The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

“Black Tulip, truly beautiful.”

Li Weiliam caressed the sole Black Tulip with a gentle expression. The rise of the family had relied on the Tulip, and naturally, he had a special affection for it.

Lady Penelope also gently touched the purple-black bloom, “Having a new variety of Magic Potion, and it being a Tulip at that, is a sign of the family’s continued prosperity. I originally thought Liszt was not a lucky one, but now it seems he is the luckiest one in the Tulip Family.”

“We should promote the Black Tulip vigorously, for the sake of the family,” Lady Marie said, seemingly offhand.

Following behind Lady Marie, Lidun said with a trace of naivety, “It’s really pretty, Father, can I have a Black Tulip too? I want to plant it on my bedroom windowsill so I can see it every day.”

“There will be a chance, Lidun,” Levis cut off Lidun’s words directly, looking at the harvested capsule and then questioning Liszt, “Have you already harvested a batch of seeds?”

“A total of thirty-five mature capsules, each with roughly thirty seeds. I think, entrusted to Xiangxiang for cultivation, we should be able to plant on a large scale within half a year.”

“Of course, Xiangxiang’s speed in cultivating Tulips is top-notch among Greater Elves.”

“I’ll hand over the seeds to you later.”

“Good.”

The two of them chatted briefly and settled the matter of planting the Black Tulip without leaving room for others to interject—the brothers were united in their views, willing to include Li Vera but certainly not Lidun. Not raised by the same mother, they naturally didn’t have the same priorities.

The Earl glanced at Lady Marie and Lidun.

Then looked at Liszt, who now stood much taller than himself, and ultimately said nothing.

Lady Penelope whispered quietly in Li Vera’s ear, “The two boys already have their own opinions. Just look at Li Weiliam’s face, it’s truly delightful.”

Although she whispered quietly,

everyone was gathered close, and there was no semblance of privacy.

Li Weiliam could only pretend not to hear, saying to Liszt, “Fresh Flower Farm has fallen into disrepair. After I discovered the Tulips here, I planted a sea of Tulips and hope you can restore the scenery of that time.”

“Reviving Fresh Flower Farm has always been part of my plans.”

“I can see that, you really understand how to be a competent Landlord. Fresh Flower Town exudes a thriving atmosphere, I hope it continues.”

After seeing the Black Tulip, as the day grew too hot, the group returned to the Castle. In the horse field outside the Castle, Li Weiliam saw the Li Dragon Horse. As a Sky Knight, his eye for horses was quite astute; just one glance was enough to see that the Li Dragon Horse was more magnificent than his own Panther Horse.

“What bloodline is it?”

“I don’t know,” Liszt did not reveal the Dragon bloodline, for once mentioned, the Earl would certainly snatch away the Li Dragon Horse—a Dragon Breed Horse was of immense importance to Nobles.

“Perhaps it carries the bloodline of an Intermediate Magical Beast. If you can breed a herd of equally magnificent horses, I’ll buy a batch from you to replace the Knight Order’s mounts.”

“That could take a long time.”

Li Weiliam looked at Liszt with a meaningful glance, “Don’t be in a rush, time is on your side.”

Inside the Castle.

The servants had already prepared the banquet, and after a brief wash, it was time to enter the formal banquet stage. The footmen carried dish after dish on plates, placing them in front of each noble guest. Carter employed all his skills to direct the team of servants in an orderly fashion.

The Earl’s brought food did not cause any stir—it was what they ate regularly.

However, as seafood was served, what should have been a bland banquet hit a peak of excitement, with many appetizing dishes that they had never tasted before.

“What is this?” Lady Penelope, guided by a maid, dug a clam out of its shell, took a bite, and found it fresh, smooth, and delectable, a taste distinctly different from land dishes that blossomed on the taste buds, “Hmm, very delicious, so soft I almost don’t need to use teeth.”

“Clams, a type of seafood abundant by the sea, are very tasty in flesh. They are not only very delicious but also can prevent the onset of some diseases.”

Li Vera, following the maid’s method, peeled a shrimp: “And what is this?”

As the host, Liszt continued to explain, “Mantis shrimp, or perhaps it’s more interesting to call them peacock shrimps, their flavor is fresh, sweet, tender, and smooth, delicate and soft, not at all inferior to the rock shrimps from Long Taro Castle. It’s a pity we are now in summer, if it were spring, the breeding season for peacock shrimps, the taste would be even more delicate and delicious.”

“So, they are all from the sea… seafood?”

“Yes, Fresh Flower Town doesn’t have any special products, so to improve our recipes, we must look to the Sea of Azure Waves on the East Coast. Fortunately, there are countless delicious seafood waiting to be developed.”

Seafood is an important food source.

Not many nobles have noticed this yet, but perhaps after today’s banquet, Coral Island might experience a seafood development craze—or perhaps not, as the ocean is far less important in the eyes of the nobles than the land.

Sometimes, what restricts development is not vision.

But inertia.

Liszt discovered this among the incessant praises for the seafood. While the Earl and others highly appreciated the seafood, they preferred to buy it from Fresh Flower Town rather than catch it themselves. Perhaps, in their view, it wasn’t proper to waste serfs who should be farming on becoming fishermen.

“Naturally, I can supply seafood for Tulip Castle. In fact, as you have seen, I am opening the route through Thorn Ridge, and once it is through, I will organize a caravan from Fresh Flower Town to go back and forth to Coral City. We will regularly sell the goods produced in Fresh Flower Town.”

The Earl took a sip of red wine and nodded, “Once the restriction of Thorn Ridge is lifted, Fresh Flower Town might also develop into a prosperous town… Like your sister, train a group of knights, for the glory of nobility is always fought for on horseback.”

After the seafood.

Another delicious dish was served, dried meat of the Wind Falcon. It was also the last main course, using magical beast meat as the finale of the main dishes, a fitting climax.

Watching the guests enjoy their meal with no complaints made Carter, the butler, stand proudly beside the banquet. Everyone used to think Fresh Flower Town was a poor and shabby town, where the landlord was forced to live on poor food in a simple life. But this banquet demonstrated Fresh Flower Town’s affluence.

An affluent noble is a dignified noble.

And his diligent direction of the servants’ efforts perfectly reflected the aristocratic demeanor of the castle, convincing anyone who might have seen Liszt as a “country baron.”

Here in Fresh Flower Town, was a place blessed with the glory of knights.

“Master, may we serve the dessert now? Mrs. Abbie has already prepared a sufficient amount of ice cream.”

“Then bring it forth.”