NOVPUB"Jade Dragons?"
"Dragon's Defile?"
As his gaze fell upon the luxurious dragon-drawn carriage, Velen asked seriously, "What kind of faction is Dragon's Defile? Also… do you think they'd be willing to sell their carriage and those Jade Dragons?"
"???"
Sell them?
That's a symbol of identity! You're asking if they'd sell it?
Stiegler's eyes widened as he stared at Velen in disbelief.
"Your Highness, Dragon's Defile isn't just some local power from the Eastern Territory—it's a mighty force in the entire upper plane universe, comparable to what the Endless Sanctuary was ten thousand years ago!"
"Those Jade Dragons are symbolic creatures of Dragon's Defile. From what I've heard, there are only three of them in total, and each one has the strength of Divine Rank Level 9!"
"I'd wager the person inside that carriage holds an extremely high status within Dragon's Defile!"
Stiegler explained hurriedly.
"So… will they sell or not?"
Velen asked again.
He genuinely admired the dragon-drawn carriage and those dominating Jade Dragons. After all, he had spent all that time in the low plane universe riding around in Ethansenator's old gourd-shaped flying tool.
Now that he was in the upper plane, wasn't it about time he got himself a proper ride?
Of course, he wasn't going to settle for what he saw—once purchased, he'd definitely upgrade it.
"Your Highness!"
"That's their symbol of power! There's no way they'd sell it!"
Stiegler tried to talk him down, exasperated.
"System, didn't that last mission finish a little too hastily?"
"Stiegler still doesn't seem like a true tycoon of luxurious squandering! Where's the over-the-top behavior?"
Velen sighed inwardly, voicing his disappointment to the system.
Ding! Reminder: The system's evaluation is never wrong.
Stiegler's understanding of extravagant spending in shopping still needs improvement.
Sigh…
"Flaunting wealth is an art," Velen murmured. "Sounds like he's got the right instincts in some areas, but not all. Looks like bringing him along was the right call."
"Fly us over and block their path."
"You've still got a long way to go in the art of squandering. Watch closely."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Without another word, Stiegler activated the flying artifact, steering it directly toward the massive dragon carriage.
He was eager to see exactly how Velen intended to handle this.
Inside the Carriage
"Why have we stopped?" asked a luxuriously dressed young man inside the dragon carriage.
"Young Master Drogos, two little mages are blocking the road. Shall I eliminate them?"
The reply came from an aged voice outside the carriage.
"Little mages?"
"No need for Dragon's Defile to bully small fry. We've been traveling for days—it's getting boring. Let's have a little fun."
Drogos stepped out of the carriage, stretching languidly.
"You two—why are you blocking our path?"
His tone was casual as he looked at Velen and Stiegler.
"…Huh?"
"Shouldn't someone like him scold us or attack immediately? Why is he being so polite?"
"Why is it that every time I get ready to go all out, I run into people like this?"
Velen felt a little disappointed.
He'd already been preparing to summon Shadow for dramatic effect.
Somewhere in a different space…
"Why?!"
"Why can't Master just once encounter someone looking for trouble?! I just want to go out and mess around with Light, Red-Hair, and Etenny!"
A fully-prepared Shadow howled at the void in frustration.
Why is it so hard to get summoned?!
Back on the ground...
"Is your dragon carriage for sale?"
"I'd like to buy the carriage—and that Jade Dragon."
Velen went straight to the point.
"You dare?!"
"The Jade Dragons are the sacred symbol of Dragon's Defile! You dare defile them with your filthy intent?!"
The aged Frost Senator was instantly enraged, raising his hand to strike them down.
"Frost Senator, hold."
Drogos stopped him calmly.
After all, this was the first interesting thing to happen on their trip. No way was he letting it end too soon.
"If you dare to ask, we dare to sell."
"But the real question is... can you afford it?"
Drogos smirked, eyes dancing with amusement.
"Afford it?"
"There's nothing in the upper plane universe I, Velen, can't afford!"
"I'm not afraid I can't pay—you should be afraid you can't sell!"
Sensing that Drogos was teasing him, Velen fired back with an equally sharp grin.
"This is bad..."
"This atmosphere is getting real weird..."
Stiegler's nerves tensed. He didn't know whether Drogos would actually go through with it—but he knew Velen would.
Please don't let this end in a fight...
"Hahahaha!"
Drogos blinked, then burst into laughter.
"It's been a while since anyone's talked to me like that. Very well—if you want to buy it, then bring me one hundred pieces of Cosmic Dragon Glass! The carriage and Jade Dragon are yours."
The Frost Senator laughed too. Dragon's Defile only had a little over thirty pieces of Cosmic Dragon Glass total—there was no way these outsiders had that kind of treasure.
"System," Velen asked inwardly, "as a proper wealth-flaunting tycoon, getting myself a signature vehicle seems reasonable, right?"
"He wants a hundred pieces of Cosmic Dragon Glass—if I offer him a thousand, would that still qualify as reasonable?"
Ding! Quantity exceeds appropriate range for wealth-flaunting behavior.
Ding! Reminder: The 'pieces' they refer to are much smaller in size than what the host assumes.
"…Wait, different sizes?"
Velen raised an eyebrow. "Then what about a hundred of my pieces?"
Ding! Within appropriate range for qualified extravagant spending.
On the other side…
Sigh…
"I overestimated these Eastern mages," Drogos muttered, shaking his head. "They probably don't even know what Cosmic Dragon Glass is."
Seeing Velen seemingly frozen, he lost interest.
"We're landing."
"I'll bring you the hundred pieces right away."
Velen suddenly spoke, gesturing for Stiegler to bring the flying artifact down.
"Young Master Drogos, there's no way they actually have any Cosmic Dragon Glass."
"But their arrogance is a stain upon the honor of Dragon's Defile. Shall we execute them after this?"
Frost Senator's tone was cold.
"One's Star Tier Level 1, the other's Stellar Tier Level 9…"
"A sneeze from the Jade Dragon could vaporize them. No need to bother."
"They're just reckless fools trying to purchase something they don't understand. It doesn't even qualify as an offense."
"Come on—let's see what he thinks he has."
Drogos descended to the ground, amused.
"Velen, was it?"
"I'm busy. Let's cut to the chase. Show me this so-called Cosmic Dragon Glass of yours."
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A deafening rumble echoed as Velen began withdrawing enormous blocks of shimmering crystal from his system's spatial storage.
One after another, massive slabs—five meters tall and two meters wide—slammed into the earth.
One block.
Five blocks.
Thirty blocks...
By the time one hundred gigantic pieces of Cosmic Dragon Glass had been laid out, both Drogos and Frost Senator stood dumbfounded.
"This... this can't be real!"
"He actually has Cosmic Dragon Glass?!"
"And... this is his idea of a hundred pieces?!"
Drogos was breathing heavily. The pieces he'd mentioned were barely a meter tall!
Velen's "hundred" were five times that size!
Drogos and the Frost Senator retreated to a corner, whispering frantically.
"This is insane!"
"Frost Senator—what now? He's offering too much. I don't even dare to accept it!"
"I think… there may be Demigod-level experts hiding nearby, watching us."
Panic filled Drogos's face.
He knew all too well how much blood and sacrifice Dragon's Defile had paid for the thirty-some pieces they currently had.
"Young Master, don't worry."
"We haven't done anything to provoke them."
"And they seem genuinely interested in making a purchase. Although… yes, the amount is far too much…"
"But this is a golden opportunity for Dragon's Defile. What if… we only take half of the glass he's offered, and in return, give him the other two Jade Dragons in the valley, along with thirty Shadow Dragons?"
The Frost Senator tried to stay calm as he proposed the trade.
"This… would that even work?"
"Even bundled together, if we only take half, he's still overpaying!"
Drogos frowned deeply, torn.
