Fang Hong wanted to say that he was not injured, but seeing the actions of the others, he realized how ignorant he was. The bottle actually contained salt — salt was an essential item for traveling through the swamp.

It was the nemesis of leeches.

Although it had only been a few minutes in the water bay, Fang Hong witnessed the prowess of these little creatures. He watched Mazak sprinkle salt on the leeches, watching them shrivel and detach, dissolving into a pool of blood.

The others followed suit, all except Tianlan, who made a big fuss as if it wasn't the leeches that were dying, but herself.

Before long, another girl's figure appeared in the mangrove forest — it was Atira. Tianlan screamed at the sight of Atira, plunging into her arms and almost knocking Atira into the water. Gita seemed happy too, but hesitated and did not go over.

Atira pushed Tianlan away with a wry smile. When she saw Fang Hong, she paused slightly, then her eyes filled with a warm and soft gaze.

Fang Hong naively asked the elf girl if she needed salt, but Mazak glanced at the pendant on Atira's chest and told him that Ameya's believers were not subject to attacks by wild animals, including insects.

Of course, except for the mad ones —

The bonfire was burning brightly. Atira walked over and sat down by the fire, everyone drying their clothes around the bright flames. Gita watched the innkeeper with curious eyes, wanting not just to know why he was there.

More importantly, they all desired an explanation for everything that had happened inside the inn.

Mazak silently drew the Dragon Slayer Sword, Galapea, a few inches from its sheath, letting the bright sword light reflect off the flames onto his face. He then slowly drew the entire sword out and finally said to Fang Hong, "About a hundred years ago, my ancestor severely wounded Nikopolas with this sword, cutting off one of its horns and a claw in that fight."

"Your ancestor?" Gita crouched, her legs together, her small hands facing the bonfire, and whispered in surprise, "Mr. Mazak, are you a descendant of Xiuyuede?"

"Our family is indeed descendants of the Oathkeepers," Mazak murmured as he ran his fingers along the blade, chanting, "Never forget the fallen enemy —"

His voice was very long, pulling everyone by the leaping bonfire into that era, when dragon wings covered the sun and flames burned cities.

"Wait a minute," Fang Hong, full of doubts, spoke up, "Mr. Mazak, is that horn the very one that Nikopolas had cut off? Was it personally cut off by the dragon slaying hero Xiuyuede?"

Xiuyuede was a legendary hero active around the Cloud Sea area about a hundred years ago, with many legendary stories and ballads about him circulating in the Colin Ishurian region. The most widely known of them is that he adhered to the Dragon Slayer's oath, wielding the legendary Dragon Slayer Sword — Galapea, and defeated the evil dragon of Istania.

But the evil dragon was not necessarily the Dark Giant Dragon.

The legends about the Dark Giant Dragon ended seven centuries ago with the epic battle in the Dead Marsh, culminating with the last giant dragon 'Prison Tongue' dying under the Morning Light Holy Sword—its bearer, also a legendary Dwarf hero, Dwarf King Valit of the Steelbrow Dwarves.

But upon closer thought, neither official documents nor folk stories ever mentioned the color of the dragon slain by Xiuyuede.

And today, Mazak—this innkeeper claiming to be a descendant of Xiuyuede, wielding the Dragon Slayer Sword, Galapea, told them that the dragon his heroic ancestor had repelled that day was a Black Dragon — Black Dragons, without exception, are followers of darkness, the most prominent representation among the Dark Giant Dragons.

And he also told them that this dragon was named Nikopolas, also known as the Dragon's Witch. His ancestor had not killed it, but merely severely injured it, cutting off a horn and a claw, and blinding one of its eyes in that battle.

But Gita had never read any mention of this story in the Great Library of Elpaxin—only Fang Hong remembered this name, having heard it mentioned by that odd pair of master and servant.

But that impressive blonde girl was now nowhere to be found.

He again inquired within, asking Miss Fairy, who sat on his shoulder and shook her silver ponytail, but she too had no idea.

And upon hearing Fang Hong's question, Mazak fell silent for a long while before finally asking, "That's a long story, do you really want to hear it?"

"Yes, yes," Tianlan nodded vigorously.

But the tall man only looked at Fang Hong—

until he nodded.

...

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