Chapter 219: Chapter 218 What Was Done
Salovis’s teenage Dragon Form had yet to be seen, but in her human form, she was undeniably beautiful and adorable. She was curvy where she should be and slender where she should be, with an unusually endearing pout on her lips.
Even if there were any grudges from before, those childhood scuffles were hardly worth ntioning. After all, so many years had passed; holding onto such trivial grievances would be petty, wouldn’t it? She was, after all, his blood-related sister. Not protecting her was one thing, but bullying her would be going too far.
Leon smiled faintly and refrained from flaunting his strength and wealth further. If Salovis sensed the massive disparity between them, her pouting might escalate to outright tears.
Should he comfort her?
The thought flickered through Leon’s mind briefly. It wasn’t that he didn’t know how to comfort her—she used to boast endlessly in front of him when she was younger. This old grudge needed settling. Once this pent-up anger was released, those minor dissatisfactions from the past would vanish into thin air.
Leon ignored Salovis and turned his gaze toward the Githyanki.
Biska noticed Leon finally looking at her and hurriedly began her introduction.
Leon nodded slightly in acknowledgnt but did not introduce himself courteously. It had to be said that he was growing more arrogant these days; wealth breeds indulgence. In addition, he was coming to understand that different statuses necessitate different deanors; otherwise, misunderstandings could easily arise.
“A Githyanki Knight… A Red Dragon… The two of you are together, aren’t you?” Leon wasn’t particularly fond of Mind Flayers, but that didn’t an he liked Githyanki either—their appearance left much to be desired. “If Salovis had co alone in Dragon Form, I might’ve suspected she’d heard of my reputation and decided to pledge allegiance to …”
At this point, Leon had more or less guessed why Salovis had referred to herself as “daughter.” After all, who would believe that such a famous Red Dragon was still just a teenage dragon? He continued, “But since you ca together, I assu you must have so particular purpose.”
Not a father, but a brother… How could the gap between siblings be so vast?
The relationship between the two siblings seed lukewarm. Biska didn’t anticipate leveraging their partnership to nd any bonds. Thinking it over, she tentatively proposed an alliance, reasoning that as a distinguished Githyanki Knight, she had a degree of authority to do so.
Biska rambled on at great length.
“You want to form an alliance with ?” Leon didn’t hesitate and decisively refused, “I have no interest in venturing into the Star Realm for now.”
The reason Leon rejected the Githyanki was simple: he didn’t want to go to the Star Realm, and their reputation was downright atrocious—arguably worse than that of Red Dragons.
Typically, Red Dragons wreak havoc on a local scale, guarding their territory day in and day out, with occasional sorties for plunder. Nothing like the Githyanki’s modus operandi: deploying modified spaceships to raid countless worlds across the Material Plane, dispatching raiding parties to seize wealth.
“What if it doesn’t require going to the Star Realm?” Biska wasn’t planning on giving up easily.
Leon didn’t answer imdiately; he was deliberating.
The na “Gith” ca from their great leader, who led the overthrow of Mind Flayer enslavent. During the war against the Mind Flayers, Vilakis proposed seeking allies across the planes and specifically ntioned Tiamat. Gith agreed to venture into the Nine Hells to negotiate with the Dragon Queen, never to return. The mighty Red Dragon Ephelomon later delivered the news: Tiamat had pledged Red Dragons to fight alongside the Githyanki.
According to the covenant with Tiamat, a small group of Red Dragons would serve alongside the Githyanki, abstaining from politics, obeying orders, and fulfilling their service until adulthood, at which point they would transfer their duties to a younger dragon in return for the spoils acquired during raids.
This notion struck Leon suddenly. Cooperation with the Githyanki might be inconsequential for other dragons, but for a Red Dragon, it might have deeper implications—possibly even securing him a Golden Finger reward.
It had been years since he last received a Golden Finger reward—he missed it.
Reflecting on this, Leon mused aloud, “I won’t enter the Star Realm; that part is non-negotiable. Additionally, I won’t participate in your raiding expeditions. If it’s just plundering, I don’t need you—I can handle that myself…”
“I can only offer this,” Leon licked his lips. “If you encounter Mind Flayers you can’t deal with, I can lend a hand.”
“Leon, do you hate Mind Flayers?” Biska asked excitedly. “If you despise Mind Flayers, we might have a lot in common.”
“I doubt anyone likes Mind Flayers.” Leon chuckled. “That’s all there is to it.”
Leon wasn’t idle over the years. While he was a Red Dragon, that didn’t an he needed to behave like one—mindlessly destroying without fostering growth. He had plans for Watchtower Port, waiting for the right opportunity to implent them.
“And one more thing I’d like to ntion.” Leon intended to grow Watchtower Port into his own Crossroads City. “You can bring the items you’ve plundered from various worlds to my Watchtower Port to trade, as long as you follow our rules.”
Biska nodded, though inwardly cynical—Githyanki tended to take what they desired without trading.
After so discussion, a formal alliance was off the table, but simpler forms of cooperation were achievable. More complex arrangents required authorization, and she would have to report back before dispatching a special envoy.
“You may rest for now.”
With their modest collaboration established, Leon arranged for a Tiefling maid to escort Biska to her quarters.
Salovis didn’t leave. Leon hadn’t asked her to—siblings reuniting after so long surely warranted so conversation.
“Have you accepted reality?” Leon leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest.
Salovis said nothing.
She had accepted reality—the fact that they were both teenage Red Dragons, yet her brother’s power and influence had far eclipsed their mother’s.
As a child, she had thought their mother was formidable. In truth, she was rather diocre. How else could she have failed to seize even a small town like Grey Mountain Town? While the Empire’s border-town inhabitants were notoriously tough, it was still no military stronghold.
“When I was younger, I went back once. By then, you all seed to have moved away.” Leon said.
“We moved a long ti ago,” Salovis replied softly. “The Empire kept sending adventurers to harass us. One of them injured our mother, and she took away afterward.”
“She treated you quite well, at least—saw fit to take you away. But she probably drove you off in the end… When did she kick you out?” Leon’s tone conveyed little affection for the Mother Dragon who had expelled him from her territory early on. Though she had done him a service by giving birth, gratitude was a reluctant sentint.
“Around the ti I was nearing my teenage years.” Salovis’s expression soured. “She introduced to the Githyanki and pocketed a hefty brokerage fee.”
“Hahaha,” Leon laughed heartily. “She really knew how to do business!”
“She couldn’t conduct business to save her life… She only knew how to gamble on bad investnts.” Salovis quipped. “You wouldn’t believe it—aside from investing in Edwin… Do you rember Edwin?—she invested in others too: criminals, cultists, you na it. All of them were losses in the end.”
“And Edwin…” Leon still rembered the mage who had taught him the Universal Language and provided invaluable assistance. “Did she manage to capture Edwin?”
“No.” Salovis shook her head. “What mage could be captured so easily by her?”
“True, a mage isn’t captured easily.” Leon pondered briefly. “If she didn’t capture Edwin, perhaps I could try to locate him… I respect his abilities. I’d be willing to fund his research.”
“Aren’t you afraid Mother might track you down?” Salovis asked.
“Let her co.” Leon sneered. “I’m no longer a baby dragon.”
“Right, you can dispatch mature Red Dragons without breaking a sweat.” Salovis remarked wistfully. “Mother is just an ordinary adult dragon. ‘Lady Magmaw’ doesn’t hold a candle to the fa of ‘Cliff Sword.’ We’ve heard about it all the way in the Crossroads City.”
Leon asked a few more questions, satisfied his curiosity, and remarked, “That’s about it. You can leave now.”
Salovis hesitated at his dismissal and said, “That’s it?”
“That’s it.” Leon replied. “I have nothing else to ask.”
“Let remind you.” Salovis chid, urging softly. “For example, you could ask what I plan to do in the future.”
Unwittingly, Leon asked, “What do you plan to do in the future?”
“I’m a Red Dragon who values family.” Salovis said, her tone earnest. “In the future, I want to help my brother rule the Empire.”
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