A Core Ship From The Start

Chapter 110: Chapter 93: Shadow of Destruction_1

On the wide road, the Metal Secret Dragon strides on its legs, sprinting forward like a hunting Tyrannosaurus Rex. On its back, Ann and Greiya are enthusiastically taking in the surrounding scenery.

“Is this the puppet technology of the Holy City? It’s so interesting!”

Looking at the scenery before her, Ann was brimming with excitement. The annoyance of having been forced by Duanmu Huai to abandon her luggage had long since evaporated. Manaria also had similar technology, but those puppets functioned on magic power for a short period of time. Once the magic power was exhausted, they would return to dust, so mechanical units like the Metal Secret Dragon were still very attractive to them.

“We’re not here to play around…”

Looking at the two of them, Duanmu Huai silently shook his head, but didn’t mind. All new adventurers behaved this way. These two were much better than the idiot he had encountered in Bartonilla. Considering that both of them were pampered princesses, they were already doing pretty well. As for the rest, let reality be their teacher.

Thinking about this, Duanmu Huai turned his gaze to Lorena again.

“Lorena, are you sure it’s in the north?”

“Yes, Sir Knight.”

Lorena, who was praying, opened her eyes in response to Duanmu Huai’s question and nodded.

“We encountered many refugees fleeing from the north within the territory of Manaria. They all said that there is an Evil Dragon rampaging in the north, and everyone is afraid to venture outside.”

“I hope the route we’re taking is right.”

All Duanmu Huai could do was to say this. After all, many borders at this time hadn’t been clearly drawn, with most being distinguished by natural boundaries. For example, the Imperial city and Bartonilla were separated by the Gray Mountains, which actually belonged to the dwarfs…

The same was true for Manaria. Its northern border was near the river, but there were also many people living across the river. Therefore, strictly speaking, the Evil Dragon was already attacking humans, but it had not invaded the core territory of Manaria yet, so it was seen as a temporary non-threat.

Humans are always like this, not crying until they see the coffin.

“Sir Knight, how do we find the Evil Dragon?”

Owen also asked at this time. After all, everyone only knew that Fafner and his Evil Dragon Legion were rampaging in the north, but they didn’t have detailed coordinates about where exactly he was.

“Well, we first need to find the villages and towns that were destroyed by the Evil Dragon, then find the Evil Dragon Legion, then wipe out those stupid lizards, then ask them about Fafner’s location, then determine the route…”

“Eh? Is it that complicated?”

Hearing this, Ann cried out in surprise.

“Sir Knight, you sounded so decisive, I thought you knew where Fafner was!”

“That’s what adventure is all about.”

Duanmu Huai gave Ann a glance.

“A lot of the time, adventure is like hunting. You find the traces of your prey, determine their whereabouts, track them and find their lair, then think about how to take them down. Fafner is no fool. If his lair were known long ago, a joint effort of two nations wouldn’t need to be this troublesome.”

Yes, one of the reasons the joint team couldn’t be certain was that even though everyone knew Fafner was in the north, no one knew the exact location. The northern region is vast, and searching by hand is far from practical. Therefore, even if an adventure squad is sent out, no one knows how many years it would take to find Fafner.

“It sounds so complicated…”

“If you’re not willing, you can always go back.”

“Uh……”

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s merciless words, Ann pouted and hugged Greiya tight.

“Greiya, Sir Knight is bullying me!”

“………”

Watching the two of them, Duanmu Huai shook his head speechlessly. But soon, his gaze returned to the front, then his eyes narrowed.

“There’s a small town up ahead, let’s go check it out. Maybe we can find some clues.”

“A small town?”

Hearing this, Ann immediately looked up and looked ahead. Sure enough, she could see a small town on the distant horizon.

But……

“Why is there smoke? Could a fire had broken out?”

Hearing Ann’s puzzled question, Owen opened his mouth, wanting to explain something to her, but Duanmu Huai gave him a look, signaling him to keep quiet.

For such a naive and innocent young girl, a hard hit of reality is what she needs to wake up.

When they finally reached the small town, the sight before their eyes shocked them.

The town they saw had become a burned-down ruin. Charred wreckage of houses, spewing thick smoke, were scattered everywhere.

Not only that…….

“This is too much…”

Looking at the scene before her, Ann’s face turned pale, her lips were trembling. Greiya, standing next to her, was also stunned, unable to speak.

Before them were several burned bodies, some still maintaining their final postures. There were those who knelt and pleaded, those who tried to escape, and those who tried to protect their children… Of course, all these efforts were in vain. Under the dragon’s flame breath falling from the sky, all had turned into scorched earth.

“Ogis, Lorena, search for any survivors.”

Duanmu Huai, however, was accustomed to such scenes. After all, he had seen worse during his encounters with the Evil God Cultist. So he quickly composed himself and ordered Ogis and Lorena to search for survivors.

As for the two princesses… let them cool off their heads here.

Searching for survivors was something Duanmu Huai was quite adept at. He succinctly walked through the ruins of the town, scanning for signs of life around him. From Duanmu Huai’s experience, if there were any survivors, they would usually be hiding in basements or cellars.

Sure enough, Duanmu Huai soon detected signs of life under the rubble. He circled around the ruins, then found a cellar door— covered by various items. If they hadn’t been found, the people inside would likely have died anyway, it was just a matter of time.

“There are survivors here, come and help.”

Duanmu Huai called out, and immediately started to clear the objects on the cellar door. Hearing his shout, the others quickly ran over. Soon, Duanmu Huai had cleared the debris from the cellar door and opened it, signaling Owen and Lorena to go down and check the situation— he was too large to fit inside.

“Sir Knight, what should we do?”

Ann and Greiya helplessly stood by, not knowing what they should do. They must be feeling very uncomfortable right now, but didn’t know how they could help.

“Just stay there and don’t get in the way.”

Duanmu Huai replied indifferently, and the two women stood obediently without a word.

After a while, Owen and Lorena emerged with a few people. They were men and women, old and young, about four to five people in total, looking haggard and distressed.

“What’s the situation?”

Duanmu Huai approached Owen and questioned. Owen quickly replied.

“These are the residents here. Due to the sudden dragon attack on the town, they had to hide in the cellar with the intention of coming out after the dragons leave, so they have stayed there till now.”

“Ask them which direction the dragons came from, what they know about them, and then…”

Duanmu Huai paused for a moment, then looked at the refugees.

“Give them some food and money, and let them move on.”

“………Alright.”

Without a better idea, Owen simply nodded and then went back to the survivors, starting to converse with them in a low voice.

Soon, Duanmu Huai saw a young boy amongst them lift his head to look at him, then quickly run to his side and looked up at him.

“Are you going to kill those giant dragons?”

“This…….”

Faced with the young boy’s inquiry, Ann and Greiya were at a loss. Duanmu Huai just silently nodded, and the boy lowered his head.

“Please, please, you must kill all those giant dragons! They… they destroyed my home, Buck, Mary, and everyone else are all dead! Please take revenge for them, you must kill all those dragons!!”

“………..”

Hearing the young boy’s plea filled with anger and sadness, Greiya turned ashen, her lips sealed, and Ann didn’t know what to say. Duanmu Huai cast a meaningful look at them and then nodded at the boy.

“Of course, that’s why we’re here.”

He then said.