Westminster Bank

Chapter 292: Chapter 176: Edward and Yelena (2)

"What’s there to be afraid of? Didn’t you hear the two Silver Masters say these are the only paths into the mountains? If you want to go any other way, you’ll have to get past the ridges where the Little Flying Dragons live. The elites from all the great families are here. What’s so scary?"

A burly man named Jiba, a Demon Hunter from the Van Helsing Family of the Wolf Faction, bellowed, "If this is all the determination you have, then don’t bother trying to be a Dragon Guide."

"But..." a Black Iron Dragon Guide said, "it’s not that we think you Young Masters of the Old Bloodline can’t beat those Thunder Wolf Dragons. I’m afraid that we powerless members of the Old Race will die out there."

As soon as he said this, many of the Bronze Dragon Guides began to waver. You can always earn more money, but you only get one life.

They refused to take the middle path, no matter what.

Helpless, the Bronze Tier members—Jose, Roy, Dewey, and the others—exchanged glances. They each decided to take a few willing volunteers and scout ahead.

After another period of tense vigilance and suspicion, the group saw the empty nest in the middle of the path, along with signs that the great beasts had fled in a hurry.

"These are the Thunder Wolf Dragons’ nests... The ones that came from the inner circle took over this area as their habitat from the start... The reason was likely the sudden appearance of that subspecies in the inner circle."

After scouting the surrounding area, the Silver Dragon Guides accompanying Jose and Tune returned to report:

"These Thunder Wolf Dragons appeared on our mountain path for a reason. They likely encountered something that intimidated them, causing them to flee in a panic onto our route."

"Can you tell what it was?" Roy asked.

The two Dragon Guides shook their heads. "All the tracks around here belong to Thunder Wolf Dragons. If it were a Flying Dragon species, we should be able to see it... And if it was a roar meant to intimidate, a roar powerful enough to scare a Thunder Wolf Dragon King of that Tier should have been audible to us as well."

There’s an unwritten rule regarding the roars of the Dragon Race.

The higher the Tier, the louder the roar.

It’s impossible that they didn’t hear it.

Moreover, after on-site surveys by several professional Dragon Guides, they also ruled out the possibility of a major battle having erupted here. Only one possibility remained.

The Thunder Wolf Dragon Group had directly encountered some High Tier species and was scared away from its habitat.

...

’They were startled because they encountered a High Tier being.’

As if he’d thought of something, Jose asked the two Silver Dragon Guides, "Are there any signs of recent Thunder Wolf Dragon activity on this path?"

Upon hearing this, the faces of the others present changed. They had also thought of that possibility, but it seemed too absurd.

’This... it can’t be, right? This is a Fourth Generation Species, the Thunder Wolf Dragon King...’

Having received his instructions, Jose’s Silver Mask guessed his master’s thoughts and hurriedly took a few Dragon Guides back to the mountain path to investigate. He returned a short while later, his eyes grave beneath the mask.

"There are no recent signs of Thunder Wolf Dragon activity on the mountain path. And it’s not just the Thunder Wolf Dragons; some eighth and ninth-generation Dragon Descendants, like the common Dragon Birds, haven’t left a single fresh claw mark... It’s as if they’re afraid of something on this path."

The Thunder Wolf Dragons were scared off by something on this path, and even the Dragon Birds left no tracks.

Everyone quickly grasped the key point. If they were only suspicious before, now they were almost certain.

The only people who had been on this mountain path recently were Isabella and her half-baked Master Jack. It was obvious now: the Thunder Wolf Dragons had almost certainly been frightened off by Isabella. That’s why the Dragon Tide had split and rushed down the other two paths, resulting in the casualties they had suffered.

To be able to intimidate a Fourth Generation Species, a Thunder Wolf Dragon equivalent to a human Peak Bronze Powerhouse... Could Isabella be...

A horrifying thought flashed through everyone’s minds.

’It... shouldn’t be possible, right? After all, she’s only in her twenties. If she really became a Silver, even Silver Lion Wilder would be beneath her.’

’Impossible. Big Sis is from the Beast Faction. And while her promotion method is different from the Silver Faction’s, some key aspects are identical... The color of her Branding should start shifting to silver, just like the Alchemy Circuits of a Bronze Demon Hunter do.’

’But her Branding on the back of her hand hasn’t shown any such trend recently... No, wait, the last time I saw her Branding was a month ago. But even so, it’s impossible for her Spiritual Power to increase that quickly in just one month.’

’Could it be... the effect of the Blood Curse? Has Isabella’s Dragon Slayer bloodline awakened?! But her mother was just... a Bloodless!’

Tune sucked in a sharp breath. Forcing a smile, he looked at his brother. "Jose, what do you think?"

Jose said flatly, "To begin the Dragon Spear Trial, you need a Dragon Scale. To complete it, you need bloodline and will. My opinion is this—since things have come to this, we should focus on Dragon Hunting and opening the Dragon Gate."

He brandished his long spear, exchanged a look with his Silver Dragon Guide, nodded, and then turned and vanished into the darkness of the jungle.

...

「Chester, Cheshire, Britain. Westminster Bank Employee Dormitory.」

"Are you saying that even you don’t know where Baron is right now?"

Edward Constantin said nervously, "He hasn’t been captured by that Law Enforcement Organization from the Inner Side you mentioned, has he...? Lady Stella, you have to listen to me. Baron would never be the one who assassinated the Knight Order Leader."

"It’s true that I’ve lost my memories of that place you call the Inner Side, but I still have a say in what kind of person Baron was as a child...

"The kid was a troublemaker growing up, I’ll admit. He broke a vase at home when he was five, and when he was six, he put chili sauce in my underwear... At eight, he blew up a strange—" (Here, Edward’s expression became one of deep thought) "—Dwarf... workshop... But he’s a good person at heart!"

"After he came here... to what you call the Outer Side, he used the first paycheck he ever earned from working at a retail store to buy a pair of leather gloves for both me and Yelena..."

"When he was in school here, his grades weren’t great, but his teachers said he was actually very quick-witted... I even have his teacher’s comments from his high school graduation."

Edward picked up Baron’s graduation certificate, which he had already prepared on the table, and pointed to the teacher’s comment below it. "His teacher at Worlington Middle School said Baron’s way of thinking was unusual, that he sometimes acted like he had Dissociative Identity Disorder... Let’s skip that part. It’s the Constantine Family’s Blood Curse. I think Miss Stella understands."

"His Dean of Students said Baron was a boy who was very popular with the girls at school, thanks to his excellent character and good looks. He even wrote a university recommendation letter so Baron could continue his studies... Anyway..."

Edward closed Baron’s graduation certificate. "Something like killing the Knight Order Leader... Baron would never do that."

"And as for contacting the Dragon Witch, that’s even more impossible. Even though that woman from Lancelot’s Family broke off their engagement, he wouldn’t sink that low...

"Yelena recently passed the supplementary entrance exam for the University of Edinburgh... She’s just waiting for the interview now.

"Baron’s been working overtime almost every day until late at night for Yelena’s tuition. Everything I’m saying is true. They can check his phone records, his letters, anything..."

Edward said, "Even Mrs. Basha next door says Baron is a good kid! How could a person like that be accused of such a crime?"

At this point, the older brother, Edward, pleaded, "Miss Stella, please, you have to save Baron. He’s the only brother I have left."

Baron had a good brother.

Secretary Stella nodded quietly. "Let’s not discuss Mr. Baron’s case for now. The main reason I’ve come to see you is to check on your recent health... It seems you’re not in any serious trouble, Mr. Edward.

"May I ask, where is Miss Yelena?"

"Yelena..." Edward said, as if just remembering. "She’s in her room, writing in her diary."

...

In the room, a girl with long, light-cyan hair sat in a wheelchair. Her back was to the viewer, a hazy silhouette, but one could tell she was slender and delicate. She placed a black notebook on the table and tucked the one hundred pounds she had saved over the past few months from helping her landlady with the ledgers into its pages.

She picked up the fountain pen her teacher had given her for graduation and waited quietly for the notebook to automatically open to the page where she conversed with her brother.

[No. 1: I’m on the run...]

Her magnificent, deep purple eyes flickered slightly. Everything formed by these words felt so hazy to her now, yet so profound. As she looked at the grim danger constructed from these lonely, desolate words, a burning coldness spread through her heart.

"Baron..."

The girl tightened her grip on the fountain pen, pursed her lips, and by the faint light filtering in from the window, wrote the first sentence on the page:

"Brother Baron, please don’t give up..."