Dhein turned completely to face Shina.
First and foremost, he felt an unexplainable amount of relief when he saw her face. He was incredibly glad that he made it. Nothing had happened to her yet.
Secondly, he wanted to thank the gods for keeping his heart from exploding. With one surprise after another, he didn't even know how he had managed to keep up with this much shock in his system.
Shina spoke, bringing him back to reality.
"You came here for me, didn't you? Do I need to know something?"
Dhein didn't waste any time.
"Yes. Did you already hear about the treason investigation?"
Shina nodded.
"Yes. I heard a mysterious organization is turning humans into monsters by feeding them cursed food," she stated.
Dhein immediately replied.
"Those same people are trying to abduct you."
Shina gazed somewhere else, taking a deep breath.
"I see."
Dhein took a step forward. Now, he wasn't sure how well she was going to take the fact that she had to go back home. Although Shina might hate to hear this, the imperial palace was the safest place for her to stay.
But before Dhein could say anything, Shina had already spoken.
"When I left, a rumor saying I have been abducted circulated in the empire. It's a bit frustrating, but it was because of that rumor that I had been able to hide this long."
She sighed and then added:
"I never thought I was actually being targeted for abduction."
Dhein stared at her for a second. He didn't expect her to react the way she did. She wasn't even scared one bit.
Nonetheless, he knew what he had to say.
"You need to come home."
Shina met his gaze. There was a deep sadness in her sapphire eyes.
After a moment of being silent, she responded.
"I always felt that freedom was just something that was never meant to be mine."
She lifted one foot off the ground and then stepped forward. Walking past Dhein, the imperial princess continued.
"I kept fighting for it, too."
She sighed once again.
"Maybe I should just give up, I guess."
It also pained his heart to shatter her dreams of freedom right then and there. Perhaps, a time will come for her to attain it, but that time was definitely not now.
"Think of it as a tactical retreat, Your Majesty," Dhein said.
Shina turned to him. A hint of determination suddenly sparked in her eyes that was full of sadness.
"Dheinyrus, I need to show you something."
'Tsk! We can't waste any more time!'
Dhein was about to object, but he didn't want to add to her sadness.
Seeing how that fragile fire in her eyes desperately fighting off her sadness kept him from doing so.
In the end, he found himself humoring Shina.
They were standing in front of an abandoned warehouse. From a glance, Dhein could tell that this place was one Zarria Punch away from collapsing.
"This is where I'm staying," Shina said.
Dhein looked at her in disbelief.
'Well, I guess if I was hiding, I would pick this place too.'
Led by Shina, the two entered the dusty building. And once again, Dhein's heart almost jumped out through his ribcage.
A reptile as big as a really healthy goat approached them. It had two wide wings. Its scales were thick and fiery red in color. A pair of onyx, spiraling horns poked out of its head.
Dhein froze in place when the dragon walked towards them. Shina, on the other hand, met the little dragon, even patting its head like some domesticated pet.
"I'm home, Remi. Look who I brought."
He couldn't believe his eyes. It was a real, living dragon! Though it was still small, its mythical features were unmistakable.
'What on earth is going on here?!!!'
Shina turned back to him and then said:
"You're the first human other than me to interact with Remi. Please be gentle and try not to startle him. You see, he's quite the scaredy-cat... uh... scaredy-dragon, I guess."
Dhein's brain was overloaded. Nothing made sense anymore.
"I found him on my first day in the Selense Kingdom. I'm planning to raise him," Shina added.
"If I went back to the capital, who's gonna feed him? He's growing really fast so his appetite has also increased. These days, I'm barely making enough just for his food, I end up having to hunt in the wild."
'You can't be serious...' Dhein cried... internally.
"As long as I keep up with my disguise, I will be safe here. Dheinyrus, you need to understand. I can't go home just yet."
Shina stepped closer to Dhein. His eyes widened when she suddenly took his hand.
"Please, let me stay here. I swear, no one will find me. I'll be careful."
Dhein looked at her, she was totally serious about it. For the sake of this dragon, she was willing to risk everything including her life.
'She's so naive...'
All her life, she had been sheltered, everything she needed was provided on a silver platter. Any danger stayed beyond the walls and the shields of thousands of soldiers who were prepared to die for her sake.
Perhaps, that was why she didn't understand how close she really was from perishment.
Dhein observed the dragon. It was the first one he had seen alive.
Its orange eyes and deep black pupils looked just like a cat's. When it looked at Dhein, it expanded, indicating the dragon's curiosity.
Were they always this gentle? The dragon kept its distance while observing Dhein. Though it was a bit wary, Dhein could feel that it held no hostility towards him.
Until all of a sudden, the pupils in its eyes shrank and it turned its head in a certain direction. It was as though the dragon sensed something coming.
Something dangerous.
"Remi? What's the matter?" Shina asked.
The dragon bellowed, its nose wrinkling, then bared the line of sharp teeth in its maw.
Moments later, they heard footsteps from several sources. From the entrance of the warehouse, a group of unknown figures walked in.
"But we've already found you, Your Highness." a female voice intoned mockingly.
Dhein turned around, his face paled and he felt his knees weakened.
A human-like creature with a pair of horns on her forehead. She wore almost nothing but a few metal armor that covered some important parts, revealing her pale, violet skin.
Demons, unlike humans, could go through evolution to get stronger. The mindless savages like the ones killed by the meteor nine years ago were one of the weakest. The strongest ones were able to use dark magic and... could talk.
This demon before them was no doubt a high ranking one. Encountering such a foe had one hundred percent mortality rate.
The horned one looked at Dhein.
"Oh, the scion of divinity is here as well. Did you intentionally lure me here to be killed by him?"
Behind her, an army of transformed abominations marched forward. The demoness then said:
"I'm sorry to say this, but the ones who are going to die today are you."
Suddenly, the dragon charged towards the demon. It breathed an intense flame in an attempt to burn the enemies. But the fire failed to even reach the demon's skin. With a mysterious force, the flame had been blocked and left dancing in the air.
With that same mysterious force, the demoness launched the little dragon against the wall.
"REMI!" Shina yelled. A pair of sharp blades protruded from the fist of her gauntlets before she turned to the abominations by the entrance.