Roy's heart grew more and more gloomy as he watched the troops pass through the black swamp of the Neck Swamp and enter the border of the Wilderness. Even though he buried his worries under his calm mask, they still existed and grew with every kilometer they crossed.
Was it because the Green Capital had replied that the Green Dragon was going to delay its arrival?
No, that was not the case. He, Roy Brendel, was the son of a count. He did not need to rely on external forces to deal with a mere Beastmen clan.
After so many years of exploration, he knew the Wilderness like the back of his hand. Besides, he had an army by his side. Logically speaking, he should be fearless and as steady as Mount Tai.
However, tonight was an exception. Unlike the past, there was an indescribable feeling in the darkness that made his hair stand on end. It made him extremely uneasy.
His intuition had always been accurate. He sensed danger, as if he had overlooked something. That was the reason for his worries.
Human nobles were often paranoid, and Roy was no exception. He was an ambitious man, so he was even more sensitive and paranoid. He wanted everything to be under control.
He repeatedly checked his deductions to make sure there was no mistake in his logic, but he did not know where the uneasiness came from, and there was always a layer of haze in his heart.
"Stay alert!"
He reminded his soldiers and glanced at the sky. The stars were fading away, indicating the arrival of dawn. However, the land that had lost the light of the stars and the moon would be the darkest moment of the day, and also the time when people would be the most relaxed.
The eerie wind blew the shadows of the trees, making them look like ferocious living creatures. Roy felt that he was being watched by a cold and inexplicable thing that did not like him. The spellcaster beside him seemed to have noticed it too, and gripped his staff tightly.
Damn it, what did I miss?
… …
Soon, he found out.
A muffled clap of thunder jolted Roy out of his thoughts. He looked up at the sky, only to see dark clouds that were as thick as cotton.
Suddenly, a terrifying roar came from not far away. Roy's body tensed up involuntarily, and the people on the ground were shrouded in a huge shadow.
A deafening roar broke out in the sky above his head and tore the atmosphere apart like a hurricane. Roy desperately tried to stabilize the terrified wildebeest while barely looking at the sky.
Unfortunately, this time he saw a hellish sight.
A monster that was as dark as black smoke filled Roy's vision. It roared as it extended its sharp claws and swooped down on the army.
Dragon!
It was an adult Black Dragon. They were attacked by a dragon!
The army was in an uproar, people shouting and horses neighing.
Fortunately, they were not useless people, but real soldiers. Even though they were surprised, they did not panic. They were the most elite professional soldiers of the Brendel family in Kaji Territory, and they reacted quickly and met the enemy head-on.
The cavalry ordered their horses to spread out, and the vanguard, clad in black armor, raised their shields, and drew close to each other, forming an impenetrable wall of iron.
The shields were about half a man's height, and these soldiers formed a formation that was used for close combat. In close combat, the importance of defense was the most important.
They spread their legs and used their shoulders to support the large shields. They wore heavy armor, and their free hand held a sharp sword.
As long as they could block the dragon's attack, they would be dragged into the mud and be slaughtered.
Training to fight against dragons was a compulsory course for professional soldiers in Airadia, but because the Black Dragon was too strong and fierce, they subconsciously used the battle formation used to deal with the Red Dragon.
At the same time, the Black Dragon arrived!
In Airadia's long history, almost every famous battle was related to dragons. Nothing could compare to the scene of a dragon and a human fighting against each other.
In an evenly matched battle, whether it was a dragon or an army, the power displayed would be admirable.
Bronze and steel shattered with a hoarse clanging sound. The sound was slow and strange, and the echoes were endless. The gigantic black dragon directly crashed in, like a meteor falling from the sky. Countless sturdy shields shattered at this moment. The soldiers on the first line of defense had their bones and tendons broken, and they howled in pain.
Its power was too strong, and it made people feel like they had crashed into a mountain. The defensive formation kept moving back.
"Hold the line!"
Roy roared in the native language of the northern countries. The blood vessels on the warriors' hands were already spurting out blood, but they raised their shields even higher. The black dragon responded with an earth-shaking roar.
With such elite soldiers, perhaps even a mountain would be able to stop them. The defensive formation was shattered in a short period of time, but the impact of the Black Dragon's dive also ceased to exist.
It had already folded its wings. It was time for close combat!
The Black Dragon was warmly welcomed by the unmistakable clanging of steel and the creaking of bodies. Now, it was facing the siege of a regular army. There were more than a hundred people in front of it.
"It's our turn now. Go and counterattack!"
The leader of the human warriors shouted out the order. The soldiers raised their weapons, returning the favor with swords and heavy hammers. Even further away, the archers had already finished aiming and pulled the trigger of their crossbows. Arrows that blotted out the sky and covered the earth also whistled through the air.
"Roar!"
Facing the surging crowd, the Black Dragon roared and opened its mouth wide.
The next moment, the air suddenly twisted, and a blazing stream of fire swept through the human formation.
"Flames?"
The nerves near Roy's temples throbbed violently. How could this damn Black Dragon spit out flames? It was unbelievable. Wasn't that an ability that only the Red Dragon had?
Fire was a weapon that was difficult for most creatures to resist, especially humans. Nearly forty soldiers were instantly turned into charcoal, and even more were suffering from indescribable pain, unable to continue attacking.
"Ice Barrier!"
However, the flames raged for less than ten seconds. The roaring magical light had already swept through the bodies of the soldiers, resisting the invasion of the flames and preventing them from suffering.
There was indeed a spellcaster.
The Black Dragon's movements clearly paused for a moment. Its terrifying vertical eye swept in the direction of the sound. It saw that not far from Roy, there was a spellcaster in a black robe sitting quietly on a workhorse.
Seeing the Black Dragon's gaze sweep in this direction, the spellcaster seemed to have sensed something. He reached out a hand and gently lifted his hood. There was a faint smile at the corner of his mouth, and he looked at the Black Dragon fearlessly.
Then, under the gaze of the Black Dragon, the spellcaster raised his staff —
Fireball Spell!
The spell model had already been constructed. An unparalleled elemental fireball appeared at the front of his staff, locking on to the violent Black Dragon not far away. It roared at the speed of Mach level.
Faced with the shockingly fast Fireball Spell, the slow-moving giant dragons could not possibly dodge it. They could only rely on spells to block it. So, at the same time when the elemental burst, the experienced spellcaster had already prepared the "Curse Disturbance Spell" and stared at the Black Dragon's every move. He was ready to break the opponent's spell at any time and let it eat a solid fireball.