Chapter 591: The Fattening Period of Tulip Worms

Levis had his own social circle, and the nobles from Gravel Castle and Beer Castle would likely become his future followers. Liszt had no intention of getting involved, especially since he genuinely disliked raunchy parties. He much preferred the kind where one could glide elegantly into the dance floor to the melody of a piano piece.

If they hit it off, he would then take their hand to discuss life and ideals.

Not just boozing, feasting, and fooling around—devoid of emotion, driven solely by desire, utterly lacking in sophistication.

First, he visited the small castle near Coral City to chat with his grandmother—mainly to observe whether Penelope's potted plants showed any signs of nurturing a spirit bug. Unfortunately, there were no discoveries. In truth, he hadn’t told Penelope about the spirit bug that had emerged from that living stone plant.

He understood one thing: the Misty Task was the sole reason behind the miraculous nature of Penelope’s potted plants. Thus, he didn’t want Penelope to get carried away with them.

The elderly should spend more time watching stage plays, hosting tea parties, and enjoying the golden years of their lives, tending to potted plants only in their leisure.

After resting overnight at Tulip Keep, he set off early the next morning.

The voyage went smoothly, and they arrived at Black Horse Port before nightfall, completing the Sunset’s maiden voyage.

After conducting a thorough inspection of the Sunset, the accompanying shipbuilding apprentice, Buck Floatwood, reported, "Lord, the structure of the Sunset meets the standards, though there are still areas worth improving. With another week of reinforcement and modifications, it will be completely finalized."

"Excellent."

Liszt expressed his satisfaction and promptly selected a captain—the experienced Kosto was the obvious choice. The crew consisted of the earliest batch of seasoned sailors from Flower Town, who’d weathered storms at sea and knew how to handle rough seas.

Though the Sunset was unlikely to encounter stormy weather anyway.

To complement his flagship, Liszt handed over his largest treasured black pearl—one as big as a bathtub—to Cris, Elkson, and two other mages to craft into the most powerful Wind Calming Pearl.

Additionally, a Tide-Soothing Pearl made from a pink pearl was also installed on the Sunset.

A Thermostatic Pearl crafted from a golden pearl was likewise fitted into Liszt’s private quarters—the Sunset’s hull was broad and sturdy, featuring a sizable two-story wooden tower structure that served as his personal cabin.

When he was aboard, the tower cabin would be staffed with footmen and maids, ensuring he could enjoy all the comforts of home even during voyages.

The only regret was that the Thermostatic Pearl couldn’t lower temperatures below freezing.

Otherwise, it could have functioned as a refrigerator, storing a variety of delicious foods instead of cramming them all into spatial gems. The spatial gems weren’t particularly large—spherical with a diameter of about five meters, roughly 65 cubic meters, the size of a small studio apartment. He owned four spatial storage rings, totaling only about 260 cubic meters.

Calculated based on Earth’s standard residential ceiling height of 2.6 meters, that was just the equivalent of a 100-square-meter apartment.

Most of the space was already occupied by magical beast meat, leaving little room to carry an assortment of gourmet foods.

Of course.

This was just him being greedy. Even the Sapphire Duke, ruling over an entire nation, likely didn’t possess spatial storage rings and had to travel light on voyages. Owning four spatial storage rings, Liszt could easily sell one to secure a count’s title without breaking a sweat—kings and dukes would spare no expense for spatial storage rings.

However, the spatial gems were tied to the secret of the Invisible Wyrm, and Liszt was reluctant to expose them.

…

Over the next few days, the Sunset remained docked at Black Horse Port for painting, adjustments, and interior decoration.

Liszt returned to Flower Town and resumed his quiet daily life.

The only exception was the birth of two Tulip Spirit Bugs—one entirely golden, the other bright red, both gleaming like polished jade, breathtakingly beautiful. After forming contracts, the number of spirit bugs under his ownership reached 47—five of which were contracted by Acheronides.

"Your family’s wealth keeps growing. Now it’s up to you—go for it, little one!" Liszt encouraged the earlier Tulip Spirit Bug, whose skin had begun turning ashen as its body rapidly expanded.

Filled with anticipation, Liszt watched as this stressed-out Tulip Spirit Bug finally charged toward its destiny, entering the make-or-break pupation phase.

"Wah!"

Jie La rushed over.

Liszt swiftly grabbed Jie La, who was trying to approach the tulip spirit bug in its pupation stage. He glared and said, "Jie La, listen to me carefully. Stay away from this box—no exceptions! And you are absolutely not allowed to touch any spirit bugs! Understood?"

Jie La wriggled and whined, "Waa!"

But after a sharp mental reprimand from Liszt, she quickly settled down, pouting. She finally gave a reluctant nod, indicating her agreement.

"Go on, go play." Though guilt tugged at him, he hardened his heart and maintained a cold demeanor—all to push Jie La to strive harder.

Jie La flew back to her own box, brooding. In another box not far away, Mickey was entertaining himself by counting corn kernels.

Liszt spent some time pep-talking the tulip spirit bug mid-pupation before finally leaving the castle. He went to the apple tree, reclining in a rocking chair to relax. Seeing Carter the butler approach, he suddenly asked, "Mr. Carter, should we move this apple orchard to Thorn Fort? I’ll likely spend most of my time there in the future, and without an apple orchard, it just feels like something’s missing."

Carter placed a cup of green tea on the applewood table and replied with a smile, "My lord, you could start planting apple trees at Thorn Fort now. By the time the main structure of the castle is completed next year, the trees should already be sprouting. In just a few years, you’ll have a brand-new apple orchard."

"Pity there’s no second apple spirit bug. An orchard without apple tree spirit grass just isn’t perfect."

"Perhaps we could purchase an apple spirit bug from the outer islands," Carter suggested. In the past, he would never have entertained such an idea, but as the territory’s income grew, so did his boldness—buying a spirit bug was no big deal now.

Liszt nodded immediately. "Good. Have the merchant teams keep an eye out. If an apple spirit bug is for sale, buy it at once!" He was determined to establish an apple orchard at Thorn Fort as well.

Who knows? Maybe an apple would bonk him on the head someday.

Inspiration struck, perhaps he would discover this world's "law of gravity."

...

During these laid-back days,

Earl Li William finally returned from Blue Dragon Island. On the day of his return, he summoned his followers to Tulip Castle for a meeting. He laid out this year's campaign orders: "The Grand Duke has already communicated with the Kingdom of Steel Ridge. This year's expansion campaign will begin in August. We will depart on July 20th and assemble at Oxhoof City."

The expansion campaign has persisted for over a century.

Whether it starts early, is delayed, or even canceled, none of this is new.

Thus, no one raised objections, and the discussion swiftly moved to the next topic—how many troops to send and which knights to assign.

Liszt sat in his chair, relaxed, barely paying attention to the talks.

Previously, he believed knight charges required strategy and even recalled *The Art of War*. But now, with his soaring strength, he gradually grew too lazy to bother with tactics—just go in swinging!