For three straight days, Raylo entered the abandoned mine at dawn and emerged at dusk, covered in dust and grime.
He hadn't found the Silver Dragon, but his efforts weren't entirely fruitless.
Deep inside the mine, he found scattered Bone Shards from Magical Beasts, bearing the marks of being gnawed on. It was clear that some kind of predator inhabited the cave.
Even deeper in, he discovered some animal droppings. They were dry and caked, and from them emanated a faint, mixed scent of sulfur and metal.
"Coming back empty-handed again?"
By the campfire, Bolin's voice dripped with undisguised mockery. He was scraping mud off his boots with a Dagger, not even looking up as he spoke to a few veteran soldiers beside him. "Our dear Lord here... is he trying to squeeze gold from a stone?"
The few veterans let out a low, mocking laugh.
One of them picked up the thread. "Bolin's right. This godforsaken place is as cold as an icebox at night, and all we eat is dry rations and roasted meat. Can't even get a mouthful of hot soup. If this keeps up, we'll freeze or starve to death here before we accomplish anything."
"Keep it down!"
Another Knight glanced warily at Captain Ed's figure in the distance. "If Captain Ed hears you, you'll be in for it."
At the mention of Ed, the grumbling immediately subsided.
Ed was like a silent iron tower, always dutifully performing his duties.
Ed, for his part, had also noticed the unease spreading through the ranks.
He had wanted to speak with Raylo several times, at least to ask why the Lord was so insistent on exploring the abandoned mine, which might help placate the men.
Raylo was not oblivious to the undercurrent of dissent in the camp.
But he had neither the time nor the energy to placate or suppress them one by one.
His goal was singular and clear: find the young Silver Dragon that was rumored to live here.
So he chose the simplest solution.
He awarded each man five gold pieces and put the Knights on a rotation, sending five of them to Black Stone Town each day to gather information.
This so-called "information gathering" was, in reality, a form of leave for the deeply resentful Knights, in addition to learning about the situation in Black Stone Town.
'The system's intelligence isn't omnipotent. Sometimes, it only provides vague fragments of information.'
'This information is like the marks on a Treasure Map; I still have to dig for the treasure myself.'
'A deposed noble, a barren fief, a demoralized retinue...'
Raylo was well aware of his current predicament.
To break this impasse and gain the capital he needed to establish himself, he required a powerful ally.
And a young Silver Dragon with limitless potential was undoubtedly the most important bargaining chip he could seize.
'Dragon Knight!'
The Power and status those two words represented were enough to silence anyone who looked down on him.
That evening, Raylo once again emerged from the mine, clutching a small, scale-like object that gave off a faint metallic sheen. He had found it in a hidden corner.
The scale was tiny, its edges somewhat worn, as if it had fallen off some creature.
He discreetly pocketed the object, his face retaining its usual calm expression.
Dinner was roasted meat, as usual.
As was his custom, Raylo sat by a campfire slightly away from the main group. Ed sat quietly across from him, on guard.
Raylo picked up a skewer of sizzling Magical Beast Meat, glistening with fat, and ate slowly, his gaze fixed on the shadowy woods at the edge of the camp.
After three straight days of searching, he had turned the mine practically upside down. Aside from the Bone Shards, the droppings, and the tiny scale from today, he had found nothing else.
'Has the target hidden itself deeper, or does it not even stay in the mine often?'
He felt a little discouraged, but more than that, he was unwilling to give up.
'I've come ninety percent of the way.'
'Give up?'
'Never.'
The night deepened, and the chill grew more intense.
Most of the Knights had retreated into their crude tents, leaving only the sentries on watch to pace in the cold wind.
Raylo remained seated by the fire, the Flame illuminating his young but composed face.
He opened his palm and looked at the tiny scale. It shimmered with a faint silver light in the fire's glow.
"Silver Dragon..."
he murmured to himself, a fiery glint in his eyes. "Where are you?"
Just then, a faint RUSTLE came from the nearby bushes.
Raylo remained perfectly still, his peripheral vision flicking toward the source of the sound.
Ed also grew alert, his hand going to the hilt of his sword.
A moment later, a small, furry head poked out from the shadows of the bush.
It was a feline, not much larger than an adult housecat. Its entire body was covered in long, snow-white fur, with only the tips of its ears and tail accented by a few tufts of dark gray fluff.
A pair of pale gold eyes glinted with curiosity and wariness in the firelight. It cautiously sniffed the aroma of roasted meat wafting through the air, a soft PURR rumbling in its throat.
'A lynx?'
Raylo was slightly surprised.
These animals usually lived in the snowy forests farther north and were rarely seen in a relatively barren mountainous region like the Black Stone Territory.
Moreover, a lynx with fur this pure white was even rarer.
The little creature seemed startled by the fire and the strange humans. After poking its head out, it hesitated and shrank back, leaving only a pair of darting eyes fixed intently on the skewer of dripping meat in Raylo's hand.
Its longing gaze was like that of something that hadn't eaten in three days.
An idea struck Raylo. He tried extending the skewer of meat forward, his movements slow and deliberate to avoid frightening the timid creature.
The White Lynx tilted its head, as if trying to discern the bipedal creature's intentions.
The aroma of the roasted meat was a constant temptation to its senses.
After a moment's hesitation, it finally succumbed to the temptation and stepped out completely from the bushes.
The Moonlight and firelight fell upon its body, making its fur seem even more immaculately white.
It cautiously approached the campfire.
It stopped about three or four paces from Raylo. After confirming once more that there was no danger, it stretched out its neck and gingerly moved toward the roasted meat in his hand.
Seeing this, Ed relaxed his grip on his sword, a faint smile touching his lips.
In this dull and anxious camp, the sudden appearance of such a cute little thing was a rare and welcome diversion.
Raylo tore off a small piece of meat—crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and with few bones—and placed it on a rock beside him.
The White Lynx saw this, immediately darted forward, snatched the piece of meat, and retreated swiftly to a safe distance before starting to devour it.
Its table manners weren't exactly elegant; it swallowed the meat in just a few bites, then turned its pleading eyes back to Raylo.
Raylo was amused by its gluttonous display, and much of his frustration dissipated.
He went ahead and placed the remaining half-eaten skewer of meat on the rock.
The little creature seemed to cry out in joy, letting out a louder PURR as it pounced unceremoniously.
This time, it ate even faster, devouring the not-insignificant portion of meat like a whirlwind sweeping away clouds.
After finishing, it licked its lips, wanting more, and even wiped its face with a forepaw.
"Looks like it was starving," Ed said in a low voice.
「Over the next few days」 The White Lynx became a regular visitor to the camp.
Every evening, when the campfires were lit and the aroma of roasting meat began to fill the air, it would appear right on time, trotting familiarly over to Raylo's fire and looking at him with those pale gold, expectant eyes.
Raylo was happy to have the company and would always share some of his roasted meat with it.
The spices he used were brought from the Duke's Mansion. There weren't many varieties, but the blend was rich and flavorful, and clearly to the little creature's liking.
After a few days, the White Lynx's wariness toward Raylo had greatly diminished. Sometimes, it would even come up to his feet and rub its furry head against his boots, letting out a contented purr.
Raylo's interest in the White Lynx grew.
It wasn't just because it was rare and friendly, but also because of the illogical details about it.
For example, its bottomless appetite.
One time, the Knights roasted a whole, cleaned wild boar that weighed over a hundred pounds. He and the Knights ate half of it. After feeding the little creature five or six pounds of the rest, they hung the remainder by the fire to preserve it.
He had assumed the little one was full, but when he groggily woke up in the middle of the night to relieve himself, he discovered that the creature had devoured the remaining nearly fifty-five pounds of roasted pork, leaving not a single scrap behind!
After finishing, it simply let out a contented burp and still looked as lively as ever, showing no signs of being overstuffed.
This completely overturned Raylo's understanding of biology.
'How could a lynx this small possibly have such a terrifying appetite?'
Something even stranger happened a few nights later.
The wind was strong that night, causing the campfire to flicker erratically.
As usual, Raylo offered a freshly roasted piece of Magical Beast leg meat, still slightly bloody, to the White Lynx.
The little creature took the meat in its mouth, but apparently felt it wasn't cooked enough.
It tilted its head, looking from the meat to the campfire, seemingly dissatisfied.
Then, under the dumbfounded gazes of Raylo and Ed, the White Lynx opened its seemingly small and delicate mouth.
A small jet of orange-red Flame abruptly shot out from its mouth!
The Flame precisely seared the piece of meat held down by its paw. With a light SIZZLE, the surface of the meat instantly turned a golden brown, releasing an even richer aroma.
Having done this, the little creature contentedly retracted the Flame and lowered its head to enjoy the "recooked" meat, as if it had just done the most ordinary thing in the world.
Raylo: "..."
Ed: "..."
They exchanged a look, both seeing the same utter disbelief in the other's eyes.
'A... fire-breathing... lynx?'
Raylo's heart skipped a beat as a thought flashed through his mind like a bolt of Lightning.
'White fur, a rare species, a huge appetite, and... the ability to breathe fire.'
'Could it be...?'
He whipped his head toward the "White Lynx" that was currently enjoying its meal, his breathing growing slightly ragged.