Once the playful double entendres and teasing finally settled down, the household was faced with a very practical dilemma: was this colossal slab of dragon tail actually edible?
When confronted with that question, not a single maiden in the camp—even those most skilled in culinary arts and high-tier monster cuisine—could offer a definitive answer.
If it were an ordinary Earth Dragon, a winged Wyvern, or even a rare predatory Mabeast, preparing the meat wouldn't pose any issue. But a True Dragon was an entirely different realm. In this modern era, let alone butchering and cooking one, merely catching a glimpse of a living True Dragon was an impossible feat.
Under the circumstances, the girls resorted to the most direct, pragmatic method of experimentation.
They captured a few small forest animals, force-fed them tiny morsels of the black dragon's raw flesh and blood, and closely observed their reactions.
The result was immediate and grim.
Although the small creatures didn't perish instantly on the spot, they completely lost all motor control. They collapsed onto the grass, twitching and spasming violently in a state of agonizing paralysis, clearly lingering on the brink of death.
"It's completely inedible..."
"Yeah, it's packed with lethal toxicity, even though the marbling looks so juicy and appetizing."
"Actually, that might not be entirely true," Shion pointed out thoughtfully. "There are countless toxic flora and fauna across the continent, yet many cultures still consume them safely. As long as a precise alchemical method is found to purge or neutralize the draconic miasma, the meat itself should be harmless."
"Finding that method isn't nearly that simple," Carol sighed, shaking her head. "Neutralizing an apex dragon's blood would require dozens of trial-and-error attempts. We only have this one tail, and even if an alchemist could formulate a purge, it would take weeks of lab research."
"That's true... being able to smell something so fragrant without being able to take a single bite is so frustrating!"
As that consensus was reached, the girls' culinary enthusiasm deflated rapidly. To a group that lacked nothing in material wealth, a mountain of inedible meat held zero practical value.
"Actually, it's not entirely hopeless," Regulus spoke up, stepping forward with a faint smile.
"Eh?!"
"Can it really be purified, dear?" Ine asked, her eyes lighting up. "Do you know a method to cleanse dragon toxins?"
"I don't have the recipe memorized, but I know where to ask," Regulus replied smoothly, keeping his tone measured so as not to overpromise. "Betty, come over here for a moment. I need your assistance with this."
"Need Betty's help, I suppose?" Beatrice tilted her head, her butterfly-patterned eyes blinking in curiosity.
"Mm."
Regulus scooped the Great Spirit into his arms.
The very next instant, the surrounding forest melted away, and Regulus pulled Beatrice's consciousness straight into the Castle of Dreams.
Upon materializing in the pristine, sunlit expanse of the Dream Citadel, the first sight that greeted them was Echidna. The Witch of Greed had just changed into an adorable, frilly set of silk pajamas, clearly preparing to crawl into bed for a long rest.
The moment Echidna's dark eyes locked onto Regulus, her expression shattered into pure, unadulterated panic.
"Again?! No! Absolutely not! Really, no more!" she shrieked, clutching her pajama collar and scrambling backward onto her tea-party divan.
It was the very first time Beatrice had ever witnessed her dignified, all-knowing mother react with such hysterical terror. The Great Spirit stood frozen in shock, her small jaw dropping as she looked up at Regulus holding her.
'What on earth has this man been doing to Mother in private...?' Beatrice wondered, a cold sweat beading on her brow.
Noticing Beatrice's bewildered stare, Regulus looked down at the cowering Witch with an innocent smile. "Don't panic. I'm not here to bully you this time."
"Really...?" Echidna eyed him with extreme skepticism, trembling slightly beneath her blankets.
"Really. Do I look like the kind of shameless man who solely drops by to torment you?"
"Ugh... you look undeniably suspicious, I suppose!"
"Hehe~ Suspicious, is it? Well, if you truly believe that..." Regulus took a slow, deliberate step forward.
"Ah! No, no, no! I understand! I was wrong!" Echidna blurted out frantically, waving her hands in complete surrender. "You're not suspicious at all! Not even a single bit! It was entirely my fault for doubting your pure intentions, my dear husband!"
Her submission was instantaneous and absolute.
She genuinely could not endure another round of his relentless teasing.
The core reason for her despair was the drastic time-dilation ratio Regulus had enforced between the Castle of Dreams and the outside world. He had dialed the flow rate to its absolute maximum limit.
The devastating consequence of that temporal distortion was simple: while a full day, two days, or an entire week passed naturally for Regulus in the physical realm, for Echidna inside the Dream Citadel, Regulus would literally manifest before her every few minutes—at most, once an hour.
That razor-thin window of time was barely enough for her to finish a quick rinse, let alone enjoy a relaxing bath. In fact, during a single shower earlier that week, Regulus had materialized and 'bullied' her three consecutive times!
Three whole times in one sitting!
Under such relentless conditions, she was immensely grateful that only souls resided in the Dream Citadel and that her spiritual density was extraordinarily resilient. If her physical body had been subjected to that high-frequency torment, she would have been bedridden for months on end.
Yet, even with an immortal soul, her mental stamina was pushed to its absolute breaking point.
"Alright, seeing as your attitude in admitting your mistake is so remarkably prompt, I'll let you off the hook today," Regulus smiled charitably.
"..."
Echidna stared at him with dead eyes, her lips twitching in silent resentment.
'He really was planning to pounce again, wasn't he?' she thought bitterly.
Fortunately, her survival instincts had kicked in fast enough. Otherwise, she would have been trapped in an endless loop of showering, getting teased, and crying on the floor.
Regulus observed the pouting Witch of Greed without remorse.
Truthfully, beyond his genuine attraction to her and his desire to tease her proud persona, his aggressive visits served a vital strategic purpose.
Unlike the other Witches of Sin, who were relatively straightforward and driven by singular, pure instincts, Echidna's mind was an unfathomable labyrinth of plots, calculations, and covert contingencies. Even though it was practically guaranteed that she harbored zero genuine malice toward him, when it came to dealing with his other wives, Regulus couldn't leave anything to chance.
If she were left idle and energetic, even trapped as a soul in the Dream Citadel, her boundless curiosity would inevitably drive her to concoct subtle schemes and test experiments on the girls outside.
To permanently extinguish that risk, he had to keep her completely exhausted and thoroughly submissive—reminding her daily who held absolute dominion over this space.
So far, the psychological conditioning was yielding excellent results. However, he didn't plan to ease off entirely until she broke her solitary pride and actively begged the other Witches for help.
"Alright, let's discuss business," Regulus cleared his throat, steering the conversation back on track. "Just now, I crossed paths with a three-headed black dragon and harvested a massive cut of—"
"I know the recipe! I know exactly how to cook it!" Echidna interrupted, her eyes suddenly blazing with manic, scholarly excitement.
"..."
Regulus stared blankly at the Witch, who had completely abandoned her pajama-clad terror and was now practically drooling at the mention of the beast.
He hadn't even finished the description. What was with that ravenous, sparkling look in her eyes? Had this woman actually eaten an Evil Dragon during her era?
'Well, knowing the Witches of four hundred years ago... that might actually not be a reach,' Regulus thought, dismissing the absurdity.
"I wasn't just asking about culinary taste," Regulus clarified. "The dragon's flesh and blood are saturated with lethal miasma and paralytic toxins—"
"It's dragon curse toxicity, obviously! I know all about it," Echidna waved her hand dismissively, her cheeks flushed with genuine foodie passion. "Neutralizing it is child's play for me. But... on one condition!"
"What condition?"
"You must promise not to finish all of the dragon tail right now!" Echidna demanded, pointing a slender finger at him. "You have to preserve a generous portion in stasis, and the two of us will feast on it together the moment you resurrect my physical body!"
"That's an easy promise to keep," Regulus agreed with a chuckle.
"Splendid! Betty, come over here to Mother," Echidna beamed, beckoning her daughter with a wide grin. "Listen carefully—I shall teach you the exact alchemical decoction and heat-regulation methods required to purge dragon curse toxins. Ordinary mortal cooking methods won't extract even a fraction of the flavor from a True Dragon!"