Borent, unaware of Irene's thoughts, merely assumed he had successfully connected with the young female dragon.
He breathed a slight sigh of relief.
“Here’s the thing, Miss Black Dragon, as you can see, this area is now sealed by our magic scroll.”
“You certainly can’t escape, so why not cooperate and come back with us?”
“I guarantee you won’t be harmed in any way.”
“You’re full of crap!” Daviel roared.
“If we go back with you, we’ll definitely be skinned alive and have our tendons pulled out!”
“We’ll just skin you, what are you gonna do about it?!”
The dwarf cleric, raising his holy flail, roared and lunged forward, only to be yanked back by Borent.
After shooting his teammate a fierce glare, Borent once again put on a fawning expression and explained:
“To be frank, within our Human Kingdom, there are actually others of your kind.”
“They are currently enjoying privileged conditions you can’t even imagine.”
“Not only are they provided with the finest meat, but they also receive regular professional massages and scale cleanings.”
“As long as you cooperate, I guarantee that both of you can also enjoy such a luxurious life.”
“Isn’t that better than toiling away hunting here?”
Irene narrowed her eyes, not replying immediately, simply staring at him.
The man’s facial expression was very natural; he didn’t seem to be lying.
If he was telling the truth, she would naturally be quite willing to be a ‘lying flat’ dragon that just ate and slept.
But as the saying goes in her previous life, ‘one who offers kindness without reason is either a rogue or a thief.’
Moreover, they had just killed one of their teammates, yet now these people were all smiles.
It inexplicably gave her a sense of déjà vu, like someone being lured into a pyramid scheme in her past life.
“So, what’s the price?”
Irene asked, lowering her voice.
She didn’t believe in free lunches; enjoying the service of the Human Empire would definitely come with a corresponding cost.
“The price?”
Hearing this, Borent’s heart swelled with joy; he knew she was tempted.
It was naturally best if they didn’t have to fight.
Not only would the danger be greatly reduced, but most importantly, a living dragon was far more valuable than a dead one.
A single dragon could represent a Dragon Knight and a noble family that thrives for a thousand years.
Those who rode dragons not only rode their dragon companions during the day but also at night.
This led to countless powerful dragon-blooded descendants, continuously strengthening their family’s power.
Which noble family possessing a dragon didn’t wield immense power and influence within the Empire?
To acquire a dragon companion, it was best to sign a contract when they were a hatchling or a juvenile dragon.
Because at that age, dragons didn’t possess much strength to resist, making it possible to force them into submission.
Once they grew into adolescent dragons or even young adult dragons, possessing significant power, they would be much harder to tame.
If they could bring these two juvenile dragons back and present them to the nobles or the royal family, the three of them wouldn’t have to worry for the rest of their lives.
Thinking this, Borent’s lips curled into an uncontrollable, somewhat perverse smile.
He looked like a creepy old man preparing to abduct a loli.
This sight sent shivers down Irene’s spine, making all her scales stand on end.
She suddenly felt an urge to kick this pervert to death.
Seeing the young dragoness’s expression grow increasingly impatient, Borent snapped back to reality.
Wiping the rain from his face,
After some deliberation, he used rather elegant language to explain to the two juvenile dragons the price they would have to pay to enjoy such conditions...
After listening to his lengthy explanation, Irene summarized it as: becoming mounts for human nobles.
Perhaps to show sincerity, the man even elaborated on how, as mounts, they would need to assist the Empire in wars if necessary.
He also detailed how they might need to “work overtime” at night.
And he stated that if they didn’t believe him, he could swear an oath to a True God.
Borent wasn’t lying about any of this.
These matters were common knowledge throughout the Human Kingdom.
The treatment those dragons received was so good that even Silver Rank adventurers like themselves envied it, often wishing they could become mounts instead of the dragons.
So he spoke with conviction.
However, listening to these words, Irene’s face gradually turned liver-colored.
But since her face was covered in black scales, the change in color wasn’t visible.
“If anyone’s doing the riding, it should be me riding others! How did it turn into others riding me?!”... This rather exasperating thought popped into Irene’s mind.
But then she noticed that her dragon brother, Daviel’s, eyes were shining brighter and brighter.
“Could this silly dragon actually be tempted?”
In the Draconic Inheritance, there were indeed records of dragons submitting to humans and willingly becoming mounts.
The most famous among them was the white dragon known as the “White Worm.”
That particular dragon was extremely skilled at finding old, wealthy mages.
It would trick and seduce these lustful old men, willingly becoming their mount.
Then, it would slowly extract their knowledge.
After outliving the mages riding her with its long draconic lifespan, it would naturally inherit their wealth.
Through such methods, which were disgraceful to a dragon’s dignity, this white dragon successfully outlived three Legendary mages.
Relying on the inheritances left by these three masters, it amassed astonishing wealth.
Even its combat power increased exponentially after learning a vast amount of magical knowledge.
As a white dragon, it became a formidable existence among the dragon race.
But that was something only a white dragon, the shame of the dragon race, would do.
It was no surprise what these foolish white creatures would do.
Daviel was a black dragon, so why did he look so eager?!
To prevent this silly dragon from going astray and unlocking any strange fetishes, Irene slammed a fist onto his head.
She almost knocked Daviel, who was lost in his fantasies, to the ground.
It was a physical awakening for him.
Making him deeply understand what it meant for Black Dragons to never be slaves.
Seeing this, Borent and the others immediately raised their weapons, thinking the negotiations had likely fallen apart.
But the next second,
To their astonishment, Irene, acting like a drama queen, pinched Daviel’s upper and lower jaws with one claw.
Her tail sharply smacked the ground behind her, making a dull thud.
She then pretended to swallow, as if greatly tempted.
Ensuring her acid breath wouldn't escape, she mumbled a few words through clenched teeth:
“Fine... we’ll go with you.”
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