Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 137 News of the Black Dragon

Opportunity knocks but once; a wise ruler will not miss any window of opportunity.

The sudden "awakening" of his own sister brought great prestige to the family. This divine favor solidified the position of the ruler of Mosodirka. Therefore, it was natural to seize this opportunity to push things forward.

"Now might be the most opportune time to make a contract. My sister says you have a way to contact your princess directly?"

It's clear that Verna is a little anxious.

The situation has only improved slightly, but some deadly dangers have not disappeared.

That beast lord, unless there is an equal force fighting back, will always be a threat to the city.

Sitting opposite the goddess, Sallyman was a little puzzled; the news she heard was of a great victory.

At that moment, Rean passed on the new information he had received from Kuku.

"The Beast Prince today is 17% larger than yesterday."

Sallyman was startled when she saw the note Rean handed her. Rean sighed; the girl didn't seem to have recovered yet.

“Yes, it is still growing further under the catalysis of magic.” Verna glanced at Rean silently. She had already realized that the real leader of this delegation was probably the classical knight who should not have a direct relationship with them.

“This is the worst possible development. The beast is still in its growth stage. The mind flayers outside aren’t in a hurry; they’re waiting for the beast’s offspring to reach its peak,” Rean sighed and continued.

These words immediately drew gasps of surprise from the crowd.

That ridiculously huge thing outside can actually get even stronger?!

In negotiations, the party that is more anxious will naturally show weakness.

It was a good thing that Suliman was being direct, as it did indeed put pressure on them during the negotiations.

But since the city lord has condescended to come here, there's no need to take some things too seriously.

The top leader will not easily engage in negotiations, because if they fail, they will have no way out. The fact that the city lord came in person means that he has presented a contract that is acceptable to both sides.

However, we shouldn't have high hopes for the credibility of this contract. After all, everyone knows that "the covenant of the dark elves" is an insult in diplomatic contexts.

The two sides laid out the agreement on the table and quickly completed the pre-prepared alliance between the two cities.

The content is quite simple and straightforward: "No attacks will be made against each other for three years, and forces related to the 'Beast' will be regarded as wanted criminals by both sides," and it is expected to be announced simultaneously in half a month.

As a covenant, this thing, which is at most a single sheet of paper, can be considered a joke.

The most basic agreement is not to attack each other, and a common enemy is set. Any more complex or demanding agreement would be meaningless if the two parties lacked the most basic mutual trust.

This is not a magical contract, but once announced to both parties, it is guaranteed by their respective reputations, which is one reason why the oath is not too complicated. You can't expect a dark elf to prioritize reputation over profit.

"In reality, if any dark elf were to sacrifice great reasons for an oath and a promise, she would have no honor in dark elf society." These were Victoria's original words, and it seems she was indeed disgusted with this society where lies were honor.

An overly pragmatic society has led to a lack of basic trust in credit and vows among people, and even to the view that those who keep their promises are foolish.

But as a city lord, Verna wouldn't easily break her oath. This level of commitment far exceeded expectations, and at least the leaders of the delegation were quite satisfied.

Sallyman breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed she could finally give a proper report to the princess.

This mentality reveals her immaturity as a noblewoman, if she were a normal noblewoman.

Such diplomatic occasions present opportunities to proactively pursue one's interests, not only by seizing the time to build connections but also by finding ways to enhance one's reputation.

As for the completion of the task itself, there is no need to care too much; as long as it is passable (with a suitable reason for failure).

Looking at Sallyman, Verna became increasingly astonished. This "diplomatic ambassador" seemed far too honest. Was this some kind of disguise or deception? She was a little confused.

After discussing the important matters, the atmosphere improved considerably, but if it was just these things, there was no need for the city lord to personally come over again for a special night talk.

"There is also a second Beast Prince, who is also in the hands of the Mind Flayers."

With limited time, Verna chose to reveal her secrets directly at this point.

"May I entrust you with handling this matter?" The city lord made this request immediately after the alliance was formed. "Why us?" Sallyman was a little puzzled. "Do you need more assassins?"
"Because if I hand it over to another family, the news will leak out very quickly, and you should have a way to leave here quietly and return."

Do the local families not know that the mind flayers have developed to this point? They have entered the city to trade many times, and the dark elf city is one of the few city-states that allows them to move freely.

Mind flayers have very useful abilities, whether for taming slaves or creating henchmen. Over the years, they have developed intricate relationships with various local families.

Even now, many families may already be trying to sell spirit beast stories outside.

"You're at war, right? Would those families still collude with the enemy?"

"Absolutely." Verna said with unwavering certainty. This was the nature of the dark elves; the more urgent the situation, the more they fought amongst themselves, and every defeat became an opportunity for those in lower positions.

What if there's no opportunity to rise to power? Just create one.

Therefore, the only people you can trust are your own family members, or even just a little more, since fratricide is a tradition among the dark elves.

But this time, Vera chose to trust her sister.

"My sister will be involved in this kind of mission and will be carrying some specialized equipment. Your main job is to protect her."

Although she didn't know why her sister trusted the people on Earth so much, Verna vaguely knew that her sister's awakening was related to them, and decided to place another bet.

"We need to think about it." Even if it's possible, we can't just agree to something like that.

"Get back to me within two days. You can also tell me what your needs are."

"Um, do you have little black dragons in your city?" Purple Rose suddenly interjected, reminding everyone of their target this time.

The entire city's resources are dedicated to serving the Dark Elf nobles; if you truly desire any treasures, asking the Dark Elf nobles is the right thing to do.

Verna smiled.

"I've heard of that. The eldest daughter of the third-ranked Charlotten family tamed a young black dragon. She probably plans to raise it for decades as a trump card. I can arrange for her to carry out certain missions." Other families may betray her, and she can certainly turn against them at any time.

This wasn't even the main negotiation; it was merely a small gift to express goodwill.

Eliminating a future threat is never a bad thing.

After saying that, Verna took her leave. She was very busy that night and had many things to discuss with her sisters.

"Only one? It seems there's more information being hidden."

Rean also felt uneasy; he didn't want to make a deal with Verna, always feeling like he was being manipulated by her.

Transactions between Earthlings and Dark Elves are prone to errors; the news that "the Earthlings are the murderers" could easily be sold to some noble family.

A dark elf who engages in honest transactions is probably a rare find; a dark elf who honestly uses others to do their dirty work is considered a great philanthropist.

Since one little black dragon is in the hands of a nobleman, the other one is probably in the same situation. Rean wants to try to find out more information.

He was prepared to use the black market and intelligence dealers, but he did not expect the intelligence source to arrive so quickly.

"A black dragon? I know it. My eldest daughter raised one as a trump card. Heh, black dragons are naturally favored by the Lord of Shadows. She plans to raise it to a certain level and then sacrifice it to the Lord of Shadows to transform it into a shadow dragon." Only after the city lord left did Victoria, who had been hiding, dare to come out.

She told Rean the answer directly.

Shadow Dragon is indeed weaker than Black Dragon, but it has a natural and strong resistance to shadow, giving it a significant advantage in shadow-type battles. It goes without saying who it is designed to target.

No wonder the city lord was so happy to betray her; each of his subordinates' families must have considered her their biggest potential enemy.

Next, I'll probably have to go to the Land of Dreams to tell Princess Dania about the alliance.

Whether or not to accept this commission depends on the specific circumstances. The city lord probably never imagined that her sister would leak her information.

The other candidates will also further refine their abilities, and the first mature "Valkyrie" will serve as their reference.

“I can also accept the inheritance.” As for Sallyman, she was also quite looking forward to Valhalla tonight.

(End of this chapter)