Chapter 84: Good News
The Pocket of Heartguard Dragon Scales (Two-in-One, Monthly Ticket Bonus)
At the entrance, Leon fastened a black pouch to his waist, brimming with Heartguard Dragon Scales.
He and Noia approached the entrance one after the other.
Seeing them, the guard dropped the barrier, allowing the duo to exit safely.
“My lord, how did the inspection go? Did you lose any dragon scales?” the guard asked with a grin, clearly fishing for praise.
Lose any?
Wrong answer.
Not a single scale left behind.
Right answer!
Though General Leon hadn’t stolen before, he certainly knew thieves never leave empty-handed.
To the guard’s inquiry, Leon subtly nodded, grumbling, “Not bad, keep it up, and I’ll say some nice words for you in front of the higher-ups.”
“Th-Thank you, my lord!”
Leon held back a snicker and glanced at Noia, exchanging looks:
See that? He’s thanking us!
Noia rolled her eyes, unimpressed.
“My lord, it’s getting late; we should head back,” Noia said.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Just as Leon was about to take a step, he suddenly remembered something and turned back to the guard, saying, “Don’t forget to restore the barrier; we don’t want the enemy sneaking in.”
“Right away, my lord!”
The guard spun around and, with his partner, restored the barrier to its previous status.
“Take care, my lord.”
“Hmm.”
The father and daughter shared a glance and took a few steps to leave.
But just as they moved, a young guard shouted, “My lord, what’s in the pouch on your waist?”
Leon halted, closed his eyes in resignation, and let out a slow sigh.
The other guards were catching on and started getting alert.
“My lord, you didn’t have that pouch when you went in, so please let us check.”
“My lord, cooperate and slowly step back—whoosh!”
Before the guard could finish, a shadow darted in front of him, delivering a punch faster than the eye could see right into his gut, leaving him no time to react.
Other guards reacted quickly, “Quick! Sound the barrier alarm!! We’re being invaded—ow!”
Noia kicked off the ground and leaped into the air, smashing her knee into that guard’s face, knocking him out instantly.
The guard trying to sound the alarm didn’t fare any better at Leon’s hands, who easily subdued him.
Only one guard was left.
Seeing his three colleagues taken out in an instant, that guard dropped to his knees in surrender.
A wise man doesn’t let immediate problems get the best of him; you keep the hill, and you won’t run out of firewood!
Leon huffed and approached, knocking him out with a chop to the neck.
“Good thing I made them restore the barrier before coming out. If it stayed open long, it would surely attract the attention of those sorcerers.”
Turning to his daughter, Leon said, “Let’s go, Lady Noia.”
Noia shot him a playful glare and muttered, “Tch, drama king.”
The father-daughter duo smoothly returned home after snagging the dragon scales.
Ahead was the secret passage to the royal city.
Once they got through and figured out how to leave the Empire, they could use the stolen dragon scales to help Aurora perform the reversal magic.
And then… back to the past—
“Who are those people over there?!”
“Stay where you are; don’t move!”
“The royal family just issued a command; due to the disappearance of important officials, no one is allowed to move freely in the royal city.”
“State your name and rank, then proceed slowly.”
Leon felt his heart drop.
But he quickly regained his composure.
“Of course… things won’t end that easily.”
He told Noia, “Just jump the wall; don’t worry about the sensing barrier anymore. After we leave the royal city, find your sisters, then we’ll figure out how to get out and back to Mom, to complete the reversal magic.”
With that, Leon handed the pouch with the dragon scales to Noia.
The Empire’s response and actions were far too fast—Nacho had only been missing for two hours, and they were already on lockdown, sealing up the entire royal city.
Earlier, Leon had been able to trick those guards with the codes he obtained.
But given the current scenario, those tricks wouldn’t work.
This was ultimately enemy territory; no matter how careful Leon was, the risk was still high.
Of course, they had anticipated such risks before coming to the Empire.
They couldn’t expect to take something as crucial as the Heartguard Dragon Scales without any hiccups.
Now, given the situation, the optimal solution was for Leon to hold off the Empire’s pursuers while Noia and the two other daughters with flight abilities took off with the dragon scales.
Noia stared at the black pouch in her hands, her expression serious.
“No, that won’t work.”
For the first time, Noia rejected Leon’s plan.
Leon looked at her, surprised, ready to say something like, “Don’t worry, Dad is tough; I’ll fight my way through to see you.”
But before he could say anything, Noia blurted, “I don’t want to be separated from you again; we’re leaving together.”
That strong attitude and look in her eyes were just like Roswiser’s.
After a brief pause, Noia added quickly, “Besides, only you can return to the past using reversal magic. If you d*e here, even if we manage to take the dragon scales away, it’ll be useless!”
Yeah, she definitely prioritized her feelings over the objective situation—just like Roswiser!
She really is my daughter, Leon thought with a hint of pride.
But there was no time to get sentimental; Leon nodded. “Alright, let’s go together.”
Originally, he had envisioned a classic scene where the “hero stays behind, delaying the enemies until everyone thinks he’s gone for good, then he comes running to embrace them, tears of joy all around.”
However, his eldest daughter had rejected his dramatic behavior and plainly insisted on not separating again—even though she hadn’t called him Dad in three months.
But stubbornness wouldn’t interfere with Noia’s deepest desire:
Staying forever with the family.
After a brief discussion, they heard someone from the group ahead yell:
“Make your move!! That guy is Leon Casmod! I’ll never forget that face!”
As expected, someone recognized Leon.
“Oh really? Is it because I’m just that handsome?”
“Shut it, old man.”
With that, Noia spread her dragon wings, supporting Leon’s arm from behind, and effortlessly leaped them over the outer wall of the royal city.
At that moment they both felt the invisible barrier.
Storming through the barrier meant more people would soon come chasing after them.
After clearing the tall wall, Leon said,
“The dragon form is too large and obvious; we can only use it at the Empire’s city gate. If we use it inside the city, it will just point the patrollers right to us.”
Noia nodded and retracted her wings.
As the father and daughter hopped over the wall, their pursuers still had to set up ladders or find a detour, giving Leon and Noia enough time to maneuver.
They quickly left the royal city and slipped into a dark alley where Moon and Aurora were already waiting with a carriage.
“We don’t have time to go back for those two hostages; we need to leave the Empire before dawn.”
Leon jumped into the carriage, “Now that we have the dragon scales, let’s avoid confrontation with these guys; there’s no need to linger!”
The worst case in enemy territory was a stalemate. Even though Leon’s strength had recovered a bit, he didn’t want to risk lingering around to fight the Empire.
He had never forgotten the purpose of this risky venture into the Empire—the Heartguard Dragon Scales.
With those scales in hand, it was time for a lightning-fast exit.
Aurora snapped the reins, and the carriage took off with a neigh.
As Leon sat in the wildly jostling car, he suddenly felt nostalgic, “This scene… feels familiar.”
Noia looked at him, “What? Have you been caught stealing before?”
Leon didn’t elaborate but joked, “I stole your mom’s heart and then she caught me and held me captive for three years.”
“Thanks, I’m going to be sick.”
Why was it that when Mom told that story, it was so engaging and emotional, but when this guy told it, it felt like a comedy?
Leon’s cold joke momentarily lightened the tense atmosphere.
He stood up, peeking out the back of the carriage, where already some patrols had caught on and were starting to pursue them.
Leon raised his right hand, gathering magic power in his palm.
In the next second, a wolf of lightning sprang from his hand, lunging toward the pursuing guards.
A-Class Thunder Magic: Thunder Wolf Breakout
But just as Leon expected, engaging in enemy territory was full of disadvantages.
More and more patrols flowed out from the sides of the road, chasing after them.
But that wasn’t the trickiest part.
Noia looked up and saw three figures leaping onto the rooftops, closing in on the carriage from both sides.
“It’s the Sharp Blade Trio…” Noia said quietly.
Leon followed her gaze and saw that those three were far more agile than regular patrols.
“Hey, hey! Big guy speeding by down there, mind stopping for a moment? I want to hitch a ride!” the Trio’s leader, Gini, called out from above.
Leon froze, quickly realizing, “Who are you calling ‘big guy’?!”
“Leon Casmod, I know you; you should be in your forties now, right? Anyone in their forties is an old man.”
“Captain, even if we go by age he might be in his forties, but he looks barely twenty!” another member, Kite, chimed in.
“Who knows, maybe he’s just well-preserved? Whatever, after I knock him down, I’ll ask him for his secret to youth!”
Leon slightly squinted his eyes and murmured, “Big words coming from you.”
This sort of neurotic guy was always a handful.
Leon was even less interested in engaging.
After a few exchanges, he ignored the three psychos.
But since the Sharp Blade Special Forces were here, it meant things wouldn’t end easily.
“Hey! Casmod, where have you hidden Nacho? He owes us a meal!” Gini kept taunting.
Leon didn’t respond and raised his hand again to cast another thunder spell, clearing out some of the pursuing guards behind them.
“Humph, how dare you ignore me, you old fossil… catch this!”
As his words fell, Gini gathered magical energy in his hand.
A white energy sphere formed there, then he hurled it directly at the speeding carriage.
The sphere crashed into the ground beside them, causing a violent explosion and shockwave.
Of course, that was just the appetizer.
In the next second, more energy spheres rained down from the buildings lining the street.
Aurora skillfully maneuvered the carriage, dodging rapidly.
“Dad, should we fight back? I almost got hit just now!” Aurora shouted ahead.
“Just drive; leave the tactics to me.”
Leon’s mind raced as he recalled his skill set.
Soon, he had a strategy in mind.
He leaped onto the roof of the carriage, bending his knees to lower his center of gravity and maintain balance.
“Hey, old man, finally ready to get serious with us?” Gini taunted.
Leon said nothing.
He raised his right hand high, electricity swirling in his palm.
Gini raised an eyebrow, “What’s that, old man? Heavenly Thunder Strike? Thunder Wolf Breakout? Or your proudest move, Thousand Birds? Just so you know, none of those will work on us!”
As Gini finished, his teammates readied for their next attack.
But just as they prepared to strike, Leon’s electrical power suddenly burst forth with blinding light.
That illumination lit up the night sky like daybreak.
The vision of the Sharp Blade Trio was instantly overwhelmed by this blinding light—they couldn’t see what was happening on the street.
B-Class Thunder Magic: Eternal Daylight
A very useful support spell.
Seconds later, the light faded, and Gini regained his sight.
He watched as the carriage sped away, feeling like Leon had just tricked him.
Gini gritted his teeth and ordered, “Chase! Get that guy! I want to see if the so-called strongest Dragon Slayer can only pull these cheap tricks!”
The Trio increased their speed, pursuing the carriage.
But they completely overlooked that in the alley nearby, Leon and the girls were watching their retreating figures.
In those brief seconds when Gini and his crew lost sight, Leon led the girls off the carriage and into the alley.
But this was just a stall.
Although Gini seemed neurotic, he wasn’t foolish and would soon realize the carriage was empty.
“Quick, let’s move before other patrols notice us.”
“Yes, Dad.”
The four of them tiptoed toward the other side of the alley exit.
However, just as they were about to leave the alley, they heard voices coming from the exit.
“Heard Lord Nacho has gone missing?”
“Yeah, apparently he was taken by that Leon Casmod guy.”
“Leon… Casmod? Didn’t he d*e twenty years ago?”
“Who knows, but I only know that guy is ridiculously strong. We’ve been sent to capture him, it’s like we’re walking straight to our doom! So if you see him, just use a signal flare to call for backup.”
“Understood!”
It was a patrol.
The moonlight cast their shadows, getting closer to the alley exit.
Leon couldn’t determine their numbers; he didn’t know if he could take them out as precisely as the four guards earlier.
If he couldn’t do it in an instant, they’d pull the signal flare.
Then those Sharp Blade Trio members would quickly return, and a fierce battle would be inevitable.
Leon tightly watched the shadows as they grew nearer, slowly gathering energy in his hands.
He wasn’t afraid to face the Sharp Blade Trio; he was just worried about dragging this out and getting exhausted by the Empire.
But at this point… he just had to take a gamble.
The footsteps became clearer, and the three sisters braced themselves to pounce.
But the next second, they heard screams from the alley exit.
“Signal flare! Quick, light the signal—”
Boom—
A dull gunshot echoed, sounding like it had a silencer attached.
Leon’s heart raced—had someone just taken out the patrol?
“I think I just heard a familiar name.”
A mature female voice floated from the alleyway’s mouth.
The click of high-heeled boots struck the cobblestones gently as she stepped over a body and stood at the alley’s entrance.
She wore a trench coat; though not very tall, her proportions were flawless.
The silenced handgun in her hand gleamed coldly in the moonlight, and her teal ponytail swayed gently in the night breeze.
She looked at Leon, her eyes flickering, “Long time no see… Captain.”
“Rebecca…”
—
These two days have been intense with updates; by New Year’s Eve, General Leon is expected to reunite with the Mother Dragon. Please throw in those monthly tickets!
