Chapter 885: Covered in Glory

The cheerful atmosphere, though slightly stiff, did not hinder the improvement of the previously tense situation. Then, after Marquis Niuwei told a few jokes, the atmosphere became even more cordial and friendly.

After several rounds of negotiations, a new alliance agreement was finally signed.

The agreement stipulated that the Sapphire Duchy must fully support the establishment of the Fire Kingdom. Once the Fire Kingdom was founded, the Sapphire Duchy would officially declare itself a vassal state of the Fire Kingdom and pay tribute to it. Meanwhile, the Fire Kingdom and Liszt's House of Flame must guarantee the security of the Sapphire Duchy.

Additionally, the Bibo Sea would be allocated to the Sapphire Family, and the Fire Kingdom's influence would not extend there after its establishment. However, Black Horse Island and Coral Island could serve as leased territories of the Fire Kingdom within the Sapphire Duchy, facilitating communication, with the territories permanently belonging to Liszt.

After signing the agreement, the Duke felt somewhat disheartened.

It wasn’t because of his allegiance to Liszt, but rather because the leased territories of Coral Island and Black Horse Island in the agreement represented a somewhat humiliating "ceding land for peace."

However.

Liszt absolutely needed these two islands as leased territories.

In the study, he spoke privately with Duke Andrew: "Duke Andrew, the leased territories of Coral Island and Black Horse Island are not intended to deliberately humiliate the Sapphire Family. In fact, these two islands hold significant importance for me. I might as well share some information with you in advance."

"Your Highness, please speak." Since the agreement had already been signed, the Sapphire Duke no longer hesitated in his address, privately referring to Liszt directly as "Your Highness"—a term used by a follower. Otherwise, he would have prefixed it with the name "Liszt," the title "Marquis of Flame," or the honorific "Dragon Knight."

Once the Fire Kingdom was established, "Your Highness" would be replaced with "Your Majesty."

"The Flame Islands are nearly seven thousand kilometers away from the Sapphire Islands. How do you think I travel quickly between the two archipelagos and migrate large numbers of knights and serfs for development?"

"Is... is it related to the Invisible Dragon?" the Sapphire Duke asked uncertainly.

"Yes and no." Liszt didn’t keep him in suspense. "The ancient legends of magic portals are real. I’ve discovered one that connects to the Flame Islands and, together with Acheronides, have thoroughly studied it. We can now construct new magic portals."

The Sapphire Duke was suddenly astonished. "Magic portals!"

"Indeed."

"I never imagined the ancient legends were true—that such a magnificent magic as the teleportation array truly exists... Come to think of it, only someone like Archmage Acheronides could possibly research it... No wonder you wanted Coral Island and Black Horse Island as leased territories—to build magic portals there?"

"I plan to construct a magic portal on Black Horse Island to connect the Flame Islands and the Sapphire Islands. Once the portal is successfully established, I can protect the Sapphire Duchy at any time. You won’t have to worry about Steel Ridge’s vengeance or the ambitions of the Kingdom of the Eagle."

"Now that I understand the essence of the matter, I am completely at ease." The Sapphire Duke poured two glasses of wine and handed one to Liszt. "Your Highness, I will fully support the establishment of the Fire Kingdom as per the agreement. Long live our alliance!"

Liszt smiled. "To friendship, cheers."

With this, all the objectives of riding the grey-cast-iron dragon to Blue Dragon Island had been smoothly achieved. Over the next day, accompanied by the Duke and his wife, Liszt toured the Azure Summit Palace, dreaming up his future palace’s construction and layout.

It would undoubtedly be several times larger, more magnificent, and more wondrous than the Azure Summit Palace.

The most unique feature of the Azure Summit Palace was its sky garden, a structure created by magic. He possessed Acheronides as his Archmage, and with an increasingly powerful Magic Guild as his backing, even the most outlandish structures could be realized—so much so that he even considered constructing a floating fortress.

A castle on the ground could no longer match his current status, position, and power.

...

The luncheon was grand and sumptuous, with all Counts and higher-ranking nobles stationed on Blue Dragon Island invited to attend.

The center of attention was not Liszt—both he and Acheronides preferred quiet. The true star was Marquis Niuwei, who held court with the Sapphire Duke and exchanged toasts with the Marquis and Count Lords. After several rounds of drinks, he was flushed with triumph, feeling as though life couldn’t get any better.

Of course, he understood that Liszt was playing the aloof card.

That was why the nobles focused their attention on him.

After all, Liszt was too aloof—a token sip of wine was his only response even when a Count Lord toasted him.

The dragon knight, who was not keen on socializing at banquets, found his attention wandering as he pondered the Smoke Mission. The moment the agreement was reached, the mission was completed.

"Mission accomplished. Reward: Vassal state: the Sapphire Duchy."

Then, a new Smoke Mission promptly appeared.

"Mission: Due to delays caused by the dragon-slaying battle, the establishment of the magic teleportation array at Soulfruit Island's reed marshes has yet to begin. Now that the war has subsided, why not seize the opportunity to set up the magic teleportation array, providing immense support for the development of the Flame Islands. Reward: Dragon Pit Mega-Mine."

Establishing the magic teleportation array was a must-do task, but what truly excited him was the reward—the Dragon Pit Mega-Mine.

A "giant mine" suggested an enormous mineral deposit, maybe even unimaginable; "dragon pit" implied a huge pit related to dragons, perhaps even formed from the remains of a deceased dragon. The Dragon Pit Mega-Mine was undoubtedly an invaluable reward, though the type of ore remained unclear.

Perhaps too accustomed to chain missions, he couldn't help but feel that some of the Smoke Mission's rewards were connected to their objectives.

"The maneating tree Dragon Spirit hasn't been found yet. Emily is leading the Giant Elephant Knights to turn the place upside down. Could they have accidentally stumbled upon the Dragon Pit Mega-Mine? The birth of a Dragon Spirit is inseparable from dragons. There shouldn't be any living dragons on Flame Island, so perhaps the maneating tree Dragon Spirit evolved from the remains of a dead dragon?"

No records indicated that a Grand Sprite could evolve into a Dragon Spirit by "scavenging corpses," but the maneating tree Dragon Spirit was confirmed by the Smoke Mission to exist. Its evolution proved it must have come into contact with a dragon.

"How exciting!"

"If it's just the remains of a dead dragon, it would at most add another mineral resource. But if it's a living dragon, wouldn't that add to my army even further... I still have two Milon Mind Fruits. As long as it's not an invisible dragon—one that can see through the fruit and has a weird mind-game—I can likely subdue it."

Now, whenever he saw a dragon, he just wanted to tame it with a Milon Mind Fruit. Ever since unearthing the hind leg of the Jade Dragon, he had a premonition that Milon Mind Fruits wouldn't run out. With a bit of research, he might even cultivate a Soulfruit Tree.

Since the fruits wouldn't be scarce,

he could go wild using them—one for every dragon he encountered, no questions asked.

At that moment,

the banquet reached the time for the main course.

The Sapphire Duchy stood up, raised his glass, and announced, "Today is a day of great significance! His Highness Liszt has awed the Kingdom of the Eagle in the dragon-slaying battle and will surely usher in a new era of prosperity for the seas. Let us all wish His Highness Liszt endless glory and invincibility in battle!"

"Wish His Highness Liszt endless glory and invincibility in battle!" The nobles of the Blue Blood Alliance rose to their feet, echoing the Sapphire Duchy's toast.

Liszt also stood, raising his glass and downing it in one gulp. "Thank you for your blessings, Your Grace and esteemed guests. I am honored to share this glory of the sea kingdom with all of you!"