Black Dragon Mountain did not originally have this name; later, because it was occupied by a Black Dragon with immense power, over time, people used the title of the Black Dragon to name it. It was said that several hundred years ago, that Black Dragon was very famous on the continent, a source of terror for humanity. The dragon often flew out to patrol its territory, and the skies of neighboring countries often saw the giant silhouette of the Black Dragon passing by, obscuring the sun. Entire towns were destroyed and burned in a single night under the wrath of the Black Dragon, so that Black Dragon was also called the Ghost Dragon.
Jasmine's marriage partner was the Dragon Egg found in a deep cave on Black Dragon Mountain. Some guessed it was the offspring of the Ghost Dragon that once curled upon Black Dragon Mountain; others guessed it was the Ghost Dragon itself reincarnating, only that because the giant dragon had disappeared and its power had weakened, it returned to the eggshell for self-protection while waiting for the day of awakening.
But Jasmine did not pay much attention to these speculations. In this era where even magic had withered and mages had become frauds, no one thought a giant dragon could truly reappear. Moreover, Jasmine had signed the marriage contract with the Dragon Egg under the witness of the Church and the Gods; as the nominal partner of the Dragon Egg, no matter how ferocious the Ghost Dragon was, it could not harm Jasmine.
Compared to the status of the Dragon Egg, Jasmine was more curious about the legendary treasure on Black Dragon Mountain. It was said that the Black Dragon's lair was hidden in some treacherous place on the mountain; the treasure the giant dragon had collected over thousands of years was so much it could fill the entire lair, with gold, silver, and gemstones piled into mountains.
Unfortunately, before disappearing, the giant dragon had hidden its treasure too well, using magic to conceal it; several hundred years had passed, and no one could find even a single gold coin on Black Dragon Mountain. Jasmine somewhat regretfully gave up the intention of targeting the giant dragon's treasure. Although those treasures nominally belonged to her now, even the most formidable adventurers, armed to the teeth, had no way to obtain a single gold coin on Black Dragon Mountain; Jasmine did not think that she, an ordinary person who could not even tie up a chicken, could luckily find it.
A few gurgles from her stomach interrupted her thoughts; Jasmine washed her face briefly with cold water to help wake up, intending to go out and find something to eat. Jasmine opened the door; the long, empty corridor was devoid of people, with only the sound of her footsteps echoing. There were only two rooms on the second floor; besides the Lord's bedroom, the other room was a warehouse for miscellaneous items. Jasmine had not gone in to check yet, having only heard about it briefly when the old Butler introduced the castle's situation yesterday with a hesitant tone.
Regarding the items in the warehouse, Jasmine had no expectations at all; yesterday, upon arriving at the territory, she had already experienced the extreme poverty here. The first floor was the banquet hall; this place was not as clean as Jasmine's bedroom, with spiderwebs covering the high ceiling. Aside from the old long table with a scratched surface that had been used for unknown years in the banquet hall, both sides of the hall were piled with miscellaneous items—tattered cloth, piles of dry wood, and haystacks that emitted a strong musty smell, looking like someone's sleeping spot on the ground during winter.
Black Dragon Castle was called a castle, but in reality, it did not even have an outer protective wall or an observation watchtower; the entire castle only consisted of a main building less than two stories high built of rough stone, even more dilapidated than the castles of nameless small territories Jasmine had passed on the road. The only thing that could prove the former glory of this castle was the giant stones scattered everywhere like nameless tombs, as well as the traces of the collapsed castle foundations around it being invaded by weeds.
Before Jasmine took over this territory, Black Dragon Castle had also had several brave Lords, but the duration of their tenure was never long; for various strange reasons, they either lost their lives or fled, and naturally, they did not have time to repair the castle, only being able to watch this castle increasingly decline over time.
In the banquet hall, the light was dim; the windows were closed tight with wooden boards, and no candles were lit. Jasmine only glanced briefly before withdrawing her gaze; she rubbed her gurgling stomach and walked toward the main door, intending to find the location of the kitchen by the faint smell of smoke. It was also strange; yesterday she had only seen the old Butler and the slaves in the castle. Logically, there should have been servants to serve and knights responsible for the security of the territory, but she had slept in the castle for a night and still had not seen a trace of those people.
Could it be that this castle was so poor it could not afford to keep servants and knights, and had to cut down personnel to the maximum? Thinking of this, Jasmine's footsteps halted. Although she had been traveling constantly after arriving in this world, knowing she was taking over a territory, Jasmine had spent some effort to learn about noble rules. Servants, knights, and slaves were considered the basic configuration of a castle. After witnessing the cruelty of this world, other things were negotiable, but if there were not even protective knights, Jasmine had to worry for the safety of her life. One must know that the Black Dragon Territory was located on the border; it was not some peaceful or safe territory; bandits and wild beasts could appear at any time.
"Greetings... respected Lord."
Before Jasmine could even step out the door, the old Butler, William, carrying an old bronze candle holder, suddenly appeared from the darkness in front of her. The flickering yellow candlelight shone on William's withered, wrinkled face and deep eye sockets, just like an old wizard stepping out of some horror movie, scaring Jasmine until she almost screamed out loud. Fortunately, she still recognized William's familiar appearance, only then managing to maintain the calm demeanor of a Lord at the last second, though she slightly stepped back.
Perhaps because she had told the old Butler yesterday about the revocation of the Winchester surname, William no longer called her Lord Winchester, but it was clearly difficult for the old man to immediately change how William addressed the "Lord"; on this point, the old Butler had the particular stubbornness of the elderly.
"Good morning, Butler William," Jasmine coughed lightly to regain her voice, greeting the old Butler.
"Your breakfast is ready; it will be brought up to you immediately."
The old Butler placed the candle holder on the only long table in the banquet hall, then pulled out the heavy wooden chair at the head position; the sound of the chair legs scraping against the stone floor was ear-piercing. William signaled for Jasmine to sit down and wait.