After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

At midnight, the adjutant spotted the Bone Dragon in the northeastern sky for two seconds before it disappeared.

Three seconds later, half of Huangtucheng suddenly collapsed, the ground sank several meters, and the shape vaguely resembled a dragon's claw. Countless residents were killed or injured, and no remains were found.

Five minutes later, the Bone Dragon reappeared in the sky above Huangtu City, staying for four seconds. The adjutant clearly recorded the Bone Dragon's appearance: it was dark red overall, the skin and flesh were not completely separated, the abdomen was empty and the bones were visible, the head was well preserved, and the pupils were missing.

The bone dragon flapped its wings, and a magic circle appeared behind its wings, which were over ten meters long. The moment the bone dragon disappeared, the entire yellow earth city exploded and burst into boundless flames.

There were no cries of agony; the flames burned silently all night until dawn, when a torrential downpour began.

The group gazed in the direction of Huangtucheng and stood quietly on the hill for a long time. Soon after, the militiamen arrived with their horse-drawn carts.

They too were stunned and speechless upon seeing the collapsed ground and the still-burning fire.

After a long pause, the militia captain finally asked hesitantly, "Should we go rescue them, sir?"

The adjutant's pupils dilated sharply, and he clenched his fists as if waking from a nightmare. Everyone watched him, expecting him to give the correct order.

"Go and loot." The adjutant sighed heavily. Perhaps only when faced with such terrifying creatures would they feel compassion for their fellow human beings.

"If there are any survivors... lend them a hand."

Meanwhile, in the Northern Territory, if one had to pinpoint any change in the peaceful Ice City, it would be that the number of troublemakers within the city had increased from one to two.

Lisa arrived in Ice City and gave Oswald a detailed report on the battlefield situation. After "subtly" mentioning that Starfall City needed financial support, she and Luna, who had been frequently prying into the office, went off to have some fun.

The two girls, who are the same age and have been best friends since childhood, naturally have endless things to talk about and do together.

In less than half an hour, Eleanor sent a message to Oswald, reporting that several ribs of the giant serpent skeleton in the square had been stolen.

Oswald picked up his teacup, nodded nonchalantly, and said, "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

However, before he could process more than a few documents, the alchemist rushed over, saying that he had suddenly encountered two masked thugs who were highly skilled and had stolen dangerous materials from his laboratory without saying a word.

After carefully examining the footprints on the alchemist's face, Oswald nodded again and waved his hand. "Understood, I'll have someone compensate you."

Compensation? Shouldn't we immediately send troops to arrest them? The alchemist walked away, completely bewildered, unaware of the strange change in Oswald's expression as he turned away.

Holding his teacup, Oswald got up and walked to the window, enjoying the city scenery and relaxing his mind before drinking the tea in one gulp.

Ultimately, at most they do nothing but stealing and swindling, and that's about it...

boom!

A beam of white light shot straight into the sky, illuminating most of the ice city. The blinding light caused Oswald to silently shed two lines of tears.

After a long while, when the white light dissipated, Oswald's eyes were still filled with overlapping light and shadow, making him dizzy and unable to distinguish directions.

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With a snap, veins bulged on Oswald's forehead as he crushed the teacup in his hand.

Upon arriving at the office, Luna, familiar with the place, lowered her head and obediently knelt down in a corner like a quail.

Lisa glanced at Oswald, who was still focused on his work, and hurriedly ran to Luna's side, kneeling down with a thud.

In the quiet environment, the only sound could be the swishing of Oswald's pen.

A short while later, the reinforcements Luna had requested arrived.

Elena stepped inside, placed the documents she needed to process on the table, and was about to make tea when she discovered that the Duke's personal teacup was missing.

She almost instinctively looked at the trash can and, sure enough, found a pile of porcelain shards inside.

With her hands behind her back, Elena slowly shook her finger at Luna, indicating that she couldn't help her.

Under Luna's pleading gaze, Elene bowed and withdrew.

Fortunately, there is always a way out. An unexpected ally, Jenny arrived at the office, ready to help the Duke with his health.

Upon seeing Luna kneeling on the ground with her miserable face, Jennifer couldn't help but laugh and waved at her slightly.

Oswald put down his pen, stretched his stiff neck, and straightened his back to receive the warm, healing magic from Jenny's hands.

In fact, thanks to Jenny's careful treatment, his body has become much better, and he can do his daily activities without any problems. It's just a pity that he can no longer wield that lance.

It's funny to think about it now; I've become a high-level piece of trash in the eyes of gamers.

Asking about cultivation to transcend countless tribulations, encountering a Great Sage and hiding under a table... Sigh, too many tears to tell.

"That light just now was quite powerful," Jenny remarked casually during the treatment.

Oswald closed his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Hmm, what can I do for you, Sister?"

Upon hearing this, the two little ones perked up their ears. "Oh, the nun is planning to rescue us!" Unexpectedly, Jennifer changed the subject and said with a smile.

"The construction formula isn't anything new; it's just that the effect is amplified using higher-grade magical materials."

Luna...you're getting ahead of yourself.

"It could be used to deal with the demonic black mist magic, so it's definitely a method worth trying, Your Highness. What do you say?"

Before Oswald could speak, Luna interjected, "Yes, that's exactly what Lisa and I think!"

Oswald opened his eyes, and Luna instantly felt an intense sense of pressure, shrinking her head like a frightened little rabbit.

Just as things calmed down over there, Lisa covered her mouth and chuckled, only to receive a death stare in return.

Lisa's expression changed in an instant: No, hehe.

If the former Oswald was more like a ruthless bastard, then the Oswald who inherited the dukedom was a completely different person.

People always grow up suddenly. In Lisa's eyes, the old Oswald had no air of a sovereign, just a spoiled brat. But now, his imposing aura is far more oppressive than that of the old duke.

Lisa couldn't help but wonder if the fact that the Northern Territory remained peaceful to this day was also related to Oswald's tyrannical and domineering face...

"There should be a limit to nonsense." Oswald finally spoke up to lecture the two, his face stern. "Ice City is not a city belonging to one family or one clan, but to all the people of the Northern Territory."

"I can tolerate you stealing bones and bullying alchemists. At worst, I'll pay compensation and apologize. It won't affect anything."

"But even from this distance, the light makes my eyes hurt and I can't see. What about those who are closer? What about the young children, the people driving carriages, and those working on rooftops? What if they get injured because of it?"

"Did you two consider these consequences before you did this?"

Lisa was slightly surprised; it turned out that these were the things the Duke cared about.

However, compared to her, Luna's apology was much smoother, clearly that of a seasoned offender. "Brother, we were wrong, we didn't expect it to work so well..."

Oswald sighed, his anger intensifying. He decided that even in front of the nun, he had to teach the two little ones a lesson, otherwise they might make some absurd mistakes when they grew up and inherited the territory.

"You two, one is my sister, and the other is the daughter of my trusted confidant. You have done wrong, and you should understand the consequences of your mistakes. Those in high positions should have empathy..."

However, for some reason, Eleanor walked into the office again, interrupting Oswald's next move.

"Is the treatment over? You may leave now. I have something to report to the Duke."

Oswald's aura suddenly plummeted. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Eline secretly made a hand gesture to Luna. Luna understood instantly, glanced at Eline with tears of gratitude, and quickly pulled Lisa away from the scene.

After Jenny left and the office door slammed shut, Oswald shook his head and said with a wry smile, "Speak, I'd like to know what important matter the Secretary-General needs to report to me."

"I just think His Excellency the Duke should take a rest."

Taking out a new tea set, Elena walked quietly to the storage cabinet, took out the old tea set, opened the glass door, and put the new tea set inside.

She knew everything about the Duke's mansion and had an obsessive-compulsive habit of keeping every item in perfect order, even a tea set that was missing only one teacup.

But she knew better than anyone that there was only one person who was indispensable to the entire Duke's mansion and even the Northern Territory.

"I've read the books the Duke wrote for Luna, which cover politics, military affairs, and administration... Indeed, if Luna can fully understand and apply this knowledge, she will surely become an excellent lord in the future."

"However, that's precisely why I think Your Grace is so contradictory. Most of the time, you dote on Luna and wholeheartedly hope that she can continue to be carefree. But sometimes, you suddenly show a restless side, wishing that Luna would grow up overnight..."

"So, I have a question for you. Is our time really that tight?"

One sentence pierced through the hearts of both of them.

Elena had long suspected that Oswald intended to hand over Ice City, the political center of the Northern Territory, to Luna.

To this end, he assembled a personal guard for Luna, personally taught her knowledge, and also bound himself and Red to Luna, so that the talents Luna brought back could be quickly entrusted with important tasks.

Most importantly, Cage Charles has not been heard from since he was invited to Hollow Valley by the Duke a few months ago.

It's as if this only son of a collateral branch of the Charles family has vanished into thin air.

"You always tend to overthink things." Oswald lowered his eyes, avoiding Eleanor's question.

He had no idea what Elene was thinking before she started the riot in her previous life.

Perhaps it was resentment, perhaps it was anger, but the pain that belonged only to her was too heavy.

The story should have ended with the hero defeating the demon king, and everyone living happily ever after.

Even though the hero, like a stallion, goes into heat everywhere and, like the chosen protagonists of other stories, harms a host of supporting characters and villains in his pursuit of power, he still shoulders the responsibility and truly embodies the path of courage.