Later that day, after the elves agreed to become citizens of the Aurelian barony and work for free, Dorian had them register for each category of work present in the barony.

Almost all of them volunteered, while the rest worked on building and expanding the village with the help of Gatty and his crew.

While all this was happening, Dorian and his subjects had already begun heading to the royal capital, knowing the trip would take a couple of long days.

Following him were Maria, Seraphina, Lili, his dragon Ciel, and finally, his new summon: the fiery beast cat, who was given the name Flare after being upgraded to a Tier 5 monster.

Now able to fully change its shape, it took the form of a small white cat sleeping on Dorian's lap, while Lili remained as a bat on his shoulder.

As they rode in the carriage together, with Ciel flying high above the clouds, Dorian stared outside the window, watching as they sped past the trees.

From where he sat, he could see the distance growing between himself and the barony.

'I can only hope Ishtar and Yelena can handle things while I'm gone,' he sighed out loud, then turned to look at Seraphina.

"Is the product already packaged?"

"Yes, although it's not much, it should still prove useful for a presentation," Seraphina replied with confidence, knowing full well she didn't make a single mistake.

"Eh, the quantity doesn't matter. Just as you said, as long as it's enough for a presentation, then it's nothing to worry about."

Dorian smiled then looked right back at the window.

'Yes, this is a one-time opportunity to not only expand the business but also the influence of the Aurelian barony. Actually, it would have been far better if the Duke was the first person we met before the king, but nothing can be done about that, I guess.'

His thoughts were cut off when Flare suddenly shoved himself closer into Dorian's waist, trying to get as much coziness as possible.

Seeing this, Dorian couldn't help but gently pet his back.

'Now that I think about it, the other dragon eggs should hatch before I return. I think Ciel brought Celes with her since she insisted on coming. Going to the capital is definitely just showing off, haha, exactly what I want to do.'

The carriage behind the one Dorian was in was being pulled by Celes, and it contained Baron Forgriam, two elves, a single Aurelian soldier, the mage Tai Hun, and some other nobles who were culprits of the same crime.

Knowing a dragon was pulling the carriage they were in stopped them from thinking of any way to escape.

Well, at least for most of them; Tai Hun was far different.

In any case, the journey was supposed to last a couple of days, so no one dared to make any kind of rash choice that would either get them killed or stranded.

…

After a couple of days…

As soon as they got past the gate, the carriage was stopped, which forced Seraphina to step out to attend to them.

Getting down from the carriage, the first thing she saw were the two officers standing right in front of her, and then Ciel at the side, her back resting on the body of the carriage.

However, their eyes were not on her, but rather, on the dragon Celes who was pulling the carriage behind them.

"We are on business from the king. Here is a legal letter." Seraphina handed them a copy of the letter they got from the king.

Even after they took the paper to read, they couldn't keep their eyes away from the dragon.

One of them had already begun to hide behind the other.

Right after he was done reading, he said, "I see. S-sorry for stopping you. Please go in."

"Thank you for your cooperation. Keep up the good work." Seraphina handed them a tip, then stepped back into the carriage.

Once in, they began moving, attracting attention from every single person they drove past.

The golden carriage with its intricate modern design.

The beautiful red-haired woman with dragon wings sitting right on top of the golden carriage.

The white dragon pulling the carriage right behind.

There was no way one wouldn't stare after seeing something like this drive right past them.

It didn't take them long to arrive at the king's territories, where they were told to stop their carriage right in front of the giant mansion.

The mansion was far bigger than anything the Aurelian household had to offer.

If anything, it was almost as big as a full village.

Grass spread for a distance, and at the sides were small buildings, most likely meant to house the royal workers serving the king directly.

As soon as their carriage arrived, maids sprinted out of the royal mansion and stood in a straight line, their heads bowed in respect.

At the center, the very person standing in front, acting as the head maid, was the black-haired elf who had once accompanied the royal messenger to the Aurelian household.

Step.

Dorian got down from the carriage, standing only a few feet away from the black-haired elf maid.

With her head bowed, she greeted, "Good morning, Lord Dorian. It's an honor to have you here with us."

"Good morning, Lord Dorian!" The rest of the maids all chanted in unison.

Soon, Maria and Seraphina stood beside Dorian, bowing their heads as well in respect.

As for Ciel, she remained at the side, speaking to Celes, who wanted to transform into her humanoid form but was instead getting scolded.

"Good day to you, Miss Elf. Seems this is the second time we are meeting." Dorian tilted his head downward, trying to get a closer look at her face.

The dark-haired elf sighed before raising her head. "Yes, it is. You look… different, as always."

"I do? Why thank you. Last time you kept looking at me like you wanted me dead. Still the same, I guess," Dorian pointed with his thumb while wearing a smuggest look.

Seraphina, of course, tried to give him signs to stop provoking the maid, but all of them were ignored.

The dark-haired maid then shifted her body to the side and gestured to the entrance of the mansion.

"If you would come this way, then I will take you to see the king."

Before Dorian responded, he took one more look at the maids, noticing that they were all elves, just like the one standing before him.

At first, he wondered, 'Could it be the king is a huge fan of elves or something?' If that were the case, then he might have just struck gold with this.

But then another thought hit him right after.

'Judging from this elf's bad attitude, could it be that they are being mistreated, and the king only sees elves as slaves, just like the other nobles?'

If that were theK case, then things might be far more difficult than he had expected.

Dorian's face turned white at the risk at hand, knowing the cons far outweighed the pros.

Now demotivated, he replied, "Sure, I guess."

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