S-Rank quests

A few days later, deep within the Suffocating Swamp Forest, a fierce argument erupted inside a crumbling, dilapidated castle!

"Hey, Murdock, are you even listening? That damn green fly is back again! Buzzing around—so annoying!"

"Garrick, are you an idiot? That's a Green Dragon! A Tier 13 Legendary Unit—a Green Dragon! A being as mighty as Lord Hava himself, and you're calling it a green fly?! Idiot! You're a complete idiot!"

"Murdock, you're the idiot! Lord Hava is the strongest! He's invincible! And besides, that damn green fly is just a wyrmling—a wyrmling! Do you get it?!"

"Even a wyrmling is still a Green Dragon! A mighty Tier 13 Legendary Unit—a Green Dragon! You brainless fool, Garrick, do you have any idea it could crush you into pulp with a single swipe?!"

"Murdock, you're the idiot!"

"No, you are, Garrick—"

The heated argument raged on for over half an hour before finally dying down.

"Hey, Murdock, are you listening? Lord Hava has ordered us to kill it! Right now, Lord Hava is recovering from his injuries—he's weak! No one can be allowed to find him!"

"Garrick, are you a complete moron? That's a Green Dragon! We can't kill it!"

"Murdock, this is Lord Hava's will! Are you saying you want to betray him?"

"…Garrick, how many troops do we even have left in Blackmire Castle?"

"It's all because of those two damn Ancient Behemoths! Murdock, right now, Blackmire Castle only has:

1,000 Tier 2 Werewolf Warriors

800 Tier 2 Gnoll Marauders

200 Tier 4 Lizard Warriors

50 Tier 6 Dragon Flies

20 Tier 8 Greater Basilisks

5 Tier 10 Mighty Gorgons"

"Garrick, you're telling me we're supposed to throw this at a Green Dragon? And not just one—there are two of them! Plus, there's a new castle over in Verdant Ravine. You do realize what that means, right?"

"It means that behind those two mighty Green Dragons, there's a powerful lord backing them."

A heavy silence fell over the ruined castle.

After a long pause, a voice finally broke the stillness.

"Then we wait—one and a half months. In one and a half months, Blackmire Castle will be able to recruit two Tier 12 Venom Wyvern Kings. That's everything we've got left… Murdock, you know what will happen if that damn green fly finds Lord Hava in his weakened state. Blackmire Castle will be wiped out."

"…Fine. We don't have a choice."

At the same time, Ethan, who was grinding levels with Seraphina, suddenly heard a system notification.

Ding!

"Congratulations! The castle under your command, Emerald Castle, has triggered a special storyline quest: 'Blackmire Castle's Hostility.'

Quest Objective: Unknown (Investigate on your own).

Quest Difficulty: S-Rank.

Quest Duration: Unknown.

Special Reminder: S-Rank quests are extremely difficult. Please prepare accordingly!"

"Huh?!"

Ethan froze on the spot, completely stunned.

An S-Rank special storyline quest?!

What the hell is going on?!

"Whoosh!"

At that moment, a massive figure shot through the sky from the distance.

Like a bolt of lightning, it landed right in front of Ethan, kicking up a powerful gust of wind that made it nearly impossible to stand firm.

"ROAR! ROAR! ROAR…!"

A familiar dragon's roar echoed through the swirling air.

Looking closely—it was Cicero.

But something was clearly wrong. He seemed anxious, hurriedly speaking to Ethan.

"What?! There's a castle inside the Suffocating Swamp Forest?!"

Understanding Cicero's words, Ethan's expression changed again—his shock deepening.

"Could it be… that's the Blackmire Castle?"

His face grew even more serious.

An S-Rank quest—this was no joke.

It was going to be insanely difficult.

"Let's go! Back to Emerald Castle—we need a meeting!"

At this point, Ethan had completely lost interest in grinding levels. He climbed onto Cicero's back, gave a decisive wave, and the two Green Dragons immediately took off, soaring back toward Emerald Castle.

Meanwhile, Elynn, who had received Ethan's message in advance, was already waiting inside Emerald Castle.

"Honored Master, has something happened?"

Seeing Ethan, Cicero, and Seraphina return together, Elynn's expression shifted slightly.

"There's a castle inside the Suffocating Swamp Forest! And they've probably noticed us by now. We need to figure out how to handle this… If I'm not mistaken, that castle is likely just like ours—Emerald Castle—meaning they also have Tier 13 Legendary Units!"

Ethan's face was grim as he spoke.

"What?! A castle?!"

The moment Ethan said this, Elynn's expression changed drastically.

A mountain cannot have two tigers.

A kingdom cannot have two kings.

That was a simple, undeniable truth.

If two castles existed in the same region, there was only one possible outcome—a fight to the death.

Unless one side was willing to submit.

But that definitely wasn't going to be Emerald Castle.

"This is a serious problem…"

Elynn's face darkened.

"Her Highness Seraphina still has some time before she reaches adulthood—she won't make it in time. Even if the enemy only has one Tier 13 Legendary Unit, as long as it's a fully matured creature, it would take both Seraphina and Cicero working together just to barely hold it off!"

"And if that happens, we'll have almost no forces left to deal with the rest of their army!"

To put it bluntly, Emerald Castle was currently relying entirely on Seraphina and Cicero to maintain its strength.

Aside from them, the number of troops that could actually make a difference in battle was… almost nonexistent.

"I get it…"

Ethan frowned deeply.

"But no matter what, we have to come up with a plan!"

"I have an idea, but…"

Elynn hesitated.

"What idea?"

Ethan immediately pressed her for an answer.