The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL] Chapter 421: Scraps

Objectively speaking, Riley knew they were already doing far better than what would’ve happened had they followed the Ministry’s conventional procedures.

The intentionally reactive MBE would’ve only begun mobilizing after receiving incident reports, and that had been by design.

It was originally structured that way so the organization couldn’t exercise its authority unless its intervention was actually deemed necessary. That, in turn, allowed the other territories to feel a greater sense of balance despite the organization being led solely by the Dragon Lord.

Sure, that was great during peacetime.

But in that unsettling period right before a war actually began, when nothing overtly alarming had surfaced just yet, and all everyone could really do was brace themselves because it definitely felt like shit was about to hit the fan?

Well, it was precisely in moments like those that such policies intended for procedure felt like the most restrictive thing imaginable.

Worse, this was exactly the window those blissfully unaware of what was coming were exploiting for their own personal gains.

Not that securing greater political footing, bigger land, or more wealth would even matter much in a world that was about to be engulfed in fire.

So, honestly, good riddance to them.

If they wanted to keep each other occupied with political squabbles, then that was one less distraction for Riley and Kael while they focused on what actually mattered.

Still, one could only imagine what would’ve happened if they hadn’t caught wind of the wyverns’ unusually erratic movements, which Riley was now almost certain had been made possible by the merfolk’s magic.

Lady Stella could come up with all the explanations under the sun, but these guys wouldn’t have been popping in and out without leaving so much as a trace of magical fluctuation if they weren’t passing through the obscurity of water.

It was the only explanation that made sense for how they kept appearing in the most random places and in under record time.

So, considering how quickly they moved and how unhesitatingly they slaughtered anyone who wasn’t allied with them, how many more people would’ve died before a single incident report ever reached the MBE?

"..."

It was a number he was better off not imagining at a time like this.

Because judging by what they had seen so far, it would’ve taken forever for even a single report to reach the MBE when the wyverns seemed intent on making sure no one lived long enough to file one in the first place.

Now, logically, Riley was aware that they were already straying from the convention, effectively breaking established laws, and were being as proactive as they could be without throwing caution to the wind...

But for the people who had just lost their partners, parents, children, siblings, or friends because of this...

Who would really give a flying fuck about logic?

...Well, certainly not these people or the wyverns, who only seemed to care about locating dragon crypts.

More specifically...

The deceased resting inside them.

Yeah, there was that.

Ever since they’d learned the wyverns were searching for dragon crypts, Riley and the others had naturally assumed there had to be some sort of treasure hidden within them. In Riley’s case, he’d imagined something along the lines of his inheritance, or perhaps some secret weapon so important that it had been buried alongside the dead.

But what do you know?

Apparently, they’d been far too optimistic.

The wyverns weren’t after what the dragons had left behind.

They were after the deceased dragons

__

From their hiding spot behind the wooden shed, the already silent village somehow felt even smaller as the sound of rustling undergrowth steadily drew closer. Every passing second tightened the knot in Riley’s chest until a grating, jagged voice finally broke the silence, hissing in broken Draksil, a language Riley had unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, become far too familiar with over the years.

"The third squad already found a crypt yesterday," the first voice rasped, a sickening wet click accompanying every other word.

"They’ve already been rewarded with upgraded parts from the discarded dragon corpses. We need to find one soon. If they only need the heart once the corpses are reanimated, then surely we’ll be given the remaining scraps just like them."

Riley, who understood every word of that conversation, actually felt his blood run cold.

And worse, were they really distributing the corpses of fallen dragons to the wyverns as some sort of grotesque reward for good performance?

Outside, another voice, this one considerably more irritable, clicked its tongue impatiently before cutting into the conversation.

"We need to find one sooner rather than later. If they finish the experiments before we locate a crypt ourselves, then we’ll lose our chance at the scraps."

"Why?" a third voice asked, sounding every bit the simpleton Riley had already imagined it to be.

The one who appeared to be leading the group let out an irritated before muttering something about being surrounded by idiots.

"Because it likely wouldn’t work!"

"What?! How could it not work?!"

A sharp crack echoed through the wooden wall of the shed.

Someone had clearly been smacked.

"Use what little brain you have left," the leader hissed. "If the heart of that supposedly ancient dragon wasn’t good enough for our King, then do you honestly think the younger ones would suffice? With the power our King possesses, wouldn’t it only be fitting for something even more ancient to be used?"

"So the ones they found... the ones from some blue dragon crypt... won’t work?"

The leader let out what sounded dangerously close to a snarl.

"Have you ever heard anything particularly notable about blue dragons? Then what exactly makes you think they’d be good enough for our King?"

"Oh..."

A pause followed before the same unfortunate soul asked another question.

"Then... where do we actually find ancient dragons?"

It was right then that heavier footsteps entered the clearing, accompanied by yet another presence whose voice Riley most definitely didn’t like.

"Where else?" the newcomer sneered. "Didn’t Her Majesty already say she’d soon have the general locations of the crypts belonging to the strongest dragon clans?"

"Already?!"

"Of course. Unless you’re doubting her?"

"What, no, of course not!"

"Then it’s just as said, definitely soon. I heard she’s already departed to reclaim her birthright, and once she finds it, she’ll return with all the information we all need."

The leader immediately growled in satisfaction before barking another order.

"Then enough talking! Scram and continue searching! If we confirm there’s nothing worth our time here, we’re moving to the next location immediately."

The rustling gradually faded as the monsters dispersed throughout what remained of the ruined village, leaving behind nothing but an eerie silence once more.

Meanwhile, Riley slowly turned toward his mate.

He didn’t say a single word.

He didn’t have to.

The look on his face alone asked whether Kael had actually heard the same ridiculous conversation he had just heard.

Birthright?

Sure enough...

Even the devil apparently had birthrights.

Though more importantly, just what kind of birthright would allow a wyvern to pinpoint the locations of the major draconic clans’ crypts?!