Evil dragon has a warm heart-Chapter 141 - 140 Cigar

Chapter 141: Chapter 140: Cigar

Chapter 141 -140: Cigar

When Merlin Rain-Longflower was young, he was handsome and dashing, captivating nearly half the women of the Shadowflame Grand Duchy with his status as an earl and his dreamy charm.

Even in middle age, after losing his wife, many highborn ladies still pined for Earl Merlin.

Of course, Lady Meryl knew her father’s character well and was certain he would never casually engage with women of loose morals.

But hearing Roland’s teasing still managed to alleviate much of her anxiety—perhaps her father hadn’t had such a hard time these years, maybe she didn’t need to worry about her elderly father… besides, he had already been the subject of gossip with Princess Anxia.

“Let’s eat,” she said to Roland with a roll of her eyes.

But soon she started to fret again, “Russell, have you prepared your gift for Grandpa’s birthday? Glasses for presbyopia won’t do, your grandfather is a Flying Dragon Knight, he will never have old-age vision… Better prepare a gift with some thought behind it.”

“Er, Mother, it’s hard to choose a thoughtful gift… Grandpa has everything,” Russell admitted, equally troubled.

“What’s important is not the price of the gift, but your thoughtfulness,” Lady Meryl said.

Russell turned to his older brother Roland, “Big Brother, what gift have you prepared?”

“A manuscript, the original author’s handwritten notes for ‘Snowflake Rhapsody,’ which I found in Furious Wind City,” Roland said proudly, “Grandpa loves musicals, and ‘Snowflake Rhapsody’ is his favorite!”

Lady Meryl praised him, “This gift will certainly delight your grandfather, especially since you prepared it half a year in advance.”

Baron Roman twisted his mouth somewhat dismissively, with a tinge of jealousy.

For his own birthday, Roland had merely sent him a hand-carved seal, not even crafted by a renowned artisan.

Russell sighed along, “Big Brother, you’re killing me here.”

Roland said cheerfully, “It’s just the sentiment that matters, Russell, no matter what gift you bring, Grandfather won’t blame you.”

Despite that, Russell certainly couldn’t give a half-hearted gift; if Earl Merlin didn’t care, Lady Meryl would surely be upset.

So patting his forehead, Russell asked, “Grandpa smokes, right, and does so frequently, right?”

“Your grandfather has been a heavy smoker all his life,” Baron Roman remarked, “The collection of pipes at Bluebird Castle, if thrown into the furnace as fuel, could bake bread for ten days and nights and even be enough to forge a suit of armor.”

“Dear, what kind of description is that?” Lady Meryl asked the baron.

The baron shrugged, “Just a hyperbolic way of stating the old Earl’s love for smoking.”

Lady Meryl gave the baron a look and turned to Russell, “Your father exaggerates, but your grandfather truly enjoys smoking. He knows about tobaccos from all over the country and has even made his own tobacco blends.”

“Then I’m relieved,” Russell said with a sigh of relief, smiling.

“What do you mean by that, Russell? You’re not planning to give Grandpa a bag of tobacco, are you?” Roland said, unable to contain his amusement, “As far as I know, the tobacco people sent to Grandpa’s office in Red Castle was nearly overflowing.”

“Yes, Russell, giving tobacco is not a good choice, it does not reflect your regard for Grandpa,” Lady Meryl added.

“No, I’m not giving tobacco,” Russell said, revealing a sly smile, “Since Grandpa loves smoking so much, I’ll just be confident that, even if he doesn’t like my gift, he won’t find it thoughtless.”

Baron Roman asked curiously, “What gift is it?”

“Cigars.”

“Cigars? What’s that?”

“Well, how should I put it, a new way to smoke… Maybe Grandpa will scold me, thinking cigars can’t compare to his roomful of pipes, but at least it’s a novel gift that might just set a trend,” Russell replied.

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Russell revealed only the name and didn’t bring out the cigars, planning to unveil them when celebrating his grandfather’s birthday.

Grand gifts, costly gifts, he surely couldn’t afford.

He could only rely on a bit of a time-traveler’s ingenuity, making a splash with little money, and perhaps the cigars could indeed win Earl Merlin’s favor.

“Whether to smoke pipes or cigars, I don’t know which one is better… But if you dress up the cigars with a story, add some flair, their prestige can skyrocket instantly… Nobles, after all, savor that sort of thing, the essence of luxury!”

With such thoughts, Russell fell asleep peacefully at Fluorescent Castle.

“Ga!”

The Little Dream Dragon arrived as promised.

The vast Gloomy Dreamland had expanded threefold, almost enveloping the entire Fluorescent Castle and the surrounding walls.

The magic light of the fantasy beasts, the magic light of the patrol knights… of course, what attracted the Little Dream Dragon the most was the unusual deep blue glow emanating from the Ice Soul Pearls hidden in the vault. It was a glow not of magic power but equally luminous.

“Gaga!”

“You can’t eat that, Ice Cream. If you sneak a single one, Fluorescent Castle will turn upside down,” Russell hurriedly diverted the Little Dream Dragon’s attention. Theft of an Ice Soul Pearl could even alarm the Shadowflame Dragon.

After all, these were offerings to the Shadowflame Dragon.

Since the Little Dream Dragon started growing after eating an Ice Soul Pearl, Russell understood the purpose behind Red Castle’s acquisition of them—feeding the Shadowflame Dragon.

So, competing with the Shadowflame Dragon for food was too risky.

“Gaga!”

“Be obedient, Ice Cream, you don’t want the Duke’s Shadowflame Dragon really to take notice and then give you a beating. That would be getting off lightly. What if it decides to eat you as food instead… tsk tsk, in any case, we don’t take what belongs to others!”

Scared by Russell’s frightening words, the Little Dream Dragon finally capitulated, drooping its head dejectedly and making a listless response: “Ga.”

Without taking the Ice Soul Pearls, none of the magic lights around the castle caught the Little Dream Dragon’s attention.

Even Mr. Ross, who was sound asleep, held no interest for the Little Dream Dragon.

“If only I could teach Mr. Ross a lesson,” Russell thought somewhat bored, as he looked at the dejected Little Dream Dragon.

On several visits to Fluorescent Castle, Mr. Ross either mocked him or looked down on him, which always infuriated him.

Unfortunately, the Gloomy Dreamland was based in the real world, yet detached from it.

To date, the only two means of communicating with the real world were the Little Dream Dragon’s breath of origin and the Little Dream Dragon’s absorption of Ice Pellet Pearls and Ice Soul Pearls. Apart from that, no matter how much damage was done, it couldn’t interfere with the outside world in the slightest.

The night passed uneventfully.

The next morning, Russell was woken up at half-past seven on time. After washing up and getting dressed, he went downstairs for a buffet breakfast.

Not long after eight o’clock, the whole family, surrounded by the servants, left Fluorescent Castle.

The procession consisted of four carriages. One was ridden by Lady Meryl and Lola. Another was occupied by the maids, and the remaining two carried materials needed for the trip. Baron Roman did not ride a horse; he also enjoyed the company of Lady Meryl in the carriage.

Russell and Roland both rode horses beside the carriages.

Around them, a squad of escort knights, led by Territory Patrol Knight Captain Kendall, secured the convoy’s safety.

The Silver Winged Wind Fox, the King of Ebony-waisted Snakes, the Nightmare Specter Horse, the Aurora Falcon, along with Russell’s Red-eyed Rat King, and the Gloomy Black Scorpion climbing on Roland’s back—the caravan boasted six fantasy beasts, with formidable combat power.

“Big brother, when did you start carrying the Gloomy Black Scorpion?” asked Russell curiously, “Are you planning to form a covenant with it?”

“No, just getting acquainted,” Roland shook his head, “This scorpion is even tougher to deal with than Mr. Ross. It’s too stubborn. Otherwise, our family would have trained a third Phantom Beast Knight by now.”

The reason the Gloomy Black Scorpion had not been contract-bound by a knight was that it was an insect class fantasy beast with a problematic brain.

None of the great knights trained by the family could sync their thoughts with the Gloomy Black Scorpion’s, preventing a stable battle qi chain from forming, and making a successful covenant difficult.

“To tell you the truth,” Roland leaned in and whispered, “I’m actually afraid that during battle, this scorpion will go berserk and sting even me!”

Having said that, with a touch of envy, he glanced at the Red-eyed Rat King: “Your giant rat is much better, not only obedient but also a Beast King!”