Chapter 22: Ross’s Greeting

In the end, Russell didn’t have the butler Morris lock up the wine cellar in the Manor Annex; he wasn’t concerned about losing a bit of red wine.

Besides, repairs had already begun on the house Charles and Eric had scouted in the small market, and they would soon be moving out of the Manor Annex.

After a lively celebratory banquet at noon, Russell quickly used his martial arts energy to refine the alcohol and was fully sober by the time he was ready to depart in the afternoon.

As a lord, his entourage still consisted of four armored knights plus a male servant.

“Chew, chew…”

Before they reached the city, the sound of a dragon’s roar came from above. It was the sound of Lord Ross’ dragon call. There was no majestic roar of a true dragon; instead, it sounded a bit comical.

It seemed that Lord Ross had noticed Russell’s party. The dragon that had been leisurely flying above suddenly dived straight down.

“Master, it’s Lord Ross!” Tom shouted.

“It’s all right. Lord Ross is just here to say hello,” Russell said as he reined in his black horse and looked up at the sky.

Clay Dragon Ross folded its wings and shot down like a comet, seeming to charge straight for Russell.

But Russell remained unmoved, holding onto the reins and pressing his legs into the horse’s sides to keep it from bolting in fear. He fixed his gaze on Lord Ross.

Man and dragon.

Their eyes locked, as if sparking electric tension in the air.

Just as Lord Ross was about to collide with Russell, the dragon suddenly flared its wings wide, performing a sharp stop and swooping back into the sky with a graceful tail swing.

Whoosh!

The gust of wind from its powerful wingbeats kicked up a storm of dust on Charcoal Ash Road, creating a mini sandstorm that blew into the eyes of Russell and the armored knights, making it difficult for them to see.

The horse that the male servant, Lam, was riding was startled and fell to the ground, throwing Lam off and causing the horse to whinny in distress.

“Ugh… spit, spit!” Russell sighed in relief, quickly spitting out the charcoal dust that had splashed into his mouth.

He glared at the retreating Clay Dragon Ross, a fierce gleam flashing in his eyes. Anger simmered in his heart.

How dare a mere wyvern act so presumptuously? “You damned dragon! Wait until my little dream dragon returns… just wait, I’ll ride you into the ground!”

His good mood had soured in an instant.

Russell almost wished he could slay the clay dragon right there and then, spilling its blood over the land of his estate to create a large clay mine.

Of course, it was just a passing thought.

“Master, Lord Ross’s greeting seems a bit… too enthusiastic,” Tom, one of the armored knights, said with an awkward laugh.

“Yeah, a bit too much enthusiasm,” Russell replied, unwilling to dwell on it. He glanced at Lam, who was still on the ground, and said, “You all go see if Lam is hurt.”

“No, no need, my lord, I’m fine,” Lam struggled to get up, but his legs were trembling so much that he couldn’t stay upright and fell back down with a thud.

“He’s been scared senseless, my lord,” said John, another armored knight, as he easily picked up Lam and placed him back on the horse. “Luckily the horse didn’t crush his legs, or they would have been broken… Alright, go calm the horses down.”

Lam took a breath. “Th-Thank you, Sir John.”

Russell asked, “Lam, are you sure you’re not hurt?”

“I’m fine, really, my lord.”

“Can you still ride?”

“I can, I can!” Lam grasped the reins and tried his best to straighten his back. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll keep up.” Seeing that Lam’s legs were still shaking, Russell decided, “Then let’s shake off the dust and rest for five minutes, then we’ll continue.”

Lord Ross’s greeting was only a small interruption.

As the clouds to the west lit up, the six riders arrived at Fluorescent Castle. They passed through the stone archway and immediately encountered a group of patrolling knights inside the castle.

The leader, a knight in silver armor, was riding a beast that resembled a black horse. The beast’s muscles were thick and powerful, with fiery black flames flickering on its neck, hooves, and tail. These were not real flames, however, but a special kind of mane.

Russell immediately recognized it as a Nightmare Ghost Horse, a fantasy beast evolved from equine creatures. It was incredibly fast and left no tracks in the snow.

Clank.

The knight in silver armor struck his chest with his right hand, performing a knightly salute. “Young Master Russell, it’s been a while.”

Russell returned the salute with his right hand. “Indeed, it has been some time, Knight Commander Chris. Are you personally guarding the castle today?”

“Today I must uphold Baron Roman’s authority,” Knight Commander Chris replied. He was the bodyguard of Baron Roman and led his knightly order on patrol around the town twice a month to ensure that the serfs did not forget the lord’s rule.

“Then please continue. Come to the Black Waist Snake Manor sometime; I’ll treat you to a drink.”

“With pleasure.”

After exchanging pleasantries, the order of knights left the castle to continue their patrol, while Russell did not linger and entered the castle.

“Father, Mother, I’ve come to tell you some good news.” Russell took out an exquisite jade box from his chest. “While I was settling the fluorescent mushroom and sprite grubs, I unexpectedly discovered a wild sprite grub growing in a birch tree.”

Opening the jade box revealed a white sprite grub with small black markings, which caught the attention of the Baron and Baroness.

“These are indeed sprite grubs, Russell, my handsome and lucky son!” Meryl happily kissed Russell on the cheek.

It was a simple gesture, but Russell’s body stiffened slightly. Fortunately, the Baron and Baroness were too focused on the sprite grub in the box to notice, especially the Baron, who was greatly surprised. “Wild sprite grubs… how many years has it been since wild sprite grubs were discovered in the Dusklight River Valley?”

Meryl smiled and said, “Darling, we’ve discovered them now, haven’t we?”

The Baron laughed. “True enough.”

Then he patted Russell on the shoulder. “Lucky boy, it seems that sending you to the Black Waist Snake Manor was a wise decision.”

“I owe it to your trust, Father.”

“You should be thanking your mother instead. If she hadn’t been whispering in my ear all the time, I wouldn’t have been so eager to send you out so soon, especially since you haven’t had any combat experience yet. You haven’t even gone to the snowy plains to hunt a single snow demon.”

Russell readily replied, “Mother, thank you.”

Seeing his second son becoming more mature and speaking more sweetly, Meryl took Russell’s hand and smiled nonstop. “We’re a family, no need to follow those old aristocratic traditions. Whether you killed a snow demon or not doesn’t matter; my son is noble by birth.”

The Baron sighed. “When Russell becomes a Grand Knight, he’ll still have to hunt Snow Demons. Only those who have fought on the snowy plains are considered true lords.”

“Father, I will do it.”

“Good.”

“By the way, Father, I’d like to ask you something,” Russell brought up the purpose of his visit. “There aren’t many trees on my land, just a birch forest that is suitable for planting fluorescent mushrooms. But now the birch forest has sprouted sprite grubs, and I’m not sure whether it’s suitable to plant the Fluorescent Mushrooms alongside them”.

“Don’t worry about that,” the Baron, who was quite experienced, replied confidently. “In fact, it’s not only harmless, but even beneficial. The fluorescent mushrooms are parasitic on the tree trunks, but they’re a symbiotic species of mushroom. The two can help each other grow and prosper.”

Russell smiled with delight. “Is that so? That’s wonderful news.”