Giant Dragon Lord: Starting from Daily Intelligence-Chapter 153 - 147: Coal Ball’s Talent

"What?"

"Your Excellency Raylo... are you saying you’ve already eliminated a Snake-man Battle Group?"

"This... This is just..."

For a moment, all the lords stared at Raylo and Lillian, their eyes filled with shock and admiration.

Count Gao Wen was the first to react. He slammed his palms together and cheered loudly.

"Excellent! Truly excellent! Your Excellency Raylo, Your Excellency Lillian, you’ve performed a great service for our Allied Army!"

The smile on his face was both sincere and enthusiastic.

Red Leaf Territory and Black Stone Territory were nominal allies. Though it was only a loose pact, the strength of Black Stone Territory was also to his benefit.

Knight Luke’s expression was one of approval as he nodded.

"Very good. This lessens our burden somewhat."

He gestured for Gao Wen to continue.

Count Gao Wen cleared his throat and rearranged the five remaining small flags on the map.

"In that case, our battle plan must be adjusted. I propose that the main force of the Allied Army still be divided into three corps. The First Corps, led by Count Barton of Giant Stone Territory, will be responsible for eliminating the Snake-man Battle Group north of Red Leaf Territory."

Giant Stone Territory had suffered the greatest losses during the last operation to purge the Jade Swamp, so Gao Wen was assigning this task as a consideration for them.

"The Second Corps will be led by my Red Leaf Territory, responsible for eliminating the two Snake-man Battle Groups in the west."

"The Third Corps will be led by Count Raymond of Iron Pine Territory, responsible for eliminating the two remaining Snake-man Battle Groups to the east."

"The remaining forces from the Viscounts’ and Barons’ domains will be divided among these three corps and await their orders."

Gao Wen added.

No one had any major objections to this deployment.

The three great Counts of the Northern Territory were formidable. In terms of both status and power, each was more than qualified to command a corps.

Just then, the Count of Giant Stone, Barton, suddenly spoke up.

"Your Excellency Luke, Count Gao Wen. I request to swap our attack vectors with Count Gao Wen. My corps will take the northwest sector, while Red Leaf Territory’s corps takes the northern sector. What do you say?"

"The last time, the allied forces of my Giant Stone Territory and the other lords were defeated in that area. This is my chance to avenge that loss."

Raylo understood immediately.

’Count Barton probably still can’t get that inheritance from the Giant Dragon Temple out of his mind.’

’Little does he know that the prize he schemed for and paid so dearly to obtain was already snatched up by me.’

Count Gao Wen considered it for a moment. Factoring in that Count Barton was a long-established noble with deep-seated seniority, he nodded for the sake of unity within the Allied Army.

"Very well, we’ll do as Count Barton says. The corps from my Red Leaf Territory will take the north, and the corps from Giant Stone Territory will take the northwest."

"Thank you for your consideration, Count Gao Wen."

Count Barton grinned.

Knight Luke had no objections. As long as the Snake-men were eliminated smoothly, swapping the specific vectors of attack was of little consequence.

He said in a low, firm voice.

"The deployment is set. Every corps is to return and make immediate preparations. We march at dawn tomorrow, on the dot!"

The night was black as ink, the starlight dim.

In the Allied Army camp outside Red Leaf City, countless campfires flickered like stars scattered across a velvet curtain.

Outside Raylo’s tent, two small figures—one black, one white—added a touch of life to the solemn atmosphere.

Coal Ball seemed especially energetic.

It arched its back and flattened its ears, a low growl rumbling in its throat. Its eyes were locked on Moonlight’s swaying tail, like a bolt of black lightning ready to strike.

"MROW!"

Coal Ball shot forward. Its tiny body traced a swift arc through the air, accurately latching onto the very tip of Moonlight’s tail as it opened its mouth, feigning a bite.

Moonlight seemed long accustomed to these ambushes. Unflustered, it gave its tail a deft flick, sending Coal Ball spinning in a full circle.

With a yelp, Coal Ball landed flat on its back in the grass. Completely unfazed, it performed a perfect kip-up, shook itself off, and eagerly prepared for the next round of assault.

When Raylo finished his work and returned to his tent, this was the scene that greeted him.

The corners of his lips curved up slightly. ’A great battle is imminent,’ he thought. ’It’s nice to have a moment of peace like this.’

"Alright, you two little rascals, it’s dinnertime."

At the word "dinnertime," Coal Ball’s ears shot straight up. Its previously hostile demeanor vanished in an instant. It trotted over to Raylo’s leg and began rubbing its little head insistently against him, letting out a series of placating "meows."

Moonlight, however, simply strode over elegantly and, with a light hop, landed on the dining table.

Dinner was Giant Lizard steak, grilled until it sizzled and dripped with fat, the aroma absolutely tantalizing.

Moonlight ate delicately, its posture graceful and unhurried.

Coal Ball was another story entirely. It buried its whole face in the steak, gobbling it down with loud snorting sounds. Its cheeks bulged as if it hadn’t eaten in days.

Raylo watched with a smile, but he soon noticed something odd about Coal Ball’s actions.

The little creature was not only devouring its food but also warily guarding the steak in front of it with its tiny paws.

Even more amusingly, Raylo noticed that while Coal Ball’s mouth was stuffed full, its two front paws were also pinning down another small piece of steak. Its glistening black eyes darted around. Seizing the moment when Moonlight bent down to lick its paws, Coal Ball tapped the steak in front of it with one of its own. The slab of meat, nearly as large as its own head, vanished into thin air.

An extremely faint spatial fluctuation flickered and was gone.

’This little guy...’

Raylo chuckled inwardly.

Ever since this little black cat—a disguised Space Young Dragon—had started following him, the quality of its meals had skyrocketed, yet it still couldn’t shake its hamster-like hoarding instinct.

It used to be one in its mouth and one under its paw. Now it had escalated to eating one and stashing one.

’I wonder just how big of a storage space is hidden inside that tiny body.’

Raylo pretended not to have seen a thing.

He wasn’t bothered by the "loss" of a little meat.

But then, an idea struck him.

’Coal Ball’s true identity is a Space Young Dragon. Its combat strength might be unclear due to its age, but its Space Talent must be exceptional.’

’If I could put that to use...’

Once the two "cats" had licked their plates clean to their satisfaction, Moonlight leaped onto Raylo’s shoulder and nuzzled his cheek.

Coal Ball stretched out luxuriantly on the ground, then began to clean its greasy little paws with its pink tongue.

Raylo reached out and scooped up Coal Ball, who was still in the middle of washing its face.

Caught by surprise, Coal Ball let out a protesting "MROW!" its four short legs flailing wildly in the air.

"Come on, I’m going to show you two something interesting."

Raylo chuckled. Cradling Moonlight in one arm and dangling Coal Ball from the other hand, he walked toward the supply storage area at the rear of the camp.

Under the cover of night, rows of carts laden with grain and provisions stood in neat lines.

Raylo walked up to a cart filled with sacks of grain and placed Coal Ball on the ground.

"Coal Ball, look at this."

He pointed at the heavy cart.

"Give it a try. Think you can make it disappear?"