Delaguna seemed honest, it was hard to imagine a Witch Demon giving off a friendly vibe, anyway, everyone was here, it was about time to start negotiations.
Indeed, compared to money, Leon was more concerned about rare forging materials, because he needed those to forge a new set of equipment... The Dragon Armor was for show, corroded by the strong acid of the Ancient Black Dragon, nothing much to say about that, but his Refined Gold Greatsword also being corroded and dulled was a bit unsatisfactory, in the end it was not as good as sharp teeth and claws.
Besides Cold Iron, Hell Iron, Heavenly Realm Steel, and other rare forging materials, Leon also became familiar with many rare forging materials.
Star Iron is extracted from rare fallen comets, extremely hard, possessing all the properties of refined gold, and when used in armor, provides damage reduction effects, with a natural connection to the Main Material Plane, meaning weapons made from Star Iron have special effects on creatures from other planes.
Radiant Steel shone with hues of dawn and aurora. Weapons, shields, or armor made from Radiant Steel, even when broken by strong force, can reunite their fragments to restore to their original state, swiftly and without leaving a trace.
Golden Crystal is produced in the Ice Cave of the Bliss Realm, this flexible, lightly golden crystal contains divine power emanating from a deity slumbering beneath the mountains.
Sun Flame True Iron is pure iron that does not need to be cast into alloys, and shimmers with a silver glow. When made into weapons, it can possess even stronger strike power.
Leon demanded that at least half of the one million gold coins compensation from Delaguna be paid in rare forging materials, knowing that the Black Water Trading Company deals in weaponry and equipment across the Material Plane and knows various factions, and can get those things for sure.
Money was a small issue, but the Black Water Trading Company was the big deal and key, Leon wanted shares and positions there, definitely requiring some wrangling.
In emergencies, dragons can react quickly, making spontaneous decisions to handle immediate needs. Other than such urgent matters, dragons do not have the urge to cherish every moment, taking time to ponder even the simplest decisions, carefully considering possible impacts, and weighing potential choices.
When trying to negotiate with dragons, even the most patient negotiator may lose confidence.
If it wasn’t for Leon’s strong insistence, this negotiation might have lasted an unknown amount of time; even so, it took over three days... Anyway, Leon lacked patience, he only attended the first day, leaving the rest for Cecilia to oversee, with Isily as a deputy diplomat, and the talkative Brass Dragon willing to join in the commotion without concern.
With Delaguna’s cooperation, the Root Church also joined in, aiming for the market vacated after Nightfall Guild’s disappearance; the three major forces united to raid Nightfall Guild effortlessly... as long as it didn’t involve innocents and the Simon Senate did not intervene, there was nothing worth mentioning.
Public opinion was divided, dividing the spoils based on labor was too complicated, directly dividing by headcount was much easier, each person getting loot worth tens of thousands of gold coins, the rest belonged to Leon.
The Brass Dragon Eggon used to collect protection fees with Leon and Tassera; as Leon’s Engineering Minister, he did not engage in corruption or shoddy work but did make some gray income... Even so, tens of thousands of gold coins were more than all his past savings combined.
As a teenage dragon just starting out, Isily was incredibly poor; tens of thousands of gold coins amounted to sudden wealth for her. With that money in hand, if Leon put in some effort, promising to avoid doing evil in the future, he could quickly charm her into his bed.
Of all the people, only Anglistra was dissatisfied, not because she thought tens of thousands of gold coins were little, mainly resenting the inequality; why did Leon get so much money?
With gold-blinded eyes and mind, Anglistra wanted to cause trouble; Leon didn’t mind using the Dharma Body with Three Heads and Six Arms to help her clear her mind, in the end, she could only lie on the ground muttering about "unfilial offspring" or something.
Everyone took their share and left, especially Cecilia as the Prime Minister had various work... It’s amazing she was so capable; if it were Anglistra and Salovis, all they did was eat and sleep all day, leaving Leon and Tassera.
"Who do you think should be placed in the Black Water Trading Company?" Leon said, having gotten some shares and a position, but had no idea who to assign to the Black Water Trading Company.
"Apart from your mother and sister being free, everyone else has work, I guess." Tassera was busy studying the metallic disk obtained from Delaguna’s lair, sure that it contained some secret.
"So why are they free? Because they are good for nothing, number one in making trouble." Leon said, "In this case, how can I trust them... best to either avoid seeing them or keep them in sight."
Tassera found Leon looking at her, and said, "Why are you looking at me, you wouldn’t want me to go work at the Black Water Trading Company, would you?"
"I remember you ran a shop before, could do business, and are very smart, also powerful, more suitable than Cecilia, but you’re my Queen... the Black Water Trading Company I can do without, but I can’t do without you."
Leon propped his face on his hand and looked at Tassera, who was wearing a tasteful purple robe today, accentuating her curvy figure, and continued, "I just thought, aren’t we going to the Red Pipe Desert to recruit the Blue Dragon? Couldn’t we..."
Being a Blue Dragon, Tassera was quite united, unlike Cecilia who was disdainful of other Green Dragons, said, "Blue Dragons are filled with patience and organization, advocate rules and order, everyone is a part of the order, only rules bring boundaries, and are loyal, loyal to the overlord, you can trust Blue Dragons."
"When are we going to the desert?" Tassera couldn’t wait to go back, mainly because she was now successful, and as the saying goes, wealth not flaunted is like wearing splendid clothes at night.
"I’ll go push that Black Dragon." Leon said ferociously, "He was enthusiastic about raiding Nightfall Guild’s house, yet hesitated about compensating."
"You have to understand, he’s a dragon, asking him for money is like taking his life." Tassera said amusedly, "I know many Blue Dragons, who would rather personally destroy their lairs and treasures than allow anyone to steal them, they can’t bear to see their money in someone else’s hands."
A chaotic evil Black Dragon can’t be trusted, but Black Dragons naturally fear the strong and bully the weak, after spending some time "visiting" the Black Water Trading Company, and inquiring about Delaguna’s lair all over, Delaguna eventually gave in, paying 500,000 gold coins, as for the rare forging materials, those would require contacting other forces.
That’s about it, Leon and Tassera decided to leave Crossroads City and head to the Red Crown Desert.