Chapter 35: North Wind Eagle Guard (VI)Alger was blindfolded and turned left and right in the passage. When the black cloth was removed, he saw an extremely spacious cave in front of him. In the center of the cave, the red dragon was lying on a huge rock, with its eyes slightly narrowed, as if it was taking a rest. The bugbear brought Alger to the front, forced him to kneel, and then said respectfully, "Master, I have brought this human here." The red dragon in front of him opened his eyes lazily, and then said casually: "Well done, please leave first." Alger could even feel the hot, sulfur-smelling air coming out of the red dragon's mouth. "Yes, Master." The bugbear withdrew respectfully. Alger stood up from the ground with difficulty, gritted his teeth, and said word by word: "Evil Dragon, no matter what conspiracy you have, I will not let you succeed, even if it means death!" After saying that, he closed his eyes, straightened his back, and prepared to face the red dragon's wrath. No matter whether he was about to face scorching flames or sharp claws, he was not afraid.
Unexpectedly, the Red Dragon's tone did not show any anger. He just asked, "Why did Brad Rackman send you here?" Alger closed his eyes tightly, refusing to speak as if he hadn't heard anything. Seeing Alger's reaction and considering the timing, Cassius roughly guessed his mission this time, which should be the infamous "Tiefling Camp Massacre" in his previous life. Hundreds of Eagle Guards searched everywhere for any trace of the Tieflings. Once they found any, they immediately started a massacre, leaving no one alive, regardless of age, gender or child. They burned the scene directly and destroyed all witnesses around. Originally, this operation should have gone smoothly. Unfortunately, they encountered the Burning Embers Nest. Thinking of this, looking at Alger who refused to give in, Cassius asked jokingly, "Alger Yeoman, do you know how your parents died?" As soon as these words came out, Alger's expression suddenly changed. The most secret wound in his heart was bloodily exposed. He couldn't help but open his eyes and said loudly: "This is impossible!" "How do you know!" Seeing Alger open his eyes, the red dragon said slowly, "You don't need to know why. Just answer truthfully based on what you know." Cassius repeated again: "So tell me, how did your parents die?" "Yes……" However, Alger did not notice that there was a barely perceptible red light in the red dragon's vertical pupils, and the same was true in his own eyes. “Those damned Tiefling bastards sacrificed them to the devil! Alger thought of those painful memories, his eyes suddenly turned red and he gritted his teeth. Cassius asked casually, "Who told you this news?" "Yes, yes... Your Excellency the Duke." "Then why is that not the case as far as I know."
"what do you know?" "What I know is that your beloved Duke, in order to seek eternal life and become an immortal vampire, exchanged the lives of thousands of people in the city, including -" Cassius paused. "Including your parents." The red dragon in front of him was like a devil from hell, using clever words to seduce the thinking of the human in front of him step by step. "No...impossible!" "you are lying!" Alger shouted with a trembling voice. However, under the deliberate guidance of the Red Dragon, he could not help but think of this terrible possibility - his benefactor, his godfather, the Duke to whom he swore lifelong loyalty, was actually his enemy. Cassius pressed forward step by step, slowly spreading his wings, shrouding Alger in a huge shadow, and looking down at him condescendingly: "Think carefully, has your beloved Duke ever left the castle?" "Has he ever been bathed in sunlight, rather than shrouded in shadows? Even when he was giving that high-sounding speech?" "You are sensitive. Have you ever heard the wailing of the victims coming from the backyard of Rackman Castle and smelled the blood mixed under the soil?" "When you slaughtered innocent lives, did you know that they would be sacrificed and become the pitiful materials for the Duke's eternal life?" As Cassius finished his words, the image of a raging fire appeared before Alger again, and in the flames was a crying child and a mother holding her child. "No, no, I didn't..." "I do not have." Alger stepped back again and again, shaking his head. He felt groggy and had a splitting headache, and every detail in his memory became so clear that it seemed to be proof of it all. "Do not……" "You are lying, you are bewitching me." "I will not believe your slander. The Duke clearly..." Alger collapsed to the ground, shaking his head and mumbling, his eyes clouded by a lingering haze. After a long while, his eyes regained some clarity, and he said in a trembling voice: "Evil Dragon!" "You, what did you do to me?" Cassius looked down at him indifferently and said, "It's just a little trick to make you accept the truth." "Besides, what qualifications do you have to call me 'evil dragon' after what you have done?" "No, I don't believe it." "This must be your conspiracy!" "You are deceiving me, aren't you? You are misleading me with your magic! I, I will not listen to your slander."
"Your schemes and tricks are nothing in front of the loyal North Wind Eagle Guards!" Alger mustered up his courage and stood up, trying not to think about those horrible words, but his excuses were so pale and powerless. "I don't have to deceive you." "And... you'll know soon enough." Cassius did not get entangled with Alger. He just calmly bent down, squinted his eyes and continued to rest, and by the way called the bear goblin at the door. "Take him back to the dungeon and lock him up." "Yes, Master." The three bugbears who had been waiting for a long time stepped forward and forcibly took the struggling Alger away. Before being carried away, he was still excited and kept talking. "Evil dragon, you can't fool me!" "Don't even think about slandering the Duke!" "You are in league with those devils!" Years of loyalty education within the family had instilled in him the principle of absolute obedience. He was merely a sharp blade of the family, and weapons had no sense of good or evil. Don't ask why, just do it. This is what the old instructor often said. Therefore, as a competent Eagle Guard, Alger often emptied his mind, tried not to think about right or wrong, and habitually deceived himself - especially when killing, when facing those unarmed refugees. And now, Alger was thinking about all this for the first time. As long as he does this, a crack will appear in his psychological defenses, and only a little inducement will make it collapse. Cassius's goal had been achieved. The perspective will return in the next chapter
(End of this chapter)