The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL] Chapter 436: Signals Beneath the Surface

Suddenly, they didn’t sound like the easiest neighbors to welcome into the community anymore, huh?

Sure enough, the fastest way to remind everyone that the enemy wasn’t exactly picky was to pull everyone into the fold and make them realize that this fight had never been some distant conflict happening somewhere far away. If anything, it had been creeping closer to their own homes this entire time.

And if, after learning the truth, people still found themselves willing to side with beings who actively hunted others for their blood and proudly wore the remains of the dead, then Riley honestly preferred knowing that now rather than later.

It would simply save him the trouble of wasting time on people who would’ve gladly stabbed them in the back the moment it became convenient.

Thankfully, he didn’t even have to sort through them himself.

As the notices spread, so did declarations of allegiance.

Entire villages came forward, followed by one clan after another, particularly those close-knit communities that’d spent years searching for missing family members, only to now realize what those disappearances might’ve truly meant. More than a few even proposed gathering their own forces and marching straight toward Wyrmfall before the wyverns had the chance to claim anyone else.

Of course, Riley wasn’t naive enough to suddenly trust everyone who changed sides overnight.

Fear and anger were powerful motivators, but they were also fleeting.

Today they wanted revenge. Tomorrow, once enough time had passed and the immediate horror faded into memory, who was to say they wouldn’t begin questioning whether sacrificing one person would’ve been the easier path after all?

Worse, what if they decided to change their minds in the middle of a battle where hesitation alone could cost countless lives?

Still, he wasn’t looking for unwavering loyalty.

He only needed fewer people actively getting in their way.

That alone would already make things significantly easier, especially with more pressing problems demanding their immediate attention.

Because while the wyverns had succeeded in dragging the continent into chaos...

The merfolk had finally made their decision as well.

Or more accurately, their current rulers had.

__

The black dragon could only shake his head when Orryn, who had proven particularly helpful since he’d recovered, appeared at the office door once again, another report already in hand.

"My secretary just confirmed that the merfolk have begun using the same media channels we just did," Orryn said. "But... I don’t think you’re going to like what they’ve chosen to broadcast."

"Okay..." Riley muttered before pinching the bridge of his nose. "Well, let’s hear it. Might as well get it over with."

He closed his eyes, already bracing himself for whatever fresh headache the day had decided to throw at him.

Orryn glanced down at the report before reading aloud.

Silence.

"...Wow."

Riley slowly opened one eye.

"They really woke up today and chose violence."

No one laughed.

While it didn’t look like a direct declaration of war on the surface, everyone inside the Ministry understood exactly what those carefully chosen words meant. Publicly releasing such a scathing rebuke while deliberately refusing to acknowledge even one of the notices the MBE had issued could only point to a single conclusion.

The merfolk had just informed the entire continent that, as far as they were concerned, the MBE was no longer worth listening to.

As expected, plus one to Wyverns.

"Thanks for the heads-up, Orryn," Riley said as he rubbed his temples.

The red dragon leaned casually against the doorway before crossing his arms. "So... what do we do now?"

Hmm.

Good question.

But on the flip side, at least this time around, more people didn’t think Riley was delusional when he suggested they stop focusing on the obvious threat for a moment and instead pay attention to what the Merfolk Kingdom’s actions were really signaling.

Because what could possibly be so suspicious about the decisions made by the merfolk leaders?

Well...

It was because no one inside the Ministry believed they were doing any of this for the sake of their people.

If anything, this definitely reeked of desperation.

Because once the truth inevitably came out that their leadership had allowed the wyverns to build themselves up using the flesh, blood, and even the corpses of countless victims, starting with their very own people, those same leaders would likely be the first ones dragged into the streets and executed by the very subjects they had betrayed.

Naturally, the easiest solution wasn’t to answer difficult questions that may be posed. But to simply make sure nobody asked them in the first place.

So instead of giving anyone enough time to investigate, gather evidence, or wonder why so many beings had mysteriously disappeared over the years, they probably thought it would be better to redirect everything toward the MBE.

They branded the Ministry as incompetent, unfair, and oppressive before boldly declaring that they’d rather place their trust in beings who supposedly understood what it meant to be marginalized.

As if they themselves hadn’t been the logistical backbone that’d allowed the wyverns to abduct and slaughter beings with such frightening efficiency that they probably already had standard operating procedures for every stage of the process.

Then again, the merfolk leaders who’d foolishly tied themselves to the wyverns probably never expected everything to unravel this quickly. They’d likely assumed they’d be long gone by the time those ambitious plans ever came to fruition, so who would be left to hold them accountable? They could enjoy the rewards now and simply leave the next generation to deal with the consequences.

They’d probably even convinced themselves that they and the people they cared about would be spared, believing they’d be allowed to choose who would be offered up instead.

Or perhaps they’d simply grown too confident.

After all, they’d even managed to recruit Malrik, a dragon, onto their side.

Unfortunately for them, that very confidence had now become the noose tightening around their necks.

There was no turning back anymore.

Their only remaining option was to remain at the beck and call of the very monsters they’d chosen to support, desperately hoping the promised upheaval of the world’s current order would arrive before anyone could hold them accountable for crimes that would’ve otherwise earned them nothing short of execution.

Now, like most things, those were still only speculations.

Because in truth, there were countless reasons a faction caught between a rock and a hard place might openly choose a side when, under ordinary circumstances, those particularly cunning beings would’ve tried to appear as neutral as possible, patiently waiting until the eventual victor became obvious before making their move.

But strangely enough...

That wasn’t what worried Riley the most.

It wasn’t even the fact that he’d now have to deal with beings capable of manipulating the very water around him and that he could potentially get hurt just by taking a bath.

No.

What bothered him the most was the timing.

The whole thing felt incredibly off-brand. More importantly, it felt rushed, almost as though someone had ordered the merfolk to throw themselves forward as meat shields whose sole purpose was to draw everyone’s attention away from something even more important.

Because who would make such an aggressive declaration while their own representative was still only halfway through returning home? In doing so, they were practically exposing Lady Stella to unnecessary danger.

They’d been keeping an eye on her for obvious reasons, so the oddness of the decision hadn’t escaped them. For the Merfolk Kingdom to openly choose a side at precisely this moment almost felt less like a calculated political move and more like a desperate attempt to create a diversion even before they were truly ready to deal with the consequences.

But why?

Those gathered around the meeting table who knew that Riley Hale was a dragon, but not exactly a black dragon, quietly fell into thought, trying to make sense of such an unusual decision now that they’d learned there could always be more pieces at play than they’d initially realized.

The others, however, reached a very different conclusion.

Because unlike everyone else, they knew far more about Riley’s secrets. They knew he was in possession of two and a half relics and that he was racing against time with the fate of all Eryndra hanging in the balance.

So if the wyverns, who now possessed the remaining broken fragment, were suddenly forcing the merfolk to make as much noise as possible...

Then there could only be a handful of explanations.

First, perhaps the wyverns simply hadn’t appreciated the Ministry’s notices very much.

Or...

They were making another attempt to free the Wyvern King.

"..."

"..."

But surely, it couldn’t be that, right?