Chapter 22: Run Away When You Can't Win — The Noble's Survival Rule
Just as that middle-aged man slowly turned around and saw Joshua's face, the warrior personally witnessed how a man's expression shifted from weariness mixed with slight impatience to uncontrollable terror.
Originally, it seemed that because he hadn't clearly heard what Joshua said, the man holding the communicator had turned around to rebuke the person interrupting his conversation. But when he lifted his eyes and swept them across the tall warrior's face, the man's expression froze.
His slightly ruddy complexion turned deathly pale in an instant. His lips trembled, and his eyes bulged wide like a dying fish's. In the second second of locking eyes with Joshua, a guttural "heh-heh" sound escaped the man's throat, and then he simply clamped his mouth shut, trembling silently.
*Not good. Could my charm really be this low?*
Joshua realized that the people he'd been dealing with recently were all too powerful. Whether it was Loranda or the several Gold-rank experts from the Ural Mountains, they all possessed enough strength to resist his fear aura. On his own territory, he would deliberately restrain himself a bit, but he hadn't done so just now. This intimidation value, comparable to a fear halo, had been thrown directly at the man. The warrior doubted many below Gold-rank could withstand such mental pressure.
And the middle-aged man before him—dressed in drab clothes with a long, bushy beard—clearly lacked that kind of resilient will. His small eyes, which had originally sparkled with lively intelligence, now held only pure terror. Joshua had no doubt that as soon as the man came to his senses, he would turn and flee.
Sure enough, just as the warrior predicted, the moment he slightly restrained his aura, the poor middle-aged man let out an incoherent scream, as if doused with ice water in the dead of winter. He spun around and stumbled downhill, running as if some flood beast or man-eating monster were chasing him.
"...Sometimes," Joshua sighed softly, pursing his lips. He shook his head, turned around, and continued climbing the mountain under the white glowstone light. As he walked, he complained to Ying and Lin beside him: "I really feel like I'm some demon king from a story or legend—wherever I go, only silence and wailing remain."
"Whether hero or demon king, Master is always majestic." The girl kept pace with Joshua, comforting him nonchalantly. "I also find it strange. Why are they afraid of you? You speak so gently and never put on airs like other nobles."
"Yeah! Master looks awesome in battle!" The boy echoed his sister's words with little sincerity, looking equally unconcerned. "Though suddenly walking up to someone at midnight to strike up a conversation is a bit odd. If it were me, I'd probably turn and leave too."
Meanwhile, the middle-aged man had sprinted all the way to the foot of the mountain. Before he could catch his breath, a stern male voice came from the communication array tucked into his chest: "Ivar, what happened just now? I thought I heard someone mention the name Joshua..."
Taking several deep breaths, the man named Ivar stopped his whole body from trembling. A chill had risen from his tailbone, shuttling back and forth along his spine, rendering him utterly speechless until now. Only now had he calmed down a little. Trembling, he spoke into the communication array: "My lord, you'll never guess what... what just happened!"
Before the other party could express confusion, Ivar lowered his voice, as if afraid of being discovered, and whispered: "Just now, Joshua... the Northern Count you asked me to investigate, appeared right beside me! Exactly like the portrait you provided!"
"...What? Say that again?"
On the other end of the communication array, Count Morros furrowed his brow. He had been lounging comfortably on a recliner on his mansion's balcony, but upon hearing his subordinate's account, the middle-aged noble couldn't help but sit up. Gripping the armrest of his chair, he said with utmost seriousness: "Ivar, tell me what happened again!"
After a while, once the middle-aged man had fully recounted his experience to Morros, the count comforted him briefly and then ended the call.
Sitting on the recliner, stroking his chin with furrowed brows, his expression tense and worried: "So... he's already in the Imperial Capital? Right at the mountainside?"
*This guy—he didn't use the teleportation array but walked here instead?* Many thoughts flashed through his mind, but Count Morros didn't know what to do next. He was usually a man of planning and wisdom—otherwise, he couldn't have done business with the Five-Colored Dragon Clan. But Joshua's sudden appearance had shattered his plans, leaving the middle-aged noble at a loss.
*That fool Ivar was discussing matters related to Joshua when he ran into him. No wonder he got stopped... I specifically told him to take the stairs down the mountain instead of using the teleportation array. Too much of a coincidence—truly unexpected.*
*Still, just gathering information—the other party might not care. After all, noble relationships are just like that; everyone tacitly avoids confrontation. Being discovered by Joshua this time is merely awkward.* Count Morros's mind churned with countless schemes, but in the end, he couldn't make up his mind: *He definitely doesn't know those two demon-blood dragons came through my channels. I don't need to be this nervous.*
Even so, he still felt restless.
Ivar, his subordinate, knew at least a little about his past dealings against Joshua, which was why the man had been so terrified upon seeing the Northern Count. But Morros himself wasn't much better off. Facing that monster who—according to rumors, no, who had indeed easily slain several dragons—even as a count, he felt his throat tighten.
Morros Dougning, current head of the Dougning family, a court count. His hometown was the Janus Fortress region in the southern part of the empire. His ancestors were local administrators who received their title and territory for meritorious service in repelling the Great Black Tide from the Central Black Forest. But just as northern lords lived harsh lives, southern nobles also had to struggle daily against magical beasts—something not everyone could do. After an unsuccessful resistance against the Black Tide that cost several family members' lives, the Dougning ancestors decided to abandon their territory, purchase property in the Imperial Capital, and engage in commerce—an activity other old nobles disdained.
Now, centuries later, perhaps blessed by the gods, the Dougning family's commercial network had spread across the entire empire, even establishing close ties with organizations in the Western Mountains and the Far South. The Five-Colored Dragon Clan was one of them. They exchanged goods and facilitated each other's illegal activities. Thanks to this, Morros lived in extreme luxury, renowned even in the Imperial Capital for his wealth. Using his financial resources, he had even connected with some truly great nobles—like a certain duke of the empire—securing his status.
From this perspective, he seemed to have no reason to fear Joshua. Even if the warrior knew that Morros had colluded with the Five-Colored Dragon Clan and sent assassins against him, he shouldn't have the power to exact full revenge.
But the middle-aged noble knew things weren't that simple.
The Mycroft Continent was a world of supernatural power.
And Joshua was a twenty-two-year-old Gold High-rank genius capable of slaying dragons.
Who could predict his future achievements? Perhaps this dragon-slaying warrior would stop here for life, but it was more likely he could advance to the Ultimate-rank, maybe even touch the edge of the Legendary Realm. By then, even a noble as wealthy as a nation couldn't guarantee his own or his family's safety.
Sighing softly, clenching his well-maintained right hand, Morros closed his eyes and sensed the power within his body.
Due to years of single-minded focus on managing his assets, his personal strength was only around Silver High-rank. This was thanks to the Dougning family's excellent bloodline and the accumulation of a large number of precious magical potions. The warrior's path required the tempering of blood and fire, and having spent almost his entire life in the city, he had basically no chance of breaking through to Gold-rank.
Facing those experts who could shatter city walls with one hand and overturn battle situations, Morros felt an innate reverence. The advantage of wealth didn't diminish this reverence—it amplified it.
"Perhaps I should go out and avoid the storm for a while," he said, almost to himself. "I'll go back to my hometown in the Far South and take a look. It's been many years since I last returned."
"Father!"
The balcony door suddenly burst open. A tall, robust young man with eagle-like eyes stepped out, wearing heavy training armor, sweat covering his forehead and neck. He seemed to have been waiting behind the door, having heard everything Morros said. Unable to contain himself any longer, he finally came out.
After calling out "Father," he walked up to the middle-aged noble, frowning deeply: "Why are you afraid of that Joshua? He has no evidence—how can he do anything to us?"
"Maya, have you been training with the knight order again?"
Without answering his son's question, Morros just glanced at him and shook his head: "You should learn from your younger brother. He's still in the study studying. If this continues, your position as heir will become unstable."
"But I don't care about that at all. If my brother inherits the family, I think that's fine. He's indeed more suited for it than I am." The young man named Maya wiped the sweat from his forehead, speaking disdainfully: "Father, don't avoid my question. As a noble, the most important thing is family honor. Though the Dougning family has been in business for generations, we can't forget our ancestors' military achievements!"
Morros looked deeply at the furious young man before him and smiled bitterly, shaking his head. Maya Dougning was his eldest son, who had loved playing with weapons and admired the strong since childhood, with no interest whatsoever in managing family business. Since the family indeed needed someone to support it in terms of martial strength, Morros had let nature take its course, even using connections to get him into the Imperial Capital Knight Order for training. Now eighteen, Maya was a reserve member of the knight order, devout in faith, firm in will, principled, and possessed Silver High-rank strength—completely different from his pure merchant father who would do anything for profit.
If it came to a real fight, Morros knew he might not even be a match for his son.
But compared to that man, the gap was far too wide. Especially since Maya had been undergoing strict closed training with the Imperial Capital Knight Order recently, only returning home a few days each month. So he wasn't fully aware of the latest news. His impression of Joshua might still be somewhat off.
"Maya, sit down."
Waving his hand, Morros motioned for his child to sit. After the robust young man sat down with a puzzled expression, Morros thought for a moment, then, under Maya's shocked gaze, told him the whole truth.
...
The night passed, and dawn rose.
The Dougning family mansion was now empty.