Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

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After Cohen finished recounting the complicated story of their relationship, Grace blinked and, in a tone that was clearly inquisitive yet subtly revealing a woman's curiosity, said thoughtfully:

"So, Shanis was the first person you officially became romantically involved with?"

Even earlier than Adele?

Cohen's brow twitched almost imperceptibly. He didn't want to discuss who arrived first with Grace, so he changed the subject, asking:

"Your Highness, is there something you need that you summoned me so late?"

Grace glared at Cohen:
"I was thinking of looking for you during the day. Do you have time?"
Those who knew you were here to participate in the competition would think you were on vacation with your harem.

Cohen gave a dry laugh.

Grace had no intention of continuing to tear apart these emotional tangles at this moment. A look of seriousness and scrutiny appeared in her eyes as she said in a deep voice:
“A few days ago, the assistant to the chairman of some shipping company in the Central Empire came to see me, but I didn’t see him.”

Yesterday, he sent me another message through a respected old man from the 'Flaming Lips' trading company, saying he was a special envoy of Governor Torgue Chambers of 'Thousand Streams Court'.

The special envoy of the Governor of "Qianliuting".

A secret meeting with the eldest princess of the Eastern Empire?

Cohen's gaze sharpened, and he fell into deep thought.

In an instant, many things came to mind, and he looked up at Grace:
"The special envoy of the governor of the wealthiest administrative region in the Central Empire is requesting an audience with the Princess of the Eastern Region Empire. He certainly isn't here on official business!"

Grace's expression turned serious:
"That's what I think too."

If it's official business, this so-called special envoy can come openly and legitimately.

They're talking so secretly; what they're discussing is definitely going to be kept in the dark.

I've also investigated Governor Torg's resume these past couple of days. He's a former naval admiral. I suspect he wants to see me not because of my status, but because of you.

Cohen nodded in agreement and said:
"Ghost ship!"

The other party is probably eyeing the ghost ship.

The question now is whether this was Governor Torg's own idea, or if someone else was behind it.

Cohen's first thought was that Governor Torgue must have done this behind Shanis's back.

Because Shanes knew that the so-called Pirate King Yann Hughes was just another cover for her identity, if any of her subordinates wanted to contact Yann, Shanes would definitely warn her in advance.

He quickly connected this incident with a series of subsequent changes that occurred in the Central Empire.

Memories of past lives surge forth—

Torg's ambitious face overlapped with those images from his past life... He was the first to raise the flag, one of the vultures that carved up the empire's corpse.

Cohen's main area of ​​activity in his previous life was the Central Empire, and his understanding of the twelve administrative divisions of the Central Empire was even better than his understanding of the countries of the Northwest Continent.

Governor Thorg Chambers was a typical old-fashioned warlord who believed in violence and profit, and had a serious paternalistic and male chauvinistic style.

They did not have much identification with or loyalty to Empress Shanis.

Indeed, according to the game's timeline, Torger Chambers was one of the first governors to take action after the Empire split.

He was the main initiator of the "Southeast Mutual Guarantee" agreement and the leader of the subsequent Southeast Alliance.

The so-called "Southeast Mutual Protection" refers to the joint self-protection of four major administrative regions located in the southeastern region of the former empire after the split of the central empire. These regions are "Qianliuting", "Panshi District", "Liuhuo District" and "Fujiguanze".

Later, based on this "Southeast Mutual Protection" agreement, the Southeast Alliance was established, with Torg serving as its chairman.

They even considered establishing a nation at one point.

The fact that Torg secretly sent an envoy to contact Grace shows that Torg's ambitions had begun long ago.

He may have made many other preparations, and the ghost ship is one of his many backup plans.

Cohen suppressed his thoughts and said to Grace:
When will we meet again?

"Three days later."

Cohen replied:

"Don't tell anyone about this yet. I'll come over in three days, and then we'll hear what he has to say..."

……

At dawn, the massive circular walls of the Imperial Arena, like the spine of a sleeping behemoth, cast a magnificent and imposing shadow in the morning light.

All the scheming and plotting were temporarily hidden away with the arrival of a new day.

The semifinals of the Silver Group have officially begun.

The four finalists are: Effin's "Dragon Seal Weapon Master" Cohen Corleone, and "Dragon Warrior" Asuna Iliad.

Mills Knight, the "Dragon Knight" of the Eastern Empire, and Kinlunga Cox, the "Frost Warrior" of the Northern Empire.

Two from Effie!
This unavoidable fact is like a boulder thrown into a seemingly calm lake, stirring up invisible, towering waves in everyone's heart.

From the inception of the Noble Martial Arts Festival to the present, Effie's performance has captivated every audience member time and time again.

Even the important figures in the VIP seats showed a hint of doubt and fear on their faces.

This is an unprecedented upheaval in the history of the five great empires, which have dominated hundreds of Glory competitions.

Conspiracy? Accident?
Or... a harbinger of a changing era?

Of course, the most shocked, confused, and even angry were the gamblers from all over the mainland.

An invisible storm was brewing in the hearts of tens of thousands of spectators, and the air above the arena seemed to thicken.

Iron, blood, sweat, and... a growing, increasingly strong smell of gunpowder permeated the air.

Tens of thousands of eyes in the Imperial Arena were fixed on the four contestants standing on the stage, and the crown of "Strongest Silver" was about to be taken by one of them.

At the center of the arena dome, the enormous mirror "Mirror of the Sky," tens of meters in diameter and composed of pure light magic, began to spin rapidly, radiating intense magical light.

The names of the four people flashed and collided wildly in the stream of light, and everyone's heart was in their throat, especially "Dragon Knight" Mills who was secretly praying.

The light from the "Mirror of the Sky" suddenly stopped, and the intense radiance illuminated everyone's face.

The match list appears on the mirror:
Mills Knight, the "Dragon Knight" of the Eastern Empire, faces off against Asuna Iliad, the "Dragon Warrior" of Effie.

Effie, the "Dragon Seal Weapon Master" Cohen Corleone, faces off against the "Frost Warrior" Kinlunga Cox of the Northern Empire.

Seeing the outcome of the duel, Mills Knight's heart felt as if it had been seized by a cold, giant hand, and instantly sank to the bottom.

His face also turned somewhat pale, and the earth lizard Glagus beneath him seemed to sense the turmoil in his master's heart.

It let out a low growl filled with fear, and its massive body took a slight step back.

The worst happened; his ominous premonition came true.

Mills's strength largely resides in the earth lizard dragon beneath him, which can draw upon the power of the earth to move rocks.

However, in the face of true dragon might, it is already a miracle to be able to unleash even 50% of one's full strength.

He would rather face Jinlunga and engage in a fierce battle with this imperial prince, who was considered the "strongest silver," amidst the clash of ice and rock.

I also don't want to face a dragon-riding warrior who owns a real dragon.

Jin Lunjia's lips twitched violently as well. It came so fast; the semi-finals had already encountered the biggest variable!

Jinlunga was confident he could defeat the other two, but his only worry was King Efein, who had never revealed his true strength.

Even if he lost the final, he could still secure a runner-up title for the Northern Empire, but now...

Despite Jinlunga's confidence in his own abilities, King Efein was simply too mysterious.

Being able to trigger the power of the rules at the Silver rank... Jinlunjia really had no idea.

In the semifinals, the referees were now real people.

The referee's voice fell heavily like the drumsticks of fate:
"The first match! The Silver War begins!"

With the referee's whistle, Effie's fiery storm was about to sweep across the steel bulwark of the Eastern Empire!

Mills took a deep breath, suppressing the panic in his heart. A surge of pride and resentment belonging to the Imperial Knights ignited in his blood.

He suddenly squeezed Glagus's abdomen and roared:
"For the glory of the empire!"

The sound waves, amplified by magic, reverberated throughout the arena, eliciting a roar of enthusiastic responses from the Eastern Empire's spectator section.

The Earth Lizard Glagus sensed its master's will and let out a roar that forcefully suppressed its fear. Its massive body strode forward, its giant claws moving, and it launched a charge.

With each step he took, the arena trembled violently, and as he ran, a yellowish-brown magical light spread from beneath his feet.

Ahead, a large expanse of sand surged, piled up, and hardened like ocean waves, instantly forming a massive rock wall nearly ten meters high and several meters thick.

Like a moving mountain, it crashed fiercely towards Asuna and the red dragon.

This is an attack, a probe, and also a preparation for subsequent attacks.

Faced with this overwhelming offensive, Asuna not only did not back down, but instead revealed a playful smile.

"Roar--!!!"

A deafening dragon roar erupted.

The roar, carrying a primal pressure and overwhelming power, instantly drowned out Mills' war cry and the passionate cheers from the arena audience.

That simple roar alone was enough to strike Mills like a heavy blow.

He could clearly feel the violent tremors of extreme fear emanating from Glagus's massive body the instant the dragon's roar sounded.

The magic became sluggish and stagnant under the dragon's bloodline majesty, and even forming a simple earthen wall seemed impossible.

Before the roar had completely dissipated, the red dragon Kona suddenly spread its wings, and the wind pressure generated by the bulging wing membranes instantly stirred up a cloud of dust. It didn't even wait for the rocky barrier to crash into it.

The enormous dragon head was raised high, its gaping maw filled with sharp teeth opened to its limit, and a blinding orange-red light shone from deep within its chest as it spewed out its breath! It was not a tentative flame, but a torrent of molten lava as thick as a temple pillar, condensed to its fullest extent.

A violent, scorching torrent, like a roar from the earth's core, crashed violently against the rapidly advancing rocky barrier.

"Boom—Crack!!!"

Like a red-hot iron plunged into ice water.

The seemingly indestructible massive rock wall began to melt the instant before it came into contact with the dragon's breath, and was then pierced through with overwhelming force.

That rocky barrier was powerful enough to withstand all the top spells of Joren, the "Arcane Knight," a seeded player of the Central Empire.

In an instant, the land collapsed, and the broken stones were melted into crimson lava flows that splashed everywhere in the high temperature that could melt gold and iron.

A terrifying wave of high-temperature air, mixed with deadly rock fragments and toxic sulfur fumes, suddenly spread out in a ring.

"what!!!"

Even with the magical barrier in place, many people in the front rows of the audience felt the scorching heat wave and gasped in surprise.

This attack shattered Mills's probing and delusions, revealing a vast chasm between the two!

Mills' pupils contracted sharply, and Glagus stopped in terror, instinctively trying to reshape the sand in front of him to block the jets of lava and the scorching heat waves.

However, in the face of true dragon might, the suppression from the dragon's bloodline made the flow of magic within its body as if it were stuck in a quagmire, becoming extremely sluggish.

The power of the earth, which was once as easy to control as an extension of one's own arm, is now like a rusty gear, creaking and unable to be effectively used.

It managed to lift a small earthen wall, but it was immediately destroyed by the sweeping lava flow and shockwave.

"Damn it!"

Mills growled in a low voice; he knew he couldn't wait any longer.

Passive defense only leads to certain death; he must attack!
"Break it through!"

He used all his strength to urge his mount forward, forcibly suppressing the lizard dragon's fear.

The spear tip shone brightly with blue light, aiming at the brief gap that appeared when the dragon's breath ended, and launched the Imperial Dragon Knight's classic finishing move - the Charge Thrust.

Dark blue armor, dark blue lizard dragon, dark blue spear light!
The heavily armored man and the lizard dragon became one, as if driven by an extreme belief, the man and his mount briefly broke free from the shackles of their bloodline.

Transforming into a deep blue meteor that tore through the air, it pierced straight at the relatively soft junction of the red dragon's neck and chest with a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.

This shot embodied Mills' lifelong learning and all his chivalrous beliefs, the tip of the spear whistling sharply as it scraped against the air.

Asuna caught a glimpse of the blinding blue light out of the corner of her eye. A flash of red light appeared in her pupils, but she showed no fear.

Kona didn't need any commands. The huge dragon mouth that had just finished spewing air suddenly closed, and the massive dragon body displayed terrifying agility and reflex speed that were completely disproportionate to its size.

Its tail, covered with hard scales and bone spikes, was like a battering ram. With a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, it swept forward at an unparalleled angle, arriving first from behind!

"Bang!!!"

The heavy, muffled sound was like the beating of a heavenly drum, as the deep blue "meteor" and the crimson "giant whip" collided violently in mid-air.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment.

Immediately afterwards, the Dragon Rider Lance, which embodied all of Mills's beliefs and shone with unparalleled brilliance, began to shatter inch by inch from its tip.

It began to twist, deform, and disintegrate into countless wood chips and metal fragments, and the enormous impact force was instantly transmitted to Mills' entire body!

"Pfft—!" Blood gushed uncontrollably from Mills' mouth.

The earth lizard Glagus, weighing nearly ten tons and clad in heavy armor, was also swept away by the overwhelming dragon tail. It was knocked off the ground and sent flying backward like a heavy sandbag kicked by a giant.

"Roar..."

The lizard dragon let out a mournful cry of extreme pain.

Boom——! ! !
The enormous lizard dragon and the knight on its back crashed miserably onto the edge of the arena, dozens of meters away, filling the air with smoke and the smell of blood.

The Earth Lizard struggled in agony, a section of its thick scales that touched the ground shattered, and dark red blood seeped out.

Mills Knight lay beside his mount, his helmet dented, his visor shattered, half of his face a bloody mess, blood still oozing from his mouth and nose, his eyes unfocused, and his fingers loosening their grip on the tattered reins.

His sword fell to the ground beside him; the impact had injured his internal organs, and his arm might even be broken.

The deep blue armor, representing the power and glory of the Eastern Empire, was covered in thick dust and crimson, making it appear dull and lifeless.

The dust has settled.

A crushing defeat with no suspense whatsoever; they were completely suppressed throughout and had no ability to resist.

The crimson dragon stood proudly in the center of the arena, its wings slightly spread, scalding steam billowing from its nostrils and mouth. Its lava-like eyes coldly swept over its fallen opponent, and it flicked its tail disdainfully.

Asuna Iliad nimbly leaped off the side of the dragon's neck, landing on the battlefield, which was cratered by the dragon's breath and the impact of its tail.

She didn't even glance at Mills, who had lost his fighting ability in the distance. Instead, she stroked the red dragon's drooping head and let out a few soft hums, as if to soothe it or to praise it.

After a moment of deathly silence, the referee's voice, tinged with complex emotion, broke the suffocating atmosphere:

The outcome is decided!
The victor—Effin, "Dragon Warrior" Asuna Iliad!

The last plumes of smoke were swept away by the rising heat from the arena and slowly settled.

In the center of the ruined battlefield, the enormous, crimson figure, burning with primal power, stood motionless like a demonic statue rising from lava.

Its broad wings are slightly outstretched, like a flag burning against the sky.

Gazing at this scene, which had previously only appeared in ancient epics and legends, the entire Imperial Arena fell silent for a moment.

Asuna surveyed the entire arena with an air of superiority, her gaze sweeping over the speechless audience section before finally settling on Cohen, who was in the direction of Effie, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Then, the entire Imperial stands erupted in a deafening, chaotic roar.

Effie has become the first player to advance to the finals!

……

The roar of the crimson dragon seemed to still echo in the sky above the capital, but the eye of its storm had shifted.

Like the quarterfinals, the semifinals are also played one match per day.

In a secluded and luxurious villa not far from the arena, Mills lay on the bed, his eyes vacant.

All of the Eastern Empire's players were eliminated, especially "Dragon Knight" Mills Knight, who persevered to the end and suffered a crushing defeat.

Not only was he seriously injured, but his mount, the Earth Lizard Dragon Glagus, was also severely damaged. In particular, the suppression from the superior dragon left Glagus still terrified.

As the eldest princess of the Eastern Empire and the person in charge of this noble martial arts festival, Grace Tang went with Prince Quentin to visit Mills, who was still lying in a hospital bed.

Her Highness the Princess stood tall and walked with a steady gait, maintaining the dignified bearing of a member of the Imperial Family.

Her long, jet-black hair was meticulously styled and secured with a single hairpin adorned with flowing ice elemental magic patterns, highlighting her flawless profile.

Wearing a dark blue court dress, without elaborate lace or dazzling jewelry, she still managed to accentuate the princess's breathtaking figure.

When the Imperial Princess travels, she is naturally surrounded by a large entourage, attracting the attention of countless people, not to mention that she herself is an absolutely stunning beauty.

Countless eyes followed the figure of the eldest princess.

One gaze in particular was intriguing; it was neither an admiration for or covetousness of Grace's stunning beauty, nor an awe and respect for power, but rather a gaze filled with the patience and calculation of a predator.

In a suite on the top floor of a chamber of commerce building, which is equally exquisite in appearance but exudes an understated commercial atmosphere, separated by a noble avenue, a burly figure quietly hides behind heavy, luxurious silk curtains.

The gap in the curtains was narrow and precise, just enough to give a clear view of the heavily guarded entrance to the state guesthouse across the street.

Grace Down's slender and graceful figure, the somber Prince Quentin beside her, and the imperial officials, nobles, and guards surrounding her were all clearly visible.

Until the group completely disappeared through the gilded gates of the state guesthouse.

Disguised as a wealthy merchant from the Central Empire, Governor Thorger Chambers of "Thousand Streams Court" withdrew his gaze, and a well-maintained hand with distinct knuckles slowly drew the curtains, blocking the outside world's prying eyes.

Governor Torgue turned to look at his deputy, Rochester.

Rochester, tall and imposing, sat silently on the sofa like a shadow, dressed in a low-key dark gray Central Empire-style stand-up collar suit.

With his hands resting on his knees, his face was so ordinary that he could easily blend into a crowd, but his eyes were as steady as a rock, calmly analyzing all the information.

Noticing Governor Torg's movement, Rochester quickly stood up.

After a pause, Torger spoke, his voice carrying an unusual smoothness and a hint of barely perceptible coldness:

"According to my intelligence, Prince Quentin has always been a supporter of Grace, but since the Northwest Regional Exchange Conference five years ago..."

The old prince's true stance can no longer be concealed.

Rochester replied slowly:

"It was probably because of this incident that Grace decided to marry a pirate captain."

"Pirate captain..."

Torg repeated Rochester's words in a low voice, his gaze fixed on a point in the void.

Those unfathomable eyes seemed to pierce through the walls of this luxurious business suite, through the hustle and bustle of the imperial capital, reaching straight to that mysterious and dangerous sea where he once commanded such power.

That was the scent of the endless sea, salty, wild, and containing the power to devour all things and unknown treasures.

Torg said meaningfully:

"An ordinary pirate captain couldn't have gotten his hands on a... ghost ship!"

He spoke the last three words with unusual slowness, in a dangerous tone as if he were examining a rare and precious treasure.

The air in the room seemed to drop several degrees in temperature instantly because of those three cold words. (End of Chapter)