Civilization: Beyond Two Worlds - Chapter 409

409 Master

“Do you think Kang De is pretending, or does he really have something to rely on?”

After some negotiation, Santos and the Dragon Girl were put back.

There was no house arrest, detention, difficulties, or intimidation.

There was even no restriction on personal freedom.

He could leave if he wanted. He could escape if he wanted. He could stay here if he wanted. He could court death if he wanted.

If it was an ordinary international dispute, it would definitely not be so easy. However, in this matter, the person in charge of Goethe was Kang De. The unique diplomatic relationship and the nature of the national situation between the two countries determined this relaxed and almost child’s play progress method because Santos and Kang De were both understanding people and had a tacit understanding with each other.

‘You can escape overnight.’

However, this meant that he had confessed. Since Dragon Island had done this, he would just wait.

‘You can wander around and court death.’

If he was assassinated by the mastermind, the blame would definitely be placed on Goethe. At that time, Dragon Island and Goethe would definitely have a huge battle.

“Therefore, do as you see fit.”

Santos knew in his heart that he had not lived long enough. Of course, he knew what to do.

He had made up his mind to hide in Maple Leaf Palace.

After all, in theory, his life was also in danger. If the mastermind wanted to trigger a war between the dragons and Goethe, assassinating Kang De was one way, and assassinating an important envoy like him was another.

However, he was not too worried. As a hero who had climbed to the defense management of the Dragon Clan as a human, Santos’ personal safety was an important regulation of the company. He was completely covered in the protective treasure of Dragon Island and the blessing mark of the Dragon Emperor. If he did not take the initiative to court death, there were really not many people in the world who could take his life.

Moreover, as an ace assassin with outstanding battle results, the Dragon Lady was also a top-notch bodyguard.

Compared to this, the attack tonight and the variables triggered could trigger his endless imagination.

Goethe had only stopped for a few days, but new enemies had already appeared.

Moreover, he had endured it for a long time. As soon as he attacked, he broke Kang De’s alchemical weapon, causing his deterrence ability to decrease by almost half and changing the balance of strength between him and the dragons.

Kang De’s reaction made him reminisce.

This person directly said that they could continue to fight the agreed fake competition.

There were only two possibilities.

Firstly, Kang De had something to rely on. Even if the alchemical weapon was broken, he could quickly repair it or directly take out something more powerful. Even if he went on stage, it was enough to smash the dragon.

Secondly, he was bluffing. He had to put on a tough posture to intimidate the dragons.

He had been thinking about this along the way and could not help but ask the Dragon Girl Lily beside him.

The Dragon Girl walked quietly beside him. Her upper body was wrapped in a thick blue jacket, and her lower body was wearing a black dress with white lace trim. She was holding a small black bag.

Santos could tell at a glance that this dress was not the Dragon Girl’s clothes, let alone the jacket on her upper body. The style, appearance, and even cloth were things he had never seen before.

He wanted to observe carefully, but he was afraid of being beaten up. As for why this dragon girl had appeared beside Kang De tonight and why she was wearing his clothes, that was probably a secret that could not be investigated further.

How should he put it…

He did not know what to say and could only shout that Kang De was awesome.

Lily only glanced at him. “Is it very important to bluff or have something to rely on? Didn’t you take the initiative to say that you wanted to delay this battle for half a month?”

Yes, after Kang De suggested that the agreement could continue, Santos tactfully suggested that the battle could be delayed for half a month, and the reason he gave was very sensible.

He said that he had to find the mastermind behind this conspiracy and resolve the misunderstanding before talking business. Otherwise, there would always be a thorn between the dragons and Goethe.

As expected of a businessman. This statement was very comfortable. It was much more pleasant than “we won’t take advantage of you. I’ll give you half a month to repair the fighter plane and we’ll fight later”.

“Regardless of whether his alchemical weapons can be repaired or not, it’s not important if there’s a backup. What’s important is that his forbidden curse can’t be faked and can still overturn any city in the world.”

Santos explained, “He’s still the sharpest sword in this world.”

The Dragon Girl said indifferently, “However, the dragons are not afraid of his forbidden curse. If it was those old fellows on the board of directors, even if they don’t tear up the agreement, they would take the opportunity to raise the price, right? The essence of this negotiation is that you’re strong because I’m weak. If I’m strong, you’re weak. If Kang De’s alchemical weapon is broken, he’s weak. The company can take the opportunity to fight for more benefits. If you don’t do this, you’ll damage the company’s interests. Aren’t you afraid that the Dragon Emperor will be angry?”

She was a little talkative tonight.

Santos glanced at her. He had clearly misunderstood. Good lord, he had turned away after a night.

He said, “His Majesty won’t be angry. If it was His Majesty, he would have done the same. When we could take the opportunity to raise the price, if we didn’t do this, we could sell him a favor. As for Kang De becoming weak…”

At this point, Santos shook his head. “Who knows if he’s weakened?”

The CEO looked at the Goethe people following far behind him and said, “Before I came, I spoke to His Majesty the Dragon Emperor. His Majesty asked me, after reading Kang De’s information, in my opinion, what’s the most important thing to deal with this person?”

“I said beauty, and he was wrong. I said morality. He was wrong. I said respect, and he was wrong.”

“Then he told me that the most important thing was never, ever, to underestimate him.”

Santos said indifferently, “The Samuel family underestimated him and felt that a Cathayan like him could not cause trouble. In the end, Glory Sand turned to ruins.”

“The Dusk Legion underestimated him and felt that it was so difficult for him to fight Glory Sand Town. How could he resist the army? In the end, it was not only them but the six Dragon Flag Legions were destroyed in Valentine.”

“The Twilight Council underestimated him and felt that no matter how powerful he was, he could not stop the will of a country. In the end, he killed his way to Red Maple City in a day and stepped on the face of the entire country…”

He stopped and asked the Dragon Girl beside him, “Then tell me, this time, we feel that Kang De’s alchemical weapon has been broken and is no longer a threat to the dragons, so we took the opportunity to force, raise the price, and even start a war. At that time, will Kang De take out something even stranger and unheard of and beat us up until we’re covered in dust and suffer heavy casualties?”

The Dragon Girl nodded, still silent.

“In the end, we’re businessmen. Force is necessary, but it’s not the first choice. The meaning of the company’s armed forces is to defend interests and protect trade. This is not boring morals, but an important rule to ensure the company’s good and stable operation. If the Dragon Defense Company encounters anything and our first thought is to use force to resolve it, it won’t be long before we close.”

Santos explained seriously.

The Dragon Girl still nodded and suddenly said, “This is all for the interests of the dragon race?”

The person who had already joined Dragon Island nodded and said, “Yes.”

The Dragon Girl asked again, “Even if your actions tonight are essentially still arbitrary? With such a huge matter, even if you don’t discuss it with the board of directors, you should report it to the Dragon Emperor first.”

Santos shrugged and said, “The situation is urgent. I have to make my stand clear as soon as possible. I had no choice but to do this. When I return, I’ll explain in detail to the Dragon Emperor. He’ll understand.”

When the Dragon Girl heard this, she nodded and said, “I understand. For the interests of the dragon race, I can make a choice according to my judgment, even if this doesn’t seem to be in line with the interests of the race in the short term… Is that so?”

“Yes… wait.” Santos glared at him. “What do you want?”

“Hmph.”

The Dragon Girl strode forward and accelerated. The corners of her skirt swayed.

She had said some things about tonight, but she had not.

The attacker drank the magic medicine and transformed into a dragon to attack, beating the steel giant into an extremely miserable state. She naturally had to tell Santos about this.

However, she had seen Kang De teleport away at close range and disappear for a short period of time with the steel puppet before returning… She temporarily hid such a thing in her heart.

Big secret.

Where did Kang De come from?

What was the background of Kang De’s terrifying strength and weapons?

She vaguely felt that the ultimate question that troubled the strategists of the continent was hidden in the short period of time he disappeared into thin air… Where did Kang De go?

Secret base? Half-plane? She felt that there was more to it.

—I have to think of a way to investigate.

Before that, it could not be leaked.

Otherwise, if the news returned to Dragon Island and attracted the attention or covet of some stupid old dragons, wouldn’t it damage the interests of the race if they forcefully advanced and investigated this matter and ultimately messed up the full-scale war?

Yes, all of this was for the benefit of Dragon Island.

As for how to start…

The Dragon Girl walked quickly, but her right hand was in the pocket of her assault jacket. There was a soft gauze inside. It felt good, exactly the same as what she was wearing on her leg.

Hmph.

A smile appeared on her lips.

—Let’s start by returning the thing.

In the room, Kang De was like all the silly girls who looked for their phones after waking up. He lifted the blanket on the bed and shook, but nothing fell.

This made his hands and feet turn cold and his entire body turn cold at night.

D*mn.

He walked back to the front hall with mixed feelings. Tina rushed back into his arms like a swallow returning to its nest. She hugged him and pressed her face against his chest. Almost an hour had passed. Her body was still trembling as if she had not broken free from her previous fear.

Kang De’s attack reminded Tina of that nightmarish night in Glory Sand Town.

That night, the head maid, the knight, Kang De… everyone left her.

It made her feel uneasy, worried, and guilty because the reason why Kang De had encountered the danger tonight was that he was involved in the battle of Goethe.

“It’s fine, it’s fine…”

That was all Kang De could say.

However, saying this could only have the opposite effect. Tina felt as guilty as Kang De was.

The Grand Duke glanced at Kang De. Now, he did not have the time to care that his beloved daughter was hugging him. He sighed and said, “We’re strengthening our defense and making up for our mistakes. The Chief Mage has come to a preliminary conclusion. The attacker sneaked in three days ago. We’re conducting a thorough investigation.”

The strength of the country was weak and could only be bullied as he pleased. The capital of a country and the place of the palace became a place where conspirators could come and go as they pleased and arrange for the attack of assassins. The bombardment of the death warriors’ all-out attack earlier had not only seriously injured Horus, but it had also ruthlessly slapped the Grand Duke, Tedrell, and even the entire Goethe.

However, he was helpless.

This was the sorrow of a weak country.

What was even sadder was that although they knew that being weak was the original sin, the weak were helpless and had no hope of becoming stronger… The despair of this world was that some things were actually destined.

Small countries could never catch up to large countries.

He glanced at the huge hole made by the gorilla in the inner room, as well as dust, gravel, and wood shavings. The window and outer wall had also been swept into dregs by Kang De’s Gatling gun. This place could not be lived in.

“I originally wanted you to live here in peace.” He sighed, “Let’s go somewhere else.”

When Tina heard this, she turned from Kang De’s arms and looked at her father. Her tone was firm. “Stay with me.”

The Grand Duke originally did not allow it. After all, what would happen if an unmarried man and woman were mixed together? How could he throw his cabbage into the pigpen’s food trough… Moreover, why was that female dragon in Kang De’s room tonight and why was she wrapped in his clothes? Although there was no point in asking, he still saw it. This Kang De was good in all aspects, but he was a little spoiled.

If it was any other man, he could also praise them for being flirtatious and secretly envious.

It was very unacceptable that his daughter had become the evidence of his flirtatiousness.

However, looking at his daughter’s firm gaze, he knew that it was not his turn to object.

Even if she arranged for Kang De to be elsewhere, Tina would definitely crawl in at night.

He slowly nodded. “Alright.”

“Second Brother has already led the troops to impose martial law. Eldest Brother is speeding up his investigation of this matter. In the end, that attacker is hiding in Maple Leaf Palace. Although he has already turned to ashes, he will still leave some traces…”

Seeing that the situation was a little tense, Stella softened her tone. “You discovered him first. What characteristics does he have?”

The assassin would die without an intact corpse or even his body and soul destroyed. This was the most troublesome thing.

Although the criminal investigation technology of the other world was far less advanced, developed, and systematic than on Earth, the principle of forensic technology in the end was to think of a way to let the dead speak.

Although the other world did not have scientific methods or a rigorous and developed anatomy and autopsy system, they… could make the dead speak on a physical level.

Basically, with corpses, secret spells of the palace, and special skills recruited in the dark world, they could directly find important clues from the dead. They could even take another step forward and activate the Nether Vision to collect the fragment of the dead’s soul and forcefully ask.

However, the person who sent the assassin clearly considered this situation. With a life-and-death blow, his soul and body were all burned clean, and there was no evidence.

Then Kang De’s eyewitness testimony might be the only clue to pursue.

Kang De thought for a moment and replied, “Shadow… I only saw a shadow.”

Stella asked, “Does he summon shadows, hide his whereabouts, and walk in the shadows? Or…”

After asking this, Stella saw Kang De’s confused expression and recalled that he did not know much about magic techniques. Therefore, she waved her hand to extinguish the magic chandelier in the room. Then, she held her staff and activated a curse technique. A strong shadow fog wrapped her body. Under everyone’s gazes, her graceful body fused into the night.

“Is this it?”

Flames flashed. Phoenix flames soared in Kang De’s eyes as he looked at Stella. In the Phoenix Vision, he could see a female body constructed by shadows. It was curvaceous, and the shadows shone with the spiritual light of magic power.

Recalling the situation at that time, it was clearly not like that.

Kang De shook his head and said, “No, he turned into a shadow and crawled along the ground…”

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of the Grand Duke, Stella, Hillmelia, and even the few important ministers present changed drastically. Even Tina, who had been holding Kang De, looked up in surprise.

Kang De frowned and said, “What’s wrong?”

Shock, disbelief, and even fear appeared on the Grand Duke’s face.

He asked, “Are you sure? Are you seeing things? That’s indeed the case?”

He looked extremely shocked, so much so that his tone was inclined to disbelief and questioning.

“What’s the benefit of fabricating this for me?” Kang De asked. “You know him?”

The lights came on again, illuminating everyone’s faces. Everyone’s faces were shocked.

“No.”

This time, it was Hillmelia who spoke.

Sword Saint Snowfall subconsciously held the hilt of her sword and whispered, “We might know his master.”

“Who?”

The Grand Duke closed his eyes. This name could only hurt him now.

“Xide… Xide Keram.”