"The ‘Three Foundational Special Forces’ is just a nickname based on those three people’s names."

Three days later, Leon and his daughters regrouped.

Noa began explaining the details of those individuals to Leon.

"Their actual operation code is 'Sharp Blade,' and as the name suggests, they are elite soldiers that the Empire developed fifteen years ago—five years after you disappeared. Each one possesses extremely strong individual combat abilities."

After a brief pause, Noa added, "Some even say… they've surpassed the Black Armor from back then."

"Hmm… what?!" 

Upon hearing this, General Leon was no longer sleepy.

"Who said that? Who said that?"

Noa, predicting this reaction, merely shrugged nonchalantly, "That's what the defeated dragons say."

"Though they are strong, their power seems somewhat unstable."

Aurora, adjusting her glasses, chimed in, "I happened to see one of their battles a few years ago. Their coordination is seamless, but midway through, the leader, Kini, seemed to lose control of his power, which led to the battle ending prematurely. And, big sister, didn’t you also sense something strange? The power they use—"

Noa picked up where her sister left off, "Doesn't belong to them."

"Doesn't belong to them? What does that mean?"

"It's just a feeling," Aurora said. "Their magic is strange, but I can’t quite pinpoint what exactly is odd about it. Still, that’s not the main point. The key is that the Sharp Blade Special Forces have come to the capital for some kind of official recognition."

Just as Leon had told Moon a few days prior, no matter how high-ranking soldiers are, they can’t freely enter the capital unless it's for ceremonies. 

It didn’t matter if they were part of the Sharp Blade or any other special force—entry was restricted.

"Are you thinking of sneaking in during the award ceremony?"

Leon asked, "That might not be feasible. The ceremony is inside the royal palace, and no one is allowed to carry weapons. They'll perform body searches."

Noa shook her head, "Getting into the palace is out of the question. The barrier is too complex for even Aurora to break. So, we'll have to resort to our second plan—capture and interrogate."

"Capture those three?"

"No, the members of the Sharp Blade Special Forces wouldn’t know the location of the Heartscale."

Noa said, "But their superior should."

"Their superior?"

"A man named Nacho Salamander," Noa explained. "He’s in charge of coordinating between the dragon-slaying army and the royal palace. Essentially, the entire dragon-slaying army reports to him. Nacho—huh? What’s that look for? Do you know this Nacho?"

Leon rubbed his chin and frowned slightly, nodding, "Hmm, twenty years ago, he was just a clerk in the dragon-slaying army. I didn’t expect him to climb all the way up to a position of power."

'Boss' or 'top leader' was just a simplified way of putting it. 

In reality, managing an army of hundreds of thousands of people couldn’t be done by one person alone. Back in the day, Leon’s specific role was ‘Commander of the Battlefield,’ meaning that when the cannons started firing, even the highest-ranking officers had to listen to him.

As for off the battlefield, there were plenty of high-ranking officials managing other aspects of the army. The position Noa mentioned—coordinating between the dragon-slaying army and the royal palace—could indeed be considered a 'top leader' role.

So, this Nacho... had risen from a small clerk to one of the bosses. Quite the career climber.

"The higher the position, the more likely he is to know where the Heartscale is kept," Aurora added.

"Alright. If we’re going to capture Nacho for interrogation, do we know his movements?" Leon asked.

"My informant provided fresh intel yesterday. After the award ceremony, Nacho is hosting a banquet at the ‘Hisna Manor’ outside the capital for the Sharp Blade trio. He does this every time they return."

Leon nodded in understanding, "That’s indeed a tradition in the dragon-slaying army. We used to do the same thing back then. So, the banquet is our opportunity?"

"Exactly. But even with a clear target, we still need to come up with a detailed plan. Nacho will secure the entire manor, and the guards will be posted at every exit."

"I’ll handle that part," Leon said. "I can get close to Nacho without being detected."

"Good. Nacho always arrives early at the manor. That would be the best time for you to approach him," Noa said.

Leon blinked, "Is that information also from your informant?"

"Yes. For years now, Nacho has always arrived early. It’s not out of politeness; he just wants to control the event."

Noa shrugged, "He seems to want to control everyone and everything, no matter where he is."

"To gather this much intel on the top leader of the dragon-slaying army… I’m getting more and more curious about this informant of yours," Leon mused. "When can I meet this mysterious big shot?"

"No rush," Noa replied. "After we’ve captured Nacho and my informant finishes her work, you’ll get the chance to meet her."

"In the meantime, feel free to raise your expectations."

Leon thought to himself, if his eldest daughter had been born in peaceful times, she might have been an excellent serialized novelist—

She was too good at building suspense.

Noa then provided a more detailed itinerary of Nacho’s movements and times so that Leon could finalize his plan.

After assigning everyone their roles for the operation, the conversation returned to the Sharp Blade Special Forces.

"Although they are technically part of the dragon-slaying army, they don’t follow its orders. They report directly to the royal family," Noa explained.

"Fifteen years ago, the Sharp Blade trio appeared out of nowhere, wielding powers strong enough to rival ancient dragon kings. They won battle after battle on the dragon-human front."

Aurora added, "Aunt Isa had to relocate the clan deeper into dragon territory because of the pressure from these three. It’s safer there, but it’s just a stalling tactic. At the rate things are going, the Empire will push deeper into dragon territory within a decade."

"And when that happens, there will be nowhere left to hide."

Leon began to ponder.

The Sharp Blade trio had become active on the battlefield five years after he disappeared.

During his service, he had never heard of their names.

Could they have been secretly trained by the Empire?

Unlikely.

If they were secret weapons, why hadn’t they stepped in when Leon was cleaning out traitors or during his battles with the Star King?

It seemed more likely that these three gained their strength during the five years after his disappearance—through some means.

"You said earlier that the Sharp Blade trio's power doesn’t feel like their own?" Leon asked.

"Yes. Normally, when we use magic, the process can be simply described as 'gathering power and then releasing it.'"

Noa explained, "But with them, it feels like 'borrowing power from somewhere and then releasing it.' And their power sometimes goes out of control. That’s highly unusual."

"Did your informant uncover anything about their backgrounds?"

Noa shook her head, "No. The Sharp Blade trio really did seem to appear out of thin air, without giving anyone time to react."

Aurora's expression grew serious, "They are strong—so strong that, as other surviving dragons have said, they rival ancient dragon kings."

Moon, sitting nearby with her legs curled up, hugged her knees. Faced with such a serious discussion, she didn’t dare speak up and only listened quietly.

She was well aware of how powerful the Sharp Blade Special Forces were.

If it came down to a battle with them, there was no certainty they could win.

"Dad," Aurora suddenly broke the silence.

"Hmm?"

"I noticed you were lost in thought just now. Were you thinking about something?"

"Ah… just reminiscing about something funny from the past," Leon, sitting cross-legged on the ground, chuckled softly as he lowered his head.

Noa blinked, "What could be so funny?"

"You."

"Me?"

Leon looked up at his eldest daughter, "The Sharp Blade trio, they reminded me of when you took on three opponents at once back in the day at St. His Academy."

Hearing this, the playful atmosphere returned as Aurora laughed, "What? Big sister fought three people? Why haven’t I heard this before? Tell me everything!"

Leon animatedly recounted Noa's glorious battle from her school days.

Aurora patted her sister on the shoulder after hearing the story, "You truly are the pride of the Melqueve family!"

Noa blushed and turned her head, looking bashful in a way that resembled her mother, "It was just an anti-bullying thing, nothing special."

"Well, I think the Sharp Blade Special Forces aren’t much to fear. If necessary, I’ll show you all what the Melqueve family’s 'one vs three' looks like," Leon said with a confident grin.

Noa froze for a moment—wait, why was her father so bold all of a sudden?

Ohhh…

She understood.

This was exactly what her mother had meant when she said, "Once he’s charged up, he’ll become unstoppable."

But his confidence was built on his power.

As his daughter, Noa had never doubted his strength.

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TL NOTE: Please don't skimp on the stars for the translation - I'd really like to see how far Leon goes and how far we can increase the number of chapters. Thanks~!