Chapter 850: Dominating the Thorn Castle

... The great dragon has fallen.

Due to the magic door experiment, the magical materials in Ember Town have been nearly exhausted, urgently requiring a replenishment from the Flame Dominion.

After giving some instructions, Liszt and Acheronides set off to return to Onyx Steed Isle. Although Acheronides could partially switch to a spatial avatar form, it had not been fully developed yet, so riding the Invisible Dragon still couldn't envelop her in spatial magic, preventing her from traversing the Great Vortex alongside Liszt.

Thus, the two still had to first ride the dragon to the seaside before switching to Acheronides' shell.

Of course, they first rode the Invisible Dragon to the Infinite Volcanic Range to find Leo.

Then, they rode Leo to the sea—as a Dragon Knight, without a dragon by his side, his combat power would severely decline, making any potential danger troublesome.

Only when Leo transformed into an arcane form and attached to him did he have full confidence, unafraid of any ambush.

In fact, after the Kingdom of Steel Ridge and the Blastfurnace Kingdom ignited war, he had been guarding against one possibility—that the Kingdom of the Eagle might be gathering strength for revenge.

Having their decades-long dragon-slaying war preparations ruined by a newly anointed Dragon Knight, the royal family of the Kingdom of the Eagle would surely harbor resentment.

Moreover, the Light-green Gem Dragon's disappearance at sea placed Liszt under high suspicion—after he deliberately leaked news of the Light-green Gem Dragon, this was no longer mere suspicion but fact.

"If the Kingdom of the Eagle seeks revenge, the scale of the draconic campaign will undoubtedly be massive. Currently, the Kingdom of the Eagle has eight dragons, five of which have riders; its five subject kingdoms have five more dragons, two of which have riders. Though it's impossible to withdraw all dragons from the borders, if they gamble everything, four or five Dragon Knights might be mobilized."

After the Sapphire Duchy declined this year's expansion campaign, Liszt had already deeply considered the possibility of retaliation from the Kingdom of the Eagle.

No matter what, he had become a bane of the Eagle Kingdom.

During the founding of the Fire Kingdom, a dragon-slaying war was inevitable to reestablish dominance over these seas and the new order in this corner of the Legendary Continent.

"If I were the King of the Kingdom of the Eagle, I would first show false weakness and goodwill to neighboring nations, stabilize internal forces, then choose the right moment to gather all available Dragon Knights for a grand dragon-slaying war to wash away the shame!"

Of course, the location of the Flame Islands was a mystery. Whether it was the Tulip family's fleet or the Pinecone family's fleet, only the navigators from the Flame Dominion knew the way.

No one else knew the location of the Flame Islands.

For the Kingdom of the Eagle to launch a dragon-slaying war, the best battlefields would still be the Sapphire Islands and the Jade Sea. Hence, Liszt's return to the Flame Dominion still carried some danger, which was why he had to bring Leo—not just to flaunt having a dragon.

Leo provided immediate combat capability, while Acheronides offered maritime support, ensuring he could escape any mortal peril.

And if the dragon-slaying war failed to kill him, the remaining time would be his stage. Unless the Kingdom of the Eagle sought mutually assured destruction, they would be powerless against his counterattack.

In short.

The dragon-slaying war might happen, or it might not.

But wherever he went, he would always have at least one dragon by his side.

...

After much ado.

By the time they returned to Onyx Steed Isle, it was already December, with the New Year festival just over half a month away. Liszt wasn’t sure if he could spare time this year to celebrate with his Tulip family relatives. Both he and Marquis Niuwei were overwhelmed with duties.

He was developing the Flame Islands, while Marquis Niuwei was busy developing Tulip Island—even the construction of Niuwei Territory had fallen into neglect.

When the Fire Dragon descended with its untamed draconic majesty, the retainers of Onyx Steed Isle knew their great Dragon Knight lord had returned.

"Hark!"

Hearing the Fire Dragon's roar, Butler Carter, forgetting the crystal tableware he was polishing, stood up excitedly and shouted, "Everyone, drop your tasks and tidy your clothes! Footmen and maids, assemble in the hall immediately! Mrs. Mossen, Mrs. Mossen, take roll of the maids! Tom, take roll of the footmen!"

"Mr. Carter, has the master returned?" Tom, now promoted to head footman, had grown adept as Carter's assistant, a far cry from his former water-carrying duties.

"Of course, look sharp, Tom. The master dislikes slack servants."

"Understood."

In the castle corridors, Mrs. Mossen's voice grew louder: "Alright, girls, put down your cleaning cloths, straighten your clothes, and gather in the main hall downstairs. No dawdling—quickly! You are the maids of Thorn Castle, serving His Lordship the Dragonknight!"

"Coming, Mrs. Mossen!"

"Is my dress wrinkled?"

"Has the master really returned? I’ve never seen him before—I’m so nervous!"

As old and new servants hurried to assemble for their master’s return, outside the castle square, Liszt and Acheronides dismounted from the dragon.

Amidst the knights’ respectful salutes, they strode toward the castle.

Leo, meanwhile, flew straight to the rubble pile beside Thorn Castle. Originally, Liszt had promised to build him a hundred-meter stone platform, but practicality intervened—the weight made such a structure impossible. Instead, stones produced by the Blizzard Beast unit were haphazardly piled up as Leo’s makeshift roost.

"Skraawk!"

"Skraawk!"

"Skraawk!"

Beside the rubble stood the Phoenix Perch Tree, where Xiao Huang, Xiao Hong, and Xiao Zi—three Fire Dragonbirds—had been sleeping in their nests. Startled awake, they let out cheerful cries and flapped toward Leo.

"Huh?"

Grand Sprite Ai Ni of the Phoenix Perch Tree, lounging idly on the Phoenix Perch Tree, also spotted the long-absent Fire Dragon descending onto the familiar rubble pile.

"Kreee!"

It took flight but didn’t dare approach Leo directly.

Having seen Xiao Huang, Xiao Hong, and Xiao Zi get buffeted away by Leo’s wings, the excited yet aloof dragon showed no warmth, even to familiar faces. So Ai Ni reconsidered and banked toward Thorn Castle.

It knew only one person could rein in Leo’s mischief—Liszt.

By the time Ai Ni reached the castle, neatly lined servants flanked the entrance, led by Mr. Carter and Mrs. Mossen, bowing in welcome. But the orderly reception was disrupted by a flurry of spirit bugs.

Thorn Grand Sprite Jie La, perched atop Liszt’s head, barked orders at the fluttering spirit bugs: "Stay back, all of you! Hey—I’m talking to you, Yellow Lotus spirit bug! Move it!"

"Just a bully throwing her weight around," Ai Ni mused, gliding toward Liszt unafraid of the hot-headed Jie La.

As fellow Grand Sprites, neither outranked the other. But with Grand Sprite Ai Xi lost in knotwork, Giant Kelp Grand Sprite keeping to the depths, mangrove Grand Sprite Nami rarely at the castle, and Ai Ni itself preoccupied with Fire Dragonbirds, Jie La had the run of Thorn Castle, becoming the bully of its minor sprites.

"Liszt, you’re back," Ai Ni said, perching on his shoulder, paying no mind to Jie La’s scowl from above.