The Wandering Samurai and his Beloved General (BL)

The skirmishes between the two armies continued for another day, with the Black Pythons sending out squads to search for the missing battalion while the Silver Dragons maintained their efficient strategy.

The large number of crocodiles lost in the battle and earthquake had been replenished by the next day, and the swamp waters could no longer be seen once again. The fog, repaired by the mages, hung thick in the air, and communications between Baili's imps and the other half of the army were running smoothly.

By afternoon, the mages discovered something utterly shocking that numbed their senses and sent all their common sense flying out the window.

The incident occurred when a mage fell.

Although he used magic to slow the fall, he still inevitably landed on top of one of the crocodiles. But to their surprise, not only did the crocodiles not attack him, one of them actually nudged its snout affectionately against the mage's legs...

The mage almost fainted from fright but managed to hold on, trembling in fear as he sat on the crocodile's back. Not knowing what to do next.

The crocodile that had nudged its nose seemed insistent on staying close to the mage. It pushed through all its brothers and sisters, happily floating beside him.

"G-General, have we fed them to the point of stupidity, or have we been living with the crocodiles for so long that we've started hallucinating?" Baili questioned in utter confusion.

"Hmm, that's a good question," Lanling mused, holding his chin as he pondered this baffling development.

Heads jerked and eyes widened in alarm as they looked at their usually all-knowing general.

"Lanling, you don't know why?" Haruki asked, equally surprised.

Lanling stiffened for a moment before bursting into laughter. "I'm not a god! I have plenty of moments where I don't know the answer." He shook his head and chuckled some more before gesturing to a nearby mage.

"Is that mage part of the team feeding the area with their mana?"

The mage nodded. "As per your orders, every time they fully recover, they drain their mana to the surrounding area."

"Have someone from that team go down as well."

"Eh?! Um, yes, General." The mage paled at his general's orders but obeyed nonetheless.

Within ten minutes, another mage was sitting on top of a crocodile nearby, trembling in fear alongside his colleague.

And the crocodiles loved them.

There was even a moment when two crocodiles bumped into each other, almost fighting for the spots next to the mages. It was only when one mage screamed for them to stop that they finally behaved themselves.

Lanling briefly laughed playfully before coughing into his fist, attempting to hide it.

Haruki was stunned for a moment before laughing without a care. "It seems some of these crocodiles know who their dad is."

Baili wasn't sure if he should laugh along with them, but seeing as the mages no longer trembled in fear, a thought occurred to him. "Doesn't this mean those mages can come down?"

Haruki laughed even harder while Lanling shook his head, smiling. "Even if they did, only a few would have the mental strength to stay. Just spread the word and let them decide. It won't change our strategy much."

Some mages were truly bold enough to play with these reptiles, even showing their fellow soldiers how obedient the crocodiles were by placing their arms between their jaws.

The shock was mind-numbing.

Sure, there were rare stories of people befriending crocodiles—tales heard in taverns or sung by wandering bards—but this? This was beyond what even the most battle-hardened men could comprehend.

Thankfully, they had been trained to desensitize themselves when certain situations during battle became too overwhelming for their minds. Soon, a few more soldiers came down to rest beside the mages. Staying atop the trees, after all, carried its own stresses.

Before long, however, a situation arose where the army had no choice but to descend for survival, as a massive forest fire engulfed the top of the swamp. The flames lit up the area, darkening the sky with thick, black smoke.

They quickly made a decision.

Swiftly, the army descended and cautiously landed next to the crocodiles, with the braver ones sitting directly on top of their backs. As the tree trunks grew more and more damp the closer they were to the water, the army didn't have to worry about the fire reaching them.

But it felt like they had entered hell.

The swamp water was biting cold, the sky was on fire and with it the air thinned, and a terrifying number of cold-blooded, carnivorous creatures floated right next to their faces.

"When we go back to the capital, those bastards better start worshipping us."

Whoever had uttered those words so suddenly startled the fear in their hearts, and various types of strained laughter echoed under the fiery night.

"I'm gonna tell them I had a son," a mage chimed in. "They're five meters long (~16 ft.), have sharp, jagged teeth, and they're greyish-green."

Some soldiers snickered and snorted at his comment.

"It just sounds like you made a Draconic woman pregnant!"

"That's right! That's right! Hahaha!"

"Perfect, then I'll show them a memory of how I kissed my son—a crocodile!" The mage deadpanned.

Some of the fear-stricken soldiers, listening in, finally couldn't hold back their laughter. The tension in the air instantly dissipated, their minds reaching a calming state as their hearts settled.

Those who couldn't take the cold water cursed aloud a bit before wordlessly asking a nearby crocodile if they could rest on its back. Seeing no rejection, they climbed on and began drying their clothes and armor.

Lanling and Haruki were also sitting separately on top of crocodile backs.

Lanling remained calm, while Haruki explored everywhere with unrestrained curiosity. He kept at it for so long that the crocodile twisted, sending him tumbling into the water before floating away in annoyance.

Lanling chuckled at his sorry appearance. "You should keep your hands to yourself."

Haruki, dripping wet, simply hugged Lanling in response, grinning with his teeth showing. "I can't. Especially if it was you—my hands know what it want."

Lanling shook his head helplessly unbothered by the sudden cold hug. He found another crocodile for Haruki and asked a mage to dry him before turning to Baili.

"Get the army on the outskirts ready. When the fire ends, the pythons will surely come."