Chapter 476: Life, Safety and Freedom

The warden?

Thales felt tense as he recalled something. He strode forward quickly. Quick Rope caught the crossbow thrown at him in a flurry of motion and struggled to catch up to Thales with Canon trailing behind him.

"When you put us in prison, we didn't forget your face," Zakriel's voice revealed some dejection.

The white knight in front of his eyes retained the same expression, though a hint of boredom appeared on his exquisite face.

"You should be in the dungeon, not here," the handsome man said. Zakriel shook his head. He did not say anything.

The surrounding cavaliers drew closer. They almost dyed the yellow sand dune black. They were a piercing and oppressive sight.

The man in white turned around, the skull on his left shoulder shook faintly. He glared at Ricky sitting on the ground.

"Blood Whistle. Sellsword." This time, the man in white's eyes turned astonishingly cold. "You are the one who shouldn't even be here. You should be... where you're supposed to be." The handsome man's words carried a tone that made others uneasy.

When their identities were revealed, many of the mercenaries gulped uncontrollably. Ricky's appearance had returned to normal. He stared at the knight before him and courteously replied, "I am sorry, sir, we are on a mission." Ricky shrugged. He looked helpless and innocent. "But we experienced some hiccups."

The handsome man frowned slightly. "Your mission—"

At that moment, Thales got closer and could no longer hold himself back. He said loudly, "Don't believe him! I'm the second prince—"

In the next moment, the white knight suddenly moved! He rotated his right arm, and a part of the tip of a spear appeared from nowhere. It went straight to Thales!

The teenager had been thinking hard about how to explain his situation when the spear came, he did not even have time to react to it before he felt his body sway!

*Bang!*

The air turned blurry. When Thales finally saw the scene before his eyes clearly, he was already in Yodel's arms. The latter had his left arm around him to protect him. In front of the Masked Protector was the gray Supreme Sword. It barely blocked the white spear tip.

Canon and Zakriel had quietly placed their hands on their weapons. They looked serious and ready to fight at any time.

"If you interrupt me again, I will kill you." The white knight glared at Thales with his amber-colored eyes. Murderous intent shone in them. No one would think of his handsome face at that moment.

Thales was dumbfounded as he watched the spear tip that was only inches away from his eyes. He was temporarily rendered speechless.

"You cannot." Yodel shook off the man's spear tip before he pulled Thales up and said in a chilly voice, "You do not know who he is."

The white knight withdrew his spear. The spear turned into a shortspear again, and he put it behind his back.

"I do not care." the handsome man said coldly. "It is the same with you, Nameless One. I do not care whether you are related to the Secret Intelligence Department or not."

The earring on his left ear swayed gently. It was still an exquisite sight, as though it never witnessed the earlier scene that was filled with hostility.

Canon and Zakriel who stood the closest to him, released a breath of relief. Thales' breathing calmed down. He touched his beating heart and watched Yodel in astonishment. But the Masked Protector merely shook his head and did not say a word, as usual.

The white knight turned to Ricky again. "Your mission?"

Ricky laughed. "We are currently carrying it out. I believe you will soon see some progress," Crassus of the Disaster Swords said while he glanced in resignation at the dazzling red light in the east.

The white knight was quiet for a while before he said, "And your accident?"

Ricky sighed. "Allow me to introduce to you Prince Thales Jadestar, one of the accidents of the night." Ricky extended his arm and gestured at Thales. Ricky spoke with an expression that suggested he felt quite resigned to the situation.

The cavaliers who were nearer immediately began to whisper among themselves. The white knight frowned, and it made his face, which seemed to belong to a person in a painting, appear even more eye-catching.

He turned his head around to scrutinize Thales. This was probably his first time getting stared at by such a handsome man. Thales thought that his clothes and appearance did not meet the standard of a prince, and he felt embarrassed.

The white knight turned around and said to Ricky again, "I need an explanation..."

Thales was shocked and said, "I—"

However, Yodel immediately pressed his shoulder to stop him from speaking. The Masked Protector leaned down and whispered into the teenager's ear, "Williams does not like to be interrupted, and he is serious."

Yodel added more words in his mind, 'Regardless of whether you are a prince or not.'

'Williams?' Thales was flabbergasted.

"Oh, it is my fault for not introducing you and causing this misunderstanding between you two, Respected Prince Thales." When Thales searched through his memories for this name, Ricky seemed to have only registered what just happened, and he revealed an apologetic smile to Thales. "The person who stands before you is a legend of the eastern frontier of the desert."

The leader of the mercenaries extended his arm and gestured at the incredibly handsome knight. A stream of adjectives tumbled out of his mouth. "When he is on the horse, he moves as swift as wings made of lightning; he is the merciless killer who swept across thousands of miles; he is the horrifying nightmare to mixed breeds and the Barren Bone people."

Thales glanced at the handsome knight while his mind was thrown into chaos listening to the stream of adjectives. 'Legend... Lightning.... Killer... Nightmare...'

The white knight appeared especially dazzling against the dense sea around them that was formed by the cavaliers.

"He is also the only master of Blade Fangs Dune." Ricky sighed faintly. His gaze on the man grew more complicated. "Baron Roman Williams."

'Roman Williams. Baron?' Thales furrowed his eyebrows.

Roman only listened to Ricky coldly and quietly.

"Of course, you can also address him as..." Ricky let out a breath and addressed Roman by a name in his most fearful and vigilant tone, "Legendary Wing."

'Legendary Wing.' Thales scowled as he sank into deep thought.

Among the Three Commanders of Constellation, the most formidable, contradictory, and complicated person...

The man who started with nothing in the Bloody Year and Desert War; the man who slaughtered countless men and even buried six thousand orc captives in a mass grave...

The man who fought with dignity and returned triumphant, who led the army and followed the king while he paraded in Eternal Star City, and earned a name for himself as 'the man who could conquer the Western Desert with his face' among the commoners and women...

'Legendary Wing?'

The Legendary Wing, the ferocious, horrifying, charming, and handsome Roman Williams spoken of in legends, glanced at Thales indifferently. His expression did not change.

At that moment, Thales' gaze was fixed on the unsightly skull on the knight's left shoulder. He could tell what it was now.

It was the skull of an orc.

But at that exact moment...

*Bang!*

A loud noise rose from the distance! It sounded like thunder behind clouds. The crowd burst into uproar! The cavaliers who painted the sand dune black were also stupefied. They comforted their restless horses.

Thales subconsciously looked in the direction where the noise came from. He was shocked!

It was Blade Fangs Camp. A plume of black smoke rose slowly from the direction of the camp.

'That's...'

Everyone watched the strange condition in Blade Fangs Camp with dumbfounded expressions. Only Ricky, who sat on the ground, exhaled with a smile.

Roman turned around, he looked disgruntled. He bellowed at the cavaliers on the slope, "Frank?!"

Even though he was shouting, his voice was clear, and it shot through the air, as though it had a power that could cleanse other people's hearts.

Soon, a middle-aged, gray-haired knight in full armor pushed through the crowd and glanced at the camp in the distance.

"There's been an explosion of Eternal Oil," the veteran cavalier named Frank said with a frown. "Those goddamn aristocrat soldiers... They just don't know how to manage military supplies and logistics after we need..."

But, at that moment, the second plume of black smoke rose from another spot in the camp. The Legendary Wing's expression grew even more sour.

"Wait a minute. That is..." Frank's gaze froze, and his tone changed. "The second source of fire is at the shops. Someone has committed arson!"

His voice caused a commotion among the cavaliers. Many of them whispered anxiously. However, just by turning his head, the men who landed in Roman's sights shut their mouths. The army was quiet again.

However, as though the gods were playing a joke with the handsome knight who liked the quiet, an urgent and worrying sound from a horn rose from the direction of the camp seconds later!

*Toot... Toot... Toot...*

Three consecutive times. It traveled everywhere. This time, both the mercenaries and cavaliers could not help but cry out in astonishment. They then burst into commotion!

The handsome Roman looked like he could no longer bear with everything that was going on. He could not care about keeping his subordinates under control and turned around quickly to yell an order in the other direction of another slope, "Felicia?!"

While the cavaliers were in uproar, a female knight with red hair yelled at the group to move out of her way. She rode down the sand dune.

It was clear that Felicia was a rare beauty, but her hair on the left side was shaved off, for some strange reason. There was also a weird tattoo on her face. These reminded Thales of Ralf, who served him by his side.

"Sir, the messenger has confirmed that there has been an invasion!" Felicia said exasperatedly, "It's the seventh level!"

As the smoke continued to rise from the camp and the urgent tooting of the horn continued, the commotion in the army grew more intense.

Amid the commotion, the Legendary Wing lowered his head and was quiet.

Perhaps it was because of his attitude, or because military discipline was strict and impartial, but soon, the uneasy cavaliers calmed down one by one.

What left a strong impression for Thales was the overwhelming power of silence that took over in a split second when the great number of cavaliers quieted down suddenly.

In the quietness that gave rise to fear, Roman turned his head slowly to look at Ricky on the ground.

"You?"

Ricky exhaled softly and looked up with a smile as he glanced fearlessly at the Legendary Wing, who was overwhelmingly superior in terms of power and military strength.

"Yes, Your Grace. What you see now is our mission."

The mercenaries began to whisper. Thales frowned and looked at Stake, who was among the crowd. He had fainted in the chaotic battle and still had not yet regained his consciousness.

Roman looked calm. His handsome face showed no sign that he was affected by this. "How did you do it?"

Ricky shrugged and spread his arms in resignation. "Oh, it's all thanks to my comrades in Shadow Shield—"

This time, Roman interrupted him without hesitation, and asked in a freezing tone, "What happened?"

When he was interrupted, Ricky became quiet. He lowered his eyes and muttered to himself before he looked up.

"The prisoners in the White Prison have been released. They are pillaging the camp and starting a rebellion," Ricky said naturally, and was not the least bit alarmed.

Ricky continued to smile and say, "The military supply that holds the key to the garrison's survival is burning in flames. This will shake the military to its core."

His words caused a commotion among the cavaliers again. Ricky glanced in the direction of the camp and clicked his tongue before he said,

"But now, the Western Desert suzerains, who are the only ones in the camp with a garrison and have the capability to handle the situation, are caught in an internal strife and are on the verge of a mutiny over an aristocratic feud. As for the seventh level alarm, which is also the highest level emergency in the camp..."

Ricky grinned as he listened to the sound of the horn that was clear and faint at times.

"Outside the camp, the mixed breeds and the Barren Bone people, led by the Shattered Stone tribe and Seralon tribe, have just snuck back. They are prepared to use the opportunity when the people of Blade Fangs Camp can hardly look after themselves to ambush and invade the camp. They will plunder to their hearts' content, and they will wipe off the insult they suffered eleven years ago in the Desert War."

'The Shattered Stone tribe?' Thales was shocked!

The militants all over the sand dunes finally burst into uproar!

The middle-aged knight, Frank, was at first stupefied, before he roared in anger, "F*ck you—"

Roman suddenly raised his hand and stopped Frank's cursing. In the next moment, the militants went quiet. No one dared to whisper anymore.

Roman looked up and glanced at the camp from which plumes of black smoke continued to rise.

"Indeed, sellsword, you have surpassed my expectations," Roman said coldly.

Ricky nodded. He looked rather emotional. "It has been an extraordinary night, and we did run into some small surprises."

The two men were quiet for a few seconds. In the next moment, Roman suddenly said, "So, what do you want?"

When they heard this, the Royal Guards, Frank, and Felicia watched the Legendary Wing in astonishment.

Ricky laughed. "You are sharp indeed, sir." He stood up, gestured in his subordinates' direction, and bowed with respect.

"We, the amicable and good-natured Blood Whistle, your mercenary comrades..." Ricky curled a finger, and Klein immediately smacked an unconscious captive awake before he brought him forward. "We present to you the person who has the greatest authority over Shadow Shield in Northland, Stake."

As Ricky watched how Stake put on a terrified expression before the cavaliers—in battle formation—when he woke up, he smiled faintly.

"His appearance will cause the assassins who started the rebellion in secret to give up and disperse."

The Legendary Wing frowned and did not speak.

"We will also return the only heir of Constellation, Prince Thales Jadestar." Ricky extended his hand towards Thales, who was not too far away from them. The latter could not help but grit his teeth. "His identity should be sufficient to suppress the rebellious Western Desert suzerains in your camp."

Ricky watched the man's expression and seized the opportunity to smile modestly.

"Of course, we will also provide an opportunity for you to do so." Ricky pointed at the camp in the distance with black smoke rising from it. "It's an opportunity where you will not need to waste your time and resources on us bumpkins who have hostages in our hands. You can use that chance to command your army and put an end to the chaos. You can turn the tide in the camp."

Now, even Zakriel began to frown and scrutinize the man again. This man had been a crazy and malevolent demon hungry for battle a moment ago, but now, he had become the reliable and wise man named Crassus once more.

The Legendary Wing still did not say a word.

"We, the Blood Whistles, would like to buy our lives, safety and freedom from you, in exchange for all of the above." Ricky nodded respectfully.