Under the Red Dragon.

Chapter 243 Secondary Authority
As the dim golden-red sun in the sky gradually sank below the mountains of Dragon's Nest and hung above the distant sea level, the Ascension Mage Tower, which was moving in a predetermined orbit above the sky, slowly descended from the sky, bathed in the afterglow of the sun, and stopped between the floating clouds that were dyed red under the mountain top.

This is the center point of the Empire's aerospace defense system, centered on the Golden Empire's Dragon King's Court. In the future, it will be based on this and radiate to the sky and land of the entire empire.

In the distance, giant dragons flew across the sky. They were the dragon lords of the empire. The blue dragon Doss, the blue dragon Akzi and the white dragon Gemot flew straight to the top of the mountain and disappeared into the deep clouds.

Green dragon Ellie and blue dragon Carlit followed behind the other lord dragons.

One of the blue dragon Carlit's wings was torn off, but this did not affect the dragon's ability to fly. The dragon was able to soar into the blue sky by controlling the strong wind and magic power.

However, without the assistance of complete wings, the blue dragon Carlit's huge body made it difficult to change direction in the air and control speed, so the green dragon Ellie, who had formed a friendship with the blue dragon Carlit on the battlefield, pressed her body against the blue dragon Carlit to help her adjust her direction and speed, and the two female dragons flew side by side into the clouds.

After the dragons flew across, the tower hovering on the predetermined track in the sky slowly unveiled the veil of magic and revealed its own shadow.

An adult multi-headed dragon with a slender and ferocious body was thrown from the air and landed heavily on the wide steps in the mountains.

Following closely behind were the tall storm giants that descended from the tower.

Finally, there came the emperor's guards, wearing heavy Achilles armor and carrying the heads of dead giants.

When the delivery door of the tower closed, the figure of Gabriel, the leader of the imperial guards, also landed on the ground.

Gabriel, who had retracted his mental wings, seemed to have restrained his gentle temperament as well. His body, shrouded in a golden dragon mask, exuded a strong aura of a descendant of dragon blood. He was no longer as holy as before, but rather a bit violent.

Even the storm giants who came to the kingdom ruled by dragons for the first time were stunned and stood quietly aside, looking up at the mountains protruding from the clouds.

Although the highest fire peak among the peaks was only 4,000 meters high, far less tall than the God-Forsaken Mountains, the lair inhabited by the dragon for a long time also had the same momentum and presence as the dragon.

Legendary dragons can influence the field of an entire area around their nest. Although the dragons in the dragon group are not as strong as the legendary ones, their distinct and outstanding momentum makes the towering peaks look like giant dragons stretching out their claws and baring their fangs in the clouds, looking down on all living creatures.

Under the leadership of the Dragon Lord, the entire mountain range was infested by dragons, becoming the unique home of these dragons.

The storm giant Garcia even felt that the dragons in this mountain range had a combat power that was two levels higher than the dragons' actual strength.

"Don't play dead, get up,"

Commander Garcia, who had dismissed many of the guards, kicked the miserable multi-headed dragon. This first creature in the world that possessed the blood of the ancestral red dragon also liked to pierce the enemy's jaw and skull with chains and tied the multi-headed dragon to a fine gold chain.

The wild and untamed multi-headed dragon now did not dare to disobey the enemy's orders. It could only drag its seriously injured body and follow Gabriel up the stairs.

The storm giant Garcia also led his people slowly up.

In fact, these storm giants are not large enough to reach the dragon's court based on their own size.

According to the regulations of the Empire, these wild tribal races have special Imperial departments to deal with. Even the leader of the lizardmen, Rayleigh, who was rewarded with a "law-breaking" blade by the ancestral red dragon, was unable to reach the top of the mountain as he wished.

This relies on the brief but friendly exchanges between the storm giant tribe and the dragons in the early years, allowing these storm giants to climb the peaks as guests.

The silence along the way did not surprise the storm giants. Although there was no guard, the huge ancient war trees on both sides of the road were blatantly spying on these rare outsiders.

Although some storm giants were still saddened by the tribe's current state of decline, they gradually became serious in the unusually quiet atmosphere.

However, the figure revealed among the rolling clouds in the sky made the storm giant Garcia look up involuntarily.

A tiny young dragon babbled in the rolling clouds, poked its head out, and stared at the storm giant openly.

The little dragon was still flying around the giants' heads, and occasionally dropped a few clouds next to the storm giants. But these clouds did not dissipate, but condensed into entities, like soft rice balls.

Even though Garcia was confused about the future and was forcibly suppressing his sadness and anger, he was relieved a lot of his depression by the actions of this little young dragon.

Because the young dragon was not teasing them, but feeding the giants. The little dragon babbled in a strange dragon language that the storm giants could not understand, but Garcia understood through his body movements.

The young dragon thought that by eating these desserts, the giants would become happy.

The giants did not refuse the dragon's kindness. They picked up the clouds one by one and held them in their hands.

The happy young dragon then wagged its tail and dived into the clouds. As the clouds dissipated, one could see a dragon's nest made of white clouds and sunset glow between the mountain tops, floating in the wind at high altitude.

But even the Storm Giants could not recognize this kind of dragon whose appearance was somewhat similar to that of a golden dragon. Obviously, this was not one of the five-colored dragons or metallic dragons.

Noticing the giants' confused looks, Gabriel, who was leading the way, smiled and explained, "This is not a dragon born in our world. It should be a dragon that accidentally drifted here from the cracks where the worlds meet. Because it is gentle and harmless, it is protected by the emperor and allowed to build a nest above the clouds in the mountains."

"But after scholars looked through the materials, we learned that this type of dragon is called the Floating Cloud Dragon. You don't need to pay attention to his existence. He is just a little naughty and lively."

"These dragons live on rain, hail, and a small amount of silver and meat. Clouds are their snacks and desserts. They are just a kind gesture to welcome you."

The storm giant Garcia nodded silently and forced a smile.

It was not until they reached the top that the giants discovered that it was not that there were no guards here. Rather, these guards were like lifeless pillars, standing on the top of the mountain, silent like the boulders that had existed in the mountains for thousands of years.

These powerful warriors, who were also wearing blood-red armor, did not make any move even when they saw the captured adult dragon. Even the passing of Gabriel, the commander of the imperial guards, did not cause any fluctuations among these powerful guards.

The Storm Giants were well aware of how powerful these warriors were. The giants led by the Cyclops who were chasing them were slaughtered like pigs and dogs by these warriors. But it seemed that warriors of this caliber were not uncommon in the kingdom of dragons.

When the storm giant saw the towering royal palace, he couldn't help but feel awe for the red dragon he had met before.

In particular, next to the multi-headed dragon tied to the rock pillar by Gabriel, there were two more powerful-looking dragons and basilisks. This situation achieved part of the effect of the dragons showing off their military power, but the ones who felt it most were the storm giants who had a friendly relationship with the dragons.

The giant Garcia felt it more deeply than the ordinary tribesmen. In the giant's perception, the young dragon he had just seen not long ago, a weak group of dragons that once needed the storm giants to extend a hand of friendship and provide a temporary shelter for the dragons traveling far away, had achieved such brilliant results in a short period of time.

The young Garcia had once been a loyal listener in the conversation between his grandfather and the red dragon, but he had not expected that the storm giants, who were more powerful in the past, now needed the protection of these dragons.

This made Garcia somewhat grateful for his grandfather's choice, and he also had a deeper understanding of the wisdom his grandfather had gained in his old age.

Standing quietly in front of the majestic royal court, Garcia, who had begun to calm down, recalled the teachings of his grandfather. His confused mind suddenly seemed to clear away the clouds and mist, and he saw the path he wanted to take.

"The road is found by walking, not by thinking."

After going through hardships, the Storm Giant Garcia's immature face has lost its youthfulness and looks much more mature. His purple eyes reveal an unprecedented firm will.

"The road is right under my feet, Grandfather. This is my decision. Perhaps, it is also the choice I should make for the sake of the entire tribe!"

……

In the royal palace, the dragons gathered together again.

Except for the young red dragon Caedilos, who was sitting in a corner in a gloomy mood and turned his depression into appetite to enjoy delicious snacks, the other dragons determined a series of policies of the empire during the discussion.

The two dragons were mocked for not being able to transform. The white dragon Kamide shook his head contentedly, his two heads fighting for food. He had long been accustomed to the special ecology of the dragon group.

The depression of the young red dragon Caedilos was not due to simple ridicule, but because his reputation suffered a serious blow in the eyes of the female dragons in the dragon group. The young red dragon, who was not very popular to begin with, could not win the favor of any female dragon.

Even the weakest white dragon, Roni, dared to show her displeasure to Caedilos.

The newly arrived steel dragon Midir is protected by all the dragons in the dragon group. This dragon, which can earn wealth for the dragons, has a much higher status than the young red dragon.

The discussions of many dragons sounded harsh to the ears of the young red dragon Caedilos.

Charon sat on his throne without saying a word. With the inheritance of a dragon and the knowledge passed down from thousands of years in his previous life, he could easily come up with solutions to most problems.

But he hopes to use these things to train these dragons and let them stand on their own.

Although he wants to be the sun in the sky, he also hopes that the friends around him can be the shining stars and the moon that are not covered by the sun. Only when the sky is full of stars can it be interesting and he won't feel lonely.

After the dragons had reached a conclusion, Kallon knocked on the armrests of his throne, causing the entire hall, which was filled with the echoes of dragons' accents, to instantly calm down.

"In this case, let's do it according to what you discussed."

"For those pirates who are tempted by profit, those who have enough wealth can buy indulgences in the empire to redeem their past sins. The empire will then protect these pirates, allowing them to live and work in peace and contentment in the empire, and have a place to rely on when they grow old, so that they can avoid being hanged on the dock or the execution ground."

"Some capable pirates can train the first batch of navy for the empire and have official status in the empire."

"Pirates who don't have enough wealth need to prove their worth to the empire through their actions. I believe that from now on, the number of pirates harassing the empire's maritime trade routes will be reduced by half. As for the remaining pirates, they are either the black gloves of other nobles or stubborn elements. Once we have figured it out, it will be much easier to deal with them."

The red dragon's words were the final word, causing the dragons that were discussing the matter to nod in agreement. The steel dragon Midir had originally intended to propose his new plan to the dragon king.

The Steel Dragon Midir, who has been familiar with the economic situation of the empire for several months, believes that with the good reputation accumulated by the dragons of the Golden Empire in the early days and the rising economic momentum of the empire, it is enough to establish an imperial central bank dedicated to economic regulation and guidance and reaping profits.

This idea is not surprising. The goblin consortium in the southern continent established the Goblin Bank by relying on the customers and reputation accumulated from countless years of transactions, and thus earned a lot of wealth.

As a professional dragon, the Steel Dragon Midir would naturally pay special attention to economic projects that could make money and benefit the empire. So he consulted the information of the Goblin Consortium and planned to follow the example of those goblins to establish a central bank for the empire.

But after she saw the red dragon's actions, the words on her lips were swallowed back by the skinny dragon. The ancestral red dragon stood up from the throne and walked down the steps, which meant that the ancestral red dragon was not communicating with the dragons as the emperor of the empire at this time.

Karon walked into the group of dragons. The physique of the ancestral red dragon was unique among the dragons, making the body of the blue dragon Carlit in front of him look particularly petite. It seemed that the identities of adoptive mother and adopted son between them should be reversed.

The red dragon gently placed his horn on the horn of the sleepy blue dragon Carlit. Among the dragons who were reluctant to express their limited emotions, Carlit's action was very outstanding. It immediately woke up the blue dragon Carlit, who was sleepy due to injury but was forcing herself to attend the council.

The ancestral red dragon looked at the blue dragon Carlit's suddenly widened pupils and slightly revealed its fangs. It turned its head and whispered to Dos and the other dragons, "You have done well enough, but in these turbulent times, it is not the best you can do!"

"I don't need to explain much. You will find some clues from the intelligence of the empire and some of the things that happened if you are not so careless."

The ancestral red dragon surrounded the other dragons, and its dark golden vertical pupils were filled with tiny flames, which were born along with his words, "In this age destined to be turbulent, we don't have much time left. We can suppress the growth of our claws, but time will not wait for us."

"Rosani has contributed her strength to the future of the dragon group and made my experiment a success. Therefore, I am gathering the dragons here today not only because we want to take Rosani home, but also because we are embarking on our destined journey at this moment."

"If we succeed, we will naturally stand high in the sky and travel through the vast universe. If we fail, we will just embark on our journey earlier."

Balls of spiritual light suddenly leaped and shone on the claws of the ancestral red dragon, shining brightly and dazzlingly, carrying a strong attraction and temptation to the dragon.

This is the power of gluttony that Kallon has fused into himself, and it is a replica of a trace of spiritual authority that has been condensed through analysis and replication using the power of the spiritual realm.

This is also a spiritual seed that can quickly take root and sprout in the hands of a dragon that gave birth to mental energy.

And this is also the ability that best suits the current group of dragons. Although it is not as strong as the blood talent of the ancestral red dragon, if it is carefully cultivated and allowed to grow healthily, it can also have half the effect of the ancestral red dragon's talent.

"Come, stand shoulder to shoulder with me. The world is our hunting ground, and the Gogmora dragon group is the top hunters!" The ancestral red dragon showed its white fangs, spread its wings and claws, and smiled.

(End of this chapter)