Giant Dragon Lord: Starting from Daily Intelligence

Chapter 134: Chapter 128: ”Moonlight” Knight Order

The lingering rays of the setting sun gilded Black Stone Territory in a warm, golden light. Baofeng’s nimble figure cut through the sky like an arrow loosed from its bow, landing in the castle’s courtyard.

Moonlight leaped gracefully from Baofeng’s back, shook out its shimmering silver fur, and with an elegant, feline gait, expertly found a sunny corner to curl up in. It narrowed its pale golden eyes and let out a lazy yawn.

Raylo vaulted down.

”My Lord.”

A castle attendant was already waiting by his side.

”Lords Alex, Bolin, and Monk have arrived. Should I summon them?”

”Wait until Ed returns.”

After returning to the castle, Raylo went over his recent plans and strategies for the coming war.

As dusk fell, a sudden, great clamor erupted from outside the castle. The sounds of hooves, Knights shouting, and a deep, powerful, low roar rose and fell, as if a pack of monsters was approaching.

Raylo’s brow furrowed slightly as he walked to the window and looked out.

It was dusk, and the fiery clouds in the sky were as splendid as a painting.

On the open ground outside the castle, more than a hundred Knights returned, covered in dust from their journey.

In their midst were enormous beasts, Earth Dragons, bound securely with thick ropes.

These Earth Dragons were three to four meters long, their entire bodies covered in hard, earth-brown scale armor. Their limbs were thick and powerful, and their sharp claws glinted with a cold light.

Most of them appeared listless, clearly having put up a fierce struggle.

A few were particularly violent; even heavily bound, they continued to roar and struggle, their long, thick tails slamming against the ground with dull THUDS, kicking up clouds of dust.

Raylo went downstairs and walked out of the castle.

Ed strode up to meet him and bowed to Raylo.

”My Lord, we have successfully completed our mission! We captured twenty-two Earth Dragons, six of which are young.”

He pointed to a few smaller Earth Dragons being guarded separately at the rear of the group. Though much smaller, their ferocity was already apparent as they bared their teeth and snarled at the surrounding Knights.

”Well done, Ed.”

Raylo’s gaze swept over the group of Earth Dragons.

’Twenty-two of them. This is a considerable force.’

”Any casualties?” Raylo asked.

”Three of our brothers suffered minor injuries, but nothing serious,” Ed replied.

”These creatures have fierce tempers. A few resisted violently during capture and were seriously injured, but most are in good condition.”

Raylo nodded, his gaze falling on a few Earth Dragons that were clearly weakened and bore gruesome wounds. He frowned slightly.

”For now, place them outside of town and have people watch over them carefully. As for the injured ones, have Carl figure out a way to treat them as best he can.”

”Yes, My Lord!”

Ed accepted the order.

The value of these Earth Dragons was self-evident; each one was a precious combat asset.

Raylo turned to the attendant at his side.

”Go and ask Lady Martha, the Minister of Agriculture, to come here.”

Before long, Lady Martha hurried over.

”My Lord, you were looking for me?”

Lady Martha held up the hem of her skirt, slightly out of breath.

”Lady Martha, thank you for coming.”

Raylo pointed at the Earth Dragons.

”From now on, I’m putting you in charge of managing these big fellows.”

”Yes, My Lord.”

Among Magical Beasts, Earth Dragons were considered a relatively easy species to tame and raise.

「The next morning.」

In the castle’s council chamber, Raylo sat at the head of the table.

To his left was Ed, the Personal Guard Captain.

Further down the table, Bolin, Alex, and Monk sat in stern silence. They were the core pillars of Black Stone Territory.

By the fireplace in a corner of the council chamber, Moonlight had claimed the most comfortable cushion, curled up into a silver furball. Only the occasional twitch of its ears indicated that it wasn’t completely asleep, as if it were also ’auditing’ this important meeting.

”Gentlemen, I’ve gathered you all today to discuss several important matters.”

Raylo’s voice echoed clearly in the council chamber.

He first looked to Ed.

”Ed, give me a detailed report on the current number of Knights of each rank in the territory.”

Ed rose, gave a slight bow, and reported in a clear and organized manner.

”My Lord, the territory currently has four Earth Knights, twenty-eight Great Knights, and one hundred eighty Official Knights. In addition, over three hundred Preparatory Knights are being trained by Instructor Barrett. Some of the more talented among them are expected to be promoted to Official Knight in the near future.”

”Very good.”

Raylo nodded. The large number of breakthroughs among the territory’s Knights was partly due to the Breakthrough Potions provided by Master Barnaby. On the other hand, Carl’s Knight’s Strength Potions had significantly strengthened the physiques of the Knight Apprentices, increasing the number of Knights able to break through.

Furthermore, Black Stone Territory had fought several wars against outside forces: the Blood Wolf Corps, Ironthorn Territory, and the Stone Crow Robbery Gang. After defeating these enemies, a number of Knights were screened and recruited from their ranks to join Black Stone Territory.

With these two factors combined—a two-pronged approach—the number of Knights in the territory swelled dramatically.

He then turned to Barrett.

”Instructor Barrett, what is the status of our weapon and equipment reserves? And our food supplies?”

Barrett answered in a deep voice.

”My Lord, our current supply of Knight Armor and weapons is sufficient to equip our existing Knights. However, our reserves of consumables like arrows and crossbow arrows are low and we need to step up production. As for food, we have no problem sustaining regular consumption for more than half a year, but we will need to procure more to support a large-scale, long-term war.”

Raylo nodded, gaining a clearer understanding of the territory’s resources.

He paused for a moment before saying, ”Gentlemen, I have received reliable intelligence: the Fiery Sun Kingdom and the Thunder Dragon Duchy have officially declared war.”

As soon as he said this, the atmosphere in the council chamber grew tense.

Although Ed and the others had seen this coming, confirmation of the war still left them unsettled.

Barrett’s brow furrowed. As a veteran, he knew the cruelty of war all too well.

Raylo continued, ”According to the Duke’s conscription order, in one month, Black Stone Territory must dispatch troops to participate in the war against the Fiery Sun Kingdom. We don’t have much time.”

One month!

A chill went down everyone’s spine.

”Therefore,” Raylo’s gaze swept over everyone, ”to face the coming challenge, I have decided to reorganize the territory’s armed forces. We will form two main Knight Orders.”

His gaze fell first on Ed.

”Ed.”

”Present!” Ed responded at once.

”I am appointing you as Commander of the ’Moonlight Knight Order’.”

Hearing its name, Moonlight’s ears seemed to perk up a bit more, and the tip of its tail twitched almost imperceptibly.

A flash of excitement appeared in Ed’s eyes. He bowed solemnly and said, ”Thank you for your trust, My Lord!”

Raylo then looked to Alex.

”Alex, you will serve as the Vice Commander of the Moonlight Knight Order and assist Ed.”

Alex also rose to his feet at once.

”Yes, My Lord!”

”The Moonlight Knight Order will be composed of twenty Great Knights and one hundred twenty Official Knights. They will be the sword of Black Stone Territory, responsible for external combat and high-intensity military missions.”

Raylo clearly defined their duties.

Next, his gaze turned to Bolin.

”Bolin.”

”My Lord!” Bolin stood up, his expression solemn.

”I am appointing you as Commander of the ’Black Stone Knight Order’.”

Bolin took a deep breath and declared loudly, ”I will not fail the trust you have placed in me, My Lord!”

Raylo nodded slightly and continued, ”Monk, you will serve as the Vice Commander of the Black Stone Knight Order.”

Monk also immediately accepted the order.

”Yes, My Lord!”

”The Black Stone Knight Order will be composed of eight Great Knights and sixty Official Knights. Their primary duty will be to guard Black Stone Territory, responsible for internal defense and security.”

Raylo stood up.

”The formation of the Knight Orders begins immediately. Personnel selection, equipment allocation, and daily training must all be implemented as quickly as possible.”

”Instructor Barrett, in one month, the Knight Training Camp must have a new batch of Knights break through at the fastest possible rate. The other Knight Apprentices must, at the very least, meet the requirements of Preparatory Knights. They will all participate in this war as soldiers.”

”Yes, My Lord!”

Everyone in the council chamber accepted their orders and left, each hurrying to their new tasks.

In an instant, the entire Black Stone Castle began to operate like a complex, high-speed machine that had just been wound up.

Raylo walked out of the castle. The midday sun was a bit glaring, and he squinted his eyes slightly.

”Raylo, my boy!”

A slightly breathless voice called out from behind him.

Raylo turned around to see Master Barnaby’s signature bird’s-nest hair poking out from the castle gateway. Beneath the messy mop, his eyes shone with a peculiar light. The master, who was usually somewhat lazy and disheveled, was now practically dancing with excitement.

”Master, what’s the rush?” Raylo asked, a little surprised.

”It’s done! It’s done!”

Master Barnaby scurried over to Raylo in a few quick steps, the hem of his robe fluttering up behind him.

”The Earth Dragon Bloodline Potion, it’s a success! After multiple refinements and tests, its stability has reached the desired level. It can be mass-produced for the Knights!”