Chapter 379: Peace?
After the dragon had completely vanished from the satellite’s monitoring range, Gawain stubbornly reconnected to the satellite and adjusted its lens, scanning the area for another ten minutes. In the end, he had no choice but to accept the fact that he had lost track of it.
He then checked on the status of the Covenant Fortress one last time. Confirming that the place hadn’t been bombed, he finally disconnected.
Night had fallen deep and heavy over the inner city of Cecil’s domain. The streets were quiet but not dark—the bright glow of magical crystal lamps dispelled the shadows. Through the wide windows of his study, the distant streetlights and faint starlight filtered in. Gawain didn’t turn on the lights; instead, he let the darkness sharpen his focus, sinking into thought.
The dragon had appeared again, just as Gawain had predicted—the dragonkind’s interest in this continent was far from over.
Though he didn’t know the mysterious race’s exact motives for watching this land, both historical records and Gawain’s own observations made it clear: they were paying close attention to the continent’s affairs. The dragon’s latest appearance only confirmed this—it had flown directly over the Covenant Fortress when Gawain spotted it. He was certain this was no coincidence.
The last time a dragon had appeared was at the site of the first invasion of the human world by aberrations after seven centuries of peace among human nations.
Lost in thought, Gawain formed a hypothesis: could it be that whenever a “historic turning point” occurred in any human—or more broadly, mortal—kingdom, these dragons would show up? But what was their purpose? Were they merely spectators?
If he hadn’t just been spying on the Covenant Fortress through satellite imagery, Gawain might have mocked the dragons’ twisted sense of humor. But now that they were, in a way, kindred spirits, he could only sigh at their shared boredom.
Whatever the dragon’s purpose, one thing was certain: dragons truly lived up to their legendary status as immensely powerful beings. They could instinctively sense satellite surveillance from geosynchronous orbit. Although the dragon seemed helpless against the satellite’s gaze, darting and dodging to avoid detection, that alone amazed Gawain.
The only consolation was that no one knew about his satellite connection. Even a legendary dragon wouldn’t be able to track down the source of the signal and confront him about spying… probably.
Besides, everyone was watching from above, like foxes on a mountain—who would dare report on whom?
With this thought, Gawain felt a sudden clarity and resolved to boldly continue tracking the dragon next time—if it happened to fly into the monitoring zone again. Though, given the dragon’s alertness and agility, it was a huge challenge. Even now, Gawain couldn’t fathom how such a massive creature could perform such extreme spiral dives in midair—so fast that he couldn’t even adjust the focus in time.
A faint breeze from the window interrupted his thoughts. He looked up and, through his legendary knight’s senses, saw a shadowy figure stealthily leaping down from the windowsill.
Just as the figure was about to land, Gawain shouted loudly, “What are you doing jumping through the window in the middle of the night?!”
Sure enough, there was a thud. Amber appeared, sprawled awkwardly on the floor. The half-elf lady scrambled up, looking disheveled, and immediately lunged at Gawain with a scolding glare. “You scared me to death! Sitting alone in the study in the dark at this hour, sneaking around like that—do you know how terrifying that is?”
Gawain casually pressed down on Amber’s head, keeping the little firecracker at arm’s length as she bounced and flailed her claws, unable to reach his shoulders. “You’re a stealth expert, yet you’re afraid of someone talking to you in the dark?”
“I usually work alone without anyone talking to me!” Amber retorted.
Gawain couldn’t help but think there were many layers of meaning behind that sentence…
“What’s going on?” After a brief internal sigh, Gawain released his hold and casually switched on the magical crystal lamp in the study. He had kept the lights off earlier because he’d been focused on monitoring the Covenant Fortress after dinner, but now there was no need to stay in the dark. “You rarely come to report at this hour.”
“Solderin’s back,” Amber said, rubbing the hair Gawain had mussed, “and he brought some pretty important intelligence—I thought you should know as soon as possible.”
“Back so soon?!” Gawain was surprised. “What intelligence?”
“They found a Class I isolation gate at the southern end of the Rebellion Fortress,” Amber explained. “On the other side is probably a large, undiscovered experimental zone. According to the ruins’ markings, it’s called the ‘Shadow Experimental Field.’” She continued, “Solderin suspects it’s a large area similar to the Rebellion Fortress. Since they weren’t fully prepared, he’s already led the team back to regroup before exploring again.”
“A new large area?” Gawain frowned slightly. He hadn’t expected such a major discovery on the first expedition after the weather warmed up. “Who else knows about this?”
“You’re the only one I’ve reported to,” Amber said. “Should we inform Kameil tomorrow?”
“…No need. He doesn’t know much about anything beyond the Rebellion Fortress,” Gawain shook his head, then glanced at Amber. “By the way… Shadow Experimental Field, huh? You seem pretty skilled with shadows.”
“Huh?”
In the eastern region of Ansu, at the Covenant Fortress, the long-awaited first official negotiations had finally concluded.
The rulers of the two nations and their entourages had spent hours locked in fierce debate, each side passionately presenting their demands and ideals. They reached a preliminary consensus—or rather, exhausted and forced to pause for the moment. Throughout the process, Duke Selas Loren felt utterly drained.
Negotiating at the table was far more exhausting than fighting on the battlefield.
The only relief was that he wasn’t the lead negotiator here—the wise old King Francis II was the one charging into the fray. It was hard to imagine such an elderly monarch could be so resilient and unyielding at the negotiation table, to the point that Emperor Rosetta and her entire advisory team couldn’t gain any advantage in verbal sparring.
Now that the talks were over, everyone—both those at the table and those waiting outside the hall and castle—breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Following the negotiations came a banquet. A difficult negotiation deserved a grand feast to close it—and in many ways, the socializing at the banquet was a continuation of the talks. Well aware of this, Selas Loren held a glass of red wine and mingled casually with the Ansu guests, though his gaze never left the center of the hall.
There stood King Francis II, Emperor Typhon, and only a handful of attendants—undoubtedly bodyguards—by their sides.
Apart from the conversing monarchs, the attendees were clearly divided into two groups: the Ansuians on one side, the Typhonians on the other, each forming their own circles and eyeing the opposite side warily.
The etiquette officers who designed the banquet had surely anticipated this awkwardness, but it was unavoidable. Selas Loren thought it would have been simpler to cancel the whole charade, but those obsessed with protocol would never agree.
Lost in thought, a young man approached the eastern duke.
“Prince Edmond,” Duke Loren raised his glass in greeting to the blond youth, “your performance at the negotiation table was impressive.”
Aside from the king, this promising prince had been the most striking figure at the talks. His sharp words and incisive insights even earned praise from Emperor Rosetta.
“Uncle Loren, let’s not be too formal here,” the young prince smiled, raising his glass in return. “Besides, if it weren’t for the Loren family guarding the East, this negotiation might never have even started—we should celebrate today’s progress together.”
For the first time, a faint smile appeared on Selas Loren’s usually stern and imposing face. “Yes, we should celebrate—for the peace to come.”
Though the talks weren’t fully over and disputes would continue here, everyone recognized that the rulers of both nations were striving for peace. That was why they had gathered.
“Peace… peace is indeed precious,” Edmond smiled softly. “But simple peace won’t solve everything—won’t fix Ansu’s decline.”
“Patience, Your Highness,” Selas Loren said calmly. “Once peace with Typhon is secured, we’ll have the chance to revive this ancient kingdom.”
In the half of the hall occupied by the Typhonians, young wolf general Andersa Wendel cast a complicated glance at the Ansu king standing in the center.
Beside her stood a middle-aged man in a light coat, gentle in demeanor and exuding a mage’s aura. Noticing Andersa’s gaze, he shook his head slightly. “Andersa, you must learn to control your emotions.”
“Yes, Uncle Parin… Count of Winterhold,” Andersa took a deep breath and tempered her expression. “I just never thought… this day would really come.”
“We should be glad,” the Count smiled, his eyes fixed on Emperor Rosetta Augustus. “Our emperor has ultimately chosen the path of peace.”
Andersa muttered under her breath, “Peace, huh…”
(End of chapter)