Chapter 221: The Might of the Giant Dragons
“Since the Merfolk Tribe has been wiped out, could you take me to the islands? Just in case there are any survivors, I can step in to help Port Leyton eliminate the threat. That way, my mission to assist under His Majesty’s orders won’t be in vain!”
Count Leyton and the others didn’t know what this Golden Archmage had in mind, but they couldn’t refuse Gold’s reasonable request. Moreover, they all wanted to see what the Merfolk Islands had become now, so they turned their attention to Donald.
With Nozdormu, the ocean lord and legendary giant dragons ruling the Emerald Dream Archipelago, Donald assumed this guy couldn’t come up with anything tricky, so he nodded in agreement.
Due to the large number of people, it would take two hours to reach the islands by boat, so Donald dispatched three alchemical airships to transport everyone to the Emerald Dream.
The mages led by Gold weren’t very interested in these alchemy-powered flying devices, as the Mage Association also had such devices—large alchemical machines that consumed countless elemental crystals per use. Unless absolutely necessary, they wouldn’t use them.
These mages clearly thought of Donald’s airships as those highly resource-intensive alchemical devices, not realizing that these three airships relied on physical airbags for lift, consuming little energy. They could even use sails for assistance, with just one low-grade elemental crystal needed to travel 100 kilometers. Of course, their carrying capacity couldn’t compare to large flying machines, nor did they have much offensive or defensive capability.
In silence, when they reached the skies above the Emerald Dream Archipelago, everyone on the deck gazed enviously at the dreamlike island clusters nestled among the blue sea and sky. Especially the nobles of Port Leyton, who had few family territories, wished those lands were theirs!
Seeing these islands, Gold felt both regret and resentment, but it was too late to regret now. The priority was to find ways to gain more benefits.
The group landed on the main island, and the nobles of Port Leyton disembarked from the airships to explore the island’s environment, checking if it was suitable for developing territories.
Earlier, when returning to Port Leyton, Donald had ordered the giant dragons living on the city walls to fly to the Emerald Dream Archipelago, where they took root under Nozdormu’s arrangement.
Now, upon seeing their master Donald return, they flew over excitedly, gathering around him affectionately.
“It’s actually giant dragons!”
Several mages from the Mage Association, including the Grand Mage Gold, were all stunned with wide eyes. Especially Gold, whose eyes burned with fierce greed upon seeing these bronze dragons. Seeing that they were all immature young dragons, with the strongest being only two juvenile dragons, an idea arose in Gold’s mind. He didn’t believe these young mages had the strength to subdue adult dragons of gold rank. As for how those juvenile dragons had been tamed by them, Gold, whose mind was filled with greed, instinctively ignored this and didn’t try to figure it out. “Buy dragons?” When Gold, with a smile, said he intended to represent the Mage Association in purchasing some young dragons from Donald, Donald couldn’t help but think this guy was delusional. He simply sneered and didn’t respond. Since he had already offended the Mage Association once, he didn’t care about offending them again. According to Lady Edwina, Ferdinand’s mother, with the royal family’s suppression, the Mage Association wouldn’t dare take any rash actions until the king fell. Moreover, after witnessing the power of the Goddess of Agriculture, he no longer cared about those few gold mages. After all, even having offended a terrifying demon like the Spider Queen, he felt it wasn’t a big deal—more problems meant less worry. Especially with a legendary dragon like Nozdormu at his side, to be honest, even if the Mage Association had its five gold masters, he really didn’t care much now. Seeing the other party ignore his status as a grand mage and the name of the Mage Association, Gold was angry but helpless. Although this kid was only a silver mage, he always gave Gold a sense of danger. He wasn’t afraid of Gold’s mental pressure, nor could Gold overpower him with strength. For the first time, Gold felt that his status as a grand mage wasn’t omnipotent—he had been restricted everywhere since arriving in Port Leyton. Just as Gold was feeling frustrated, a roar came from the center of the island. “Who dares to mess with the descendants of the great bronze dragons?” Along with the roar came overwhelming pressure that even Gold, the grand mage, couldn’t resist. “Bad!” Gold cried inwardly in alarm. He wasn’t stupid—clearly, targeting the weak had drawn out the strong. A majestic bronze dragon, at least fifty feet long, flew over, its wings creating strong wind pressure as its bell-sized dragon eyes glared at the crowd. A dragon at the legendary level?
That pressure clearly exceeded the limits of the Golden Rank; mages like Gold were instantly terrified, their hands and feet trembling slightly. Aside from Donald and his two companions, who remained calm, everyone else, though knowing the dragon wouldn’t harm them, still paled. Gold realized such a being was far beyond his ability to confront—not just him, but even the entire Mage Association combined wouldn’t stand a chance against a legendary dragon. Just as he was about to explain, the mage waved and said, “Nozdormu, don’t scare the guests. We should be more polite!” “Yes, master!” With Donald’s simple words, the Bronze Dragon King crouched there like a child who had made a mistake, a sight that made the members of the Mage Association gasp in shock. Could a dragon at the legendary level really be tamed by this young mage? Who was he? Could he be the offspring of some true god? Ignoring their astonishment and fear, Donald stepped forward, stroking the Bronze Dragon King’s scales as he introduced him. “I forgot to introduce him to you all. This is the Bronze Dragon King Nozdormu. You can also call him the Eternal King. Moreover, Nozdormu has now become the sea lord of the Fallen Star Bay. The entire sea area around Port Leyton is under his rule. From now on, you won’t have to worry about sea beasts or storms!” “Really?” “That’s great…” The nobles of Port Leyton were overjoyed at hearing this. With a human sea lord on their side, voyages in the nearby seas would be safe unless they deliberately damaged their ships. This was undoubtedly a huge advantage for Port Leyton’s development. By revealing Nozdormu’s identity, Donald also aimed to claim ownership of the Emerald Dream Islands. Even if the kingdom refused to acknowledge Donald as the lord of the Emerald Dream Islands for some reason, no one would dare seize those islands in front of a legendary dragon! The Mage Association finally gave up any thoughts of taking control of those nearby islands. Their gazes toward the young mage were filled with fear. But returning to the capital empty-handed would likely mean they couldn’t explain themselves to those who had supported them, as they had already received much from them. So, after returning from the Emerald Dream Islands to Port Leyton, Mage Gold asked Count Leyton if there were any other islands in the vicinity besides the Emerald Dream Islands.
The beast horde was repelled, and Port Leyton suffered no damage at all, so the plan to profit from it failed before it even began. The Fish People’s Islands, which were the next best option, were now occupied by legendary dragons, leaving them hopeless as well. Thus, Gold turned his attention to other islands—those that, though small and infertile, were not suitable for development, and could serve as an excuse to justify his actions to those involved.
“Other islands?”
Earl Leyton immediately understood the Golden Archmage’s plan. But with Donald as a powerful ally, he no longer had to be cautious and deferential to various factions. Though reluctant, he reluctantly agreed to give up some of his interests.
After some thought, the lord of Port Leyton came up with an answer. “I remember there’s a sizable archipelago in the southern part of the bay. The environment there isn’t great, but its location is excellent—right next to the routes from the southern continent. If developed, it could become a major transit port!”
Gold was overjoyed upon hearing this. After learning the direction of those islands, he immediately took his mage followers to survey the area.
“What are you doing, My Lord?”
Donald was surprised by Earl Leyton’s willingness to compromise. Seeing his confusion, the nobles of Port Leyton burst into laughter.
Only after hearing their explanation did Donald understand.
It turned out that the place Earl Leyton had suggested wasn’t as good as he described—it had hidden reasons behind it. It was originally a reef island, one of the most dangerous areas in the routes between the North and the southern continent years ago. A single mistake could lead to shipwrecks and deaths. Only the most skilled sailors could avoid the hidden reefs, relying on luck to pass through safely.
Over a hundred years ago, the Goddess of Agriculture’s Church realized that their clergy found it extremely difficult to travel between the two regions, which threatened their control over the Celt territories. So they sent a Golden Archbishop who used the power of the church’s sacred artifacts to destroy some of the underwater reefs along the routes, creating a safer and wider passage.
Since then, sailing from the southern continent to the coasts of the Celt Kingdom has been much safer.
The archipelago Earl Leyton had mentioned was actually formed by reefs that weren’t removed during the creation of those routes because they were close to the coast and didn’t interfere with navigation.
Although there are sizable islands with fertile soil due to seabirds nesting there, the waters around the islands are hidden with numerous reefs, making them entirely unsuitable for navigation. As a result, their development value is greatly reduced. Unless one is willing to remove the reefs, even the Golden Archmage would find little value in these rocky islands. The cost of removing those underwater reefs is likely to exceed the benefits of developing the islands, making it a territory that is not worth the effort.