him: "Aren't you cold?"

"I am God."

"It's not like you're missing heat-sensitive neurons," the professor retorted bluntly, "Are you wearing a cloak to look cool? I'll go borrow one from someone now. If you're a germaphobe, just wear your own."

Then he heard the savior sigh, his eyes blurred, and after a dizzying moment, he found himself being held tightly in someone's arms, and his whole body was rising above the clouds.

The sudden fear of heights made the black-haired young man subconsciously turn over and hug the neck of a certain culprit tightly, wishing he could use both his hands and feet to hold the person tightly. Braving the cold wind, he managed to curse: "You——"

Before he could finish his curse, accompanied by a soft whistle, the figure of a dragon rushed over from far away, and they landed on the dragon's back. The dragon knight's fingertips were lingering with the faint light of magic, and the confusion spell concealed their figures.

Someone had already slipped in from under his cloak, two grown men huddled together under one cloak. The dragon knight's slender, powerful arms firmly grasped his waist, and a constant stream of heat emanated from behind, making the space feel exceptionally cramped. Anyone who tried to escape the embrace of the person behind him would be strangled by the collar.

"Okay, now you won't be cold anymore." The guy put his head on his shoulder and said with a smile, looking quite proud.

“…Let go!”

Azra had already bolted out under the Dragon Knight's command. The professor's voice was largely carried away by the cold wind, sounding muffled and tinged with gritted teeth. He tried to push back with his elbows, but the space was limited, so it looked more like he was comfortably nuzzling into the warm embrace behind him.

"Why? Can you bear to see me freezing?" Someone hugged the person tighter pitifully, and asked softly in the person's ear with grievance. Then he looked at the person in his arms with a smile and saw that the tip of his ear suddenly turned red, not knowing whether it was caused by the cold wind or the air he exhaled.

"Look, your ears are frozen red..." He simply moved closer, gently bit the cold soft flesh in his warm mouth, and even licked it with his tongue, which made the person shiver violently. Before his old enemy could get completely furious, he cunningly distanced himself from her.

The professor was almost unable to bear it any longer: "--So whose fault is this?!"

"My bad." Someone leaned over and kissed the side of his face as a matter of course, casting a spell to block the extremely cold and harsh air currents from the sky. "Dear sir, please forgive me. Besides, if you move any more, you will be discovered by the Imperial scouts below. Even with the confusion spell, the noise is not safe enough."

A perfectly plausible excuse. Nova pursed his lips and glared at the man's profile for a moment, finally giving up the futile struggle. Of course, the warmth inside his cloak also played a role—he could only keep a straight face, trying to ignore the warm breath on the side of his neck and the overly noticeable arm around his waist, forcing his attention back to the rapidly passing landscape below.