Second Match (3)
Once he decided to surrender, Luke first recalled the Similis Dragon into its Dragon Scroll.
"Phew."
Watching from the sidelines, Owen let out a sigh of relief.
It was no ordinary headache dealing with such a formidable beast.
Hmm... It's about time I got myself a medium-sized dragon.
Grenville had tremendous potential, but its small size was the problem.
Up until now, they'd managed against medium dragons thanks to Owen's wits and Grenville's unique abilities, but he was starting to feel the limits.
If he'd had a medium dragon, he wouldn't have struggled this much against the Similis Dragon.
I've secured a good amount of gold now, so I should look into it. It's not like the old days with no options.
As Owen thought that far, a sudden idea struck him.
Why not take Luke's Similis Dragon for myself?
The Similis Dragon was rare and highly specialized for forest combat.
It climbed sheer cliffs with ease, making it perfect for complex terrain.
And on top of that, its potential was A-rank.
A specimen like that was one of a kind in the Empire.
First things first, I need to secure that Dragon Scroll.
Owen demanded the Dragon Scroll containing the Similis Dragon before Luke became a full prisoner.
"What? You want the scroll too?"
"Yes. As a sign of your cooperation."
"You're no better than a highway robber!"
"It's not even your dragon anyway. No reason you can't hand it over, right?"
At Owen's point, Luke jumped in surprise.
How does he know?
He'd never imagined Owen could see intimacy levels, so he had no choice but to panic.
"Luke. Think carefully. I'm the only one who can help you right now."
"Shut up. I don't want to hear it."
"I have no idea how you ended up riding someone else's dragon, but we'll talk about that later. Time's short now."
With surrender already decided, Luke had no other options.
"Haa..."
As Luke sighed, Owen placed a hand on his shoulder and coaxed him.
"Hey. I could tie you up and take it by force. Better to hand it over willingly—it looks better that way. Let's keep it simple."
"Quiet, you brat. You think I don't see through your scheme? Forcing it would mess with ownership. Hell, even the Surpuk Duke you serve might confiscate it. But if I give it voluntarily, it's solidly yours."
"Exactly. Just say it's out of respect for the victor."
"You thieving bastard!"
"I'm not trying to scam you. If I can't uphold my promise to you, I'll return it. I swear on the God of Light."
"...Everyone who drags gods into it turns out to be a con artist."
"Quiet, you blasphemer. I need some gain after sorting this out. Things don't go smoothly on an empty promise. You're a gold-hungry mercenary—you get it."
"...You rotten prick. Fine, call it an apology for nearly killing you—not respect for the victor."
The outcome was the same either way, so Owen decided to be satisfied.
Even with the Dragon Scroll in hand, plenty of hurdles remained.
Who was the original owner?
How had Luke ridden it without ownership?
Could Owen tame it afterward?
Not easy problems, but worth challenging for an A-rank medium dragon.
Luke pointed that out too.
"Even if you take the scroll, you won't ride that dragon without my help. As you might guess, it's not in a normal state."
"I wondered why you handed it over so easily. There was a catch."
"So keep your promise, brat. Free me from that filthy dark elf sorcery, and I'll make sure you get that dragon."
"Good. Our interests align. No reason to keep fighting."
Owen pulled rope from Grenville's saddle and bound Luke tightly.
The noise of approaching crowds was already closing in, so Owen hurried.
"Over here!"
"Lord Leire's this way!"
"Gods, everything's smashed to bits?"
Sure enough, a few Dragon Knights on small dragons soon appeared.
They stared in shock at the devastated oak forest.
The rampage of a single medium dragon had been beyond imagination.
"Lord Leire, what in the world happened?"
"Baron Bellyo Albert here tried to kill me."
Bellyo Albert was Luke's alias.
"How could that be!"
"I'll explain the details to the Surpuk Duke or Count Bobert."
"Understood. Please do."
Owen headed out of the forest with the Dragon Knights.
Outside, the match had been halted, with both teams' dragons lined up in rows.
Spectators clustered like clouds atop the hill, flanked by dragons standing like pillars.
Owen passed between them alongside the Surpuk Duke's Dragon Knights.
Luke walked bound beside Grenville.
Naturally, the Erynes team couldn't hide their bewilderment at the sight.
"Baron Albert! What happened?!"
Austin, who had especially schemed to beat Owen this time, looked like the sky had fallen.
Owen glanced at Austin and thought he wasn't half bad.
The guy hadn't even known how to move his own dragon before.
Yet now he handled the scarf dragon, and he'd formed a team without Russell family support—clearly had some talent.
"Owen Leire! What's the meaning of this? Why are you holding our team knight like a prisoner?!"
Owen replied calmly to Austin's shout.
"Simple. Baron Albert tried to kill me for real."
The words naturally caused a massive stir.
Afterward, the Surpuk Duke hurried back to the inner castle with Owen and thoroughly interrogated the captured Luke, learning about the conspiracy.
"What? Magnus?!"
It was shocking news.
The Duke could scarcely believe Magnus's involvement, let alone the dark elves' aid.
Magnus had such a stellar reputation in the East.
Allying with dark elves—humanity's enemies—was unthinkable.
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"You! If you're slandering him, I won't forgive you."
As the Duke remained skeptical, Owen suggested something from the side.
"Your Grace. Send troops to the underground tomb first. According to his statement, that's where Magnus and the dark elves plotted. The escaped Baron Albert should be there too— we must hurry."
"Sound advice. They may have fled, but they might've left traces."
"Exactly, Your Grace. Haste reveals slips."
The Surpuk Duke immediately dispatched knights and soldiers to the underground tomb.
He also sealed the castle gates to prevent anyone from leaving.
Necessary measures followed, but the outlook wasn't bright.
Count Bobert shook his head beside him.
"If we catch them with dark elves in the tomb, we can press them. Otherwise, even arrests yield no evidence."
"We have this Luke guy!"
"The issue is linking him to Baron Magnus. Right now, it's just his word."
"Hmm..."
"We need more. Capture the escaped Albert for further testimony, or proof of Magnus receiving dark elf aid."
"Pushing now would stir trouble?"
"Of course. Striking Magnus without convincing cause would rally the eastern barons against us."
The Duke had the power to crush that.
But with suspicious orcs about, internal strife was trouble.
Plus, he was navigating imperial scrutiny over reviving the dragon matches.
"Fine. Can't force it. We need more on Magnus's guilt. More importantly, Owen."
"Yes, Your Grace."
"How did you know this guy was under dark elf sorcery? Frankly, I'm impressed."
Owen had a prepared excuse for that.
"A mage stayed at our farm when I was young; I learned the basics from him."
"You can use magic too?"
"No. He taught me a bit but quit when he saw I had no talent."
Owen claimed the mage he'd fetch to cure Luke was the one who'd taught him at the farm.
In truth, it was a hidden recluse from his past life—someone few could meet.
He planned to lure the mage with memories from his previous life.
Bringing him out later will turn Bris upside down.
The emergence of a long-hidden archmage could shake the entire East.
Especially if Owen brought him—everyone would be stunned.
Just being acquainted with that legendary mage would boost Owen's prestige.
"But do we really need to cure him?"
The Duke eyed Luke distastefully.
"I promised. Besides, he's a key witness. Break that, and he won't cooperate further."
"Threaten him with drugs like the dark elves did. He goes mad without regular doses, right?"
"I swore on the God of Light. If he realizes the trick, who knows what extreme measures he'll take? No need for torture when we can resolve it smoothly."
Luke's expression eased at Owen's words.
"Your Grace, with permission, I'd like to fetch the mage immediately. This takes priority over the tournament schedule."
"The match is halted anyway. With dark elves involved, no resumption until resolved. How long?"
"About a week."
"Rewards after. Capturing him was brilliant."
"Just doing my duty."
"Repaying service is a lord's role. Nothing like that half-extorted check you got last time."
He meant the check via his adopted daughter.
A whopping 800 gold coins—whatever dwarfed that would be immense.
Owen felt inner anticipation.
"Thank you. I'll be off, Your Grace."
The moment news spread that Luke had been captured mid-match, Magnus, Arhana, and the 2nd Dragon Stable's Albert hiding in the underground tomb fled immediately.
Having advance warning, they escaped Bris before the gates closed.
But the mood was abysmal.
The hot-tempered Magnus kept raging.
"How the hell did this happen? Speak if you have a tongue, you brown whore!"
"We definitely poisoned him with the drug!"
Luke's capture threw them into chaos.
They'd never dreamed he'd surrender instead of dying in battle.
Arhana couldn't fathom it.
"...This can't be? Without the drug every four hours, he'd drown in agony worse than death."
"Wasn't your drug flimsy?"
"No! It's been used multiple times before."
Luke had endured body modification yet stayed under Arhana's thumb via the addictive drug.
He had to beg for doses to escape pain.
So how had he broken free?
"What if they have someone who can make the antidote?"
"Impossible. You think secret arts are secret for nothing? Only a few dark elves know it—how could a human?"
"Then why?!"
As Magnus bellowed again, Arhana went mute as a clam.
"......"
She'd never expected her trusted drug to fail like this.
"Don't worry too much, Magnus. Without timely doses, he'll crack and go mad eventually."
"What comfort. Plenty of time to spill everything on us by then!"
"No evidence anyway? We pull off the plan in the interim, and we flip the board. If the Albert family rebels, the Duke can't focus elsewhere."
"You'd better be right this time. Or we're both dead."
They rode day and night for three days to reach the Albert family main house.
It sat in Edel, a city developed along waterways.
Why important? It was the trade hub buffering imperial direct territory and the East.
Wealth flowed along the rivers.
The Emperor always coveted Edel.
Arhana planned to exploit that fully.
Peel Edel from the East, and the Surpuk Duke weakened.
"Let's go, Magnus. My cute little family head awaits."
"You scheming bitch. Still, your man-enchanting allure helps."
In Edel, the dark elf's disguise was noble widow 'Hanna'.
A middle-aged beauty widowed early, she'd fully ensnared the Albert family's young head months ago.
The affection-starved boy fell hard for her maternal act.
He couldn't tear himself from her voluptuous embrace nightly.
This diligent dark elf shuttled between Bris and Edel, alternating moneylender Arhana and lady Hanna.
"Luke's capture was unexpected, but our plan's solid. I'll sweet-talk the boy. The Alberts have always feared their liege, the Surpuks. Scare him with threats of harsh punishment over this, and the rest is easy."
Conveniently, aid arrived.
Two days prior, Russell count's underlings had started sniffing around.
The Alberts had spotted the suspicious activity in Edel and were worried.
In this climate, the dark elf's persuasion would ring all too true.
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