VBNWDW - Chapter 89
Chapter 89
Looking back on the day Metis gave birth, Yueqing could only describe it as utter pandemonium.
It wasn't that they hadn't prepared in advance. Three days before the birth, the Black Dragon had felt the restlessness of their connected bloodline.
The Queen and the dragon were both pleasantly surprised. After all, enduring a difficult pregnancy for a year and a half was indeed quite taxing.
They had discussed it privately before. Dragons had difficulty conceiving and long gestation periods; there were even female dragons who had been pregnant for decades without ever laying an egg. Humans, on the other hand, were recognized as one of the fastest-reproducing races on the continent. They had no idea what changes would occur when the two were combined.
After all, there was no precedent. The patriarch of the Dragon Clan had once considered this matter—for instance, combining with humans to increase the dragons' fertility rate.
But dragons were proud and arrogant creatures. They found it difficult enough to bond with their own kind, let alone with humans, who were as weak as ants.
The result was that the Dragon Clan's patriarch won the opportunity to be the stud dragon with a ninety-nine percent vote, and after that, the matter was dropped and never mentioned by any dragon again.
But that wasn't the reason for the dragon's worries.
That night, Metis was suddenly struck by abdominal pain. Yueqing immediately called for the midwives resting nearby and then personally stayed by the bedside to accompany her. Just as she was getting incredibly nervous, she suddenly received a message from the Dragon Clan.
The patriarch of the Dragon Clan, now the Dragon God, could use the power of his own laws to sense the existence of every single dragon, no matter where they were scattered across the continent. In the past, any dragon eggs or hatchlings that were accidentally lost were first detected by the Dragon God, who would then dispatch numerous dragons to find them.
It was also because of this law that dragons traveling alone did not fear being targeted by those who would deliberately set traps to slay them. As long as they were in a near-death state, they could provide a marker to the Dragon God, and the fiercely protective Dragon Clan would immediately rush to their aid.
The God of Light had taken this into account before, which was why he had only temporarily sealed a portion of the Black Dragon's power, allowing it to suffer a bit without provoking that troublesome bunch.
Therefore, when Metis went into labor, the Dragon God sensed it and immediately used the power of his laws to question the dragons everywhere.
At that moment, Yueqing was clutching Metis's hand, her heart aching with both pain and panic. If not for a sliver of reason, she would have been tempted to strangle the egg right through the belly. Yet, she had to feign a calm, oblivious expression and reply that she didn't know.
The Dragon God didn't press the matter. In his eyes, Yueqing was just a newly adult dragon who had been summoned and had signed a contract with a human. She was the most unlikely candidate of them all.
Yueqing had just breathed a sigh of relief when Metis grabbed her wrist and bit down hard.
She instantly sucked in a sharp breath and said hurriedly, "Don't bite, don't bite."
The Black Dragon's skin was thick, so it didn't really hurt, but the midwives had said to conserve as much strength as possible. In truth, they weren't sure either; they only had experience delivering babies, not laying eggs.
A group of people gathered around in a fluster, relying entirely on their past experience and trying to adapt it to the current situation.
The bedsheets were soaked with blood. Her once-silky golden hair had dulled, drenched in sweat and stuck to her pale face.
Metis had just recovered slightly, loosening her bite a little, when she was engulfed by another wave of excruciating pain and seized Yueqing's arm.
That section of her forearm was a mess of crisscrossing bite marks and finger marks; not a single spot was left unscathed.
The midwives standing by watched with twitching brows. Although the Black Dragon's reputation had turned around recently, earning the admiration and praise of many, who could forget the night it punished the families of the Council and fought against a god?
Their hearts trembled, but they could only do their best to pray for the Queen's safety.
Someone was the first to come to her senses and shouted, "Don't push now, don't push yet!"
Another person shouted, "Where's the brown sugar water? Quick, give Her Majesty a few sips!"
The surrounding voices were noisy and panicked. Yueqing's brows were tightly furrowed, her hands ice-cold.
She had imagined this scenario several times before, even joking about using her spatial powers to perform a caesarean section for Metis, which would be much safer than the current level of medical care.
But now that the moment had come, she was frozen, afraid of making a single move for fear that something might go wrong.
It was someone beside her who finally whispered, "Lord Black Dragon, could you perhaps cast a healing spell on Her Majesty?"
Only then did Yueqing snap back to her senses. She nodded hastily, and without even reciting an incantation, light elements gathered and then scattered down.
The people beside her immediately sighed in relief. They had been invited into the royal palace because they each had extraordinary skills; for instance, several of them were water-type apprentice mages, barely able to cast low-level healing magic to make the birth go more smoothly.
Now that they had a powerful dragon, their own clumsy tricks could be set aside.
Yueqing's expression also relaxed slightly, finally free from her state of helpless confusion. She immediately cast several sixth-tier healing spells.
A trace of color returned to Metis's pale face, but before Yueqing's heart could fully settle, she heard a midwife shout, "Stop! Stop!"
Her heart leaped into her throat again. She asked in a low, tense voice, "What's wrong?!"
"It seems the child inside is absorbing the elements… it's stopped moving!"
Yueqing's heart trembled. She hadn't expected a complication like this.
The people inside scrambled into a flurry of activity once more.
Outside, Mo Wen, Talia, Ivo, and the others had rushed over as soon as they heard the news and had been waiting by the door ever since.
The earlier teasing was instantly forgotten by the dragon. Mo Wen had been on edge for a long time, but when the Lord Black Dragon didn't ask again, she naturally had no idea what choice Ivo would make. She could only pretend not to care, hoping the other would stay for good.
The night was deep. The group stood in the light, feeling no less tense than the people inside.
Setting aside personal feelings and speaking rationally, Roy Kingdom had just been through a major upheaval and simply couldn't withstand any more turmoil. If something happened to the Queen, the country would surely descend into chaos.
Just as they were growing anxious, a soldier covered in blood rushed toward them.
"Urgent report! Urgent report!"
The man shouted at the top of his lungs, his eyes filled with terror, "Saxon City was suddenly attacked by a Beast Tide this evening! They can't hold out much longer!"
Saxon City was on the defensive border between Roy Kingdom and another kingdom. If it fell…
Before they could ask for details, another person rushed in, shouting, "Atl Kingdom has torn up the treaty! Nia City was suddenly attacked and fell in less than three hours! The Atl army is already marching on Gerkang City!"
With two incidents happening at once, even a fool could guess that this was no simple matter. Moreover, their other neighbor, Heracles, was a nation that worshipped the God of the Forest and was very close to nature. While inciting a Beast Tide was difficult, it wasn't impossible for them.
"Atl Kingdom and Heracles have joined forces!"
A voice cried out in disbelief, but there was truly no better explanation.
On second thought, it seemed logical. Ever since Queen Metis ascended the throne, she had taken one measure after another: toppling noble families, recruiting talented individuals regardless of their status or background, establishing the Dragon Academy, and vigorously training the kingdom's mages. Even if the other two kingdoms could conceive of such measures, they would be unable to implement them.
And under Metis's leadership, Roy Kingdom had completely shed its old, corrupt ways and was gradually growing stronger.
Furthermore, the incident where Metis led troops into the Atl royal palace had shown everyone Her Majesty's ambition. She was not a queen who would remain content within her own borders. This realization had put immense pressure on both neighboring kingdoms.
They must have secretly allied at some point to make this final, desperate struggle.
Either they would carve up Roy Kingdom together, or they would be annexed by it. This long-divided plain was finally facing a momentous turning point.
"We can't wait for Her Majesty to be lucid enough to make a decision," Talia, as the Queen's strategist, was the first to step forward.
Her expression was grave. She scanned the group and said, "Mo Wen, take Ogechi and the others now. Lead the troops and halt the advance of Atl Kingdom."
"Wodaitika is familiar with Saxon City. She and I will lead troops to hold back the Beast Tide."
Just then, the blood-soaked soldier gasped for breath and said, "There's a seventh-tier magical beast at Saxon City, and quite a few sixth and fifth-tier ones as well! As I was rushing here, I saw a fifth-tier Flame Wolf leading other Flame Wolves, charging into the city."
Everyone's expression changed. Magical beasts were different from humans. Although the Atl army was advancing menacingly, most of them were just ordinary soldiers. As long as the Roy army moved quickly to intercept them, they could certainly hold them off.
But magical beasts were another matter. Ten ordinary soldiers were no match for a single first-tier magic wolf, and they were utterly ruthless.
Back then, the Gael Family was comparable in strength to the Ander Family, yet they fell much faster for this very reason.
With this decision, Talia was putting her life on the line, placing herself in the most perilous position.
Mo Wen immediately stepped forward and said, "You're more familiar with Nia City. Ivo and I will take two-thirds of the mages to Saxon City."
Talia, who usually disdained Mo Wen the most, refused to yield an inch. As the two argued, the door to the room was suddenly pushed open.
"Ivo and I will go to Saxon City. The rest of you will lead the troops against the Atl army."
As her voice fell, everyone turned to look.
"Lord Black Dragon!"
"Dean!"
The voices rose one after another. Yueqing's brows were knitted tightly; she had heard their argument from inside.
Her expression was terrible, and her entire aura was dark and gloomy. Even Mo Wen and the others, standing five or six meters away, could feel her rage.
The sounds from the room were deliberately muffled—that was Metis, biting her lower lip raw so as not to worry her.
Yueqing was incredibly frustrated. She should have just let Metis take her back to Dragon Island. It was always "Roy Kingdom, Roy Kingdom!" She didn't even rest during her pregnancy, and now look! She even had to worry about outside affairs while giving birth.
Yueqing hadn't wanted to leave, but she had been pushed away by a tearful Her Majesty.
"Heracles and Atl Kingdom, is it…"
Her voice was laced with shards of ice, and a vicious glint flashed in her gilded eyes. If she were in her dragon form now, they might have seen the Black Dragon's scales bristling, on the very edge of madness from rage.
"Mo Wen," she said, turning her head. She tried to soften her voice, but it still came out stiff.
Mo Wen immediately took a step forward.
Yueqing's tone was heavy, her gaze intensely serious. "You stay here. If anything happens, come and tell me immediately."
She emphasized, "Ignore Metis if she tries to stop you. I must know what's happening with her."
As Her Majesty's attendant knight, Mo Wen should have refused, but at this moment, she nodded firmly.
Yueqing let out a breath of relief. She immediately looked toward the others, her tone grim. "Talia, you will be the commander-in-chief. Two-thirds of the mages and fifteen armies will go with you. I want you to hit them back, and hit them hard. Do you hear me?"
"If you lose, you can all go sweep the floors in the magic tower! What right does a bunch of failures have to stand here?!"
Everyone knew she was on the verge of exploding. They accepted their orders at once and turned to leave.
The sky was overcast as a dragon's roar echoed through the heavens.
Comments
Post a Comment