Duke Cassel had barely finished speaking when a heavy snort came from the magical projection beside him. A duke, displeased, swept his gaze over Duke Raymond and Duke Cassel and said sternly, “Don’t think your actions are flawless.”

“The title ‘King of the Near Seas’ was spread by you, wasn’t it? But now the situation has escalated beyond your control.”

It started with their own propaganda.

Then, when Saga decided to officially become the King of the Near Seas and did not stop it, he instead ordered his shadows to fan the flames, making the blaze of public opinion burn even fiercer until it was too late for the instigators to retract.

Now, in the nations of the Near Seas, the King of the Near Seas was known to all.

“Hmph, how foolish. If it were just a common beast, so be it, but you are rallying behind a dragon! Have you not considered how many creatures would want to follow a dragon whose name is known far and wide?”

Another duke spoke up to rebuke.

Duke Raymond and Duke Cassel fell silent for a moment, then forcefully said:

“This was the doing of some with ulterior motives.”

“Don’t pin it on us.”

Admission was out of the question; the two dukes were united in their stance.

Even though the other dukes knew they were behind it.

And they knew that the other dukes knew they were behind it.

But they just couldn’t admit it openly.

“Whether it was you or not, we both know the truth,” said a duke with a mocking tone.

Duke Cassel and Duke Raymond, knowing they were in the wrong, did not argue much, nor did they directly admit their fault.

After some time.

Duke Tevel slapped the table and said gravely:

“Now is not the time to pursue and shirk responsibility.”

“What we need to consider now is how to deal with the increasingly powerful King of the Near Seas.”

“Duke Cassel is right about one thing; if we keep delaying, we may soon have to worry about defending our lands under the onslaught of the dragon legion.”

As the most powerful nation among the Near Seas countries, Duke Tevel’s words carried weight.

The other dukes calmed their spirits and gradually became more rational.

“I suggest that we, the Near Seas Eight, temporarily set aside all conflicts and each send a contingent of troops to form a joint army of the Near Seas nations. Then we can besiege the Grayrock Archipelago and subdue the King of the Near Seas,” said a duke solemnly.

This was the consensus among most of the dukes.

“The suggestion of a joint army is good. Do any of you have better proposals?” asked a duke who had been silent until now.

“I think it’s safer to seek assistance from the kingdom, to request a detachment of elite troops from the kingdom, in addition to some of our own forces,” he said, only to be immediately countered by the other dukes.

“Seek help from the kingdom? There is no kingdom in the Near Seas, and the closest human kingdom, the Lionheart Kingdom, is on the Yar Continent. The Lionheart Kingdom’s Gryphon Knights are renowned on land and sea, and indeed powerful, but why would they help us?”

“Who among you is willing to pay the price for the kingdom’s troops to take action?”

“Just a dragon not yet legendary and a bunch of chaotic beasts, and we need to ask for help from the kingdom? Heh, to show fear before battle, where is the glory of our nations?”

The duke who proposed seeking help from the kingdom said helplessly, “I’m just being cautious, thinking this would be safer.”

“Duke Anis, there’s a difference between being weak and being cautious. If the Evil Dragon attacks, you’ll surely bow down just like Rus XIII,” sneered another duke who was at odds with him.

At this point, Duke Tevel knocked on the table and spoke again, his voice grave:

“We have the strength among the Near Seas nations to deal with a dragon that is not yet legendary. Although it has now gathered a considerable horde of monsters, it lacks high-ranking leaders, and overall, it’s not a concern.”

“We have many high-ranking beings. With many against few, even if the True Dragon is fierce in battle, can it fight five or ten at once?”

“We don’t need other regions to intervene. A joint army formed by us, the Near Seas nations, is enough to drive away or even exterminate the dragon.”

“Although we don’t know exactly what kind of dragon it is, even if it’s a Metal Dragon, it should be killed if it must be killed. Now that Deep Sea Dragon City is too busy to care for itself, we don’t fear their retaliation.”

These words made the other dukes nod slightly in agreement.

As rulers of their nations, they wouldn’t easily be frightened by a dragon not yet legendary, unless facing an insurmountable force.

“Let’s vote together.”

“Those willing to put aside differences and form a joint army to subdue the King of the Near Seas, raise your hand.”

Duke Tevel led the proposal.

Immediately, all eight dukes agreed without exception. The one who had been more cautious hesitated at first, but seeing the other seven dukes raise their hands, he too raised his.

Sometimes, the opposition from fellow human nations can be no less threatening than that from monster lords, and even harder to face.

“Good, now that we’ve agreed on a joint punitive expedition, let’s discuss the composition of the Near Seas joint army, as well as the appointment of important positions such as the commander-in-chief and generals, to ensure that the troops from each nation can coordinate well in battle.”

Time passed neither hurriedly nor slowly, and the council continued.

Meanwhile.

At a seaside port in Pola Duchy, an ordinary passenger ship docked, and dozens of people disembarked one after another.

Among them, a group of six acted together, passed the port inspection, and entered the duchy.

Under the cover of night, they walked through the cobblestone streets of Pola Duchy and headed to a tavern near the Sea Fang Palace complex.

It was late at night, but the tavern was still brightly lit and bustling.

The six sat down at a rather inconspicuous table. Although each one of them, from their attire to their aura, exuded a different vibe from the surrounding adventurers, strangely enough, the other adventurers in the tavern seemed not to notice them, ignoring them completely, with no one striking up a conversation or even casting curious glances.

“Captain, what are we doing here?”

“The King of the Near Seas is on Grayrock Isle, not this one.”

“Why don’t we take advantage of the night and sneak attack its Dragon’s Nest, just kill it and be done with it.”

“Its reputation is on the rise now; killing it should raise our rating in the Adventurers’ Association.”

After setting up a soundproofing spell, a female assassin clad in a belly-revealing armor and shorts, her wheat-colored slender legs exposed, licked her gleaming dagger and said with an icy voice.

This group was from the Yar Continent, invited by the nobles of Pola Duchy via letter.

They were not the rabble of adventurers in the tavern but were recognized as official adventurers by the vast neutral organization that spans many prime material worlds, the Adventurers’ Association, and their rank was quite high.

“To heaven and to the abyss.”

This was the motto of the Adventurers’ Association.

“No rush.”

Taking a sip of the coarse rye beer, a young-looking man in the group, with bright eyes, a handsome face like a teenager, but a tall and burly figure that seemed at odds with his youthful appearance, said.

He looked like a teenager but was actually forty years old.

He was the core of this group, “The Indestructible Fang” Selim.

The Indestructible Fang was not the highest in life rank here, only a high-tier eight, lower than one of the nine-tier members of the group, but he was the captain.

The reason was simple.

He was stronger.

The Indestructible Fang Selim was known to all in some regions of the Yar Continent.

Not just because he had once single-handedly slain an adult Red Dragon, which was his claim to fame, but afterwards, he advanced triumphantly, sweeping through his tier and easily overcoming higher tiers.

The number of nine-tier beings that died at the hands of the Indestructible Fang was not small.

He even had an experience of surviving and counterattacking a legendary Dire Wolf, knocking out one of its teeth.

In this world, human forces were vast.

Skyrealm Empire, Mechanar Empire, Pantheon Empire.

The three strongest empires were primarily composed of humans.

Thus, the stars of humanity were also dazzling, but among the myriad human stars, the Indestructible Fang shone exceptionally bright.

In a game, he would be a definitive human hero unit.

A high-tier legend from the Adventurers’ Association once gave the Indestructible Fang a high evaluation.

Without accidents, the Indestructible Fang was expected to become a demigod of humanity.

“Oh? Captain, what do you plan to do?”

A burly priest with a goatee, clad in armor and carrying a hammer, asked.

“I have a very strong premonition that this will be a difficult adventure.”

“The King of the Near Seas, this self-proclaimed Emperor Dragon, reigning supreme in the Near Seas, is definitely not simple.”

In the Indestructible Fang’s youthful face, his black eyes seemed to ignite with flames as he smiled slightly, revealing his white teeth.

“Are you serious, Captain?”

The dagger twirling between her fingers, the female assassin asked with a focused gaze.

“Of course, I trust my instincts.”

“The danger I feel this time is no less than when I faced that terrifying legendary Dire Wolf.”

The Indestructible Fang’s smile remained as he spoke.

Hearing this, the other members were slightly stunned, then their expressions became extremely serious.

Their captain had a very strong sense of danger, even sharper than that of a typical monk of the same tier, to make him say so.

“Um, if it’s really that dangerous, why don’t we just turn back?”

The half-elf druid, with elfin ears and a face so beautiful it was hard to tell if he was male or female, said.

The Indestructible Fang shook his head, took a sip of rye beer, and said unhurriedly:

“This is the first time I’ve felt such immense danger from a creature below the legendary tier. However, what kind of dangers and predicaments haven’t I faced on my journey? Every time, I’ve survived and become stronger.”

He paused, then continued:

“This time will be no exception.”

His gaze shifted, speculating, “According to the information we have, the King of the Near Seas is definitely not legendary. It may only have some kind of trump card that can reach the legendary level, which is why it feels so dangerous to me.”

Then, Selim raised his palm, shaking the space ring on his finger, and said:

“Don’t forget the new magical artifact we’ve acquired. Even facing a true legendary creature, we won’t have to flee this time.”

“Moreover, considering the recent situation in the Near Seas, the human nations’ campaign against this King of the Near Seas, if not unexpected, will also start soon. We’ll move opportunistically, and our chances are great. Plus, I’m about to reach tier nine and hope to break through before the battle.”

Looking at his team members, the Indestructible Fang put down his beer and said:

“I’ve made clear the level of danger I feel. You can choose to join me in one more madness or retreat. Just tell me directly, I understand.”

None of the five team members left.

“Although we’re not as strong as you, Captain, we’ve also been through countless dangers and hardships.”

“You’re trying to scare us away, Captain, but you’ve miscalculated.”

Birds of a feather flock together, and people are known by the company they keep.

Although the other members of the Indestructible Fang’s adventure group were not as strong as him, they were also elite existences in their own tiers, not to be underestimated.

“Good, let us bathe in dragon’s blood together.”

The Indestructible Fang and the other members raised their glasses and clinked them together, each filled with fighting spirit.

“To heaven and to the abyss!”

They said in unison.