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Reluctantly taking one last look at the cozy scene, George left the brightly lit street and turned into a dark, narrow alley—the only way to his home.

Suddenly, a strange voice called out to him.

"Wait."

George instantly broke out in a cold sweat, thinking of the frightening rumors: they said there was a "black market" lurking in the kingdom's shadows, where ogres and hobgoblin retainers would gather to secretly sell human organs and flesh, feasting on them.

Such things were absolutely illegal otherwise.

Had he stumbled upon the infamous black market merchants?

George wanted to run, but his feet felt as heavy as lead. He could only stiffly turn around, trembling as he spoke: "Don't, don't take me."

In his haze, he saw a figure in robes not far away, impossible to discern whether male or female, with a build similar to his—at least, it wasn't an ogre or hobgoblin.

George finally let out a sigh of relief.

The mysterious person's voice was rather gentle, simply asking him: "Don't be afraid, I am not a minion of the evil dragon. Are you a resident of Northwind Fortress?"

George scratched his head in confusion.

"I suppose so. I live here every day, after all. You know the 'Great Sage' food processing factory in the South District, right? I work there."

The mysterious figure handed him several silver coins and continued asking, "Well then, could you tell me more about this place?"

George was instantly overjoyed, his face lighting up in happiness—he hadn't expected such unexpected fortune.

He quickly stuffed those precious silver coins into his clothes, afraid the person might change their mind, and replied eagerly:

"Of course, of course."

These were silver coins—the equivalent of several months of his wages!

If George could see through the robe, he would have been astonished by the elegant features and refined demeanor hidden beneath the hood—this so-called mysterious figure was none other than Olivia, a young silver dragon and organizer of the Arcane Hermitage, also known as the "Silver Star."

Over the years, the Arcane Hermitage had grown considerably, but she had never seen the golden dragon, Angel.

Although feeling pained and disheartened, the young silver dragon mage could only assume that the righteous golden dragon might have already been captured, or even killed.

Olivia decided to gather information first and understand the situation in the city.

"Do you think your life is better or worse now compared to before?"

George smiled bashfully.

"I don't know. I used to be a farmhand on Lord Brad's estate. I never had enough to eat, and my parents both died young. A few years ago, our lord fell from power. The kingdom's officials said it was His Majesty Cassius who 'liberated' us, so I came to Northwind Fortress."

George scratched his head awkwardly as he spoke.

"I suppose it's better now. I work in the food processing plant, and it's exhausting—I'm dead tired every day—but at least I can fill my stomach. Last winter, none of my coworkers at the factory starved to death, which would've been unheard of on the estate."

"Oh, you're asking where the food comes from?"

"The bigwigs in the kingdom used some mysterious magic to create something. They call it 'nutrient paste,' but we usually call it 'gruel.' It doesn't taste like much, but it fills you up. The first time I ever ate my fill was in the factory cafeteria."

He thought of something and added in a joking tone:

"There was this guy who'd just escaped from an estate. He'd never seen so much food before, and when he first came here, he ate ten pounds of gruel and almost burst himself to death."

Olivia was a little surprised; this wasn't what she had expected at all.

In her mind, Northwind Fortress should've been filled with resentment and misery by now.

After all, given a red dragon's greed and brutality, any place under their rule would typically face harsh exploitation. Furthermore, in the poems and novels of northern nobles, the Ember Kingdom was often depicted as a demonic pit straight out of hell.

Even Olivia couldn't help having some preconceived notions.

As a silver dragon who had lived among humans in the North for a long time, Olivia was well aware of the harsh serfdom system there and had often criticized it.

But as an outsider, under the advice of her clan elders, Olivia couldn't interfere casually in human society. She could only feel sympathy for these countless "gray livestock" and offer charity now and then.

She hadn't expected that this red dragon would use valuable magical resources for production and even free the serfs. It was unimaginable for Olivia.

By Bahamut, this was a red dragon!

As a natural enemy, silver dragons understood these terrifying chromatic dragons better than anyone.

Unlike the silver dragons, who were fond of humanoid creatures, red dragons despised everything. They often saw humans, elves, and the like as little more than snacks. Even those under their rule were treated as nothing more than reserve rations or cannon fodder.

Olivia thought that perhaps the "Ember King" wasn't entirely beyond redemption.

But maybe...

He had an even greater scheme?

With that thought, Olivia continued her questioning.

"You mean His Majesty Cassius? I've never seen him myself, but I heard he's been sleeping for a while now. For dragons, I guess that's normal. There are some other rumors, but it seems he hasn't eaten anyone yet. The folks who spread those lies got arrested by the Nocturne people."

George couldn't help but shrink his neck when mentioning Nocturne.

"We lowly workers don't really know what the bigwigs think. We mainly learn about His Majesty from the 'Kingdom Daily.' How did it go again?"

"Oh, right... His Majesty Cassius is the great 'Father' of the nation and its citizens.

With his immense power, he shattered the old order and established a new one under the Ember Kingdom.

He implemented the rigorous and fair 'Kingdom Code,' giving every citizen equal standing before the law, enabling harmony between humans and retainers, and preventing those lofty nobles from oppressing us any longer. "

George spoke fluently, almost reciting it like a script, his voice rising and falling rhythmically.

After all, "Kingdom Daily" repeated these praises for the red dragon almost every day, and every outlet seemed to sing his praises endlessly.

George and his coworkers had heard it so many times that it was etched into their minds, practically a conditioned reflex.

Olivia frowned slightly.

It seemed the red dragon's rule had grown deeply entrenched on this land, making it hard to shake. If she wanted to resist, she wouldn't even know where to find suitable allies.

"How could this be..."

Thinking of the missing golden dragon, Olivia's heart surged with a sense of righteous indignation: how could someone who harmed the righteous be a worthy ruler?

But hearing George's sincere words, she found herself speechless, struggling to find any grounds for rebuttal.

Even a silver dragon had to admit that, for these tragically born serfs, the red dragon's rule might have genuinely improved their lives.

After a moment's hesitation, Olivia couldn't help but ask:

"Isn't there... anyone who wants to resist him?"