Dragon Maken War - Chapter 193

Chapter 193

Chapter 193 - Transition of Tactics (4)

“Have any enemies approached this place?”

Azell asked as he looked at the corner of the room .  A Guardian Shadow suddenly appeared from the bottom of the floor .

「Not yet… . …… . 」

“Hmmm .  They know that they can locate us at will once again .  It seems they’ve given up on spying on us .  Are they gathering their main force?”

At that moment, the Vitan’s Chalice was in its summoned state .  

It was located at a mountain that was 5 kilometers away from the palace .  It had been placed within a barrier .  If enemies approached the location, the Guardian Shadows would alert them .  It was possible to unsummon the Dragon weapon at any moment .

It was possible thanks to the magic tome Laura inherited from Carlos .  Carlos had included all his magical knowledge into the book, and Carlos had made it so that a significant amount of spells could be demonstrated by the magic tome .  

For a high ranking magician like Laura, the book was priceless .  Normally, magicians treasured their knowledge, and they put a premium on knowledge that was passed down from their ancestors .  They also became obsessed with it . .  After going through their studies, magicians had to conduct magical experiments for themselves .  This was the what being a magician was all about .

Of course, there is a limit to how much new knowledge could be pioneered by a single magician .  This was why magicians wanted previously verified knowledge .  This allowed them to branch out more .  

Moreover, this book was made by Carlos, who was acknowledged to be the greatest prodigy by Atein and the Dragon Demon general .  He had researched for a time period that transcended the limitation of human life .  Laura’s power was increasing each day just from learning the knowledge from the book .

Suddenly, Laura spoke .

“However, it’s weird . ”

“What is?”

“Why did Carlos Rizester give me this book?”

This book was the essence of Carlos’ magical achievement .  When Carlos chose to pass on the book, he had given it to Laura instead of Yuren .  He did so, while acknowledging the fact that Yuren was his descendant .

Moreover, Carlos had made it so that Laura was the only one that could read the content of the book .  Yuren had to receive the knowledge through Laura .  She had to read and learn it before she could teach it to Yuren .  He had to go through a very inefficient method to receive the knowledge .

“I’m not sure . ”

For some reason, Azell had a dark expression on his face as he spoke those words .  Maybe, it was because the subject of the conversation was Carlos .  Laura picked up on this .

“What are you hiding from us?”

“…… . ”

“Did you hold back information in regards to what Carlos told you?”

“I did . ”

Azell readily nodded his head .  It was such a natural response that Laura became surprised .

“What?”

She couldn’t understand it .

If it was personal business between the two, she could understand him not telling others about it .  However, when she deciphered the nuanced response from Azell, she realized that he had held back information that would be important to the party .

Azell’s face hardened as he spoke .

“These are unverified information .  That is why it is hard to speak it out loud . ”

“Mmm…… . ”

Laura showed signs of being unsatisfied, but she didn’t enquire any further .

Azell spoke .

“Aren’t you going to press me for the information?”

“I’m sure you had valid reasons for doing so . ”

Azell heard absolute trust in her words .

Suddenly, it made him think about Carlos .  Carlos had been touch when he witness Azell’s unwavering trust in him .

He could understand Carlos’ feelings a little bit .  After being thrown into the far future by himself, it was a big relief to have someone that showed absolute trust in him like this .

“Please tell me one thing . ”

“Ask me . ”

“Does that mean there is a chance that Yuren might become our enemy?”

“No . ”

Azell didn’t hesitate as he shook his head from side to side .  Laura was taken aback by his answer .

When she heard Azell’s story, Laura had guessed that he was talking about the identity and the business related to the Guide .  There were too many basis that were pointing towards the Guide .

Carlos wasn’t the Guide .

Carlos had revealed some uncomfortable information to Yuren, and he had given Yuren a very unsavory item called the Box of Hope .  He even went through the steps of not giving Yuren an item that was considered to be his essence as a magician .

Naturally, her presumptions had a negative tilt to it .  There was a possibility that the Guide could be an enemy .

However, Azell was firm in his denial .

Laura was confused .  Countless possibilities swirled around inside her head, but she couldn’t determine which one was true .

Azell spoke with conviction .  

“Yuren won’t become our enemy .  You can trust in that . ”

9

Azell’s party stayed at the palace of Rulain for one day .  They weren’t in a position to stay in one place for too long .

They decided one day was enoughn,

It wasn’t just Arietta and Seigar .  Giles and Boar were brought into the Guardian Shadows, and they created a framework for cooperation .  These were people that Azell could trust .  The number of people he could trust was small, and he needed as many trusted comrades as he could get right now .

Moreover, it was decided that Arrieta would join the party .

There was a significant amount of consternation until this decision was made .  It was because Arrieta and Seigar were insistent that they should be the one to go .

Azell couldn’t take both of them .  The Dragon Demon princess and the Dragon Demon prince carried out important missions for the Rulain Kingdom .  At the very least, one of them would need to continue their work as the front man .

This tug of war ended in Arrieta’s victory, because Kairen held up Arrieta’s hand .

“I’m judging this objectively .  Arrieta has gone through the Dragon Slayer’s Ritual, so her potential is higher than yours . ”

Seigar gritted his teeth at his teacher’s cold assessment .

He was frustrated, but he couldn’t dispute Kairen’s words .  After she completed the Dragon Slayer’s Ritual, Arrieta’s Dragon Demon magic had made a noticeable jump .  It was such a large jump that it was almost unbelievable that she was a Dragon Majin .

“Moreover, you have feelings of animosity towards Laura . ”

He also couldn’t deny that truth .

In the end, he backed off as he swallowed back his pride .

Kairen consoled the devastated Seigar .

“You will be staying here, so your responsibility will be immense .  You will work with the other Guardian Shadows to cut off our enemy’s lifeline .  You’ll have to risk your own life each time . ”

“I know . ”

Azell was the revived legendary hero, who had transcended time .  Arrieta would join him to fight for the fate of the world .

The heart of any martial artist that was born in this era would be excited at this prospect .  Seigar also felt the same way, so he was greatly disappointed .

“I’m jealous of you, noonim . ”

Seigar let out a bitter laugh .

10

Kairen was cautioning Arrieta .

“Since you’ve joined our party, you have to pull your own weight .  Your station in life won’t grant you any exceptions . ”

“Of course,  I plan on pulling my own weight . ”

From a young age, Arrieta was put through harsh trainings by Kairen .  It was true that she showed unbelievable amount of laziness in the palace, but she was capable of pulling her own weight in any situation .

“I have important things to teach you, but I’ll have to delay these lesson for a later time . ”

“Why?”

“For a while, you’ll have to get used to moving at our speed .  We move at a very fast pace . ”

At his words, Arrieta’s expression stiffened a little bit .  She knew that her teacher boasted an abnormally fast moving ability .

‘Will I be able to keep up?’

In truth, she was worried .  After she inherited the forgotten techniques from Azell, she had completed the Dragon Slayer’s Ritual .  However, she still wasn’t confident in her abilities .

At the same time, she had a question .

‘They are able to keep up?’

Azell was a given, but how was the other party members able to keep up?

Soon, she was able to acquire the answer to her question .  The party had started to move .

“Ha-ah, ha-ah…… . ”

It had been a long time since she had become exhausted just from running .

She had thought she was well equipped to travel a long distance .  She had been trained by Kairen since her childhood .  She had climbed the mountains numerous times .

However, the speed of Azell’s party was beyond the limits of what she had experienced .  The more surprising part was… . .

“We’ve reduced our speed significantly to match Arrieta’s speed .  Will that not cause us trouble?”

“Let us say we do prioritize our speed .  The princess won’t be able to adjust to our speed, and if we are ambushed, she won’t have any stamina to fight .  In my opinion, that would be a worse outcome… . ”

“I know why we are in this situation, but it still worries me . ”

Kairen and Azell were having this conversation as they prepared their meal .

“Here .  Please have some water . ”

There was an awkward atmosphere amongst the party members .  Arrieta was close with Azell and Kairen .  However, she wasn’t sure how to treat Laura, Leticia and Yuren .

Fortunately, Yuren behaved in a pleasant manner .  He talked to her first .

“T . . . thank you . ”

“It is only your first day, yet you are doing very well in following us . . ”

“…… . ”

It didn’t matter how great one’s skill was .  No one traveled in the manner Azell’s party traveled .

They ran on their own two feet to traverse across mountains and lakes .  How many would think about running across several hundred kilometers through all types of terrain?  If it was a short distance, it was understandable to ignore the terrain .  It was extremely odd to travel long distance when a carriage or a horse was available .

Basically, she had not experienced anything like this in her life .  She never had to use her abilities in such a manner . However, if she moved like this for couple days, she thought she would be able to slowly adjust to it .

“Still… .  You guys are amazing . ”

Laura, Leticia and Yuren weren’t showing any signs of fatigue .  Arrieta was proud of her ability, so she felt her unyielding spirit rise up .

“May I call you by Ms Letica?”

“Please take out the Ms .  You can just call me by Leticia . ”

Leticia answered in a blunt manner .  It seemed she didn’t care if the other person was a princess .  She wasn’t going to show Arrieta any deference .

However, Arrieta didn’t get mad as she asked a question in return .

“May you just call me by Arrieta?”

“…hmmm . ”

Leticia’s expression turned peculiar .

“As a royal, I thought you guys place much importance on your rank .  You guys stake your life on it . ”

“You can think of me as being a bit strange .  Other royals aren’t like me . ”

“I see .  Then I’ll do as you say, Arrieta . ”

At her words, Arrieta had a peculiar expression on her face .  Leticia was puzzled by her reaction, so she asked Arrieta a question .

“What’s wrong?”

“…Ah .  This is the first time I’ve experienced this . ”

“What are you talking about?”

“A woman of similar age as me just called me by my name .  When I was young,  some called me by a false name .  I’ve just been called by my real name…  Hmm .  It is a strange feeling, but it isn’t as if I don’t like it . ”

Arrieta nodded her head as she mumbled to herself .  When Leticia saw this, she smirked without realizing it .

“You are a strange princess . ”

“Should I take that as a complement?”

“I think so . ”

In truth, Leticia hadn’t like the idea when she heard that Arrieta was joining their party .  She had already formed a strong bond with her party members .  Someone was going to intrude into their party dynamic .  Of course, she wouldn’t welcome it .

She became more opposed to the idea when she found out that the person joining their party was a princess .  However, some of her trepidation went away when she saw Arrieta’s attitude .

Arrieta decided to talk to Laura next .  

“Ms Laura…… . ”

“I’m throwing this out there just in case… . . ”

Before Arrieta could speak, Laura cut her off with an expressionless face .

“Please do not add Aunsarus to my name .  I’ve thrown that name away . ”

“Hmmm .  It is an unwelcome name even for me, so I welcome the suggestion . ”

“You can just call me by Laura .  I’ll call you by Arrieta . ”

“Thank you . ”

Arrieta looked to be enjoying herself .  After being taught by Kairen starting from her childhood, she had always lived her life as a princess .  The current experience was stimulating her in new ways .

After a short meal, Kairen gave an explanation .

“As I’ve explained yesterday, we are going to go around destroying the waypoints of the Road of Emptiness .

Laura, Leticia and Yuren consolidated their information, and they were able to name a total of 222 locations .

“…there are a lot of them . ”

Arrieta was surprised .  However, if she thought about it, this continent was large .  If there weren’t that many, the Dragon Demon king worshippers wouldn’t be able to suddenly appear and disappear like they had been over the years .

“Currently, there are 204 of them left . ”

If they included the ones destroyed by the Keepers of Prophecy, they had destroyed 18 waypoints .

It hadn’t been easy fights .  The Plain of Darkness had set up defensive measures, and they had to charge into the teeth of the defense .  Moreover, all the Dragon Demon king worshippers in the region were called into the fight .  There were cases where several groups of the Guardian Shadows were almost wiped out .  This was why Kairen transitioned into being extremely careful in directing their attacks .

First, he sent in the Guardian Shadows to check the response of their enemy .  If there was a high ranking official that they couldn’t handle, the attack was aborted .

Of course, Azell’s party was the exception .  Azell’s party only had to avoid Almarick and Reygus .  

Arrieta was dismayed after hearing Kairen’s explanation .

“We are talking about the legendary hero and the Dragon Demon Generals .  It feels unreal .  They are the enemies we’ll have to fight but… . . . ”

“When they approach us, they’ll snap you right out of such feelings . ”

Kairen snorted .