Throne of the North.

Chapter 650 The Knight in the Nightmare (Part Two)

Ryan admitted that he had underestimated the Nightmare Knight of the Grand Duke Meyers' family. If he hadn't been strong enough, he wouldn't have been able to defeat the opponent in the double nightmare.

"Are they planning to kill me outright?"

Ryan's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and the next day he wrote a letter to the capital city, questioning Grand Duke Meyers about his murderous intent.

"The Black Swan assassins wanted to kill me, and now Grand Duke Meyers wants to kill me too?"

"Are the nobles of the empire still nobles? Has the honor of nobility been abandoned?"

“Ryan Clayton swears in the name of blood that he will never surrender. If the Black Swan Assassin kills me, I will kill the Black Swan Assassin. If Grand Duke Meyers wants to kill me, then the Frozen Territory will wage war against Meyers!”

"No one stipulates that a baron can die at the hands of a grand duke, nor does anyone stipulate that a grand duke cannot die at the hands of a baron."

“Kill me, or be killed by me, that is Ryan’s declaration of war against Meyers.”

Ryan sent the letter out and then left it at that.

He's not going to use any dirty tricks; he just wants to overturn the table and put everything out in the open.

The nobles of the empire were shocked by Ryan's resolute decision, while Grand Duke Meyers was unaware of it, and the nobles were somewhat panicked.

They did not want war to break out.

“Baron Ryan, you are exaggerating. We are angry that someone attempted to assassinate the Baron, but we still cannot be sure it is Grand Duke Meyers. I believe that as a nobleman of the Empire, the Grand Duke would never lay a hand on a nobleman.”

Most of the nobles were like this; they opposed such a thing happening, and after offering kind advice, they turned to Meyers.

Meyers must provide an explanation for why they can tolerate the irreconcilable war between Grand Duke Meyers and Baron Lane, and also allow the Grand Duke to undermine the Elector's prestige.

But there are some things that are the bottom line.

“Meyers would never attempt to kill a nobleman.”

"The Meyers family has reason to suspect that the defenses of Dawn Mountain were inadequate, allowing the monsters of the abyss to be released, just like the demonic invasion that broke out in the Kingdom of Nantes. Dawn Mountain is corrupt, and they can no longer use the light of dawn to dispel the darkness. His Majesty the Emperor of Flor will inherit this sacred duty."

Grand Duke Meyers shifted the topic to the Holy Mountain, and the nobles nodded in agreement.

Indeed, the power of nightmares is not limited to the Nightmare Knights. This extraordinary world first possessed the origin of nightmares, and then the Nightmare Knights existed.

"The one who attempted to assassinate Baron Ryan might be a nightmare demon from the abyss."

The emperor, not wanting any serious issues of principle to arise, sent a letter of reassurance and dispatched the Winged Canyon army to patrol the Northwind Province to prevent the reappearance of the Abyss Demons.

"[Prophet Witch] Lady Pora will be traveling to the Northwind Province to prevent the emergence of the Abyss's power."

Ryan wasn't surprised by the result; he was just venting his anger. The key point was that if one thing happened, another would follow. If Meyers could use such an excuse, why couldn't Ryan do the same?

Another night, the nightmare arrived as expected. Dark flames swirled like rivers in the sky, converging in a vortex overhead. Within the vast, dark flames, three dragon heads roared, locking onto Ryan's location before spewing forth dragon breath.

The blazing nightmare flames engulfed where Ryan was; they were not intensely hot, but they possessed a power that sent shivers down one's spine.

Ryan's soul remained unshaken. As the saying goes, having endured divine power, he was no longer afraid of such power.

Crimson flames burst forth in the dark nightmare dragon breath, growing brighter and brighter until the entire nightmare world was illuminated.

Flames gathered in his palm, coalescing into a towering knight's longsword, which he then slashed down at the nightmare vortex above his head.

Flames engulfed the dragon's head, and the greatsword once again ripped the sky apart.

"Still so uncreative. Why don't you try something else?"

Ryan shouted, but received no response. After the nightmare world was destroyed once again, Ryan opened his eyes. He was back in his bedroom. The flames in his pupils dissipated, and there was no second nightmare illusion.

Just as Ryan was about to go back to sleep, he heard the sound of soldiers running and trampling outside the door. After getting dressed, Ryan opened the door and saw a panicked crowd.

"what happened?"

He asked in a deep voice, and the maids lowered their heads, not daring to speak.

"My lord, someone has died in the castle, and the lady has been frightened. Your lady-in-waiting is comforting her."

Butler Peter answered that the castle was under martial law, but the murderer could not be found.

Ryan quickly saw the body; it was a maid with a grotesque face, who had died in extreme terror, her eyes wide open, making the surrounding servants afraid to look into them.

"Died from a nightmare."

Ryan's eyes were cold as he turned and walked toward Avril's room.

Previously, due to the nightmare attack, Ryan had to sleep alone. He never expected that this time the nightmare attack would spread to the people around him.

Are nightmares scary?

Ryan asked, holding Avril.

"It was so sudden. I thought I had fallen into a magical paradox, and my soul was being crushed."

Avril stated truthfully that she was not that fragile. As a magician, her soul and spirit were very strong, her threshold was high, and she had a corresponding understanding of nightmares.

Fear often stems from the unknown.

"Are there any descriptions of the arrival of nightmare power in the explanations of magic?"

"I don't think Meyers' Nightmare Knight could lock onto me out of thin air."

Avril thought for a moment and said:
"The power of nightmares requires a medium. They may be able to sense countless dreams, but to accurately descend into our minds, there must be a medium that locks onto Rhinoceros Horn Mountain."

"This medium can even be an ordinary stone."

"But it's definitely not that simple, because none of us dream. We have extraordinary powers. Our souls are peaceful when they are asleep, but they can forcibly pull people into nightmares."

"This requires even greater power."

"Grand Duke Meyers is very powerful, his family is very powerful, and we..."

Avril was somewhat worried that their power was not yet enough to break the medium in the nightmare, thus freeing the nightmare from its lock on them.

"Why do I feel like the Nightmare Knights are so troublesome?"

Ryan was also thinking about how to fight back from a higher level.

"Grand Duke Rodrigo's elemental legion is the most amazing. Nightmare Knights, although they can transcend nightmares, still have a physical form."

The four grand dukes' extraordinary legions are evenly matched, each possessing extreme strengths.

“We don’t have any legends yet, so we probably can’t shake Grand Duke Meyers’ reputation in that respect.”

"But it does not matter."

Ryan laughed and soothed Avril to sleep. "I'll make them tremble with fear too. I don't care what they're after in Northwind Province. Anyone who wants to tear apart the power I've built up over so many years will pay the price."

Ryan was no longer sleepy; at the peak of the Saint Realm, he could go a month without sleeping.

Back in his study, he had been preparing his own things for the past few days, including a huge painting.

The scroll does not depict landscapes, but rather a diagram of bloodlines.

At the very center is Grand Duke Meyers, the current Grand Duke Meyers. Below him are his successor Chrysus and other sons. To his right are the names of the Meyers family and the Meyers bloodline of the Grand Duke's generation. Around these people are numerous other names.

For example, Klaus Meyers, the Grand Duke's younger brother, had one son and three daughters, namely Derek Meyers... and these people married members of a certain earl's family, had children named, and married into a certain noble family.

To the Grand Duke's left is Grand Duchess Meyers, surrounded by a ring of her bloodline and the names of many women who married into the Meyers family.

Above the Grand Duke are the previous Grand Dukes who have passed away. During their reigns, they also engaged in various marriage alliances.

A huge scroll, large enough to cover a desk, is covered with a dense array of names, each an important figure. Only by seeing these names and the noble bloodlines represented by their surnames can one understand how terrifying a ducal family can be.

These names cover most of the Flor Empire; any well-known noble surname can be found in them.

"At least you can find those closest to you in your time."

Ryan crossed out names one by one.

Earl Torres, Viscount Gibson, Viscount Love, Baron Ronan...

A long list of names still occupies a significant portion of the list; these names represent the authority of Grand Duke Meyers, a power that even the emperor must avoid.

Only after his death will it be possible for his successor Chrysus to retain as many of these marked names as possible, depending on the successor's abilities.

Where is Signy?

Appia turned and left, quickly bringing Signi in.

"Aren't you a legend yet?"

Ryan asked curiously, and Signy thought for a moment before replying:
"I think you might need to become a legend first before I can become a legend."

"Is there such a thing?"

Ryan was surprised and didn't understand.

"I don't know, I just have this feeling."

Nodding, whether it was related to spirituality or not, Ryan handed the scroll to Signi, pointing to the circled names.

"Send the Shadow Vanguard to kill them."

"Kill them all?"

"If possible, all of them."

"I'll say it in a cold voice," Ryan said. Signy remained expressionless, showing absolutely no desire to comment on the names and numbers.

Ryan stopped Signy, thinking that for the Shadow Vanguard, who had no morals whatsoever, this was probably more than just an exaggeration.

"It's too dangerous. We should start with the border provinces of the Empire. The Shadow Vanguard cannot be reduced to more than half."

"it is good."

Signy's words were concise and to the point, and Ryan wasn't sure if she had actually listened. Was that why she was able to squeeze in with Bogeld?

The thought of Borgold gave Ryan a headache; that girl was going crazy again, clamoring for war.

I recently took the armored bear to the east. Mage Lyman is playing some kind of mycelial crisis game in that land, and Bogeld is in charge of controlling the situation.

"Oh, and when you succeed, include Meyers' name."

"it is good."

Signy moved quickly; she didn't even wait for the Shadow Vanguard to join her before following the caravan through the Flying Wing Canyon and then heading towards the Volga Province.

What makes the Volga province special is that it has a vast amount of land for wheat cultivation. The sheer volume of grain meant that no single noble could possess it entirely, not even the emperor.

Viscount Keton was one of the lucky ones in this province. His territory was located in the Volga province, and Viscount Keton never had to worry about food. Whether it was drought or flood, natural disasters would not let the nobles of the Volga province go hungry.

However, the ancestors of Viscount Keton were also wise; they knew the power of food, so they needed a more powerful noble family to rely on.

Viscount Keton's father, grandfather, grandfather, and himself all married into the Grand Duke's family; which family to marry into was the choice of each generation of Viscount Keton.

For example, his father had married a woman from the Grand Duke of Freming's family. After his father died, Viscount Keton chose Grand Duke Meyers, believing that the Nightmare Knights would be the most helpful to Viscount Keton's family among the four Grand Duke families.

Of course, most of the time, it doesn't matter; marrying a woman from any family doesn't affect the interests of the Viscount Keton family in the Volga province.

Located within the empire, many wars cannot take place here.

The Viscount Keton family naturally became wealthy for over a century.

"Another autumn harvest has passed, and our wealth has accumulated even more. In a few generations, perhaps we will be able to be called the Earl of Keton."

Viscount Keton dreamed of the future, wishing he could live longer so that his name would be on par with his ancestors, but alas, he lacked the perseverance and talent.

"I heard that Baron Ryan of the North can help Saints advance to Legendary status without having to work hard to become Legendary, just become Saints. I'm so envious."

Viscount Keton stood at the window of his magnificent castle, looking out at the golden fields. Everything in this world may lose its value, but food is eternally precious.

His family will prosper forever.

And his name will surely remain in the family genealogy for a long time.

Thinking of this, Viscount Keton felt a pang of heartache.

"What is it that pains me?"

He looked at his chest in confusion, a purple dagger piercing through it, followed by a cold sensation returning to his chest.

The sharp dagger seemed to be carved into his vibrant, beating heart.

???

Viscount Keton's body fell, blood gushing from his chest. He hadn't misjudged; Signy had carved Meyers' name on his heart.

The bucket of water was overturned, and Signi set fire to the Viscount's room. The fire brought terror and chaos to the entire territory. The only purpose of the bucket of water was to prevent Viscount Keton's body from turning to ashes, ensuring that whoever found the body could see Meyers on his heart.

"Kill them all?"

Watching the people running wildly in the chaos, Signi pondered for a moment, then disappeared into the shadows once more, the purple dagger in his hand reaping one life after another.

(End of this chapter)