I'm really not a dragon.

"My memory tells me that a good father should avenge his daughter. But I know clearly that she has become a stranger."

Therefore, the Ghost Captain's anger was fake; he never truly hated Suen.

It's ridiculous.

He doesn't love his daughter; he just remembers to love her.

A hollow body.

Suen pondered for a moment and said, "I've heard that after death, human emotions become severely lacking."

"But I'm different from ordinary dead."

The ghost captain's murky eyes sized up Suen. "You saved my subordinate, so naturally, I owe you a favor! You're a wanted criminal now, aren't you?"

"Will you help me?"

"By signing the contract, you will weather the most treacherous waves, experience the most fantastical adventures, and reap treasures unknown to anyone! Perhaps a decade or so later, you will disembark like Little Arthur, carrying wealth that ordinary people envy, becoming a legendary figure in the eyes of others."

To live a life accompanied by wind and waves must be a very free life.

Suen's eyes lit up, then dimmed.

He shook his head and admitted, "I helped the captain of the Mermaid for only one thing."

"Prove that I am not the murderer, prove that Baldur's Gate is shrouded in another shadow, prove that Thorin Silver Shield is not innocent?"

You said three things!

The ghost captain slapped the table and laughed.

Suen laughed too, "These three things can be proven with just one thing—prov that Thorlin Silver Shield is the leader of the Baal cult!"

The ghost captain tightened his lips, his stiff, frost-covered face staring at him as if trying to see through Suen's heart. After a moment, he slowly said, "Torlin Silver Shield is a good man, with the body of a thirty-year-old and the mind of a fifteen-year-old. He believes that this pirate-founded city will move towards justice. Having such a naive grand duke may be a good thing for Baldur's Gate."

"Moreover, not all Baal's children turn to evil. Wasn't the Baal who saved Baldur's Gate hundreds of years ago a good person?"

"To me, he's not a good person! A man who killed all his relatives just to resurrect Baal, he's no longer the fifteen-year-old child you see. Captain," Suen stared intently at the ghost captain, pursed his lips, and shook his head. "The child you see may have grown up!"

The ghost captain slumped onto his desk, a bitter smile on his face. "I understand! Listen, child," he said. "I've made a pact with the sea. As long as this ghost ship belongs to me, as long as I remain the ghost captain, I will never set foot on land again. I cannot stand against the Silver Shield of Thorlin for you, but there is one more person who can help you."

Suen was also quite surprised.

He never expected that the ghost captain would go to such lengths for him after only meeting him once. Perhaps this is what it means for pirates of the ancient times—chaotic yet with principles.

"...Have you heard of Grand Duke Flamefist? This kind old man has been entangled with the Son of Baal his entire life! He is a true paladin, and my men have learned that he has returned to Dragonbridge. If there is anyone in this city who can uphold justice for you, it is him. I will write you a letter of recommendation, for the sake of saving Arthur's life."

Grand Duke Flame Fist has returned? Hmm, I didn't expect Captain Ghost to have such a high opinion of Grand Duke Flame Fist.

"Thank you for your trouble!"

Soon after, Suen received a beautifully presented letter.

"Take this perfume with you!"

"If one day I truly regain my emotions and see her belongings, I might be heartbroken. Besides, you're a perfumer too."

Suen took the perfume, and unsurprisingly, his charm level dropped a little more. He frowned and subtly tucked the perfume into his pocket.

"Then I'll take my leave!"

-

noon,

Suen strolled through the sweltering streets of Baldur's Gate, dressed as a traveling mage and sporting the face of a wax artist.

Beneath that brown cloak, his body was wrapped in bandages.

【Naked Snake Bandage】

This equipment possesses rudimentary intelligence.

[Can perform magical tricks without consuming uses, including but not limited to creating disturbances, lighting candles, opening or closing doors, etc.]

[With the bandages on, you become an excellent swimmer, even if you've never had any swimming experience before.]

This equipment offers the same level of protection as light leather armor.

Aside from bandages and black blades, Baal sold the rest of the four assassins' equipment to the captain of the Mermaid for three thousand gold coins.

Suen had his eye on the Thunder Summoning Wand in the Mermaid's captain's possession. The captain said he could give him a drastically reduced price, but it would still cost at least five thousand gold coins.

This wand originally cost 20,000 dragon coins.

The price was too high, so we gave up.

The black blade and bandages are essential equipment for his wax artist cosplay, so naturally he can't sell them.

As for the Black Blade, it requires a Synchro Ritual to use; otherwise, it can only be used as a sharp short sword.

As for the Synchro Ritual, there is actually a spell that can reveal the contents of the Synchro Ritual for magical artifacts: the Appraisal spell.

unconsciously,

Suen arrived at the city gate; once outside the gate was the outer city area.

The outer city is like an arc-shaped corridor built around Grey Eagle Hill, and is divided into nine blocks, such as Stone Eye Block and Sow's Hoof Block.

Grand Duke Flamefist's successful defense of Greentown is a feat that deserves to be celebrated and highlighted, a performance to be shown to the rest of the Lords' Alliance.

It also serves to deter outsiders and warn cunning villains in the darkness that Baldur's Gate will continue to win.

Today is designated as the Grand Duke's Return Day.

On the wide street, druids strolled leisurely amidst verdant foliage, their flowers carpeting the entire street, while bards with goat horns played their flutes with great enthusiasm.

Surrounded by joyful music, the people of Bode put aside their past fatigue and danced to the beat.

Such a peaceful scene,

Su En's eye suddenly twitched, and she had a feeling that something bad was about to happen.

Within the Tower of the Storm's Eye, the hatred among the Annamese princes intensifies, with various factions clashing against each other, yet maintaining a facade of peace.

The Cult of Baal has dispatched assassins to kill one of the Supreme Rulers of the Eye of the Storm.

Chaos is opportunity.

[The Fifth Stage of the Path to Dragon Lord: Stealing Land.]

[Tear a piece of land from the giants' grasp and make it your own!]

[Reward: Clues to the artifact Baal's Murderous Blade...]

[Reward: A random second-level spell.]

This task is too difficult; please proceed with caution. Alternatively, consider completing it after reaching the next age group.

No, wait, this is a lot of information: murdering the offspring of a god and killing the ruler of the Eye of the Storm Tower?

Could it be that Thorin is planning something on the Day of Return? Is he going to kill Grand Duke Flamefist?

Su En immediately realized what was happening, and with a burst of speed, he sprinted towards the Flying Dragon Bridge.

At the city gate, a group of Gur people were posting missing person notices on a bulletin board. The Gur are a nomadic people who wander under the moonlight, monster hunters, and natural adventurers.

But now these monster hunters seem to be out of options. Not long ago, their leader accepted a quest and disappeared, and hasn't returned since.

As a nomadic people, they value family ties more than anyone else.

"Looking for: Viktor, a Gur person."

Suen didn't notice and continued running towards the Flying Dragon Bridge.

About half an hour later,

Suen saw the magnificent Flying Dragon Rock Fortress.

A richly dressed, aged man stood in the fortress, his voice echoing through the entire city outside Baldur's Gate via magic.

"My friends, I am Apodel Ardern, the adopted son of Grian and the current Grand Duke of Flamefist. Today I have returned, and Baldur's Gate will surely be filled with peace and stability."

-

In front of the stables of Flying Dragon Rock Fortress,

The dwarf Brian was examining his new mount, a strong mountain boar with steel-spiky fur and solid muscles beneath it.

The image of dwarves riding pigs has a long history.

Although as a mage, he should have a more advanced and beautiful mount.

Well, those beautiful mounts are often impractical and cannot support the strong bodies of dwarves.

Wild boar is actually a good choice.

"Brian the Mage! Come this way!" The northern barbarian, with a blade of grass clenched in his mouth, handed his companion, a brown dwarf horse covered in white spots, to the stable.

The elderly stableman took the reins and tied them to the stable.

"And mine, my stupid thing, take good care of it!"

The dwarf swaggered off the boar, muttering, "They should have given me a more dignified mount, at least a stag."

The wild boar grunted in dissatisfaction.

The northern barbarian raised an eyebrow, and a series of smile lines spread across his face like waves. "Alright, stop complaining. That Grand Duke promised to help you find your enemy and also to help Mage Suen get justice. We've finally met some good people."

"Ha, if we hadn't helped them, they would have been taken down by those assassins long ago! It's what they should have done."

The dwarf naturally said,

The two men waited at the Arm of Friendship for two days, but the first group of people they encountered was not the Flame Fist Duke's team, but assassins sent by an unknown force.

The group of wanderers planned to clear out the inn, then disguise themselves as guests and the innkeeper to assassinate the passing Duke Flame Fist.

The dwarves and northern barbarians were forced to fight the assassins.

Fortunately, the owner of the Friendly Arm was an exemplary illusionist. With the help of this halfling, the dwarves and northern barbarians, along with the inn's guests, repelled the assassins one by one.

When Grand Duke Flamefist's party arrived and learned the whole story, he greatly admired the dwarves and the northern barbarians.

Paladins love stories where someone would risk danger to ask for a friend's help.

Grand Duke Flame Fist then vowed to seek justice for their friends.

"In any case, at least Grand Duke Apodel has verbally agreed to our request!" the northern barbarian sighed.

The stableman took the wild boar's reins and stroked the fur of the grumpy little guy with his left hand. The boar's impatient grunts gradually turned into a comfortable and cheerful sound.

He looked so haggard, with a heartbreaking sense of aging that came from years of suffering.

"Something seems off about you?" The dwarf was quite short, and when he looked up, he could see the arm covered in horrible whip marks and branding scars in the stable sleeve.

Some were still bleeding.

Around the neck of the stable was a collar, with steel wire tightly constricting its flesh.

The dwarf squinted, vaguely sensing that the runes on the collar were somewhat familiar.

He pulled out his spellbook and gestured; on page thirty-seven of the Dwarven Book of Hatred, the same incantation was depicted.

Interpreting this, the spell means "Five Rings of Magic: Domination of Humanity."

The stableman shook his head, a hint of bloodlust gradually appearing in his cloudy eyes: "Apodel? That name sounds so familiar!"

"I'm Weikang, no, I'm not! Aaaaaaah!"

The northern barbarian, gripping the dwarf by the back of the neck, sneered at the paladins, "Mage Brian, you can't write everyone into your book of hatred!"

"You fucking bastard! I didn't write his name! That guy's weird, he's under a spell!" The dwarf stared at the crazed stable, feeling a chill run down his spine.

Clang!

The paladin drew his sword and stood in front of the northern barbarians and dwarves.

He raised the holy symbol and released a detection of evil towards the man before him. In an instant, a blinding crimson aura filled his entire field of vision.

Without hesitation, he rushed towards the stables, yelling a single word: "Enemy attack!"

The figure of the stable expanded like smoke, gathering into a storm that shimmered with blood-red spiritual light!

The light was distorted at the same time, and a ferocious, shrill sound rang out in the storm.

"Apodel!"

At the same time, the last surviving son of Baal, now the Flame Fist Grand Duke, clutched his chest, staring incredulously at his feet.

Baal's blood was throbbing, a thousand voices flew through his mind, and at the same time he whispered a name: Baal.

He was abandoned, his destiny severed, but now it has returned.

Last time, he won, but this time, he was too old, too old to resist the call of his bloodline, nor to stop the impending tragedy.

On the Flying Dragon Bridge, the crowd looked up at Grand Duke Flame Fist, and murmurs gradually arose. For some reason, the Grand Duke suddenly stopped his speech, his expression pained.

Even when legendary figures grow old, they remain legends. Although their physical abilities may decline, their extraordinary nature has already changed them.

Very few things can truly harm them.

When Su En saw this scene, her heart sank.

"Conan! Brian!" Suen shouted at the crowd.

Two burly guards grabbed Suen's arms and arrested him as a troublemaker.

Suen drew his staff and knocked the guards unconscious with two blows. He tried to squeeze into the crowd, but more guards rushed towards him.

Suddenly, Su En saw a familiar figure.

"Lisera! Paladin Lisera Spider Shadow! Help me!"

The drow paladin gripped his sword hilt, looking at the stranger who had suddenly appeared with a puzzled expression. "Now crouch down and put your hands behind your head, or I'll send you to jail for disturbing the peace."

Suen gave a wry smile: "Lisera, I sincerely beg for your help!"

"Who are you?" The drow paladin sized up Suen, tilting his head. "Do I know you?"

"Someone is plotting to assassinate the Grand Duke!"

A heart-wrenching scream rang out simultaneously with Su En's voice.

A creature that only appears in nightmares moves through blood and dismembered limbs.

His joints were covered in bone spurs, making him look like a skinned monster. His entire body was red, a mixture of features from werewolves, vampire bats, and wolf-snake demons.

His limbs clung to the city wall as he charged toward the Grand Duke.