Work Prophet
Chapter 176 - 24 Alone and Unassisted

Chapter 176: Chapter 24 Alone and Unassisted

"But if we don’t bring the militia, we can only muster five hundred men, and even with those detestable lizard people, we have less than fifteen hundred. How can we deal with the Black Dragon with so few hands?" someone questioned.

"I must remind you all," the old knight spoke again, "even if we truly conscript an army of five thousand, we do not have enough equipment to arm them. Or do you plan to send those militiamen to fight the dragon with wooden spears and shields?"

Since Ireya took over Green Field, the Arias family’s economic situation had improved. Not long ago, they made an unprecedented purchase of weapons and armor from the Golden Fleece Commerce.

Now, those weapons and armor have been gradually delivered to Green Field, but they’re barely enough for the newly recruited warriors. As for the militia, Miss Rabbit simply couldn’t afford to care.

In fact, even the professional soldiers of the Arias family, in terms of weapons and equipment, only ranked in the lower-middle tier in the West.

And unfortunately, this time, their opponent’s body was covered with scales almost impervious to swords and spears, which caused a great deal of worry among everyone in the hall.

A moment later, someone said, "We should continue to seek help from the Figrola family. The Black Dragon is too powerful, and with the strength of the Arias family alone, it will be difficult to defeat it!"

The person’s suggestion garnered much agreement, but the young lady shook her head, "Our only reinforcements are Sir Ferdinand and the three hundred men he brought."

Her words caused an uproar in the hall.

"How is that possible?!" a knight said, "You previously mentioned that the families of the West had agreed to form an Alliance Army to fight the Black Dragon, and I heard that the Alliance Army’s commander was just chosen three days ago, the Marquis’s second son, Hels."

"There will be no more reinforcements," Ireya repeated her earlier statement, "Have you all forgotten what happened when those lizard people surrounded Teacup Castle before?"

Upon hearing this, everyone’s expression turned sour.

Of course, they hadn’t forgotten that just four months ago, swarms of lizard people suddenly emerged from the marshes, those despicable robbers ransacking and plundering across Green Field like locusts, devastating many people’s feuds to the point where they hadn’t fully recovered even now.

Moreover, those lizard people later showed up at the foot of Teacup Castle. However, when the Arias family called for help to the nobles of the West, no one responded except for the Batoris family.

"But this time is different," someone still unwilling to give up said, "This Alliance Army is organized by the Figrola family, those major families may disregard our life and death, but they must obey the orders of the Figrola family, right?"

"That might be true if Marquis Kuren were still in the West," the lady said, "But unfortunately, he has been away from Rock Snow City for some time now, no one knows where he is or when he will return."

"Furthermore, there is not just one voice within the Figrola family. Lord David indeed supports sending troops, but the commander chosen this time is Hels, and he is not someone who advocates war."

"But Lord Hels, having taken on the position of commander, shouldn’t abandon his station, especially not for the honor of being a noble, right?"

"Indeed..." the young lady’s voice trailed off there.

The truth about Ruse’s death involved many powers, even the Royal Family. While Ireya wanted to avenge her father, she knew the dangers involved; thus, from the beginning, she had confided in only Li Yu.

Until she had absolute evidence, she wasn’t planning to make this matter public. However, this made it difficult for her to explain to others why she was so certain that the reinforcements from the Figrola family would not come.

Ireya was still looking for an excuse when Pablo, standing beside her, began to bluster, "What’s with all this dilly-dallying? Miss Ireya is the head of the Arias family. It’s enough for us, her vassals, to resolutely carry out her orders based on her judgment of the situation. There’s no need for her to explain it to us."

Pablo had served the Arias family for many years and had been in charge of the safety of Teacup Castle until its last change of hands. There was virtually no one in Green Field he hadn’t dealt with, so his words carried considerable weight.

Although many people still harbored doubts in their hearts, none spoke up to question him further after he had spoken.

On the other hand, Miss Rabbit also used the time Pablo had fought for to come up with a suitable excuse.

"I had previously offended Miss Angela of the Immanuel Family, and in retaliation, they have been delaying sending troops this time.

"Moreover, I heard that the Family Head Diodosi of the Immanuel Family and Lord Hels are on good terms, and he might use this personal relationship to interfere. I’m not saying that the reinforcements definitely won’t come, but we should also prepare for the possibility of having to fight alone."

Upon hearing this, everyone felt a tightness in their chests, weighed down by heavy pressure.

It was a long while before someone spoke up again, with a troubled expression, "It’s not that we don’t want to fight with all our might, it’s just that we lack manpower, and we don’t have any weapons capable of penetrating the scales of that dragon from Dragon Mountain!"

His words voiced the sentiments of many in the room. If they hadn’t been completely unable to deal with the dragon, the Arias Family would not have needed to seek help from the outside.

The fact that Irelia had been running around seeking assistance was clear to everyone.

But the eventual outcome was cruel.

Aside from the Arias Family’s staunch ally, the Batoris Family, not a single soldier showed up in Green Field.

The truth was, even without Irelia saying it, many had started to doubt the reinforcements that had yet to arrive, only no one wished to face this reality.

Because that was almost tantamount to pronouncing the death sentence for the Arias Family.

However, it was at that moment when a voice suddenly rang out in the hall, "We have some."

Li Yu, who had yet to speak, finally said, "I have weapons in my possession that are capable of injuring, even killing, that Black Dragon."

"Really?!" The people were first stunned, then joy spread across their faces.

Although the majority present were followers of the Silver Moon Goddess, unlike believers of Pisya in other places, they all knew the might of the Double Rest Sect and Li Yu.

Especially after the Silver Moon Church went to the trouble of organizing that medical skills competition, Li Yu’s reputation in the area surrounding Green Field, from nobles to commoners, had become universally known.

If anyone could stand up to solve the problem at hand, it probably only could be Li Yu and his backers from Saturday.

Unconsciously, Irelia wasn’t the only one who had come to think this way.

Only, the current opponent was far too strong, and even Miss Rabbit didn’t have the same confidence in Li Yu as before.

And differing from others, Irelia, as the Master of Green Field, already knew about the existence of the Sea King Spear in advance. The girl admittedly recognized that this giant crossbow was powerful—reportedly, Li Yu had even built four of them at once.

However, these giant crossbows were originally designed by the Weiting Family for naval battles, to attack enemy ships. If they were to be used to hunt dragons, which were much swifter and could also fly, Miss Rabbit was also not confident about how effective they could truly be.