Chapter 38 : The Courageous Dragon

Richard was utterly baffled.

He’d only stepped downstairs to discuss compensation with the innkeeper, and in the blink of an eye, Aurina had vanished.

He wasted no time, questioning passersby and rallying a kind-hearted citizen to ride out on horseback.

It wasn’t until he spotted a dragon circling the skies above the outskirts that he hurried to the scene.

Yet, upon arrival, he was branded a despicable hypocrite by a now-deceased dwarf.

Aurina, meanwhile, was furiously kicking the bald dwarf mage’s lifeless body.

“Hey, hey! Don’t you dare die on me, you little worm! Wake up and face your death properly!”

After a flurry of kicks, she slyly swallowed the dwarf’s most valuable possession—a magical headband—down her gullet.

When she looked up, Richard had removed his helmet and was watching her quietly.

“Gahaha!”

Aurina burst into laughter.

“Hah, it must’ve been my majestic dragon aura that scared him so bad his head just flopped over and he died!”

“You swiped the loot,” Richard said, his tone flat.

“Nope, he wasn’t even wearing an intelligence headband!”

Aurina pointed at the dwarf’s shiny bald pate.

“See? Nothing there, right?”

“You deliberately blocked my view. I moved left, you moved left. I went right, you went right.”

“Gah!”

Aurina’s grin vanished, her small face darkening.

“Fine, you caught me. But can you take the loot back from this king’s belly? Once it’s in there, no one’s getting it out.”

Richard raised his steel-gauntleted fist.

Aurina flinched, instinctively clutching her head.

“It’s not a big deal,” he said, his voice steady.

“But if something’s going on, you need to tell me. No sneaking off to trick shady folks for gold—what if it’s a trap set by enemies?”

“They were nice little worms!”

Aurina protested, defending the two dead mercenaries.

“They said they had gold and invited me along, so I went!”

“What?”

Richard blinked.

“You actually believed they had gold?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

Aurina mimicked his tone with a smirk.

“So I followed them to check it out. They were so nice—gave me a hooded cloak and everything. Otherwise, I’d have roasted all those squirming worms crowding the streets in one gulp!”

“Why?”

Richard asked, frowning.

“You didn’t even know their names.”

Aurina tilted her head, as if the question was absurd.

“Why’s there a why? Gold’s sitting there, and you don’t grab it? Oh, wait—you wouldn’t, because you’re a fool.”

“Let’s drop it for now.”

Richard extended his armored hand toward her.

There was no escaping at this distance.

“Gah!”

Aurina clenched her teeth, ready to defend her prize to the death.

Ever since she’d awakened her ability to store things in her stomach, no human or dragon had ever pried so much as a copper coin from her.

As a hatchling, her dozen siblings had ambushed her, pinning her down, pummeling her, smashing her head until her eyes went blind.

Bloodied and battered, she’d gritted her teeth and refused to cry out.

They’d pried at her jaws, breaking her teeth, blood pooling everywhere, but they couldn’t force her mouth open.

She held on until her other siblings arrived, marveling at her wounds and her unyielding grip on her gold, proclaiming her ferocity.

“Let me see your wounds,” Richard said.

Aurina eyed him warily.

“Your back… the clothes are stuck to the blood. I’ll need to touch the wound—bear with it.”

Richard began tearing the fabric, cautious at first, pausing to ask, “Does it hurt?”

Aurina bit back the sting, shaking her head silently.

Emboldened, Richard ripped the cloth away.

Her face didn’t flinch, though the wound burned like fire.

Soon, a warm current flowed through her, followed by the tickling itch of healing.

Her tail flicked comfortably.

Only when Richard stood, clearly uninterested in her loot, did Aurina relax.

A strange feeling bubbled up inside her as she studied him curiously.

Was this little worm really so foolish as to not care about gold?

“Your wounds are worse than I thought. You okay?”

“I don’t need medicine,” Aurina declared.

“Just give me meat. Meat fixes everything.”

“Good enough.”

Richard reached for the collar around her neck.

“This thing… no keyhole. I’ll try breaking it.”

His hands trembled as the golden collar let out a faint click.

“No good. Looks like only a holy blade could cut it.”

“No!”

 Aurina leapt up, higher than Richard’s head.

“You can’t keep wearing a collar. You’re not a dog.”

“It’s worth one thousand seventy-two gold coins!” she cried.

“No matter how valuable, it’s still a shackle around your neck.”

“No way!”

Aurina insisted.

“I’ll take it off eventually, melt it down, and sleep on a bed of gold coins. Your worm beds are too hard.”

Richard shook his head.

“Fine. We’ll find someone to remove it later.”

He hoisted the dwarf’s body over his shoulder.

“Let’s talk while we walk.”

“You’re not stealing my intelligence headband?”

Aurina teased.

“Gah, makes sense. This king’s so majestic, you wouldn’t dare.”

“Steal? I think that loot’s perfect for you,” Richard said.

“I’ve heard even clever folks need an intelligence headband to grasp the arcane mysteries. It’s supposed to make you smarter—perfect for you.”

“What? No way!”

Aurina trailed after him, head high.

“This king would never use it. I’d sell it for gold.”

“Why? It suits you,” Richard said.

“Wear it, and you might even manage math beyond twenty.”

“Impossible!” Aurina scoffed.

“This worm-made headband would only dull my peerless intellect. My wisdom’s so vast, it’d sap my brilliance and make me dumber.”

Richard chuckled.

“Never heard of an intelligence headband making anyone dumber.”

“That’s because you worms are too dim to notice,” she retorted.

Richard shook his head, amused.

Aurina gestured wildly, her tail swishing as she launched into tales of her greatness.

They reached the camp, where the mounted citizen who’d ridden with Richard was guarding surrendered mercenaries.

Aurina’s fiery assault had shattered their morale in an instant.

Someone called out, asking if the wounded mercenaries could be treated.

Richard, tossing the dwarf’s body to them, shook his head.

“Sorry, I’ve used all my healing power on Aurina.”

Inside a sky-blue tent, Aurina waxed poetic about her sneak attack, sighing over the two mercenaries who’d “lured” her.

“Such nice worms. Shame they don’t last long.”

Richard frowned.

“If you trusted them, why’d you attack?”

Aurina blinked, puzzled.

“I just wanted my gold. Why wait for them to hand it over when I can take it?”

“You’re not dumb,” Richard said.

“You’re… uniquely clever.”

“This king’s intellect crushes all!”

Aurina boasted, her slender neck glinting with the golden collar.

A commotion erupted outside the tent—human voices.

Aurina leapt onto Richard’s shoulders, peering eagerly at the excited citizens pouring in.

“Unbelievable!” one cried.

“They’re the Black Beast Mercenaries!”

“Who?”

Richard asked.

The citizens clamored.

“The Black Beasts do anything for coin—raiding villages, slaving. The guild’s got a bounty on them. The victims will be thrilled they’re gone!”

“Amazing!” another said, giving Aurina a thumbs-up.

“They said you stormed the camp alone and started the slaughter.”

“Exactly!”

Aurina nodded vigorously.

“That’s precisely how it happened.”

Richard muttered, “Sounds like a lie.”

His voice drowned in the citizens’ cheers.

That night, a rumor swept Nabumei City of a young dragon girl, indistinguishable from a human child, who’d outwitted the notorious Black Beast spies.

She’d infiltrated their camp alone, crippling the mercenaries with her draconic might, and with Richard’s aid, annihilated them.

“Yup, that’s right!”

Aurina crowed.

At the next day’s feast, sprawled across the laps of noble ladies at the banquet table, Aurina bragged,

“Exactly! This king saw through their kidnapping scheme and turned the tables, wiping them out single-handedly!”