Translator: AnubisTL
"Wise Captain, and all you brave sailors!"
As they neared their destination, Alberto's face beamed with a warm, enthusiastic smile. His voice rang out clearly as he greeted them, gracefully drawing an exquisitely crafted lyre, which emitted a faint woody fragrance, from behind his waist.
"Thank you all for your generous passage and care throughout this journey. I once adventured in the legendary Everglow Forest, where I was fortunate enough to learn an ancient tune imbued with the spiritual essence of nature from the forest fairies who dwell there."
He bowed slightly, performing a gesture of respect befitting a distinguished adventurer.
"Please allow me to offer this song as a humble token of my gratitude for this voyage!"
Before his words had even fully faded, he moved with a fluid grace, leaping lightly to the most open spot on the deck.
Under the curious and expectant gazes of the captain and the sailors, Alberto's expression instantly became one of absolute focus.
His long, elegant fingers, as if guided by magic, gently and precisely brushed across the lyre's strings.
Ding...
The first note, ethereal and crystalline, leaped into the air, shattering the stillness over the river. It was followed by a cascade of distant, pure melodies that seemed to pulse from the very heart of the earth, flowing like a gentle stream. The music drifted weightlessly between the ship's gunwales and masts, and the listeners felt their tension melt away. In an instant, the tedious river journey vanished, replaced by the sensation of being transported into a vast, ancient forest teeming with life, where a soft breeze brushed their faces and shadows danced beneath swaying trees.
More astonishing still was Alberto himself.
As his fingers deftly plucked the harp, his long, lithe, and vibrant body seemed to awaken, infused with the music's life force. He began to dance to the beat, his movements a seamless blend of elven grace, human exuberance, and an indescribable exotic flair. At times, he was a deer leaping through the underbrush; at others, a vine swaying in the wind. His performance radiated a raw, burgeoning vitality and a pure, captivating artistic power.
"Bravo! Magnificent!"
"This young man has some real skill!"
The audience was utterly captivated by the spectacular performance, erupting in thunderous applause and heartfelt cheers of praise.
At the center of the stage, Alberto beamed with a pure, radiant smile, his eyes shining with an intensity that suggested he was completely lost in the sheer joy of music and dance, savoring this fleeting, simple pleasure.
No one could have imagined, let alone discerned, the truth.
This passionate, multi-talented young adventurer, who seemed to embody the very essence of sunshine... was in fact the pinnacle of the legendary Metallic Dragon Clan, the avatar of wisdom and power—a gold dragon!
Gold dragons were masters of perfectly disguising themselves as various humanoid beings.
This allowed the naturally solitary gold dragons to temporarily cast off the crushing weight of their responsibilities and experience the simple joy of companionship.
It was also worth noting that, regardless of their true nature—be it benevolent, aloof, impartial, or, like Alberto, harboring a hidden ambition for conquest...
Once they chose and entered a "guise," they would adhere to that role's behavioral logic, emotional expression, and even subtle habits with a professional rigor bordering on the fanatical. They would never, out of a momentary emotional surge or an unforeseen accident, break the carefully constructed persona they had donned.
Shortly after.
The adventurer Alberto waved a bright smile to the captain and sailors in farewell. Then, with a lithe flash of movement, he vanished into the depths of the lush, vine-choked jungle along the riverbank, leaving no trace behind.
Night, thick as ink, slowly stained the vast expanse of the sky.
Stars twinkled like crushed diamonds set against a deep blue velvet curtain, their cold light spilling onto the churning waters of the Estonian Great River.
On a reinforced watchtower platform at the riverbank outpost.
Silvermane Zachary led a squad of elite centaur sharpshooters, standing at the ready.
Their powerful arms were taut, bows drawn full like crescent moons. Gazes as sharp as falcons' pierced the cool night breeze, locked firmly on the river below, where the dark waters surged and churned with increasing violence.
Minutes passed.
Cras—!
The once-rhythmic sound of the river's waves suddenly turned violent and unnatural.
In the heart of the river, massive plumes of water erupted as several colossal dark shadows darted through the depths, churning the current into a chaotic vortex.
"Raise the nets!"
Silvermane Zachary's eyes sharpened, his low command booming like thunder.
Whirrr—!!!
With the heavy grinding of mechanical winches and the guttural roars of ogres, the powerful beasts ambushed along the riverbanks strained against their burdens. Massive nets woven from special metal and bound with thick iron chains were yanked from the water, forming an impassable steel wall across the river that trapped the ferocious aquatic beasts attempting to surge upstream.
Splash! Crash!
Water erupted in a torrential downpour.
The massive, tusked river beasts, caught off guard by the sudden barrier, slammed into the resilient iron-mesh nets with dull, heavy thuds. Others, driven by sheer brute force, leaped high out of the water in wild arcs, desperate to clear the blockade.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Almost in the same instant, the centaur sharpshooters released their drawn arrows. The bowstrings' vibrant thrum tore through the air as the specially crafted, faintly glowing alchemical-enchanted shafts—as if guided by eyes of their own—pierced the vitals of the ferocious beasts leaping from the water or battering the iron net with unerring precision.
Thwack! Thwack!
The dull thuds of blades sinking into flesh mingled with the agonized roars of the beasts. Crimson blood quickly bloomed in the river, its pungent, fishy stench thick in the night breeze.
The Estonian Great River system was vast and boundless, its channels branching out in a complex web. The ferocious water beasts that dwelled in its depths frequently attacked merchant ships traversing the waters, including the river stretches now under the Ironforged Tribe's actual control and vital to their trade.
Therefore, the Ironforged retinue stationed at various riverbank outposts conducted regular, organized culls of these river beasts—a crucial mission.
It served a dual purpose: ensuring the safety of river navigation and safeguarding the tribe's trade lifeline, while also harvesting a massive amount of energy-rich beast meat to sustain the tribe.
Whoosh—!
Another arrow, imbued with immense power, shrieked through the air, aimed straight at a giant fish-like ferocious beast that had just leaped to its highest point, attempting to vault over the iron net.
(End of the Chapter)
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