https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-847-Rumors-Abound-and-a-Chasm-Between-Brothers/12540216/
Chapter 848: The Newly Established Fire Dragon Sanctuary
Chapter 848: The Newly Established Fire Dragon Sanctuary
In a remote mountainous region south of Romania, a place rarely visited due to its secluded location and lack of attractions nearby, there once stood a short-lived hub of activity.
A few years ago, members of the International Wizarding Union had decided to establish a fire dragon sanctuary, and this isolated spot was chosen as the ideal location. However, their plans soon stalled due to financial constraints, causing the project to eventually come to a grinding halt.
After all, a sanctuary for fire dragons required substantial resources—an abundance of food, necessary safety measures, and skilled wizarding professionals. Without sufficient gold Galleons, the endeavor was doomed to fail.
Consider the most basic requirement—caring for fire dragons demanded specialized personnel, not just any ordinary wizard. These professionals needed to undergo rigorous training, and their expertise came at a high price.
Who would risk their lives, traveling far and wide to this desolate place, if not for a substantial salary? There were a few enthusiasts who came out of passion, but the harsh reality of scarce meals soon dampened their enthusiasm.
Perhaps the only thing keeping them from leaving was their pride. Having declared their unwavering dedication upon their arrival, they couldn't just turn back now without losing face. So, they persevered, enduring the hardships.
However, such dedicated individuals were few and far between. In this state of understaffing, the only fire dragon sanctuary officially recognized by the International Wizarding Union housed a mere two fire dragons—the common and smallest Welsh Green dragons. It was almost laughable.
They were not for lack of trying; many magical governments had confiscated dragons and were eager to send them over, but the sanctuary's limited personnel could barely manage the two Welsh Green dragons already in their care.
It all boiled down to money—or the lack thereof.
Birdman Stryke, the first director of the Fire Dragon Sanctuary, sat in his modest office, his worries literally causing his hair to fall out.
Though only thirty years old, his sparse hair made him look more like he was in his sixties. If he added a couple of feathers to his head, he'd resemble a Quaffle.
But today, he stepped out of that office—if one could call it that; it was merely a few stones piled together with magic, providing little comfort other than being naturally cool in summer and warm in winter, with the constant draft as its only redeeming feature since it required no payment.
Birdman even donned his robe, a garment he hadn't worn in two years. Though faded, it was the most presentable item of clothing he owned.
He had poured all his resources into establishing the sanctuary, selling whatever he could, but the funds were a drop in the bucket for what the sanctuary truly needed.
If things didn't take a turn for the better soon, and the few remaining dragon caretakers also left, he didn't know what he would do. Perhaps the fire dragon sanctuary project would have to be indefinitely shelved.
Fortunately, after years of struggle, a turning point finally arrived.
Birdman hurried along a small path, his eyes falling on two figures standing near a majestic beech tree—the only visitors he had received in recent years.
"Welcome, welcome..." Birdman quickened his pace, almost jogging to reach the pair.
"It's an honor to meet you both," he said, extending his hand. "I am Birdman Stryke, director of the Fire Dragon Sanctuary."
"Hello, Mr. Stryke," Kyle replied, shaking his hand.
Indeed, the visitors were none other than Kyle and Dumbledore.
After resolving the situation with Ariana, Dumbledore had intended to return immediately, but Kyle had expressed that he had some unfinished business to attend to.
Though eager to see Ariana, Kyle had been instrumental in their recent endeavors, and Dumbledore couldn't refuse. So, he accompanied Kyle to this remote location.
As for why Kyle had chosen to come here, one had to go back a month. While residing at the Leaky Cauldron, Kyle had overheard a conversation between two employees of the Ministry of Magic, revealing the sanctuary's plight.
Kyle had wanted to visit ever since, but with their primary mission still pending, he had to temporarily set the idea aside. Now, with some time to spare, he decided to make a detour.
The two men shook hands.
"Mr. Stryke," Kyle said, glancing around, "I assume we won't be discussing matters here. Though I don't mind, my companion here is of advanced age and might require some rest."
"Oh, how thoughtless of me," Birdman quickly interjected, leading them to his humble office and offering them tea and snacks.
The tea was made from pine needles—a handful of needles rinsed and steeped in hot water, resulting in a beverage that was more about the experience than the taste. As for the snacks, they were gray, hard lumps that resembled Hagrid's rock cakes, only worse. One could detect a bitter aroma wafting from them even before taking a bite.
Though Kyle had been prepared for the sanctuary's challenging conditions, he was taken aback by the stark reality. These treats... even house-elves might turn up their noses at them.
So, they relied solely on collecting the naturally shed scales of the two Welsh Green dragons to exchange for Sickles and Knuts, using the meager funds to purchase life's necessities.
If they ran out of money and had no new scales to trade, they would have to forage for ingredients nearby.
Seeing Birdman's embarrassed expression, Kyle didn't say anything further. He picked up his cup, took a sip of the pine needle tea, and quietly placed the cup back on the table.
Bitter and astringent, it was even less palatable than plain water.
"Well, let's get straight to the point," Kyle said bluntly, "Mr. Stryke should already be aware of our purpose for this visit, or perhaps that gentleman didn't convey the message to you."
Kyle had located this place thanks to his prior memories, but because the timing was different, he had no idea where he was when he first arrived. It took him a long time to finally encounter a wizard.
Upon learning of his intention, the wizard was so excited that he almost fainted. He scrambled away to find the most important person to receive Kyle.
And so, the previous scene unfolded, and in less than five minutes, Kyle was greeted by Birdman.
"I heard about it from Mulciber," Birdman said, his spirits visibly lifting. "Is it true? About the decision to fund the Fire Dragon Sanctuary?"
"Of course, that's why I'm here," Kyle said with a smile. "However, my abilities are limited, and I may not be able to provide a substantial amount of funding."
Hearing Kyle's words, Birdman's expression froze for a moment, and he soon showed a hint of disappointment.
Indeed, the young man before him looked no older than twenty, and although he had a servant with him, it was hard to tell who was taking care of whom. He was most likely from a declining family, and such a person would likely not be able to solve their current predicament.
However, Birdman quickly put aside such thoughts.
After all, it was a good thing that someone was willing to fund the Fire Dragon Sanctuary. Even if it only meant they could eat a proper lunch for one more week, it was still an exciting change... at least it showed that there were still people who supported this decision.
"Don't worry about it," Birdman said sincerely. He took out a piece of parchment and asked, "How many Galleons do you wish to donate... of course, Sickles are also acceptable, and I can provide you with a receipt."
Although the Fire Dragon Sanctuary lacked funds, it was still a formally recognized organization by the International Wizarding Union, and they followed the necessary procedures.
For example, during the construction phase, funding was considered a collaboration, and there would be returns in the future... although those returns might not be significant, and they might not be attainable in the short term.
"Three thousand Galleons," Kyle said calmly.
"Okay, three thousand..."
"Wait..." Birdman suddenly lifted his head, his eyes wide. "How much did you say?!""
"Three thousand Galleons," Kyle repeated, placing a box on the table and opening it.
A golden glow seemed to emanate from within, and Birdman's feather quill suddenly snapped in his hand, causing him a moment of distress as it was the last quill in the sanctuary. However, his attention was quickly diverted from that concern.
The golden glow emanating from the box made his head spin. He felt as if he were floating among the clouds, toasting with the stars, and then lying on the waves, listening to the enchanting songs of a mermaid princess...
"Mr. Stryke... Mr. Stryke? Are you alright... What should we do, Professor? He doesn't seem to be responding to me."
"You can try stimulating him a little."
"Oh."
Suddenly, a sharp pain came from his feet.
The stars transformed into gorillas, pounding their chests and overturning his drink, and the mermaid princess became a hideous sea creature, her beautiful song turning into an ear-piercing shriek.
Birdman finally snapped back to reality.
He quickly lowered his head and saw a round Chinese biting cabbage clamped onto his calf, its sharp teeth causing a wave of clear, sharp pain. Cold sweat broke out on his brow.
"You're finally awake," Kyle said with a smile. "Sorry, I had to resort to this method because you didn't respond to my calls."
"I'm... I'm fine," Birdman said, forcing a smile as he bent down with difficulty to pluck the cabbage from his leg, his teeth clenched in pain.
But as Birdman took a closer look at the vegetable, he froze.
"This is... Chinese biting cabbage?" he asked in surprise.
This exotic plant from Asia was not cheap; each one was worth two Galleons in Diagon Alley, and fresh ones were even more expensive.
For a moment, the pain in his leg seemed to fade. He admired the round shape and the perfectly aligned teeth of the vegetable. It was beautiful.
What? You say it bites... Nonsense, don't spread false rumors. It's just playful.
The only regret was that this playful little cutie didn't belong to him.
Birdman reluctantly returned the Chinese biting cabbage to Kyle.
"Um..." Seeing Birdman's affectionate expression, Kyle couldn't bring himself to take back the cabbage, so he waved his hand and said, "Never mind, you like it so much, I'll give it to you.
"Mr. Stryke," Kyle had to remind him again, "let's finish the important matters first."
Reminded by his words, Birdman finally remembered that there was something even more important than the Chinese biting cabbage that he needed to take care of.
He looked once more at the box filled with Galleons on the table, feeling a sense of unreality, as if he were dreaming.
But the wound on his leg served as a reminder that this was no dream.
With three thousand Galleons, he could not only restart the stalled construction of the dragon sanctuary, but he might also be able to bring back the dragon caretakers who had left due to various reasons, thus completing the initial plan for the Fire Dragon Sanctuary.
"Are you sure you want to donate three thousand Galleons to us?" Birdman asked excitedly.
"This is all I have left for now," Kyle replied.
Three thousand Galleons was indeed not a small amount... mainly because he had spent half of it, but considering the current prices, this sum should still be considerable.
After receiving Kyle's confirmation, Birdman couldn't help but tremble all over. He caressed the Galleons in the box, then looked up at Kyle, thought for a moment, and tried to suppress his excitement.
"Before I accept this donation, there are a few things I must tell you, Mr. Kyle. If you agree, then I will gladly accept this money."
"Go on."
"First is the return on your investment. Although you can expect returns from funding the Fire Dragon Sanctuary in the future, the amount will not be high... Let me put it this way, if we have ten fire dragons, you will only receive this much in a year."
Birdman held up three fingers.
"Three hundred Galleons?"
"No, it's... thirty Galleons."
Kyle's lips twitched.
He had expected a low return, but not this low... only one percent.
Well, no wonder those two employees had said it would take a hundred years to break even. They were right.
Fortunately, Kyle wasn't here for the returns.
"It's fine," he waved his hand dismissively, "I like fire dragons, and I don't care about the rate of return. Even if I'm throwing Galleons into the water, I don't mind as long as the dragons are well taken care of."
Birdman had been prepared for Kyle to change his mind, as many others had done before.
In the past, several people had come with bags of Galleons, intending to partner with the dragon sanctuary. However, upon learning of the ridiculously low rate of return, they had turned their backs and left without a second thought.
And after that, fewer and fewer people came, until recently, no one visited at all.
Birdman had grown accustomed to this.
But what he hadn't expected was to hear a different response this time.
The young wizard before him, not yet twenty years old, said that he didn't care about the returns.
Returns meant Galleons, and was there anyone in the wizarding world who didn't care about Galleons?
Sure, there were some, and to be a little vain, he was one of them, as were the remaining dragon caretakers. They were all barely scraping by.
But they shared a common trait—they didn't have many Galleons to begin with.
The man before him was the only exception he had ever met, someone who had Galleons and didn't care about them.
"Are you sure?"
"Of course," Kyle smiled, pushing the box forward, "Draw up the receipt, and this will all be yours."
"Wait, just wait..." Birdman panted, forcibly suppressing a certain impulse, and continued, "Apart from what I mentioned earlier, you won't be able to participate in the daily operations of the dragon sanctuary. This includes but is not limited to formulating sanctuary rules, personnel adjustments, and resource allocation... Simply put, your authority here will be less than that of an ordinary dragon caretaker."
"That's fine by me, it saves me the trouble," Kyle said.
"You also won't be able to purchase any products from the dragon sanctuary at a discounted price."
Birdman's voice became softer, as he felt he was being a bit too demanding, but he had no choice. These regulations were set by the International Wizarding Union to ensure the authority and independence of the dragon sanctuaries, preventing them from being controlled by individual pureblood families.
However, Kyle remained unconcerned.
"I have Galleons, and I don't care about a little discount... But," his tone paused.
Birdman's heart immediately rose to his throat, and he looked at Kyle anxiously.
"If I want to purchase the highest quality materials at the same price, that shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"If it's just that, of course, it's fine," Birdman breathed a sigh of relief, then added softly, "if we have them, that is."
He thought of the two Welsh Green dragons.
To be honest, the dragon scales and teeth they had collected were not of the best quality. In Diagon Alley, they would barely be considered second-rate, hence their financial struggles.
But out of a small personal desire, he didn't tell Kyle about this, although his conscience pricked him a little. They really needed this money too much.
...
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
