Chapter 2: Dragon Race
Fisher looked into the corner of the tent opened by Colin. In the darkened space stacked with cages, pairs of eyes drawn by the conversations outside lifted up; some bright, some dim, some filled with hatred, all directed towards the entrance.
He leaned on his staff, pulled the brim of his hat a bit higher, and walked ahead of Colin.
“No need, just take me to take a look.”
“Of course, of course, this way please.” Colin gestured with his hand and followed Fisher into the small tent.
As soon as Fisher entered, a low growl akin to a cat fluffing up its fur emanated from a cage beside him. He glanced over and saw a child of the cat race curled up in the corner of the cage, with pupils essentially slitted, watching Fisher warily, especially the staff in his hand.
However, when Fisher’s calm gaze fell upon him, he seemed startled and lowered his head, only letting out a low hiss.
“You damn!”
Seeing this, Colin stepped forward and kicked the iron cage that held the cat race, the enormous impact causing the cat person to crash against the side of the cage, the chain around his neck shining bright, and the slave seal also illuminated, making the cat person emit a painful howl.
But the howl lasted only a few seconds before stopping, and upon closer inspection, the child seemed to have lost consciousness.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry to have startled Mr. Fisher.” Colin returned, wiping the sweat from his forehead, as if the action of kicking the cage had been strenuous, “These guys don’t understand human language; training them is quite troublesome. Please follow this way, the dragon is here.”
Fisher gazed at the silent cat person in the cage, and after a moment of silence, he turned his gaze away and followed Colin deeper into the tent.
The arrangement of the cages inside the tent was deliberate; the more valuable and cherished the subhumans, the further they were placed inside.
Outside were cat people, dog people, and wolf people—subhuman races that were still somewhat numerous in the wilderness. As Fisher moved deeper, he surprisingly discovered a male Cangniao subhuman with white feathers, but unfortunately, it appeared on the verge of death and looked like it wouldn’t last long.
These beings, subordinate even to working slaves, lacked basic rights, and were scattered around the world as subhuman races.
Ever since the chimneys and steam engines radiating the brilliance of human civilization were constructed by humans, they had been driven by various interests to plunder everything from the world, generating more value in return. The geographical distances were shortened, production capacities increased day by day, and the human world thrived and prospered.
But who could have known that everything in the future would be destroyed by these beings that seemed so lowly today.
The fluorescent lights above flickered, and Colin stopped in front of a certain cage; he clapped his hands, causing the fluorescent lights at the top of the tent to come alive, descending and illuminating the situation in front of the cage.
Fisher’s gaze fell upon the cage of medium size, and the first thing illuminated by the fluorescent light was the deep red, dark like blood. Next, he saw what resembled a human arm, with a thin layer of clearly shaped scales clinging to its surface, and a slender tail gently wrapping around her curled-up legs.
There sat a girl, dressed in a dirty linen tunic that looked like it had been worn for a long time. Her limbs were not like those of a human but resembled the sharp claws of a dragon. Her eyes unnaturally glowed with green light, and when her eyelids opened and shut again, her eyes revealed their deep emerald hue.
This was a young dragon race, with red hair, red scales, and a long tail; if he wasn’t mistaken, she was the target Fisher had come to find.
Fisher’s scrutinizing gaze met her emerald eyes, and in the next moment, her golden pupils sharply elongated. Despite her expressionless face, it sent a chill down his spine, as if she would tear him apart in the next instant.
“This is the treasure we worked hard to capture, and it injured many of our slaves.” Colin’s tone was somewhat gritting his teeth as he kicked the cage containing the dragon girl, but unlike the cat person, the dragon girl inside made no sound, merely staring quietly at the people outside.
“However, they are indeed treasures. Their blood can be refined into ‘dragon blood,’ heh, that’s something special, especially for a handsome gentleman like you who needs it. Ah, and dragon scales too; they can be used for many things; I’ve heard that nobles in Shivali like to use their scales for heat pads, especially in winter, it’s really…”
As he spoke, he gazed at the girl’s scales as if she were a treasure.
The scales of the dragon race, even when removed, could still generate heat, as they absorbed energy from sunlight. Such heat pads were popular items among those nobles and merchants, especially in winter.
Dragon blood is not actual dragon’s blood, for in this world, there are no real dragons. So-called dragon blood is merely a refined substance derived from these dragon humanoids’ blood; when consumed by humans, it serves to strengthen and energize, making it a precious medicine.
Fisher lifted his gaze again toward the surrounding cages, which similarly held female dragon humanoids—two white, one blue, and one yellow.
“Very well, I’ll take them.”
“Three things.” Fisher nodded, holding up three fingers toward Colin. “First, give me the Slave Seal; second, allow them to take a bath; third, five brand new linen tunics.”
“Of course, no problem at all.”
Colin waved his chubby hand, and several cages containing dragon humanoids began to move gently. Looking closely, one could see that dozens of small, gnome-like beetles were rolling beneath the heavy iron cages, forming a moving track that transported the large cages away.
The smell inside was overwhelming; Fisher glanced back at the scene one last time before heading outside, waiting at the entrance of the circus by his carriage.
This was the wilderness near Brian City. If he wanted to return to Karl Port, which could reach Saint Nali, there was still a journey lasting a month. The Southern Continent lacked the well-developed railway system and infrastructure of the Western Continent; here, there were only vast expanses of wilderness and monsters.
Of course, for those reckless fellows on the Western Continent who prioritized money over their lives, this place was littered with unexploited gold.
“Mr. Fisher, all set, all set.”
Colin trotted out from the circus, carrying a deep brown leather scroll, his bulk shaking with every move, sweat pouring down like raindrops.
Behind him, several women dressed as maids were leading the chained dragon humanoids, following Colin out.
At this moment, as the dragon humanoids emerged from the dim tent, Fisher could finally see their full forms.
The female dragon humanoids were not tall, but that was a comparison to the roughly two-meter-tall males. Even so, they generally stood around one hundred seventy centimeters tall. Especially the red dragon, who seemed to tower above the others by a head. A long dragon tail trailed behind them, not reaching the ground due to their height.
The eyes of the dragon humanoids behind them were vacant, with only the lead red dragon retaining a serene expression, though deep within her lake-like green eyes, one could not tell what kind of waves were concealed.
“I’ve instructed the maids to ensure every speck of dirt between their scales is washed clean. Here is the contract seal book; please place your palm on it.”
Fisher complied, placing his hand on the brown leather scroll, and purple lights began to spread along his arm. Moments later, a peculiar sensation surged within him. Faint sounds of a heartbeat appeared in his ears, and those sounds felt almost tangible; whenever he wished, he could speed them up, slow them down, or even halt them entirely.
Now, he fully possessed these dragon humanoids.
The maid approached, handing him the chain that bound them, and Fisher stepped onto the carriage first, opening the door and gesturing for the dragon humanoids to enter. As they sidestepped past him, the dragon girls watched him cautiously before each of them entered the carriage.
However, Fisher did not enter; he gently closed the door behind him, placing his staff aside as before, and grasped the reins of the horses.
“Farewell, Mr. Colin.”
“Take care, take care.”
Colin’s chubby body trembled as he bowed his head, and as he struggled to lift his head again, the black carriage rumbled away like thunder, heading towards the other side of the Brian wilderness, quickly disappearing from sight.
As he waited for the carriage to slowly fade from his view, he murmured to himself, “Incredible, incredible, how could I encounter such a person. I must set off quickly.”
He slowly returned to the place concealed by the tent drapery, his plump figure gradually disappearing, and the crisp sound of claps echoed. Following those claps, the entire circus came alive with lights and music, as if it had been reanimated; the white draping spun faster and faster, until it enveloped the entire circus, then shrank and shrank, while the music grew louder.
“Kexiening! Kexiening! Kexiening!”
The worshipful voices soared, and the entire circus transformed into a basketball shape; in the next moment, the white basketball suddenly vanished, along with the soaring music abruptly stopping, leaving behind only a sack containing a corpse and the earth spirits who had always peered out from the ground.
(End of Chapter)
