Aegon crawled forward slowly and cautiously through the thick underbrush.
He pushed aside a small cluster of grass blocking his path, his blowgun already loaded with a steel needle coated in Lys's Tears—a poison so potent it kills instantly upon contact with blood.
Aware of how deadly it was, Aegon handled it with utmost care, making sure not to touch it by mistake.
Using the red markers provided by the chip, he took careful aim at his target.
Whoosh—the dart shot out like lightning.
The lone wolf dragon tamer let out a low, painful cry. His body convulsed violently on the ground, limbs flailing, until he finally lay still.
The other hidden dragon tamers seemed to sense something was wrong. They grew alert, their eyes scanning the surroundings, but for the moment, none of them knew what had happened.
First blood, Aegon thought.
Like a venomous snake buried deep in the grass, he silently slithered toward his next target.
Gaemon and Daenys followed several dozen meters behind, crouched low with eyes sweeping their surroundings, ready to respond in case Aegon's disguise was blown and he came under attack. They had to be ready to back him up at any moment.
As the sky darkened, it only helped Aegon remain hidden.
This time, his targets were a pair of dragon tamers. Aegon crept up behind them like a ghost.
Whoosh—another dart struck its mark.
The victim's companion watched his teammate collapse out of nowhere. Panic twisted across his face as he fumbled through his pack, desperately trying to find the antidote.
Just as he was rummaging in a frenzy, another faint whistle sounded—another steel needle buried itself precisely into his thigh.
Got him. Next.
With infrared imaging aiding his vision, Aegon moved on, ghostlike, toward his next target.
Under his eerie and elusive assault, none of the nine ambushing dragon tamers survived. They were all wiped out.
With the mission complete, Aegon and Gaemon dashed to the supply point to scavenge food.
Daenys was in charge of retrieving the steel needles Aegon had fired. He'd only brought twenty with him, and there were still two more battles ahead—they had to reuse every one.
Inside the hunter's hut, dried meat, bread, and other travel-friendly rations were laid out on the table.
The three of them moved quickly, packing the food into their bags.
"That's enough. If we carry too much, we'll slow down. It'll be even more dangerous if the other dragon tamers catch up," Gaemon urged. "We just need enough to reach the next supply point."
Aegon nodded. They strapped the bags tightly to themselves and were just about to leave...
"Ah!" Daenys's scream rang out from outside.
Damn it, more dragon tamers! Gaemon reacted instantly. He grabbed his twin swords and charged out of the hut.
Aegon didn't hesitate. He bolted after him, heading straight for the source of Daenys's scream.
His mind raced. There's no way dragon tamers near the hut could've avoided the chip's thermal scan. It must be the ones who were trailing behind us and finally caught up. They must've run into Daenys while she was out retrieving the poison needles.
Right then, Daenys was being attacked by two dragon tamers. She was fending them off clumsily, her movements panicked and disorganized as she stumbled backward.
"Daenys!!"
Gaemon's eyes flared with fury. With a roar like a wild brown bear, he tore through the forest toward his sister.
"Brother!" Daenys cried, her eyes brimming with tears.
"There's more of them—Armen, watch out!" one of the attackers shouted. "Fall back! Stick to the plan!"
Gaemon gripped his longsword with both hands, drawing it close to his stomach. His whole body was coiled like a loaded crossbow. The instant he reached the battlefield, he lunged forward with a blindingly fast thrust.
The opposing dragon tamer panicked at Gaemon's incredible speed. In a rush, he raised his shield to block the blow.
Bang! The sword didn't pierce the steel shield, but the sheer impact knocked the tamer off balance. He staggered back, his feet fumbling wildly for footing.
The dragon tamer next to him saw his teammate in danger and, without hesitation, swung his curved blade down at Gaemon, the strike cutting through the air with a sharp whistle.
Gaemon grinned savagely. His twin sword style thrived in tight skirmishes like this. Twisting his waist sharply, he used the momentum of his turn to drive the reverse-gripped longsword in his lower left hand upward like a striking viper, colliding cleanly with the incoming blade.
Clang!
Sparks burst into the air as steel met steel.
But Gaemon wasn't done.
While clashing with the first sword, his right hand was already swinging his heavier blade in a wide arc, bringing it up over his shoulder. In the next instant, he brought it crashing down with overwhelming force—like a mountain falling—straight toward the head of the dragon tamer rushing to help his comrade.
"No! Armen, save me!" the dragon tamer on the left cried out in terror, staring up at the cold, gleaming blade descending on him, his voice full of desperate panic.
But the one called Armen didn't even look back. Without a word, he turned and bolted into the forest like a startled rabbit.
Crunch.
Gaemon's steel sword slammed straight into the man's skull with brutal force. Blood sprayed in all directions.
"None of you are walking away alive." Gaemon licked his lips, eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty gleam as he let out a cold laugh. He lunged after the fleeing Armen with long strides, once more tucking the sword close to his lower abdomen, ready to unleash the [Overhead Strike] from Valyrian military swordsmanship.
Sensing danger, Armen dove into a roll and sprang back to his feet without even glancing behind him, running full tilt through the trees.
Seeing this, Gaemon immediately switched from a thrust to a slash. His sword flashed through the air and carved a deep gash across Armen's back.
But Armen gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain, running with everything he had.
Just as Gaemon frowned, debating whether to keep chasing, a sudden sharp snap came from beneath his feet. Something clamped down hard on his left leg, and a jolt of searing pain shot through his ankle.
Gaemon's heart sank. Looking down, he saw a gleaming steel trap clamped tightly around his ankle.
The jagged iron teeth had sunk deep into the flesh, and blood began to seep out in thin streams.
The momentum of his charge carried him forward uncontrollably, sending him crashing to the ground.
Gritting his teeth through the pain, he quickly pushed himself up with both hands—only to see Armen, who had been fleeing moments ago, charging back with a short sword in hand, aiming it straight at his eye.
Armen's face twisted into a vicious mask of murderous rage.
At that critical instant—
Thwack! A sharp, clear snap of a bowstring echoed.
A feathered arrow tore past Armen's head like a meteor, piercing straight through his brain. His body froze mid-stride, then collapsed like a crumbling wall of earth, landing heavily on top of Gaemon.
Outside the hunter's hut, Aegon swiftly lowered his bow and ran toward him.
Daenys was already in tears as she rushed to Gaemon's side. Her hands trembled as she pushed the corpse off him, crying out,
"Brother!"
Sweat dripped from Gaemon's forehead as he fought through the pain radiating from his ankle.
Aegon knelt beside him and examined the injury.
The trap's iron teeth were buried deep in the flesh.
The momentum from Gaemon's earlier charge had torn the wound wide open, the meat around his ankle mangled badly—some parts cut so deep that bone was visible.
"Don't move. I'll get the trap off." Aegon's tone was grim. He turned to Daenys. "Get the medicine ready and start bandaging. We have to treat it quickly and move. If more dragon tamers show up at this supply point, we'll be in trouble."
Daenys nodded, cutting a strip from the edge of her clothing to make a bandage. Carefully, she applied the medicine.
Gaemon looked at his sister's tear-streaked, worried face and forced a small smile.
"It's nothing. Just a scratch. I'm not dying today."