"Erica knight, please tell me, where exactly am I right now in the Portland Republic?"

Although Mark Benson had already sensed the unusual undertone hidden in the other’s laughter, there was still not a trace of dissatisfaction or anger in his tone.

"Telling you is no big deal. This is the largest forest on the eastern border of the Sland Empire, the Azure Mist Forest. However, Mr. Maureen, you must address me as Erica Dragon Knight, or Dragon Knight Erica."

The young wyvern rider suddenly stopped laughing, drew his great bow again, and the sharp, heavy triple-edged armor-piercing arrowhead pointed straight at the dragon knight.

With a cold sneer, he continued, "A dragon knight without a dragon is not worthy of the title. Of course, if I bring back the head of a former Sland Empire dragon knight, the leader of the Portland Republic will surely award me a medal in person. My family and I will reap great benefits. Mr. Maureen, do you think I’ll let you go?"

A chilling murderous intent gradually crept onto his face, though inwardly he was extremely pleased.

In his eyes, this washed-up dragon knight abandoned by his dragon was no different from a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

In the blink of an eye, as the wyvern rider Erica revealed a ferocious expression, the wind-element wyvern beneath him also began to stir restlessly.

Between its sharp teeth, lively wind elements gathered once more.

"Mark Benson Colonel, should we take him out?"

Emily Thompson was extremely wary of the mysterious magic. She and her sister pressed themselves to the bare tree trunk, one on each side, the sights of their Type 95 automatic rifles trained on the man and his wyvern.

Heavy rounds had already been loaded into the chambers, adding to their lethality.

Of course, the best weapons against such flying beasts were 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine guns and six-barreled Vulcan cannons, which could tear them to pieces in midair in an instant.

Although the sisters couldn’t understand the language spoken between Mark Benson and the sky knight, they could still sense the sudden surge of murderous intent from the other side.

Clearly, negotiations had broken down.

"Watch out for the arrow in his hand—it can pierce right through a tree!"

Mark Benson quickly chanted an incantation and shot the sisters a warning glance.

Although the add-on enhanced armor layered over the "Dragon General" tactical armor could, via its built-in SEG core unit, generate an anti-gravity field and, together with the micro magnetic plasma engine, grant the wearer some low-altitude flight capability,

with such meager maneuverability, facing a real sky knight would be suicide. Staying on the ground was more stifling, but much safer.

"Offending a true dragon knight is unwise, Erica. Since you told me where I am, I can let you leave. Otherwise, you and your country will face the wrath of the Sland Empire and the Royal Dragon Knight Legion."

Second-level Light Shield Spell at the ready, Mark Benson issued a final warning to the Portland Republic’s sky knight.

Don’t be fooled by his empty hands—while the "Dragon General" was standard war armor, it was also a formidable battlefield weapon, with its most fearsome feature being the infrasound cannon.

However, using an infrasound weapon on a mere wyvern rider was like using a fuel-air bomb on a mosquito. Besides, the second-generation "Dragon General" armor Mark Benson wore, though improved over the previous version, still had a limited number of uses for its infrasound cannon.

Once its lifespan was exceeded, it would be scrapped, and in this world, there was no way to replace or maintain it.

"Hmph! The Sland Empire is too busy with its own troubles right now to care about a nobody like me—or a useless dragon knight like you. So... die!" The crimson-blooded mastiff tendon bowstring was instantly drawn to its full limit.

Before he finished speaking, Erica suddenly released his grip. A heavy triple-edged armor-piercing arrow, forged entirely of fine steel, shot out. He was confident that at such close range, the arrow could tear through even heavy knight’s armor.

As soon as it left the string, the three slightly curved grooves at the arrow’s tail, inlaid with carved feathers, caused the arrow to spin, increasing its accuracy and penetration by ten percent.

Thud! A muffled sound!

The oncoming triple-edged armor-piercing arrow was deflected by a suddenly appearing, deliberately angled light membrane, and embedded itself in a nearby tree.

At the point of impact, rings of light rippled outward, quickly neutralizing the piercing force that could have gone through a full-grown bull.

"What? A spell shield?"

He hadn’t expected the other to be able to cast magic—this was the domain of true mages. Erica was shocked, but his hands didn’t pause; another triple-edged fine steel armor-piercing arrow was nocked to the bow.

Chapter 0009: When Wyverns Meet the Type 95

Whoosh!~

The triple-edged armor-piercing arrow shrieked through the air, followed immediately by another.

After all, a dragon knight was not a mage. The Portland Republic’s wyvern rider Erica didn’t believe the other’s magical reserves could compare to a real mage’s, and his great bow was drawn to a full moon.

Let’s see who can outlast whom.

After being deliberately deflected by the light-element shield, the over-one-meter-long fine steel arrow still buried most of itself in a nearby tree trunk.