Chapter 623: Chain Dragon Slaying

Just as Liszt finished his meal, tallied the battlefield gains, and prepared to thoroughly explore the Frost Domain Ability of the Frostbite Dragon Slayer Sword in the afternoon,

the vampire servants dispatched days ago finally returned.

"My lord, we have thoroughly investigated the Iron Mountain Mine at Dragonbind Mountain. There is indeed a massive iron mine there, piled high with extracted iron ore, totaling over a million tons. Guarding the mine are two sword saints and eight hundred elite knights."

"A million tons of iron ore?" Liszt's eyes gleamed.

Back when the earl plundered 200,000 tons of iron ore, it was enough to earn an earldom. If he could seize a million tons this time, wouldn't that earn him a marquisate outright? After all, a million tons of iron ore could likely sustain the Sapphire Duchy's needs for over a decade.

He quickly calculated in his mind: "Seizing a million tons of iron ore, combined with my 'Ghost Swordsman' legacy, should convince the Grand Duke (unless he's a fool) to grant the Tulip family a fitting position. I can't guarantee treatment equal to what the Prosperous Marquis once enjoyed, but it certainly won't be worse than the remaining six marquises."

With the rebellion and capture of Andy Sapphire, the Prosperous Marquis of Iron Hoof Island, the Sapphire Duchy now had only six marquises left.

Four territorial marquises: Red Crab Island's Marquis Merlin Long Yam; Deep Throat Island's Marquis Wallace Greenpine; Golden Isle's Marquis Roderick Golden Wheat; and Leather Island's Marquis Ramirez Whitestone.

Two from the Blue-Blood Alliance: Red Maple City's Marquis Greendanton Red Maple Leaf, and Quicksand City's Marquis Nesta Cymbidium.

If they truly managed to seize a million tons of iron ore from the Dragonbind Mountain Mine, even after splitting half the merits with the Golden Wheat and Long Yam families—tasked with diversion and transport—William's merits would still be immense, undoubtedly securing one of the three marquisate positions on Iron Hoof Island.

"If the earl is promoted to marquis, the Tulip family will likely relocate with their followers to develop Iron Hoof Island. As one of the earl's followers, I would inevitably have to move there as well... Fortunately, there would be three to five years of preparation before the relocation. With that time, I should succeed in dragon riding, and it would be time to declare myself to the Grand Duke."

The thought flashed through his mind, but Liszt didn't dwell on it. Instead, he continued questioning the vampires about Dragonbind Mountain.

The Iron Mountain Mine belonged to Lockdragon City, which was the fief of Lotus Mountain Earl—meaning the mine was the earl's private holding.

"My lord, you'd never guess who holds the title of Lotus Mountain Earl. His other title is the Prosperous Marquis." Bloody Mary licked her lips, seemingly musing. "Even we vampire servants never imagined that the Dragonbind Mountain Mine was actually the Prosperous Marquis's private holding."

"The Prosperous Marquis?" Liszt's gaze sharpened. "Mary, I've told you before—no riddles in front of me."

"Apologies, my lord." Bloody Mary composed herself. "The true identity of the Prosperous Marquis, Lotus Mountain Earl, is Alonso Cyclamen, the kingdom's dragon knight and master of the Black Knight family... In fact, we also discovered a pureblood vampire at the Dragonbind Mountain Mine."

Liszt raised an eyebrow.

He felt a strange connection with Alonso Cyclamen.

Alonso Cyclamen was likely the mastermind behind the Prosperous Marquis's rebellion, the patron of the Goat Assembly, and the master of the vampire Black Knight family. Now, even the iron mine he planned to raid belonged to Alonso Cyclamen.

"Before I even succeed in dragon riding, must I fully antagonize a powerful dragon knight? Or is it that the moment I declare my dragon knight status, the most likely candidate to launch a Dragon Slaying War would be this dragon knight of the Kingdom of the Eagle?" The thought surfaced in Liszt's mind, prompting deeper reflection.

Whether in past wars or Smoke Missions, the clues always vaguely pointed to Alonso Cyclamen.

Perhaps this man truly was his future opponent in the Dragon Slaying War. Not every dragon knight faced such a war, but if one sought to establish a kingdom, carve out their domain, or alter the world's power structure, other dragon knights would inevitably intervene.

One or more might challenge him.

If Andrew Sapphire hadn't survived the Dragon Slaying War over 150 years ago, the Sapphire Duchy might never have been born.

This was a sobering warning for Liszt.

His gaze rested on the five vampire servants, but his mind was already immersed in his own plans: "Alonso Cyclamen is the greatest threat in the Dragon Slaying War, and the tasks I've completed so far have all been connected to him in some way. Perhaps this is a series of missions, preparing me for the Dragon Slaying War!"

Suddenly, a thought struck him, snapping him out of his thoughts. He asked aloud, "Alonso Cyclamen's dragon is a bronze dragon, isn't it?"

"Yes, my lord."

Liszt neither agreed nor disagreed, lapsing into thought: "Alonso's dragon is a Bronze Dragon, while mine is a Fire Dragon. Productivity-type gem and metal dragons are essentially militia, while elemental dragons are like regular soldiers. As long as I accumulate enough strength, Alonso may not necessarily be my opponent!"

He had his own understanding of power accumulation.

Weakening the opponent's resources equated to increasing his own leverage: "Considering future dragon-slaying battles, it seems I must seize the Dragon-Trapping Mountain Iron Mine!"

He was not one to hesitate. After just a few thoughts, he had already made his decision.

Suppressing his thoughts, he returned to the blood thralls' report: "You just mentioned there are vampires guarding the Dragon-Trapping Mountain Iron Mine?"

"Yes, my lord. The one guarding the Dragon-Trapping Mountain Iron Mine is the natural-born pureblood Famur the Black Knight. His strength is similar to Tubote the Black Knight, but he is a native pureblood. Under his command are three half-breeds: Phoebe the Enchantress, Vansa the Black-Cloaked, and Seth the Fang."

"Only three half-breeds?"

Bloody Mary replied, "Usually, a pureblood develops two or three half-breed subordinates. Tubote only brought the five of us because of a mission. Only Hamil and I are his true subordinates."

Liszt murmured thoughtfully, "Vampires are troublesome..."

At this point, Bloody Mary suddenly spoke up, "My lord, if you plan to attack the Dragon-Trapping Mountain Iron Mine, perhaps we blood thralls can assist you in eliminating Famur and his three subordinates."

Liszt lifted his eyelids, staring at Bloody Mary with an expressionless face.

Only after making her tense and uneasy did he speak calmly, "As thralls, my foremost demand of you is not to overstep your bounds."

Bloody Mary immediately knelt on one knee. "Forgive me, my lord. Mary sincerely apologizes. I should not have presumed!"

Her expression did not seem feigned.

Seeing this, Liszt did not press further, merely stating calmly, "Don’t let it happen again... Tell me your plan for assisting me in eliminating these four vampires."

"We can pose as envoys from Tubote, inviting Famur to leave the Dragon-Trapping Mountain Iron Mine for a secret meeting in Tri-Dragon City. Along the way, you can strike and eliminate him. Once you claim the three hearts he bears, the other three vampires will naturally grovel at your feet."

The plan was simple and brutal.

After brief consideration, Liszt readily agreed.

He had always preferred such direct methods. Overly convoluted schemes were not his forte—the more elaborate the plan, the more prone it was to errors.

It’s the end of the month—we’re seeking votes!