Just as Knight Ike was considering whether to rush directly across the plain and follow another road to the cave on the top of the mountain, a sound like a brass horn suddenly came into his ears.
"I am a knight of Ike from Denesle, my name is Verentretanmes."
As the words fell, a huge golden creature suddenly flew down from the sky and landed in the center of the flat ground less than a hundred meters away from Knight Ike. It spread its wings, moved its limbs, and made a rather elegant welcoming gesture, while continuing to speak:
"Please don't go any further."
"The end of this road leads to the cave where my wife is. As a husband, I have an obligation to protect my wife."
"Anyone who moves forward will be my enemy."
"To protect my family, I will fight him in an honorable knight's duel, using only traditional weapons. That means no magic or fire. Fight until one surrenders."
"Please give me your answer, Knight Ike, are you willing to give up this operation?"
Listening to the voice that came directly into his mind, Knight Ike was a little confused. In his nearly twenty years of career in killing monsters, he had never seen a dragon covered with golden scales, nor had he ever seen a monster that was so elegant and could speak like a gentleman.
However, his confusion lasted only less than a few seconds before it was immediately replaced by firm belief.
This tall knight, wearing heavy plate armor, pushed aside his visor, revealing his pale face underneath, with a gleam in his fanatical eyes.
He shouted loudly to the golden dragon, "Evil dragon, the one in front of you is Ike from Deneles. In compliance with the will of the gods, the purpose of my trip is to slay the evil dragon and protect the civilians here."
"Since you have decided to protect your wife, I will not back down either. I will have a glorious knightly duel with you."
Upon hearing this, the golden dragon sighed in a human-like manner, and its body covered with golden scales quickly assumed an attacking posture, its slender neck slightly raised, and the sound like a brass horn rang out again.
"Respectable Knight Ike, I admire your courage. I have made all preparations. Now, let this glorious duel begin."
On the battlefield, Ike no longer hesitated. He sang loudly to the sky about the gods he believed in, praying for their blessings, and at the same time raised his spear to salute the golden dragon.
This was a glorious knight duel, and no matter what the outcome, he had to give the other party enough respect.
Wayne, who was hiding on another hill, watched all this and couldn't help but sigh in his heart that this was a knight with true faith. Although he was too old-fashioned and inflexible, he was much better than those noble knights who only knew how to scheme and had no sense of honor.
After finishing the prayer, Ike put down the metal mask and stared at the huge golden dragon through the gap. After adjusting his breathing, he suddenly squeezed the horse's belly with the stirrups, leaned forward, lowered his spear, and galloped on his horse, charging towards the location of the golden dragon with all his strength.
The warhorse dragged his heavy body forward at a very fast speed. The armored warhorse and the full body armor made Ike look like a metal can at full speed. With only one man and one horse, he had an unstoppable momentum. However, to Ike's surprise, facing his powerful attack, Jinlong did not retreat to avoid it, nor did he go around behind him, but rushed towards him at full speed.
Seeing this, he did not charge blindly head-on. Although he had been advancing at full speed, he skillfully changed direction at the last moment, raising his lance high above his horse's head. He flew past the dragon, standing in the stirrups and thrusting with all his might.
He tried to pierce the dragon's head with the sharp tip of the spear, and use the speed of both sides to kill the terrifying beast with one strike. But what was unexpected was that this huge golden dragon had a completely unexpected reaction speed.
It spun sideways at great speed, dodging the thrust perfectly with agility and grace, pulling its huge body back like a whip, with feline energy and indifference, and instantly tearing open the horse's belly with its claws.
The horse stood up and let out a mournful cry.
Although Knight Ike was taken aback, he did not drop his spear. As the horse fell, the dragon claw swung and picked up Ike from the saddle.
It would be difficult for an ordinary person to withstand such a high-altitude fall, let alone a knight wearing full body heavy plate armor.
Knight Ike was instantly seriously injured, especially his legs, which were directly fractured, shrunk under his body, and pulled in a strange direction.
However, Knight Ike's will was very firm. Even though the severe pain made his forehead sweat, his whole body tremble, and his face pale, he did not utter a single wail or beg for mercy.
Instead, he stared blankly at the sky, muttering to himself, no one knew what he was saying.
After defeating Ike, the golden dragon showed no mercy. He pressed Ike's warhorse with his claws, sat on the ground, bit the horse's body with his fang-filled mouth, directly tore off the armor on the horse, and then bit its neck. The horse let out a terrified roar, and finally died twitching, and was swallowed by the golden dragon.
At the top of the hill where Ikko came from, the sorceress Yennefer used the power of magic to fly over the stone bridge, and Geralt and Dandelion following behind her, all happened to see the scene of Knight Ikko challenging the golden dragon.
Everyone looked solemn as they watched the brave Knight Ike being thrown into the air like a toy by this huge, ferocious and elegant golden beast, and then fell to the ground, with his life or death unknown.
Unexpectedly, instead of the legendary green dragon, a golden dragon appeared, which should not appear in the real world. Not only was its size several times that of the green dragon, but looking at his movements, he did not have the clumsiness of the legendary dragons at all. Instead, he was like a skilled warrior, elegant and deadly.
While the three of them were still in a state of shock, a shrill, almost inappropriate voice reached their ears.
"Oh my god, I can't believe my eyes. A golden dragon, a living golden dragon."
The magician Dorrigare also used the power of magic to fly over the stone bridge when he saw the golden dragon devouring Ike's warhorse.
This guy didn't care about Ike's life or death. Instead, he stared at the beautiful golden dragon below with an eye that looked like he saw a rare treasure, and exclaimed: "It's so beautiful. This is definitely the only golden dragon in the world, a living golden dragon. Only the great nature can create such a beautiful and elegant creature."
After saying this, he looked back at Yennefer, Geralt, and Dandelion with a firm and faithful look, and said firmly:
"Listen carefully. Before us stands a golden dragon. Perhaps the only one left alive from your cruelty and folly. Legends should not be killed. I forbid you to touch this dragon. Got it? Give up your idea, pack your bags and go home."
"I, Master Dorrigare, will definitely protect this golden dragon."
Yennefer didn't want to bother with this madman. Although her original target was the green dragon, there was now a golden dragon that shouldn't have appeared. However, for the sorceress who was obsessed with restoring her fertility, she didn't care whether she killed one dragon or two.
At this moment, a sound like a bronze horn went directly into the brains of the four people on the hillside.
"Ladies and gentlemen across the way, Knight Ike is a worthy opponent."
"If any of you have the ability to heal him, please come down and help him."
"Don't worry, I am a dragon who values honor, and I won't suddenly attack you."
Hearing this voice, everyone on the hillside, including Yennefer, couldn't help but look towards the golden dragon below.
Borch nodded to them gracefully, then flapped his wings and flew directly away from the scene of the battle, retreating to a small hill a few hundred meters away.
(End of this chapter)