Pioneer Lord: I Have Conquering System

In the spacious Dragon Cave, forget the imagined mountains of gold and silver—not even half a Gold Coin could be found.

The floor was covered in scrap metal, interspersed with a few copper and silver coins.

Levi should have known. The Wilderness was notorious across the Seven Kingdoms as a poor backwater. You could strip these paupers naked and not find a single copper coin on them.

Most transactions here were done through barter. Without a market, you couldn’t even liquidate your goods for cash.

"Honestly, you don’t seem like a Giant Dragon at all, no matter how I look at it," the Lord sighed.

A thief who broke into this place would probably leave two Gold Coins behind in tears.

For a Giant Dragon to be this destitute... even Levi, who was used to being poor himself, couldn’t help but feel a pang of pity.

Sophia, who had been crestfallen at the thought of losing her treasure, blinked her brilliant silver eyes. "My Lord, does this mean you don’t want my treasure?"

"Even my great-grandma wouldn’t bother picking up this pile of scrap metal," Levi said with a look of disdain.

After all, he was the lord of a castle now. The weapons trade he’d opened had earned him at least a thousand or two in Gold Coins. He couldn’t be bothered with such small fry anymore.

Sophia was overjoyed, a smile visibly blooming on her face. "My Lord, your generosity is as vast as the Storm Sea!"

’I thought I was going to lose everything, but I actually get to keep my treasure.’

"However," Levi began, his tone measured, "all of this is my spoils of war. I can let you have it, but not for free."

Sophia’s face fell. ’I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.’ She glanced at the treasure on the ground, her eyes filled with reluctance. She had painstakingly gathered all of it after arriving here; it was the first treasure that was truly her own.

Gritting her teeth, she said, "I will work to earn them back."

’Back on Dragon Island, I often did chores for other dragons in exchange for payment. The only difference now is that I’ll be working for a human.’

Levi’s eyes lit up. He hadn’t expected the Silver Dragon Maiden to give in so easily.

After all, this Silver Dragon had only seemingly surrendered.

It was only a superficial surrender. If she got out from under the Bed Crossbows aimed at her back, she would likely bolt.

Once a creature like her took to the sky, she was practically invincible.

"But... for all this, I can only work for you for three months."

’In my estimation, the value of this treasure is only worth three months of my labor,’ Sophia calculated.

"How long?"

A stunned look crossed Levi’s face.

"Four months! Four months at the most! This treasure isn’t worth that much, and that’s my absolute limit!" Thinking Levi found her offer too low, Sophia held up four slender fingers, her small face set with determination.

The Lord’s expression was unreadable as he stared intently at the Silver Dragon Maiden.

’Is it still not enough?’ Sophia wondered, vexed. Then, as if a realization dawned on her, she pointed at herself and stammered, "You... you don’t have your eyes on me, do you? I’m just a scrawny young dragon! I’ve got nothing! Oh! That older dragon—yes, that’s it! I know an adult Silver Dragon! She’s the most beautiful and largest female dragon on Dragon Island, her wealth ranks in the top ten, and she doesn’t have a mate yet! I can introduce you to her!"

’Well, I’ll be damned. I haven’t even said a word, and she’s already raising her own offer.’

’And she’s even offering to introduce me to some sugar-momma Silver Dragon.’

Watching the Silver Dragon Maiden spill the beans, so innocently foolish, Levi felt like a thug extorting an innocent young girl.

’Seriously, how does a dragon this naive even survive to this age?’

’But it’s exactly this kind of adorable foolishness that makes her so easy to fool.’ Levi shook his head and said with an air of great magnanimity, "You can’t force a good thing. I would never take advantage of an innocent Silver Dragon Maiden. You just need to work for me for five months. That’s all."

"Well..." Sophia hesitated before finally nodding. "But you can’t make me do anything that goes against my will."

"Of course. I am a Knight who abides by the code of chivalry. The work I give you will be absolutely just and righteous."

The Lord, who had just successfully recruited a new party member, wanted to laugh but didn’t dare. Holding it in was agony.

’Tricking a Silver Dragon into working for him for five months for free, all for a pile of scrap metal... Back in his previous life, even being strung up on a lamppost wouldn’t be enough to atone for a sin like this.’

In the end, the two sealed their verbal agreement with a high five.

With the crisis averted and her treasure secured, the Silver Dragon Maiden’s furrowed brow finally relaxed.

No one could have imagined the dragon-slaying expedition would end on such a farcical note.

But on the whole, their original objective had been achieved. Not only had they neutralized the threat of the Giant Dragon, they had even captured it alive.

Granted, this Giant Dragon was only an adolescent, and her intelligence was a bit concerning.

But at least the Lord’s dream of becoming a Dragon Knight now had a glimmer of hope.

After all, a Silver Dragon Maiden was still a dragon.

The crisis was resolved, and the Giant Dragon had even become a member of their party. This unbelievable turn of events felt like a dream to the Beastmen. In the end, they could only chalk it up to their boss being a natural-born leader, capable of coaxing a Giant Dragon to High Cliff Castle with just a few words.

The more time they spent with their boss, the more they understood why the gap between him and them was so vast.

If they wanted to become truly strong, they still had a lot to learn.

The Bed Crossbows were covered with white cloths and loaded back onto the carts. Sophia also made a request: she hoped the Lord would help her bring her treasure. Levi, having just scammed a Silver Dragon into his service for free, was more than happy to oblige with such a small favor.

At the foot of the hill, the convoy reassembled. With the Giants huffing and puffing as they pulled, the carts began to roll forward once more.

Compared to their hurried journey here, the atmosphere in the convoy on the way back was much more relaxed.

That rascal Zat even organized a card game. He and Hog, a pair of crafty veterans, exchanged sly smiles and ganged up on Orak, the newcomer at the table.

Only then did Levi finally have a chance to take off his armor. When facing a Giant Dragon, one could never be too careful. The Iron Armor had at least given him a small sense of security, however meager.

Sophia, who had been standing beside Levi, watched as the human removed his helmet.

A face unlike anything she had imagined appeared before the Silver Dragon Maiden’s eyes—one that was both handsome and masculine. His eyes glinted with confidence and fearlessness.

His looks and his aura were more captivating than any of the legendary heroes in her picture books. For the Silver Dragon Maiden Sophia, who had never seen a human before, it was enough to make her heart race. She couldn’t help but point at Levi, too stunned to form words. "Wha— Wha— Wha—"

"What’s wrong? Didn’t expect this Dragon Slayer to be so young? Or so handsome?" Levi said, thoroughly amused.

"I thought you’d be some scruffy old man," Sophia said, snapping out of it with a pout. "I didn’t expect you to be younger than me."

After all, in the storybooks back on Dragon Island, all the famous human heroes were basically scruffy, middle-aged men with beards.