Arad stared at the queen as the guards dragged the noble out, smiling. He then turned toward the other nobles, "Does anyone else want to say anything?"
"How about the damage to the forest?" A druid of them approached, "We can't leave the forest half erased like that,"
Arad looked at him, scratching his head, "I still have the dirt and torn trees. I can dump them back there for use,"
The druid sighed, "It's a part of nature," He looked out of the window, "Give us the dirt back. We need something to fill the hole with. I will deal with replanting the trees,"
The other druids between the nobles looked at each other with a smile, "Thanks the world tree, this is getting over,"
Druids are servants of nature and walk by its rules. As intelligent dragons are, they are still considered wild monsters, and it's a rule of nature that they fight back like a disaster.
To them, Arad destroying the forest is no different than a bear scratching trees. They won't go complaining about it.
With a single glance, Arad noticed some actions between the nobles. Some still dared to glare at him. Probably someone who doesn't have dirt behind his back.
CLACK! A man walked from the nobles, approaching Arad.
"Sir Nomarion of the Greenlight household," He stared at Arad with a smile, "Care if I speak my mind a bit?"
"Of course, you can," Arad replied, confused at his attitude. He is sure he doesn't like him and expects her to start screaming.
"I have less of a problem with you and more with her," He stared at Aella, "Or should I say with her family, to not be misunderstood,"
Arad looked back at Aella and at the man, "Then it has nothing to do with her,"
The man giggled, "Sadly, it has a lot to do with her." He pulled a necklace from his pocket, "Do you recognize this," He showed it to Aella.
After a second, Aella's face changed, "How did you get that?" She growled.
The noble smiled, "Interested? Your mother didn't clearly leave the capital in good shape. All of your family's belonging were confiscated to pay for it," He dangled the necklace, "But. I'm willing to get the job done. Get you back everything," He looked at Arad, "Including the corpses,"
"That's the face of a bastard if I ever saw one," Jack sighed in the back, "You're playing with everyone's lives,"
"Mind your business, rogue." The noble glared at Jack, "So, as I was saying, as long as you and your husbands here help us with some affairs, I will gladly return everything to you,"
CRACK! Arad grabbed the noble by the wrist, clenching his fist and forcing him to drop the necklace. As Arad took the necklace, he stared at the noble, "Why wouldn't I just take it from you? Not like you can protect it,"
"You might take the necklace, but nothing else." The noble smiled, grabbing his forearm, "They are hidden. Only I can help you find everything,"
^[How about intimidation, that should work]^ Doma smiled inside Arad's head.
Arad glared at the noble in the eyes and then looked back at Aella. "You want everything back?"
"Honestly, yes. Especially the corpses." Aella replied.
Arad stared at her, "With this man's needs, you don't seem to be getting anything." Arad growled, "I won't get your family's belonging back, but I can bury them down with this city,"
Aella instantly knew what he was doing and looked down, "If you say so, then let it be done,"
"You're bluffing!" The noble growled, "You can't destroy the capital. You will die, killed by our blades."
CLANK! CLANK! CLANK! The queen stood from her throne, walking with her heels knocking on the ground. She lifted her right hand and swung her palm at lightning speed.
SLAP! She slapped the noble, the skin of his cheek tearing apart. And before he could fall, she swung her other palm, slapping his nose into his skull.
CRACK! The noble flew for a second before falling to the ground, unconscious, "Sorry for that," She smiled, a maid rushing to her with a towel to wipe the blood from her palms.
Arad stared at the queen, confused. ^I couldn't see her moves. She might be as fast as Alcott,^
The guards rushed and pulled the noble away.
"I will make sure you get everything back, no strings attached," The queen looked at Arad, "Unlike that idiot, I don't fancy gambling with lives,"
"Even so," A maid growled, approaching the queen, "How many times I told you to never fight?"
The queen smiled, "Sorry, he annoyed me quite a bit," She looked at Arad, "Sir Arad here could have erased the whole castle,"
The maid looked at Arad, "You know that isn't the case," The maid approached Arad, "And even if he tired, I would kill him before he could do it," She reached to touch Arad.
^[MOVE!]^ Doma screamed inside his head, panicking.
BAM! Arad lunged back, but the maid caught him by the wrist, "Why are you running?" She smiled.
SWOSH! Arad swung his fist at her.
^[Teleport away! You're already in her range!]^
CREEK! The maid twisted her hand, spinning Arad in place and deflecting his punch with her palm.
BAM! She put him back on his legs, "Your reactions aren't that bad," She smiled, "Alcott taught you well, but he never told me he had a child,"
Arad stared at her confused.
"Who are you?" Arad growled, "Who told you that I trained with Alcott?"
"Dalla Brown, the gentle hand," She smiled, letting go of Arad. "No one did. I can see him in your moves. The way you stand and speak, the way you fight back. And most importantly, that bulging frame of yours,"
The queen approached Arad, her guards scrambling to stand between them, "There are three types of S-ranks. The ones with borrowed power like Grant, the ones with self-made power like her and Alcott, and finally, the ones that we can't understand, like the top ranker, Gray."
Dalla smiled, "I say you're close to mid-range A-rank in terms of close combat. I don't know about your magic though, getting caught off guard with it can be lethal." She approached Arad, "I would have died if I was in Grant's place. How are people supposed to escape that black ball of yours?"
"They are saying you shouldn't face S-ranks directly, instead focus on evading their effective range." Jack walked toward them, "And those with borrowed power, just separate them from the source and it's fine,"
Dalla looked at the queen with a smile.
The queen clapped her hands, "The meeting is over, you're dismissed," She glared at the nobles, and the guards drove them out. "It's my training time, care to join?"
Dalla looked at Arad, "Cerilla hired me as a maid and a trainer, want to play with her a bit?"
"Why would an S-rank serve as a maid?" Arad glared at her, "You're strong enough to find a better place, right?"
Dalla smiled, "The first time I slapped someone was eleven years ago when I worked at a bar maiden, pouring beer for drunkards," She walked behind Arad, "Slapped the bastard so hard his teeth fell out, then I ran away from the guards. Slapping anyone who tried to catch me till I got rescued by another drunkard,"
"Who was that?" Arad looked at her.
"Alcott and Erebus, they didn't tell you about me?" She smiled.
"Alcott mentioned an S-rank who made a name for themself by slapping, but I don't know who Erebus is," Arad stared at her.
"A tall woman with coal-black hair, purple eyes, and ashen skin. Alcott's wife," Dalla stared at him.
"Ah! Alcott and she got separated before I arrived at Alina," Arad replied.
"HUH?" Dalla gasped, "For real? How could it be?" She looked down, thinking deeply.
"What do you mean by when you got to Alina?"
Arad looked at her, "You earlier said Alcott is my father, but you couldn't be more wrong. I only met him two months ago when I arrived in Alina. But it's true he did train me for a while. I learned so much that I became an S-rank. Even Nina learned the art of slapping from me,"
"I never saw Nina slap someone," Arad replied, "But why slapping? Can't you punch?"
"I can't. I don't have the strength for that." Dalla dangled her arms, "Slapping is for those who lack the brute strength of jacked men like yourself. It's simple, swift, and targets the most sensitive organ, the skin,"
Arad felt a cold sweat dripping on his back, "It doesn't matter how strong you are. We all feel the slap pain the same."
"I have hard scales covering my body. Slaps won't harm me since you can't target my skin." Arad replied.
"[Don't provoke her!]"
"Want to test it?" Dalla stared at Arad with a smile, "It would hurt like hell,"
"Do it, but I will slap you back right away,"
As Dalla weaved, her arms seemed to morph, looking as if they lacked bones. CLACK! The moment she stepped forward, her palm accelerated like a whip, landing on Arad's shoulder.
SLAP!
Arad's suit ripped apart in the form of her hand, tearing his scales and skin and leaving his muscles exposed.
He howled, his scream shattering the castle windows in an instant.
"Told it won't matter," Dalla stared at Arad as he fell on his knees, sweating.
Arad barely managed to stand, glaring at her, "I saw how you moved," He dangled his arms as she did, "You moved like this, right?"
"Heh?" Dalla gasped. ^He learned so much from Alcott in just two months. Don't tell me already picked it up?^
Arad's arms seemed to morph the same way Dalla's did. CRACK! He stomped forward, swinging as fast as he could.
In the blink of an eye, a shockwave exploded as his open palm accelerated toward Dalla's shoulder.
CRACK! It didn't sound like a slap, and Dalla's body flew at the wall, the skin of her shoulder nowhere to be seen, her muscles ripped, and bones broken. The shockwave traveled even to her ribs, cracking them.
"GAH!" She coughed blood. One of her rips had pierced her lung. She smiled, blood dripping from her lips as her arm started to heal, "Alcott said that he won't use it, as it isn't manly. He rather punches people."
CLACK! Dalla landed back on her feet, pushing her dislocated shoulder back in place, "But you don't care, as long as it's power. You learn and added it to your arsenal,"
Arad stared at her. ^I better learn it from her and then teach it to Mira and Lyla since they don't have the raw power to fight.^
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