"Since Black Oil can be eaten."
"Then energy ores of higher quality than Black Oil should, barring surprises, provide me with even more abundant energy."
"The problem is that these are all strategic resources. Small amounts of Black Oil are no big deal. If you're lucky, you can dig up a deposit yourself, and some Alchemists refine it on their own. But large Black Oil reserves and other energy mineral deposits are tightly controlled by the major powers."
Garos fell into thought.
Putting everything else aside.
The Human Empire [Holden] and the Elven Empire [Nausir] were still secretly competing and constantly clashing over the division of resources from a super-large Black Oil reserve.
If not for the fact that a war between powers of their scale would have unpredictable consequences and could very likely end in mutual destruction.
They would not merely be competing in the shadows now.
"There are oil fields in the Ser Wilderness too, but troops are stationed at all of them for extraction."
"I'll deal with that later. I definitely can't provoke them now, or I'd be courting death. Besides, I don't need much energy for evolution at the moment. Hunting monsters and ferocious beasts is enough."
Garos thought silently.
He lowered his head and looked at the Black Oil on his claws.
He extended his nimble tongue and carefully licked it clean, then picked up the Alchemy Engine and poured the remaining Black Oil inside directly into his mouth.
The invigorating, spicy sensation shot straight to the top of his head.
After draining the little Black Oil left in the Alchemy Engine in one gulp.
Garos felt as though a blazing fire had ignited in his belly, and his spirits surged with excitement.
Whoosh!
He spread his dragon wings and shot into the sky amid howling winds. He soared at high speed through the heavens, continuously spewing streams of Flame Dragon Breath. The dark-red patterns across his scales turned lava-like, flowing and gleaming.
The endlessly spreading, churning flames.
Dyed the clouds crimson, as though they had been set ablaze.
Half an hour later, Garos folded his wings and landed on a slab of rock. The sensation of fierce flames burning in his stomach had faded, yet he still wanted more.
Because during that short half hour.
Garos could clearly feel that his training results had surpassed more than a week of normal effort, especially in the power and duration of his Dragon Breath.
And he still did not feel particularly tired.
"Really good stuff."
He picked up the Alchemy Engine and gave it another shake.
In the end, only a single drop of Black Oil remained, falling into Garos's palm.
He had intended to eat it directly.
But on second thought, Garos looked toward Samantha.
"The inheritance says this isn't food, but it clearly packs quite a punch when I eat it. Could the inheritance be wrong?"
Dragon Inheritance was not necessarily completely accurate. The information within could be outdated, incomplete, or mistaken.
"Let Samantha try it."
Garos woke Samantha and, under her suspicious gaze, said, "Black Oil contains abundant energy. I just ate quite a lot. You should try some too."
"Really? My inheritance never said this stuff could be eaten."
Samantha was doubtful.
She extended her warm tongue and licked the drop of Black Oil from Garos's palm.
Then.
Ptooey!
Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!
Before she could even swallow it, Samantha's eyelids twitched as she spat the Black Oil onto the ground several times.
"This can be eaten? It's completely impossible to swallow!"
She scraped at her tongue, not wanting even the slightest trace of Black Oil on it.
"Looks like there was nothing wrong with the inheritance. I'm the problem."
Garos was speechless.
"This engine is yours. It'll help you learn Alchemy spells."
He tossed the Alchemy Engine to Samantha.
Black Oil came in varying grades, and the Black Oil Garos had just eaten was the lowest grade.
Alchemy could further refine and purify ordinary Black Oil, and it could also refine monster bodies into ordinary Black Oil. These were among the most basic aspects of Alchemy.
Once Samantha mastered it, it would be time for her to repay him.
Garos did not keep idle dragons around.
Besides, it would not take too long. Dragonkin were actually very talented learners, and getting started in Alchemy was not particularly difficult.
Samantha accepted the Alchemy Engine, examined it curiously for a few moments, then curled her tail around it. Half-closing her eyes, she continued delving into the inherited knowledge.
Looking at Samantha, who was immersed in her inherited knowledge.
Garos suddenly wondered how the other Iron Dragon Brother, Gordon, was doing.
Gordon was less arrogant and conceited than Samantha, but he was not as sharp-minded as she was. He had always been somewhat foolish, and surviving alone would probably be difficult for him.
Shaking his head, Garos did not dwell on it.
He had already given Gordon an opportunity. What choice Gordon made was his own business.
If Gordon came to rely on him like Samantha had, willing to obey commands and stop causing trouble on a whim, Garos could accept his allegiance and let him learn, like Samantha, a type of spell that could assist Garos and benefit him.
But what Garos did not know was.
Gordon would not be coming here.
From an extremely high vantage point, one could see a main road winding through nearly the entire Ser Wilderness. Its branching roads formed a dense spiderweb, like forked twigs stretching in many directions, resembling the veins of the Wilderness.
And this network was called—the Trail of a Thousand Snakes.
In essence, it was the collective name for the many roads responsible for merchant caravan traffic and mineral transportation across the Ser Wilderness.
The main road of the Trail of a Thousand Snakes led directly into the territory of the southern Lothern Federation. It was broad, paved with a layer of asphalt-like material, and stretched endlessly beneath the sun.
As faint tremors repeatedly rippled through the ground.
Wheels forged from metal within and coated in rubber-like material on the surface rolled over the road.
A total of ten massive, truck-like constructs nearly fifteen meters long, forged through Alchemy, sped along the road with roaring gusts.
One of the trucks carried an open-air steel cage.
Each steel bar was as thick as an adult's arm, and densely packed Alchemy Runes had been engraved upon them.
Inside the cage was the Iron Dragonet, Gordon.
He opened his jaws and bit down on the cage.
Amid teeth-grating metallic clashes, sparks scattered everywhere.
Gordon's dragon teeth ached, yet he had only left shallow marks. He could not break through the cage at all.
After leaving the Iron Dragon Mother's territory, he had planned to start by robbing merchant caravans and then head south to make a name for himself.
Yet the moment he showed himself, he was instantly captured by the powerful caravan guards. After being passed around several times, he was ultimately purchased by this large caravan.
"Stop biting. Even if all your teeth break, you won't bite through it. This cage has been strengthened through Alchemy. It can trap even an Adolescent Dragon."
A human warrior standing outside the cage said this. He wore heavy armor.
"Damn humans, what do you want to do to a great True Dragon?!"
Gordon roared, baring his fangs.
The warrior smacked his lips and said, "Don't react so strongly. We won't skin you or take apart your bones and scales. On the contrary, we'll dress you up nicely and let you enjoy a wonderful life."
"What?"
Gordon did not believe him, his eyes filled with vigilance.
"The beloved little princess of the Lothern Kingdom wants a Dragonkin companion as a birthday gift. The kingdom issued an official bounty notice, and you, lucky little Iron Dragon, are the gift we will present to the little princess."
At that, Gordon's eyes widened.
He had never imagined that he would head south, to the place he wanted to go, in this way.
Before you continue