Ancient Dragon in Arknights

Because of the threat from the spy, Nesario and the Glasgow Gang are now practically in the same boat.

The unknown Miss Aslan and the strangely-introduced Mr. Draco already know each other's names.

"You can operate in the shadows, and we won't publicize your existence."

"I'm sorry you couldn't explain it to me, because there was nothing that appealed to me. Wiping out the Fang Gang would be a complete hassle for me, and the loot I could get would be so-so."

Although he had used up some of his initial capital on his investment in Palicoes, Neltharion was still considered a wealthy man thanks to his savings. What would be inside the Fang Gang's stronghold? Nothing more than stolen money and illicit goods, neither of which were easy to launder, and Neltharion didn't want to cause any more trouble.

"The Glasgow Gang can be a help to you. As long as it doesn't violate our principles, we can do things for you. You need manpower right now, don't you?"

"..."

The communicator fell silent briefly, and Vina knew she had grasped the key point.

In their previous meetings, Nesario had always appeared in person, while Vina had dozens of people at her disposal, he was always alone.

Nesario began to weigh the pros and cons... The Glasgow gang couldn't do shady work, so they couldn't be black gloves; but dozens of laborers were indeed a great help.

If possible, Nesario wanted them all to cultivate land for him, to grow more magical herbs.

But that's impossible. Aside from the fact that there aren't any large-scale plantations within the mobile city available for the gang, the more important thing is that the secret of the herbs absolutely cannot be revealed until they are powerful enough. If that thing is exposed, Victoria will devour it completely.

"Cooperation is acceptable, but I need you to do one thing for me."

"As best as I can."

"You are a princess, after all. Are there any unknown tunnels or the like in the Ottocrig district?"

"..."

Nesario and Vina finalized their collaboration: this weekend—because of a Victorian holiday, there would be an extra day off, and Monday would be free of classes.

Three days is enough time to wipe out the Fang Gang. Neltharion will also lend a hand, and Vina's assistance will be as a "guide," helping Neltharion infiltrate the Altereker district.

To be honest, Vina was surprised when she heard Nesario's purpose; he actually wanted to infiltrate a noble mansion!

Indeed, Nesario was also very concerned about the clue that Scholar Cat had found. He was curious to see where that clue would lead him.

......

The members of Class 10 of the first term gathered at the training ground once again. They took off their usual school uniforms and put on more combat-oriented equipment.

Yes, the exercise is coming.

Simply reading books is useless; the most efficient way to learn is to combine knowledge with practice. Victoria Royal Guard School organizes drills every month, and class-based exercises, scenario simulations, and hands-on activities are all part of the assessment.

At the end of the semester, there may even be class rivalries, at which point all the resentment and arrogance accumulated over time can be vented.

Whether one becomes a king or a scoundrel depends entirely on their ability; there will be a great show to watch then.

I heard that there are real combat scenarios in the activities for older students—organized by the school, where students leave the city and go to a high-speed warship, with the target being an infected mob in the wilderness.

Don't underestimate these guys. A few thugs are nothing to worry about, but those organized groups of thugs are quite formidable.

That's getting off-topic; that's something that might happen in the future.

"Nesario, do you remember what you said before?"

"Ah, of course I remember. One against three, I won't go back on my word."

Chen was highly motivated to fight, and she always forged ahead bravely and tenaciously in the face of a formidable enemy.

"Nana... what did you do to your tail? It looks so scary..."

More than the battle to come, Fiona was concerned about Neltharion's tail—which was also what most people were most concerned about.

Neltharion's thick, sturdy tail was gone.

At this moment, Nesario was dragging a long and flexible tail behind him—the front half of which was covered with scales that shimmered with a metallic luster, while the back half was transformed into a blade.

The end is straight, thick at the top and narrow at the bottom, and extremely sharp. More importantly, it has a texture that radiates light and shines brightly, just like a knife!

"My tail? It's just a unique racial feature. There are many branches of the Vaiva, aren't there? My ethnicity is probably quite rare."

As he spoke, Nesario laid it on its side and rubbed it against the ground—the grating metallic scraping sound made everyone around him unconsciously take a few steps back.

This is the only way we can do it!

Claws can be retracted, but how can such a drastic change in the tail be concealed! After much thought, Nesario had no choice but to take it one step at a time. If asked, it would be a racial trait; if suspected, it would be caused by Originium Arts—you could even ask my roommate Fisher, who watched the tail shed its skin little by little!

Fischer: Thanks for the invitation. This is the first time I've ever heard of Vaiva molting.

In short, every profession has its own secrets. If people can imagine things like egg molting, what's a little molting to Vairan?!

Chapter 49 Exercise

Angelia, now fully recovered, stood before the team, a terminal in her hand recording information as always. Judging from her relaxed demeanor, the requirements for this exercise were probably not very strict.

"Quiet down, everyone. Now, let me briefly explain the rules—the exercise area is a simulated urban warfare environment. Two teams will enter simultaneously, with four people in each team. You can choose your own weapons and consumables. The objective of victory is to eliminate the opponent or destroy the 'command post'."

It was just a drill within the class, no different from a pop quiz—so there weren't many rules or regulations.

"In theory, team members should be selected based on entrance exam scores—evenly distributed. But I know very well that you guys haven't bonded yet, and some of you even have conflicts. So, you can form your own teams—the most important thing for a team isn't its fighting strength, but its teamwork. In the final class competition, team assignments will also be based on your own wishes."

Angelia's main approach is a relaxed, hands-off approach to education. What kind of amazing teamwork can these kids possibly pull off right now? It's purely a matter of getting the team in sync.

The real test will be the class competition in the first semester. Before that, they need to find their place and team.

'However... I'm pretty sure who came in first place.'

Angelia glanced at the corner of the crowd—two Vayvans, a dragon, and a Lupo. This team composition wasn't just randomly created!?

Just as Angelia looked at Nesario and his group of four, they also happened to look at Angelia.

Rita then stepped forward and submitted her application to Angelia.

"What?! You're going to face all three of them by yourself?"

"Teacher, to be honest—it would be easy for the four of us to win, right? So instead of bullying our classmates, why don't we just let ourselves do what we want?"

"Arrogance is a common flaw among elites. It will get you killed!"

Angelia reached out and tapped Nesario on the chest, giving him a warning. But she didn't refuse the invitation; Nesario was right, at least for now—no small group in the class could rival their team.

"I agree. You'll be the last to come out, to avoid causing too much damage to the field."

As for the team that gets a bye? It's simple, they're assigned to teaching materials.

"The first round will be between me, Mark, Henry, Marion, and Lucius. How much you learn in class determines your ceiling; but how much you can perform on the battlefield determines your floor. Watch carefully and learn well."

The group drawn to compete against the teachers were not saddened; on the contrary, they were in high spirits! Their moment to prove themselves had arrived!

As both sides entered the testing area, the monitoring screen in the audience area lit up.

Angelia sprinted as soon as she entered the field. As a teacher, she was already familiar with the field and naturally knew where the strategic locations were. This was the adults' despicable act!

In contrast, after Mark and his team entered the site, they were still debating their strategic approach.

“I think it would be better to split into pairs – the area is large, and four people together might not be able to find the teacher. If we are attacked, we can fire a signal flare and the other team can quickly rush to destroy the command post.”

"No, the teacher is a strict retired team, and that team is very strong. If we split up, we'll just get picked off one by one."

"..."

The audience did not laugh at this phenomenon; on the contrary, everyone was seriously discussing with their companions how to deal with a powerful enemy.

Even Nesario listened attentively to Rita's teachings.

"In this situation, we must act together—cooperate and cover each other—to survive when the strength is unequal. Avoid direct confrontation and look for opportunities to complete the mission objectives. As for the enemy—report intelligence to the commander and send elite troops to decapitate them."

That's how the battlefield is. When facing an enemy whose physique, equipment, and Originium Arts far surpass your own—the so-called elite team—you naturally have to send intelligence to your own elite team to fight back, or you can unleash a barrage of Originium artillery and magical bombardment.

It's unrealistic for a mere soldier to think he can take down the enemy's main damage dealer alone.

If it's a positional war and the order is to hold the line and not retreat, then sacrificing oneself heroically is also worthy of being called a martyr.

While everyone was discussing, Mark's team finally began to move.

They ultimately chose to act together, which is consistent with the approach taught in books.

But the time they had wasted earlier had already caused them to miss their chance—Angelia, armed with a sniper crossbow, reached the high point, a small attic facing the crossroads.

This is a convenient route to Angelia's command post.

"Be careful... that intersection ahead is dangerous; there's a high chance the teacher is lying in ambush there."

"Why not take a detour? Avoid the teachers. There are four of us; we can definitely destroy the command post."

"Softie, that kind of victory isn't recognized. We have four people on our side! The other side only has one! Victories gained by taking advantage like this will only be laughed at. I want to defeat the teacher head-on."

Teammate: Someone's been poisoned by Neltharion, I won't say who.

"You all try to stay behind me. If the teacher fires, I'll block it. The counterattack after that is up to you."

The leader, Fiery Hoof, was clad in defensive gear and wielded a shield—the shieldbearer, the first line of defense on the battlefield, and the most reliable partner for archers and sorcerers. He was the guy who dragged the whole class into the endurance test last time; his name was Marion.

The remaining team consists of: Henry, a guard who uses a lance, the same guy who almost beat his senior in the combat skills test; Mark, an old acquaintance, excellent at battlefield aggression, so he uses a light crossbow, a great model for quick movement and shooting; and Lucius, who uses a bow, his strength lies in his overall command and strategic vision, it was he who suggested that the four of them move together and take a detour to sneak up on the enemy base.

But Mark got carried away and wouldn't listen to any instructions. He only wanted to defeat the teacher head-on and win applause and cheers.

The four-person team continued their advance, using the ruins and roadside obstacles as cover, and successfully reached the intersection.

Angelia smiled slightly as she saw the group. The presence of the shield guards in front of her did indeed prevent her from having a good shooting angle, but it wasn't that she was helpless.

Her left hand remained on the trigger, while her right hand slowly pressed a remote control—a hidden arrow suddenly shot out from the street across the intersection! Because of the exercise, there was no arrowhead on it, but it was equipped with a signal device—if it hit a vital spot, it would be considered eliminated.

Clang! Marion quickly adjusted his direction to block the attack, but this turn also caused his back to be completely exposed to Angelia.

Whoosh—a crossbow bolt with an electric paralysis arrowhead struck the gap at the back of the armor's neck.

Marion did not choose the full-coverage heavy plate armor, but instead opted for tactical armor that also allowed for mobility. No one expected Angelia's shooting accuracy to be so superb—hitting a two-finger-width gap at a distance of fifty meters!

The paralyzing electric current surged through his body, and even the Plumphoof Tribe could no longer stand. Matthew, the team's first line of defense, suddenly collapsed to the ground.

Chapter Fifty: Your Teacher Is Still Your Teacher

One member of the four-man squad has fallen. The first to "die" was the most important shield guard. The once safe intersection now seems to be full of attack angles.

Angelita's fighting style is ruthless and decisive; taking down one person and then retreating is not enough for her.

Angelia's reload speed was incredibly smooth, without any hesitation, and her next attack was about to come!

Because of Marion's sacrifice, the remaining members realized they had been deceived.