Chapter 336: 335 Blocked Border City

“Alright, we have arrived.”

When Shane’s voice echoed from You Lin’s back, the dark dragon had already stopped flying and was hovering in the clouds with its dragon wings spread, no longer moving forward.

“Have we arrived?”

Ai Yi woke up in a timely manner but still looked very sleepy.

“Uh…”

Jade also opened her eyes but appeared drowsy and listless.

Shane handed Ai Yi and Jade over to Lasha before he leaned out from the back of the dragon, looking downward.

“Grant*Long-sight.”

Shane cast a spell on his eyes, allowing his vision to leap great distances and gaze down below the clouds.

There, a city stood alone upon the earth, catching Shane’s gaze.

It was a fortress city.

The city walls were built very high and thick, enclosing the entire city within.

On the walls, several magic weapons resembling large cannons were set up, poised in all directions, and they looked rather intimidating.

In front of this city, there stretched a continuous range of mountains.

“Is that the Cosmos we’ve been hearing about?”

Ai Yi seemed to have woken up a little and, like Shane, looked down at the ground. Whether she used magic or relied on her own vision, she could see the city below the clouds just as clearly.

Lasha, holding a still groggy Jade, didn’t know if she saw the city on the ground, but she spoke calmly.

“Cosmos is located at the northernmost part of the Mitra Kingdom, on the border of Duke Sterling’s domain. Because it is the city closest to the Ragnar Empire within the kingdom, it is also a fortress city, specifically used to block the southern advance of the Ragnar Empire.”

“It serves as both a barrier and a defensive line for the kingdom.”

“Since the Ragnar Empire would have to pass through here if they wanted to invade the Mitra Kingdom, this place often sees Imperial people and is a vital route for trade and transportation between the kingdom and the empire, attracting many merchants and people of various races.”

In other words, this place was a melting pot of races and a primary intersect for the people of the kingdom and the empire.

Naturally, it had to be built as a fortress city and heavily guarded to prevent the Imperial people from taking advantage.

Shane could see that in Cosmos, not only was the city barrier constantly active, but the city walls, gates, and streets were also filled with patrolling knights.

Duke Sterling’s armed forces seemed to have encampments set up around the fortress city, and more defensive lines laid near the mountains, with knights and soldiers visible everywhere, filling the area with an air of solemnity.

“Due to its nature as a fortress city, Cosmos thrives on the weapon manufacturing industry. There are many magic weapon workshops established here by humans as well as Dwarf blacksmiths working here.”

“Thanks to this, Cosmos has become the premier production site for magic weapons within the kingdom. The most advanced magic weapons in the kingdom are almost all produced here, even the magic weapon workshops in the royal capital source a lot of their goods from this place.”

“Duke Sterling’s domain derives nearly forty percent of its annual revenue from the magic weapons produced here, making the trade of magic weapons here extremely lucrative.”

Lasha explained the situation of Cosmos to Shane and Ai Yi.

“Magic weapons?”

Although Ai Yi still seemed lackluster, she looked at Cosmos a bit more, obviously not expecting the city to be so special.

Shane, however, was pondering something else.

“If I were to sink this city, the Sterling family would probably be overjoyed, wouldn’t they?”

A mischievous malice filled Shane’s heart.

As for Jade, for some reason, after slightly regaining consciousness, she glanced in the direction of Cosmos and gently furrowed her brows, a hint of disgust flitting across her eyes.

No one noticed or saw this behavior.

Ai Yi then yawned casually and said,

“Now that we have arrived, why not just dive down?”

This young girl was still as brash as ever.

“You didn’t forget about the Jeliteli incident, did you?” Shane said rather irritatedly: “If we ride the dragon directly into the city this time too, we’d almost certainly end up fighting.”

This was no joking matter.

Cosmos was not like Jeliteli, where anything goes.

This place was a defensive line to stop an empire’s invasion, defending against a half-friendly, half-enemy neighboring country. If Shane dared fly down on the dragon, he would definitely be noticed from afar and attacked mercilessly.

At that time, no one would care if you were a Viscount or an important person from the kingdom.

The border is the border. Knights and military forces in border cities are tasked with defending the kingdom, acting on behalf of the kingdom, not on behalf of a noble.

The importance and nature of their existence differed, making Cosmos not a place for frivolous actions, or else being accused of treason was only a matter of time.

Shane didn’t want any complications.

“I’m not here to show off, nor am I here to act superior. I’m just here to eliminate the Old Demon Clan Faction, and perhaps give the Sterling family a little trouble, not to get dragged onto the national stage and engage in games with others.”

Hence, this time, Shane decided not to ride You Lin into the city, but rather to enter in a proper manner.

“You just continue waiting for us in the sky, and if you get tired, it’s fine to rest on a nearby mountain peak, understand? You Lin?”

Shane patted the dragon beneath him as he said this.

“Roar!”

You Lin immediately responded with a roar.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Shane stood up.

Ai Yi, with an indifferent expression, stood up with Shane, unfurling a pair of dragon wings on her back.

The two planned to jump down directly from there.

“Lasha, come over with the Jade.”

Shane glanced over at Lasha, his eyes twinkling, a smirk curling up on his lips.

So, I still have to hold it, huh?

Unless you can fly on your own.

Shane felt a hint of smugness in his heart.

“Yes.”

Lasha seemed oblivious to Shane’s thoughts, responding indifferently as she held the Jade and approached Shane.

Without any hesitation, Shane took her in his arms.

Hmm, she’s really soft.

And she smells wonderful.

Indeed, this maid is a rare find–cold, yet beautiful and well-figured, truly a gift from God.

“Hmph!”

Ai Yi seemed a bit displeased and snorted coldly, speaking brusquely.

“Let’s go quickly, you fool.”

With that, Ai Yi stirred her Dragon Wings and swooped downward.

“Here we go.”

Shane felt content.

“Granting*Flying.”

The next second, Shane, holding Lasha who held the Jade, along with Ai Yi, flew up together, heading toward the ground.

Two streaks of light, one trailing the other, flew towards Cosmos, causing You Lin to yawn boringly, disappearing into the clouds.

Peace was restored here.

But Shane and the others didn’t manage to enter Cosmos smoothly, which was unexpected.

…

“This city has been locked down?”

Standing in front of the city gate, with Ai Yi, Lasha, and the Jade, Shane listened to the knight’s warning and looked surprised.

“Correct,” said the guard. “This is an order personally given by Duke Sterling, a lord’s prohibition. Until the chaos within Cosmos is resolved, no one may come and go freely.”

“Is that so?” Shane raised an eyebrow. “Not even nobles?”

“Not even nobles,” the guard asserted. “This is a lord’s command, unless your rank is higher than that of Duke Sterling.”

That was basically impossible.

A rank higher than a duke?

Where would such a rank exist?

The guard was just being facetious.

“Regrettably, my rank isn’t higher than Duke Sterling’s,” Shane said with a half-smile. “But surely, Duke Sterling wouldn’t refuse someone holding this to enter, right?”

Saying so, Shane drew out the Royal Token hanging around his neck.

“This…this is the Royal Family’s Emblem…! Excuse me…!”

The guard immediately widened his eyes and hastily knelt down.

Not just the guard; the surrounding knights and soldiers also knelt down flusteredly.

“Now, may we enter?”

Shane tucked away the token, his expression indifferent.

(Hmm, put on quite a show.)

These were the thoughts of a hero who just claimed he wasn’t here to show off or act arrogantly.

“That…that…”

But the guard began to stammer, obviously distressed.

Clearly, he didn’t expect someone with higher status than the duke to actually appear. Now that he had spoken, letting Shane in seemed like he couldn’t back down gracefully.

“What’s the matter? Does the Sterling Family no longer wish to acknowledge the Royal Family?”

Shane narrowed his eyes.

When even the Royal Token had been revealed and they still didn’t want to let him in, he had to consider if there was something fishy going on.

After all, it was the same back at Artlu Canyon.

Could the Sterling Family, like the Galuo Li Family, be plotting something behind the Kingdom’s back with the Old Demon Clan Faction?

While Shane was thinking this, the guard quickly shook his head.

“No, it’s not like that,” the guard hurriedly said. “It’s just that there have been many strange occurrences in Duke Sterling’s domain recently, and Cosmos was the first place where these incidents started. The Old Demon Clan Faction has been seen here, and the city is still in chaos. If something happens to you inside, we…”

Before he could finish, Shane interrupted him.

“Speaking of strange occurrences all the way here, what exactly are these strange occurrences?”

Shane finally asked this question.

“This…”

The guard hesitated a moment, then began to speak.