"Roooooarrr!!"
Smashing through the wall, the dragon placed her claw on the railing and looked down, but all she saw was the pile of gold she used as a bed.
Confused, she glanced around, but didn't see him.
With angry eyes, she flapped her wings for the first time and slowly lifted herself into the air, flying downward toward the pile of gold.
But at that moment, something suddenly leapt out.
It was Puss, jumping out of the gold pile in a super leap, scattering golden coins into the air.
In his paw, he held a broken ornamental sword as he soared upward.
Smiling, he threw the broken sword precisely at the chain holding the chandelier and, still flying upward, latched onto the dragon, who hadn't had time to react.
The sword struck the chain perfectly, breaking it loose and sending the chandelier falling toward the dragon's head, just as she was distracted, watching Puss climbing her body, trying to stop him while flapping her wings wildly.
The chandelier struck her head directly before falling to the side, leaving her dazed, though not seriously harmed.
But Puss hadn't planned to bring down the giant dragon with that — he had another target.
Running along her body and climbing with agility, he reached her neck just as the chandelier passed by his side, dragging its long chain with it.
Without hesitation, he launched himself upward, grabbed the chain, and leapt over the dragon's head with flexible grace and a smile, locking eyes with the dragon, who looked at him in confusion and dizziness during the slow-motion jump.
Feline green eyes met draconic green eyes in that moment that seemed to pause time.
But then everything sped up again, and Puss, holding the chain, wrapped it around the dragon's mouth, binding it shut.
"Ruur!" The dragon tried to roar, but couldn't with her mouth tied.
She immediately tried to claw it off to break the chain and free her mouth, but Puss was already spinning again with his momentum, now tying the dragon's arm to her face, infuriating her further.
And so, the rhythm was set. Spinning faster and faster, Puss took full advantage of the long chain falling endlessly from the ceiling, wrapping her mouth, arms, wings, legs, and even her tail before the chain finally ended.
From the start of the ambush to the finish, barely ten seconds passed before Puss landed on the ground, rolled, and stood up with a smug smile, arms and legs spread wide.
CLAAANG-CRUUUUNCH!
Behind him, a cloud of dust and golden coins rose from the massive dragon body collapsing into the treasure pile.
Clink! Clink! Clink!
Puss's pose only became more dramatic, with gold coins raining from the sky.
After basking in his moment of glory, Puss smiled and turned to face the dragon wrapped in chains. She writhed and let out low growls, but couldn't free herself from the binds.
Calmly approaching, Puss stood before her with a curious look.
But when the dragon saw him approaching, her eyes showed not just fury, but also a deep sadness and fear. She knew that her defeat would mean her death.
Puss scratched his neck, feeling a little sorry for her.
Even though he remembered the many skeletons and how strange it was to feel pity for a creature that had killed them all — when he thought about how they had all come here to kill her, it wasn't wrong to call it self-defense.
And imagining all the long years she had been alone with no one, to the point of falling in love with a donkey just from a few compliments — and becoming deeply sad when he left soon after — was truly pitiful.
"Calm down, I didn't come to hurt you," he spoke gently to her, leaving her stunned.
Her big green eyes blinked at him in confusion.
Puss placed his paw on her face and gently stroked her soft scales.
"I'm going to free you. Can you be a good girl and not attack me when I do? Can you promise me that?" he asked softly, caressing her.
A trace of shyness and embarrassment flickered in her beautiful green eyes, but still, she struggled and managed a difficult nod, given her restraints.
With that confirmation, Puss extended the claws from his paw and began to cut the chain links around her face.
With a few links loosened, she was able to break one part with her strength, freeing the claw tied to her face. With it now free, she quickly untangled the rest of the chains from her body.
But even after being freed, she didn't attack Puss — instead, she looked at him with curiosity and a slightly different emotion.
"Hrrrm…" A low, soft growl sounded. She was trying to communicate with him.
Puss looked her over from head to toe, now that things had calmed down, and he had to admit—she was different from what he'd imagined in real life.
Her body was more slender, her features softer, her big green eyes were beautiful, and Puss, though a little embarrassed, had to admit that—even being a kind of aesthetic he'd never thought he'd say this about—he found her attractive.
Which only made him more certain that, if she really were a princess, her human form must be gorgeous.
And when he thought something, he rarely hesitated to say it.
"You're beautiful, and much more beautiful than I ever imagined you would be." He smiled at her sincerely, and had fun seeing her expression turn very shy and happy.
She lowered her face and hid it slightly in her own chest, while looking at him with a bashful, loving gaze.
Puss was sure that if her skin wasn't red, she'd be blushing right now.
And why was he openly flirting with a dragon?
First of all, in this life, he didn't intend to limit himself with anything that wasn't evil. And if he found a girl charming—even if she was a dragon—he would flirt. That was his nature.
Second, and more important in his opinion: why not flirt with a female dragon?
Yes, those were his not-so-complex reasons.
"Today I didn't come to hurt you, but to talk. I have a few questions, and I'd like you to help me answer them. Can you do that?" he asked her gently.
The dragon nodded frantically, without hesitation, as she looked at him fondly.
She laid down on the floor and rested her head on her two front paws, that way getting closer to Puss, who was very small compared to her.
Seeing her like that, he knew he'd get his answers more easily than he thought.
"First question, do you know the girl in the tower?" Puss asked, pointing toward where he imagined the tower to be.
The dragon thought for a moment, then nodded yes—and right after, shook her head no.
"Yes and no? You mean... you know she's there, but you haven't interacted with her?" he asked.
This time, the dragon just nodded, confirming.
"Why didn't you want to interact with her?" he asked, confused.
This time, the dragon had a complicated expression, and stood up, trying to mime something.
First, she opened her mouth and showed her teeth with a fierce face, then changed her expression and pretended to be scared, and finally, placed two claws over her palm and made a little finger person running.
Puss, used to understanding Tornado—who also didn't speak—already had some reference, so he only needed a bit of effort to piece it all together.
"You didn't try to interact with her because everyone is afraid of you, and she would just be one more… so you stayed away?" he deciphered the message.
The dragon nodded, her gaze lonely.
Puss felt a bit sorry, seeing her so sad with her ears drooped.
"Don't worry, I'm not afraid of you," he said with a smile.
Affection and gentleness appeared in the dragon's eyes, and she blew a cloud of heart-shaped smoke at him, making him smile in amusement.
But now wasn't the time for romance—he still had questions to ask.
His gaze grew serious, and he got to the heart of the matter.
"Now, I want to ask a very important question, and I need you to answer honestly… tell me, have you always been a dragon?"