Chapter 556 - 422: The Aftermath of the Battle of Windburn Mountain and Astra’s Arrival

But Raylo knew that time was running out for him and the Thunder Dragon Duchy.

This impending storm, set to sweep across the entire Continent, was one no one could escape.

A week passed quietly amidst the unending clamor of the construction site.

The foundation work for Black Stone City was essentially complete.

The once uneven, ruin-strewn land had been completely leveled, transformed into a vast, solid expanse of black earth.

Like tireless worker ants, a temporary convoy of Earth Dragons and Mammoths worked day and night, hauling massive, roughly-cut stones from a quarry deep within the Black Stone Mountain Range.

With their terrifying Giant Strength, the Hill Giants stacked these massive stones one by one, forming the nascent shape of the city’s thick, Solid outer walls.

A new, magnificent city was rising from the ruins at a speed visible to the naked eye.

It was a pleasant, sunny afternoon.

Raylo was in his temporary command tent, processing a mountain of documents related to the construction of Black Stone City.

These documents covered city planning, resource allocation, workforce deployment, and more.

The work was tedious, but Raylo reveled in it.

Just then, the flap of the tent was pushed aside, and the steady figure of Alex walked in.

"My Lord."

he reported.

"Someone from the Fiery Sun Kingdom is here again."

Raylo put down his feather pen and looked up.

’Karachi is moving a little too quickly.’

"Let him in."

Raylo said calmly.

A moment later, a figure wearing a gray cloak was brought in, their entire face concealed in the shadow of their hood.

He walked up to Raylo’s desk and bowed.

"Esteemed Count Raylo, I come on behalf of His Majesty Karachi to convey his sincerest greetings."

"Rise."

Raylo raised a hand.

"What news does Karachi bring this time?"

His tone was calm, getting straight to the point.

The envoy rose, his body still slightly bowed in an extremely deferential posture.

"You are wise, Lord Earl."

he said.

"His Majesty has a difficult matter for which he requests your aid."

"Speak."

"Yes."

The envoy took a deep breath and said.

"Just half a month ago, the Light Holy See dispatched a new Judicial Officer to the Fiery Sun Kingdom."

"A Judicial Officer?"

Raylo raised an eyebrow.

In the Light Holy See’s hierarchy, the title represented absolute authority and the unquestionable right of judgment.

Every Judicial Officer was one of the Holy See’s most fanatical believers, as well as its most ruthless executioner.

They walked the mortal plane with a single duty: to eliminate all whom they deemed ’heretics’ and ’blasphemers’.

"Yes, a Judicial Officer."

The envoy’s voice dropped even lower.

"This new Judicial Officer is named Dorunqi."

"Upon arriving in the Fiery Sun Kingdom, Judicial Officer Dorunqi immediately used ruthless methods to ’purify’ several noble families he deemed ’impure in their faith’."

A trace of fear crept into the envoy’s voice.

"His very presence is a grave threat to His Majesty’s rule."

Raylo understood.

’So, Karachi was trying to use a borrowed knife to kill. Having an uncontrollable, cruel Judicial Officer like Dorunqi die at the hands of the Thunder Dragon Duchy would be the best possible outcome for Karachi—and for the Fiery Sun Kingdom.’

"So, what does Karachi want me to do?"

Raylo asked, picking up the cup of red tea from his desk and gently blowing on it.

"His Majesty hopes... that you, or the Thunder Dragon Duchy, can intervene and ensure the Lord Judicial Officer... ’dies in an accident’."

the envoy said.

’Assassinate a Judicial Officer of the Light Holy See?’

Raylo put down his cup and chuckled.

"Tell Karachi."

Raylo’s gaze sharpened.

"The Thunder Dragon Duchy has no intention of making an enemy of the Light Holy See. We cannot help him with this."

"But, Lord Earl..."

"Alex, see him out."

Raylo cut him off.

"Yes, My Lord."

Alex stepped forward and gestured for the man to leave.

A look of resignation appeared on the envoy’s face.

But he knew that once Raylo had made up his mind, nothing more he said would matter.

He bowed to Raylo once more before following Alex out of the tent.

Quiet returned to the tent.

Raylo leaned back in his chair.

’Karachi and the Light Holy See were never on the same side. The noble families Dorunqi had ’judged’ were likely staunch supporters of the impious king. Unfortunately for him, Raylo had no intention of being his knife.’

Currently, relations between the Light Holy See and the Dragon Realm had reached a freezing point after the great battle at Windburn Mountain.

The two powers were like a pair of powder kegs; a single spark was all it would take to trigger a cataclysmic explosion.

In such a sensitive time, the Thunder Dragon Duchy could not afford to be the one to stick its neck out, to become the ’Vanguard Officer’ of this war.

Not long after he sent the envoy away, a dull peal of thunder suddenly rolled across the distant horizon.

BOOM!

A thick, silvery-white bolt of Lightning tore through the clear sky without warning.

Raylo’s gaze sharpened. He stood and strode quickly out of the tent.

In the distant sky, a massive thundercloud was moving toward Black Stone City at an astonishing speed.

Thunder roared and lightning flashed at the center of the vortex, where countless silver serpents of electricity writhed and danced wildly.

A vast, majestic, and heart-stopping Dragon Mighty poured down from the thundercloud like a bursting flood, blanketing the entire Black Stone Territory.

On the construction site, the laboring Earth Dragons and Mammoths cried out uneasily under the terrifying Dragon Mighty. Their bodies trembled as they fell prostrate, not daring to move.

The Knights, too, felt their chests tighten and their breath shorten, as if an invisible mountain were pressing down on their hearts.

But a faint smile touched Raylo’s lips.

He looked up toward the sky.

The massive, swirling thundercloud came to a halt directly above him.

A brilliant, silvery-white bolt of lightning, like a Spear of Divine Punishment, descended with a roar from the center of the vortex.

The light dissipated.

A colossal figure appeared in the clearing before the temporary camp.

It was Astra.

The Guardian Giant Dragon of the Thunder Dragon Duchy.

It was much larger now than it had been when it first ascended to the Catastrophe Level.

Its body now stretched a kilometer long. Its winding, mountain-like frame was covered in iridescent, azure scales that seemed to be forged from the purest Thunderbolt.

Tiny arcs of electricity periodically CRACKLED in the gaps between its scales.

Its massive Dragon Horns pointed toward the heavens like pillars supporting the sky.

The terrifying, world-destroying pressure of a Catastrophe Level being that emanated from its draconic form was enough to extinguish any thought of resistance in beings below the Domain Level.

After a period of consolidation, Astra had now truly and completely mastered its Catastrophe Level Power.

Astra’s enormous eyes, like twin Suns, slowly turned, their gaze finally resting on Raylo.

Its immense Dragon Mighty dissipated as gently as a spring breeze.

"Raylo. You were looking for me."

A grand, majestic voice echoed directly in Raylo’s mind.

It was the unique form of mental communication used by Giant Dragons.

"Yes, Lord Astra."

Raylo bowed slightly, performing a standard Knight’s salute, then got straight to the point.

"I’ve run into some trouble and require your help."

Astra did not reply, merely watching him quietly, waiting for him to continue.

Raylo briefly explained the current predicament at Seagull Port, including the matter of the Catastrophe Level Deep Sea Giant Whale occupying the Outer Sea.

"I understand."

Astra’s voice echoed in Raylo’s mind once more.

"You want me to take care of that behemoth for you."

"Yes."

Raylo nodded.

"Seagull Port is vital to the Black Stone Territory, and indeed the entire Duchy. I must reopen the shipping lanes there as soon as possible."

"Alright. I agree."

Astra’s reply was decisive, without a hint of hesitation.

Raylo breathed a sigh of relief.

With Astra’s commitment, the problem at Seagull Port was as good as solved.

"Thank you, Lord Astra."

Raylo bowed again.

He turned and whistled, summoning his mount, Baofeng.

However, just then.

"That won’t be necessary."

Astra’s voice sounded once more.