Evil dragon has a warm heart
Chapter 564 - 564 562 I Came I Saw I Conquered

Chapter 564: Chapter 562: I Came, I Saw, I Conquered Chapter 564: Chapter 562: I Came, I Saw, I Conquered The Grand Duke’s ascent to the throne represented the completion of the coronation ceremony’s rites.

Yet, amid the singing of dragons, the Shadowflame Dragon flew up unexpectedly from the heart of the volcano and headed straight for the skies above Red Castle.

Gurgling…

The Magic Power of dragon speech echoed throughout Red Castle.

Upon hearing this, the Volcanic Minister Lord Welchi immediately cried out in a loud voice, “His Highness Shadowflame, please, Your Grace the Grand Duke, let’s meet on the Dragon Platform!”

The Dragon Platform!

It was a high platform next to the main hall of Red Castle, hidden among the surrounding many castles, like the backbone, standing in the very center of Red Castle, supporting the mountain-like grandeur of Grand Duke Yingyan’s Palace.

From behind the main hall, stairs led directly to the Dragon Platform.

And behind the main hall was a viewing platform that overlooked the Dragon Platform.

“This is…” Lord Kunbei stared wide-eyed, a gleam flickering in his somewhat clouded eyes, “A Dragon’s tribute!”

“A Dragon’s tribute?” Lord Welchi asked loudly, “Sir, what is a Dragon’s tribute?”

“It is a ceremony between dragons and knights. Duke Quentin, Archduke Quentin II, Duke Quentin III ascended to the throne; only then did they have the tribute of a dragon… Your Highness, you are the fourth Grand Duke of the Grand Duchy to receive this honor!”

After Lord Kunbei finished explaining, he laughed aloud, tears streaming down his face in the laughter: “I never thought in my lifetime I would witness a Dragon’s tribute once more!”

Back then he was young, when Quentin III Shadowflame ascended to the throne, he stood in the crowd like a henchman, watching the Shadowflame Dragon and Quentin III pay tribute to each other on the Dragon Platform, a scene that could be called a beautiful story from the Way of the Knight.

A beautiful scene only witnessed when a Dragon Knight ascended to the throne.

“Sir, His Highness has already risen to go to the Dragon Platform, let us also follow,” an elderly noble approached and suggested.

Lord Kunbei nodded in agreement.

Leading many nobles towards the viewing platform behind the main hall, only Russell, alone, could ascend the steps to the Dragon Platform.

“Roar!”

The Shadowflame Dragon landed first on the Dragon Platform, its massive body now without any scars, its immense power burning in the air. Ordinary people dared not get close to it; drawing near would mean being burned to ash.

“Shadowflame, I am here.” Russell took the final step and stood on the Dragon Platform.

Facing the Shadowflame Dragon eye to eye.

The Shadowflame Dragon was one hundred and fifty meters long, with an even more immense wingspan of two hundred meters. Even now, with its wings folded and sitting crouched on the Dragon Platform, it still looked like a small hill.

Compared with it, Russell was just an ant beside a hill.

But in the eyes of the observing nobles on the platform, even under such a stark contrast, they couldn’t overlook Russell’s figure. Two figures, one large and one small, simultaneously occupied their focal point, indivisible.

Neither could overshadow the other.

Gurgling…

Magic Power in dragon speech resounded, with Lord Welchi acting as a simultaneous interpreter, translating the words of the Shadowflame Dragon for the nobles on the viewing platform.

“Russell, you have finally stood here, though not quite what Shadowflame expected, you have undoubtedly performed even better!”

Russell smiled faintly, “Shadowflame, perhaps, this is just a beginning.”

“Yes, this is just a beginning, the thorny path of the Way of the Knight, which you have turned into a grand avenue to the heavens. Let Shadowflame see your limit, see the end of the Way of the Knight, and return to how wondrous the ancient scenery was!”

“You will see, Shadowflame!” Russell said spiritedly, “I have already felt it—the mission entrusted to me by the era, destiny, and the world.”

He opened his arms as if to embrace the Shadowflame Dragon, and yet it was as if he were embracing the whole Dragon Sleep Continent: “I came, I saw, I conquered!”

“I came, saw, conquered?” The Shadowflame Dragon chewed on Russell’s words, its dragon eyes overflowing with brilliance.

Magic Power in dragon speech was silent for a while.

Until it closed its eyes, and then opened them once more, gurgling, “Russell, let Shadowflame join you… to come, to see, to conquer!”

Then,

It lowered its massive body, extending a claw from its forelimb, and slowly reached out to Russell.

Russell transferred the Ducal Sacrificial Seal to his left hand, then extended his right fist and bumped it against the Shadowflame Dragon’s claw, laughing heartily, “Good, let us together, appreciate the scenery of the world, and conquer the endless frost and snow!”

“Roar!”

Russell was laughing, while the Shadowflame Dragon trumpeted its dragon hymn.

The nobles watched the fist bump between man and dragon, knowing that it was only a matter of time before he would become a Dragon Knight.

“The nation… is fortunate indeed!” Lord Kunbei exclaimed.

Lord Welchi sighed, “The Shadowflame Grand Duchy will rise again!”

Count Merlin gazed into the distance, stroking his beard and nodding gently; Baron Roman’s lips curled up in satisfaction at the scene; Earl Osclo clenched his fist, loosened it, then clenched again; Baron Kunbiff closed his eyes, unable to bear looking any longer.

Marquis Arno lightly clapped his hands, his face revealing a relieved smile.

Princess Anxia’s eyes shimmered, lost in thought, while Princess Kunlaya stared intensely at Russell’s back, her mind elsewhere.

The next moment.

The Shadowflame Dragon spoke again in its deep, magical Draconic tongue, “Russell, are you ready to receive the Dragonflame honor from Shadowflame?”

“Come,” Russell nodded in assent.

Thereupon, a scorching Dragonflame was expelled from the Shadowflame Dragon’s mouth, enveloping Russell’s whole body like a shroud of fire.

There was no scalding, no burning.

This was the Original Dragon Flame, the Power of the Earth granted by the Shadowflame Dragon, the ultimate expression of the power of the Dragon Sleep Continent.

“This Dragonflame…” Russell felt the Dragonflame entering him, the surging power nearly bursting his meridians.

Fortunately, he was after all a Phantom Dragon Knight, an elemental embodiment in his own right, barely able to withstand it.

“Shall I merge with it myself, or should I…” After pondering briefly, Russell decisively rejected the idea. It was not that the Dragonflame was not tempting, but there was no need. He was already a Phantom Dragon Knight, with a deeply-stable power of the four concentric circles, and he did not need to disrupt it.

“Let’s share it with the Phantom Beasts… Polly doesn’t need it. Hape, Uroboros, Senbula… let’s give it to Hape!”

Russell did not dwell on the decision for long, merely a matter of a thought in four dimensions, and then he allocated the Dragonflame to the Master of the Storm mark on his forehead.

“Thank you,” Hape expressed his gratitude in his mind, and then quickly began to assimilate the Dragonflame.

“We are partners for life, no need for thanks,” Russell said with a slight smile, the reason for choosing Hape being straightforward.

The Sacred Unicorn Polly and Ouroboros had both received a Dragonflame from the Little Dream Dragon. And once the Little Dream Dragon awoke from its slumber, there would undoubtedly also be a Dragonflame for the Pseudo-Nightmare Beast Dragon Senbula.

Only Hape had never received any benefit from the Little Dream Dragon.

In terms of both sentiment and logic, it should be allotted to Hape.

As the flames dissipated, Russell emerged unscathed, his morning dress and the ceremonial object in his hand also intact.

Gurgle, gurgle.

The magical Draconic language resounded once more, and the Shadowflame Dragon spread its sky-concealing wings, “Russell, do not keep Shadowflame waiting!”

“Very soon, very soon,” Russell replied softly.

This time of draconic honor had smoothed out all contractual obstacles between him and the Shadowflame Dragon, leaving only the final thin barrier.

That was to await the awakening of the Little Dream Dragon.

Waiting until the contract with the Little Dream Dragon was settled, could he then proceed to contract with the Shadowflame Dragon—unwaveringly, the Little Dream Dragon was Russell’s first choice, and the Shadowflame Dragon, wishing to join, had to content itself with second place.

Now that the Shadowflame Dragon had put aside its pride, it naturally did not care about being first or second. It was not human.

It had no need for human vanity.

It only desired to experience the end of Way of the Knight, to witness the ancient scenery, to sweep away the frost and snow, to warm the world.