Beneath the Red Dragon

The King’s Castle, once belonging to the master of the Dragon Group and representing the highest authority in the Land of Golden, now welcomed its guardian. Bronze Dragon Alina sat high on one of the eight thrones, bearing the heaviest responsibility and pressure in history.

The vast hall of the King’s Castle had eight towering thrones, with the other seven vacant, and no trace of the king on the central throne.

With most of the Giant Dragon Lords of the Dragon Group in slumber, nearly half a year had passed, and Bronze Dragon Alina had begun to get used to the drudgery of coming to this palace daily.

As the substitute for the Red Dragon Monarch, overseeing all the governance of the Land of Golden as Governor, Bronze Dragon Alina also took on Karon’s responsibility, handling many important affairs here daily according to the procedures.

Originally, Bronze Dragon Alina wanted to choose another place as the temporary Governor’s Mansion, but was granted the authority by Karon to stay at the King’s Castle.

Karon never hesitated to share his power with other Giant Dragon Lords, which is also one of the reasons Bronze Dragon Alina and Red Copper Dragon Alfred could quickly integrate into the Dragon Group, demonstrating the majesty of a king.

But Alina’s initial pride and confidence had now turned into numbness.

"Hey, how do you think Karon, as a Red Dragon, can endure the loneliness and the agitation in his bloodline, staying in this cage and dealing with these headache-inducing matters day after day?"

Bronze Dragon Alina glanced sideways at the Chief Maid beside her, her capable assistant, Charlize, and asked curiously.

"The master’s heart is as deep as the abyss and as firm as steel; how could I guess the master’s thoughts, Miss Alina?"

Charlize bowed slightly and answered respectfully.

Bronze Dragon Alina pursed her lips; the flattery of the smart maid about the Red Dragon had callused her ears. She took the documents from Charlize’s hand and began to read them carefully.

It was a rough demographic report, and according to Karon’s opinions before he went into slumber, Bronze Dragon Alina needs to distribute the population around three major cities and establish a smoothly connected town network.

Although the mobile population of the Land of Golden is massive, the registered permanent residents are about fifty thousand. The Royal Capital, having absorbed the original Beloved and many relocated people, holds the top, with a permanent population of one hundred fifty thousand.

During the development of Bay Stream City in recent years, due to its remote location, the total population has barely reached thirty thousand.

However, most people still reside outside these cities, developing forests and farmland. These residents spontaneously gathered into various villages, roughly counting close to three hundred thousand people.

Thanks to the conquest of the Greenfield Forest Plane, the vast number of elves have provided substantial labor for the development of the territory.

Moreover, the combination of elves with humans or other races is not as difficult as between elves; the birth rate, though not as high as a pure human combination, is still far higher than the original elf species’ birth rate, leading to the birth of a large number of elf hybrids over the past two years.

"Let’s plan on a scale of fifty thousand for a city, three thousand for a town, and five hundred for a village. Have the officials and scholars quickly decide the routes and town plans, then submit them for my review,"

Bronze Dragon Alina tossed the document to the maid Charlize, asking her to annotate it according to her opinion, then picked up another document to read.

"This machine, capable of converting so-called thermal energy into kinetic and potential energy, looks quite impressive; it can utilize most things as an output power. But currently, only those skilled Dwarf Artisans can manufacture it,"

Bronze Dragon Alina sighed as she looked at the document, "If this thing can be mass-produced and utilized, then Karon’s proposed idea might not be far from realization,"

"However, these officials are somewhat stubborn," Bronze Dragon Alina, dissatisfied, tossed the document to the maid Charlize, who just stopped writing, "Let them advance both routes simultaneously; it’s not like they are incompatible. If the forging technology is insufficient, magic rune technology can be used to compensate."

"Tell those officials to vigorously recruit Dwarf Artisans, Magic Scholars, and related Alchemy Artisans, and establish a new research department under the original Alchemy Workshop, specializing in improving the production of this steam engine."

After establishing trade routes to the many kingdoms of the Northern Continent and the Beastman Empire, the Dragon Group Territory began to form an extensive trade network through the efforts of assembling merchant groups.

Especially in ore refining, the successful production of this steam engine will bring immense wealth to the Dragon Group Territory.

Moreover, it can also be used in the mining and construction industries. Most of the cities in the Dragon Group Territory are built from forest materials, partly due to the abundant timber resources within the territory.

On the other hand, using stone for constructing cities and houses would impose massive manpower pressure, which is somewhat counterproductive as the development in other areas of the Dragon Group Territory also requires manpower.

The maid Charlize silently raised her somewhat sore wrist and continued annotating on the document.

"Huh, forming the Elf Archer Battle Group and the Goblin Firearm Corps, these applications should be submitted to the military department, to be ultimately reviewed by Blue Dragon Akzhi,"

Bronze Dragon Alina remarked with some surprise.

"That’s based on the original procedure; all military expansion and construction plans need to be reviewed and approved by the military department, then overseen and sanctioned by the master," the Chief Maid Charlize stated quietly.

"Well, then approve it anyway; after all, those elves skilled in archery are also brave warriors. The creation of the Firearm Corps is beneficial for diversifying the legion’s combat plans,"

Before Bronze Dragon Alina could finish her sentence, the figure of the young Blue Dragon Akzhi appeared outside the gates of the King’s Castle, walking heavily toward her.

"Our challenge has arrived, Alina," the young Blue Dragon Akzhi, whose physique was slowly growing under the territory’s nourishment, seemed to be undergoing some transformation.

A vague lightning mark was forming between his horns, evolving into swirling patterns, making his otherwise somewhat disharmonious large horn look like a piece of art.

"What happened, Akzhi," Bronze Dragon Alina jumped down from the Black Stone Throne, showing respect for the equally diligent comrade.

"The Giant Dragon Merchant Group’s outpost in the Beastman Kingdom has been wiped out, but loyal human merchant groups have managed to relay the message back,"

Blue Dragon Akzhi nodded at his companion; the two doughty dragons were working even harder than Red Copper Dragon Alfred and Law Enforcement Officer Naxson.

"The Beastman Kingdom has confirmed that most of the Giant Dragon Lords of the Dragon Group are in slumber, and now they see an opportunity. They’ve allied with the Shahua Fishmen in the deep sea to march on the Land of Golden, intending to turn it into their kingdom."

Blue Dragon Akzhi bared his snow-white fangs, sneering, "The beastman tribes on the plains had moved away from the Dragon Group Territory years ago, but recently, the Dogman Guard stationed at the lookout point reported that those tribes are starting to stir."

"Though the Beastman Kingdom’s military strength isn’t yet confirmed, judging by the ships like hills docked along the coast, their numbers are at least no less than fifty thousand, according to the merchant group’s spies’ efforts."

Bronze Dragon Alina’s expression remained unflinching, as she calmly stated, "It’s timely then, the Dragon Group Territory precisely needs a foundational war to unite these scattered races and have them truly identify with their nation,"

"But while I have some insight into governance, I’m not well-versed in warfare, so this part is up to you, Akzhi!"

Blue Dragon Akzhi shrugged, his broad wings fluttering like sails, as he smiled and said, "I’m good at fighting, not at war, but as Karon mentioned, we’re rulers; we don’t need to be perfect, just need to learn how to appoint those with talent."

"That’s why I’m here to discuss with you about holding a military meeting to plan how to address this matter."

"Then let’s hold a military meeting and see how the talents serving us will display their abilities!" Bronze Dragon Alina also smiled, the initially grave atmosphere became lighter at that moment.

"Are you afraid, Akzhi? A war of this scale holds danger even for a Giant Dragon," Bronze Dragon Alina asked softly.

"Afraid, of course, I’m afraid, but not of death, but of failing to protect the Dragon Group, as it once was," Blue Dragon Akzhi said, one word at a time: "This time, I will never retreat!"