Chapter 522 Let’s Learn to Swim Together

The castle is already abuzz with preparations for Liszt's birthday celebration.

In recent days, Liszt has been preoccupied with how to care for the Fire Drake, leaving him with little time for other matters. As a result, he has devoted more energy to the glass greenhouse.

The Potion Seeds, with a one-third germination rate, are growing robustly, though slowly. The Shipwood seedlings are also thriving, though their growth is similarly slow. Normally, the sprouting stage is the fastest, but this isn’t evident with the Potion Seeds and Shipwood seedlings.

He waters and fertilizes them regularly.

He holds great expectations for these Potion Seeds.

If they all mature into potions, it would undoubtedly be a significant wealth. Currently, Liszt is in desperate need of potions—not only because he can’t afford them, but also because there’s no reliable source to buy them in bulk. Potions are a product every noble needs, but the amount available for sale is limited.

For instance, in Liszt's own territory, the potions produced have even been taken back by the Black Tulip, all reserved for Liszt's personal use.

Not a single potion has ever been sold externally.

"I really wish I could sell a space gem and exchange it for endless wealth to support me and the Fire Drake," he thought, touching the four space gems hanging on his chest.

Three of the four space gems are already full, with only one serving as a frequently used space, ready to be filled when needed.

The three full ones mainly contain books, mithril, blue iron, molded aluminum, Potion Seeds, Shipwood seedlings, jade, crystals, monster meat, dragon milk, and more. Previously, one space gem couldn’t hold everything, but now it can, so he naturally keeps his wealth secure.

Storing it in the warehouse always feels risky.

The four nail-sized space gems have been crafted into a necklace, embedded in the chain of a sapphire pendant. At first glance, it resembles a crystal—typically, gemstone pendants are embellished with a few vibrant crystals for aesthetic appeal.

Thus, the pendant around his neck seems like just another piece of gemstone equipment to others.

For a sky knight, lacking gemstone equipment would be unthinkable; owning it is expected. No one would dare to attack a sky knight over a single gemstone. Therefore, the risk of these four space gems being exposed is minimal, making them quite safe.

The greatest risk of exposure actually comes from using them.

Especially when he occasionally retrieves items that shouldn’t be seen, which could eventually raise suspicions. However, this isn't too concerning. First, as a lord and a sky knight, his followers wouldn't dare to question him; second, the legend of the invisible dragon is known to very few, and even fewer know about space gems.

Even if someone suspects, they wouldn’t necessarily link it to the legendary space gems. The idea of an "independent alternate space" is completely foreign to them.

Liszt soon sighed, "I should use them as little as possible; even a small risk is still a risk... Once the space gems are exposed, the secret of the invisible dragon can't be hidden... The Fire Drake has immense future potential, but I still have ambitions for the invisible dragon."

Not naturally optimistic, he sighs more frequently when confronted with worries.

At the same time, he’s insatiably greedy. Even though he can barely afford to care for the Fire Drake, he still dreams of someday riding the invisible dragon. He wonders if the invisible dragon, which likes to soak in the stench of Smokegrass, would cause him to faint halfway through the ride.

"Right now, I don't have the ability to raise a dragon, but that doesn't mean I can't in the future!"

"My goal is to find a dragon to contract as the Lord of Dragon Domain, and then raise another dragon specifically for riding... Preferably, I'd like to contract a life-representing fairy dragon. Successfully contracting it might even grant me eternal life!" Dragons, with their infinite charm, are naturally the more, the better.

Feeling the warmth of the Fire Drake on his chest, a sudden thought crossed his mind: "I really want to storm the Blue Dragon Island and seize the duke's sapphire dragon! And that 'Dragon Knight Mana Manual,' I must get my hands on it too! The sapphire that amplifies power is worth a fortune."

...

Fantasies can only temper mental strength.

They offer no real benefit.

After lunch, Liszt still had to obediently leave Tulip Town and head to the uninhabited wasteland west of the town to release the Fire Drake. Letting it fly freely by the sea for a while, it can switch between flesh and magic power at will, but it still craves the freedom of flight.

"Whoosh!"

The Fire Drake's cry echoed over the sea.

Beside Liszt, Loki, the chocobo, was trembling.

Under Liszt's command, it had stopped fleeing at the sight of the Fire Drake, but the instinctive suppression from its lineage still made it deeply fearful of the Fire Drake's dragon aura. Indeed, it had improved significantly; previously, every time the Fire Drake was released, it would be scared out of its wits.

"Get used to the Fire Drake's dragon aura. I hope you can become the first animal unafraid of dragon aura." Though he couldn't ride the Fire Drake, Loki remained his trusted mount.

Suddenly, the Fire Drake folded its wings and dove into the sea, then started wailing, "Oh roar, oh roar," flapping its wings and thrashing in the water—it couldn't swim.

"This hopeless dragon!"

Liszt swiftly grabbed a rope and looped it around the Fire Drake's wings. He tugged and dragged, pulling the Fire Drake back to shore.

His movements were practiced, clearly not his first rescue.

The reason was simple: every time the Fire Drake was near the sea, it aimed to master the water and become a Fire Dragon that could swim. But when it came to swimming, it was completely hopeless. Despite Liszt's repeated lessons, it panicked the moment it touched the water. Without Liszt's rescue, it might have been the first dragon to drown.

"Oh... roar..."

The Fire Drake lay on the shore, coughing up water and calling out weakly.

Part of it was dizziness from choking, and part was faintness from hunger.

Liszt seized the moment to stroke it, strengthening their bond: "You hopeless dragon, you're a Fire Dragon, you know? Why should a Fire Dragon learn to swim? You should be soaking in magma inside a volcano... Hmm? Volcano? Magma?" Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his head, and he thought of an important question.

The power of elemental dragons was clearly the ultimate display of magic power.

The magic power of a Fire Dragon was the ultimate manifestation of fire-attribute mana, capable of altering the environment between heaven and earth, continuously nurturing volcanic eruptions.

The magic power of a Wind Dragon could continuously form storms.

"Following this line of thought, does it mean that where there are storms, there might be extreme wind-attribute magic power? And where there are volcanic eruptions, could there be extreme fire-attribute magic power? If I threw the Fire Drake into magma, could it grow rapidly?"

He recalled the descriptions in knight novels: Fire Dragons always lived in volcanoes, Ice Dragons in icy and snowy lands, Water Dragons in the vast seas, Earth Dragons in desert wastelands, Wind Dragons' nests perpetually howled with gales, and Thunder Dragons always appeared during stormy nights.

The appearance of a Light Dragon was accompanied by various illusions, while a Dark Dragon appeared in complete darkness.

These were likely scenes imagined by those down-and-out noble writers, but they might also be a kind of natural common sense—perhaps Fire Dragons really did live in volcanoes.

"Volcano, Fire Drake..." Liszt's eyes flickered.