Chapter 90

That night, I was relaxing on the sofa in the living room.

The living room and the dragon house are directly connected so I can rush to the dragons if anything happens.

In the living room, I was lost in thought, feeling the dragons' breathing.

Squish!

"What are you thinking so seriously about?"

"Whoa!"

I was startled and leaned back dramatically.

I fell off the sofa and landed on my butt, looking up.

There stood a familiar adult woman.

She looked down at me with a face that seemed to exude all the confidence in the world.

"It's you, Chris... Wait, Chris?"

"Hmm? What's wrong, dear friend, have you forgotten my face?"

"No, I haven't forgotten your face, but..."

I stared at Chris.

Then I touched my own face.

The soft sensation from just now was still lingering.

"Soft sensation?"

"Is this your first time feeling breasts, dear friend?"

"No way! I mean, why did I feel the sensation of a human's chest?"

I immediately shot down Chris's joke.

"Besides, you weren't using your shapeshifting ability, and even if you were, it would only change your appearance, right?"

I spoke out loud to organize my confused thoughts.

Thanks to my contract with Yui, I can make dragons use shapeshifting to appear human.

However, that only changes their appearance; their true form remains a dragon.

So, it's impossible to feel something as soft as that.

A dragon's skin, or rather, scales, are incredibly hard.

"Hahaha, this is nothing for me."

"Nothing for you?"

"There is nothing I cannot do, dear friend."

"...Ah, I see."

For some reason, I found myself nodding in agreement.

If it's Chris... I strangely accepted it.

It would be ungraceful to argue, so I decided to let it slide.

I sat back on the sofa.

Chris came over and sat next to me.

"So, what were you thinking about?"

"I was thinking about increasing the number of dragons in Dragon First."

"Finally decided, huh?"

"Finally?"

I looked at Chris, puzzled.

"Considering your reputation and the guild's fame, the current number of dragons is far too few."

"..."

I was speechless.

That was exactly what I was struggling with, so I couldn't argue.

"So, that's why you were muttering to yourself."

"That's right."

"So, how do you plan to increase the number of dragons? There are only two ways, after all."

"Two ways?"

"Buy them or poach them."

"Ah... I see."

"Or 'steal' them, if you will."

"That depends on the situation."

"Hahaha. Not saying 'no' to that, dear friend, is truly remarkable."

"Sometimes it's necessary."

I nodded slightly and said seriously.

In some cases, it might be better to protect a dragon by taking it, given how poorly they can be treated in some guilds.

"Well, the safest way is to buy them."

"Right. I'll go to the dragon market tomorrow."

☆

The next day, I went to the Boarsel dragon market with Jeanne, who had joined me early in the morning.

We visited several places, but there were no dragons that I wanted to bring to the guild.

"This one didn't work out either."

"Yeah, none of them did."

I stepped out of the last place and smiled wryly at Jeanne.

"There was no dragon that met Sir Cyril's standards."

"How about you, Jeanne?"

"Me?"

"Yeah, did you like any of them, even if I didn't?"

"Well... none of them stood out."

"Hmm."

I nodded slightly.

I had hoped that even if I didn't like any, Jeanne might have found one, but it seems she didn't either.

"Sir Cyril?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you like me to introduce you to a breeder?"

"A breeder?"

"Yes, a dragon breeder in Saint Simon who has connections with the royal family."

"Hmm."

I pinched my chin and thought.

A dragon breeder, huh.

"I've heard about this before... I confirmed it today."

"Confirmed what?"

"Really smart or strong dragons are rarely found in the market; they are usually traded in the front yards of Saint Simon."

"Front yards..."

"Apparently, the best ones are given to those with connections."

"Ah... I see."

I nodded.

"I would do the same with really good dragon tools, using them myself or giving them to acquaintances instead of selling them in the store."

"Yes."

I completely agreed with Jeanne.

If I had heard this a while ago, it might have taken me longer to understand, but now that I'm involved in dragon tool production, I understood immediately.

Of course, that doesn't mean only the dregs end up in the dragon market.

Dragons that seem ordinary at birth can grow and flourish, just like humans.

Still, I thought it would be a big advantage to be able to contact a dragon breeder directly.

"Sorry, but... can you introduce me?"

"Yes!"

Jeanne beamed, clearly pleased to be asked.

"I'll introduce you to the best breeder with the closest ties to the royal family!"

"Is he that good?"

"Yes, the best I know. He designs and creates everything from dragon tools to dragon houses to make Master Dragons lay eggs more easily."

"Really... Huh?"

I nodded, but something caught my attention.

"Ah, Master Dragons are rare, so—"

"No, that's not what I meant."

"—Huh? What do you mean?"

Jeanne tilted her head slightly.

A scene popped into my head.

"You said you use dragon tools to make it easier for dragons to lay eggs, right?"

"Yes."

"Tools to make it easier to lay eggs. Tools to incubate eggs, you mean."

I muttered this, then pulled out a single hair and stared at it.

"Is it possible...?"

If it's possible, maybe it would be better to raise a dragon from birth... I thought.

As soon as I said this, Jeanne's eyes widened, and she looked incredibly excited.

"!!! As expected, Sir Cyril, what a brilliant idea. Let's do it!"

"Right, let's do it."

Not buying or poaching.

A third option—breeding.

I don't know if it's possible, but I decided to try it first.