Because he had done similar things himself, Garros almost instantly discerned the true purpose behind the Albert Family's enthusiasm for charity.
His mind raced.
Recalling the near-fanatical bravery and disregard for death displayed by that Albert Family private army not long ago—far exceeding that of ordinary noble private armies—the answer was almost ready to emerge.
"Blinded by lies without even realizing it, and even whitewashing those lies... Knight, your level of stupidity makes even the most ignorant White Dragon seem wise."
"If I were truly an Evil Dragon of violent temper, acting only on instinct, you would have already turned into a puddle of mush nourishing moss, with not a single complete bone left."
Facing such naked mockery from the Red-Iron Dragon, no anger appeared on the face of the Flower Knight, Charles.
He merely took a deep, pale breath, enduring the excruciating pain radiating from all over his body, especially the dull ache of his broken ribs and internal organs, and struggled to stand up by supporting himself with his arms.
Even though he could not stand steadily and his body swayed slightly, he still tried hard to straighten his spine and solemnly performed a standard knight's salute to the massive Dragon before him.
"Respected King of Molten Iron, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your mercy."
Charles said, "It is precisely this mercy, which exceeded my expectations, that has further strengthened my conviction—there must be a huge, unclarified misunderstanding between the Molten Iron Tribe and the Albert Family."
Garros carefully examined the Flower Knight.
A few seconds later, he suddenly changed the subject and asked, "Do you think the Albert Family would be willing to pay a ransom for you?"
The Flower Knight hardly hesitated and nodded, "They certainly would!"
Hearing this, a low laugh rumbled from deep within the Dragon's throat.
It tilted its massive head slightly, staring at the Flower Knight's pale face with great interest, wearing a playful look as if observing a rare experimental specimen.
Then, Garros threw out a second question.
"Then, Knight Charles, please tell me again."
"If you had all four limbs broken, becoming a cripple who could only rely on the care of others and linger on the verge of death in a sickbed."
"If you lost your former powerful strength, handsome appearance, and the illustrious aura of the 'Flower Knight,' becoming a worthless person, or even a burden."
Garros's voice slowed down, and he finally asked, "Would that benevolent and kind-hearted Earl Mills of the Albert Family still make the same decision as before? Would he still be willing to pay a high ransom for you?"
The certainty on the face of Charles Hines froze.
He was slightly startled, his pale lips moving subconsciously as if he wanted to retort immediately, but some intuition caused the words in his throat to be stuck.
A deep trace of hesitation and uncertainty clearly appeared on his face, which looked somewhat translucent due to blood loss.
"You hesitated."
Garros captured this moment of wavering.
"If Earl Mills were truly the consistent, noble-minded good person you believe him to be, he would never sit idly by while a righteous knight who once risked life and limb for his Family languished and suffered to death in a so-called Evil Dragon's lair."
The Red-Iron Dragon lowered its head, its massive shadow completely enveloping the Flower Knight.
"Since that is the case, Knight Charles, tell me, where does that hesitation deep within your heart... actually come from?"
"No!" Charles suddenly raised his head, his voice rising slightly: "I am certain! Earl Mills will never abandon his promises and friends!"
Garros let out an even louder low laugh, making the air buzz.
But the laughter was quickly restrained.
The Red-Iron Dragon stared at the Flower Knight and said slowly, "Very well, in that case, let us make a bet. The stakes are—your life, and your future freedom."
The Flower Knight was silent for a moment, as if making up his mind, and finally, he slowly nodded.
Meanwhile, in the distant south.
Within the Duchy of Raymond, at the heart of the Albert Family territory, in the study of a luxurious manor.
Earl Mills stood before a huge floor-to-ceiling window; his usually meticulously groomed hair appeared somewhat disheveled.
The dazzling sunlight outside the window not only failed to bring warmth, but instead made him feel an inexplicable irritability and chill.
He had completely lost contact for a long time with that elite Family private army sent to the Serel Wilderness to crusade against the Molten Iron Tribe.
Whether it was trying to contact General Evil Wolf, who was the commander-in-chief, or the Alchemist, the Protection Mage, and other Advanced leaders, or even those mid-level cavalry captains... all magical communications were like stones sinking into the sea, with no response whatsoever.
This complete silence was like a constantly expanding boulder, pressing heavily on Earl Mills's heart.
A cruel reality seemed unavoidable.
Earl Mills believed he had already sufficiently overestimated the strength of the Molten Iron Tribe; he knew those wilderness monsters and Dragons were not weak.
In his expectations, even if the Family's most elite private army could not take down the Molten Iron Tribe in one fell swoop, it was absolutely impossible for them to be completely annihilated or even fully controlled by the other side.
No matter how strong the other side was.
It stood to reason that they were just a group of Dragons in their juvenile stage, plus some rabble cobbled together from different monster clans.
However.
The completely lost Family army hit his heart like a silent but heavy punch.
This cruel reality had made him unable to sleep or eat well in recent days, restless and uneasy.
He realized that he had probably made a fatal mistake, seriously underestimating that Molten Iron Tribe, especially that Red-Iron Dragon.
Those Dragons, and their tribe, simply could not be judged by conventional logic!
Just at this moment.
A communication item placed on his expensive sandalwood desk, a transparent crystal ball, suddenly lit up with a soft glow.
The name displayed on it was none other than—Flower Knight Charles Hines.
"Charles?!"
Earl Mills's heart skipped a beat.
"Did he... did he successfully escape his predicament and contact me? Or..."
He took a few deep breaths of air filled with expensive incense that could not calm him down, forcibly suppressed his churning thoughts, and lightly pressed his finger on the communication item.
"Hello, Earl Mills."
A low, thick voice, like rolling thunder with an inhuman texture, came from the crystal ball, filling the entire luxurious and quiet study.
This voice could absolutely not be produced by a human knight.
Earl Mills's complexion changed instantly.
He stared fixedly at the crystal ball, took a few more deep breaths, and only then managed to make his voice sound not too composed, asking: "Who are you?"
From the other end of the crystal ball came a low chuckle.
"Who am I?"
That thunderous voice said, "I think, as wise and seasoned as Earl Mills is, you should already have the answer in your heart."
"No need to waste time testing me, let us get straight to the point—let's talk about the ransom."
Earl Mills was silent for a long time, his brain racing, weighing the various pros and cons.
Eventually, he chose to face reality and began to negotiate with the Red-Iron Dragon on the other end of the communication.
"What do you want?" he asked concisely.
"It's very simple."
The voice on the other end was crisp and decisive: "Just like what countless defeated parties on this continent must face—ceding territory, and paying reparations."
Facing the demands put forward by Garros, especially the formal cession of sovereignty over the Scale-Earth Rift Road and its surrounding areas, although Earl Mills instinctively resisted at first, he did not persist for long before gradually relenting.
The reality was right before his eyes.
The Federal Garrison could not be counted on, one all-out crusade had already failed, and organizing a force capable of threatening the Molten Iron Tribe again would be as difficult as ascending to heaven. Since the Scale-Earth Rift Road had already been effectively lost and was difficult to recover, and could no longer bring revenue to the Family, it was better to simply cede it as a bargaining chip for negotiations.
In the eyes of the calculating Earl Mills, the value of an uncontrollable exclave was far less important than those captured elite private soldiers.
Ordinary soldiers could be recruited and trained again if lost.
But those Advanced leaders—Rune Knight, Alchemist, Protection Mage... who had taken the Family massive amounts of time, resources, and effort to cultivate—each one of them was a pillar of the Family's military strength.
If they were all lost in this damn Serel Wilderness, the military foundation accumulated by the Albert Family would suffer a severe blow.
Alliances between nobles were always as fragile as spiderwebs.
Once the Albert Family showed signs of obvious decline, those noble lords who were usually eyeing them covetously and had old grudges with them would absolutely swarm in like sharks smelling blood, mercilessly kicking them while they were down, and taking the opportunity to carve up and devour their interests.
Following that.
Regarding the specific compensation amount, handover details, etc., the two sides began a long and calm negotiation.
The attitudes of both parties in the negotiation appeared unusually calm, not at all like two mortal enemies with deep blood feuds, but rather like they were handling a purely commercial transaction.
The hourglass of time flowed silently.
After repeated bargaining and testing of bottom lines, the demands of both sides finally reached a consensus.
The Albert Family would sign legally binding documents under the witness of the God of Justice, formally ceding the Scale-Earth Rift Road.
At the same time, they would pay a huge sum of gold coins, enough to make Earl Mills's heart bleed, as war reparations and prisoner ransoms.
All of this was to exchange back those captured Family elites.
During the negotiation.
Earl Mills's attitude was exceptionally cautious.
He repeatedly and emphatically confirmed with Garros whether those key captives—especially the Rune Knight, Alchemist, and Protection Mage—were in good condition and whether their injuries were serious.
"I do not believe in any empty promises."
Earl Mills said, "I will dispatch my trusted Family envoy as soon as possible, carrying formal contract documents, to the Serel Wilderness."
"To ensure the sanctity of the contract and the fairness of its execution."
"A high-ranking priest from the Libra Sanctuary will accompany them to complete the final signing ceremony under the glorious witness of the God of Justice."
Just at this moment.
Garros's low voice suddenly rang out again, changing the subject: "By the way, Earl Mills, there is one more... less important captive that I think needs to be specially mentioned."
"A poor wretch who calls himself Flower Knight Charles Hines."
His voice was calm and waveless, as if describing an insignificant object.
"He is not a member of your Albert Family, but he claims that it was for your Family's righteous cause that he mustered the courage to launch that ridiculous challenge against me."
"Unfortunately, he failed, and failed miserably."
"Considering that I have personally twisted off his four limbs, most of the bones in his body are shattered, and for the rest of his life he can basically only linger on the verge of death in a sickbed, becoming a complete cripple who can only survive by relying on others..."
"For a mere one hundred gold coins."
Garros casually stated a number and said, "I can be merciful, spare his life, and hand him over to your Albert Family to dispose of like a piece of damaged luggage."
A worthless loser with a hollow reputation! A failure!
Thinking of the trade routes and astronomical amount of gold coins the Family was about to pay out, the irritability brought by the huge loss filled Earl Mills's heart.
His brows were tightly locked, his complexion gloomy.
"This person's affairs have nothing to do with our Family; dispose of him as you wish. Whether he lives or dies, the Albert Family has absolutely no interest."
Hearing this, the Dragon on the other end of the communication seemed to suddenly become nitpicky, bargaining like a penny-pinching merchant: "Ten gold coins, just ten gold coins, and I will spare his life. Otherwise, to save food, I can only throw him to feed the Gnolls."
"Believe me, that would be an extremely painful death process."
Facing an Evil Dragon so entangled in the price of a piece of trash, Earl Mills felt a wave of annoyance and completely lost the patience for pretense. He did not want to engage in any more hypocritical affectations, and coldly stated bluntly: "For a piece of trash that has lost all utility value, the Albert Family will not pay even a single copper coin for him. His life or death is up to you."
Subsequently, this negotiation that decided the fates of many finally came to a complete end.
On the other side, in the distant Serel Wilderness.
By the feet of the Red-Iron Dragon, Flower Knight Charles Hines, supporting himself on the cold ground, had clearly listened to the entire conversation that decided his fate.
So... in their eyes, is my life and value not even worth a single gold coin?
Shock, disbelief, and bitterness flashed in his eyes, finally turning into a deep sorrow and realization.
After his gaze changed violently for a long time, it finally slowly returned to calm, eventually turning into a long sigh, as if he had laid down a heavy burden.
At this point.
The so-called kindness of the Albert Family in the past had been completely repaid by this action, which had almost cost him his life, and the other party's merciless abandonment.
From now on, they owe each other nothing.
Through the channels of the Gem Merchant Guild, the Molten Iron Tribe also possessed contract-type items for emergencies.
According to the contract previously signed, now, his life and future belonged to this terrifying yet complex Red-Iron Dragon before him.
"Charles Hines."
The Red-Iron Dragon's low voice rang out again, breaking the silence.
"Setting aside so-called righteous people like you, who are easily deceived and used by lies."
"That Earl Mills you speak of as benevolent and kind-hearted secretly raises large numbers of orphans and beggars, brainwashing them into death warriors who only know Family honor and can die for it without hesitation, and then sends them to the cold battlefield to squeeze out their last bit of value."
Its eyes stared at the knight, asking: "Now, do you still insist that he is a kind and good lord? A truly good person?"
The Flower Knight slowly and heavily shook his head, the last glimmer of fantasy in his eyes completely shattered.
"Just as in the contract we made, your life and freedom belong to me, but I will not force you to do evil things."
The Red-Iron Dragon's voice was calm and waveless, saying: "Then, get ready to practice the principles of punishing evil and promoting good that you believe in."
"The target—Mills Albert."
"Go and kill him."