Chapter 20: The Baron’s Rage
Late night, at the Baron’s residence.
“Smack!”
A pair of pale hands smmed heavily oable.
“Useless! You’re all useless!”
The man cursed loudly, spittle flying.
His face was harsh, filled with gloom, his thin body ed in formal attire.
A small, intricate medal bearing the image of an eagle and sword io his chest. Those with knowledge would reize it as the Northwind Eagle—the crest of the La family.
His name was Todd La, one of the lesser-regarded sons of the old duke, perhaps the twelfth. He had been granted a barony in a remote pce.
Standing before him was Hart, a stout middle-aged man, once a sve trader who had since bee a steward at the baroe.
“My lord, I had no choice…”
“So you’re tellihat all the kobolds ran off, and the gold mine was abandoned?”
“No, no, let me expin…”
“I don’t want expnations; I want gold! Gleaming gold! Without gold, I ’t sustain this barony, I ’t support the army, and I certainly ’t pete with my dear brothers ba the family. All I do here in this forsaken pce is starve!”
Todd grew angrier as he spoke, finally kig the man in front of him, pletely disregarding any noble de.
Hart got up from the ground without a hint of rese, saying only, “My lord, it all happened so suddenly. Half of the meraries we brought simply disappeared.”
“Acc to those guarding the kobolds in the miheir panions vanished without even a scream.”
“There really is a monster in the mine!”
“And we know nothing about it—its habits, or why it suddenly attacked. Given the circumstao avoid further losses to your resources, I had no choice but to retreat.”
Todd sneered, “That just proves you and your meraries are useless! If you were even a bit petent, you wouldn’t have fled without even glimpsing the enemy.”
Hart wiped the cold sweat from his brow and forced a fawning smile, “Of course, my lord. How could lowly oners like us ever pare to you, the noble blood of the Northwind Eagle and a powerful spellcaster?”
Todd adjusted his colr, saying slowly, “That’s more like it. Well said.”
The baron sat ba his leather chair behind the desk, half-reing with his fingers interced. “Si’s e to this, do you have any remedy?”
“I need you to provide me with a solution.”
Relieved that Todd had calmed down, Hart exhaled deeply, saying, “My lord, we could request a few Eaglesguards from the duke to secure the mine. What do you think—”
“Eaglesguards?” Todd interrupted coldly.
“I ’t believe you’d even think of that.”
“Do you not realize—they’re all spies for my father? Letting them into the mine would mean the gold would be lost to us pletely!”
“It would just be shipped straight to Northwind Keep!”
Hart hurriedly amended, flustered, “My apologies, my lord. That was a trivial suggestion. Surely, with your wisdom, you have a far better pn. It’s just…”
“Enough. If I don’t see gold by month, I’ll go to the mine myself.”
Todd cut off his excuses, fixing Hart with a chilling stare.
“Y-yes, my lord.”
“My patience is limited. There won’t be a ime, Hart. There really won’t.”
Todd’s fingers drummed rhythmically oable.
“Uood, my lord,” Hart replied, bowing his head quickly, not daring to meet the baron’s gaze.
“Look up, Hart.”
“Do you really uand?”
Hart relutly lifted his head to meet the baron’s eyes.
Todd’s gaze was cold, a faint red glimmer in his pupils, looking not at a subordi rather at—meat on a pte.
“Yes… yes, my lord,” Hart’s voice trembled.
“Prepare yourself, and gather those useless meraries.”
“Yes, yes.”
“My lord, I’ll take my leave.”
After receiving the order, Hart left without hesitation, almost as if fleeing for his life.
“Huff, huff…”
Outside the door, Hart panted heavily. He knew he still had some use to the baron; otherwise, he wouldn’t have escaped so easily.
Inside, Baron Todd La adjusted his colr in front of the mirror, unsciously lig his lips, revealing his unusually sharp teeth.
Another distinctive trait of the La family.
………
“Is this the pce?”
The red dragon stood atop a high hill, gazing at the seemingly bottomless mine in the distance, with a kobold held in his cws.
“M-master, yes, this is the pce.”
Gold-Fang rubbed his head involuntarily, barely rec from the dizziness of high-speed flight.
“Then take me in.”
“Oh, my great master, I am but a humble kobold, this… this…” Cold speared on Gold-Fang’s scaly forehead.
The mine was like a nightmare to the kobolds. Nearly all his kin had been devoured by that monster, and having barely escaped once, he dreaded returning.
Even with the red dragon’s support, he still felt uneasy.
After all, a dragon wouldn’t care about the life or death of a single kobold.
“What? You’re unwilling?” Cassius asked.
“Of course I am willing, absolutely willing.”
Sensing the dragon’s displeased tohe kobold hastily replied.
“Serving you is the greatest honor of my life, it’s just…”
“Just what?”
“Just that… I need a little time to recall the path through the mine.” Cold sweat dripped from the kobold’s .
“Clip-clop, clip-clop…”
Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves interrupted their versation, allowing the kobold to breathe a sigh of relief.
Looking down the road, several riders galloped towards them, eae weariher armor and carrying crossbows at their belts.
The red dragon crouched low, hiding his form as much as possible, and whispered to the kobold with a message spell, “Who are they? Do yhem?”
Peeking out, the kobold observed the humans’ armor and carefully noted a few of their faces before speaking.
“Master, it’s those sve traders who onsved us. Their leader… I remember his name is Hart.”
“Humaraders? Are they also here to cim the gold mine?”
“Master, these seem to be scouts. They had over twenty people before, including some Professionals. The main force is likely waiting behind,” the kobold added.
“How ve. They’ll make fihfinders.” Cassius’s eyes narrowed.
