Brewing Some Vinegar for Dumplings

"Mm..."

Aisha made the soft sound girls made when they had just woken up.

She rubbed her eyes.

Huh? There was a Red Dragon.

Mm! It was Drogo.

Even though ten days had passed since she had been abducted, she still was not used to having a dragon beside her.

Especially a dragon planning to enter a city and sell toys.

Well, perhaps there was nothing surprising about that. She had seen more than enough bizarre things these past few days.

For instance, several thousand yo-yos had been produced, divided into different types based on their appearance and details, each given an outrageously grand name.

Like Firepower Warrior, Storm Battle Hawk, Speed Demon, Shockwave...

Each one sounded more intimidating than the last.

She had also seen Drogo's drafts. There were many that had not yet been made, such as Photon Sprite and Ice Soul.

According to him, Goblins' craftsmanship was not advanced enough. He would have to cooperate with dwarves.

What exactly was inside that dragon's head, for him to come up with so many strange things?

Several thousand yo-yos had been packed into crates and loaded onto the ship, traveling with them toward Twin Towers City.

Drogo had also shrunk himself to half a man's height. Since a breed of Gnome Sub-Dragon had been cultivated half a century ago and become a popular pet, Drogo's smaller form did not stand out.

Though one merchant aboard the ship had thought Drogo was an exceptionally fine specimen and wanted to buy him as a breeding dragon for one hundred gold coins.

Aisha had been terrified at the time, afraid that Drogo would blow the entire ship away in anger. She had hurriedly ordered the two accompanying Orcs to drive the merchant off.

Yes, two Orcs had joined them on this journey. They were responsible for moving cargo and providing security, because if Drogo made a move, the area affected would be far too large. They could not casually resort to force.

As for why they had not used a teleportation array to reach Twin Towers City—

It was still because of Drogo. His magic resistance was too high. Any teleportation array capable of transporting him would have to be no smaller than a Legion-Class Teleportation Array.

Sometimes, being an Ancient Dragon was quite helpless too.

They were traveling aboard the latest Steam-Powered Ship, which had only begun official operation a year ago. Its power was still insufficient, so it needed sails to assist it.

Still, the cabins were far better than those on traditional merchant ships. Besides a bed, there was even room for a table.

For the past few days, Drogo had been writing and drawing at the table. If outsiders saw him, they would surely think they were hallucinating.

"What are you drawing?" Aisha asked curiously.

"A comic."

"This is a comic?" Aisha had seen comics before. Groups in the city sometimes drew them—usually exaggerated satire—and secretly pasted them onto walls. She rather liked them.

But Drogo's drawings were very different from the ones she had seen.

Those comics had large illustrations, usually conveying all their content in a single image. They were painted in oils.

Drogo, however, used pencils to draw on sheets of paper the size of books. The pictures contained only simple lines and were divided into many panels.

They looked a little like simplified sketches, but sketches were usually only used as drafts.

"Of course it is, though it's still in the line-art stage. Once we reach Twin Towers City, I'll find artists to fill it in."

Aisha picked up several completed pages.

Blazing Teens. Like those yo-yos, it had a strange name. Could it be referring to Firepower Warrior?

The artwork was not especially outstanding, but it was full of movement. The content of every panel progressed continuously, as though it were using drawings to tell a story!

In the picture, two people stood on a bridge. They flicked out yo-yos like knights drawing swords, using moves against each other as if in a duel. He had even drawn in the illusions she had created.

"I'll definitely surpass you."

"In the eyes of the world, my Western Speed Style is the strongest."

"At the next tournament, I'll definitely return."

Words were written inside little circles beside the characters. Aisha roughly understood that they represented the characters speaking.

What was Western Speed Style? Wasn't the west the territory of barbarians?

The following plot involved the various academies holding a yo-yo competition and forming teams.

The male protagonist saw injustice on the road and used a yo-yo to knock someone else's weapon away.

That was where the draft ended.

It felt like one of those hero novels, except magic and combat techniques had been replaced with yo-yos. She had loved this kind of story when she was young.

Though it felt a little embarrassing to read now, she was genuinely looking forward to the male protagonist showing off his expert skills before his team.

Just thinking about it gave her a secret thrill.

But who would draw it? She knew some artists, but they all believed that any picture requiring written explanations had failed to express itself clearly. Such paintings would disgrace their reputations.

Never mind. Drogo would definitely have a way to deal with that. At worst, he could abduct another one.

"How does it look?" Drogo asked.

"It's pretty interesting, but you aren't drawing all this just to sell yo-yos, are you?"

"Of course I am. After reading it, don't you want to buy one?"

"Is there really a need to go through so much trouble?"

In Aisha's understanding, toy businesses usually only covered one or two streets. Becoming known throughout the city was already the limit. If advertising was needed, posting a few promotional pictures on the street was enough.

"Of course there is. We're going to sell yo-yos across the entire continent, even throughout the whole world. Besides, don't you think yo-yos are difficult?"

"They are, but what does that have to do with comics?"

Aisha had secretly tried to imitate the moves from Drogo's proposal. Not only had she basically never succeeded, she had even banged her forehead black and blue.

The only move she knew was Walk the Dog, which was rolling the yo-yo along the ground for a while before pulling it back.

Walk the Dog did not deserve illusions in the plan, but after her strong recommendation, it could now summon a little white dog.

"So I'll use comics to make people feel that yo-yos are amazing and create a trend. People are animals that like to follow trends. To keep up, they'll cross the difficulty barrier.

"And comics themselves are fun too, aren't they?"

"We've arrived at Twin Towers City!"

The sailor's shout rang out, announcing the end of their journey.

Passengers made their way to the deck, eager to witness the grandeur of the continent's largest city.

Aisha was excited too. She had never visited such a large city before, and her brother worked here.

Drogo, on the other hand, was not very interested. The last time he had come here was over two hundred years ago. Back then, it was not called Twin Towers City, its area was small, and the city lord did not own anything worth much.

However, there had been an interesting young mage who had opened his mage tower to let civilians take shelter.

Drogo had become interested then and had breathed dragon fire along the tower's exterior to scare him. Unexpectedly, the mage's barrier had blocked all of it.

If he was still alive, he should have advanced to Legendary Mage by now.

After disembarking, the cargo had to wait for customs officials to inspect it and could only be temporarily stored in a warehouse.

Drogo planned to take a look around first. It was his first time seeing a city from such a low perspective.

At that moment, a Half-Elf approached them. His clothes looked old, but they were neat and clean.

"Honored lady, welcome to the City of Magic, the City of Commerce, the Origin of Technology, and the great Twin Towers City that connects two continents. I believe you must need a professional guide after your journey."

Aisha looked at Drogo. Once they entered the city, she could only speak on his behalf.

"Take me to the largest toy store in the city."

"Oh, you truly are a lady with a childlike heart."

Not me, Aisha thought.

They hired a carriage. Since the horses collapsed in terror whenever Drogo came near, he had no choice but to fly along behind it, while the two Orcs jogged beside them the whole way.

"This is Cornflower Street, one of the busiest streets. You can find anything you want to buy here. Of course, the prices aren't very pretty, but I'm sure that won't concern you."

The Half-Elf introduced the area diligently.

"Arclight Toy Store. You definitely can't go wrong buying toys here. I hear even members of the royal family like the toys they design."

It was a three-story building. Drogo glanced across the street, where there was a three-story restaurant.

Just as the Half-Elf was about to open the door, Aisha interrupted him. "No need. Let's go to the shop across the street instead."

"Of course, as you wish. This restaurant's seafood risotto is its signature dish. I hear the head chef is from Lar Island..."

Aisha walked into the restaurant, and a waiter came forward to greet her.

"Welcome..." He had not finished speaking.

"Who owns this building?"

"Sir Bane," the waiter answered, though he did not understand why she was asking.

"Very good. Inform Sir Bane that Miss Aisha Stone wishes to buy this building. He will receive an offer he cannot refuse."

Both the Half-Elf and the waiter froze. Was there something wrong with this person's head?

The manager noticed the situation. After looking at the accompanying Orc warriors and Sub-dragon pet, he guessed that she was probably a child of nobility spoiled beyond reason. He could not afford to provoke her, so he hurried over.

"Miss Stone, may I ask what you wish to purchase this building for?"

"To open a toy store."

"Huh?"