Chapter 266: Kidnapping Nacho

The setting sun sprinkled like gold on the lush green lawn of the Hithna Manor. In the yard, the busy servants shuttled back and forth, making the final preparations for the upcoming banquet.

Nacho stood on the corridor watching all this, playing with a silver coin in his hand.

On the silver coin was the emblem of the Empire's Dragon-Slaying Army, between a pair of dragon wings were two long knives crossed into an "X".

In the Imperial Royal Family, coins made of different materials represented different statuses, as well as different powers held in one's hands.

From bottom to top, they were copper coins, silver coins, gold coins, and the unicorn crystal which represented being beneath one person and above ten thousand.

Nacho Salaman had spent nearly twenty years to turn the copper coin in his hand into the silver coin it was today.

Although on the surface it seemed like he hadn't reached the top, nor was he at the bottom, this was already a height in life that most people could never reach.

Further up, was the most chaotic whirlpool in the Empire's power system. Those holding gold coins were without exception shrewd and cunning ministers and politicians.

Nacho knew he hadn't reached that level yet; guarding his own patch of land and keeping his head on his shoulders was already the greatest success.

To have reached this step today, the one Nacho most wanted to thank was not 'that lord' who promoted him all the way.

But a 'ghost', a ghost that disappeared for twenty years.

Twenty years ago, Nacho personally witnessed that unprecedentedly intense battle, and truly saw the dragons' fanatic obsession with revenge.

That man named Leon Casmodeous was ridiculously strong. If it hadn't been for Ravi perishing together with him in the end, life in the Empire would not be as peaceful as it was now.

And Nacho would not have been conferred a title and promoted afterward.

At that time, Leon was a juicy piece of meat in the eyes of the royal nobles. Anything related to Leon, as long as one could make a contribution, promotion and fortune were guaranteed.

So Nacho was very grateful to that guy. Without him, Nacho would not have climbed to today's height.

Of course—

Nacho looked at the silver coin in his hand, the corner of his mouth slightly curved.

He could only silently thank that monster who didn't belong in this dimension in his heart.

Thanking him in person was already impossible.

At this moment, a burly waiter quietly passed through Nacho's field of vision, holding a tray, with his head lowered unusually low.

Nacho's thoughts were interrupted by the other's footsteps.

He turned his head and looked at the tall waiter's back, a thought stirred in his mind, and he murmured, "Strange... seems I haven't seen this person before."

"My lord, the room is ready. Let's go over and wait for them." Another man walked to Nacho's side and said respectfully.

"Scott, have you seen that black-haired waiter?", Nacho asked.

Scott was Nacho's current assistant, helping him handle daily affairs.

Once Nacho got promoted again, Scott would be able to take his place.

Following Nacho's gaze, Scott squinted slightly and carefully observed the black-haired waiter's back, then shook his head, "Haven't seen him, probably newly hired. Hithna Manor has strict standards for waiters and servants, my lord can rest assured."

Nacho nodded and didn't pay more attention.

The two passed through the corridor, heading toward the most luxurious dining hall of Hithna Manor.

After sitting down, Nacho asked, "How long until Blade One and the others arrive?"

"About twenty minutes," Scott replied.

"Mm, go patrol once more, make sure everyone here is ours."

"Yes, my lord."

Nacho was cautious in his actions. For every welcoming banquet, he would arrive early at the manor to arrange personnel and set up posts.

He liked the feeling of having everything under his control.

Twenty years ago, Nacho didn't know what power was;

And the disappearance of Casmodeous indirectly allowed him to taste the flavor of power.

That feeling was like a poison that penetrated the bones, once touched, you couldn't stop.

Nacho sat upright at the dining table, eyes closed slightly, quietly waiting for the arrival of the Sharp Blade Special Forces team.

Squeak—

The door opened.

Then came the dull and slow footsteps.

"Wasn't it supposed to be another half hour?"

Nacho didn't open his eyes, his tone carried a trace of displeasure.

He didn't like Scott getting the time wrong, nor did he like the scheduled plan being disrupted by those three idiots arriving early.

It gave him a sense of loss of control over power.

However, facing Nacho's questioning, the other party did not respond.

He only quietly closed the door.

Only then did Nacho slowly open his eyes, "I'm talking to you, Scott, you—"

Seeing the black-haired man in the room, all of Nacho's words were instantly stuck in his throat.

The other was wearing a waiter's uniform, holding a tray, with a knife and fork placed on it.

But Nacho knew, with this person's strength, anything could be a killing weapon, let alone a knife and fork.

At that moment, Nacho felt like he was dreaming.

Or perhaps, seeing a ghost.

Fear exploded in Nacho's heart. He wanted to scream, but the pressure released by the man in front of him rendered Nacho speechless for a moment.

Like a stone was stuck in his throat.

His hands started to go numb, the feeling extending all the way to the soles of his feet.

Nacho slowly widened his eyes, pupils about to crack, the whites filled with blood vessels.

Finally, Nacho still spoke the other's name:

"Leon... Casmodeous..."

His name seemed like a key that unlocked the invisible shackles on Nacho.

As if saying it aloud would bring some relief.

Nacho's heart pounded wildly, but he still pretended to be calm.

He quietly lowered one arm and pinched his fingers hard under the table, trying to stay calm through pain.

Leon saw that Nacho still recognized him and didn't show much surprise.

He slowly walked forward, pulled out a chair, sat down, and casually placed the tray with the knife and fork in front of him.

Leon leaned against the back of the chair, lazily looking at Nacho across from him.

He didn't say anything, just stared at the other.

Nacho didn't dare meet Leon's gaze, doing his best to swallow a mouthful of saliva.

'Damn it, where are the sentries? The patrols? The bodyguards?'

'How come none of these useless idiots reported anything?'

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps rang outside the dining room.

Scott pushed the door in, panting and flustered, "Bad news, my lord. Our men have all been... wiped out...—Le, Leon Casmodeous?"

After a brief moment of shock, Scott reacted quickly and immediately turned around to call reinforcements.

But as soon as he turned, he ran into two tall girls.

They had their hands in their pockets, nodding slightly, eyes cold.

Leon snapped his fingers, "What are you doing standing outside, come in and sit."

Outside the door, Noah stepped forward, her body suddenly flickering with faint electric currents.

Scott had no choice but to sheepishly retreat, entering the room and sitting next to Nacho.

Leon stared expressionlessly at Nacho, making his unease visible.

After a moment of silence, Leon said in a low voice, "I know you must be curious why I'm still alive, but I don't have time to explain. Right now, I need you to tell me where the Heart-Guarding Dragon Scales collected by the Empire are."

Leon's tone was calm, but carried an undeniable sense of pressure, which pushed Nacho's inner fear to its peak.

He opened his mouth, wanting to stall for time until the Blade trio arrived.

No matter if Leon was as strong as before or not, in front of the Blade trio, he was just an ant.

So—

Nacho froze, staring at Leon's face, shocked to find that this guy looked exactly the same as twenty years ago, with no signs of aging.

'Could it be... he also transplanted—'

"Nacho, we're old friends, why waste time here?"

Leon stood up and slowly walked behind Nacho and Scott.

Pa-ta—

He slapped both Nacho and Scott on the shoulders.

The heavy slap made Scott tremble all over.

Nacho still stared ahead, motionless.

"Well then, since it's like this, I'll have to use some strong methods."

"Leon, you—"

A chop landed. Nacho's vision went black, and he instantly lost consciousness.

"My lord, y-you're not—"

"Oh, forgot about you."

Another chop. Scott joined his master Nacho on the table.

Leon carried the two on his shoulders, one on each side.

Noah and Luna also entered the room.

"The Blade trio has arrived. Let's get out of here."

"OK."

The father and daughters quickly exited the dining room and headed to the rear gate of Hithna Manor.

Aurora had already prepared the carriage. Once everyone was aboard, they sped away.

———

At midnight, inside a certain abandoned wine cellar, Leon and his daughters were studying how to obtain information.

Leon rubbed his wrist, with specks of blood on his fist, "Torture probably won't work anymore, if he was going to talk, he would've spoken after the first punch; if he won't talk, continuing to hit won't make him talk either."

"Dad, is your punch even comparable to a normal person's punch?"

Aurora seemed to realize something, "No, I need to go check if those two guys are dead or not."

Leon grabbed his youngest daughter, "Relax, I controlled my strength. I've done interrogation before when I led troops in battle, but not much."

Noah raised her eyebrow, "During wartime, intelligence should be very important, right? If you rarely interrogated prisoners, where did the intel come from then?"

The old father spread his hands, "Just push straight through all the way, what intel do you need?"

Noah speechlessly rolled her eyes.

"...Mhm, simple and rough, that really fits the stereotype I have of you, Dad," Aurora seriously concluded.

"But this time we can't push straight through, the enemy outnumbers us, and there are too many unknowns. If we want to know the exact location of the heart-protecting dragon scale, we can only work on those two guys, Nacho and the other one," Noah said.

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