Chapter 306 You, Go Kill the Earl (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
Having done similar things himself, Galos almost instantly understood the true purpose behind the Albert family's passion for charity.
His mind raced.
Considering the near-fanatical bravery and willingness to die displayed by Albert's private army not long ago, which far exceeded that of ordinary noble private armies, the answer is almost obvious.
"Blinded by lies without realizing it, and even trying to whitewash the lies... Knight, your stupidity is so great that even the most clueless white dragon seems wise."
"If I were truly a tyrannical dragon acting solely on instinct, you would have long since turned into a pool of moss-covered mud, leaving not even a single intact bone behind."
Despite Red Iron Dragon's blatant mockery, Flower Knight Charles did not show any anger on his face.
He took a deep breath, his face pale, and endured the excruciating pain throughout his body, especially the dull ache from his broken ribs and internal organs. He used his arms to support himself on the ground and struggled to his feet.
Even though he was unsteady on his feet and his body swayed slightly, he still tried his best to straighten his spine and solemnly performed a standard knightly salute to the enormous dragon in front of him.
"Your Excellency, King of Iron, I sincerely thank you for showing mercy."
Charles said, "It is this kindness, which exceeded my expectations, that has strengthened my belief that there must be a huge misunderstanding between the Ironforge and the Albert family that has not yet been clarified."
Galos carefully examined the Flower Knight.
A few seconds later, he suddenly changed the subject and asked, "Do you think the Albert family would be willing to pay a ransom for you?"
The Flower Knight nodded almost without hesitation, "Definitely!"
Upon hearing this, the dragon let out a low laugh from deep within its throat.
He tilted his massive head slightly, staring with interest at the Flower Knight's pale face, as if observing a rare experimental subject.
Then, Galos posed a second question.
"Then, Sir Charles, please tell me again."
"If you have lost all four limbs and become a useless person who can only rely on others to take care of him and linger on his sickbed."
"If you lose your former power, handsome appearance, and the prestigious aura of the 'Flower Knight,' and become an ordinary person who is worthless or even a burden."
Galos slowed his voice and finally asked, "Will the benevolent and kind-hearted Earl Mills of the Albert family make the same decision as before? Will he still be willing to pay the exorbitant ransom for you?"
Charles Hines's confident expression froze.
He paused slightly, his pale lips twitching involuntarily, as if he wanted to retort immediately, but some intuition made him swallow the words that were stuck in his throat.
A deep hesitation and uncertainty were clearly visible on his face, which appeared somewhat translucent due to blood loss.
"You hesitated."
Galos caught that moment of hesitation.
“If Earl Mills were truly as you believe, a good man of integrity and high moral character, he would never have stood by and watched a righteous knight who had risked his life for his family languish in the so-called lair of evil dragons, suffering torture and death.”
The red iron dragon lowered its head, and its enormous shadow completely enveloped the Flower Knight.
"If that's the case, Sir Charles, tell me, where does that hesitation deep in your heart come from?"
“No!” Charles looked up sharply, his voice rising slightly: “I’m certain! Earl Mills will never abandon his promise and his friends!”
Galos let out an even louder, deep laugh that made the air hum.
But the laughter quickly subsided.
Red Iron Dragon stared at the Flower Knight and slowly said, "Very well, since that's the case, let's make a bet. The stakes are—your life, and your future freedom."
The Flower Knight remained silent for a moment, as if making a decision, and finally, he slowly nodded.
Meanwhile, in the far south.
In the study of a luxurious manor within the core of the Albert family's territory in the Principality of Raymond.
Count Mills stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, his usually meticulously styled hair looking somewhat disheveled.
The glaring sunlight outside the window brought him no warmth, but instead made him feel inexplicably irritable and cold.
He had been completely cut off from the elite family private army that had been sent to the Sel Wilderness to fight the Ironforge tribe for a long time.
Whether they tried to contact the Wolf General, who was in charge, or to contact high-ranking leaders such as alchemists and protective mages, or even mid-level cavalry captains... all magical messages were like stones sinking into the sea, without any response.
This utter silence, like an ever-expanding boulder, weighed heavily on Earl Mills' heart.
A harsh reality seems to have become unavoidable.
Count Mills believed he had overestimated the strength of the Ironforge tribe, knowing that the wild monsters and dragons were no pushovers.
In his mind, even if the family's most elite private army could not take down the Ironforge tribe in one fell swoop, it was absolutely impossible for them to be completely annihilated or even completely controlled by the enemy.
No matter how strong the opponent is.
Logically speaking, they were nothing more than a group of adolescent dragons, plus a rabble cobbled together from different monster clans.
but.
The complete loss of contact with his family's army was like a silent but heavy punch to his heart.
This harsh reality has left him restless and unable to eat or sleep in recent days.
He realized that he had probably made a fatal mistake, severely underestimating the Ironforge tribe, especially the Red Iron Dragon.
Those dragons, and their tribes, cannot be judged by common sense!
Just then.
A communication device placed on his precious sandalwood desk, a crystal ball, suddenly emitted a soft light.
The name displayed above was none other than—Charles Hines, the Flower Knight.
"Charles?!"
Earl Mills' heart skipped a beat.
"He...he successfully got out of trouble and contacted me? Or..."
He took a few deep breaths of the air, which carried expensive incense but failed to calm him, forcibly suppressing his turbulent thoughts, and lightly pressed his fingers on the communication device.
"Hello, Earl Mills."
A deep, resonant voice, like rolling thunder, with an inhuman quality, emanated from the crystal ball, filling the entire luxurious and tranquil study.
This sound could not possibly be made by a human knight.
Earl Mills's expression changed drastically in an instant.
He stared intently at the crystal ball, and after several deep breaths, he managed to keep his voice from sounding too out of control as he asked, "Who are you?"
A low chuckle came from the other end of the crystal ball.
"who I am?"
The thunderous voice said, "I think that someone as wise and shrewd as Earl Mills should already have the answer in your heart."
"Let's not waste time testing each other and get straight to the point—about the ransom."
Earl Mills remained silent for a long time, his mind racing as he weighed the pros and cons.
Ultimately, he chose to face reality and began negotiating with Hong Tielong on the other end of the communication.
"What do you want?" he asked succinctly.
"It's very simple."
The voice on the other end was crisp and clear: "Just like countless defeated people on this continent have had to face—ceding territory and paying reparations."
When faced with Galus’s demands, especially the formal cession of sovereignty over the Scaled Ridge Road and its surrounding area, Count Mills initially resisted instinctively, but did not persist for long and gradually relented.
The reality is staring us in the face.
The federal garrison is unreliable, and a previous all-out campaign has failed. Organizing a force capable of threatening the Ironforge tribe again is virtually impossible. Since the Scaled Earth Rift has been effectively lost and difficult to recover, and can no longer bring any benefit to the family, it's best to use it as a bargaining chip.
In the eyes of the shrewd Earl Mills, an uncontrollable enclave was far less valuable than the captured elite private army.
Ordinary soldiers who are lost can be recruited and trained again.
But those high-ranking leaders who were cultivated by the family with a huge amount of time, resources and effort—rune knights, alchemists, protective mages... each of them is a pillar of the family's military strength.
If they all perish in this damned Sel Wilderness, the military strength accumulated by the Albert family will suffer a severe blow.
Alliances among nobles have always been as fragile as a spider web.
Once the Albert family shows obvious signs of decline, those noble lords who have always coveted them and have long-standing grudges against them will swarm in like sharks smelling blood, mercilessly kicking them while they're down and taking the opportunity to divide and erode their interests.
Immediately afterwards.
The two sides began a long and calm negotiation regarding the specific amount of compensation and the details of the transaction.
Both sides appeared unusually calm, not at all like two mortal enemies with a blood feud, but rather like they were handling a purely commercial negotiation.
The hourglass of time flows silently.
After repeated bargaining and testing each other's bottom line, the two sides finally reached an agreement on their demands.
Under the witness of the God of Justice, the Albert family will sign a legally binding document, formally ceding the land and the road.
At the same time, a huge sum of gold coins, enough to make Earl Mills' heart bleed, will be paid as war reparations and ransom for prisoners of war.
All of this was done in exchange for the capture of the family elites.
During the negotiation process.
Earl Mills was unusually cautious.
He repeatedly and meticulously checked with Garros to confirm the current condition and severity of the key prisoners—especially the rune knight, the alchemist, and the protection mage.
"I don't believe in any empty promises."
Count Mills said, “I will send a trusted family envoy with official contract documents to the Sel Wilderness as soon as possible.”
"To ensure the sanctity of the contract and the impartiality of its execution."
“A high priest from Libra Church will accompany the procession to complete the final signing ceremony under the glorious witness of the God of Justice.”
Just then.
Galos's deep voice suddenly rang out again, changing the subject: "By the way, Earl Mills, there is another... less important prisoner that I think needs to be mentioned."
"A pathetic wretch who calls himself the Flower Knight Charles Hines."
His voice was flat and emotionless, as if he were describing an insignificant object.
"He is not a member of your Albert family, but he has the audacity to issue that ridiculous challenge to me, claiming it is for the sake of your family's righteous cause."
Unfortunately, he failed, and failed miserably.
"Considering that I personally broke all four of his limbs and shattered most of his bones, he will basically spend the rest of his life bedridden, becoming a complete cripple who can only survive by depending on others..."
"Only a mere one hundred gold coins."
Galos casually gave a number and said, "I can be merciful and spare his life, handing him over to your Albert family like a piece of damaged luggage."
A worthless wretch with no real reputation! A loser!
The thought of the business dealings and astronomical sums of gold coins his family was about to lose filled Earl Mills with anxiety about the enormous losses.
His brows were furrowed and his face was gloomy.
"This person's affairs are none of our family's business. You can do whatever you want with him. Whether he lives or dies, the Albert family has no interest in him."
Upon hearing this, the dragon on the other end of the communication suddenly seemed to become very calculating. He bargained like a penny-pincher: "Ten gold coins, just ten gold coins, and I'll spare his life. Otherwise, to save food, I'll have to throw him to feed the gnolls."
"Believe me, it will be an extremely painful death process."
Faced with a dragon so insistent on the price of a worthless piece of trash, Earl Mills felt annoyed and completely lost his patience for pretense. He no longer wanted to feign anything and bluntly said, "A piece of trash who has lost all his usefulness, the Albert family will not pay him a single copper coin. His life or death is up to you."
Subsequently, this negotiation, which determined the fate of so many, finally came to a complete end.
On the other side, in the distant wilderness of Sel.
At the feet of the red iron dragon, the Flower Knight Charles Hines, bracing himself against the cold ground, listened clearly to the entire conversation that would determine his fate.
So... in their eyes, my life and value are not even worth a single gold coin?
His eyes flashed with shock, disbelief, bitterness, and finally transformed into a deep sorrow and enlightenment.
After his gaze shifted dramatically for a long time, it finally calmed down and turned into a long sigh, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
That concludes the discussion.
He has repaid the so-called favors owed to the Albert family in the past with this almost life-threatening act and their ruthless abandonment.
From now on, we owe each other nothing.
Through the Gem Merchant Guild, the Ironforge Tribe also possesses contract-type items for unforeseen circumstances.
According to the previously signed contract, his life and future now belong to the terrifying and complex red iron dragon before him.
"Charles Hines".
Hong Tielong's deep voice broke the silence once again.
"Let's not talk about so-called righteous people like you who are easily deceived and manipulated by lies."
"That Earl Mills, whom you call benevolent and charitable, secretly raises a large number of orphans and beggars, brainwashes and trains them into death knights who only know family honor and are willing to die for it without hesitation, and then sends them to the cold battlefield to squeeze out their last bit of value."
His eyes were fixed on the knight, and he asked, "Now, do you still insist that he is a kind and good lord? A truly good man?"
The Flower Knight slowly and heavily shook his head, the last glimmer of hope in his eyes shattered completely.
"As we have agreed, your life and liberty belong to me, but I will not force you to do evil."
Hong Tielong's voice was calm and even as he said, "Then, prepare to put into practice your principles of punishing evil and promoting good."
"Target—Mills Albert."
"Go and kill him."
(End of this chapter)
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