Ember Dragon

"They are followers of 'Crimson Embers' Kazul! We must not take them lightly!"

Adrian instantly clenched the sword in his hand, sweat oozing from his forehead. He didn't know whether it was because of the high temperature emitted by the red dragon or because of the nervousness and uneasiness in his heart.

"Kill her!"

"Don't be afraid, she is alone, but we have more than a dozen of us. As long as we wait for the dwarf reinforcements to arrive, she will surely die!" The female dwarf warrior raised her battle axe and shouted to everyone.

The accompanying wizard Rolf Fitzgerald was panicked. He came close to Adrian and whispered in a low voice: "Sir, you should not easily conflict with her."

"This dragonborn is here, and it must have repelled or even killed the mature green dragon. Even if we rush in all at once, we may not be able to defeat her."

Hearing Rolf's words, Adrian nodded heavily and waved his hand to order his men on both sides to retreat.

Seeing this, the female dwarf warrior said angrily: "Coward! This is the claw of the evil dragon. Do you think she will let you go?"

After saying that, she swung her battle axe and led the dwarf warriors to charge forward with roars.

However, the dragon woman simply waved her hand lightly, and flames burst out like giant pythons, transforming into hot magic chains that tightly wrapped the dwarves to the ground, making them unable to move.

"Evil dragon minions! Even if you kill me, you can't kill our will to resist! Seleucia will never belong to the despicable followers of the Dragon Queen!" The female dwarf warrior cursed and struggled hard despite her injuries.

However, the dragonborn woman asked coldly, "Who told you that I am a follower of the Dragon Queen?"

Brilliant fire burst out from her eyes, and a terrifying pressure spread out, making everyone present feel palpitations and difficulty breathing.

The dragonborn woman chuckled, her voice was exceptionally cold: "Oh, if I were really a member of the Dragon Worship Church, you would have been reduced to ashes long ago, just like those acolytes just now."

The female dwarf warrior said angrily: "Who are you? Why are you hiding your head and showing your tail? And you have the power of a dragon!"

Adrian was much more rational. He took a few steps forward, bowed and performed a standard Fadran noble salute, and said in a deep voice: "My Lord, thank you for your help just now, which saved us from death."

"But I don't know your name. Could it be that you are also a member of our Second Fadlan Alliance?"

The dragonborn woman replied, "I have not joined your so-called alliance, but like you, I regard the Dragon Worship Church as an enemy."

Adrian and Rolf looked at each other with puzzled expressions: "Which force possesses the power of the red dragon bloodline yet regards the Dragon Worship Church as an enemy?"

The dragon woman seemed to see through their thoughts and took out a token from her luxurious robe. It was engraved with vertical pupils and a flame emblem and she displayed it in front of everyone.

"I am Misha, the Lord of the North, the ruler of Anzeta and Thrace, a follower of the supreme Burning Emperor Cassius, and the first-class duke of the empire."

"This time, I am following the master's orders, upholding justice and fairness, and I have come to help you overthrow the Dragon Worship Church and put an end to their brutal rule."

"The Burning Empire? How is this possible?"

Hearing this, the humans and dwarves present were all surprised and felt depressed.

That mysterious and powerful empire from the Far North is a country ruled by the red dragon among the five colored dragons.

In everyone's impression, the Burning Empire conquered everywhere, was cruel and tyrannical, enslaved the people, and even destroyed the Thracian Kingdom, one of the three major kingdoms, in one fell swoop.

Moreover, in the propaganda of the Dragon Worship Church, the emperor of the Burning Cinders Empire is the most beloved offspring of Tiamat, and is called "Dragon Prince" by the five-colored dragons. The Burning Cinders Empire will also become a part of the great Dragon Empire.

The female dwarf was even more furious, roaring, "I think you are in the same group with those Dragon Worshipers! You are all minions of the evil dragon, what's the difference!"

Misha's eyes turned cold and she hooked her fingers. The female dwarf was instantly suppressed by an extremely powerful force. Her body sank into the ground and her bones were about to break.

She said in a grim tone: "This is the final warning, dwarf. Don't be ungrateful. Insulting the Burning Emperor is a crime punishable by the gallows."

"If it weren't for the Lord's mercy, and if he hadn't specifically ordered me to treat you rebels kindly, to let you see the truth, and to work with the Empire to destroy the Church of the Dragon, you would have been reduced to ashes long ago."

Adrian hurried forward and anxiously advised, "Lord Misha, please show some mercy. These dwarves are just a little reckless and speak their mind. They have no intention of offending anyone."

"hope so."

Misha then dispersed the pressure. The female dwarf warrior was seriously injured and knelt on the ground panting, looking at the other party with eyes full of suspicion and hostility.

"Human. Red Dragonborn. Untrustworthy."

After all, these dwarves have been enslaved by the Dragon Worship Church for several years. They have been running around all day, suffering humiliation, and sometimes even becoming food for dragons.
They have a deep hatred for any creature with dragon blood and wish to kill them as soon as possible.

"With the master's power and reputation, is there any need to deceive you nobody?" Misha sneered again.

Adrian pondered for a moment, then asked in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "Duke Misha, what kind of assistance is the Empire willing to give us?"

Misha replied: "Military equipment, money and supplies, and even powerful warriors, the Empire has everything and can provide it to you."

"So, what does the Empire need us to do?" Adrian asked cautiously.

Misha did not answer directly, but threw out a token engraved with the imperial emblem and said in a cold voice: "If you have made up your mind, activate this token. The master will be waiting for you in Istalia."

Adrian quickly caught the token, feeling a little overwhelmed.

Before she finished her words, Misha's body turned into surging flames, and the space around her gradually distorted. She disappeared on the spot with the sound of air exploding, leaving everyone looking at each other in bewilderment.

After a long silence, Rolf asked first, "Lord Adrian, what should we do?"

"This is an invitation from the Burning Empire. I don't know if it's true or not, but it's definitely extremely dangerous. If this is a trap set by the Dragon Worship Cult, we've fallen into it."

The wizard paced back and forth, his expression solemn. "Moreover, the reputation of the Burning Empire is not much better than that of the Dragon Worship Church. According to rumors, the army there is also composed of extremely vicious dragon beasts. Wherever they go, they devour thousands of children and imprison the souls of mortals in their firearms. It is said that this is the reason why they are invincible."

The female dwarf struggled to get up from the ground and said bitterly, "These guys with dragon blood flowing in their veins are complete villains and cannot be trusted."

"Yes! We have all witnessed their greed, cruelty, and shamelessness. Maybe they are trying to trick you into being sacrifices." Another dwarf also stood up and shouted indignantly. Adrian, however, had a calm expression and rubbed his chin: "But with the strength she just showed, if she had bad intentions, she could easily capture all of us and offer us to the Dragon Queen. There is no need to go through so much trouble."

The female dwarf warrior bandaged the wound and pressed the bones forcefully, making a crisp sound. She said in a deep voice, "The lackeys of the Dragon Queen are the most treacherous and cunning, full of schemes and tricks. You must not take it lightly."

The human warrior who followed him also stepped forward to persuade him, "Lord Adrian, let's go into the mine first to ensure our own safety. The dragon worshippers won't be able to find us for the time being. If we wait too long and they discover the death of the acolytes and start a massive hunt, we won't be able to escape."

Adrian looked at the dark clouds covering the south, was silent for a moment, and slowly shook his head: "No, I want to go to the Burning Empire to meet the emperor. Even if it is a trap, I am willing to try it."

He gripped his sword tightly and said in a heavy voice, "Now the evil dragon is rampant, the people are suffering, and the crazy Dragon Worship Church has almost occupied the Seleucid Kingdom. This is our last chance."

Rolf also stepped forward and stood behind Adrian, his thin body standing exceptionally tall and straight: "Sir, I am willing to go with you to the Burning Empire and restore peace to the Seleucids."

"Lord Adrian, we..." The warrior's voice was hesitant and hesitant.

Adrian waved his hand and said, "I know you don't want to go with me. You should follow these dwarf warriors into the mine. If nothing unexpected happens, I will return with the assistance of the Burning Empire."

"If I haven't come back in the past few days, there's no need to wait any longer. Fight against the Dragon Worship Church with all your might." His tone was firm, revealing his unquestionable determination.

After saying that, Adrian poured the divine power in his body into the token, and the flame pattern instantly lit up, and a space portal surrounded by flames appeared in front of everyone.

Adrian stepped out without hesitation and entered, followed closely by Rolf.

The rest of the people were stunned, staring at the direction they disappeared, without moving their eyes away for a long time.

After a long silence, the female dwarf warrior waved her hand and whispered, "Since they want to die in the dragon's mouth, let them go. We can't do anything about it."

"Shh-"

The space portal opened, and Adrian and Rolf walked out, still a little dazed.

But when they came to their senses, the expressions on their faces froze for a moment, they were obviously stunned - the scene before them could only be described as spectacular, completely different from the purgatory on earth they had imagined.

"Is this the capital of the Burning Empire?" Adrian muttered to himself, his face full of amazement.

In the distance, there is a tall and majestic white city wall that stretches as far as the eye can see, like a series of snow-capped mountains. On the wall, there are metal doors covered with flying dragon carvings, and above them are giant mechanical crossbows and anti-aircraft guns.

Although the city walls are so tall, you can still see the magnificent buildings inside the walls, palaces made of steel, high-rise buildings covered with crystals, and in the distance there are stone mountains that pierce the sky, which is breathtaking.

Outside the city wall, there is a towering watchtower every few hundred meters. On the top of the tower there is often a huge, armored two-legged flying dragon, staring at the crowd below with a fierce look.

Outside the city, there was a huge crowd of people, coming and going like the tide. Among them were people of various races and shapes, including humanoid creatures like humans and elves, as well as monsters like lizardmen and ogres.

But in this ridiculously large city, they all lined up in an orderly queue, waiting to be checked by the tieflings and half-red dragons at the city gate.

"Woo——"

A shrill scream like the cry of a wild beast came from behind, echoing through the sky, followed by extremely dense "footsteps".

Those imperial men seemed to have gotten used to it and didn't even glance at them, just focused on entering the city, but Adrian and the other man turned their heads with a look of vigilance.

"Then, what is that?"

They saw a gigantic, snake-like steel beast roaring and spewing thick smoke as it rushed towards them, seemingly launching a charge.

What a huge monster!

What an amazing momentum!

Adrian and Rolf were both horrified, clenching their staffs and swords tightly, and almost screamed out in fear.

At this moment, an impatient grumble came from behind them: "Another bumpkin from the south who has never even seen a steam locomotive. If you don't want to take the train, get out of here. What are you doing blocking the way here?"

The speaker was a young man in his twenties. He was carrying a briefcase, wearing a cheap tuxedo, and looked quite anxious.

Adrian turned around and breathed a sigh of relief when he found that the person behind him was a real human.

He thought for a moment, took out a silver coin from his pocket and handed it over, and asked carefully: "Sir, what is that? Why are people here not afraid of it?"

The young man took the silver coin and smiled happily. He quickly stepped forward and shook Adrian's hand: "Oh, you are too polite. What's the point of calling me Sir or not? Just call me Xiwen."

"You are obviously a newcomer here and don't know much about the Empire. This is a steam locomotive, the most widely used means of transportation in the Empire, and is similar to the horse-drawn carriages you have."

Xiwen took out a card from his chest and put it in Adrian's hand: "By the way, do you need to buy guns?"

"This is my business card. I am the sales manager of the Kraubau Military Industry Group. I can give you the best discount."

"Thank you." Adrian was a little overwhelmed by this sudden enthusiasm.

At this moment, the steel giant slowed down gradually like a tamed horse, and stopped not far away, spewing out bursts of thick smoke.

Under Adrian's surprised gaze, people lined up to walk out of its huge body. A cold female voice came from the giant beast: "Please observe the order and get on the bus in an orderly manner--"

Adrian observed the people carefully.

Although they looked anxious and tired, none of them had a pale face caused by hunger, and there were no scars of whipping on their bodies.

"Rolf."

"grown ups?"

"We made the right bet. It seems that the Burning Empire is indeed completely different from the rumored demon cave." (End of this chapter)