The task of developing the map was even more boring than Jack had expected.
Most of the time, he and Keqing were just walking the road.
Three days passed. Aside from registering a teleportation point at an abandoned village on the first day, there wasn't much worth noting. Every fifty kilometers, Jack simply placed down another teleportation anchor.
Now, they had reached a wide grassland about 220 kilometers away from the forest cabin.
In the distance, a reptile two or three meters tall—something like a triceratops—wandered aimlessly.
"Is that… the Overworld dragonet?"
Jack waved to Keqing, then opened his backpack. He had enough leather, thread, and iron ingots. Perfect.
He pulled out a crafting table and quickly made three saddles following the recipe.
Keqing tilted her head. "What's wrong, Aqu? Something off about those dragons?"
Jack grinned. "Keqing, want to try being a dragon tamer?"
Her eyes lit up at the sight of the saddle in his hands. "You mean… those dragons can be tamed like Xiaocheng?"
Xiaocheng was the orange stray cat Keqing had adopted. After just a few days under her care, he had already put on weight and lost much of his wildness.
"Yeah. These dragonets aren't on the same level as the true dragons from the Legend of Ice and Fire module, but they're still a solid means of transportation. Just be careful when saddling them—they can get temperamental."
Taking a saddle from him, Keqing listened closely to Jack's instructions on animal taming before walking toward a dragonet, eager to try.
Jack followed a short distance behind, prepared to heal her with a splash of milk at any moment.
After all, even a young dragon was still a dragon. Unlike a horse, it wouldn't just buck you off and run—it would bite.
Keqing approached slowly in a hunting stance, sneaking a glance at Jack, who was already channeling elemental energy in his hands. With him watching her back, her nerves eased.
She lunged, throwing the saddle!
It landed squarely on the dragonet.
The creature froze mid-step, clearly confused, then felt its back sink.
"Rooaaar!"
Pride burned in its blood—it would never tolerate a biped riding on its back. The dragonet shook wildly, desperate to throw Keqing off.
Gritting her teeth, Keqing clung to the saddle.
But the dragonet's thrashing was too violent. With one last buck, it threw her off.
"Not good!"
Rolling to soften the fall, Keqing suddenly felt a surge of killing intent—the dragonet was charging at her, horns lowered.
"Nature's Blessing!"
Bang!
A flash of white light burst from her body.
The diamond armor absorbed most of the impact, and Jack's healing skill took care of the rest.
Shaking her head, Keqing noticed the other dragonets beginning to circle them. Her brows furrowed.
If this were just a fight, she could beat them down with an elemental burst. But taming was a whole different challenge.
Luckily, her diamond armor was strong. She could withstand their attacks for hours if necessary.
"Keqing, I'll handle the other two. You focus on that one!"
Jack raised his diamond sword and charged at the approaching dragonets with killing intent sharp enough to cut steel.
Keqing nodded, climbed back onto her target, and tried again.
Meanwhile, Jack planted himself between her and the other two dragonets.
From the earlier clash, he had already gauged their strength—slightly tougher than a brown bear, but nothing terrifying.
With Keqing's armor, even a direct hit from a dragonet would leave her only lightly wounded.
"Roooaaar!"
The two beasts pawed the ground like enraged bulls, ready to charge.
Jack chuckled. "Sorry, but you're not interrupting her. This is my home turf. Time for a nap."
He thrust his diamond sword into the earth.
The weapon's superb elemental conduction made his grass-element burst swell in power. Vines exploded from the ground, growing over ten meters long in seconds, and twisted around the two dragonets.
They fought hard, snapping several tendrils, but the sheer abundance of vegetation overwhelmed them.
In moments, they were bound like dumplings, leaving only their confused heads sticking out.
The sight of Jack and two tied-up dragonets staring at each other was almost comical.
"Ahem. Hungry? Want a snack?"
He pulled out raw beef from his pack.
The dragonets' eyes lit up instantly.
Jack tossed the meat, and they wolfed it down.
"Roooaaar!"
Their cries carried an obvious meaning: Big brother, more please!
Jack smirked. "Pathetic. Your comrade's still fighting hard, and you give in for a couple chunks of meat?"
Still, he glanced over at Keqing.
Her dragonet was finally tiring. She'd managed to stay mounted for over three minutes.
Satisfied, Jack sat cross-legged in the grass, watching her graceful figure as she fought to tame it.
Ten minutes later.
Keqing rode up proudly on a dragonet three meters tall, its claws thudding heavily against the ground.
"Jack, this is amazing! It feels like I can steer it without even using reins—almost like it's moving as one with me."
Teyvat had horses, so reins weren't new to her.
(You were right after all, Kaeya—captain of cavalry without a horse.)
Jack held back his sarcasm toward the infamous brother Kaeya and patted one of the captured dragonets on the head.
"These things are huge. Honestly, taming one's enough. How about we butcher the other two? In the Dragon's Homemod, dragonet meat is a delicacy, and their scales can be forged into armor."
At his words, the two bound dragonets trembled.
…They understood.
Keqing covered her mouth, laughing softly. "Jack, don't scare them. We just started a ranch not long ago—it should be more than enough to raise three dragonets."
Niu Niu: You're the devil…
Jack nodded.
The ranch wasn't much use for earning coins, but it made a good meat stockpile.
Besides, he was already dreaming of the day he'd raise hundreds of dragons in the Legend of Ice and Fire module, leading them like an army. The thought made the two stupid dragonets at his feet look even more pitiful.
"Fine. Let's just call this a practice run."
He released the vines, saddled the two without resistance, and rode all three dragonets to the nearest teleportation anchor.
In a flash, they were back at the forest cabin.
Jack released the dragonets into the western plains, where their dull thudding steps echoed like war drums.