Evil dragon has a warm heart
Chapter 266 - 266 265 Two Big Clumsy Bears

Chapter 266: Chapter 265 Two Big Clumsy Bears Chapter 266: Chapter 265 Two Big Clumsy Bears Russell had thought that apart from Baron Roman being appointed as the Finance Minister, the establishment of the Council of Elders had little to do with him.

But he soon received a decree from the Council.

“A decree appointing me to assist the Volcanic Minister at the Red Castle Elders’ Council?” Russell looked bewildered at the envoy from Red Castle, “I’m sorry, Captain Lucas, are you certain this is an official decree issued by the Council of Elders?”

The leader of the envoy, a familiar figure who had previously come to award Russell the title of scholar, was the Phantom Beast Knight, Lucas.

To be precise, it was Lord Lucas, who had recently been ennobled by the Council of Elders for his distinguished military service.

“Of course it’s a decree signed by the Council of Elders. Aren’t the signatures of Lord Merlin and Lord Mel on the decree?” Captain Lucas replied with a smile.

Russell frowned, “But I am not a vassal of Red Castle, I am a vassal of my father.”

“Don’t be in such a hurry, Lord Russell, Baron Roman has a verbal message for you,” Captain Lucas said. “Baron Roman asked me to tell you that this resolution was proposed by Lord Mel and passed by the Council of Elders on the grounds that the Shadowflame Dragon has taken a liking to you.”

Then Lucas shared a piece of gossip, “It is said that Kontekai, who is elderly and infirm, is preparing to step down. He recommended several candidates to the Shadowflame Dragon, but none satisfied it.”

“And then?”

“Then someone told Lord Kontekai that you had caught the attention of the Shadowflame Dragon after the great battle, so he put forward your name. Unexpectedly, the Shadowflame Dragon approved of you, and hence your appointment arose.”

“How will the legal issues be resolved?” Russell actually didn’t want to go; being the assistant of the Volcanic Minister meant he would have to be under the constant scrutiny of the Shadowflame Dragon.

Whereas Wuyao Snake Manor offers more freedom, as the emperor is far away from the sky… not to mention that the lord is his own father.

With a bitter smile, Captain Lucas replied, “Are legalities that important? The elective system for heirs has been implemented already; what legalities are there still to worry about? Could anything be more serious than Marquis Arno taking up the post of Chief Elder of the Council?”

“That’s true,” Russell nodded in agreement.

After some thought, he replied, “Alright, I will set off for Red Castle as soon as possible.”

No matter what, he needed to go to Red Castle to ask his father and grandfather in person and, possibly, he might want to have a chat with the Shadowflame Dragon himself.

Why should he be sent to Red Castle after tirelessly killing Snow Specters and nurturing dragon eggs on the frontier?

Are there any Snow Specters around Shadowflame Volcano for him to hunt?

…

As the envoy had other tasks to carry out at Tributary River Mouth, Russell had no choice but to set out alone for Red Castle.

“Eric, no need for you to accompany me this time; stay and defend our land. The knights should all remain as well to prevent any Snow Specter invasions,” he instructed.

“Understood,” Eric responded in a muffled voice.

Charles however said, “Sir, the journey is tough. You should have someone attend to you; bring along a knight attendant.”

Russell glanced at Grove who was sprawling lazily and said, “Let Grove come with me.”

Over the past few days, Charles had invited several ladies to meet Grove for matchmaking, but to no avail as Grove found none of them energizing.

So Russell decided to take Grove out for a change of scenery, to see if he might find love along the way.

Grove calmly replied to Russell’s decision, “Understood.”

“Eric, Charles, I have a task for you two,” Russell continued. “It’s time to begin selecting the children; choose those in good health. Don’t be stingy with the necessities like chicken, fish, meat, and eggs. We should try to train a few knights as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Understood.”

The next day, Russell rode Unicorn Polly, taking the Great Knight Grove along, and went straight to the Cigar Factory to load up several boxes of cigar leaves on horseback.

Then he made a trip to Fluorescent Castle to have a word with his mother.

“I already know about the decree. Since your father and your grandfather agree, I won’t say much,” Lady Meryl said, “but you must be careful on the road; it is the Ice Age, and the trade routes are not safe.”

“Don’t worry, Mother, I am already a Phantom Beast Knight,” Russell replied with a smile, pulling out a strange stone from his pocket.

Placing the stone in Lady Meryl’s hand, Russell said, “This is a Snow Demon Crystal, which I extracted from Lord Medikalun’s body. It’s not very useful, but it holds great sentimental value. Your birthday is coming up, and since I can’t make it back to celebrate with you, I thought I’d give you this gift in advance.”

“Your thoughtfulness is all that I could wish for,” Lady Meryl replied as she accepted the gift.

“Then I’ll be off.”

“Don’t rush, there’s one thing you mustn’t forget. When you pass by Red Castle, make sure to take a trip to Blackgarden Mountain,” Lady Meryl said. “I’ve calculated the time, and your sister’s due date is approaching fast. You and Roland had better go see her.”

“Don’t worry, Mother, I’ve been keeping that in mind.”

“You’re a good child, I know that,” Lady Meryl said with a smile as she waved goodbye to her son.

Braving the wind and snow.

The Mountain River Trade Route during the ice period was indeed tough to travel, with blizzards sweeping across almost every day, and even the Cold Spring Point on the way was about to freeze.

However, nighttime was lively. Although most of the Snow Demons were probably cleared out following the second downfall, new Snow Demons hadn’t replenished on the snowfield, but there certainly was no shortage of Snow Ghosts. They gathered like bamboo shoots after a rain.

The Little Dream Dragon had two great nights in a row, taking down at least a hundred and fifty Snow Ghosts.

But once they entered the Volcanic Oasis, there were no more to eat.

That day, Russell and Grove were racing along the path when suddenly, Russell heard the weird whispering that hadn’t been heard for several days.

“Honey, honey is so delicious, who can help me get some honey… Such a big piece of honey, sadly out of reach, wuwuwu, I’m really so miserable, why can’t I fly… If only I were a bird.”

“Hmm?”

Russell signaled Unicorn Polly to stop.

Grove also pulled up, “Sir, what’s the matter?”

“I smell honey, Grove. Let’s search around both sides of the road and see if we can find some honey!” Russell said.

Grove didn’t understand: “Sir, there’s a market town ahead, where we should be able to buy honey.”

“I want wild honey, don’t ask too many questions, just follow my lead.”

“Understood.”

Unfortunately, after searching the woods on either side of the road, Russell found no honey, nor the Fantasy Beast that wanted it.

Just when he thought his lucky whisper might not be so lucky after all.

The weird whispering echoed again: “If I climb the tallest tree in the forest and jump down, could I hit the beehive? Hehe, seems worth a try… Honey, honey, here I come!”

Russell’s eyes lit up.

He then gestured for Unicorn Polly to take to the skies, and survey the surrounding forest. Soon they spotted several towering giant trees.

The forest was too dense and thick to tell which was the tallest tree at a glance.

But there was no need to discern anymore, as Russell had already seen a greyish-brown bear clumsily climbing a fir tree. Halfway up, the bear suddenly stopped, too scared to go any higher.

At the same time, the weird whispering triggered once more: “So scary, it’s so high, I’ve never climbed this high… but the honey… I’m scared… Ouch!”

The whispering had just concluded.

Russell then saw the bear lose its grip and tumble down from the tree, thumping to the ground and causing the surrounding trees to shake.

“Did you see that, Polly?”

“I saw it, Russell, there’s a big clumsy bear over there,” Polly teased through their mental link.

Russell laughed, “Now, it seems, there are two big clumsy bears.”

Grove’s nickname was also the big clumsy bear.