连续三天,Reylo 在黎明时分进入废弃的矿井,直到黄昏才出现,身上满是灰尘和污垢.虽然他没有找到那条银龙,但他也没有空手而归.在矿井深处,他发现了散落的带有啃咬痕迹的魔兽骨头碎片,表明这个洞穴中居住着某种捕食者.再往深处,他发现了动物粪便,干燥而结块,散发出淡淡的硫磺与金属混合的气味.
"又是徒劳的一天?"博林的声音,夹杂着毫不掩饰的嘲讽,从篝火旁飘了过来.他用匕首刮着靴子上的泥土,懒得抬头和身边几个头发花白的老兵说话."也许,我们尊敬的主人认为他可以在这些石头的缝隙中找到黄金?"
几名退伍军人发出低沉的笑声.
其中一个人插话说,"博林勋爵说得对.这个被遗弃的地方在晚上像冰窖（地窖）一样寒冷,我们只能吃到干口粮和烤肉,甚至连一口热汤都没有.如果这种情况继续下去,我们都会在这里冻死或饿死,然后才能取得任何成就.
"把声音压低!"另一个骑士警惕地瞥了一眼不远处艾德的身影."如果埃德船长听到了你的话,你就会被骗的."
提到 Ed 后,抱怨大大平息了.Ed 就像一座沉默的铁塔,总是勤奋地履行他的职责.
Ed 自然而然地感受到了队伍中酝酿的不满.他曾多次尝试与雷洛交谈,至少是为了询问领主坚持要探索这个废弃的矿井,希望能安抚那些人.
雷洛并没有忽视营地里的暗流.但他没有时间和精力来一一安抚或镇压他们.他的目标很明确,也很单一:找到传闻中居住在这个地方的年轻银龙.所以他选择了最简单的解决方案.他奖励每个骑士五条金龙,并实行轮班制,每天派五名骑士到黑石镇收集情报.这次所谓的情报收集,除了了解黑石镇的情况外,对于心怀不满的骑士来说,也是事实上的决裂.
该系统的智能并非万能;有时它只能提供模糊的信息片段.这些线索就像藏宝图上的标记,但宝藏的确切位置仍然需要他自己去挖掘.
被废黜的贵族,贫瘠的封地,士气低落的军队...雷洛很清楚他目前的困境.为了摆脱这种困境（泥潭）并站稳脚跟,他需要一个强大的盟友.而一条潜力无限的年轻银龙,无疑是他能掌握的最重要的谈判筹码.
一个龙骑士!这三个字所代表的权力和地位,足以让任何敢于看不起他的人保持沉默.
那天晚上,雷洛再次从矿井中出现,手里紧紧抓着一个他在隐蔽角落里找到的闪闪发光的鳞片状小物体.鳞片很小,边缘略微磨损,就像是从什么生物身上掉下来的一样.他平静地把它塞进口袋里,脸上仍然露出那种镇定自若的表情.
晚餐还是烤肉.像往常一样,Reylo 坐在篝火旁,与人群稍微分开,Ed 静静地坐在他对面,警惕着.雷洛拿起一串咝咝作响的魔法兽肉,慢慢地吃着,他的目光飘向营地边缘阴暗的树林.经过三天的探索,他几乎已经将矿井翻了个底朝天,但除了那些骨头碎片,粪便和今天那小小的鳞片,他什么也没找到.他的目标似乎隐藏得更深,或者它根本不经常留在矿井里?他感到沮丧,但更重要的是,他不愿意放弃.
一百里中有九十里已经走过了.放弃?不可能的.
随着夜幕的加深,寒冷加剧了.大多数骑士都撤退到他们简陋的帐篷里,只留下值班的哨兵在寒风中踱步.雷洛仍然坐在篝火旁,火焰反射在他年轻而沉着的脸上.他张开手掌,看着那小小的鳞片,它在火光下闪耀着淡淡的银色光芒.
"银龙..."他轻声喃喃自语,眼中闪过一丝热情.你在哪儿?
就在这时,附近的灌木丛中传来了微弱的沙沙声.雷洛一动不动,他的周边视野朝声音的方向瞥了一眼.艾德也变得警觉起来,紧握着他的剑柄.
过了一会儿,一个毛茸茸的小脑袋从灌木丛的阴影中探出.那是一只猫科动物,体型不大,只比成年家猫大一点,全身覆盖着雪白的长毛,只有耳尖和尾巴末端点缀着一簇簇深灰色绒毛（绒毛）.
A pair of pale golden eyes flickered with curiosity and wariness in the firelight. It sniffed the air cautiously, drawn by the aroma of roasted meat, its throat emitting a faint purr.
A lynx?
Reylo was slightly surprised.
This kind of animal usually lived in the snowy forests further north, rarely appearing in the relatively barren mountainous regions of Blackstone Domain.
Moreover, a lynx with such pure white fur was even rarer.
The little fellow seemed frightened by the campfire and the unfamiliar humans, hesitating after popping its head out, only revealing a pair of twinkling eyes, staring intently at the skewered roasted meat still dripping with oil in Reylo's hand.
The longing in its eyes was as if it had been hungry for three days.
Reylo's heart stirred. He tried extending the skewer of roasted meat forward, moving slowly to avoid startling the shy little creature.
The white-furred lynx tilted its head, seemingly judging the intentions of this two-legged creature.
The aroma of the roasted meat continuously tempted its olfactory nerves.
After hesitating for a moment, it finally couldn't resist the temptation and walked completely out from the bushes.
Moonlight and firelight洒 (drenched) over it, highlighting the immaculate whiteness of its fur.
It approached the campfire warily.
Stopping about three or four steps away from Reylo, it confirmed there was no danger once again before stretching its neck and carefully edging towards the roasted meat in Reylo's hand.
Seeing this, Ed relaxed his grip on his sword, a faint smile appearing on his face.
In this dull and uneasy camp, the sudden appearance of such a cute little creature was indeed a rare treat.
Reylo tore off a small piece of the roasted meat, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with not too many bones, and placed it on the stone beside him.
The white-furred lynx immediately pounced on it,叼 (叼起, picking up) the piece of meat, quickly retreating to a safe distance before starting to devour it.
Its eating manner wasn't very refined; it swallowed the meat in a few bites, then looked at Reylo pleadingly again.
Reylo was amused by its greedy appearance, and the lingering annoyance in his heart dissipated a bit.
He decided to place the remaining small half of the roasted meat on the stone.
The little fellow let out a cheerful-sounding, louder purr and unceremoniously pounced on it.
This time, it ate even faster, like a whirlwind, quickly finishing off the not-insignificant amount of roasted meat.
After eating, it still licked its lips unsatisfactorily, even using its front paws to wipe its face.
"Looks like it was starving," Ed murmured.
In the following days, this white-furred lynx became a regular visitor to the camp.
Every evening, when the campfire was lit and the aroma of roasted meat began to弥漫 (permeate) the air, it would always appear on time, familiarly running to Reylo's campfire, looking at him with those pale golden eyes full of expectation.
Reylo also enjoyed having a companion, always sharing some roasted meat with it.
The spices he used were brought from the Duke's mansion; though not numerous, they combined to create a rich flavor that obviously suited the little fellow's taste.
Over several days, the white-furred lynx's戒心 (wariness) towards Reylo greatly diminished. Sometimes it would even nudge his boots with its furry head, emitting a contented purr.
Reylo's interest in this white-furred lynx grew deeper.
Not just because of its rarity and affinity for humans, but also because of the unreasonable details about it.
For instance, its bottomless appetite.
Once, the knights roasted an entire cleaned wild boar, weighing about a hundred catties. He and the knights ate half of it, and after feeding the little fellow five or six catties, they hung the rest beside the campfire to preserve it.
He thought the little fellow was full, but in the middle of the night when he woke up to relieve himself, he found that the little fellow had actually swallowed the remaining nearly fifty catties of roasted pork entirely!
After eating, it just let out a satisfied burp, still looking lively and energetic, showing no signs of being overstuffed.
This completely subverted Reylo's understanding of biology.
How could a lynx of such a small size possess such a terrifying appetite?
An even stranger incident occurred a few nights later.
That night, the wind was strong, and the campfire's flames flickered erratically.
As usual, Reylo handed a piece of freshly roasted magical beast leg meat, still with a hint of blood, to the white-furred lynx.
The little fellow叼 (叼起, picked up) the meat, probably thinking it wasn't cooked enough.
It tilted its head, looking at the meat, then at the campfire, seemingly dissatisfied.
Then, under the stunned gazes of Reylo and Ed, the white-furred lynx opened its seemingly dainty mouth.
A small stream of tangerine-red flames abruptly shot out from its mouth!
The flames precisely licked over the piece of meat pressed under its paw, emitting a faint "sizzle" sound. The surface of the meat instantly turned charred, emitting an even richer aroma.
After doing all this, the little fellow contentedly retracted the flames and lowered its head to enjoy the "twice-processed" roasted meat, as if it had just done something completely ordinary.
Reylo: "..."
Ed: "..."
The two exchanged a glance, both seeing unbelievable shock in each other's eyes.
A... fire-breathing... lynx?
Reylo's heart skipped a beat. A thought flashed through his mind like lightning.
White fur, a rare breed, an enormous appetite, and... the ability to breathe fire.
Could it be...
He suddenly looked at the "white-furred lynx" that was still eating rapturously, his breathing becoming slightly hurried.