Chapter 175 - 164: Deep Sea Crystal Dragon (2/3)

Chapter 175: Chapter 164: Deep Sea Crystal Dragon (2/3)

"I have a child, Prude."

Viscount Grant smiled as he shared the good news with his old friend, "It’s Klendell’s."

"Heh..."

Staring blankly at his smiling old friend, Prude subconsciously took another sip of his drink, smacking his lips. He found it somewhat hard to believe and said, "I thought... Are you serious?"

"I thought you were just playing around..." he murmured softly.

"At first, I was. I like them both. I might prefer Lamar a little more, but Klendell is also very good. She’s a fine woman."

Viscount Grant’s mood remained unaffected by Prude’s words because a typical member of the Imperial Nobility would behave in this way, and he was no exception; in matters of emotion, he was an authentic scoundrel.

However, having long been childless, suddenly having a successor... The feeling was indeed very strange.

Strange enough to change a person.

"In these recent years, Klendell has been diligently practicing, and she finally mastered the ’Abyssal Whale’ of the First Energy Level... You understand the meaning of this, Prude. In just four years, without any extra resources from me, she completed the most basic practice. She is bearing a real successor who can inherit the Grant Family’s blood!"

With such emotion, the viscount shook his head and said, "Just a bit slower than Lamar, those siblings... indeed, have been my right-hand help."

"Of course." Remembering something, the viscount smiled at Prude, "But she can’t compare to Ian."

"El!" Prude raised his voice slightly, "Be careful."

"After all these years, don’t you understand me? He doesn’t have red hair, what are you worried about." The viscount was unconcerned. He lay on the couch, murmuring longingly to himself, "And besides, though it’s a bit strange... I truly feel that I’m completely different from before."

At this point, he paused for a while, then changed the subject, "Prude, my father told me back then that you would be the biggest help for me to stabilize Harrison Port—I didn’t believe him at that time, but now it has been proven true."

"Yamm is loyal to me and a good friend, but his abilities are insufficient. He can only complete the tasks I give him and lacks his own ideas... That’s not bad, but if he were smarter, it would be better."

"Lamar is very capable, but he’s still too young and naive in some ways... Now it’s not a bad thing, but when he’s on his own, mistakes could happen."

"But you alone..."

"Oh, sir..." Drawing out his tone, Elder Prude already knew what the viscount was about to say.

He also realized why the viscount wanted him to stay, so he shook his head with a smile, "That guy Ian, I think, your son won’t be able to hold him down... Neither can I, and possibly not even you."

He knew that El was indeed already changing, "You see that, don’t you? He... doesn’t seem like us."

The old man sighed softly, genuinely praising from the heart, "He’s meant to go out into the world—a man that can achieve glory on his own!"

"Yes, he can’t be held down... The first time I saw Teacher Gossay look at a young kid with that kind of gaze... it was as if he was looking at a rare treasure, wanting to touch it, yet also fearing that his decrepit hands might soil him."

Narrowing his eyes, Viscount Grant murmured to himself, "Even Teacher Gossay feels he might not be able to handle him, so what can I claim for myself?"

"But what of it?"

Raising his head and looking out of the window at the rain clouds that were gathering, the viscount narrowed his blue eyes.

He slowly said, "When that time comes, he will leave Harrison Port, won’t he? But in any case, Harrison Port will always be his hometown... He can’t completely abandon this place, and my child will be the lord here."

"In the past, I might not want to let go, to eliminate those uncontrollable ’elements’, but now I am beginning to understand... you always have to leave some margin."

"Always leave some margin," he repeated.

Elder Prude fell silent for a while, then sighed, "You’ve already done very well, with the two big storms..."

"Enough of that, Prude."

The viscount raised his hand and tapped on the table, saying calmly, "Ian is the only genius I can cultivate here, and I definitely will not let go now... But as the teacher says, Harrison Port would only bury his talents, and that wouldn’t benefit me in the slightest."

"If he manages to earn some credit among those from the Ellen Family this time, I will use the connections my father left to apply for a ’formal Knight’ status for him in the Imperial Capital."

"With his future status as a certified Alchemist, he will be able to travel across Terra, and even the Nobles should not underestimate him."

Because he was too astonished, the Elder did not know what to say for a moment.

"It’s time to say thank you," Viscount hinted.

"Indeed, indeed... El, thank you. I really appreciate your trouble."

Viscount Grant laughed, continuing to lie comfortably on the sofa, watching the clouds drift overhead: "Actually, I don’t have that much ambition. I just want to ensure this port, named after my father, endures, grows bigger, and prospers."

"I just want to leave a mark of my father’s name and our family’s name in this world—and someday, I too will leave my own mark, like building a ’Ailes Lighthouse’ to guide ships through the Southern Sea. What do you think of that?"

"Good idea."

Elder Prude took another sip of the Bee Fungus Brew: "But it’s too expensive right now, there aren’t enough merchant ships, and the Natives’ Rising Tide Spirit isn’t settled yet..."

"Just wait. Maybe it can be completed when your child grows up."

As he said this, he reached for the wine bottle, but the attentive Viscount snatched it first: "Let me pour for you!"

"No, how can I trouble a noble sir like you to pour wine for a commoner like me..."

"Shut up, or no drink. Sip it slowly and learn how to appreciate high-level spirits!"

...

Platinum Iridium Workshop.

"...Are you really going to bring that kid? A Wave Singer who has just achieved the First Energy Level not half a year ago, such power... And we’ll have to distract ourselves to protect him, having one Yisen is troublesome enough."

A middle-aged man’s voice rose in the guest room, and an old and calm voice replied: "Of course. Patrick, with your level, you can’t comprehend the worth of an Appraiser who detects the second-layer inscription within the structure of the Blue Flame Bracelet."

In Master Gossay’s room, a long table was covered with a series of bottles and jars. The old man sat on one side, using simple tools to analyze the Blue Flame Bracelet in his hands, while Patrick stood behind his teacher, his expression somewhat unsettled.

"So what?" The man’s tone seemed merely irritated: "He just happened to discover it!"

"Why don’t you mention that he’s only fourteen years old? Don’t get upset with El over this; he indeed found a good material, but it’s not like the Ellen Family lacks geniuses."

The old man did not stop his appraisal work, but he pondered for a while before continuing: "If at first I had some hesitation, it wasn’t because the kid named Ian lacked abilities, but because his abilities were too strong. I was afraid we couldn’t protect him, and if any mishap occurred that cut his path short, I would have unbearable regret."

"Take a look at this." He lifted the Blue Flame Bracelet, and the light from his artificial eye instantly illuminated the Mithril Gem Ornament: "Even I need to repeatedly confirm to discover the second-layer inscription circuit hidden within the natural structure of the gems. This is the work of a master at my level—yet he could perceive that slight discrepancy with his instinctive sharpness!"

"Truly a genius," Master Gossay exclaimed: "If it wasn’t for my lack of energy to mentor a second true Apprentice and that such a recruitment would be too disrespectful to El, I would seriously want to take him back to the Imperial Capital immediately."

"So what exactly made you change your mind, Teacher? Our mission is not an easy one—are you not afraid that he will meet with an accident?"

The middle-aged man’s voice was subdued, but the old man replied candidly: "His sharpness. Patrick, I know you feel that this child’s appearance will thin out the credit Yisen receives and because he is one of El’s you can’t poach him, so you are upset."

"But he’s really just perfect—regardless of whether El’s act with the Longevity Magic Plant was a ruse, the anomaly in the Blue Flame Bracelet is absolutely impossible to notice by luck alone!"

At this point, the old man’s voice carried a profound anger: "Yisen Gard is the child I’ve been most fond of for many years. The Ellen Family’s internal competition has gone too far... Pat, remember to report to the Marquis and his wife later. You must investigate thoroughly, or I will take matters into my own hands."

"...Yes."

The blond man’s voice carried reluctance, but the old man did not mind, as his one-time student was always so stubborn: "Alright, ultimately, Ian has saved Yisen’s life. What’s the harm in sharing some of the credit with him? Furthermore, this operation, which involves taking risks to succeed, would have been impossible to accomplish without his sharp Element Sensing—just relying on us, we might not have found a clue for months."

"After all, our true aim is to find the Superior Magical Beast that feeds on ’Shining Elemental Crystal Clams’."

"Identified as the High-level Dragon Kind known as ’Deep Sea Crystal Dragon’!"