With no other options, Amy reluctantly picked up another dried lizard, crushed it, and let the aroma waft toward Green's nose. Recently, this method seemed to be losing its effectiveness, and Amy felt uneasy about it. As the dragon approached adulthood, its preferences became increasingly singular, with a penchant for collecting shiny objects like gems, coins, and mirrors. Sleeping was its second favorite activity, and its need for food wasn't as great as when it was growing up.
Green twitched its nose twice, shifted its pillow slightly, and opened its eyes just a sliver. Everyone held their breath in anticipation—perhaps Green wasn't a lost cause after all. But after a moment of hesitation, Green pulled the pillow back over its head, seemingly deciding that getting up wasn't worth it for a mere snack. It preferred to dream of mansions of gold, beauties, and dried lizards.
Amy shook her head with a wry smile, cleared her throat, and in a deep, melodious voice, called out, "Where's my darling Green? Let me give you a hug."
Startled, Green awoke with a shiver, immediately unfurled its three-meter wingspan, and hovered in the air, eyes wide with fear—its nemesis had arrived. How had it not sensed his approach? The logical explanation escaped it.
After scanning the room and seeing familiar faces but no sign of the voice's owner, Green realized it must have been a dream. Why did it have to be a nightmare? It gently landed back on the bed, affectionately licking Amy and Daqingshan's faces in greeting, and then casually snatched the dried lizard from Amy's hand. If left too long, such treats could become too hard. Without much chewing, Green used a claw to help push the dried lizard down its throat.
Ying kindly poured a glass of water for Green, who unreservedly drank it in one gulp and then rested its head on Daqingshan's shoulder, eyelids once again succumbing to gravity.
"Hey, we're asking for your help here. All you do is eat and sleep. We need you now," Amy said, giving Green's rear a firm slap.
Green, wary of any affront to its dignity, especially from Amy, who was a mix of its two greatest fears—Chi Hanfeng and Lei Ge—remained silent. Although Amy had never actually wronged Green, the dragon had seen the dire fates of those who had crossed the group leader. Imagining such awkward scenarios made Green shiver.
Amy explained the situation outside and sternly criticized Green for not participating in the previous night's battle. "Here's your chance to redeem yourself. Go disrupt those ships on the sea with your magic so we can sleep soundly at night."
Oh, so that's it. Green immediately understood that it was the only one capable of handling this task. Seizing the opportunity, it pulled a red apple from under the covers, took a big bite, and extended the other claw toward Amy, making a familiar gesture with its thumb and fingers.
In all honesty, dragons were the most noble creatures in the world. From the dragon god Pilot down to the hatchlings in their eggs, none would ever engage in such a crass act. Clearly, Mengmu's three relocations had some truth to them.
Crack! Amy cracked her knuckles. "Green, the mercenary group's funds are tight, so we're thinking of letting go of some useless employees. The mercenaries outside say that there's a pet in the deputy leader's room that eats and sleeps the most but never works. What should I do? You know we're all in this together. I hate to see you face hardships outside."
If Green couldn't catch the underlying threat in Amy's words, it wouldn't be a holy dragon. Grumbling inwardly, it thought, "If I'd known this, I wouldn't have worked so hard to rescue you from that barrier." Outwardly, it put on a pleasing face and said, "Anyone daring to challenge Lord Amy's mercenary group is asking for trouble. Watch me teach them a lesson!"
With that, two enormous yellow wind dragons materialized in the room. Though Green hoped to get away with using them, another slap on its rear sent it, along with the wind dragons, out of the room.
"Listen, I'll have Chi Aotian keep an eye on you. If you don't do a good job, there'll be no lunch for you," Amy's voice echoed throughout the mercenary group.
Chi Aotian shook his head helplessly, summoned his trusty dragon, and departed as well.
The commander of the Fascist Western Expeditionary Corps, Dahaeno, and three subordinates had just visited the gravely injured Norton. If not for his chainmail and the unique resilience of half-orcs, Norton would have already reported to the Grim Reaper. Even now, his condition was dire—unconscious, with priests having stopped the bleeding and military doctors administering anti-inflammatory and blood-clearing pills. If these measures failed, they would have to use the camp's last two healing elixirs.
Relieved that Norton had survived, Dahaeno knew the command valued the young half-orc beyond his rank, and he too saw potential in him. Given time, Norton's future was boundless. The defeat in this minor skirmish wasn't his fault; Amy and Daqingshan's return to Xilin Island had tipped the scales in the empire's favor. Under such circumstances, Norton's landing on the shore was commendable.
Judging heroes solely by victory and survival is equally valid.
The next steps were obvious. With the surprise attack failed, a frontal assault was inevitable. Regardless, the few hundred mercenaries on Xilin were no match for the 5000-strong reserve force at hand. Victory was within reach, even at the cost of 3000 lives.
Dahaeno convened a meeting with the centurions and calmly ordered the first and second battalions to prepare for a night assault. These battalions had defenses robust enough against archers, and as long as they secured the beachhead, victory was assured. The centurions quickly organized their troops for rest.
In the Fascist army, there was no need for pre-battle morale boosts. Every soldier believed they were the chosen ones of the gods, destined to win.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted among the soldiers outside.
"Look, a dragon!"
"That's not our dragon. It's a skeleton!"
"Quick, report to the commander!"
Compared to the imposing figure of the Yao Li dragon, Green seemed pitifully small. The Yao Li dragon stretched over meters in length, while Green barely exceeded three meters from head to tail. Moreover, with two additional 12-meter-long wind dragons by its side, Green went unnoticed.
Yet, being overlooked didn't diminish its role as the protagonist. As it neared the enemy ships, Green snapped its fingers, directing the unfortunate wind dragons to damage the hulls. One dragon's sharp claws severed the main sail's ropes, causing the massive sail to crash down, while the other swiftly grabbed an unlucky werewolf and tossed him into the sea.
"Don't panic, fire arrows!" A centurion shouted at the panicked soldiers. On nearby ships, over 200 centaur archers drew their specially-crafted strong bows, aiming at the wind dragons and the distant Yao Li dragon.
The Yao Li dragon disregarded the arrows, its sturdy bones impervious to such physical attacks. With armor covering his entire body, Chi Aotian, riding the Yao Li, neither dodged nor flinched.
The wind dragons, however, were less resilient. Though they could evade one or two arrows, they were soon riddled with them. After letting out two long cries, the wind dragons vanished into thin air.
Green tapped its head thoughtfully. There had to be a solution.
The soldiers on the ships and the high-ranking officers like Dahaeno finally saw the true instigator—a small green dragon proudly emerging from behind the skeleton dragon.
What was such a tiny dragon doing here?
Hovering over a large ship, Green squinted its left eye to aim, then snapped its fingers, summoning a dark red barrier in mid-air. From within, a dark red fire spirit emerged. Having never been summoned mid-air before, the fire spirit intended to greet the powerful force that called it and inquire about its mission. However, before it could, gravity intervened, causing it to plummet toward the ship beneath Green. Fearful of the vast ocean below, the fire spirit frantically grasped for anything—sails, ropes, half-orcs, deck—and ignited whatever it touched. The crew scrambled to extinguish the flames, and though the fire spirit was nearly knocked out, it noticed no one attacking it, muttered a curse, and swiftly returned to the spirit realm.
Green clenched its tiny paw and pumped its front limbs in excitement, "Yes!"
Over the second ship, another unlucky fire spirit was summoned, igniting another ship.
With daylight fully upon them, the orcs watched the seemingly adorable small dragon in awe.
Growing tired of the fire spirits, Green spread its wings and shot toward a large ship. As it passed, it slightly turned its head, unleashing a white breath that enveloped the entire vessel. Several half-orcs caught in the blast froze into icy statues, and all the cups of water on the ship turned to ice.
Then, countless red lightning strikes rained down on another ship, turning standing orcs into excellent conductors; the aroma of roasted meat wafted from afar.
"Fire arrows, fire arrows, fire arrows!" Chaos reigned on every ship.
Arrows filled the sky once more. Though they couldn't harm Green, the sensation of being hit was unpleasant. Green ascended sharply into the clouds, its clear dragon cry echoing through the sky.
Seeing the menacing dragon retreat, the orcs cheered. However, arrows shot into the sky had to come down, and while arrows from a single ship might follow one trajectory, those from over a hundred ships had none. Tired of chasing Green, the arrows began to descend.
"Raise shields!" The centaur archers, caught off guard by the descending arrows, were struck.
Simultaneously, Green, taking advantage of the confusion, swooped back down, unleashing a barrage of lightning across the deck.
"Pull up anchors, retreat to open sea in groups of 500. Move!" The half-orc soldiers on the flagship signaled. Within an hour, all ships had withdrawn beyond the sight of Xilin Island's sentries.
Green, glancing at Chi Aotian for permission, asked, "Can I go back now?"