The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL]

Chapter 417: A Wound Reopened

Shit.I’m so sorry... but shit.

Okay, sure. Those beings were obviously the bad guys.

Like, really bad guys.

And there was no version of events where Riley would somehow walk away thinking they were misunderstood victims, considering how long they’ve been responsible for Eryndra’s worst nightmares.

Heck, these guys were even the cause of his clan’s extinction!

And yet, he couldn’t help feeling a little bad for them because they were clearly having an exceptionally terrible day.

For that bloke in particular... Well...

Rest in pieces, to the one whose head had just been decapitated.

But also condolences to everyone unfortunate enough to be standing nearby when the strong and extremely angry fall wind Riley had been waiting for finally arrived.

He’d meant for it to scatter their trackers, not splatter everyone around with what had once been a perfectly intact subordinate.

Ugh.

Now that was one thing Riley was absolutely certain he would’ve lived a better life without witnessing.

In fact, it was probably the sort of thing he wished nobody else would ever have to witness either.

The ex-mortal felt his stomach churn as he looked away.

Well.

There went lunch.

And possibly dinner too.

The only positive thing to come out of the experience was that he now possessed a very compelling excuse to leave as quickly as possible.

Initially, he had wanted to stay longer as per their original plan.

Not because he enjoyed any of this, but because they were already here. It would’ve been useful to observe the site a little more, maybe to figure out exactly what those creatures were searching for and what could possibly be important enough to warrant an immediate execution in the middle of a work shift.

Unfortunately, that plan had become significantly less plausible with Kael in that state of extreme agitation.

With the Dragon Lord currently operating on what appeared to be centuries’ worth of unresolved rage, there was a very real possibility that remaining here for too long would result in the war beginning several weeks ahead of Riley’s perceived schedule.

And if he were being honest, a rather selfish ex-mortal like him simply didn’t want to trade his mate’s wellbeing for information. Especially not when the cost involved forcing Kael to endure the kind of agony that came with this much anger.

Thankfully, the wind they had been waiting for finally arrived.

That meant they could finish what they came here to do and leave.

So rather than asking the barely-contained golden dragon to handle the trackers, Riley simply did it himself.

The moment the gust strengthened, he opened the sack and exposed the tiny button-like devices to the rushing current.

The wind immediately seized them.

Hundreds of nearly weightless trackers vanished into the air, carried effortlessly over the mountainside and into the valley below. To anyone watching, they would’ve looked no different from ordinary dust caught in the seasonal winds of the Whispering Crags.

Exactly as intended.

Riley watched them scatter through the excavation site, drifting naturally among the workers until several attached themselves to the scuttling figures below.

Perfect.

At least something had gone according to plan today.

And honestly, it was a very good thing they left when they did.

Or more accurately, it was a very good thing Riley somehow succeeded in hauling away the Dragon Lord who clearly wanted to remain exactly where he was.

Because the moment they began retreating, the masked figure suddenly stopped.

The same individual who seemed perfectly comfortable removing subordinates from the payroll in the most literal sense possible slowly turned toward the mountain where they had been observing.

As though they had sensed something.

Fortunately, by then there was nothing left to find.

Only swaying trees.

Branches creaking beneath the force of the fall winds.

Leaves whipping violently through the air.

Even the abominations below had momentarily paused their activities as the gale swept across the valley, affecting movement and visibility.

The masked figure stared in that direction for several moments before eventually turning away to get everyone to continue to "work" even under such conditions.

Tsk.

What a boss, that one.

"..."

Now, if those workers down there had ever bothered to ask for his professional opinion, Riley would’ve gladly informed them that their working conditions under the Wyvern King were absolutely horrific.

And to think that assessment was coming from someone who used to work as though every day might be his last.

Sure, he really had gone ahead and resigned, but compared to whatever was happening in that valley, the MBE suddenly seemed remarkably reasonable.

Not too bad after all.

Because surely none of those guys had ever heard of hazard-fucking-pay.

Or overtime.

Oh, and definitely not severance pay!

__

Ah, but apparently, Riley shouldn’t have been nearly as concerned as he was.

Because the moment Kael finally explained what had gotten him so worked up back there, the ex-mortal found himself adding several new entries to his already extensive list of grievances against the Wyverns.

By then, they had already returned to the MBE. However, instead of immediately heading off to report to everyone who was undoubtedly waiting for news, Riley dragged his mate somewhere private first.

The golden dragon hadn’t looked right ever since they left the mountains.

Actually, "not right" was putting it mildly.

Kael had been unusually quiet during the entire trip back, and now that they were finally alone, he simply sat there staring ahead with an expression so blank it almost looked unnatural.

Riley frowned at the sight.

It would have been fine if his mate actually felt as blank as he looked, but that was definitely not the case.

So he stepped closer. He definitely had to deal with this before anything else.

Since Kael remained seated while he stood, it was easy enough for the black dragon to gently wrap his arms around the golden dragon’s head and pull him closer. Soon, the despondent dragon found himself leaning against Riley’s abdomen while slender fingers combed through his hair.

Only then did the black dragon quietly ask what had happened.

Initially, the golden guy didn’t answer.

His body remained tense despite the familiar touch, and Riley could feel that tension clearly through the bond connecting them.

Eventually, the worried black dragon sighed and leaned down slightly.

"You know I can feel it, right?"

Riley continued stroking his hair despite his mate’s utter silence.

"With our bond, even if you wanted to hide it from me, that’s not really possible anymore."

His voice softened.

"I know you probably don’t want to talk about it just yet, and in most cases I would’ve thoroughly respected that... Unfortunately, it’s not safe to do that these days..."

His caressing fingers stopped moving as he considered the best way to phrase it.

"And if I don’t know what’s bothering you, then I won’t know what I’m supposed to prepare for."

He left the rest unsaid, hoping Kael would remember what had happened the last time his emotions had spiraled that far out of control.

After all, Riley had once been completely incapacitated because of them.

Just imagining that situation occurring while he was in a fight was something he really hoped would stay as a what-if, because that was not how he would want to go out.

For several moments, the room remained quiet.

Then Kael slowly closed his eyes.

His head settled more heavily against Riley as though reassuring himself that his mate was still there.

Only then did he finally speak.

"That odd one out."

"Hm?"

"The one wearing the mask."

The black dragon paused.

"What about them?"

Kael’s jaw tightened.

"That was the one who came to the estate."

"The one wielding the Forbidden Fire while looking for my mate."

A dangerous edge crept into the golden dragon’s voice.

"Looking for you."

For several seconds Riley simply stared.

Then his eyebrows shot upward.

"What?"

The surprise in his voice was obvious.

"Me?"

His confusion quickly turned into disbelief, but Kael simply gave a slow nod that immediately made Riley frown.

"Do you think they knew I was a black dragon?"

Honestly, it was the most obvious explanation.

At least, it should have been.

Yet Kael didn’t answer right away.

Instead, his thoughts drifted back to the face he’d seen all those years ago.

Cruel.

Desperate.

Empty in a way that made it difficult to forget.

Back then, Kael hadn’t understood what he was looking at. He had been far too young to comprehend why someone would throw away everything just for the chance to drag someone to the same hell.

But now?

Now he understood far too well.

Because if someone took Riley from him...

The golden dragon wasn’t entirely sure he would look or react much better.

His arms tightened slightly around Riley’s waist.

Finally, he shook his head.

"No."

Riley looked surprised.

"No?"

"I don’t think they knew."

The answer came without the hesitation Kael would’ve preferred to hear from his own mouth. Because hesitation would’ve at least implied that this fight wasn’t as personal as he was beginning to suspect.

Unfortunately, he was unconsciously certain about the conclusion he had just drawn.

"That one wasn’t looking for the last black dragon."

In fact, back then, with that unforgettable expression, that being couldn’t have cared less if that particular information was eventually unraveled.

The golden dragon slowly lifted his head from Riley’s abdomen and tilted it back so he could look directly into his mate’s eyes.

"That one was looking for you simply because you were my fated mate."

Riley froze.

"Huh?"

"And I think I know why now."

That earned him another look of confusion.

"You do?"

Honestly, the ex-mortal was more baffled than anything.

How exactly had Kael managed to figure something like that out while they were conducting surveillance?

The golden dragon’s expression darkened.

His gaze sharpened as he stared into Riley’s eyes.

Then he quietly said,

"Someone’s mate."

"...What?"

"If I’m right," Kael continued, his voice lowering into something rough and dangerous, "that was the Wyvern King’s mate."

For a moment, Riley simply gawked at him.

The words entered one ear and promptly refused to make sense.

Then they finally did.

"!!!"

"WHAT?!"