Chapter 119: You’re Choking Me!

Even if Ernest and Elinox were strong enough to deal with them, the people living below were not.

A stray attack could destroy several buildings, and a serious one could do far worse.

’We already have our hands full against the Kingdom of Degenerates!’ Ernest thought as he increased his speed. ’We don’t need another set of casualties and enemies!’

Zishan’s collar tightened against his neck as Ernest increased his speed. "You’re choking me!"

"You’ll survive! You can complain after we’re outside Olmost!"

"That’s not the—"

Zishan stopped midway when a familiar green panel appeared in front of him.

[EMERGENCY QUEST]

[Protect Silvy!]

[Primary Objective: Prevent Silvy from being taken!]

[Secondary Objective: Defeat or repel the pursuing Wyverns!]

[Completion Possibility: 31%]

Zishan’s brows creased as he read through the Quest. ’They’re really after Silvy...’

His arms tightened around the little dragon before his eyes moved toward the Wyverns following them from behind.

More importantly, the first line had confirmed what Ernest suspected.

They wanted Silvy.

He held her even tighter.

"Papa?" Silvy raised her head and looked at him.

Those silver-gray eyes were filled with the same innocent curiosity they always had. She had no idea why they were running. She probably thought Ernest carrying Papa by his collar was some strange new game.

Zishan’s brows creased.

The Wyverns they fought before had already become suspicious after Elinox remembered that the attack happened soon after Silvy hatched.

Now another group had appeared, and this time, the System itself had confirmed that they were here for Silvy. Zishan’s expression darkened as his arms tightened around the little dragon, anger slowly rising inside him.

’Why would some fucking flying lizards dare to take Silvy away from me?’

Before he could think any further about it, another part of the green panel appeared in front of him.

[QUEST REWARDS]

[EXP: 50,000]

[+100 Distributable Stat Points]

[INT +50]

[Ice Mana Affinity]

[Skill: Frostbound Dominion]

[Tier: Sovereign]

[Beast Nurturing Space Upgrade]

Zishan’s eyes went through the rewards, and his brows gradually rose. ’What the fuck?’

The System was offering far more than he expected. However, from the auras coming from behind them, it was already obvious that some of those Wyverns were far beyond anything he could currently handle.

Before he could spend more time thinking about it, another green notification appeared beneath the Emergency Quest.

[SUB-EMERGENCY QUEST]

[First Ascent Advancement!]

[Objective: Reach Level 100 and complete your First Ascent during the Emergency Quest!]

[QUEST REWARDS]

[+60 Distributable Stat Points]

[First Ascent Imprint Reinforcement]

[Ascent Stabilization]

Zishan stared at the new Quest for a moment before his expression became strange. ’You want me to undergo my First Ascent now?’

[Correct.]

His eyes moved toward the Wyverns still following them from behind. ’While a bunch of flying lizards are trying to take my daughter?’

[Correct.]

Zishan’s mouth twitched.

He had only recently asked the System how Ascension worked, and he had imagined doing it inside one of the military meditation rooms, or somewhere inside the Holmes estate where he could sit down without worrying about something trying to bite his head off.

Instead, several powerful Wyverns were flying after them, yet the System wanted him to reach Level 100 and complete his First Ascent in the middle of all this.

Before he could think any further about the timing, another familiar prompt appeared beneath the two Quests.

[PRECEDENCE AVAILABLE]

[Claim Quest Rewards Before Completion?]

[YES / NO]

Zishan’s eyes stopped on YES. Normally, he would have selected it without thinking much about it, since taking the rewards first and worrying about the Quest afterward had always been the entire point of his System.

This time, however, he held himself back. He still did not know exactly how many Wyverns were following them, and with Silvy currently in his arms, he wanted to make sure she was somewhere safe first before doing anything else.

Another roar came from behind them, causing Silvy to twist around in his arms until she could see the Wyverns chasing after them. Her large eyes followed the approaching figures for a moment before one of her paws suddenly pointed toward them.

"Wugly! Wugly!"

Zishan looked at her and almost laughed despite how pissed off he had been just moments ago. "Yes, yes. They’re ugly."

Silvy nodded heavily as though he had finally understood what she was trying to tell him. "Wugly!"

"Very ugly."

Ernest suddenly started descending toward the open land below them and shouted, "Hold on!"

Zishan looked up at him. "You’re the one holding me!"

"Then, hold Silvy properly!"

"I am holding her!"

Ernest ignored his complaints as they descended toward a wide stretch of empty land far outside the capital, with Elinox following closely behind them while carrying Ollie.

Olmost was still visible behind them, though from this distance, most of the buildings had already become difficult to make out. Ernest seemed satisfied with how far they had gotten and finally released Zishan’s collar as Elinox descended behind them with Ollie.

Zishan landed on his feet and rubbed the back of his neck. "Couldn’t you have carried me normally?"

"There was no time."

"You could’ve grabbed my waist or something."

Ernest turned his head toward him, and Zishan suddenly imagined the huge Crown Marshal carrying him around the waist while flying through the sky.

"Never mind..."

Ernest turned toward the approaching Wyverns without saying anything else, while Zishan lowered his gaze toward Silvy. They had gone far enough away from the capital that a fight here should no longer place the city directly in danger, yet the Wyverns had continued following them all the way.

"They’re really after Silvy..." he muttered before looking at the little dragon in his arms. "Silvy..."

"Papa?" She looked up at him with those innocent silver-gray eyes before pointing one paw toward the sky again. "Wugly."

"I know." Zishan released a helpless sigh. He did not like what he was about to ask, especially after refusing Ernest’s suggestion earlier, but seeing the Wyverns follow them this far had already changed his mind. "Silvy... can you hide for a while?"