The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

“Peanuts for the main dish tonight?” Marcus expertly shelled peanuts, wondering aloud. Wheat might be the top choice for staple food, but its yield was generally low, so peanuts and peas had to fill the gap.

“How do they taste?”

Liszt inquired, for he had no boiled peanuts before him.

He didn’t fancy boiled peanuts, so as the master of the castle, Cook Abbie had specially made him porridge with oats. As for everyone else, they weren’t so fortunate.

“They’re tender and appropriately mushy, just a bit bland and tasteless,” he commented.

Goltai chimed in, “That’s just how boiled peanuts taste. They’re nice for a change, to spice up the palate once in a while, but you’ll get tired of them if you eat them often. However, tonight’s peanuts are larger than usual—did you notice?”

It dawned on Marcus, “Has the harvest from Peanut Hamlet come in?”

“This is the first batch, from the peanuts grown near the cordyceps. The yield is thirty percent higher than usual, and the growing cycle has been shortened by a month. The castle won’t be short of peanuts this year. I think Mrs. Abbie should find time to make more peanut butter. Spread on bread, it stays fragrant all day.”

In Fresh Flower Town, none was a greater gourmet than Goltai, the Honored Knight who always had endless things to say about food and drink.

Liszt smiled faintly, “Pair it with juniper wine, and it would be perfect.”

“Oh, Liszt, you really get me, haha.”

“It’s a pity the juniper wine we brought back from Coral City last time has all been drunk up.”

“To be honest, I really didn’t want to hear that.”

“In fact, there’s even more disheartening news,” Liszt said, sipping his oatmeal porridge slowly, “The stock in the wine cellar is at rock bottom. Mr. Carter advises against drinking any more red wine, or we won’t have enough for the festivals in the second half of the year. And as for beer, the ones made with hops are almost finished. We’re left with only the sour-tasting ones.”

“Good heavens, that can’t be true, can it.”

Liszt did not respond.

Butler Carter, attending behind at the banquet, answered on his behalf: “The weather is turning hot, and beer is being consumed in large quantities. Without trading caravans coming and going, we cannot produce our own hopped beer. If it weren’t for the Earl’s recent convoy, which brought many barrels of beer, the castle would be running even lower on the sour beer by now.”

Goltai frowned deeply, “I think we should really build a dock and purchase hops directly from Viscount Trik.”

Unfortunately, the East Coast of Fresh Flower Town was all flat sandy beaches with no deep-water ports for constructing a dock.

As for Viscount Trik, he was a follower of the Coral Island’s Count, full named Trik Lycra, and he owned a separate small island—Beer Island.

There, a magnificent castle stood—Beer Castle.

The Lycra Family’s beer, renowned for its use of hops, was a best-seller on several large islands.

Beer was the most common type of alcoholic beverage in the Grand Duchy, coming in two varieties: hopped and unhopped.

Hops, a species of the Lycra genus, played a significant role in beer—they imparted a refreshing aroma, bitterness, and preservative qualities to it, promoted good foam formation which helped clarify the wort, and the strong hop flavor balanced the natural sweetness of the malt and stimulated appetite.

Beer without hops quickly turned sour and was hard to swallow.

The hopped beer on Coral Island was exclusively brewed by the Lycra Family, and it was this industry that allowed them to afford the famed Beer Castle.

“A dock is out of the question; that’s why I want to completely clear the roads through Thorn Ridge. Only then can trading caravans enter Fresh Flower Town… We don’t have the Tax Knights anymore to protect the traders coming and going,” said Liszt, then turning to Marcus, “Teacher Marcus, has the selection for the Knight Squad not finished yet?”

Setting aside the boiled peanuts he was holding, Marcus replied, “Tomorrow is the last selection date. I already have some preliminary choices, but their physical conditioning is still too poor. Only two meet the entrance standards of the Knight Academy.”

“Perhaps it’s because they’re not getting enough to eat, but now that the Knight Squad is being provided for by the Castle, I believe their physical condition will see significant improvement.”

“Then I can stop worrying about the food and focus on training.”

“Yes, make sure they master Dou Qi as soon as possible. Fresh Flower Town should not only have five knights capable of Dou Qi. Going forward, we will rely on knights for many things.”

Unexpectedly, Liszt saw the Lumberjack Team the very next day.

He had thought that Goltai would need at least two or three days to pull together healthy serfs for the work, but today brought a surprise.

Mounted on his horse, Goltai personally led the Lumberjack Team to gather on the main road outside the Castle. In total, there were thirty strong serfs, but only half of them had either a new or old axe in hand, and the team had only two saws, both brought from home by the carpenter’s son.

Iron was scarce.

The metal was controlled by nations with dragons, and it was very difficult to obtain.

This was also why the Duchy of Sapphire often organized its knight orders to wage war on the continent and plunder mineral resources—the iron mines of the Grand Duchy were mostly seized from the Eagle Kingdom and then transported bit by bit to each island by sea.

In Fresh Flower Town, many serfs had to work with wooden, stone, and bone utensils.

It was a different scene from the orderly and solemn one he had imagined.

The group of strong serfs wore thick anxiety on their faces—the Landlord demanded they fell timber in Thorn Ridge, a dangerous task. If they encountered a Magical Beast, their wives might have to remarry.

“Teacher Goltai, didn’t you tell them that I would send protection?”

“Of course, I informed them, but they are still trembling.”

Liszt nodded, understanding, “Words are pale.”

While they were speaking, a team shouting slogans ran over from the riding ground to the Castle. Four knights followed and supervised, with Marcus leading the way.

“My lord!” Marcus dismounted and saluted Liszt.

“Why thirty?”

“They will escort the lumberjacks. Based on today’s performance, I will make the final selection for my squad. Their physiques are about the same, and their minds aren’t too dull. Now, the last criterion is an examination of courage. A knight cannot be without courage,” Marcus explained.

Hearing this, Goltai said, “Liszt, won’t you say something before we set off?”

Liszt nodded, of course he needed to say a few words for the occasion.

Majestically attired in his black beast armor, he rode his Li Dragon Horse and slowly approached the front of both teams. With a solemn expression, Liszt swept his gaze over each person in the teams and spoke out loud, “Fellow citizens, I am your Landlord, Liszt Tulip.”

He paused, suddenly finding himself at a loss for words.

He still hadn’t quite mastered the skill of showing off, and after a moment, he decided to omit the lengthy, provocative speech and simply said with composure, “Today, you will chop down the trees of Thorn Ridge for me, clearing the path between the town and the outside world, and I, will protect your safety!”

Words are pale, and facing the still uneasy serfs, he simply raised his riding crop lightly, and the Li Dragon Horse lifted its forelegs and let out a skyward roar.

As the horse hooves hit the ground, Liszt had already taken the lead on horseback.

“Forward!”