Chương 173: Reborn as the Dragon — Chapter 173 - Where Did All the Gold Coins Go?

"Very well. I, Su Nian · Votrus · Stupak, swear to Tiamat and Bahamut!"

"If you pledge your allegiance to me, I will not take your gold coins. Nor will I seal your mouth." Su Nian declared the words clearly and activated the oath contract unique to dragonkind. In the unseen realm between worlds. Two vast, ancient wills settled upon him. One was utterly placid, indifferent, almost. The other carried scrutiny and curiosity. The oath held. With the Black Dragon's solemn vow spoken and bound, the awkwardness in Rolls-Royce's chest finally eased.

The number of dragons in the world was shrinking. Chromatic and Metallic dragons were still enemies, still bickered, still clashed, but the days of fighting to the death were growing rare. Unless one dragon stole another's hoard. Then all bets were off.

"I, Rolls-Royce · Engus · Turmalin, under the terms of this contract, am willing to become the vassal of the Black Dragon Su Nian." Rolls-Royce lowered his head and pressed his nasal ridge lightly against the Black Dragon's foreclaw. A contract of fairly solid binding force, sealed. As for why Su Nian hadn't offered the Brass Dragon a drop of blood, Rolls-Royce was a true dragon. A single drop of Su Nian's heart blood would be instantly absorbed and assimilated by the dragon blood already flowing through his veins.

Nothing would come of it except wasted blood. Between dragonkind, subordinate bonds were forged through contracts, not blood.

"Now then! Rolls-Royce, take me to your Dragon's Nest!" Rolls-Royce was his vassal now. No need for politeness. Moving into someone else's home and calling it his own, Su Nian had gotten very good at that.

"Oh, and Bolikri — bring that human-shaped backpack." He turned his head just before leaving and tossed the order over his shoulder to the Kobold Chieftain....... The Dragon's Nest wasn't far. Around a cluster of towering cacti, a low, wide cliff face came into view. Su Nian spotted the spindle-shaped cave carved into the rock immediately, it connected all the way up to the top of the cliff, where several sand dunes had piled high. The spot had sunbathing written all over it.

On the walk over, desert creatures of every shape appeared in the sand around them. Their eyes tracked Su Nian with open fear, but around the Brass Dragon they seemed perfectly comfortable.

"Good afternoon, Rosie~" A sandworm poked half its head up from the ground at the sound.

"Little Pero, you're getting fatter and fatter~" Rolls-Royce waved a greeting at a big-bellied desert scorpion, bloated as a wild boar.

"And you, Hermès~ If you're still going hungry today, come find me~" Hermès was an owl. Unlike the other plump, well-fed owls in the world, this particular Hermès looked painfully thin. Like it had never once eaten its fill. Hermès stared at Rolls-Royce with enormous round eyes and gave a small, grateful bow.

"These are your vassals?" Su Nian observed them carefully. The creatures capable of basic interaction with Rolls-Royce all carried a faint trace of Brass Dragon aura.

"More or less... though they can't really communicate with me. They understand what I say and can give simple responses, but that's about it."

"This desert is too dry. I haven't been able to find any humanoid creatures willing to live out here." This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Rolls-Royce looked quietly forlorn. For a Brass Dragon who lived to talk, going without intelligent company was clearly a specific kind of suffering.

"But, Master — yesterday I made a friend! He's a human. His name is Tar!"

"He agreed to chat with me for two copper coins a day!"

"I plan to invest ten thousand Gold Lions in him!" By this point, Su Nian had already followed Rolls-Royce into the Dragon's Nest. These words landed right in front of the human adventurer half-buried in sand. Tar: "(⊙_☉)???" Su Nian: "(? _?)..." Rolls-Royce's approach to friendship was genuinely something else. Su Nian almost felt bad pulling back the curtain.

"Brass Dragon! I never agreed to anything — let me go home! Aren't you supposed to be one of the good ones? You're nothing but an evil mmmph—""Shhh, shhh, shhh..." Rolls-Royce casually withdrew the dragon claw that had been quietly shoveling sand. The human adventurer was now completely buried. Mouth packed full of sand. Only two nostrils left to breathe through.

"Ahem... Master, don't concern yourself with the details. He actually agreed before, but you know how it is..."

"Humans. Greedy by nature." Su Nian gave him a sideways look. He understood. Whether Chromatic or Metallic, whatever side of good and evil a dragon fell on, they all shared one common trait: absolutely no shame. Seeing that the Black Dragon wasn't going to say anything, Rolls-Royce relaxed visibly and launched into the tour with renewed enthusiasm.

"Master, this is my personal sunbathing spot."

"Every morning at six o'clock, my delicate backside faces outward from the Dragon's Nest, ""And receives the very first warm ray of sunlight!" Rolls-Royce gestured grandly at an outward-jutting stone slab, his expression glowing with pride.

"And over here, Master, my collection! Decades' worth of accumulation!" He crawled out clutching a golden treasure chest. Inside was a glittering spread of handicrafts, bone, wood, stone, fabric, all manner of things fashioned by hand. Compared to other great dragons, Brass Dragons preferred wealth built from organic materials. Cold crystal and polished metal didn't particularly appeal to them. Which was also why Rolls-Royce was willing to drop ten thousand gold coins on hiring someone just to talk to him.

Another dragon in his position? Not a single copper. In fact, the adventurer would probably owe the dragon for the privilege. The honor of speaking with a great dragon was considered a gift by most of their kind. Su Nian had no interest in the handicrafts. He was interested in the gold coins, and Rolls-Royce had already led him to where they were kept. A circular depression deep in the cave. An animal-hide mat lining the bottom.

And sitting in the middle of it all, over ten thousand gold coins piled into a gleaming little hill.

"Master, these are the coins I've collected over recent years..."

"I know Black Dragons love gold. Now that I've pledged to serve you, I'm willing to offer five hundred gold coins as tribute..."

"The rest I still need, to hire adventurers to talk to me." Rolls-Royce said it with genuine pain on his face. This was already his biggest concession. Five hundred gold coins. How many days of conversation could that even buy? Su Nian took two quiet steps back. He caught the eye of Kobold Chieftain Bolikri, who had made the trip up to the Dragon's Nest clinging to his tail, and gave him a subtle look. Bolikri understood immediately. One open-palmed slap. CRACK. Right across the player-shaped backpack.

The Sakura player erupted with rage. Having his limbs removed was already rock bottom. Being used as a storage pack by monsters was already a new low for human dignity. And now a kobold was slapping him around for absolutely no reason? Who could put up with that?! Today he would fight to the bitter end. Sakura players didn't kneel and live. They stood and died. Bolikri watched the fire burning in the player's eyes and sneered, wholly unbothered.

It reached to its belt, pulled out a small leather pouch, opened the drawstring just a crack, and held it up in front of the Sakura player's face. The player went quiet. He reached out with his will, wrapped it around the pile of gold coins, and in the single instant the Brass Dragon's attention was on the Black Dragon, swept every last coin into his inventory.

"Gold coins? Where are the gold coins!?" Su Nian blinked, wearing a look of perfect bewildered innocence as he stared at the empty pit. Rolls-Royce turned at the words. His entire dragon brain went blank.

"Gold coins? My gold coins?"

"Damn it all! By Bahamut above!"

"They were right here, how are they gone the moment I turn my back?" He was already scrambling around the circular depression like a dragon on a hot griddle. Digging on one side. Digging on the other. He shoved his whole head into the pit. Then his neck. Then most of his body. Still nothing. He glanced over at the Black Dragon, who looked equally confused. The contract hadn't stirred at all. Which meant the coins' disappearance had nothing to do with Su Nian.

"By the restless dead, why?!" Rolls-Royce clutched his head in his claws. He was starting to wonder if all those months of ambushing bandit crews and relieving criminals of their ill-gotten gains had been some kind of fever dream.

"Speaking of which, Rolls-Royce, don't forget what you said earlier. Five hundred gold coins. In tribute."

"We dragons keep our word."

"Metallic Dragons especially." Su Nian was smiling. It was a wide, terrible smile, and it made Rolls-Royce's heart sink straight to the floor.

"But, Master... I don't have any gold coins left to give you..." Su Nian had been waiting for exactly this moment. A subordinate contract between dragons established the hierarchy, but that alone wasn't enough to make a dragon abandon its nest. Getting a dragon to willingly leave its lair was no small thing. Now, though, Su Nian had a legitimate reason.

"No gold coins? Then you work it off. Leave your Dragon's Nest and follow me to conquer the human kingdoms."

"Those five hundred gold coins are a debt you owe me. Don't pay up, and I'll seal your mouth and take every piece of your precious collection."

"And your human friend, while I'm at it." ➤ Next: Undercurrents Stirring