The tension in the room could be cut with a sword. The temperature dropped noticeably.
Lok was still shaking in Rosalyn's arms. He had hardly heard what had happened since the announcement of his tribe's fate. And he showed no signs of coming back to himself anytime soon.
But everyone was not focused on him.
The Black Dragon and the Black Swordsman still looked at each other with growing horror.
Eruhaben was angry at first. Or rather, he really wanted to be angry. He was a dragon. They usually didn't care about their own kind. He was one of the gentlest of them in this regard, but even he didn't meddle in the affairs of his brothers once again. It was unlikely that anyone could influence the situation once it had already happened. He himself did not even know about the existence of this child. And he would not have found out ... Accordingly, he could not help him. A murderer and a cook? No options. A swordsman boy who had been killing monsters for decades in one of the most terrible places on the continent did exactly what he had to do. A dragon gone mad is not an unknown creature in the forest. He could cause a lot of irreparable damage, in the short time that was left to him in any case. So this was the best outcome. Blaming the boy or being angry at him made no sense. Why?
Because it hadn't happened yet. Eruhaben refused to appear on the list of " Juvenile Idiots Who Need Their Heads Pulled Out of..." even briefly, thank you very much. His age and dignity didn't allow it.
And he will definitely visit that bastard who put the baby in chains as soon as he gets out of here.
"You can also invite Olien with you..."
He's a real jerk, but in this case it's just great. They'll explain in a popular way why it was a bad idea. Colorfully. He'll remember it for the rest of his life. No matter how short it may be.
With these thoughts, Eruhaben lowered his gaze to the baby in his arms.
He was still trembling and looking into the eyes of his... who?
The little dragon thought. Who was this man for him in the end? A murderer? Or a savior?
The whole time he was in the room, he wasn't just silent. He was doing what he had been doing for the last four years of his life. He was silent, watching, and learning. He had learned a great deal in those few hours. He cared little about the supposed future problems of people. He looked at the world as a whole. He didn't like people. Although the Strange Man was curious, of course. And to decide now how he should feel about his "death", he had to think carefully about what he had learned.
He began to calm down.
And the more the Black Dragon, who was looking at him, calmed down, the more Choi Han began to worry.
He was shaking more and more.
What was wrong with his life? Why did he have to go through this? Why did he have to kill a child? A CHILD!!! Who was innocent. Who just wanted to live. Because he didn't know? Or because he was dangerous?
He couldn't look into those blue eyes anymore. The owner of those eyes had every right to hate him right now. He wouldn't judge. He hated himself right now. But he didn't want to see hatred in a child's eyes.
He lowered his head and clenched his fists. There were tears in his eyes.
This was just the beginning of the "book", right? The beginning of the book, and he had already taken an innocent life. What next? From bad to worse? Was this what the new Cale was trying to prepare him for? What else had the organization done, and what would he have to do to clean up the mess? With such "heroic deeds", would there be anything human left in him? He was a good man, so why? A good man, after all...? He didn't know anymore.
Despair began to drown him. He had nothing to breathe with. An empty voice in his head, his own , whispered to him that he knew nothing except taking lives. His thoughts were drawing him into a spiral to the very bottom. Somewhere where his aura originated. Into the endless, impenetrable darkness.
…Until, through his tear-stained eyes, he suddenly saw a small black paw reaching out to him.
He raised his head in shock. There was a dragon standing on the table in front of him, calmly holding out its paw. And its eyes weren't burning with hatred, they were calm.
He looked at the silent people. They were looking at the dragon with the same surprise. So he hadn't imagined it. He turned back to the dragon and, not knowing what else to do, waited for it to act.
***
While Choi Han went deeper and deeper into himself, the little dragon tried to understand himself and life.
For all four years that he lived in this world, he was sure of two things.
The first is that living is painful. And the second is that all people are evil.
He often dreamed of freedom, but he didn't really understand what it was. He thought about what he would see outside the cave and what he could do, but it was hard to dream about something you didn't even know what it looked like. He had never seen the sky, the forest, the birds. The only wind he felt was the draft that blew from the cave entrance. The only grass he touched was the hay he slept on. The only animals he saw were the people who mocked him.
He dreamed of freedom. But deep down he knew he would hardly ever get it. It turns out that it would have been like that…
And then suddenly he found himself here.
And here, in this black room, the world was bigger and more colorful than ever in his fantasies.
Here he saw both the sky and the greenery. He was really unlucky with the tree, it was scary, but there will be others, right?
He saw other people too. And they weren't as evil as he thought.
Feeling the elder dragon's hand land on his head, he opened his eyes and looked at the fair-haired prince, who was very worried about the people in his city.
He looked at Ron…
…
…
And then to Bikros, who is also scary, but seems to cook very tasty.
He looked at Rosalyn, who was hugging the wolf boy and crying for both of them.
On Mary, who sat with her hands folded and seemed to be praying.
At the beautiful whale princess, who looked at him with an indescribable feeling in her eyes. He didn't know what it was yet, but he would find out.
He looked at the dragon, who looked back at him with a calm, wise gaze.
And finally, to his "killer", who suffered from this more than he did.
Gathering his courage, he stirred and climbed down from Eruhaben's lap. Moving onto the table, he began to slowly approach the swordsman who was going crazy.
He wasn't scared, he couldn't get hurt in this place. This was the first thing he learned in this room.
Step.
The second thing he learned from the Strange Man was, "Always look for opportunities." He had been planning his escape for a long time. He was ready to do it in a few days. And he was ready for the consequences, too. Even if they scared him. But now he had another opportunity.
Step.
The third thing he learned from Uncle Goldie: "People are stupid." They need help. Suggestions. It was not for nothing that Uncle Goldie went on about it so much. He considered it quite decent behavior for such great creatures as dragons. And there was another black creature who, like himself, seemed to be learning to live in this world. And he needed help.
Step.
The fourth thing he learned from the Strange Man and Uncle Goldie was, "Difficult doesn't mean impossible." It was difficult for him to approach a human. The very race that had turned his life into nothing but torment and suffering. But not impossible. And in this room, with these people, he decided to try. He decided to become better than he was.
The final step has been taken.
He extended his paw.
He saw the shock in the red, tear-stained eyes of this grown teenager. And looking at it, he was convinced that he was doing the right thing. Yeah…he was learning damn fast.
Looking calmly into the black eyes of the man opposite, he said:
- Stupid Choi Han, let's save me differently this time.
Choi Han froze. He had expected anything but this. Then he sobbed. And then suddenly he laughed very loudly, startling Locke and bringing him out of his own emotional stupor. Finally peeling himself away from Rosalyn, he looked around and tried to figure out what had happened.
It was hysteria in its purest form. He was laughing and crying at the same time. He couldn't stop, but... He was getting better. While he was busy with God knows what, the child had decided everything for them. WE. He was right. He remembered the "lesson". Not everything always depends on your actions. It was a very timely instruction. In that "supposed" future, they were each on their own and each in their own way in a hopeless situation. One could not stop, and the other had no right to retreat. But now... Now they were together. Now new doors were opening. He had received a lesson in time, but he had not yet managed to learn it. But he would learn it. He decided to become better than he was.
Taking a deep, ragged breath, he returned to normal and looked at the dragon, who was still calmly reaching out his paw to him. Looking into the blue eyes opposite him, Choi Han took off his glove and very carefully shook the dragon's paw and said in a soft, tired voice:
- Yes. Let's do it together.
And for the first time in all this time, sincere smiles shone on both their faces.
The black dragon, still smiling, turned to Lok.
- Did you hear, Little Wolf?
- Huh? What? - he asked in a weak voice.
- Let's do it together!
Locke, who had missed everything and didn't quite understand what had happened here, caught the essence of the dragon's words. He thought so. Together meant not alone. Wolves are pack animals. Together meant stronger. He didn't want to become a lone wolf. Although it was dangerous, it was essentially a wounded animal. He didn't want to become one. And if they were together, then maybe he wouldn't have to. He was weak, and he knew it. What had happened to him a few minutes ago only confirmed it. He wanted to change that. He wanted to change, to become stronger and save his family. He decided to become better than he was. Together was easier.
And so he also smiled and answered:
- Let's.
The room became noticeably warmer.
Looking at the three children (she had recently turned two hundred and fifty, compared to her, everyone here was a child. Except for the elf, probably. It was hard to tell from them.) Vitira felt herself overwhelmed with tenderness. They reminded her of her brother. Just as weak, but strong and kind.
Mary was watching them very closely too. After the tension eased, she remembered her home. The City of Death. They did everything together there too. The humans, the Dark Elves, and her. The Necromancer. Maybe it would work here too? If only she knew how she fit into it.
Rosalyn finally stopped crying. As the good person she was, she took the horrible fate of the two children very hard. They did not deserve this cruelty. Choi Han did not deserve it either. As a mage, the death of a dragon child was a tragedy on a whole other level. Not just for her, but for the entire magical world. She was glad that everything turned out well. And what they heard left no hard feelings between the dragon and the swordsman. She wiped away her tears with the handkerchief clutched in her hand…
Stop.
"Where did I get my scarf?"
She looked at the unexpected thing with a strange look. When did she manage to get it out, if her hands were busy with Locke all the time? She didn't remember. Maybe she didn't notice it under the influence of the moment?
She looked at the handkerchief more closely. An ordinary white handkerchief. Nothing special. Maybe a small red maple leaf was embroidered in the corner. She didn't remember owning one, but she was traveling, and considering the assassination attempt, she might not notice a little thing like a handkerchief. She shrugged and put it in her pocket, deciding that she had simply forgotten where she got it.
His Highness Crown Prince Albert Crossman smiled warmly as he watched everything happen. He had been alone all his life, and the concept of the word "together" was quite distant to him. He still doubted that it could be any different with his secret. But it was pleasant to watch from the outside. But he couldn't help but think with a sigh:
"These emotional swings are bad for my health."
Bikros was glad to see smiles on children's faces. But he would never admit it. And he simply did not look at Choi Han.
Ron thought that the black-haired boy's moral trauma was much deeper than he thought.
"Okay then. I'll pour him some special lemonade. Just for occasions like this."
Eruhaben meanwhile watched as the baby dragon returned to his place with a satisfied expression on his face, which had "DID YOU SEE HOW COOL I AM??" written on it in huge letters, with a raised eyebrow and a smile on his face.
He honestly didn't expect this from him. He didn't even know what exactly he expected, but not this. He remembered what he was like in the beginning. And now, a couple of hours later, the dragon was helping a man. Dragons don't help people. And who, one wonders, put it up to him? He was sitting right next to him. No one could have done it. He would have found out. That left the poor bastard on the other side of the wall. But there was nothing special about his actions yet either. Hmm.
"Aigoo... I'm too old for this. God sent me a present at the end..."
But in any case, he was proud of it. In his own way. In the old dragon way. That is, to himself, so that no one would know about it.Meanwhile, the little black dragon jumped onto his chair and lay down comfortably, spreading his wings. His soul felt warm. He liked this feeling. He began to beat the tip of his tail impatiently on the chair.
Choi Han also managed to relax. He leaned back in his chair and thought about something with his eyes closed. His smile, although not as bright as five minutes ago, remained on his face.
— Are you finished there?
The same indefinable voice sounded above them.
The God of Death had strange mood swings. Although who can understand these Gods. Maybe something happened to him?
Everyone looked at each other. Having decided among themselves that they were ready, the Crown Prince took the initiative and said with his unchanging smile:
- Yes, we are done. And we are ready to continue.
- OK.
Something definitely happened.
The wall melted.
"Chapter 11. Pick It Up"
!