Beneath the Red Dragon

Chapter 99: Chapter 48: A Bright Tomorrow

The weather was clear, with not a cloud in the sky, as the morning sun rose in the azure blue heavens.

The calm and vast sea sparkled under the sunlight, with the occasional lone shark being chased by schools of dolphins, various fins slicing through the water’s surface, stirring up ripples and waves.

Schools of fish leapt out of the water, revealing their white bellies. Seabirds and gulls skimmed over the sea, their sharp talons piercing these unlucky prey before soaring into the sky.

The sound of waves crashing against the shore and the cries of birds hunting awoke the creatures and humans residing in this land, as the once quiet Golden Harbor Town gradually came to life.

High above in the sky, a Giant Dragon flew across, the blue colossal beast dancing with the dawn clouds, occasionally letting out a majestic roar, as it patrolled its domain, asserting its authority over this land.

The once silent forest also became lively, with countless Flying Birds flapping their wings and emerging from the dense treetops, causing the Beasts within the forest to scurry about in alarm.

A Giant Dragon, shimmering like green Jade, flew over the jungle, causing wild winds to rustle the leaves of the forest as it was surrounded by the flock of birds.

The people of Golden Harbor Town had grown accustomed to such scenes, with everyone busying themselves. Adventurers and prospectors grouped together and stepped into the tall, lush jungles, beginning their daily tasks.

Only the newcomers in the town would look up at the sky with surprise, exclaiming loudly, only to be met by clothing racks thrown from the windows of the second floor by ladies still in bed, which ended up breaking a few fools’ heads.

Some people carried axes, sickles, and hoes, following the oddly-shaped kobolds and centaurs, the Dragon’s Beloved, into the forest.

Outside the town’s perimeter, tall wooden stakes were driven into the flat ground, with monster heads impaled upon them; these were the heads of the Shahua Fishmen who invaded the town.

There were also heads of Beasts and creatures who tried to sneak into the town to prey, as well as the ferocious kinds that were not accepted by the Dragon Group.

Among them were also human and Dragon’s Beloved heads, those of fools who defied the Giant Dragon’s will, now impaled to warn both monsters and humans alike.

However, to the people, this sight didn’t evoke fear; instead, they saw it as a representation of order. Every kingdom had its unique order, and the Dragon’s domain was no different.

These people followed the barking kobolds to a river area near the center of the forest. There, they would clear fertile fields near the riverbanks as planned by the Giant Dragon, planting relevant crops.

The seeds of grains and various vegetables, traded from human nations or brought by Adventurers to the Land of Golden, would be attempted to be planted in the cleared wasteland.

As per the Giant Dragon’s plan, the forest’s riverbanks would be planted with wheat, barley, potatoes, and corn—becoming the granary of the domain.

Of course, these grain seeds needed trial planting to see which crops were best suited to this land, with the high-yield crops selected for cultivation as the main crops of the future.

However, since it’s about clearing forest for fields and developing wasteland, the first year’s harvest might not be ideal, even if the land is fertile, requiring meticulous cultivation for more returns.

Now with a severe lack of manpower in the domain, only a slash-and-burn method of extensive farming could be adopted.

Thankfully, this land’s climate was warm and rainy, ideal for crop growth. These planted grains could be harvested at least four or five times a year, temporarily compensating quantity for quality.

A kobold supported a hunchbacked human as they stopped in front of the land about to be cleared, appearing respectful towards the human.

This kobold, named Bag, was the nephew of Bag, the leader of the Dogman Tribe. According to inside information he received from leader Bag, those Giant Dragons seemed intent on having their Dragon’s Beloved learn to read and write.

Because the Dragons found these Dragon’s Beloved too foolish; the Dragons favored intelligent and capable Beloved, not dullards.

Thus, the Dragon’s Beloveds also began to respect knowledge and wisdom, though they still revered strength.

This old man was a holder of knowledge and wisdom among humans, therefore earning the respect of these kobolds.

”Cough, cough,” the human elder, Hom, was over fifty years old, considered quite an age among ordinary people.

He once was a serf of a noble Baron, and under the Noble Lord’s promotion, he learned that after coming to this land, he could become a Free Person.

He could use his own hands to secure a footing for himself, so he decisively decided to take his family on the noble’s ship and arrived here. They were the first humans to step onto this place through trade.

He, along with his family of six, brought enticing Gold Coins to the noble Baron, while ensuring a beautiful future for themselves. In fact, given an opportunity, many ordinary people could also show keen insight and the courage to strive.

The experienced former serf Hom bent down, grabbing a handful of black soil with his dry, thin hands, carefully grinding it between his palms, his somewhat murky eyes lighting up and displaying a joyful smile.

”This is truly a good land,” Hom stood up and surveyed the surroundings with satisfaction, his aged, dry voice filled with excitement, ”I have never seen such fertile land; perhaps only the Noble Lord’s core family domain might have it.”

He turned and spoke to the kobold, Bag: ”This entire piece of land is suitable for planting with its leached black soil. According to the town’s current scale and your reported number counts, perhaps only this much land needs to be developed.”

Hom used his bony fingers to delineate a range in front of him, ”Opening up this land will suffice to temporarily meet the food demand, and with meticulous cultivation in the future, crop production will increase after the land is familiarized.”

”Even with the undeveloped land, just cutting down these dwarf pines and short palms and shrubs would allow for scattering some crop seeds without meticulous care,”

Discussing his area of expertise enlivened the human elder Hom, as he led the jubilant, circling kobold Bag and pointed out the spaces between the trees in the forest: ”In these spaces, even without enough manpower to fell the trees and develop fields, you can scatter seeds of chickpeas, carrots, peas, and pumpkins.”

”These crops can thrive without our care, with high yields, also supplementing the lack of vegetables, eliminating the need to gather wild vegetables from the forest.”

”Nor would we need to trade with other humans’ principalities; the land could even be prepped early for the next text.”

Hom’s eyes shone brightly, as if glimpsing a bright future, and he suddenly sighed: ”These noble Giant Dragons are truly generous, even willing to share such fertile land with us ordinary people. Thank you, great True Dragon!”

Woof, woof, the kobold Bag was so elated that he forgot to speak the common language, engrossed in remembering every word the old human said, to report it to his superiors, proving he too was a capable kobold, not just a fool in the Dragons’ eyes.