"Hello, Kaid. I wonder what business the Tower Master has with us?", Isa asked.
With the Twilight Tower Master's status and B-rank (class), it was impossible for them to send their personal servant to find them for no reason.
Could it be that another Dragon King secret meeting was about to be held?
Sure enough, Kaid slightly nodded and replied, "I wonder if you all have heard about the regime change in the Human Empire?"
'Oh my. Guess what? Not only do we know that someone started a rebellion in the empire, but among the four people standing in front of you, three of them are directly involved.'
"Just heard a bit about it," Leon replied seriously.
Rosweisse secretly glanced at Leon.
'Heh, just heard a bit, you damn thing? Why aren't you taking credit now?'
Leon responded to his wife's gaze with a slight raise of his brow, meaning, 'What else did you expect me to say?'
After this brief intra-team silent communication between the couple, Kaid continued, "Since all of you have already heard about the Human Empire, then you must also anticipate that the world-shaking war we have with them is about to undergo a significant change."
"But according to information from the front-line dragon clans, the Human Empire not only experienced a regime change, but also exposed a dark secret that had been hidden for thirty years."
"This matter concerns a number of Dragon Kings, and if not handled properly, will undoubtedly cause the already fragile relationships among the dragon clans to become even more hostile."
"So the Master has called for a Dragon King secret meeting. Originally, we were going to send a message dragon to your respective territories, but word came from below that you all happened to be visiting Sky City, so Kaid came to visit abruptly."
Leon and the others exchanged glances.
Just moments ago, when Leon revealed his identity to Isa, he also shared the conspiracy between the Empire and the dragons.
So everyone present understood what Kaid meant by the "dark secret hidden for thirty years."
Indeed, it was originally a life-or-death war, but because some saw benefits in it, the war was deliberately prolonged, causing more unnecessary sacrifices and bloodshed.
This was something neither humans nor dragons could tolerate.
As Kaid said, if not handled well, internal hostilities among the dragon clans would intensify.
At that point, with external threats unresolved and internal strife arising, one of the oldest races on the Samael Continent would face an unprecedented catastrophe.
In the past, Leon wouldn't have cared about some dragon civil war. Even if those big lizards with wings were breathing dragonfire into each other's mouths, he wouldn't have felt anything, might even have applauded.
But the problem now was, his wife, child, and extended family were all dragons.
If internal war worsened, it would eventually affect Rosweisse and the others too.
Leon didn't want to regret one day in the future thinking, "I should have helped mediate relations between the dragons back then."
So... he felt it was necessary to attend this Dragon King meeting.
Thinking this, Leon looked at Rosweisse and the others.
A glance was all it took, they all instantly understood each other's intentions.
"Lead the way, Kaid."
———
[Twilight Tower, Tower Top Conference Hall]
When Leon and his group arrived, many Dragon Kings had already gathered.
Far more than at the last meeting concerning Constantine.
Among them were several "old acquaintances."
Leon looked at the old man seated at the center of the left side of the conference table.
"Thunder Dragon King... Odin."
He once joined Rosweisse's grandmother in an expedition to the Far North, and was even older and stronger than Constantine, a Dragon King with absolute authority and voice at any Dragon King meeting.
Beside him, a relatively younger Dragon King was Odin's "friend across generations", Golden Sand Dragon King Morgan.
Morgan noticed Leon's gaze, straightened up, turned his head to look over, then smiled and waved.
Leon was slightly surprised but quickly nodded in response.
"Old man, he's here," Morgan whispered.
Hearing this, Odin, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them. His ancient, majestic dragon pupils instantly emitted a commanding presence.
But Odin only gave a light glance and didn't interact with Leon.
Naturally, Leon also didn't initiate a greeting.
Besides Odin and Morgan, there were other "familiar faces."
They sat on the other side of the table, not the same ones who had attended the previous Constantine meeting.
They were called "familiar faces" because during the years Leon led the Dragon-Slaying Army in battle across the continent, he occasionally dealt with those Dragon Kings.
"I recognize that group," Leon said in a low voice.
Rosweisse followed his gaze. As a fellow dragon, even without diplomatic ties, she recognized the Dragon Kings.
"Oh, they're all tribal leaders active on the front lines of the human-dragon war. What about them?"
"I've fought them before."
"Fought?"
The speaker was Isa, "Brother-in-law, aren't you known as the strongest dragon slayer? And those Dragon Kings managed to survive after fighting you?"
Leon withdrew his gaze from that group, then gave a helpless smile and sighed, "That's the issue. Back then, when I fought those Dragon Kings, I was always forced to stop the attack because of orders from the Empire's side. That's how they escaped."
"Once on the battlefield, a general doesn't always follow the king's orders," Claudia said softly.
Leon shrugged, "But thinking about it now, those few Dragon Kings were probably the ones secretly working with the Empire."
Since this meeting was to deal with the "dirty matters" in the human-dragon war, those Dragon Kings who colluded with the Empire for personal gain naturally had to attend.
While Leon and the others were chatting, many others in the hall were also speaking in low voices.
But the next second, with the light scraping sound of a chair sliding on the floor, all other conversations abruptly stopped. The entire hall fell into dead silence.
All eyes turned toward the source of the sound, Odin.
The dignified old Dragon King slowly stood up, then stepped toward the conference hall entrance.
As he passed several Dragon Kings, they clearly looked nervous, some even holding their breath.
All Dragon Kings in the room kept their eyes locked on the Thunder Dragon King's movements, afraid he might suddenly stop in front of them, because that would mean trouble.
Especially the ones on the other side of the table. This meeting was essentially a "trial" for them, and who knew if the old thunder-dragon might get unhappy and "take care" of them right then and there?
"Who is he going to—"
"Shh! Quiet, don't make a sound."
Several young Dragon Kings whispered but were scolded by an elder Dragon King.
No one dared act out when Odin looked unhappy.
Thud! Thud!
The low, heavy footsteps suddenly stopped. He was standing in front of someone.
The Dragon Kings in the hall all sighed in relief.
But at the same time, they grew curious, why had Odin stopped in front of that person...
The Silver Dragon Prince.
—_—
Unlike the other Dragon Kings present, Leon showed not the slightest hint of fear when facing Odin directly.
He stood calmly in place, neither humble nor arrogant, meeting the Thunder Dragon King's gaze head-on.
Two powerful auras clashed invisibly, making the atmosphere in the conference hall tense and on edge.
Odin's reflection was visible in Leon's black pupils. He had no expression and didn't intend to speak first. After all, Odin had come to him, so it was naturally Odin who should speak first.
After a brief moment of eye contact, Odin indeed spoke first, "May I borrow a moment to speak with you, Silver Dragon Prince?"
Leon didn't hesitate, his tone steady, "Of course."
"Please."
Odin made a "please" gesture, and Leon politely nodded in return.
The two left the conference hall one after the other.
The suffocatingly heavy auras gradually dissipated.
The Dragon Kings slowly relaxed, then began speculating on what Odin wanted to say to the Silver Dragon Prince.
"Are they close?"
"Haven't you heard? When Constantine caused chaos beneath the ruins in the Far North, it was the Silver Dragon Prince who saved Odin's daughter."
"Then that's just a personal favor, not exactly close friends."
"Who knows, maybe they do have a private relationship."
Isa glanced at her brother-in-law's departing back, then turned to Rosweisse, "That old man won't be giving him trouble, right?"
Rosweisse shook her head, "No. He probably just wants to feel out Leon's stance on this matter before the meeting begins."
She was sure Odin wouldn't give Leon trouble, for two reasons: first, the two had no conflict or grudge, so why would he?
Second, after the last meeting about Constantine, the Tower Master had privately told her and Leon that Odin was very interested in Leon, and that if Leon didn't attend the meeting, Odin wouldn't even show up.
So Rosweisse wasn't worried at all about Leon being alone with Odin.
As for why Odin would be interested in that damn man... Rosweisse guessed it was probably that strong people are drawn to each other?
———
At that moment, in the corridor outside the meeting hall, Leon and Odin stood by the railing, gazing out at the floating Sky City.
"Silver Dragon Prince, you should know what this Dragon King meeting is about, correct?"
Leon nodded. "Mm, I know."
"Then I'd like to hear your view on it."
Leon stirred slightly but didn't answer immediately. Instead, he asked in return, "Since the human-dragon war involves a lot of factors, may I ask the Thunder Dragon King to be more specific? Which aspect are you asking about?"
Leon knew well the dangers of saying too much. He couldn't just pour out all his thoughts on the war between humans and dragons.
That could easily let an old fox like Odin pick up on something.
So he let Odin ask more specifically, making it easier to give precise answers.
"Then... what's your opinion on how to deal with those Dragon Kings who colluded with the Human Empire and manipulated the course of the war?"
Odin asked, "I want to know, if the final decision were in your hands, how would you handle them?"
Good, Odin's question didn't touch on the Empire side, and focused solely on internal "family affairs" of the dragons.
If it were the old Leon, he would have thought of stripping those Dragon Kings of their titles and punishing them harshly.
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