Lann’s original intention was to give the Knight Captain of Losric something to hold onto.

But unexpectedly, after Lann’s hook lock pulled that kite-shaped shield over and handed it to the Knight Captain,

The Knight Captain of Losric seemed to be suddenly taken aback.

Under the raised visor, one of his eyebrows was only half remaining, appearing as if it had been sliced off during a battle, leaving a scar that prevented the eyebrow from growing.

The one-and-a-half eyebrows now looked like two twisting long snakes, one longer, the other shorter.

"This is..."

The Knight Captain inserted his Greatsword into the gap of the stone bricks piled as stairs.

With both hands, he took the kite-shaped shield handed over by Lann. His hands trembled slightly, as if unwilling to believe what was in front of him.

Or perhaps, he was resisting the reality unfolding before his eyes.

But ultimately, the tenacity and strength of a Knight prevailed.

His hands steadied, and his metal gauntlets pulled up the flaming red cloak behind him, beginning to wipe the surface of the kite-shaped shield.

As the fiery red cloak gradually turned black with ash, the patterns on the shield began to emerge.

It was a kite-shaped shield with a blue background, adorned with golden dragon patterns. Delicate and luxurious in design.

But clearly, the reason that left the Knight Captain in such a state was unrelated to its ’delicate luxury.’

"A... Dragon Pattern Shield?!"

Even after having just cleared the enemies off the stairs with an upward slash, at the cost of his own injuries, the Knight Captain’s voice had never been this dry.

It was as if he wasn’t holding just any shield, but some kind of... ominous omen.

"Is there something wrong with this shield?"

Lann asked softly, without revealing any trace.

Now he felt that this sudden attack on Losric’s entry bridge... was likely not a small matter.

"This is the best shield in the world to resist flames."

The Knight Captain almost gritted his teeth as he explained the condition of the shield.

"Even the infamous Hunting Knight’s black iron great shield, and the Black Knights’ Black Knight Shields from the Mythical Era, are inferior to it!"

"It has flame resistance possible only through Magic attached to it, a blue shield with Magic Power!"

"How could this... end up in the hands of the rioters?!"

Just hearing the Knight Captain’s introduction was enough to indicate the shield’s preciousness.

But as Lann and the Knight Captain’s gaze extended across the bridge,

a few enemies already burned to death by Dragon Breath, and more who still maintained combat ability amidst waves of Dragon Breath, in their hands and on the ground... all had this kind of shield!

Seeming to recall something, the Knight Captain suddenly pressed Lann’s shoulder, speaking urgently.

"That technique you used earlier! Can you use it again?"

"Of course."

Lann raised his left hand, the hook lock mechanism on his armored arm opened and closed with his movements, making mechanical ’click’ sounds.

"What are you going to do?"

"Pull that person’s corpse over, the one lying next to the Dragon Pattern Shield, can you manage that?"

Lann watched the anxious Knight Captain, who had already tied the inner leather strap of the Dragon Pattern Shield to his hand.

It seemed if Lann said ’no,’ he would charge out holding the shield directly.

The hook lock once again spanned over twenty meters, grabbing a corpse already charred by flames, dragging it back to the safe stairs.

Before the hook lock fully retracted, the Knight Captain leaned out, grabbing the corpse by the neck. Then his hand, gloved in iron, began rifling through the corpse’s clothes and small pouches.

Finally, he found a small iron box.

Just as when wiping the Dragon Pattern Shield’s surface, the Knight Captain seemed not to dare open the box and look inside.

But eventually, with a small ’creak,’ he opened the box.

Inside were small, fiery-red pills, with thin, worm-like appendages. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

From Lann’s knowledge of pharmacology, it was likely these were made by drying insects, grinding them into powder, and forming them into pills.

This time, without needing the Demon Hunter to ask, the Knight Captain mumbled about the pills.

"Red Worm Pill, increases the human body’s heat tolerance... technology from the Profound Church."

With the Knight Captain’s murmurs, Lann also gazed curiously at the shield and pill box.

Through logical analysis, the Demon Hunter grasped the emphasis in the Knight Captain’s words.

When describing the Dragon Pattern Shield, the Knight Captain unconsciously emphasized the term ’with Magic Power.’

And when describing the Red Worm Pill, the emphasis was on ’Profound Church.’

This attack was premeditated, with extensive knowledge of Losric City’s Dragon Knights, only erupting now.

It was clearly indicative of an ’inside job.’

And now, the Dragon Pattern Shield and Red Worm Pill appeared at the scene... these technologies and production methods are evidently quite unique.

The Magic-infused blue shield implicates Mages, while the Profound Church-produced pills involve the Priesthood.

Both are valuable items in themselves, but not enough for the Losric Knight Captain to really pay attention to.

The truly significant aspect is... what these items’ appearance at the riot scene represents!

Losric’s royal authority derives its strength from the support of three pillars.

The Knights represent force, the Sages represent wisdom and research, and the Priests uphold faith.

And now... at least two of them are strongly suspect!

After acquiring the Dragon Pattern Shield and Red Worm Pills, the Knight Captain became even more urgent.

He pulled out the greatsword wedged in the stone brick gaps and slung the dragon-emblazoned shield onto his back, brushing past Lann as he sprinted towards the top of the gate tower.

As he brushed past, he patted Lann’s shoulder as a greeting.

The dragon which had been lingering in the sky due to the absence of Dragon Knights finally descended; the Knight Captain rode his dragon and charged into the sky.

Three dragons briefly gathered and circled in the sky, seemingly exchanging information.

Afterwards, the dragon knights’ formation changed.

Originally, the three dragons soared past like bombers over the bridge, spewing Dragon Breath to blanket the battlefield.

But they attacked in waves, one after another, striving to arrange the waves in a way that maximizes damage.

Yet these skilled and reasonable tactics proved futile against these attackers.

Because the dragons came in waves, it allowed them to adjust the direction of their shields in time, using the Magic Power on the dragon shield to repel the dragon breath.

And the Knight Captain’s arrangement was simple.

Two dragons spat fire from opposite sides of the bridge, from beginning to end, to see where one dragon shield could face! How much fire can it block!

Sure enough, the dragon breaths from the two dragons scorched the entire stone bridge surface pitch black, with the ’crack’ sound of stones splitting from the heat.

Meanwhile, those attackers who had repeatedly endured multiple breaths without severe casualties could no longer launch as many [Thunder Spears] at the sky thereafter!

Once they understood how the enemy defended against the fire, achieving results with reasonable tactics was only natural.

Finally, an attacker pretending to be dead on the stairs attempted to jump and use a [Thunder Spear] to kill even just one dragon during a low-altitude fire breath from the dragon knights.

But the Knight Captain’s greatsword was faster than the miracle he was casting.

The cold blade glinted in mid-air, leaving behind a corpse cut in two.

The Knight Captain on the dragon’s back looked on coldly.

Gazing at the half corpse, he was more assured that this group had an extraordinary understanding of the Losric Dragon Knights.

If he hadn’t detected the self-sacrificial leap of this enemy earlier, perhaps his dragon would have been slain.

For the angle chosen by that attacker was precisely the dragon’s blind spot.

Without adequate professional guidance, such key information as a dragon’s blind spot might not be known by common people over several generations!

And had he really pushed through his comrades’ dragon breaths searching for clues on the bridge, he’d inevitably suffer burns.

If he was in a compromised state, reacting to such a sudden attack would be problematic.

Fortunately, he maintained his prime condition with others’ assistance and figured out what was going on.

The three dragons eventually safely landed on the bridge.

Two dragons continued to vigilantly turn their long necks, scanning and alert, while the most severely injured dragon lay panting on the bridge surface.

"Collect all those dragon shield patterns."

The Knight Captain jumped off the dragon’s back, giving orders to the other two Losric knights.

"And the Red Worm Pills from their embraces, collect them efficiently!"

While speaking, the Knight Captain also bent to pick up dragon shield patterns scattered everywhere, and slung them on his back.

While picking them up, he walked towards the wall below the gateway stairs.

Lann was gently stroking the Qilin’s forehead there, seemingly waiting for him.

Several dragon shields clanged as they collided against the Knight Captain’s back.

Facing Lann, he raised his visor.

"I am Lorenzo, one of the Knight Captains of the Losric Knight Order."

"My name is Lann."

Steel gauntlet and steel-plated leather glove briefly clasped together, establishing familiarity.

And Lorenzo tightened the shields on his back while meeting Lann’s eyes.

"I hope you can accompany me to the city, as a witness."

"A witness? Witnessing what?"

"Proving that these shields and Red Worm Pills were carried and used by those attackers from the start."

The Knight Captain tapped these shields, producing a ’thump’ sound.

"Catalinans, you might not know. The dragons of Losric are our renowned strength, and such shields that significantly counter dragon fire, we will not allow them to widely spread among civilians."

"And the craftsmanship to make these shields, the key lies in the magic inscribed upon them...this knowledge is not something anyone can easily acquire."

"In this world, places capable of producing these shields are very few."

Speaking, Lorenzo’s gaze involuntarily turned towards the majestic city at the end of the bridge.

The entire side of a mountain was hollowed out to establish Losric City.

Lann suddenly thought: places capable of producing such shields surely include Losric.

After all, Losric’s knights used to be Dragon Slayer Knights.

In a world where rules are on the brink of collapse, are there still internal conflicts?

Thinking thus, Lann shook his head at his own assumption.

In an ordinary world, during a world-ending scenario, unity is the instinct.

But in this world, even the bishops of the Profound Church have begun seeking ways to survive in the deep sea era.

It’s hard to predict what other scholars and mages might plan.

Ultimately, life always seeks its own path.

"Then take me in." Lann nodded to Lorenzo. "I need to enter the city anyway."

"Thanks for cooperating, Lann. Don’t worry, we promise not to waste much time."