Black sail

Chapter 670 L. Border Seawall
The western checkpoint of the capital city.

More like an open church surrounded by railway tracks than a train station, the rose window is inlaid with stained glass, the columns are carved with crowns of thorns, olive branches and soaring dragons, and the thickest pillars are covered with copper oil lamps and intricately carved shrines.

Dark walnut wood benches slowly came into view.

The religious train, which was heading straight to the capital, came to a complete stop.

Micah, dressed in a white religious robe and impersonating the adjutant of the 18th squadron, had a heart pounding like a drum as he pressed his hands tightly against the dragon-faced helmet covering his face.

I looked out the window.

Just as they communicated within the crystal, the paladins of the Imperial Order, following the Pope's personal decree, came to the checkpoint to meet them, ensuring a smooth journey from here to the arena.

The paladins were all tall and strong, their silver-white magic-patterned armor mixed with some kind of radiant dust, making them shimmer and sparkle as they looked at them.

The leading paladin, whom Micah himself had never met, was the Grand Master of the Paladin Order, Chiander.

His short, golden hair was neat and his eyes were full of heroic spirit. His tall figure, covered in armor, was incredibly brave, and the scabbard of his sword shone with a strange holy light due to the special material.

This profession inherently requires a certain image, and Kiande is impeccable in embodying the image of a paladin, just like the Valkyrie in the story who rides a winged horse into battle.

She was holding her helmet in one hand, waiting for Micah to get off the bike and hand her the championship gift.

Looking out the car window, Micah felt only horror. He had heard his late adventurer leader, Old Brother, say in the Burial Grounds that the Eternal Church might harbor many evil spirits, beings on par with Haywood and Carrie.

Hai Ge was at his wit's end; Li Si Te was a damn mental demon.

Carrie, on the other hand, wanted to have as many children as she could, completely bewitched by her own desires. Before reuniting with Lister and the others, she decided to severely punish the succubus.

Kiande's eyes were devoid of any emotion; beneath that skin might lie a demon with compound eyes.

The devil has no blood on his body. When Heywood was injured, he bled red sand. Carrie was the same; it was a dark gray sand. In any case, they were all monsters.

Micah was also feeling guilty. If he were to be exposed halfway through, he would really be finely chopped into mincemeat by these charlatans.

He was completely unaware that he was also a demon within the Annihilation Domain of Kalilahos, and that his wounds were causing him to bleed iron filings.

I glanced at the clock. 7:30? That's a bit early. The capital is huge; it'll take at least an hour to get to the arena from here.

It's better to arrive early than late. If everyone else has finished fighting and the big gift hasn't been delivered yet, not only Li Site, but every single member of the Black Sail gang will lose their heads.

If the emperor is fed dates and the deal is successful, then he will be officially promoted from a pirate dog of the East Sea to a national hero of Arania.

Qi Ande waited for a while, more than half a minute, but the adjutant still hadn't gotten out of the car. He was a little suspicious. Wasn't it said that time was of the essence?

Micah...

Immortal Emperor Mode activated!

HEISHIN!!

I'm serious about having sex with Qili; it's not just a casual fling!
RIDER……FUCK!
Finn is the ultimate dark figure; the survivors of the cult Muron in the carriage have all been cursed by him, and those who disobey will die.

The Eternal Church is a large religion with a high percentage of cultists, but few are willing to be martyred.

Everyone is waiting for Micah to make his move.

Micah slammed down the dragon-faced helmet, left the train door, stepped onto the platform, and touched the land of the capital. The Rashomon effect began to take hold.

The project now needs to be implemented.

“I am the Grand Master of the Holy Knights of the Imperial Capital Archdiocese. As you said, time is of the essence, so we will inspect the goods immediately.”

Kiande gestured, and a group of paladins, their armor clanging as they moved, prepared to board the vehicle to inspect the dragon corpse.

Opening Lightning Strike!
Micah wouldn't give that chance; Zote was lying inside.

"We must get the stuff here as soon as possible."

Micah spoke calmly, but was also worried about being discovered to be hiding something, so he was extremely nervous. He had never encountered such a high-ranking "official" in his life. This person was a heavyweight in the Holy See, representing the Grand Diocese and the Grand Order, which was the central authority of the Eternal Church.

"It will be completed soon. We also have experts here who can identify dragons. Even the Arbitrators who can speak the dragon language have all been wiped out, so it must not be an ordinary flying dragon."

Kiand wouldn't tolerate Micah's objection and had already sent the paladins to search.

Dragon language can be broadly categorized as word magic, but it is actually different. It is a higher and more essential existence, said to be the notes that the primordial ancient dragons participated in in the creation of the world, and it contains proverbs of truth.

“The dragon’s corpse is extremely valuable and has been sealed with wax to prevent its energy from dissipating.” Micah still tried to decline.

"There's no need to worry. As I said, there are experts present, so this situation won't happen."

Qi Ande could understand that the adjutant had made a great contribution and did not want his credit to be taken away, so he simply reassured him.

The acceptance and inspection process is still ongoing.

Micah's face was deathly pale beneath his mask; he could only place his hopes on General Finn.

Without thorough preparation, one certainly wouldn't dare to play Rashomon.

It just so happens that both Galsek and Fafnir are dragons. Even the experts from the Holy Spirit Cult couldn't identify what Fafnir was, so they couldn't use her as a source. They only used Galsek's hair and aura.

After gathering the materials, Finn set up a spell inside the coffin. However, Finn also emphasized that it could only be guaranteed to fool the coffin perfectly once. After that, the spell would become ineffective. The timing still had to be strictly controlled to avoid giving the royal court and the religious sect any opportunity to verify it.

A team of paladins and experts had already boarded the carriage to conduct the verification.

Micah didn't understand arcane magic and couldn't do anything but wait, his heart pounding so hard he felt like his ribs were going to fly out.

Your mother's... Fen.

All these years of showing off—professor at the Pedan National Arcane Academy, senator of the Tower Alliance—have you been fooling these clueless pirates, or do you actually have something to offer? We'll see now!

These people aren't some illiterate pirates who can be easily fooled by you; they're all experts in magic and knowledge!
Are you injured?

Kiande could clearly sense that Micah was not in a good state. Was it nervousness or something else?
"It's nothing. I've been sitting in the car for days and nights, so it's inevitable that I'll feel a little uncomfortable."

Micah quickly came up with a reason that wasn't too bad but acceptable.

Qi Ande did not suspect anything.

"A doctor can come and take a look. His Holiness the Pope has personally decreed that you can stay in the Tower of Eternal Clocks for further studies. This is an unparalleled honor, so don't let illness delay it."

Kiande did believe that the survivors were all injured, and given the bumpy journey, their condition was unlikely to be good.

"Really? I didn't expect such an honor, but I still have to go to the arena."

Micah naturally knew that the Tower of Eternal Clocks was the most rumored place closest to the Dragon Lord. If you managed to sneak in there, when you went home for the New Year, it wouldn't just be that relatives and friends would stand up and toast you; it would be that even if your license plate had a leopard number, the locals would come over with knives and guns to fawn over you.

Komica's ambitions lie elsewhere.

Kiande merely smiled slightly, having heard that the adjutant had specifically requested to see Qili. Given the sect's influence, it wasn't a big deal; he could simply give the order.

The verification was now complete, and a paladin got off the vehicle to report the situation to Qiande.

“We planted a spy in the Royal Court’s military headquarters and learned that General Crocodile Island had checked the military headquarters’ identity as a dragon. The results of the verification are now consistent with the intelligence from the military experts. It is the same dragon, a black dragon that was quite active during the Engma period seven hundred years ago.”

The paladin reported.

"Then everything will be foolproof. Seal the items and head to the arena immediately."

Kiande gave the order.

Micah was overjoyed. General Finn was indeed skilled. He was worthy of the Pedan National Arcane Academy, my proudest faith!
"Then let's set off quickly. The military has already noticed some signs at the border checkpoint, and they will definitely set up obstacles on the way to the arena."

The gentleness in Qi'and's eyes faded, replaced by a cold glint.

Will we make it in time?

Micah's opinion is not necessarily beautiful. The first stage of the Rashomon-like situation is complete. The next step is to see if he, as the main culprit, can get away with it after it's exposed.

"Don't worry, I am the champion of the 14th Continental Martial Arts Tournament."

Kiand put on his helmet, turned around with a flourish, and gestured for Micah and the paladin carrying the goods to hurry up and follow.

Micah was taken aback for a moment, but then he thought it was normal. After all, he was the leader of the Central Holy Knights Order. If he could win the championship in the martial arts competition, he would truly rise to the top in one step.

The discord between the royal court and the religious sect is growing, and it seems that the Pope's attitude towards the emperor is not a recent phenomenon. The signs of this were already evident two years ago when the emperor tried to take someone away from him, which is a long-standing tradition.

Micah took a deep breath. At this moment, that woman should be preparing for her performance.

Perhaps, I am living the best day of my life.

(End of this chapter)