Chapter 542 - Capturing the Ethereal Prince (2/2)

Of course, such power always came at a great cost. Celine was required to use Dragon Power bullets specially made by Link for her. These bullets were exquisitely designed. Each contained 1000 Dragon Power points. At the moment, Celine only had 5 Dragon Power bullets. Though she still had other bullets at her disposal, they were all normal ones, each with only Level-9 power.

While inspecting her rifle, Link noticed that Celine was especially fixated on this subject. He had guessed what was on her mind. With no intention of hiding the truth from her, Link said, “One thing led to another, I guess. At the time, the dragon race was in need of powerful masters, and I had just attained Dragon Power by accident. At the same time, the Red Dragon Queen thought that she could control me, and so she brought me to the Ancestor Altar.”

Saying this, Link stopped inspecting the rifle and began scrutinizing Celine’s hand. The back of her hand was soft and white, but her palm was slightly callused, the result of her rigorous training in marksmanship and swordplay. Celine did not pull her hand back from him.

“And then?” Link’s story had piqued Eliard’s interest. He pulled out another chair and sat on it beside Evelina.

“I managed to obtain the Heart of the Dragon, and when I brought out my Dragon form, it was not the Red Dragon that they had hoped, but rather a Black Dragon. The elders were quite shocked by this, because to them, a Black Dragon is another word for the herald of destruction.” Link chuckled at the memory.

“Herald of destruction?” Evelina laughed too. “That’s just preposterous. It should have meant ‘bringer of change.’ I guess it shouldn’t be too surprising, since change is exactly what ancient races like the dragons fear most of all.”

Link nodded and continued, “True. A series of events happened later, the most significant of which was the time I helped the dragon race defeat a Void Tyrant that had infiltrated our realm. The Red Dragon Queen assumed that I would be able to integrate into the dragon race, and so she made me a Dragon Duke. She assumed wrong, of course. In the end, we parted ways due to the widening gap between our opinions on many things. All of you probably knew the rest of the story. I had wanted to build an army of Dragon Warriors among the human race, but she thought that it was an act of blasphemy against the royal dragon bloodline. She also thought the status quo they had upheld for so long was the safest path to walk on, and that my actions would eventually bring ruin to the human race. We did not split on good terms. My dragon body was even sealed off by her.”

Celine seemed visibly upset about this. She twisted her lips. “Humph, I don’t think Dragon Power’s all that impressive. How selfish can she be?”

Link nodded. “Haha, true. Our Seed of Sunlight may not be as potent as Dragon Power, but in terms of combat power, it certainly holds a candle to Dragon Power itself. That should be enough. However, the road ahead of us is uncertain as ever. The Red Dragon Queen may be right for worrying. One misstep is all it would take to send the human race not on a path towards glory, but plunge it deep into the depths of despair.”

His last statement sounded so ominous that the other three could not help but shiver upon hearing it.

The path that Ferde had set out on was indeed fraught with as much peril as climbing up a steep rock face.

Eliard chuckled suddenly. “Even if we fail, we’ll drag the High Elves down with us into that abyss. A few hundred years later, our race will be able to accrue enough strength to climb back out of it, while the High Elves will be left lying in the mud hole.”

It was true that the human race indeed had more latent potential for growth in comparison to the High Elves.

Link laughed at this and said, “Enough about this. Let’s discuss the Ethereal Prince. Evelina, you said that he possesses Level-12 power and is especially proficient in spatial magic. Try to recall what other particularities he has.”

Evelina held her forehead in her hand, deep in thought. A few minutes later, she shook her head. “I’ve only seen him twice. He’s always so secretive. He also likes hiding himself in a corner.”

“Then let’s talk about his get-up,” said Celine.

“Get-up? Let’s see, he likes to wear a long grey robe. He also usually wears a grey hood over his head. He has a pair of silver gleaming eyes. Uhm, he also wears a bracelet, which is carved with a set of magic runes that I don’t even recognize.”

“Oh?” Link was now curious. He said, “Do you still remember what those magic runes look like?”

“Of course.” Evelina took out her wand. With a few strokes, ten curious magic runes floated in the air.

Celine observed them and shook her head. “I don’t understand any of these runes.”

Eliard examined the runes intently. He then closed his eyes, ruminating on them. Ten seconds later, he shook his head. “Me neither.”

Under Link’s instruction, Eliard had seen much himself. Though not as proficient as Link, he had a rough knowledge of dragon runes, time runes, spatial runes and many other profound areas in the mystic arts. But he had never come across such runes in his studies.

All three of them looked at Link.

Link gazed at the runes, mesmerized. In truth, he was reading the game system’s translation presented before him.

The runes floating in the air had nothing to do with magic. They were actually a series of words in the Ethereal language. The runes’ translation read “Point 1852, master of the secret arts, Haromed the Third.”

As soon as the translation appeared, the game system presented a new mission to him.

Mission Activated: Pursue the Intruder

Description: Search the Free Trade Confederation in the South, pinpoint the exact location of Haromed the Third.

Mission Reward 1: Omni Points +500

Mission Reward 2: Moonstone

Link regarded the 500-Omni-Point reward with indifference, but when he saw the Moonstone reward, he immediately accepted the mission. However, a frown appeared on his face when he reread Haromed the Third’s name.

He had known the fellow back in the game. His power was impressive, but the man was as timid as a mouse. He always shied away from danger and never stayed in one place for too long. His penchant for disguises made him as slippery as an eel. Even if Link knew that he was in Golle Kingdom, capturing Haromed would still be an extremely difficult hurdle to overcome.