Chapter 4: Little Dream Dragon

“Even from outside the door I could hear Rora bullying Thess.” A serious and steady voice came from outside, and then a middle-aged nobleman with a rather plain appearance walked in.

His light brown hair was slightly curly, and his features were unremarkable. However, his posture was upright, and the well-fitted tailcoat he wore gave him a distinctly gentlemanly charm.

This was none other than the owner of the entire Fluorescent Castle, the third-generation Dusklight Baron, Roman Fluorescent Mushroom.

“Chirp chirp chirp!” The mushroom bird Rora immediately flew from Meryl’s shoulder and landed on Baron Roman’s, giving Thess a disdainful glance before tilting its head and beginning to groom its green, glossy feathers.

Thess, standing on Meryl’s shoulder, still had one hand on its hip and the other pointing at Rora, chirping loudly.

“Quiet, little ones!” the Baron scolded.

“They are too noisy, Roman. They really should be separated,” Meryl said with a smile.

The butler, Carter, who was following the Baron, quickly pulled a chair from the table. The Baron sat down and said, “It’s no use; they always find each other and start arguing… There are too few sprites in the castle.”

Butler Carter leaned forward and asked, “Sir, madam, can we start serving the meal?”

Baron Roman nodded, “Please, Carter.”

Rora, covering her mouth, said, “Father, can I keep Rora and Thess in my room? I won’t mind their noise.”

Meryl smiled and stroked Rora’s hair, “My Rora, children are not allowed to keep sprites.”

“Why?” Rora didn’t understand.

“Because you haven’t cultivated Martial Arts Energy yet,” Baron Roman explained. “Only Martial Energy can provide the potential for a sprite, giving it the power to grow the entire field of magical herbs.”

“Can Russell keep a sprite?” Rora asked again.

Baron Roman finally glanced at his younger son, but did not answer Rora’s innocent question. Instead, he asked Russell, “A Fluorescent Mushroom Grub, a Rainflower Grub, and a Dill Grub, is that alright?”

Russell had no further expectations and nodded, “That’s fine.”

A single sprite grub can influence about 10 hectares of magic herbs, which is about 150 mu of land. 

Three sprite grubs together could cultivate 450 mu of magical herbs, which would be enough to sustain him and his retainer knights in the future Black Waist Snake Estate.

“The location of Black Waist Snake Estate is quite good. Although snow ghosts and ghost beasts occasionally cross the border, the Resounding Water River Cave will help protect you, so there won’t be any major conflicts.”

“I understand.”

“More important than snow ghosts and ghost beasts are the free citizens of these underground caverns. As a titled lord, you must be strict in your selection. Don’t let these free citizens disturb the order of your fiefdom for the sake of the population.”

“Understood.”

The Baron briefly discussed the responsibilities of a lord, all based on his own experiences and personal insights.

Meryl listened to the conversation between father and son with a smile while enjoying her meal.

She had two sons. Her eldest son, Roland, inherited Baron Roman’s cultivation talents and was a Great Knight at a young age. Her younger son, Russell, though less talented, inherited the beauty of the Rainflower family, which was also a source of pride for her.

The male servants brought up dish after dish.

In reality, the castle’s menu wasn’t that extensive, with only five or six dishes for dinner. However, because it was a separate dining system, each person had five or six plates in front of them, requiring many servants to attend to the meal.

Russell was multitasking.

Filling his stomach was his primary concern, but listening to the Baron’s teachings was equally important, as it pertained to his future.

Baron Roman was not only his father, but also his lord.

“Roland is about to retire from the Dragon Blood Knights, and Shadowflame Castle is hoping that our family can send another successor to serve in the Dragon Blood Knights.” Baron Roman suddenly mentioned another matter, “Russell, do you want to go?”

“Serve in the Dragon Blood Knights?” Russell furrowed his brow.

But he quickly relaxed his expression and calmly replied, “I do not plan to serve in the Dragon Blood Knights.”

Baron Roman was not surprised and simply said, “Give me a reason.”

Reason?

Russell had a very good reason. The Dragon Blood Knights were the most elite and dangerous order of knights in the Shadowflame Grand Duchy, and they had to fight real snow demons.

As a peace-loving individual, he didn’t want to go!

However, he couldn’t say his reason openly. With the noble honor of this world, avoiding battle was a terrible disgrace.

So he found another reason: “Older brother is already in the Dragon Blood Knights and has a close relationship with the Grand Duke. Now that the Grand Duke has ascended the throne, it’s not necessary for me to join the Dragon Blood Knights. It would be better to cultivate martial arts energy in our fiefdom and strive to train a group of knights to help Father accomplish great deeds.”

Meryl also didn’t want her son to be too far away from home. So she added, “That’s right, the Grand Duke has already ascended, and Roland has already established a good relationship with him. There’s no need to send Russell.”

The Grand Duke of Shadowflame Grand Duchy is the ruler of the entire country and the lord of Dusklight Baron.

As the heir to Dusklight Baron, it was natural to curry favor with the young ruler and establish a good personal relationship with him.

The eldest son, Roland, had done well.

So Baron Roman did not force the issue, nodding and tacitly accepting the younger son Russell’s reasoning.

“Then, starting tomorrow, I will hire servants and attendants for you to manage the Black Waist Snake Estate.” The Baron turned to the old butler Carter who was serving the meal and said, “Carter, the recruitment of servants is your responsibility.”

Butler Carter bowed slightly, “As you wish, my lord. I will hire a number of excellent servants for young Master Russell.”

Russell smiled, “Thank you, Mr. Carter.”

Butler Carter replied, “It is my duty, young Master Russell.”

The dinner, though delicious, was not very much to his taste. After a satisfying meal, Russell bid his parents good night and returned to his room.

His room was on the third floor of the castle.

Facing northwest, the window was not very large.

The view was blocked by the castle’s outer walls, so he could only see the castle’s inner lawn and the fantasy beasts acitivity.

It was already night, and the beasts were resting.

“Lord Ross should be asleep by now,” Russell thought. From his room, he couldn’t see the tower where Clay Dragon Ross often perched.

His predecessor had been very unhappy with this, believing that it hindered his chances of getting closer to Lord Ross.

Riding a dragon!

It was the dream of every young man.

But the current Russell thought it was best this way, to avoid drawing attention to himself and revealing his identity as an transmigrator.

“Dragons, I have one too!”

With no nightlife, Russell took a bath, washed up, and went to bed early, falling into a deep sleep.

After an indeterminate amount of time, his consciousness arrived in a desolate, dim environment. He could see the outline of a castle, as if drawn with the dullest ink. There were no thick walls, no large stones, just sketchy lines.

Black was the dominant color, and the silence was absolute.

“Fluorescent Castle, this is the Fluorescent Castle of my dreams…” Russell was already used to this particular dream.

It was his unique Golden Finger.

“Screech!”

Accompanied by a clear scream, a small creature with a bright golden glow slowly flew around the outline of the castle.

It looked like a dragon, but was extremely cartoonish and comical.

Its head was the size of a bull’s, with horns, scales, vertical pupils, and sharp teeth, perfectly fitting the characteristics of a dragon.

Its nostrils flared and a faint mist was exhaled, like dragon breath, but this breath was thinner than secondhand smoke and had no killing power.

The funniest part was its body, which was almost as large as its head.

Its disproportionate body, disproportionate wings, disproportionate front and hind limbs, and disproportionate little tail made it look ridiculous.

“Having limbs is a characteristic of dragons. Little Dream Dragon, tell me, are you a dragon?” Russell asked with a smile.

The little dream dragon hovered in front of him, flapping its wings and swaying its body.

It tilted its head, seemingly not quite understanding Russell’s question.

Russell had asked similar questions many times, and the little Dream Dragon in his dream was a fool, so he didn’t bother with more talk.

He jumped up and mounted the little Dream Dragon’s back.

Hm!

In the dream, it was just a cartoon figure.