Evil dragon has a warm heart
Chapter 482 - 482 481 Thoughts of the Shadowflame Dragon

Chapter 482: Chapter 481: Thoughts of the Shadowflame Dragon Chapter 482: Chapter 481: Thoughts of the Shadowflame Dragon “Is this Hape?”

In Cigar Castle, construction clanged on walls and towers, while Baron Roman and his son Russell walked along the main castle’s arcade.

They looked at the special climbing frame outside the arcade, where the shadow figure of the phantom Hape perched.

Baron Roman exclaimed repeatedly, “It’s incredible that Hape has self-promoted to Pseudo-Dragon without facing any life-or-death crises.”

He paused for a moment.

Suddenly, Baron Roman said, “I’ve made up my mind. I must seek a contract for the Phantom Beast Pseudo-Dragon Successor for my fourth Phantom Beast! I won’t put myself at risk. Whether I can advance to being a Dragon Domain Lord, I’ll leave it to the Phantom Beast to strive on its own!”

“Has father’s spirit found balance?” Russell spotted the oversight.

Baron Roman gave a reserved smile, “Having such an outstanding son as yourself, how could I, as a father, not strive harder… Just a few days ago, I had just harmonized the spirits of three Phantom Beasts and opened up the fourth contract slot.”

He patted Russell on the shoulder, “Speaking of which, your father has advanced one step ahead of you, having just advanced to a Fourth-layer High Phantom Beast Knight.”

Russell smiled, “I hope father can still advance to a Fifth-layer High Phantom Beast Knight.”

“Haha, that’s quite unrealistic. Just maintaining the balance of three Phantom Beasts has exhausted all my effort, four is my limit,” Baron Roman acknowledged wisely. “Such realms are better left to geniuses like you.”

At that moment,

Hape let out a “quack” sound, and spoke into Russell’s mind: “Russell, the castle is so boring, I’m going to the oak forest.”

“Go ahead,” Russell waved his hand.

Hape didn’t seem to flay her wings but leaped from the climbing rack and swiftly vanished into thin air like a gust of wind.

“Tsk tsk!” Baron Roman marveled, “How fast is Hape?”

“Faster than the speed of sound,” Russell smiled.

Already a wind attribute element-boosted Pseudo-Dragon, Hape’s speed, after her promotion, could now match that of Unicorn Polly, who was boosted by the thunder attribute element.

Regardless,

Unlike Polly, who enjoyed transforming into the Mark of the Thunder Lord to follow Russell’s perspective and observe the world, Hape preferred to be alone.

What’s more intriguing, even though both Pseudo-Dragons have carved out Warm Enclaves, they do not like to stay in their own domains. It seems only Bipedal Flying Dragons prefer to perch in their own territories—stepping out of their territories reduces their powers.

For Pseudo-Dragons, leaving their territories doesn’t diminish their powers.

Or in other words, the power of Pseudo-Dragons relates to the Knight, not to the Warm Enclaves they’ve established.

“How does your current strength compare to a Shadowflame Dragon?” Baron Roman asked further.

Russell shook his head, “Definitely can’t beat a Shadowflame Dragon, and the gap is still vast. Although it’s easy for a dragon to defeat me, it’s almost impossible to harm me. Even if King Ares himself came, I could still escape.”

“Being able to escape is also a skill,” Baron Roman looked at his younger son, feeling a flood of mixed emotions.

He thought countless times,

still unable to understand how his ordinary, even less talented younger son, had suddenly risen like a comet.

It made him, the father, start to feel insecure.

He always felt he couldn’t have raised such an outstanding son; it should be Roland, his heir, at this level.

But,

bloodlines don’t lie. From the moment Russell was born, Ros the Clay Dragon could sense that Russell carried the blood of the Fluorescent Fungi Family. The contract force between the Fluorescent Fungi Family and Ros the Clay Dragon flowed in Russell’s blood, unchanged.

“It’s getting late, father. Why don’t you dine here at Cigar Castle?” Russell said.

“Alright, uh, wait a moment. Your uncle should arrive soon. It takes him longer by horse,” Baron Roman said.

Such a significant event, Uncle Roson definitely wanted to witness it firsthand.

As for his elder brother Roland, he had gone to manage serfs at You Guang Ji. Once the Warm Season arrives, he would use a caravan to bring back the ten thousand serfs that belonged to Russell—now, it’s mainly Roland who handles the family affairs like a steward.

In the evening, glasses clinked melodically in the dining hall.

To liven up the atmosphere, Russell had Charles come in, and with Charles warming up the crowd, everyone drank merrily.

…

“Welchi!”

The bubbling sound of molten lava erupted, a magical dragon tongue spoken by the Shadowflame Dragon.

The doors opened and Lord Volcanic Minister Welchi quickly arrived at the platform above the lava, “Your Highness Shadowflame, please give your commands.”

“Shadowflame has felt the power,” the Shadowflame Dragon lifted its head, eyes blazing with spirit, “In the southernmost part of the domain, a new Warm Enclave has been born; it is Russell, his Phantom Beast has ascended to Pseudo-Dragon, a reward, a reward is due!”

Speaking.

The body of the Shadowflame Dragon rose from the lava, its forelimbs clasping as if human,” Over twenty years, Shadowflame has not felt this comfortable. Go, reward Russell… If every knight in the domain could do the same, what would Shadowflame have to worry about!”

“Ah!” Welchi exclaimed, “You mean, Lord Russell… I will go at once to gather the Council of Elders to discuss the reward for Lord Russell!”

He then hurriedly left Shadowflame Volcano, heading straight for the Elders’ Hall of the Red Castle.

After Welchi departed, the guards closed the doors of the passage, and the Shadowflame Dragon was reluctant to return to the lava to rest.

Instead, it perked up, gazing out towards the sky above the crater of Shadowflame Volcano.

The bubbling magical dragon tongue echoed through the volcano, “Shadowflame has been lonely for too long, never having experienced the benefits brought by allies… Ice Cream, Russell… perhaps one day, the Grand Duchy of Shadowflame could also ascend to a Kingdom!”

It thought of the Scorching Torrent Kingdom.

The Fiery Dragon and the Torrential Flood Dragon, with allies forged through the Lieyang Royal Family, stood by each other, and never once was disaster brought upon them.

Yet it,

a lone Shadowflame Dragon, suffered continual heavy blows, especially during the second downfall, even the hope of returning to the ancient times was stolen.

“Without Ice Cream and Russell’s emergence, Shadowflame… would never bow, even if the volcano might extinguish itself!”

At this moment.

The Shadowflame Dragon deeply pondered, “But Ice Cream and Russell did appear, and Shadowflame’s destiny was rewritten… Perhaps, Shadowflame should adopt a different approach, to deal with the Frost Giants, the Snow Giants… But Russell, he…”

Three knights’ imposing figures appeared before its eyes.

These were knights it admired, willing to form a pact with them, to battle together on the snowfields, to subdue the Snow Demon.

But soon.

The sight of Quentin III Shadowflame’s deathly form and itself being beaten by Snow Giant Da surfaced in its mind.

Some disgrace that must not happen over and over again.

“But Russell, ostensibly just an ordinary knight, Shadowflame sees not what makes him stand out.” the pupils of the Shadowflame Dragon narrowed to slits, “Yet why did Ice Cream choose him, why could his Phantom Beast ascend to Pseudo-Dragon?”

Russell’s achievements, viewed across the entire Dragon Sleep Continent, were certainly among the strongest on the Way of the Knight.

Yet lacking in dominance.

The knights the Shadowflame Dragon had always admired were those with an overwhelming aura, those who stood out in a crowd as dominant leaders.

Ultimately.

The Shadowflame Dragon shook its head, then submerged back into the lava, leaving only its final magical dragon tongue echoing faintly.

“Time will provide Shadowflame with answers, Shadowflame is not in a hurry, Shadowflame is not in a hurry…”

Gurgle gurgle.

The lava churned a couple of times, before everything returned to calmness, inside Shadowflame Volcano, only the occasional true bubbling of lava could be heard.