Chapter 182: One Too Many
Talking to the children and explaining the arrangements went better than Riley expected, especially after he gave them treats.
It was the unusually magical flan. The moment it appeared, both Orien and Kael raised their brows in unison.
They’re seriously related. Wow.
Still, considering the earlier tearful event that the little dragon couldn’t handle—because apparently, tears were worse than magical attacks—Riley decided to let it pass. Orien had been hiding behind Liam once the waterworks started, muttering that crying was far too dangerous to be allowed.
So, when the flan was finally served, both legendary dragons decided to "share" it. Not that all the flan had been made for them, but since when did dragons ever care about details like that? Still, they survived the ordeal—and the day ended without anything catching fire or exploding.
That alone felt like a miracle.
After that, all that remained were the final matters to settle.
Surprisingly, Kael informed the elves that while he would be keeping the Moonveil Codex for now, he intended to return to the sanctum during the solstice to take it out properly.
Yes—he informed them, not asked for permission.
King Arlen, as expected, grumbled to no end. But when his son spoke up and said it would be safer that way, the king eventually relented.
Riley, meanwhile, was left wondering why Kael planned to "take it out properly."
He asked the question and immediately became dumbfounded by the dragon’s casual response.
"If not, then how would you read it?"
"Huh? Read it? Me?" Riley’s voice cracked.
Kael looked back at him with the same calm, unreadable expression he always had. "What? Don’t you like ancient books?"
Riley blinked at him, completely thrown off. He wasn’t sure what worried him more—the idea that Kael expected him to be able to read such a text, or the fact that the same dragon remembered such a thing.
Moreover, he went out of his way to make it happen.
Then again, was he really worried?
Because that full heart beat he took would’ve liked to disagree.
Ahem.
__
As for matters much easier to handle than an unpredictable dragon, Kael had actually gone and called over his father for the sealing rights.
Riley, who was waiting for his boss to finish reviewing a few forms, blinked. "Wait, why are you calling Lord Karion? Is this something only he can do?"
Kael, who was calmly reviewing documents that didn’t even need his review, looked up at him with that usual unhurried expression.
Riley frowned, trying to piece it together, but then he shook his head. "No, wait, never mind. Actually, this is better."
Kael tilted his head slightly. "Better?"
"Yeah," Riley said, nodding with an almost smug kind of satisfaction. "It’s perfectly ironic, don’t you think? Even until the end, they still won’t get a drop of your blood."
For a second, Kael just stared at him. His golden eyes blinked once, slowly.
Then Riley froze, a belated thought catching up with his mouth. "Wait. It does need your blood, right?"
Kael’s gaze didn’t move. His tone was calm, but somehow every word made Riley want to hide under a table. "Mn. And you’re already using every bit I can spare. So what more would be used on them?"
Riley blinked. Once. Twice. Then he wished he hadn’t.
The gaze was unblinking, and Riley would have gutted himself before admitting that he saw something smoldering.
He immediately waved his hands in panic. "N-no! Just use it on them!"
Kael leaned back slightly, tone almost lazy. "No. With how much you use, it’s impossible."
Riley choked on his breath. "Excuse me! I-I do not!"
Kael’s eyes narrowed, amusement flickering at the corners. "You don’t? Then what about this morning? Before lunch? Then by the hallway... and behind the shel—"
"!!!"
Riley didn’t even let him finish. In a blur of pure panic, he lunged forward and slapped a hand over the dragon’s blasted mouth as if willing to shut him up.
Kael made a low hum under his hands, the sound vibrating against Riley’s palms. His laughter was silent but merciless.
The frazzled human wanted to silence him, maybe permanently, and practically squished the dragon’s face against his chest to smother him.
Riley, now essentially hugging the dragon’s entire head to keep him quiet, was bright red. Just remembering how he had been willingly pressed against the wall behind the shelf was enough to send him straight to the afterlife.
He tried to breathe but immediately regretted it, because that was when Kael decided to move.
The dragon shifted his head just slightly—and Riley froze when he felt something warm and deliberate against his neck.
A tongue.
"!!!"
Kael’s lips curved against his skin before he licked a small, exposed part of Riley’s throat, slow and sinful.
No! Definitely not slow and sinful! What the heck?!
Riley’s knees nearly gave out.
"H-hey! Y-you!"
But Kael just looked up at him from where he’d been trapped, golden eyes dark with mischief.
Riley’s brain was screaming, Why was this dragon like this?!
Before he could scold him properly, though, distant voices echoed from the end of the hall.
"So, what do you think?"
"I believe you’re right..."
Lord Karion and Lady Cirila.
Riley’s soul nearly left his body.
He shoved Kael off in a panic, straightened his collar, and coughed like a man pretending nothing at all had happened.
Life was hard.
He took one step forward, almost tripped, and prayed silently, ’Someone, please start talking about sealing elven magical abilities so I can recover.’
Please.
And they did.
Thankfully.
Though Riley wasn’t sure if thankfully was the right word, considering he couldn’t concentrate on anything they were saying.
What, where, when, why, how—none of it was making sense. His brain was still stuck somewhere between embarrassment and mild cardiac distress.
At least until one particular line caught his attention.
"Lord Karion, that much would be needed? Maybe it would be better if we changed the punishment?" Riley asked, forcing himself to focus.
The old dragon gave a low chuckle. "No, it won’t really be too difficult. In fact, at this rate, it might even help keep me alive for longer."
Riley blinked. "Huh? How?"
"Well," Karion began casually, "they’d have to find someone more powerful than me to get this unsealed. And with how history turned out, right now, there’s really just this brat."
He gestured toward his son—the tall, silent dragon lord who looked more than mildly pleased with that title.
Riley turned his head slowly toward Kael. "Wait. So what you’re saying is... if someone wanted to unseal the Elowens, they’d need someone even stronger than you?"
"Correct," Karion said. "And considering Kael’s temperament, how likely do you think it is that he’d go out of his way to unseal them if I were to be... mysteriously eradicated?"
"..."
Oh.
Riley suddenly felt a chill crawl down his back.
Apparently, seals weren’t as foolproof as people liked to believe. They were heavily dependent on the strength—and existence—of the one who cast them.
And while most seals would remain binding until undone, it wasn’t impossible to remove one. It just required something far more terrifying.
A being stronger than the caster.
Riley paled. "Wait, then if one day Kael decides to seal someone...?"
Lady Cirila gave a small, amused smile. "Then they’d better pray he stays interested enough to unseal them. Otherwise, their next hope would be the next dragon lord—if that one happens to be stronger."
She paused, voice calm and sweet, which only made it worse.
"Honestly," she added, "at that point, it might be better to pray for the revival of another legendary being instead."
"!!!"