Global Game: Developing a Knight Clan-Chapter 101 - 100: Gate of Truth, the Earth Dragon’s Shock and Decision

Chapter 101: Chapter 100: Gate of Truth, the Earth Dragon’s Shock and Decision

「One day later.」

"I’m finally back!"

When Lince returned, there were three unfamiliar figures by his side.

A Tier Seven Water Element Butterfly Bird with a wingspan of about fifteen meters.

A Tier Seven Triangular Sheep Monster, five meters tall at the shoulder and twenty-one meters long.

And a Tier Five Earth Element Sub-dragon. That’s right, it was the little guy Lince had met before, the Rock Earth Dragon Vittorio.

In terms of their physical form and Body Type, these so-called Tier Seven creatures were completely dwarfed by Lince’s Rock Steel Giant Dragon form.

Before a member of the Dragon Race, these two Tier Seven beasts were truly nothing special to look at.

But in terms of strength, they were Tier Seven, after all, so they were by no means weak.

Besides, strength wasn’t just about Body Type—at least, that was true for every Race except the Dragon Race.

"Oh, this is awesome!"

"I can finally come out and play by myself! Father Dragon never let me before!"

"Nidhogg, how did you convince Father Dragon?"

"And I saw Crimson came, too! She seems really interested in you. By the way, Nidhogg, what kind of Sub-dragon Bloodline do you even have?"

By the time the Little Sub-dragon Vittorio returned, Lince had already finished negotiating with the two Sub-dragons.

So, besides this little guy, nearly all the other Sub-dragons knew about Lince; he was the only one in the dark.

Lince just chuckled in response.

"You can’t go around casually talking about Bloodlines out here. Just know that my Bloodline is very powerful. Otherwise, do you really think I could have brought you out with me, little guy?"

"To help me better understand the current situation with the Dragon Species, Amos allowed me to bring one Sub-dragon back with me. And compared to all your brothers and sisters, I have to say I like you quite a bit, so didn’t I end up choosing you?"

Lince spoke to Vittorio as if coaxing a child, and Vittorio’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Of course you made the right choice picking me! I’m super smart!"

"Don’t look down on me just because I’m only a little over six hundred years old. I may be young, but I know a lot."

"Nidhogg, my other brothers and sisters might be older, but they definitely don’t know as much as I do! I’m the most curious one about what’s inside the mountains and even the world outside. I ask about everything, and Father Dragon tells me all of it, hmph hmph."

’Over six hundred years old? Tier Five? And he calls that young?’

Lince didn’t even know what to say.

As expected, there was a vast difference in how long-lived and short-lived species perceived and understood time.

In the eyes of a long-lived species, three to five days might not even be enough time for a yawn and a nap, whereas for the Human Race, three to five days was quite significant.

Then again, it wasn’t hard to understand how this little guy was only Tier Five after more than six hundred years.

He was a turtle-type Sub-dragon, after all. They lived longer than ordinary Sub-dragons, which indirectly meant their growth was also extremely slow.

Putting other things aside, if Lince himself didn’t have his system’s cheat, he doubted he would have even reached Tier Three by now, even if he devoured Magic Crystals every single day.

Being a long-lived species was an advantage, but it inevitably came with disadvantages.

No living being could be completely without weaknesses. Otherwise, how would other Races survive?

If a species were truly perfect, you couldn’t call it a mortal race anymore. It would just be the Divine Race.

The Dragon Race was indeed powerful, and some of them could even grow quickly, but their fertility rate was extremely low.

During the golden age of Dragon Island, according to the Mountain Range Earth Dragon Amos, there were only about a thousand adult Giant Dragons. The majority were adolescents and young adults, and including the hatchlings, their total number might have been just over ten thousand.

It might not sound like much, right?

But don’t forget, a thousand adult Giant Dragons meant a thousand Saint Tier beings.

All the other Races on the entire Oakland Continent combined didn’t have half that many Saint Tier individuals.

If not for the Giant Dragons’ extremely low fertility rate, there would be no room for any other Race to survive.

Even if the Giant Dragons had no desire to rule the continent, if their population grew too large, they would be forced to rule.

Sub-dragons and Dragon Descendants were the most numerous.

Unfortunately, the strength of Sub-dragons and Dragon Descendants was highly inconsistent.

Moreover, most Sub-dragons and Dragon Descendants had their own affiliated Races.

For example, there were Dragon Nobles among the Human Race, Dragon Descendant Beastmen among the Beastmen, and similar lineages among the Elf and Sea Races.

These Dragon Descendants were also an indispensable source of power for the various Races of the Oakland Continent.

Each group had its own racial identity, and while they acknowledged their draconic heritage...

...most of these Dragon Species acknowledged the noble status of their draconic heritage but did not practice or believe in the Dragon Race Code.

After all, racial conflicts were constant, and incidents like a Human Race Dragon Descendant killing an Elf Dragon Race member were relatively common.

If they all adhered to the Dragon Race Code, wouldn’t they have to kill themselves on the spot?

Perhaps the Dragon Race never had high expectations for the Sub-dragon Race to begin with.

Therefore, the Giant Dragons never imposed strict rules on the non-Pure-blooded Dragon Clans.

Besides, pure blood was the most noble lineage of the Dragon Race. Sub-dragons and Dragon Descendants were basically illegitimate offspring; it would be strange if the Dragon Race truly accepted them.

From this perspective, regardless of anything else, while the Dragon Race didn’t rule the Oakland Continent, their influence was absolutely undeniable.

’So, what should I do next?’

Lince’s head was starting to ache.

The Beast Tide was currently raging in full swing.

’I just acknowledged my identity as a member of the Dragon Race. I can’t just say I feel sorry for the Human Race’s plight and tell them to call it off, can I? That’s impossible.’

An event like the Beast Tide wasn’t something a couple of Sub-dragons could decide.

There were bound to be Saint Tier Magical Beasts involved behind the scenes.

’Forget my Dragon Race identity; even claiming to be the Dragon God probably wouldn’t work.’

’After all, I don’t actually have the Dragon God’s Power. Announcing it would just be asking to get slaughtered.’

’So, could I fish in troubled waters right now?’

In the midst of the current Beast Tide, countless territories were being breached, and innumerable slaves and Commoners would become food for the Demon Beasts.

Rather than let that happen, it would be better to let the Swamp Territory profit from it.

The only trouble would be explaining it to the outside world afterward.

The Swamp Territory could use the Truth Church’s methods and the so-called Divine Favor as a convenient explanation for anything.

But to say you can also command Demon Beasts?

That’s just ridiculous!

Did they really think the gods were all on such friendly terms? That the Demon Beasts would also show deference to the God of Truth?

If the Demon Beasts really showed such deference, the entire Wilderness would already be the Eagle Kingdom’s territory by now.

But Lince was absolutely unwilling to miss out on such a risk-free business opportunity.

So, after thinking it over and over, Lince finally made a decision.

’Let’s do it!’

And so, having come to a decision, Lince immediately grasped the Magic Crystal he had just received from the Mountain Range Sub-dragon.

"Nidhogg? Is something wrong? Or have you received a new Oracle?"

The Mountain Range Sub-dragon’s urgent voice came from the crystal.

Lince replied:

"Old Sir, it’s nothing major. I just had a thought that perhaps I could also carry out the Oracle during the Beast Tide, so I wanted to discuss it with you."

"Oh? How would you carry it out? Why don’t you tell me about it?"

Lince immediately began to lay out his plan.

Lince’s idea was simple.

Since Amos was the one orchestrating the Beast Tide in the Eagle Kingdom...

...then couldn’t he arrange for some trustworthy Direct Lineage Magical Beasts to help Lince capture a batch of Commoners and slaves?

These captured Commoners and slaves could be sent directly to the Wilderness, bypassing the Swamp Territory entirely.

Then, Lince could use these slaves and Commoners to spread the faith of the Dragon God.

To this, Amos replied that it was a trivial matter, nothing to make a fuss about.

However, he also raised a point of confusion.

"A large number of humans appearing in the Wilderness Territory won’t be easy to explain to the outside world. What are your plans?"

At this point, Lince no longer held back. He immediately revealed that, just a while ago, with the help of an Oracle, he had opened a portal deep beneath the Wilderness that led to an unknown world.

The moment he said this... Amos was struck silent!

Finally, he spoke.

"Sigh... You child, why didn’t you tell me something so important sooner!"

"But I can understand your concerns. It’s not wrong to be cautious, after all. The stakes are immense."

"So, child, tell me, have you been to the world on the other side of the gate? What’s it like over there?"

"Also, how big is that gate? Can an old man like me pass through..."

Evidently, Amos had grown excited, firing off one question after another.

Lince patiently explained in return.

"The gate isn’t very large right now. It’s just barely big enough for a Body Type like mine to pass through."

"My Power just increased a little while ago. The Oracle guided me, telling me that I can widen the gate again this time. It’s just that with your physique, you probably won’t be able to pass through yet."

"However, I believe that as long as my Power continues to grow, the gate will soon be able to accommodate you, Old Sir, and your Body Type."

"As for the situation on the other side, I’ve only had a chance to take a quick look."

Lince described the environment on the other side of the gate, as well as the previous appearance of the Human Race and the Giant Demon Legion.

After Lince finished his explanation, Amos’s voice immediately grew solemn again!

"Alright, child, I understand the situation!"

"I will do my best to capture the humans you need! But they cannot be transported out in the open. It must be done underground."

"After I discuss it with Crimson, I will command a group of Earth-attribute Demon Beasts to dig a tunnel for you from the Wilderness, leading directly to a more secret location. From there, you can transport these humans to the world on the other side."

"However, this entire operation must be done as secretively as possible, from start to finish. Don’t even tell those humans from the Truth Church. Even if you need someone to manage those slaves, you’d best only use the human bound to you by the Blood Covenant."

"Additionally, we will also arrange for some trustworthy ’children’ and some Middle-Low Tier Magical Beasts to go over. The number can’t be too large, or we won’t be able to hide it from those old geezers in the Demon Beast Mountain Range, but it can’t be too small either."

"In any case, this matter is too important! And utterly sensational!"

"If the Human Countries and the other Races were to find out, who knows what kind of uproar and conflict it would cause!"

At this point, the Mountain Range Earth Dragon Amos was clearly still worried and frustrated.

"Our Power is insufficient! The key is still that our Power is insufficient."

"A matter like this absolutely cannot be known by any more living beings! This is both a monumental blessing and a monumental disaster!"

"I just don’t know if we can find any news of our Dragon Race in that world."

"However, in this old man’s opinion, the chances are extremely low. Otherwise, a member of the Dragon Race would have contacted you long ago, child. They might have even returned to our world by now!"

But as he spoke of this, Amos’s voice once again filled with unprecedented excitement and hearty laughter.

"A portal... another world... when portals are opened one by one, perhaps we can finally find the Dragon Race! And perhaps this is the very reason for the Oracle’s guidance."

"But no matter what, we must take this one step at a time. Child, we cannot be hasty! Nothing can be rushed. But having a good start is always a stroke of luck!"

"After so many years, we finally have a way to find our people and news of them!"

"Excellent! This is truly excellent!"