The Red Dragon Just Wants To Do As It Pleases

But since even his own father, a Silver Dragon, had given the green light, what complaints could he, a Red Dragon, possibly have?

That female Tyrannosaurus really did bite him on the butt!

His rear still ached faintly even after his dad's healing spells had stopped the bleeding.

Even if just to avenge that bite, I'm prepared to completely empty her coffers, David thought.

If I weren't worried about alarming Saeolus City, I'd even consider moving this whole Mage Tower, not leaving a single tile for her, he mused.

While his dad snuck up the stairs, preparing to crack the Mage Tower's defenses, David, an elf-style piece of lace lingerie dangling from the tip of his tail, began ransacking the relatively safe bedroom.

Then, without any hesitation, he packed all the garments of various races the female Silver Dragon used for changing outfits from the wardrobe into his "Portable Cave."

I'll bring them back to the Old Continent for my little sister, Tania, to wear when she's a bit older, he schemed. One for every festival. Hehe, Tania will be absolutely thrilled!

After all, not many ordinary items were brought by that female Silver Dragon to her Granyel outpost.

Take these seemingly inconspicuous clothes, for instance. Most had been enchanted, able to accommodate a Silver Dragon's transformation without the embarrassment of them bursting.

Among them was a striking suit of metallic full-body armor—a female Centaur Armor Set—that was both sexy and powerful when worn.

And those pieces of jewelry, much like the Magic Necklace the female dragon usually wore, each possessed magical effects and unique uses.

Greed

David even found a Silver Dragon wedding dress, studded with all kinds of gems, and couldn't help but mockingly mutter to himself, "Heh, even the wedding gown is ready. Dying to marry a dragon, are we? Still, it's a good item, so it's for Tania... On second thought, I'll dismantle it later and use the parts for magical accessories."

The mere thought of Tania eventually growing up and marrying another dragon made David suddenly feel a pang of jealousy—Jealousy—and he promptly shoved the dress to the very bottom of the "Portable Cave."

So much so that when Attilicia, grumbling with displeasure after finally cracking the Mage Tower's control hub, returned to the bedroom, he was dumbfounded. He found it completely empty, with David lounging on the bare wooden bed frame.

"You really cleaned it out, huh!"

David's swaying tail suddenly stiffened. He looked at his father in feigned astonishment. "Wasn't it you who said to clean everything out?"

"..." Attilicia paused. I only said to clean out the valuable treasures! he thought, but decided to swallow the words.

"Oh, right! My 'Portable Cave' is full. Dad, your demiplane is bigger. You should pack all this furniture—the wardrobe, bed frame, everything. They even have gems embedded in them! And I tell you what, that female Silver Dragon is loaded."

She was truly wealthy. An average adult dragon's hoard was estimated to be around 4,000 to 10,000 pounds of gold. In contrast, the various gems and Magical Items from this living area alone were worth over 1,000 pounds.

Attilicia could already imagine the thunderous rage on Shalaina, that female Silver Dragon, when she returned to her Mage Tower.

For some reason, Attilicia, who had been somewhat hesitant, suddenly felt an indescribable schadenfreude and immediately joined his Red Dragon son in the looting.

"Alright!" he declared.

Just twenty minutes later, David and his father had cleared the entire six-story Mage Tower—from the parlor to the storeroom, living quarters, observatory, library, and training room—so thoroughly that mice could have held races in it.

They even packed up the two enormous, paralyzed stone golems guarding the main gate and stuffed them into the demiplane.

By Attilicia's estimation, these two stone golems alone were worth over 100,000 Dewensen gold coins—that's 1,800 pounds of gold—almost equal to their entire haul so far.

Most likely a gift from Shalaina's father for her protection, Attilicia mused. Shalaina probably found them too cumbersome and just left them in her Mage Tower to guard the entrance.

However, she could never have anticipated a critical detail. Among the personal draconic items Attilicia had left behind were the spatial coordinates for a Teleportation Gate. Ironically, this gate led directly to the most vulnerable part of her Mage Tower: her bedroom in the living quarters.

As a result, David and his father had managed to 'hack' the control hub from the inside.

When Attilicia used his key to unlock the Mage Tower's basement door and pushed it open, he indeed found his private draconic Alchemy Room, just as he had expected.

The traces on the magic locks indicated that Shalaina had definitely been inside. However, she hadn't altered the room's interior or even touched any of the semi-finished projects he'd left there when he departed for the Gloomy Region.

Seeing this, how could Attilicia not understand the female dragon's intentions? She was merely safeguarding these items, planning to return them once he repaid his debts.

And when he thought about how he and his son had stripped her Mage Tower bare, he instantly felt a pang of guilt and remorse.

But what was done was done. He couldn't possibly persuade David to return everything exactly as it was, could he?

I'll just have to save up some money over the next few years, pay off my debts, and then find a chance to compensate her, he resolved.

While the Silver Dragon father was lost in his guilty thoughts, David's eyes practically lit up at the sight of such abundant alchemical equipment.

He bounded into the Alchemy Room like a husky spotting a steak, picked up an oversized coupler, tapped it twice, and exclaimed, "What great stuff!"

Just as he was enjoying the wonderful resonance, Attilicia, belatedly realizing what was happening, snatched it away.

"Don't! That's mine."

"What about this?" David's tail tip flicked up, lifting a tool roll filled with various alchemical carving knives.

"Also mine." Attilicia eyed David as if guarding his precious treasures from a thief.

David got the hint and didn't argue. "Alright, alright, it's all yours, happy now? Can't I even take a look?"

Attilicia instantly felt deeply wronged. "These really are all mine, you know! I thought they were destroyed along with the church."

Only then did David truly understand, somewhat incredulous. "That female dragon actually left all this for you?"

"Mhm..."

"Tell me, Dad, could it be that female dragon has taken a liking to you?"

Some of this alchemical equipment was incredibly expensive, like the cleanroom-grade lab equipment on Blue Star. If an average Chromatic Dragon had found it, they probably would have dumped it all on the black market for a quick profit.

To resist such an urge of Greed... what else could explain it but true love! David mused.

Hearing this, his Silver Dragon father just chuckled. "How could that be! That female dragon and I are rivals. We've fought since we were younglings. And ever since I lost to her in the battle on the coast of Dragon Island, I haven't been defeated once since entering my juvenile phase!"

"Oh." David squinted, giving a noncommittal nod as he sized up his father, who could indeed be considered a handsome dragon.

It seemed that after all this time, I've finally figured out how Dad managed to stay single through sheer obliviousness, David thought. The Duke of Silver was one case, and this formidable female Silver Dragon was another. I suddenly realize I might have been overthinking things. Dad, a perfect example of an 'Ironclad Straight Dragon'—a Duan Zhengchun? Ha! He's clearly more of a Bao Xiruo!

"What are you looking at me for?"

Attilicia had a feeling his son was cooking up some disrespectful thoughts about him again.

David, mentally casting himself as a draconic 'Yang Kang,' quickly changed the subject. "I mean, since the alchemical equipment here is so complete, why don't we just start 'production' right here?"

"Huh?" Attilicia was momentarily stunned by the suggestion.

After a pause, he suddenly jumped to his feet, his face alight with joy. "Right! Why didn't I think of that!"