Beneath the Red Dragon

Chapter 123: Chapter 59: Profit and Loss

The sunset had already sunk to the farthest reaches of the sky, and the moon had just risen, but the territory at the foot of the Dragon Nest Mountain Range was never engulfed by darkness.

In the distant forest, birds that should have been resting flapped their wings as they flew low, sweeping across each domain of the sky.

The beasts that should have returned to their nests treaded softly through the forest, gazing at every inch of space on the land. These creatures were the eyes and voices of the Dragon Group, always with active members guarding the Giant Dragon’s nest.

The camps of several monster tribes below the Dragon Nest Mountain were enclosed with huge logs and ablaze with fire. The torches and lamps made from special resin in the forest could burn for the first half of the night, then be replaced with new lights by the guarding beloved ones to ensure the Dragon’s nest was always surrounded by brightness.

Even those assassins adept at shadow stealth found it nearly impossible to break through the heavy defenses of the Giant Dragon’s nest and set foot on the peak of the mountain.

In the Centaur camp, a bonfire feast was held each night. These warrior races, who loved indulgence and combat, seemed to have inexhaustible energy like the Giant Dragons. Even after a tough battle, these warriors still displayed their wildness.

Every corner echoed with the songs of the female centaurs, not melodious but captivating enough, and the fierce roars of the male centaur warriors. Compared to their calm demeanor on the battlefield, it seemed they truly entered the battlefield at that moment.

As for the kobolds, night was their active time. These monster beloved ones, especially fond of making trouble in dark caves, though not accustomed to feasting, left traces everywhere in the forest.

After gaining the Dragon’s protection, the Cobold Tribe rapidly developed. Now, every valued resource and territory in the Giant Dragon Territory was laden with traps and warning devices set by these kobolds. They were now the Giant Dragon’s capable assistants, though not reflected in combat power.

Only the camps of the ogre slaves and green-skinned goblins remained relatively quiet. Though both races were chaotic beings, they did not have enough freedom within the Dragon Group Territory. They needed to prove their value to the Giant Dragon to gain the Dragon’s attention and favor.

Karon led the Dragon Group descending from the high mountains, with the intense Dragon Power spreading. Birds in the forest landed, beasts hibernated, beloved ones held their breath, and complete silence prevailed.

The Dragon Group arrived at the temporary encampment of the Jackal Wolfman Tribe, an open space carved under the Centaur Tribe’s control, where many jackal wolfmen, led by Chief Yougu, knelt nervously before the Dragon Group.

”Honorable Dragon Group, supreme master of the Jackal Wolfman Tribe,” the Jackal Wolfman Leader Yougu knelt down, his head low like that of the most ferocious hyena on the prairie.

The Dragon-blooded Centaur Chiron also arrived upon hearing the news and saluted the Dragon Group.

”Noble Dragon Group, my lord Karon!”

But the Giant Dragons’ gaze was not on the beloved ones before them; they looked towards the treasures piled on the open ground, brought by Earth Dragons and wagons, belonging to the jackal wolfmen.

Each Dragon’s eyes glimmered with bright light, shining like beams even in the brightly lit camp.

The Evil Dragon’s greed made these Giant Dragons eye the jackal wolfmen guarding the treasures covetously, baring sharp claws and teeth. The Female Red Dragon Kleyna and the Green Dragon Antajena stepped forward, using their tails and dragon claws to sweep away the obstructive jackal wolfmen.

The other Dragons followed the Red Dragon, excitedly eyeing the hoarded loot of the jackal wolfmen, appearing restless.

Unlike the others, Karon was able to remain calm. He first signaled to the Jackal Wolfman Leader Yougu and the Centaur Chiron to stand, then turned his gaze to the wealth piled like a small mountain on the open ground.

The Giant Dragons’ innate talent for appraisal and valuation immediately responded with evaluations.

Some statues carved by jackal wolfmen or unearthed from the ground, depicting monsters and deities, were crude but had a semblance. On some statues, Karon noticed slight spiritual light, which could only be considered passable and could serve as collectibles for those wandering impoverished Giant Dragons.

The magical ornaments crafted by jackal wolfman casters using their magic ability, possessing magic protection capabilities, had some utility, but for the Giant Dragons, the value of these magic ornaments lay more in the fact that they were crafted from gemstones.

There were also some cereal seeds cultivated by the jackal wolfmen from grass similar to foxtail on the prairie, a quite mature cereal crop seed.

Though these were evaluated as having little value by the Dragon’s instinctual appraisal, Karon deemed them precious enough, altering the Dragon’s evaluation to classify them as items of high value.

This not only indicated that these jackal wolfmen had the ability to cultivate grain seeds, providing considerable useful value for the Giant Dragons.

Moreover, this grain crop, similar to millet, can also be cultivated in the Dragon Group Territory, as a domestically bred grain crop, it almost requires no adaptation to changes in water and soil to be planted on land cleared from the forest.

There are also some crude armor and weapons. These Jackal Wolfmen were not skilled in smelting and forging, so these weapons and armor were considered tasteless, their rough techniques made the effectiveness of these weapons and armor limited, but still somewhat better than none.

Plus, many Jackal Wolfmen had looted coins from unknown locations, appearing to be ancient treasures, as these coins differed from the current currency design.

But these gold coins, silver coins, and copper coins are things that giant dragons like, even if some coins are covered with rust, these items can quickly regain their luster in the dragon’s lair, thanks to the influence from the giant dragon.

All treasures near a giant dragon enjoy a long life, like the giant dragon itself, only without the infusion of dragon power would these treasures and valuables be worn away by time, which is one reason the dragon’s treasure vault is coveted.

In Karon’s inherited memories, in ancient times, there was a Legendary Mage who used treasures to lure a dragon, signing a pact with a Silver Dragon to guard the treasure vault, with the mage paying with all the treasures within the treasury.

Because the Silver Dragon was too tempted by the Legendary Mage’s vault, it voluntarily became a partner with the Legendary Mage, and Karon never knew whether the Silver Dragon profited or if the Legendary Mage lost, only the involved parties would know best.

The remainder mostly consisted of strangely-shaped, porous pieces of dog head gold, and some gold ore not yet refined and smelted, along with naturalesque uncut gemstones.

Dragon eyes lingered over these items, each dragon naturally possessed the ability to appraise treasures, and even without this ability, it was evident just from the naked eye the value these things held.

Jackal Wolfman Leader Yougu also stood beside the dragon, introducing the origin of these items to the dragon,

”The Jackal Wolfman Tribe discovered a fairly large vein at the base of the Dragon Lizard’s nest, which not only contained an ample gold mine but also various accompanying precious ores and gemstones. However, we Jackal Wolfmen do not possess the talent to discern ores, so we only mined a bit of gold,”

Jackal Wolfman Yougu quietly glanced at the Red Dragon, whose reaction wasn’t as eager and impatient as other giant dragons, ”I will present this vein to the Dragon Group as a tribute from the Jackal Wolfmen to the giant dragons.”

Karon nodded, ”Inform the Dogman Bag of the location of the vein, he will take care of this for the dragon, these unrefined ores shall be sent to the Dogman Tribe, they will arrange for future refining and smelting.”

Then the Red Dragon turned to look at the dragons, who could no longer hold back, and a faint smile appeared on their thorn-covered cheek, ”As per the Dragon Group’s initial agreement, these treasures belong to all the giant dragons, and all members have a share.”

The young female Red Dragon Kleyna let out an excited growl, her long neck lingering over the treasure, continuously sniffing the scent of the treasures.

The other dragons also happily crowded around, even the composed Blue Dragon Doss blinked his large eyes, revealing a look of longing.

Karon divided these coins, dog head gold, and gemstones into several parts, as it was not the scheduled dividend time for the Dragon Group that year, nearly all the treasure was divided equally.

Then the Red Dragon set aside the largest portion of the gold coin treasure, ”Rosani, although the Jackal Wolfmen offered their treasure voluntarily, you contributed the most effort, so you deserve the largest share.”

Roar,

The Black Dragon Rosani let out an excited growl, eagerly stepping forward and encircling his share of the treasure with his slender dragon claws and tail.

”Chiron, step forward, these are the spoils belonging to your Centaur, the giant dragons do not forget the dedication and sacrifices of their beloved, this is also what you deserve,” Karon set aside a treasure almost equal to that of the Black Dragon Rosani, indicating for Chiron to come forward and receive it.

”Praise the great giant dragons, thank you, my lord,” The Centaur did not refuse or display any false modesty, but knelt respectfully and then motioned for his warriors to carry the spoils back to the tribe.

”This portion is for you, Kleyna,” Karon allocated almost equally the remaining treasure to the female Red Dragon, and Kleyna jumped and pounced on her share of the treasure.

”Akhzi, Doss, Camid, Gomot, Antajena, these are your shares,” Karon divided the remaining treasures, and those dragons crowded over, swallowing their treasures into their storage stomachs, as no giant dragon would politely refuse treasure—they are dragons, not Konglong.

Lastly, Karon allocated the largest portion to himself, as this was a rule established at the start of the Dragon Group’s agreement, so even though the Dragon Group coveted the almost equivalently vast treasure before Karon compared to theirs combined, they remained calm and obedient, as the Red Dragon was holding its dragon claw, much larger than a sandbag, in a wide-eyed glare.

”Very well, the Jackal Wolfmen’s tribute has pleased the Dragon Group,” the Red Dragon looked down at Jackal Wolfman Leader Yougu and said: ”Now I am very pleased, tell me, what is your request, perhaps I can grant it, and give you the reward you deserve!”