Aljettah heard his wife's words and curled his lip. "What could he possibly be busy with? He's definitely loafing around somewhere. We've been friends for so many years—how could I not know him?"
"All right, all right. Chief Steward Belder is here. Don't talk about his lord in front of others," Laxia reminded him softly, her ears twitching.
Seeing this, Aljettah stopped complaining.
Two minutes later, Belder arrived in the hall and greeted Aljettah and Laxia.
The dragon couple rose and returned the greeting.
"Lord Aljettah, may I ask what brings you here?" Belder sat down across from him and got straight to the point.
Aljettah did not hide his purpose either. "Some time ago, I sent Velin a magical message, but received no reply. Left with no choice, I came here."
Belder wore an apologetic expression. "Lord Aljettah, my lord is not currently in Qixing Territory. He is overseeing the construction of a fortress in another space, which is why he did not receive your magical message. On behalf of my lord, I offer you my apologies."
Aljettah waved it off, showing that he did not mind. He then said, "Send someone to inform him as soon as possible. The Sea-Sky Ice Abyss is approaching. Tell him to hurry to the Silver Dragon Kingdom's capital. If he is late, my father may already be gone."
"I understand," Belder replied with a nod.
Having delivered the message, Aljettah prepared to leave. Then he suddenly remembered something, turned to Belder, and asked curiously, "Can that tax exemption policy you recently announced cover my tavern as well?"
Belder, who had been about to rise and see them off, froze for a moment upon hearing this. He quickly recovered and answered naturally, "Of course it can."
"That's good."
Aljettah answered and left the