Chapter 53 :  Ha, Trying to Escape? 

Whether it was a blessing or a curse, at least the people around Aurina had stopped whispering about the dragon-slaying hero’s rumored penchant for children.

“I entrusted my daughter to your care, not to be your slave,” Pumanni declared, his face flushed from drink, his words blunt.

“You stirred up this mess, offended the king, and now you expect my precious girl to risk her life for your folly? Are you even a man?”

“I’m sorry,” Richard said, his voice low.

“But the king’s grasping at excuses to seize Aurina.”

“Spare me your explanations. Who’s the one in debt here?”

Even the mightiest little bug never apologized to me, Aurina thought.

Aurina tugged at Sophia’s sleeve, her voice urgent.

“Hey, female, what spell did that one-eyed man use to tame Richard so thoroughly?”

Sophia glanced at her.

“That’s my father.”

“Oh. Spill it already.”

Sophia sighed, seeing Aurina as nothing more than a dragon.

“My father’s just worried about me. It’s not about spells.”

“Why not?”

Aurina pressed, tilting her head.

“Richard’s the strongest little bug, isn’t he?”

“Little bug?”

Aurina’s cherubic face lit up.

“Little bugs are you humans, of course.”

“Sophia,” Richard said, his gaze settling on his fiancée with a mix of hope and trepidation.

“The emperor of the Yanting Empire is using some absurd pretext to take Aurina and settle my debts. He wants me to go to the capital. Will you come with me?”

Pumanni scoffed.

“I must’ve been blind as a bat back then, thinking paladins understood a man’s duty.”

Richard’s face burned crimson.

Sophia lowered her eyes to Aurina, who radiated a wild, inexplicable charm.

Despite only sharing a meal together, the dragon girl had already won the affection of several women at the table, who couldn’t resist touching her horns and tail with curious delight.

Then Sophia looked up at Richard, her betrothed, his expression a tangle of shame and longing.

He needed her.

His staggering debt—the one that had sparked this crisis—came from donating every coin of his dragon’s hoard to the displaced victims of a rampaging wyrm.

But the thought of adventure soured her mood.

No more soft beds, no more hot baths on demand, no more waking at noon beneath a warm sun.

Her shield would have to stay within arm’s reach, even in sleep, always ready to fend off a midnight ambush.

Sophia’s body felt heavy with reluctance.

The food in her mouth seemed to grow richer, more enticing.

She scooped a spoonful of pudding and savored it slowly.

Yet Richard truly needed her.

Her lips parted, but her gaze caught Aurina’s crimson horns, and memories flooded back—dragon’s lair, blood, fire, screams, the terror of the dread wyrm. 

Blood.

So much blood.

Her hand trembled, the spoon clattering onto her plate, her body shivering faintly.

“Are you catching a cold?”

Aurina asked, wrapping her small, fiery frame around Sophia in a hug.

“Little bugs are so fragile.”

Sophia steadied herself.

“No. We can’t let the emperor of the Yanting Empire have his way. He’s a tyrant.”

“Whatever,” Pumanni muttered, shaking his head.

“All that coin was donated to the Knights of Tyr, and my daughter still has to go on an adventure.”

“Thank you,” Richard said quietly.

“But there’s no need to go to the capital,” Sophia countered.

“As long as Aurina doesn’t go with you, she’s safe. She’s a free dragon. Even if Yanting sends its Royal Knights, the people won’t stand for it. I believe the Lord is on our side.”

Richard fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

“Alright. Please take care of Aurina. I’ll go to the capital and reason with the emperor.”

“Be careful,” Sophia said softly.

“I’ll pray for you, my love.”

“I know, darling.”

The table fell quiet as everyone returned to their meal.

Aurina, after nibbling a bit, launched into a boastful tale of her invincible heroics—how, under her brilliant leadership, she rode her beast of burden, hacking and slashing her way to a glittering hoard of treasure, generously allowing others to touch her horns and head.

The banquet’s mood lightened, laughter rippling through the air.

Pumanni, loosened by wine, began regaling the table with his own tales of seafaring glory.

“Those fishmen were shrieking, ‘Gwargh, gwargh!’ One of their arrows struck my eye. I yanked it out—eyeball still skewered on it—and fought on like a true man!”

“Dad!”

Sophia slammed her knife and fork down in protest.

“How many times have I told you not to talk about such gruesome things?”

“Scars are a man’s badge of honor.”

Sophia groaned.

“If it hadn’t been so long, I’d have healed that wound ages ago. We’re eating—please, no more gore, I beg you.”

Pumanni chuckled.

“Fine, fine.”

A few friends and relatives quickly smoothed things over.

Though younger, Sophia carried an air of authority at the banquet, a quiet strength that marked her as the de facto head of the gathering.

After all, she was the renowned champion of Haisha Port, blessed by the divine.

“I’ll take my leave,” Richard announced, rising.

“Where to?”

Pumanni asked.

“The Knights’ garrison.”

“You’re not an ascetic monk anymore,” Pumanni said.

“Why not stay here?”

“Thank you, father-in-law,” Richard replied, “but my old dormitory at the garrison is still there. I leave tomorrow, and tonight I want to spend with my brothers in arms.”

“Fair enough.”

Richard stood, offering a courteous farewell to the table before departing.

“Your fiancé’s a bit stingy, Sophia,” her cousin whispered.

“They say he slew a dragon and beheaded an underworld lord, claiming their treasures. Yet he comes back empty-handed, not a single gift.”

Sophia smiled softly.

“His safe return is a gift enough.”

“He’s got you wrapped around his finger,” her cousin pressed.

“He wasn’t like this before, was he? And now he wants you to follow him to the capital alone? What kind of man does that?”

Sophia said nothing.

“And you, little Aurina,” the cousin teased, “you’re so adorable. What if some man tries to gobble you up?”

“Gobble me?”

Aurina scoffed.

“I’d eat him first!”

Laughter erupted around the table.

Sprawled across Sophia’s lap, Aurina sat up, scanning the room.

Noticing Richard’s empty seat, her dragon instincts flared.

She leapt onto her chair, craning her neck to spot his retreating figure.

For some reason, he looked… like a fleeing dog.

Ha! Trying to escape?

Grinning mischievously, Aurina vaulted off the chair and dashed after him.

“Aurina, where are you going?”

Sophia called, reaching out.

Without a backward glance, Aurina sprinted, then launched herself at Richard with a mighty leap.

He spun just in time to avoid her tackling the embrace.

Like a cannonball, she crashed into his chest, the force staggering him back a few steps.

“Ha!”

Aurina crowed.

“Not bad, Richard—you saw through this king’s sneak attack!”

“Aurina,” Richard said, setting her down gently in front of everyone, “listen to Sister Sophia. The capital’s too dangerous.”

“Trying to escape?”

“I’m thinking of your safety.”

What does that prove?

That Richard fears this king!

“Liar!”

Aurina declared, her voice ringing out.

“I’m sticking with you!”

Her words carried across the room, drawing the eyes of Richard’s fiancée, her relatives, and her one-eyed, dark-haired father-in-law.

At that moment, Richard’s face turned as red as a boiled lobster.