Chapter 489: Fierce Aerial Battle

Chapter 489: Fierce Aerial Battle

"Ah~"

Senator Bertrand, upon hearing this news, no longer felt angry but sighed helplessly, saying:

"It's humiliating! Our Federation, within our own territory, is relying on others for security."

"Quickly contact Princess Maynia and request the support of the Imperial Dragon Knights."

"Additionally, Commander Reisz, immediately adjust the formation of the airship fleet. Once the Dragon Knights are in position, synchronize the offensive."

"Yes, sir, Deputy Speaker."

A series of commands were issued within the Captain's Cabin.

This time, even the three Ajax Ultra-Magnitude Golems suspended beneath the cargo airships had their covers removed.

Although the golems couldn't engage in aerial combat with the Strange Fire Dragon, the energy cannons on the three golems were quite formidable.

They hadn't been used earlier to avoid drawing the Strange Fire Dragon's attention and potentially damaging the expensive golems. But now, with the worsening situation and the imminent support of the Imperial Dragon Knights, they were swiftly put into action.

On the Imperial Airship.

Witnessing the intense battle before him, Lord Ren appeared deep in thought.

"Although the Federation leads the Empire in the Steam Revolution, facing such a resurrected giant beast, even the most advanced mega-golems would struggle to withstand it."

"As for this flying giant beast, it's even more challenging to deal with."

"The Empire needs the Federation's advanced technology, and the Federation requires the assistance of the Imperial Dragon Knights."

"No wonder both sides quickly shifted from hostility to mutual visits."

As Lord Ren's thoughts wandered, a messenger hurried to the ship's railing and reported:

"Reporting! Princess Maynia, the Federal Airship Fleet urgently requests the support of the Imperial Dragon Knights!"

"Yes, inform the Federal Airship Fleet that I and His Highness Reginald will deploy immediately."

"Yes, Princess Maynia!"

Hmm? Lord Ren was eager to test his skills, but upon hearing Maynia's words, he was taken aback.

Could it be? Was he to remain behind again? As expected, Maynia turned and gave him a slight smile, saying:

"Lord Ren, I and His Highness Reginald will suffice. You should stay and guard the airship."

"Well..."

"Alright, Princess Maynia," Lord Ren could only nod in reluctant agreement.

He naturally understood Maynia's intentions.

She wanted him to avoid drawing too much attention to himself.

Perhaps, in her eyes, his performance during the battles with the Sea God Cult and the Sea Kraken had already made him stand out, even landing him on the Federation's watch list.

Maynia's warning to him on the carriage the day before further confirmed these concerns.

However, Lord Ren was well aware that he had already been quite restrained.

Otherwise, if it became known that he had used the Dawn Kill nine times in the Mortuary Sea Domain, who knew how many jaws would drop in surprise.

"Roar! Roar!!"

With two resounding dragon roars, the 'Red Queen' Maynia, clad in her red wizard's robe, swiftly flew towards the Strange Fire Dragon atop her partner, the Red Dragon Tasar.

And to her right, several dozen meters away, was Lord Reginald riding on the Yellow-Brown Dragon Ted.

Lord Ren watched as the two quickly flew away, his thoughts racing:

"If Maynia and Reginald can resolve the Federal Airship Fleet's predicament, Lady Tereyna's safety will be indirectly guaranteed. As her Guardian Knight, I won't have failed in my duty."

"As for absorbing dragon genes, once this Strange Fire Dragon is defeated, I can find an opportunity to get close and do so without any loss."

Lord Ren, having figured this out, stopped worrying and began to focus on the battle.

Just as the Strange Fire Dragon was wreaking havoc on the Federal Airship Fleet, it suddenly halted its attack on the airships below and cautiously gazed at the two Dragon Knights rapidly approaching.

Generally, Fire Dragons, as top-tier sub-dragons, are not far behind true dragons in terms of strength. However, due to their inherent bloodline disadvantage, they tend to be naturally timid when facing true dragons.

Of course, this is generally speaking.

In Lord Ren's view, this ancient fire dragon had mutated, and he didn't believe it would easily back down, judging by its size and appearance.

Indeed!

"Roar!!!"

Facing the synchronized attack of the two Dragon Knights, this Strange Fire Dragon showed no fear and instead charged towards Maynia and Reginald.

"Hmm? Not a hint of retreat?"

"This Strange Fire Dragon is much stronger than we anticipated. It seems the pressure of high-ranking dragon bloodlines doesn't affect it at all." Lord Ren narrowed his eyes.

Typically, Fire Dragons encountering Red Dragons would show some fear, but this massive and unusual ancient Fire Dragon was clearly an exception.

As the Strange Fire Dragon and the two Imperial Dragon Knights approached each other, they clashed within seconds.

In an instant, two intense streams of dragon breath, one on the left and one on the right, collided in midair.

"Boom!!!"

Two fiery columns clashed fiercely in the sky, but in terms of power, Tasar's fiery breath was no match. Within seconds, it was suppressed to a position ten meters in front of them.

"Huh?"

Although Maynia had expected a tough opponent, she was surprised that Tasar, a pureblood Red Dragon, couldn't hold back the enemy at all.

Of course, as an experienced Epic-level Strong, she reacted swiftly despite her astonishment.

Menia swiftly chanted an incantation and raised her fair finger, from which a red spiral beam of light shot forth, piercing through the raging flames and striking the strange fire dragon.

"Sizzle!"

Menia unleashed her signature move, the Dawn Kill—'Blazing Wave Cone'!

Beside her, the yellow-brown dragon Ted, under the control of Reginald, the Land Pulse, swiftly positioned himself above the strange fire dragon and unleashed a breath attack.

"Gravel Breath!"

A torrent of yellow-brown breath, laden with countless gravel, rained down upon the back of the strange fire dragon.

Despite the initial disadvantage, the two veteran dragon knights swiftly turned the tables, displaying their seasoned combat prowess.

From a medium-sized airship nearby, Saint Swordsman Tyrion couldn't help but exclaim,

"Lady Menia of the Empire possesses such rich combat experience that even Epic-level Strong would struggle to match her."

"Indeed, especially with her dragon companion. The Empire's Dragon Knights are as formidable as the rumors suggest," agreed Commander Hernandez, who had joined him.

Due to their distance of over 700 meters from the strange fire dragon and Hernandez's consideration of his water-based magic colliding with the fire dragon's body fire ring, creating steam and obscuring their vision, neither of them intervened at this moment. They were biding their time for the right opportunity.

However, just as everyone anticipated a successful strike, the strange fire dragon abruptly shifted from horizontal flight to vertical flight, evading Ted's 'Gravel Breath'.

Simultaneously, after taking the full force of Menia's Blazing Wave Cone on its chest, it accelerated towards Red Dragon Tasar, unleashing a powerful claw attack.

"Pfft!"

Dragon scales shattered, and blood splattered!

Caught off guard, Tasar's right wing was instantly scratched with four gashes, each over a meter long!

"Roar!!!"

The strange fire dragon, despite the unfavorable conditions, was holding its own against the two veteran dragon knights, Menia and Reginald.

No, it was gaining the upper hand.

Tasar's right wing was severely damaged, affecting its flight speed and balance, which would be a significant disadvantage in the upcoming aerial combat.

"What?!"

Saint Swordsman Tyrion's eyes widened in shock.

"This..."

"A beast with such power should be renowned even in ancient times. We should contact the flagship and investigate its origins immediately," suggested Commander Hernandez, his face also filled with astonishment.

Engaging in combat with a beast of unknown strength carried significant risks.

Just moments ago, everyone had thought victory was within their grasp.

But unexpectedly, the situation took a turn.

Lord Ren, observing from a nearby airship, furrowed his brows slightly.

He had identified the crux of the battle—Saint Swordsman Tyrion and the water-based Dawn Wizard Hernandez lacked flying mounts, making it challenging to provide timely support to the dragon knights.

To be precise, it wasn't that the vast Federation lacked flying mounts, but rather that ordinary flying mounts were of little use against dragons.

When startled, these mounts could become a hindrance in battle.

With the Federation's strongmen unable to provide immediate support, if Tasar's injuries worsened, the subsequent combat would favor the strange fire dragon, allowing it to pick off its opponents one by one.

This was the unique aspect of aerial combat—high mobility could lead to overwhelming odds.

Lord Ren keenly recognized this.

Although it wasn't apparent yet, the situation was gradually deteriorating.

Without a single mistake, a single shot, a single move, a single moment, a single container, a single 6, a single 9, a single book, a single glance!

Once Tasar withdrew from the battle, Lord Ren predicted that Reginald and his dragon Ted would likely be no match for the strange fire dragon.

Next in line would be the Federation's duo.

"I must seize the opportunity to support Tasar while her strength remains. Otherwise, we might be defeated one by one by this strange fire dragon!"

With his decision made, Lord Ren took a step forward and leaped off the airship's deck.

In the next instant, a massive dark silver dragon appeared before everyone's eyes.

Having absorbed the dragon gene fragments from Gazrian, Lord Ren found his transformed body significantly larger than the previous time.

His length had increased from over thirty meters to nearly forty meters, even surpassing Red Dragon Tasar in size.

Meanwhile, below in the mountains, the Zaral Resistance Elite Squad was witnessing the spectacle with great delight.

Their leader, General Richmond, a man with a bushy beard, took the rare opportunity during the mission to indulge in some rum.

He uncorked the bottle and guzzled down several mouthfuls, emptying a small steel canteen of rum in one go.

"General Richmond, have some of mine," said a man in leather armor with a smile, offering another bottle of rum.

"This ancient fire dragon is truly formidable! It just destroyed six airships in a row, and now it's injured the red dragon of the Dragon Empire," he remarked.

"Indeed, even the Empire's Dragon Knights couldn't defeat it. I thought this 'Red Queen' from the rumors was supposed to be exceptional, haha!"

General Richmond nodded, saying nothing more, but his smile was uncontrollable.

(End of Chapter)

The subordinates were all too familiar with General Richmond's personality—he liked to put on airs and act mysterious. But in this moment, anyone could see the barely suppressed smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Richmond was more than satisfied with the outcome of this mission. In fact, it exceeded his wildest expectations. In his plan, even if the two Imperial Dragon Knights couldn't win, as long as they could inflict some losses on the Empire's airship fleet and personnel, it would be considered a great success.

He never imagined that the ancient fire dragon, Anguskin, would be so formidable, and it seemed that with a little more effort, it might even be able to take down the Empire's Red Queen, Maynia, in midair! If not, the red dragon she rode would most likely be fatally wounded.

"Hey, what's that?" One of the subordinates, who was observing through a brass telescope, suddenly exclaimed.

"How did another dragon appear?"

"And it's huge!"

Another subordinate, intrigued, also picked up a brass monocular telescope to take a look.

The next moment, he too exclaimed, "Hey, it's true! Another dragon is flying out from the Imperial airship fleet, but how is that possible? The intelligence report only mentioned two Dragon Knights from the Empire!"

Several other subordinates grabbed their telescopes to take a look, and soon, they seemed to witness something unbelievable, whispering in disbelief.

"Hmm? Another dragon?" Richmond, who had just taken a big gulp of wine, initially thought he had misheard or that his subordinates were seeing things.

But when several people said the same thing, he paused, then immediately grabbed a telescope to take a look.

The next second, his expression turned grim.

Damn it! There really was an unseen giant dragon! The Empire's delegation had kept this secret well-hidden.

Onboard the Federation's giant airship.

"Quickly, contact His Highness Tyrion and Commander Hernandez! We must not let Her Highness Maynia of the Empire get hurt!" Seeing that Maynia's red dragon was injured, Senator Bertrand, the deputy speaker, was uncharacteristically shouting.

He had assumed that with the addition of the two Imperial Dragon Knights, the battle would be easily won.

But who could have predicted that Maynia's red dragon would be wounded in just one encounter?

This strange fire dragon was far more formidable than they had imagined!

Moreover, the most crucial point was that Maynia, as the leader of the Imperial delegation and the aunt of the Emperor of the Dragon Empire, held an exceptionally special status. If she were to be injured or, worse, killed, the consequences would be unimaginable! That's why Senator Bertrand had lost his composure.

Even Treyna, the parliamentarian, remained silent this time, offering no words of advice.

Like Senator Bertrand, she was well aware of the potential fallout if something were to happen to the Red Queen, Maynia, on Federation soil.

To put it bluntly, even if a Federal Saint Swordsman were to die here, the Red Queen, Maynia, must not perish.

In an instant, several messengers rushed out, while the generals began discussing countermeasures. The captain's cabin soon became a chaotic scene.

"Look! What's that?"

"An unseen giant dragon is rapidly approaching from the direction of the Imperial airship fleet!" A lookout shouted.

His voice immediately grabbed everyone's attention.

"What? Is that even possible?!" Senator Bertrand grabbed a brass telescope to take a look.

Indeed, in his field of view, a dark silver dragon with a metallic sheen on its body was flying swiftly towards the center of the battlefield.

"Intelligence Department, are you incompetent? How could you not know about such a massive dragon hidden within the Imperial delegation?" Senator Bertrand's mood was a mix of joy and speechlessness.

"I swear, Your Excellency, I can assure you that before the fleet departed from the Westin City Hall, there was no such dragon in the Imperial airship fleet," said the middle-aged officer from the Intelligence Department, his face turning red as he defended himself.

"Um... Your Excellency, it's that young Lord Ren!"

"I just saw it. Young Lord Ren jumped off the airship, and the next second, he transformed into a giant dragon," said a white-haired general, hesitating slightly as he recalled the scene.

He had initially doubted his own eyes due to his age, but after checking again, he noticed that the young Lord Ren's figure was indeed missing from the deck of the Empire's flagship airship, which gave him the confidence to speak up.

After all, it was unlikely for Ren to return to the cabin during such an intense battle.

"What? Lord Ren transformed into a dragon?"

Including Senator Bertrand, the other high-ranking generals also grabbed their telescopes to take another look at the dragon.

"Sir, I confirm that Lord Ren's figure is no longer on the deck of the Imperial airship," a lookout reported after a careful inspection.

This statement left no room for doubt.

The dark silver dragon in front of them must be Lord Ren's transformation.

The beautiful parliamentarian, Treyna, was also observing through her brass telescope, her eyes wide and her cherry lips parted in surprise.

Such an expression on the face of a high-ranking Federal parliamentarian was indeed rare.

Just as everyone was in shock, Lord Ren had already reached the vicinity of the strange fire dragon.

End of Chapter

Chapter end