Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Imperial Decree
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Ding ding ding....
The emergency bell of the Sky Corps had been rung so hard that the iron gong's echoes still hadn't faded.
Flutter flutter flutter.
Led by Bebeto, twenty-two wyverns landed one after another in the Sky Corps grounds.
'Well done, Bebeto!'
There was nothing left to teach him—he deserved to be told to head down the mountain.
No more joint training sessions with Bebeto to educate the wyverns like before.
With his brutish violence, Bebeto had subdued all the males and females alike.
Even the gold wyverns, symbols of the Raviter Empire, had tucked their tails and meekly obeyed Bebeto's commands.
Of course, some of the landing wyverns looked pathetic, like chickens with most of their feathers plucked out.
Perhaps taking after his master's temperament, Bebeto knew how to dish out just the right amount of "loving discipline" to those who rebelled.
It was heartwarming just to watch.
The saying that one well-raised hybrid wyvern was worth ten purebreds was made for times like this.
'Now the Sky Corps is going to feel cramped.'
Excluding the ten wyverns recently acquired from the Temir bastards, there were already eight wyverns using the outer Sky Corps grounds as their base, Bebeto included.
But with these additional twenty-two joining them, the vast Sky Corps suddenly seemed crowded.
"M-My lord...."
The Sky Corps had gone into full alert mode without even spotting Bebeto, thanks to the eye-catching gold wyvern.
Not a single soul moved amid the wyvern horde that filled the runway.
Derbal, who always strove to keep his cool, came rushing over and called to me.
"Derbal, nothing out of the ordinary?"
"....."
When I casually asked if everything was fine, Derbal was at a loss for words.
His eyes were asking the question plainly.
What in the world are all those wyverns, and that featherless gold wyvern?
"You encounter all sorts of grateful folks in this world. They insist on giving you gifts like this even when you say no. Hahaha."
I called it a gift and laughed heartily.
But Derbal and the others didn't laugh.
They knew full well, too.
Just as black wyverns symbolized the Vazran Empire's imperial house, gold wyverns were the mounts of the Raviter Empire—the continent's strongest empire.
"Come on down. This is your home from now on."
Five beastkin who had ridden in on wyverns that landed behind Bebeto.
They wore the air plates the knights had taken off, and Hashifort, the bulkiest among them, sported a stretchy mage's robe like tight spandex.
"These people are...."
Derbal's eyes, preoccupied with the wyverns, now turned to the beastkin.
"They're disciples of someone I know well, and they've agreed to help me out this time. All five-circle mages."
"Gasp! F-Five, five-circle mages!"
Derbal stammered at the words "five-circle mages," spoken as casually as naming the neighbor's dog.
His head was probably about to explode right now.
Where had I dragged in twenty-two wyverns including that gold one, and how had I brought along five mages whose very existence was a threat?
"Derbal, it's still before dinner, right?"
Summer days were several hours longer than winter.
"Y-Yes, it is."
"Then let's have dinner—no, let's throw a festival tonight. My soldiers! Today is a feast day! Drink and get roaring drunk to your hearts' content!"
"Waaaaaaaaah!"
"Long live the lord! Long live!"
Ever since meeting the dwarves, my personality seemed to have changed.
And the soldiers, emboldened by such a lord.
Wyverns were mere trifles to them now—they cheered and shouted "long live" at the mere mention of a festival.
'Sorry, I have no idea what tomorrow will bring.'
The moment I held a sword to the prince's throat, I'd crossed an irreversible river with the Raviter Empire.
My helmet had hidden my identity, so they might not have recognized me, but in a situation where a clash was inevitable someday, I'd gone and settled it.
Rumors of the gold wyverns here would reach the Raviter Empire soon—within a day if quick, a few days at most.
But so what?
The water was already spilled.
I'd worry about tomorrow when it came.
"Derbal, give the soldiers permission to drink. Everyone except the basic guards—let them eat and drink their fill."
"Understood."
Derbal bowed his head, his face resigned.
"Well then, shall we go? I'm starving, and I could go for some beer."
I hopped down and headed for the captain's quarters, my lodging.
Rustle.
'Whoa, beastkin live up to their reputation.'
Even jumping off a wyvern, they made no more noise than scattering leaves.
Crunch.
They had silently crept up behind me before I knew it, their footsteps quiet.
"Lord Kayer...."
Armis, who had spotted my arrival and come running.
She greeted me with a smile, like a wife welcoming her husband home from work.
"Lady Armis, care to join me for dinner since it's before mealtime?"
"Yes, I'd be honored if you invite me."
Watching her fresh smile melted away the fatigue I'd built up all day.
'I need to bolster the Sky Knights. I've gained another enemy.'
Even I had to admit it was hopeless.
Hunted to Neruman by the Vazran crown prince and assorted nobles, I'd become a lord and picked fights with every mage tower on the continent and some merchant guilds to boot.
And now, fate demanded I square off against the Raviter Empire, the continent's top brawler.
No matter how much of a pro at brawls I was, even I pitied myself at times like this.
But I couldn't stop walking.
The moment I did, the fates of everyone who depended on me would halt as well.
Ding ding ding!
"Whoa, wyverns have appeared!"
"Black wyverns have appeared!"
'Black wyverns?'
The soldiers in the Sky Corps watchtower rang the bell again and shouted.
I whipped my head toward the sky.
Black wyverns, symbols of the Vazran Empire's imperial house.
There was no reason for them to come here.
'Imperial banner!'
And they flew with the banner used only when bearing imperial orders, attached to the black wyvern's belly.
A wyvern banner embroidered in gold.
Flutter flutter flutter.
Without permission, the black wyvern quietly landed off to one side of the wyvern-packed Sky Corps grounds.
Bathed in the crimson sunset, their pitch-black bodies gleamed with a dark red sheen.
"....."
All eyes turned to the black wyvern.
Most of the Neruman soldiers here were probably seeing one for the first time.
'That, that wyvern!'
As I pondered why a black wyvern would come all the way here, one caught my eye.
It looked familiar.
No, it was a wyvern I could never forget.
Flutter.
Unfastening the safety harness, a Sky Knight dismounted lightly like a bird.
Tap.
Step step.
Heading straight for me.
A Sky Knight in a fluttering red cape and black scarf around the neck.
'Countess Irene!'
So it was.
Incredibly, the Vazran imperial guard Sky Knight striding toward me was the unforgettable Countess Irene, and the wyvern she rode was Minethis, the one I'd trained on.
Click.
Ignoring any attempts to stop her, Irene marched right up to me with confident steps.
She removed her helmet.
Swish.
The silver hair that once made my heart race cascaded down like a waterfall.
Swoosh.
Countess Irene brushed the strands from her face with her right hand.
Sparkle—her eyes came into view.
And the beautiful smile she flashed at me.
'Ah....'
Forgotten memories resurfaced, drawing a soft exclamation from deep in my chest.
"Baronet Kayer de Adallon, receive His Imperial Majesty's decree with due decorum!"
The resounding proclamation of the imperial decree.
Another Sky Knight stepped up beside Irene.
In his hands, he reverently held a black scroll stamped with the golden imperial seal.
TO BE CONTINUED