Beneath the Red Dragon

In the fourteenth year of the Giant Dragon Calendar, during the late spring.

The rainy season had arrived, and a drizzling rain covered the entire eastern part of the Golden Empire.

Under the pattering rain, many citizens of the Golden Empire became quite leisurely.

The city’s moons were gradually lit, illuminating the dark empire in a gentle moonlight.

The shops and trade areas along the city’s main roads became sparse in terms of people, with only the kobold guards, eternally loyal to the dragons, patrolling the streets, while other entertainment venues became crowded.

The Imperial opera houses were not particularly noble places, as ordinary citizens could purchase seats in the back row for just over ten copper coins.

Moreover, in such bone-chillingly moist weather, the empire’s dragons disliked staying in their nests and preferred bustling public places like these.

Just as some special individuals particularly enjoy standing in crowds on rainy days, reveling in that sense of loneliness amidst the hustle and bustle.

Many tourists and leisure-seeking merchants from out of town were also very eager to visit such venues, not only to catch a glimpse of the elusive dragons but, if lucky, for representatives of noble forces to establish ties of interest with the empire’s rulers.

The empire’s grand bathhouses, filled with dense steam, were also one of the places most popular among outsiders.

Such basic public entertainment facilities were rare in the fiefdoms of other nobles. Some noble fiefdoms in the southern part of the Northern Continent tried to emulate the Golden Empire by building baths, but they were accessible only to those with a certain status.

Moreover, in many southern regions, these baths had already become meeting places for certain interest groups.

According to intelligence gathered by the empire’s ’Eye of Dark Crow’, in the Hobis Empire, small groups like the ’Naked Association’ had emerged where members took pride in confronting each other openly, proving their sincerity and trust.

Magic permanence provides a constant water source, channeling underground heat to envelop the entire vast bath in a steamy high temperature, considered quite an enjoyment in this never-ending rainy weather.

Especially those emerging from steam rooms, breathing in the scent of spring rain, feeling a sense of comfort and refreshment in body and mind.

Occasionally, dragons ventured into such places, especially those who felt embarrassed or dared not enter the Dragon King Court to enjoy the ancestral Red Dragon’s backyard hot springs.

The taverns and Giant Dragon Card Halls in the empire’s cities thrived with bustling activity.

Here, not only various races from within the empire gathered, but there were also frequent sightings of races from other continents. Even the Vampire Species and Elves, often considered solitary and proud by outsiders, were common.

The empire’s dragons also frequently visited here, and the intellectual games were quite favored by them. Little Elf Riven, a regular at the Royal Capital’s card hall, was also one of the major shareholders, as many attendants guiding new tourists were fellow tribe members persuaded by Pikku Little Elf Riven.

More than one dragon had fallen heavily into the Giant Dragon Card Hall, not only losing all of its savings but even being forced to sell off the scales it occasionally shed during youth at a low price, hoping for a comeback.

Among them, a rare Gem Giant Dragon, Purple Crystal Dragon Loya, was the most famous example.

The Purple Crystal Dragon was not only intelligent but also naturally inclined to arbitration.

Some elder Purple Crystal Dragons would act as arbiters and mediators during conflicts among dragons, and even in large human wars, a well-meaning Purple Crystal Dragon might occasionally step in to mediate and arbitrate the conflict.

However, the young Purple Crystal Dragon Loya apparently could not control himself in such gambling activities; his former cleverness vanished, leaving him no choice but to auction off his precious old scales at the Giant Dragon Auction House.

The scales of a Purple Crystal Dragon were like pale purple natural amethyst, especially the ones shed in youth, outstanding in appearance and quality among ornamental gemstones.

Moreover, the Purple Crystal Dragon species frequently traveled within the Earth Elemental Plane, absorbing abundant earth elemental energy, making their scales also suitable casting materials for elemental magic, placing them of higher quality among dragon scales.

Although not as formidable as the scales of the most potent True Dragons like the Red Dragon and Golden Dragon in the Material World, they were more favored by casters compared to the scales of True Dragons like the White Dragon and Red Copper Dragon.

When Purple Crystal Dragon Loya entered the Giant Dragon Card Hall, the boisterous hall immediately fell silent.

Despite this dragon’s humanoid form appearing quite ordinary, almost like a tall, slender youth, Purple Crystal Dragon Loya, since arriving for a sojourn in the Golden Empire, had spent more time in the Giant Dragon Card Hall than anywhere else, quickly becoming a regular there.

Almost all the patrons laughed upon seeing him, with an Ogre shouting, ”Loya, you’ve gone to the Giant Dragon Auction House to pawn your scales again!”

Loya did not respond, just walked to the counter by the fireplace and said to the charming snake-woman attendant, ”Give me ten more packs of the Floating Life Card collector’s edition, and a hundred packs of the Floating Life Card expansion packs.”

Then Loya placed dozens of gold coins across the counter, rubbing his hands together.