Evil dragon has a warm heart

The year was 5587 in the Dragon Calendar, May 4th.

It had been thirteen days since the opening of Amber Dreamscape.

Currently, of the forty-five nations that had joined the Thunder Voice Conference, excluding the six Grand Duchies where the volcanoes had gone extinct and the Scorching Torrent Duchy where the hopes of giant dragons were shattered, the other nations had all opened up Volcanic Realms.

Some kingdoms with two giant dragons had even opened up two Volcanic Realms.

Now, there were fifty-two Volcanic Realms, encircling the Amber Central Region like satellites, interconnected through the root system of the Amber Great Tree.

After the inception of the Volcanic Realms, the passes were activated, allowing numerous Flying Dragon Knights, Dragon Domain Lords, Amber Contractors, Great Spirit Contractors, and a few Phantom Beast Knights with dream talents to freely enter and exit the Amber Dreamscape.

On this day.

At the foot of the Dreamscape Volcano in the Amber Central Region, the square bathed in the brilliance of the Amber Great Tree was crowded with people.

Meanwhile, on the branches of the Amber Great Tree, more than fifty giant dragons were gathered, either crouching or lying down.

Only the Dreamscape Ancient Dragon, towering atop the crown of the Amber Great Tree, overlooked the multitude of beings.

"Now for the roll call!" in the crowd at the square, the Earl Merlin, appointed as the temporary chair of the Amber Council, stood on the raised platform and shouted robustly, "All Kings, Grand Dukes, and Dragon Knights, after your names are called, please take your seats at the Amber Council’s round table in succession."

The crowd quieted down.

Earl Merlin, looking at the list in his hand, shouted, "King of the Dreamshadow Flame Kingdom, Russell Amber Dream."

"Present." Russell stepped forward, the first to take a seat at the Amber Council’s round table.

The round table was made from the trunks of several towering trees, pieced together into a circular shape with a radius of ten meters. The table had one gap in the circle to allow service staff to pass through and serve drinks to the attendees.

There were no assigned seats, and one could sit anywhere.

Russell also casually chose a seat.

Marquis Merlin continued the roll call: "King of the Pyro Lykin Kingdom, Debuloye Firelight."

"Present." After being called, King Debuloye took his seat next to Russell, quietly waiting.

"Ice Cyclone Barrier Kingdom’s King, Elden Cyclowall."

"Present." King Elden, who had a typical square-faced demeanor, did not choose to sit with Russell and Debuloye but instead found another spot.

"Ice Cyclone Barrier Kingdom’s Duke Rose, Elden Cyclowall," Earl Merlin called again.

"Present." Duke Elden sat next to King Elden; being the King’s cousin and the only Dragon Knight of the Ice Cyclone Barrier Kingdom, he had the qualifications to attend the Amber Council.

The two brothers, one a King and the other a Dragon Knight, naturally both qualified to participate in the Amber Council.

"King of the Scorching Torrent Kingdom, Ares Sundazzle!"

"Present."

"King of the Clear Sky Dusk Kingdom, Toka Kongsang."

"Present."

"King of the Hurricane Thunder Kingdom, Loshan Hurricane."

"Present..."

A series of Kings and Grand Dukes were called, gradually filling the Amber Council’s round table with attendees.

"Grand Duke of Mountain Fire Duchy, Campbell Mountainfire."

"Present."

"Marquis of Mountain Fire Duchy, Cambiño Mountainfire."

"Present!"

Father and son, Grand Duke Campbell was not a Dragon Knight, but his son, Marquis Cambiño, had become one, so both were present at the Amber Council.

"Grand Duke of the Fan Yan Duchy, Henrik Burnflame."

"Grand Duke Henrik is not present, but he has already indicated in the Thunder Voice Conference that I shall represent him in casting his vote," Russell answered on his behalf.

The hopes of the Fan Yan giant dragon were shattered, and under the mediation of the Thunder Voice Conference, the extinguished Starlight Duchy had agreed to sell the hope left by the Starlight giant dragon to the Fan Yan Grand Duchy, only the hope had not yet arrived.

Thus, the Fan Yan giant dragon could not yet open a Volcanic Realm, and Grand Duke Henrik naturally could not attend the Amber Council.

After confirming that Russell would replace Grand Duke Henrik in voting, Marquis Merlin continued the roll call: "Grand Duke of the Transverse Duchy, Dulheiro Transverse."

"Present!"

With the last Grand Duke being called to the Amber Council’s round table, all qualified attendees from various countries had arrived.

Marquis Merlin glanced at the list and slowly said, "Marquis of the Dreamshadow Flame Kingdom, Merlin Rain-Longflower... Present!"

His own name also appeared startlingly on the list.

"This is the first Amber Council, with forty-two members, forty-one present, with Grand Duke Henrik absent, King Russell will represent him in casting his vote... Now, the council officially begins!"

At that point,

the first Amber Council consisted of forty-two members, including fifteen Kings, twenty-four Grand Dukes, and two Dragon Knights—Duke Elden and Marquis Cambiño—as well as Marquis Merlin who presided temporarily.

...

"There really are a lot of human nations!"

Seated at the round table of the Amber Council, Russell glanced around at the Kings and Grand Dukes, thinking to himself.

The Dragon Sleep Continent was divided into eight great lands.

These were the Northern Ice Fields, Tundra Lands, Jing Ji Lands, Dark Mist Forest, Dragonspine Mountains, Magma Lands, Whispering Forest, and the Southern Desolate Desert.

Currently, the communication at Thunder Sound Station only covered the Northern Ice Fields, Tundra Lands, Dragonspine Mountains, Jing Ji Lands, and Magma Lands.

The human nations in the Dark Mist Forest, Whispering Forest, and Southern Desolate Desert had not yet been reached.

"The first item on the agenda of this Amber Council meeting," Marquis Merlin continued while looking at the documents in his hand, "is the assignment of committee duties. Currently, we plan to vote by a show of hands for various provisional roles, and once all human nations have joined the Amber Council, these roles will become permanent."

Specific roles were already determined during the previous Thunder Voice Conference, including Chairman of the Amber Council, Chief Steward of Dreamscape, Head of Industrial Development, Warfront Supervisor, Immigration and Relocation Supervisor, Dragon-Knight Path Supervisor, and International Arbitration Supervisor—seven roles in total.

The Chairman of the Amber Council would lead the Amber Council and carry the crucial mission of leading humanity’s resistance against the Frost Star invasion.

The Chief Steward of Dreamscape was responsible for the daily operations of the Amber Council and for maintaining the security and systems of both the Amber Central Region and the Volcanic Realm.

The Head of Industrial Development was responsible for urging nations to lay out industrial strategies and for taking over the Thunderous Industrial Conference.

The Warfront Supervisor was tasked with leading dragons and Dragon Knights in responding to invasions by the Frost Snow Giants Legion across various nations.

The Immigration and Relocation Supervisor was tasked with aiding the six Grand Duchies that had been annihilated, in managing the refugee relocation process.

The Dragon-Knight Path Supervisor was in charge of the cultivation and exploration of the Way of the Knight, fostering reserves for Dragon Knights.

The International Arbitration Supervisor was responsible for arbitrating conflicts between nations, such as disputes over dividing loot after hunting Frost Snow Giants.

After some discussion,

the seven positions within the Amber Council were quickly filled with temporary appointments, hence there was not much dispute.

Russell, without any surprise, passed with high votes for the position of Chairman of the Amber Council. Slightly competitive was only King Debuloye, whose popularity had declined due to his responsibility for the Tri-Dragon Sacrifice Method.

The role of Chief Steward of Dreamscape, a position readily secured by Russell, was directly appointed to Merlin Rain-Longflower without the need for voting.

The position of Head of Industrial Development was also decided without a vote, as the understanding of industrialization was still shallow among the nations. Russell, being a pioneer of industrialization, took on this role himself, with a new vote scheduled for the next full meeting.

Duke Elden Cyclowall of the Ice Cyclone Barrier Kingdom was appointed as the Warfront Supervisor. As a Dragon Knight who was not a ruler of any nation, he had ample time to travel around conveniently monitoring various nations and resisting the Frost Snow Giants.

Similarly, Cambiño Mountainfire, the Grand Duke’s son and a Dragon Knight from the Mountain Fire Duchy, was nominated to assist Duke Elden in managing the warfront.

King Ares took up the position of Immigration and Relocation Supervisor.

King Ares was actively enthusiastic and had long positioned himself as a leader of humanity, his reputation hardly inferior to that of King Debuloye. With him in charge of refugee affairs, all nations felt confident.

The Dragon-Knight Path Supervisor role was filled by Grand Duke Vitali Coldflame of the Coldflame Duchy.

The reason was simple: among all the Grand Dukes and Kings, he was the only Dragon Domain Lord. Besides Russell, no one else was more suited to delve into the Dragon-Knight Path, this thorny Way of the Knight.

Lastly, the position of International Arbitration Supervisor was taken up by King Debuloye.

Even though the Tri-Dragon Sacrifice Method had harmed several giant dragons, King Debuloye’s personal prestige was still high. His mediation and arbitration of international matters were trusted by all.

"Alright," said Russell Amber Dream, the acting Chairman of the Amber Council and the provisional Head of Industrial Development, summarizing after the selection of the seven supervisors, "With the officers chosen, the Amber Council is now officially established."

Applause burst forth.

The crowd of onlookers, including Flying Dragon Knights and Amber Contractors, joined in clapping, contributing to the lively atmosphere of the meeting.

Moments later, Russell lowered his hand, and the applause gradually subsided.

His gaze calmly swept over everyone’s face as he solemnly said, "The establishment of the Amber Council marks the transition of humanity from the Dark Ages and the Warm Age into the official Amber Age."

He quoted King Ares’s earlier sentiments.

Naming the forthcoming era the Amber Age, "The Amber Age is the era when humanity finally breaks through the confines of the snowfields and tightly unites as a community of shared destiny; it’s also the era when humanity begins to counterattack the Frost Star invasion!"

He pointed upwards.

Above was the canopy of the Amber Great Tree, radiating an amber-colored glow splendidly, but what he was truly indicating was the Frost Star: "The Frost Star is drawing increasingly closer, already beginning to orbit alongside the moon. Its arrival is inevitable; we must prepare to respond!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Russell continued, "Of course, with the Amber Dreamscape, we no longer need to fear the invasion from Frost Star, even if Frost Titans are born. I will personally lead everyone to thwart the Frost Titans outside the Oasis!"

Applause rang out again, enthusiastic as before.

Among the audience, Joanna’s hands turned red from clapping, and Kunlaya was lost in a daze.

Several other ladies, who entered the Amber Dreamscape via contract, were also fervently applauding. Prominent ladies were also present, such as Princess Anxia and Lady Meryl, who had entered through various means.

Together they witnessed this monumental moment.

"This is my son!" Lady Meryl, clapping her hands, could not suppress the tears of pride welling up in her eyes.