Evil dragon has a warm heart
Chapter 372 - 372 371 The Promise of the Shadowflame Dragon

Chapter 372: Chapter 371: The Promise of the Shadowflame Dragon Chapter 372: Chapter 371: The Promise of the Shadowflame Dragon The wind howled as the Black Oil Dragon Ross gently flapped its wings, effortlessly passing through one white cloud after another in the sky.

Atop the dragon, Russell gazed at the palm of his left hand.

The M-shaped mark still occupied the largest area, with the Thorns Mark, Flat Louse Mark, and Gecko Mark being mere the size of sesame seeds. However, the Sword Butterfly Mark had grown from the size of a sesame seed to that of a soybean and was orbiting the M-shaped mark.

Above his forehead, the Mark of the Thunder Lord sparkled with tiny electric arcs, exceptionally striking.

Soon thereafter,

the grand Red Castle came into view. Russell gently patted Ross’s neck, prompting him to descend from the clouds and dive towards the Red Castle.

Above the Red Castle, several bipedal flying dragons circled. Seeing Ross approaching, they came forward and roared.

“Roar!” Ross roared back.

This was how the bipedal flying dragons greeted each other. These dragons had previously escorted Princess Anxia to the Glowing Valley and had seen Ross.

Thus, they did not obstruct Ross’s arrival, and after roaring, continued to circle aimlessly in the sky.

Meanwhile, Ross headed straight for the plaza in front of the Elders’ Hall, where there was a landing platform exclusively for bipedal flying dragons.

Whoosh!

After landing, Ross folded his wings and quietly crouched on the platform.

Russell then dismounted and walked towards the Elders’ Hall. As he passed by the guard knight, the knight, not recognizing Russell, immediately bowed and then inquired, “May I know who you are?”

“Russell Fluorescent Fungus.”

“Greetings, Lord Russell!” The guard knight stood upright, “I’ll announce your arrival immediately.”

Since one could not barge into the Elders’ Hall, Russell quietly waited in the hall. Shortly after, he was informed that he could enter.

“Lord Russell, please follow me,” a female knight said, guiding Russell into the interior of the hall.

She led Russell straight to the office of Chief Executive Earl Merlin.

“Russell, what brings you here?” Earl Merlin looked up from his desk and asked, “What is that on your forehead?”

“The mark of the Dragon Domain Lord, grandfather. I have been promoted to a Dragon Domain Lord,” Russell revealed, swiftly informing him about the Snow Giant Da’s sneak attack, “The foreign snowfields have become too dangerous.”

Earl Merlin’s gaze was piercing as he looked at Russell.

He quickly recovered from his shock. “So the commotion caused by His Highness Shadowflame yesterday was because the Snow Giant Da infiltrated to attack you… I had asked His Highness Shadowflame personally, but he was unwilling to disclose anything.”

“I also have some matters to discuss with His Highness Shadowflame,” Russell said.

“Do you speak Dragon?”

“No, but I can understand it,” Russell clarified. He couldn’t understand Dragon language, but the Little Dream Dragon could act as a translator.

Earl Merlin raised an eyebrow but did not dwell on the topic of Dragon language. Instead, he said, “Alright, go see His Highness Shadowflame first. After your discussion, come directly to my castle. We, grandfather and grandson, should also have a good chat.”

“Understood.”

To get from Red Castle to Shadowflame Volcano, one had to pass through an underground tunnel. Russell, holding a pass issued by Earl Merlin, naturally had unimpeded access to the volcano.

“Lord Russell, what brings you here?” At the end of the volcanic passage stood Lord Volcanic Minister Welchi.

He curiously examined the Mark of the Thunder Lord on Russell’s forehead but did not inquire further.

Welchi had once failed in his duty to protect Grand Duke Kunstan and had been stripped of his right to ride bipedal flying dragons. However, after assuming the role of Volcanic Minister, Chosen Son Kunslai Xiangrikui provided him an excuse that restored his riding privileges.

“I have matters to discuss with His Highness Shadowflame. Here is the pass issued by the Chief Executive,” said Russell calmly.

Welchi had already sided with Kunslai.

His daughter, Veraley, was engaged to Chosen Son Kunslai.

Welchi meticulously checked the pass, then stretched out his hand and said, “Please enter… Do you need a translator for Dragon language?”

“No need,” Russell replied.

Welchi paused, then said, “You seem to have arrived at an inconvenient time. His Highness Shadowflame has already gone to sleep, and no one can wake him.”

“It’s okay,” Russell entered the Shadowflame Volcano.

On the other side of the passage door was a platform that was almost level with the magma, from which the enormous head of the Shadowflame Dragon could be seen.

Since yesterday, when it had spewed a breath of dragonflame, the Shadowflame Dragon had been sleeping with its eyes closed.

Until Russell arrived, the Shadowflame Dragon, which had its eyes tightly closed, suddenly opened them and made a gurgling sound similar to magma bubbling from its throat.

This was the language of magic dragons.

The M-shaped mark in the palm of Russell’s hand pulsed, and the meaning of the magic dragon language was translated by the Little Dream Dragon and appeared in Russell’s mind.

“Little fellow, we meet again,” said the Shadowflame Dragon, stretching its head and gazing at Russell. “Dragon Domain Lord, you have brought a huge surprise to Shadowflame; perhaps even without spewing dragonflame yesterday, you could have escaped the attack.”

“Well, that might not necessarily be the case, but please continue to lend me a hand when I encounter danger again,” Russell responded.

“Interesting little fellow,” said the Shadowflame Dragon. “You are the first knight to be promoted to Dragon Domain Lord in Shadowflame’s territory. It’s a pity that you do not have the blood of the Flamecrest family; otherwise, Shadowflame would not be so troubled.”

“Your troubles, do they mean there is no knight worthy of your recognition?” Russell asked.

“Yes.”

“Perhaps you could urge the Flamecrest Dragonblood Family to marry more wives and have more children; thus, you could have sufficient offspring to train,” Russell suggested, knowing that feudal emperors on Earth often had multiple consorts and concubines.

Even with multiple consorts and concubines, there seemed to be many emperors with no heirs.

The Shadowflame Dragon snickered, “The pact between a dragon and a knight can only accommodate one, just as the contract between a husband and wife can only accommodate one. Of course, you humans can have countless lovers, just as you can make pacts with many phantom beasts.”

It was unclear whether the Shadowflame Dragon was mocking the promiscuity of humans or the cheapness of phantom beast pacts.

Russell furrowed his brow, “Are you saying that a knight can only ride one dragon?”

“Greedy little fellow, do you want to make pacts with multiple dragons?” the Shadowflame Dragon mocked, face close. “You and that Ice Cream who steals pastries from Shadowflame’s dish are both greedy. What kind of dragon is it, a Greedy Dragon?”

Russell remained silent.

From what the Shadowflame Dragon said, it seemed that a knight could only make a pact with one dragon, which meant his previous fantasy was shattered.

Furthermore,

He became somewhat alert, feeling that the seemingly casual mockery of the Shadowflame Dragon might have been an attempt to probe the background of the Little Dream Dragon.

A moment later, Russell asked, “Your Highness Shadowflame, how do you view the Snow Giant Dako’s attack on me? Will you continue to protect me and Ice Cream as we grow?”

“Dako!” roared the Shadowflame Dragon angrily, “It is provoking Shadowflame, but Shadowflame is no longer potent enough to drive it away, Shadowflame is too severely injured… Little fellow, by promoting yourself to Dragon Domain Lord, you added a bit of strength to me, but it is not enough, far from enough.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t because Dako smelled Ice Cream?”

“Had it discovered Ice Cream’s scent, you would have been killed by Dako outside Shadowflame’s base,” the Shadowflame Dragon responded lightly.

“I see… but, the Snow Giant Dako will still continue to raid my territory, or perhaps other Dragon Knights, right?”

“It wouldn’t dare to raid again; Shadowflame’s promise is effective, and Shadowflame can continue to protect your growth,” reassured the Shadowflame Dragon.

Russell blinked, “Are you sure?”

Questioned like this, the Shadowflame Dragon was not offended. Although it possessed intelligence equal to humans, its emotions were different from humans. This embarrassing human situation did not affect it much.

It calmly responded, “If it dares come again, Shadowflame will sacrifice a Warm Enclave to utterly annihilate it!”

“Well… please don’t sacrifice my Black Fire Land; also, not Leize, Glowing Valley, Tributary River Mouth… It would be better to sacrifice Fire Ant Swamp, or perhaps Gravel Domain,” Russell joked, also realizing the trump card of the Shadowflame Dragon.

It was still capable of deploying a killing move by sacrificing a Warm Enclave.

Hearing this, the Shadowflame Dragon rolled its eyes, “Sacrificing a domain means it will be forever missing; Shadowflame will not easily perform this… But, Shadowflame promises that if Dako dares to attack you again, Shadowflame will indeed sacrifice a Warm Enclave to wipe it out!”

In the mind of the Shadowflame Dragon, Russell and Ice Cream’s importance surpassed all else, making them worth the deployment of such a powerful move.

Nonetheless,

Russell discounted the harsh words of the Shadowflame Dragon. Even if the dragon sacrificed a domain, it might not truly be able to annihilate Snow Giant Dako; otherwise, it would have used this major move already—the domain might be lost, but new territories could be opened, yet Snow Giant Dako continued to threaten the very life of the Grand Duchy of Shadowflame.

Nevertheless, to have received a promise from the Shadowflame Dragon willing to protect him at all costs left Russell completely satisfied.