Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 306 What's your name? (Paying back the debt)
Instead of answering Lu Mingfei's question directly, the Forge Knight let out another hoarse chuckle.

The laughter echoed inside the sealed helmet.

"Young man, sincerity is essential in conversation."

His gaze swept over the three men who stood ready for battle:
“I have said what I needed to say. Now, it is your turn.”

"Tell me who you are and why you've come here. Only then can our conversation continue."

Lu Mingfei and Roger exchanged a glance.

Svengar nodded slightly, indicating that it was up to them to decide.

Lu Mingfei closed his eyes slightly, and his aura began to subtly circulate.

As he furrowed his brow, two distinct yet equally powerful energy fluctuations slowly emanated—the runic auras belonging to Grek and Rataen.

The process was clearly not easy; fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. As a stranger who did not possess the divinity and bloodline of the Golden Tree, forcibly activating the runes of two demigods at the same time was already his limit.

The Furnace Knight's movements froze noticeably the moment those two auras appeared.

He stared intently at Lu Mingfei, a long silence spreading through the mountain path, with only the golden patterns flowing on his armor revealing the intense turmoil within him.

"You... you actually managed to kill two demigods?"

His hoarse voice was filled with disbelief, especially when he sensed that wild, broken yet incredibly familiar power, and he couldn't help but say:
"That's the aura of Rataen? General Shattered Star... Wasn't he long ago missing, fighting against the corruption of the Crimson Corruption somewhere?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei frowned somewhat displeased:
"What kind of tone is that? Can't I just kill two demigods?"

He paused, seemingly realizing the boast was a bit too much, and then added an explanation:

“Greek was someone I challenged with two companions. As for General Ratahn… he has indeed been tormented by the Crimson Corruption for too long, and his strength is no longer what it once was. His soldiers held a battle festival to give him a glorious end.”

I simply contributed the most during that ceremony, so... the heroes and warriors willingly entrusted the Great Rune to me.

The Forge Knight listened quietly, his ancient helmet slightly lowered, as if in deep thought.

A moment later, when he looked up again, there was a hint of respect in his hoarse voice:
"I take it back."

"You are not merely a warrior with power."

The great rune bearing the power of two demigods—regardless of the process—is proof of its worth.

You actually managed to lead your companions to defeat a demigod, and have the heroes participating in the festival and the warriors of Shattered Stars willingly entrust themselves to you..."

His body, covered in red and gold armor, performed an ancient and solemn knightly salute towards Lu Mingfei.

"You are a true strongman, a person who bears the 'royal dignity'. The ability to make people wholeheartedly support and help you is part of your strength, and an important qualification for becoming the King of Elden."

Lu Mingfei was caught off guard by this sudden evaluation. His dragon-like features completely disappeared, and he returned to his normal appearance.

He raised his hand and rubbed the tip of his nose:

"What king or not... I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do."

“The current Stoneville is managed by me and my partners—along with elders like Svengar—and the Nymgford region is relatively stable.”

The Forge Knight paused for a moment, seemingly processing the information.

His hoarse voice carried a hint of surprise:
“Greek… no, I mean, the Crown Prince’s old guard, those proud Storm Knights, would actually submit to you?”

But after a moment of silence, he tilted his helmeted head slightly, his gaze sweeping over the Lost Knight's Greatsword in Lu Mingfei's hands, and recalling the Storm Combat Technique he had used earlier, he pondered:

"No...that makes sense." "Aside from that 'golden' bloodline, compared to that descendant trapped in the glory of their ancestors..."

"You are clearly more worthy of their following."

The Forge Knight abruptly changed the subject, scrutinizing Lu Mingfei with his eyes as if trying to see through him inside and out.

"However, the aura emanating from you... is truly perplexingly complex. The power of a storm, the dragon's essence, and countless faint traces of magic... Hmm? This feeling... an ancient dragon?"
No, that's not right, it's not a pure ancient dragon, but just a power from the same source..."

His voice suddenly rose, filled with disbelief and trembling:
"Wait! This surging life force from the depths... this vibrant, primal, and wild life force... this is the aura of the Forge?! You've come into contact with the power of the Forge?!"

Lu Mingfei frowned, annoyed by the barrage of questions. He waved his hand impatiently, as if to shoo away what he considered irrelevant inquiries.

"What furnace? What a mess."

I'm just a half-human, half-dragon hybrid with dragon blood flowing through my veins; it's not that complicated.

He looked back at the Forge Knight, his brow furrowing again, clearly more concerned with the practical issues at hand.

"The main reason we came down here this time is because we sensed a strange, corrosive power spreading through the city, like some kind of curse. We must find out the source."

The Forge Knight listened quietly, a slight glint in his eyes, as if confirming his own conjecture.

He gave a low "hmm":
"It's not much different from what I expected. You're going in the wrong direction."

He raised his armored arm, pointed to the blocked elevator shaft, then slowly moved it away, turning it in another direction:
"This place is not the source of the curse, but merely the outer perimeter where its power has dissipated."

The Forge Knight stared intently at him, clearly more interested in the unusually complex yet perfectly natural combination of power within Lu Mingfei than in Stoneville's current crisis.

His deep voice carried a hint of arrogance:

“You’ve gone to the wrong place and can’t even pinpoint the real source, which proves that there is currently no one in your city who is proficient in this art or more powerful.”

"As for me, I have lived long enough and seen enough that I can roughly sense the convergence point of that filthy power."

He proposed a deal:

"In exchange, I can guide you in the right direction. But on the condition that—"

His gaze was fixed on Lu Mingfei:

"You... I need to 'study' that incredible fusion of powers within you a little."

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingfei almost instinctively blurted out:

"Is it that complicated? Why don't you just join us? You've got nowhere to go anyway, wouldn't it be good to find a new boss?"

"Ah……"

The Forge Knight let out a low, cold laugh:

"Boy, winning the true allegiance of a Forge Knight isn't that simple. Your 'royal status' is just a ticket."

Lu Mingfei clicked his tongue, not continuing the topic, which was taken as tacit acceptance of the other party's research proposal. He then asked:
"After all that, you should at least address me, right? What's your name?"

The ancient knight raised his head slightly, the axe-shaped decoration on his helmet gleaming, and answered in a deep voice:

“You can call me—Theros.”

(End of this chapter)