Chapter 59

The hostility of the soldiers crowding the pier turned into a sharp blade aimed at the necks of the ‘Dawn Merchants’ party. Their armor was rough and practical, patched leather and iron plates instead of the ornate patterns of the Western Continent. In each soldier’s eyes was the discipline of trained warriors and a deep-rooted distrust and wariness of outsiders.

“Ships from outside must be inspected. Everyone, disembark, discard your weapons, and raise your hands above your heads!”

The commander leading the soldiers was a seasoned warrior, his face marked by deep scars from countless battles. The sword at his waist gave off a heavy, deadly aura unlike the blades of the Western Continent.

A momentary silence fell on the ship. Both the ‘Shadow Blade’ and the ‘Ghost’ were killing tools that could send someone to hell with the reach of a hand. But this was unknown ground, the Eastern Continent. Draw swords rashly here and they would all be interred in this strange harbor.

The one who broke the suffocating standoff was the Valerian spy Cypher. With a friendly merchant’s smile that erased any hint of snake-like eyes, he stepped forward.

“General, there seems to be a misunderstanding. We are the ‘Dawn Merchants,’ who crossed a vast sea with official permission from the great Valerian Empire to trade rare goods from the Western Continent.”

Cypher produced from his robe a perfectly forged pass and trading permit stamped with the Emperor’s seal.

“We were honored to choose Lord ‘Jin,’ the lord of this ‘Black Dragon Harbor’ for our first trade—his renown reaches beyond the Eastern Continent to the Western Continent. Please do not misinterpret our goodwill.”

The commander’s hardened expression softened just a little at Cypher’s practiced lies and polite demeanor. But his wariness did not ease.

“Valerian Empire…”

The commander scanned their appearance once more. At that moment, Hector shifted his massive frame and stood beside Cypher. As the guild’s captain of guards, he spoke in a heavy, trustworthy voice.

“We are merchants, not here for battle but to earn coin. However, if anyone threatens our goods or our lives, we have the strength to draw steel and defend ourselves.”

Hector did not threaten, but the weighty presence radiating from him, only someone who had passed through countless battle lines could possess, served as a fiercer warning than any words.

The commander hesitated briefly, then made a decisive gesture.

“Disarm and follow me. The lord will question you personally.”

In the end, the ‘Dawn Merchants’ party was escorted, surrounded by soldiers, toward the heart of Black Dragon Harbor. When they disembarked they were overwhelmed by scenery utterly different from the Western Continent. Buildings were sturdy timber and stone rather than lavish ornament, and the streets rang not with traces of Magic but with the kiai of martial artists training. People seemed to carry swords or blades at their waists as a matter of course.

They arrived at a vast fortress built on a cliff overlooking the entire port city. It was the residence of Lord ‘Jin.’

In the fortress’s innermost hall, a middle-aged man sat on the throne. He wore silk garments, but the sturdy muscles beneath and the calluses on his hands marked him as a master who had devoted his life to martial training. His eyes were calm like a sleeping tiger, yet flashed with a sharpness that seemed to pierce everything.

“Merchants from the Western Continent.”

Lord Jin’s low voice resonated through the hall.

“This Black Dragon Harbor is not lenient toward outsiders. Especially in times like these.”

Cypher stepped forward and presented the finest silks and jewels he had prepared, but Lord Jin did not glance at them.

“Did you think such trifles could blind me? If you truly wish to trade, prove your worth.”

Lord Jin rose from his seat and approached them.

“Recently, this land has been plagued by a sickness. A mysterious toxin flowing from beyond the ‘Black Swamp’ is killing people and rotting the soil. I sent my best men, but none who entered the swamp returned alive.”

His gaze pierced alternately at Hector and Cypher.

“If you truly possess that kind of strength, prove it. Enter the black swamp and investigate the source of this plague. If you help rid this land of its trouble, then I will treat you as guests of Black Dragon Harbor. But if you fail or consider fleeing…”

A killing intent erupted from Lord Jin like a storm.

“You will all become carrion for crows in this strange land.”

It was an offer they could not refuse. Hector and Cypher looked at one another. Each had hidden their identity and come to the Eastern Continent for their own goals, but now they were bound to a shared fate.

The ‘Ashen Worm Nest’ and the ‘Dragon’s Heart’. The two goals they had been chasing now awaited them together in the single hell called the ‘Black Swamp’.