30 We Dragon Race Are the Best
(Chapter Three)
In the evening, Leon placed some spicy peppers and the throat lozenges Noia had given him earlier that day on his desk, and then he began preparing the tutoring content and plans for tomorrow.
Noia’s intelligence and talent were simply outstanding. He had to keep running ahead of his eldest daughter, or else her growth would be delayed.
Raising such a clever daughter was like taking care of a thriving young sapling.
You’ve got to water it constantly, pamper it, and give it a steady supply of nutrients so that it can grow into a towering tree that shades you from the sun and rain.
Fortunately, Leon had picked up quite a few efficient study methods during his time at the Dragon Slayer Academy and was used to burning the midnight oil.
Otherwise, he would definitely be looked down upon by his daughter and that stubborn Mother Dragon by now.
Thinking of this, Leon suddenly paused.
He realized he seemed to care more about Roswiser’s opinion of him as time went on.
If the family dinner a few days ago made him understand that Roswiser didn’t regard him highly, seeing him as far from the confident Dragon Slayer he once was, which led him to “suddenly fall ill” after dinner and give the Queen a little lesson;
Then, the recent activities—like secretly concocting supplements to boost his body and now staying up late to prepare lessons—were somewhat related to him caring about Roswiser’s perception of him.
Leon scratched his nose and snorted, “Tch, it’s just for my daughter; it has nothing to do with that Mother Dragon.”
It was the first time he said that, but why did it sound a bit familiar?
Didn’t Roswiser say something similar that day in the warehouse when they doubled the Dragon Pattern?
Leon shook his head, bringing his thoughts back to focus, and continued to prepare his lessons.
By the time it was past eleven at night and sleepiness kicked in, Leon grabbed a pepper and took a bite.
Just like yesterday, it packed quite a punch.
After chugging down a glass of cold water, he set his prepared tutoring plan aside and pulled out the herbs Anna had sent him during dinner.
There were a dozen small bags in total, but only five or six of them were what he needed for the Dragon Strength.
Leon opened the corresponding bags, finding a mishmash of herbs—some he had seen in the Empire, and others that were unique to the Dragon Race.
Rubbing his hands together, he opened the herbal book and flipped to the details about Dragon Strength.
“All right, let’s get started!”
Following the recipe in the book, Leon began his potion-making process.
First, he mixed and ground two types of herbs; that was the most basic step.
Then he had to burn a certain herb until it was charred, take the resulting powder, and store it in a bottle for later use.
Leon searched his room but couldn’t find anything to hold the powder.
Finally, a lightbulb went off in his head— his nutrient supplement was stored in a kind of test tube!
Taking out the nutrient bottle, he initially planned to pour out the liquid but then thought better of it and downed the whole thing in one go.
Wiping his mouth, he muttered, “Can’t waste it.”
After rinsing the test tube, he continued reading:
“Next, combine these three herbs and pour in the upper clear liquid made from Tianlan wood, stir well, and then…”
Leon proceeded step by step according to the instructions in the book.
“The most crucial step, which has puzzled all Dragon Race alchemists, is that this step is the reason most concoctions end in failure.”
Reading this line made Leon sit up straight, studying it intently.
“How to separate the effective substances from the mixed herbal powders… The book provides two methods.”
“One is high-temperature separation, but it has strict temperature requirements; it can’t be too high or too low.”
“The second is physical separation, using high-speed rotation to extract the needed effective substances. However, the efficiency of physical separation is particularly low…”
Leon looked at his amount of herbs; physical separation wouldn’t be enough.
And high-temperature separation required some specialized equipment, like an alcohol lamp equipped with Fire Element runes.
Where on earth would he find an alcohol lamp in this room where finding a test tube was already a hassle?
While he was troubled, he heard the lock of the door click, and quickly shoved a pile of herbs back into the drawer haphazardly.
Tap—tap—
Hearing the sound of high heels, he knew it was Roswiser.
“Hi.” The Queen walked into the bedroom, greeting him proactively.
Leon was taken aback, raising an eyebrow, “Oh, Your Majesty is in a good mood tonight; you actually said hi to me.”
Roswiser sat on the edge of the bed, crossed her beautiful legs, leaned back slightly, and looked at Leon with her captivating eyes.
“I am in a good mood.”
“What’s the reason?”
“Noia is very happy; when my daughter is happy, I’m happy too.”
Leon turned around, resting his arms on the back of the chair, “What does ‘happy’ mean?”
Roswiser shrugged, “She learned a lot of knowledge she hadn’t been exposed to before. Even the old knowledge, she got another perspective on it through you. She thinks that’s really great.”
Leon was slightly taken aback.
He thought Noia was always frowning, still unwilling to shake off this old dad of hers?
He never imagined she would actually express her satisfaction to Roswiser…
Leon felt delighted inside; his cold-hearted daughter was actually rather thoughtful.
After a pause, he heard Roswiser add, “You did quite well too, Leon.”
At her words, Leon almost broke into a grin.
After all, it wasn’t easy to get a compliment from this Mother Dragon.
But just then, Roswiser quickly added, “Of course, it’s mainly that Noia is naturally smart.”
Leon shot her an annoyed glance, pouted, and continued to fish for compliments, “Well, obviously! She’s my daughter; she’s bound to be clever.”
“If she didn’t have half of your genes, she’d definitely be even smarter.” Roswiser shot back.
“Why not say your half of the genes is dragging her down?” Leon countered without hesitation.
“Because the Dragon Race is the perfect being; it’s only humans that are riddled with flaws.”
“That’s a stereotype! Humans have plenty of strengths, okay? And the Dragon Race isn’t perfect at all.”
Roswiser raised an eyebrow, tilted her head with interest, and asked, “In what way is the Dragon Race not perfect?”
“Dragons… um… Dragons…”
Centuries of inherited power, the survival of the fittest, the ability to switch between human and dragon forms, the incredible growth speed of young dragons, and,
Absolute loyalty to their mates.
Leon scratched his head; it seemed this species really didn’t have any glaring flaws.
“Hmph, can’t come up with anything, huh?” Roswiser said smugly.
Leon’s eyes darted, and he suddenly blurted, “You dragons have too strong a sense of revenge…”
He didn’t specify how strong; he was sure this Mother Dragon knew perfectly well what he was getting at.
Roswiser was visibly taken aback, clearly not anticipating Leon to say something like that.
After a brief moment of surprise, the Queen chuckled and didn’t deny it, merely stating,
“Don’t worry, Dragon Slayer, it will get even stronger in the future.”
“…I really want to jump off the eighteen-meter high Silver Dragon Temple,” Leon said, feeling utterly defeated.
Roswiser covered her mouth, chuckling lightly, “Alright, alright, let’s talk about our daughter instead.”
“Whatever you say.”
“Besides teaching Noia knowledge these past few days, haven’t you done anything else? Like… parent-child games to strengthen your father-daughter bond?”
Leon shrugged, “Do you think the eldest daughter is the type to play games?”
“Ah, looks like you’ve somewhat figured out her personality.”
“Pretty much.”
“Then you should have realized that Noia is actually a great girl. That box of throat lozenges was her idea for you. So, she’s not as cold and standoffish as she seems on the surface.”
At this, Roswiser’s eyes drooped, and the smile that had just been on her lips faded back.
She looked down at her shoe tips and said softly, “She’s just… too mature. At an age where she should enjoy her father’s and mother’s love like Moon does, she already has her own independent thoughts and needs.”
Leon seriously considered what Roswiser had just said, “Her needs… are?”
“That’s something you’ll have to figure out slowly on your own. In short, you’re right about one thing, Leon; she’s your daughter, and she’s very smart, just like… you.”
Roswiser stood up, clearly ready to end tonight’s conversation.
But before she left, she sniffed the air, slightly furrowing her brow.
“Why does it smell like medicine?”
Leon panicked and quickly stood up, feigning calmness.
“Ah, I—I was a bit tired earlier and drank a bottle of nutrient solution, so it has a medicinal smell.”
He absolutely could not let this Mother Dragon discover what he was concocting for Dragon Strength.
Otherwise, she would definitely push her luck.
Then all his hard-won family standing would be gone!
Roswiser nodded, not pressing further, “Alright, I’ll have Anna send you some nutrients again tomorrow. Take good care of your health.”
For some reason, Leon felt something off about her “take good care of your health” comment…
This Mother Dragon must be hinting at something again!
Author’s note: Here’s the third update for today. Please vote for me~
