Chapter 830: The Little Tavern

The town of Emberton was bustling with activity. Thirty frame-ships made three round trips transporting supplies, serfs, knights, and craftsmen, gathering nearly eight thousand people in the Ember Plains area—a population comparable to that of a small city.

Back when Liszt was first enfeoffed with Flower Town, the population was barely over a thousand.

Viscount Vernal Ink strode toward a newly opened tavern in Emberton.

"Lord Viscount."

"Viscount Vernal."

Several knights in the small tavern, not wearing leather armor, greeted him in broken Serpentongue, to which he responded in equally broken Serpentongue.

The official language of Emberton was Serpentongue, as decreed by the great Dragonknight Lord. The knightly class was required to use Serpentongue for daily communication.

As for the commoners, there were no strict requirements—they could speak either Serpentongue or Wind-speech.

Vernal understood well that the Lord was implementing an "Eagle-erasure" policy, scrubbing off their Eagle Kingdom ties. However, he considered it unnecessary, as the knights had little loyalty to the Kingdom of the Eagle to begin with—they were loyal only to their own lords.

And the lords of these knights had all surrendered to the great Dragonknight Lord, Liszt Flame.

A few lords had paid their own ransoms and returned to their homeland, abandoning their followers, which naturally earned them no loyalty from the knights. Thus, most knights here wholeheartedly looked forward to the future Flameland, hoping to secure a place in the history books—far better than their previous insignificance.

Moreover, serving under the great Dragonknight Lord was an honor far surpassing allegiance to ordinary lords.

Everyone knew that Lord Liszt was not just a Dragonknight but also had an Archmage by his side. The Flameland's strength far surpassed that of the Sapphire Duchy, destined to dominate the Sapphire Sea. It was for this reason that Vernal ultimately pledged his loyalty to Liszt.

After learning basic Serpentongue on Black Horse Island, he came to Emberton to settle the frontier.

As a sky knight, he led several knight squads, primarily tasked with hunting nearby monsters to ensure the safety of serfs clearing land and cutting trees.

"A pint of stout," Vernal said, placing a few silver coins on the table.

The tavern keeper behind the counter poured a large mug of frothy black ale from a barrel and handed it to Vernal. "Your ale, Lord Viscount."

He took a long draught.

Vernal took a big swig, feeling the cool black ale wash away the fatigue of a day spent laboring in the forest. "Hits the spot!"

Licking his lips, he added, "But damn pricey!"

The tavern keeper chuckled. "This black ale is one of Emberton's few luxury goods, hauled all the way by our great Lord and the Archmage. The cost is naturally high. Not to mention, we had to hire a few mages to create crushed ice for chilling—another cost piled on."

Emberton was not yet self-sufficient, relying entirely on supplies from Black Horse Island. With limited cargo space on the frame-ships, little was left for alcohol, driving the price of each mug to exorbitant levels.

However, among the craftsmen who came to Emberton were brewers already fermenting wild fruits from the forest. Soon, fruit wine would likely be in ample supply.

"Save the sob story," Vernal waved him off. "You're just a price-gouging barkeep!"

Unfazed, the tavern keeper continued polishing his mugs. He was a Flower Town original—one of Liszt's earliest subjects. As Liszt's influence grew, so did the status of these veterans, many of whom became overseers of plantations.

Though not part of the official bureaucracy, bossing serfs around still carried some authority.

The tavern keeper, tired of farming, switched to trade and eventually followed Liszt to Emberton, opening this tavern.

The place was packed.

Of course, the Crown took its cut.

The reason Liszt allowed taverns in Emberton despite the scarcity of living supplies was twofold: to let the knights blow off steam and to keep the silver flowing. He didn’t care how much coin changed hands but rather its flow.

Money needs to circulate to grow.

If Xinhuo Town had no places for spending and enjoyment, no matter how many gold coins he bestowed upon the knights, they would lack motivation. Giving them gold and then earning it back not only boosts morale but ultimately returns the wealth to his Lord's hands.

Isn't that perfect?

A miser can never prosper.

Sunset light poured through the tavern windows, and the rowdy chatter of the knights quickly fell silent. Then, all the knights scrambled to their feet, bowing toward the commanding figure slowly entering through the door.

Even Viscount Vernal stood up, joining the knights in paying respects: "Your Highness!"

"Carry on with your business, no need for formalities. I’m just here for a drink." The man at the door was none other than Liszt, Lord of the Flaming Archipelago, Ruler of the Shell Sea, future monarch of the Flame Kingdom, and the sole sovereign of Xinhuo Town at present—who'd just woken up and was dressed casually.

After completing their salutations, the knights sat back down, but the arrival of their Lord put them on edge, no longer daring to raise their voices.

Viscount Vernal was also nervous. Though Liszt was only nineteen, his commanding presence made Vernal walk on eggshells, trembling with caution.

After all, this young man before them had personally slain a dragon knight in the Dragon-Slaying War!

Now that's a fearsome reputation!

Compared to Vernal’s unease, the tavern keeper was far more relaxed, greeting warmly with a smile, "Your Highness, good to see you! The usual wheat beer for you?"

"Yes, an iced wheat beer." Liszt sat down after his squire knight wiped the stool clean.

Occasionally, on sweltering summer days, he would visit this tavern for a drink.

The tavern keeper opened a cabinet, pulling out a small keg from the innermost box. Carefully unscrewing the lid, he poured a full glass of wheat beer and handed it to Liszt with respect. "Your Highness, your wheat beer."

Liszt took the glass and took a sip.

A squire knight had already placed a gold coin on the table—the wheat beer was expensive, as its ingredients and brewing process were of the finest quality, made from a recipe specially purchased from Beer Island's Hopgrass family.

The cool wheat beer, with its mild bitterness, had an excellent taste.

It was Liszt’s favorite.

If not for his space rings being filled with more crucial supplies, he would have carried several barrels of wheat beer to beat the heat. But with only three space rings, there simply wasn’t room for beer, so he had to get his fix at Xinhuo Town’s tavern.

Speaking of which, though he now had the invisible dragon, he had yet to obtain more spatial gems.

The reason was simple—spatial gems weren’t mined like ordinary gemstones. They were formed when the invisible dragon expended space magic to condense them.

Perhaps this was why it was a sacred dragon rather than a gem dragon.

Liszt didn't feel right asking the invisible dragon to waste its space magic on creating gems—its growth was far more important. Of course, the invisible dragon would voluntarily expend its magic to form spatial gems when it was feeling good. Once Liszt prepared another feast of smokegrass, he could request the gems then.

Setting down his glass, Liszt turned to Viscount Vernal. "Viscount Vernal, how goes the work?"

"Very smoothly, Your Highness," Vernal answered stiffly.

"Relax. We're off the clock—we’re all just here for a drink." Liszt chuckled. "Developing Flame Island won’t happen overnight. For years to come, we’ll be working through these vast forests. But once the crops ripen, this island will become our richest homeland."

With that, he raised his glass toward Vernal and the knights in the tavern. "To a brighter tomorrow, and to building our own homeland—cheers!"

The knights shouted together: "To Your Highness’s glory—cheers!"