Chapter 669: Solving the Puzzle

Cris stowed the Staff of Sundering into the gemstone pocket dimension. Interestingly, Virginia could still restore her soul energy within the staff, seemingly unaffected by the time-stasis effect of the pocket dimension.

This led Liszt to realize that the stasis within the gemstone pocket dimension likely froze all aspects of the material world.

For the immaterial or spiritual realm, it had no effect. Mortals entering the pocket dimension would inevitably have their souls dissipate, likely due to the lack of a suitable vessel to contain them. However, with carriers like a soul storage jar or the Staff of Sundering, survival became possible.

Perhaps the day he rode the invisible dragon would finally reveal the true wonders of its magic power.

Dinner.

He savored the delicious roasted suckling estuary pig—though not yet the purebred variety, the current hybrid already outclassed ordinary pigs by leagues. The tender texture, rich taste, and lightly seasoned glaze paired perfectly with the ideal marbling of the estuary pig.

Just a whiff was enough to make one drool, let alone tasting it.

Alongside it were well-aged fish broth, two types of scrambled eggs made with mallard and flamingo, plus an array of other lavish ingredients, thoroughly whetting Liszt’s appetite.

The cost of this single meal likely exceeded what an ordinary commoner would spend in a year or two.

Such was the extravagant life of nobility. The stronger a knight became, the more abundant their daily meals needed to be, as mana stemmed from the knight’s own body rather than drawing from ambient magic power or the Magic Web. However, unlike other noble lords who relied on exploiting commoners, Liszt primarily sustained himself through business ventures and colonial charters.

The glass trade had already boomed across the Sapphire region and was spreading into the Kingdom of Steel Ridge.

Floral wines and soaps were gradually expanding their market reach, generating immense profits daily.

Once the future high-quality parchment met quality standards, it would undoubtedly spark a new wave of sales. By then, Liszt might amass wealth rivaling nations just from glass and parchment alone. As a dragon knight, he already possessed the strength to maintain a monopoly on these technologies, ensuring exorbitant profits.

"Such a life makes being isekai’d worth it."

After dinner, enjoying several pastries made from highland cream as dessert, Liszt couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride in his heart.

To each their own ambition—some sought revolution and universal harmony.

But he had no taste for grand ideals. Protecting the happiness of his people while enjoying life and exploring the world was his greatest joy.

"With my previous small goal of riding a dragon accomplished, I’ll set another modest target: establishing a sovereign state within ten years and becoming an unbound high lord!"

With this goal in mind,

he felt boundless motivation, as an even brighter future beckoned: "As for the long-term goal, that would be bonding with a fae dragon, becoming the Lord of Dragon Domain, and partaking in its longevity. I don’t ask for much—just a few more centuries or millennia, and this life of mine would be utterly fulfilled."

Before, he thought a hundred years was enough—why seek immortality?

But now he no longer held that view. Such a wonderful life deserved far more than a mere century. He couldn’t bear the thought of Acheronides reaching maturity while wrinkles creased his own forehead.

...

The next day, Liszt returned to his hermetic studies, researching and training alongside Acheronides.

While verifying the resonance principles of the Magic Web, Acheronides encountered several insoluble conundrums and sought his help. Liszt had her write them down before hurrying to the magic tower to seek solutions from Cris. With four great magicians, eight vampires, and several ordinary magicians, the lineup was already formidable.

No matter how brilliant Acheronides was, her repository of knowledge was still limited, having had almost no contact with humans. Everything she knew came from magic books Liszt provided, leaving many gaps compared to human magicians who had traveled widely.

Taking the thick paper notebook, Cris said, "Lord Viscount, I’ll immediately assign the great magicians to lead teams in addressing these quandaries."

"Good. Resolve them as quickly as possible—I need answers urgently."

Liszt decided to stay in the magic tower, waiting for the magicians to solve the issues.

But to his surprise, when Cris took the problems to the three great magicians, they all responded the same way: "Regrettably, we’re occupied!"

This isn’t how a prisoner should act.

Liszt immediately inquired, "Cris, what are they busy with?"

"They've recently become utterly obsessed with natural magic, obsessing over those magic plants all day long. They’ve even been discussing cooperative research on Druidic shape-shifting magic with Mary and the others," Cris replied helplessly. Once magicians become engrossed in a certain study, their single-mindedness gets scary.

Liszt marched up to the three archmages and said sternly, "I don’t care how much you love natural magic. Right now, solve these problems for me. If you succeed, you can continue your research. If you fail, all the magic plants and research materials will be confiscated!"

"Lord Viscount, our research could be revolutionary! You shouldn’t dismiss natural magic so lightly!"

"Indeed! Once we crack the code of magic plant cultivation, the world will never face food shortages again! This is research of immense strategic value—you should be supporting us wholeheartedly!"

"Druidic shape-shifting magic is also game-changing combat magic—it could even overcome the disadvantage of magicians being too fragile for frontline combat!"

Liszt remained expressionless. "Solve my problems first, then study natural magic!"

"For the sake of truth, we refuse!"

"We won’t work for you until truth is revealed!"

"You may imprison our bodies, but you cannot shackle our minds that yearn for truth!"

The three archmages were digging in their heels, unmoved by Liszt’s threats unless he got physical.

But he was not one to advocate violence.

He believed more in his own charisma. "What if I told you there’s a Scion of the Sunborn on my territory? Would you be willing to solve these problems for me then?"

"What?"

"A Scion of the Sunborn?"

"The true caster of Druidic shape-shifting magic?"

The three archmages immediately snapped to attention. "Lord Viscount, please tell us where this Scion is! You must understand—he’s more valuable than anything else here!"

Liszt glanced at Cris, then turned back to the three archmages. "Solve the problems, and I’ll bring him here to assist your research. But let me be clear—everything must be voluntary. No pressure, no shady experiments."

Old Phil isn’t as young as he used to be and can’t handle much strain.

He might be fine with something like a blood draw, but playing guinea pig wasn’t happening. While a lord held life-and-death power over his people, Liszt’s morals wouldn’t allow him to mess with decent folks just living their lives.

With that,

he spun on his heel and walked out.

Seeing this, the three archmages locked eyes and immediately declared in unison, "Miss Cris, we’re burning daylight—let’s get to work!"