The First Legendary Beast Master

Chapter 1359 Future Preparations

“What sort of future should I be preparing the Princess for? I mean, now that you know I can help her advance her rank to her potential in a reasonable timeframe.” Karl asked, diverting the conversation again.

“What sort of potential will she even have? Perhaps she can be a Palace Officer by the time that she’s a hundred. That would be fairly decent, but at best, she might get a handful of marriage offers from rural Nobles.” The Crown Prince noted.

Karl shook his head. “No, she should be able to reach Mythic or at least Totem in the next century. She’s half Elf, she’s not stuck on a dragon’s slow growth rate. Elves mature slowly, but their power levels grow pretty smoothly.”

“You know: that matches Father’s theory. You see, Dragons reach puberty relatively quickly. Elves reach puberty slowly. But Elves power grows faster in the years during and immediately after puberty, while a Dragons’ rate of growth increases with time.

He insists that once she starts to grow, she should grow quickly, and then keep growing at an increasing rate until she reaches her peak.” Prince Lukas explained.

“Not a bad theory. I honestly don’t remember how it works out. Usually, it’s the Orcs and the beastkin who want to do lewd things with cute elf girls.”

A woman at the next table choked on her drink at Karl’s comment, while the rest of her table did their best to pretend that they weren’t eavesdropping.

Not that any conversation was private in a room full of dragons with sensitive hearing.

Behind Karl, the King mentally smirked. The strange Emissary had a point. Elf girls did have a thing for guys a metre taller than them, with arms the size of their torso. But that was a good description of his humanoid form.

How such a preference had emerged in a species where the men were only marginally less effeminate than the women, he had no idea. But he was deeply thankful for it.

Even if it had caused him years of headaches with the Queen.

Why she had so vehemently opposed adding the Elf to the harem when she hadn’t objected to any of the ten other dragons was a mystery not made for a man’s comprehension.

However, he didn’t show any outward sign that he could hear the quiet conversation between his eldest son and the others.

“But back to your initial question. If she really can reach Totem Rank before adulthood, her status will be much higher than expected, and she will likely end up with a Royal Marriage.” Lukas explained.

“Oh? Married off to one of the other nations is a decent option.”

Librarian Barry laughed, while Prince Lukas looked a bit embarrassed.

“Well, that is a possibility. However, if she has that sort of power as a dragonkin, it will more likely be a dragon from one of the branch families, a distant cousin.” He explained.

“Ah, keeping the Shadow Dragon bloodline strong. Well, as long as it’s not one of her own siblings, I suppose that tradition is tradition.” Karl replied.

The three men at the table all gave Karl confused looks.

“You know that sort of genetic issue doesn’t happen to dragons, right?” Dakkarian asked curiously.

“Well yeah, but still. There are entire novels written about why you shouldn’t love your sister that much.” Karl countered.

“You’ve definitely been hanging out with the Green Dragon Clerics.” Librarian Barry noted.

“But on our initial point, I don’t think that it will be an issue for me to get her to Totem Rank before adulthood. Depending on how slowly she matures, it might be well in advance of adulthood, and then it will all be down to her comprehension rates.” Karl explained.

The blue dragon nodded. “With good tutors, that shouldn’t be an issue. After all, dragons have a natural advantage over most species when it comes to comprehending the Fundamental Rules.”

Karl nodded. “Beasts are the same way. They instinctively understand the elements that they are aligned to, and the issue is getting their body ready for the advancement.”

“Are you good with younglings, then?” Crown Prince Lukas asked.

Karl smiled, while Cara laughed.

[Say yes, we might get a baby dragon.]

“I can’t deny it. My class gives me a rather strong affinity for hatchlings of all sorts. I’ve had Cara with me since she was just a young girl, wandering the

world hungry and harassed by Orcs.” Karl replied.

“But how is your hatchling doing? I believe that you were planning to give the gift I presented to your youngest.” Karl asked.

“My first and youngest, as it was. Her egg looks ready to crack, but she’s not hatched yet. However, soaking the shell in the potion you provided was exactly what she needed. The innate power level advanced to Commander Rank without any issues.” Lukas explained.

“That is wonderful news. If I’m still here when she hatches, let me know, and I will help her get started.” Karl suggested.

Dakkarian got a confused look on his face, then frowned.

“I have a message from my god for you, I think.” He began.

Everyone, even the tables around them and the King himself, turned to stare in rapt attention as the God of Death conveyed a message to someone through

their avatar.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The Black Dragon cleared his throat, then shook his head before speaking.

“You cannot have a baby dragon.”

Karl smirked, while Cara howled with laughter, then thumped the table before holding her middle and tilting out of her chair, still laughing as she hit the floor.

“You know, I seem to recall that I have been told that before. But I’m not trying to steal your baby dragon. I will just pet her and cuddle her and teach her wonderful new skills.” Karl announced.

Crown Prince Lukas slowly began to smile as the shock wore off.

“You know, I never thought that I would say this. But the Death God makes an excellent point. You should not be allowed to have a baby dragon.”

Karl sighed dramatically. “Think of all the spectacular things I could teach if I started from scratch? Without wasting all those years on basic schooling, we could get right into trade skills, system activations, flying lessons.” Dakkarian glanced at Cara, then smiled. “Yes, I understand many things with greater clarity now. Did you know that the Gods also demanded that Supreme Lady Matilda gave up all her clutches to the Red Dragons to raise, though she fully intended to raise most of them herself?”

Cara laughed even harder at the thought of what a baby dragon would turn out like if Karl or Matilda were actually allowed to raise them unsupervised. With the wise guidance of Sister Rae and the Dana Mage, surely it wouldn’t end too badly. But the Supreme Lady or Karl alone? That was a disaster waiting to happen.