Dreya assassinated the king of Liveser? How can Mr. Echel still become friends with Mr. Reed after such a feud! Lyle understood completely the thoughts of the Night Owl Squad while feeling... odd about Mr. Echel. Had death really changed him so much?

Mr. Echel still showed affection for his granddaughter, as if... Lyle remembered snippets of conversations he had overheard, Mr. Echel seemed to have a great many grievances against his own child, the second king. What on earth happened that allowed Mr. Echel and Reed to live under the same roof in a peaceful coexistence?

Looking at the towering walls of Dreya City rising before him, Lyle’s heart also grew dim, alongside the darkened walls.

At night, Dreya was bright with lights, as the Night Owl Squad had entered the city walls to begin their reconnaissance ahead of everyone else.

Infiltrating Dreya was not difficult, even at night; the city gates were wide open, and there were no guards checking at the gate, only soldiers standing atop the walls.

Of course, there were few who entered the city in such a desolate place, with even fewer traveling merchants.

Even the walls of Dreya were incomplete.

Near the eastern side, the walls had completely collapsed, leaving a gaping hole.

It was through this side that Lyle and the others had slipped in.

Returning to his homeland, Reed brightened up a bit. He pointed at the collapsed section.

"That was demolished by enemy catapults when I founded the nation. Not Liveser, Dreya has many neighboring countries. Enemies swarmed in like insects, and I, leading my army, crushed these vermin through this breach."

"Dreya doesn’t need walls, the Dreya army is our wall."

The three walked along the street, Dreya was much busier than Liveser, here there were not as many plants, replaced instead by crowds of people brushing shoulders. Merchant stores were still bustling even in the deep of night.

Dreya hardly defended against outsiders, but the number of soldiers patrolling the streets was absurdly high.

Dreya favored armor over fancy clothing, and even Reed in his conspicuous iron armor blended well into the crowd. It was Lyle, dressed in light clothing, who stood out.

Not long after a patrol squad had passed, a group of cavalry wearing similar armor approached.

The people of Dreya showed great enthusiasm for the military, as if they were meeting celebrities. Even those who got roughed up for interfering with official duties were grinning through their bruises.

"You were beaten up, why are you so happy?" Lyle asked the man who had gotten up from the ground.

"The harder they hit me, the harder they’ll hit the enemy. I’m not just getting beaten, I’m testing the soldiers who protect my children! Long live Dreya!"

"Long live Dreya!"

"Long live Dreya!"

Cheers surged like waves in the night, the unity of army and citizens, this was the society of Dreya.

Lyle did not dislike this custom, he could see the pride on the faces of the Dreya people, much like the serenity exhibited by the people of Liveser.

This was a great nation, but Dove’s words still cast a shadow in Lyle’s heart.

Mr. Echel had already hidden in the shadows, careful not to expose his ranger garb. He too was caught up in the atmosphere of Dreya and slapped Reed’s armor until it rang loudly.

"Your country is also great now, isn’t it?"

Lyle had expected Mr. Reed to show the pride of a king, but he did not; his voice was even deeper, lacking the passion it had before.

"There are too many people not wearing armor..."

"Is there a problem with not wearing armor? Perhaps Dreya is starting to set a new trend."

"The people of Dreya don’t initiate new trends themselves, outsiders..." Reed looked at the lively crowd, where a child was just taking off a wooden helmet, biting into a fragrant fruit pie.

"Outsiders bring food, they bring fine wine, they bring new trends."

Lyle looked at the dispirited Reed with incomprehension.

"Isn’t the arrival of outsiders a good thing?"

"The relationship between Dreya and the surrounding nations isn’t good. When I founded this country, I beat them all up. Dreya doesn’t have abundant resources; we survived by plundering neighboring countries."

Great, the bandit nation has turned over a new leaf.

"Liveser can be self-sufficient, but we can’t," Reed observed the bustling street. "Especially after I declared the rejection of the Holy Light, Dreya virtually entered a period of seclusion. No travelers, no merchants."

Reed pointed to a monk in white robes, "No Holy Light."

Clearly, Reed’s beloved granddaughter didn’t continue to support the old ancestral rules. But to Lyle, it didn’t seem to be a problem. The people of Dreya obviously lived well and no longer followed the old lifestyle of plundering far and wide.

Lyle even felt like giving a thumbs up to the enlightened, though yet unmet, Queen Lina.

"I didn’t reject the Holy Light on a whim," Reed clenched his fists, "As a conqueror, I easily saw through their facade of tolerance, and their true nature of conquest and domination. Dreya would rather starve than need a master."

Lyle was torn. As a member of Twilight Memories, he clearly should side with Reed, but logically, he preferred the current state of Dreya.

Reed pointed to the solitary spire in the center of the city-state, "Echel, let’s take a look, and see what my Lina looks like now."

Echel raised his eyebrows and grinned. Such a tsundere, now taking the initiative, huh?

"The Night Owl Squad is collecting intelligence in this city. Don’t get excited, Reed. They won’t have access to your military secrets. You know, the combat instincts of the Dreya Knights can sense our disguises."

"Lyle, let’s go meet the current King of Dreya and see the grace of Lina, whom Reed has been yearning for."

Reed was left behind at a district fifty meters from the high tower of Dreya.

Unfortunately, Echel couldn’t continue the disguise while carrying Reed who was as heavy as a person and his armor that weighed over two hundred pounds, all the while navigating through the densely packed blockade of Dreya Knights to get into Dreya’s royal restricted area.

Nia, holding Lyle outside the stone wall of the tower, was also within Echel’s natural camouflage range.

"Don’t get close to the Royal Guard Knights on the window sills, Lyle. Those knights have combat abilities equivalent to Liveser’s elite rangers, and head-on, rangers definitely can’t beat these Iron Warriors."

"As fellow users of Sword Dance Mandala, these knights also possess a kind of combat intuition, what Reed calls the instinct of war. It can detect the ranger’s disguises, becoming stronger the closer the distance."

"If discovered, their arms can shatter this wall and grab you. Don’t be surprised, their capacity to attack stone structures like city walls is pulverizing."

Oh, is it that kind of conceptual special attack, with enhanced destructive power against certain things? Like double damage against walls, but ordinary destructive power against other things.

Echel listened to Lyle’s bizarre concept and couldn’t help but laugh.

"If others can smash stone, why can’t they tear you apart? Are you tougher than stone?"

"But aren’t they specifically formidable against ’walls’?"

"So if a person is regarded as a meat wall, doesn’t the special attack still apply?"

Lyle understood, anything could be deemed a wall to gain the special attack.

The Dreya Knights were simply fierce.