Evil dragon has a warm heart
Chapter 293 - 293 292 Education Must Start with the Young

Chapter 293: Chapter 292: Education Must Start with the Young Chapter 293: Chapter 292: Education Must Start with the Young “Ice Cream’s temper has gotten worse and he’s no longer as cute as he was when he was little… It seems he still lacks education. I’ll have to re-enter the Gloomy Dreamland and stop indulging Ice Cream all the time… Both knights and great dragons need to engage in strategic plays,” Russell thought to himself.

Waking up in the morning, he felt refreshed and clear-headed.

As he cooked breakfast over a wood fire, Russell was still pondering the events that had unfolded in the Gloomy Dreamland.

Clearly, from a single horn to a horn with three branches, the Little Dream Dragon had grown up a lot — it wouldn’t be accurate to measure its size in its Primordial Spirit state.

The previous Little Dream Dragon would only make silly, random noises; now, having tasted the sweetness of the Ice Pellet Pearl and Ice Soul Pearl, he demanded them crazily. Although communication had improved with the increase in intelligence, the attitude had become much more independent.

“Although I won’t use PUA tactics on Ice Cream, mutual respect is the foundation of partnership… It’s time to tighten the reins on Ice Cream!”

As the old saying goes, “A young tree not straightened will not grow upright, and a person that isn’t disciplined will be wayward.”

The same goes for great dragons and humans, or rather, all intelligent beings are the same — they will be led astray by desire if not educated.

Treating the Little Dream Dragon as a blank slate, if he were to follow its whims, it would certainly grow into a malicious dragon.

“Raising a baby great dragon is a huge responsibility!” Russell sighed, and at the same time silently devised a “Great Dragon Growth Plan,” “Education should start from a young age; it’s time for me to take on the role of a mentor and to interact with Ice Cream.”

Breakfast was still roasted meat, but this time it was a whole nest of rabbits.

“Fantasy Beast, coming for breakfast?” Russell called out to the big tree, but got no response.

In fact, the Pseudo-Harpy Dragon, likely related to owls, preferred to be active at night and was now sleeping.

Russell’s call had awakened it, but it merely flipped its eyelids and continued its deep slumber perched on a tree branch.

“Not eating, huh.” Russell shook his head, enjoying the roasted rabbit nest by himself, full and content, and finally decided to leave.

He certainly couldn’t gain the trust of the Pseudo-Harpy Dragon in such a short time, and it had not shown affection towards him as Polly did. Thus, it wouldn’t be so easy to coax it with just a few words; a long-term effort was required.

In the beginning, Mr. Luo Man and the knights had camped in the Snowfield for over a month to capture the Silver Winged Wind Fox.

Naturally, Russell prepared himself for a potentially long stakeout in Greentown Snow Forest.

“Fortunately, I have Lucky Whisper. I’ve at least figured out the Pseudo-Harpy Dragon’s preferences, so I just need to cater to them,” Russell thought.

After leaving Greentown Snow Forest, Russell hurried back to his domain.

…

“Sir, let me and Grove accompany you to the Snowfield for the inspection,” Eric requested as soon as he found Russell.

He had a solid reason, “I am Sir’s personal knight commander, how can I allow Sir to venture alone in the Snowfield?”

Grove said with a simple smile, “Sir has given me everything, and I should protect Sir from all dangers!”

“I appreciate your sentiments, you two, but I can’t take you to the Snowfield with me, just guard my domain well,” Russell had his own good reasons, “You’ve seen Polly’s speed, with you two along, the efficiency would be far too low.”

Eric could only ride a regular warhorse, as Kevin the Gold and Silver Wolfhound couldn’t be ridden.

Bill the Storm Bear could be ridden, but alas, too cumbersome and even slower than a warhorse, it simply couldn’t run fast.

“This…” Eric was speechless for a moment.

He had felt this deeply when he followed Russell into the second Fall Conflict; regular warhorses just couldn’t keep up with Polly’s speed.

At this moment.

He was filled with the hope that he could complete his training with Kevin as soon as possible to fully understand each other’s minds and to contract a second Fantasy Beast. He had already decided that he would either contract a Nightmare Specter Horse or a Flying Beast; otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to keep up with Russell’s pace.

He aspired to become Russell’s right-hand man, not a burden.

As for Grove, he was not so ambitious. Although he felt a pang of regret, he was very satisfied with Bill. Bill’s love for life had rekindled Grove’s own expectations for life, and having Bill by his side in this lifetime left him feeling content and fulfilled.

“Alright, Mr. Eric, Grove, you haven’t had lunch yet, have you? Let’s eat together,” Russell invited them to join him for lunch.

Before they even reached the stairs, they heard the sound of hooves outside Cigar Courtyard, followed by Charles’s voice carrying inside.

“Sir, have you returned? I just heard the news that you were back!”

“Yes, Lord Charles, the master has indeed returned,” replied the newly hired door servant by the entrance.

Standing on the steps, Russell chuckled and said, “Alright, I knew Charles would make it here right on time.”

Eric held back a laugh, while Grove let out a hearty chuckle.

After a short wait, they saw Charles hurry over, tip his hat, and bow in respect: “Sir, it’s wonderful that you’re back. There have been many official matters in the territory, and I was just about to report to you… Ah, Mr. Eric and Grove are here as well.”

Eric and Grove gave a subtle bow in return as a form of greeting.

Russell motioned with a smile, “Come, we’re just in time for lunch. Let’s talk while we eat… but let’s not bring up alcohol without any alcohol.”

“Hehe, no alcohol, no alcohol,” Charles replied with a laugh, then pulled a small bag from his pocket and said, “Sir, here are the spoils of war handed over by the Knights: a total of twenty-two Ice Pellet Pearls, including two top-quality ones.”

“Good,” Russell said as he casually took the bag.

The four men dined together, with Eric and Grove showing no restraint, heartily devouring plate after plate of food. After all, Knights traditionally have large appetites and couldn’t afford to be dainty while eating, otherwise, a meal could take two to three hours.

Russell was the same, eating his meat and bread with gusto.

Charles was the exception. Having largely ceased his Battle Qi training, his need for food had decreased, and he could afford to be a bit more refined, gently cutting the steak with his knife and fork, taking small bites.

But his refinement was limited mainly because he was talkative, incessantly reporting every single detail of the events that had occurred in the territory over the past few days.

Many trivial matters could have been skipped.

But he knew Russell loved hearing about them. Unlike other Lords, who didn’t care about the minutiae of farming and were only interested in the profits, Russell took great interest in agriculture and always loved to offer suggestions.

Of course.

Charles had to admit that their young Lord was no amateur when it came to agriculture; he was a true expert. Therefore, he could not afford to be perfunctory when reporting these matters.

After all, the Retting Fertilization Skill was an invention of Russell’s, which even piqued the curiosity of the Grand Scholars from Red Castle who came to investigate.

Charles had inquired with the two Grand Scholars—it might not be long before the young scholar Russell would be promoted to the young Grand Scholar Russell.

A Lord with both strength and wisdom.

As a follower, how could Charles dare to be even slightly careless? He had been increasingly diligent and meticulous in his work.

“The Appreciation Day is coming soon, Sir. Do you still plan to visit the Snowfield?” Charles inquired.

“The Snowfield is certainly on my schedule, but I’m not sure yet how long I will stay. For this year’s Appreciation Day, you and Butler Morris can discuss it,” Russell said nonchalantly. “I’ll accept the good will of the commoners, but I also want them to feel my care for them. How you handle it is up to you.”

“Yes, Sir,” Charles replied.

After a hearty meal and noticing the nice weather, Russell took the rare opportunity to bask in the sunshine on the rooftop garden terrace.

Later, he called the Red-eyed Rat King Jerry over: “Jerry, you’ve gotten fatter again recently. It’s a perfect opportunity to shed some of that weight on the Snowfield with me.”