Page 18 of Brutal Dragon King

Turning back to Mother, I don't let her catch my irritation when I say, “That's the thing with prisoners, don't you think, Mother?” I smirk crudely. “If you give them enough rope, they'll end up hanging themselves.” Another point to add to the way I plan on letting the human think she can get away with her insolence. It will only add to the tally of how I plan on unleashing my wrath on her, even if I don't have a list just yet.

Mother's eyes twinkle, and she's satisfied with my response. I don't wish to keep dwelling on the subject of the child-bearer, even if my mother is here to discuss the mating ritual that will take place during the upcoming full moon.

It's only a few days to go before I'll have no choice but to grace the human with my presence again. I'm not opposed to the challenge presented by her disobedience, but I have to deal with the internal war that rages when she's near me.

I can't stand her, and I can't stand the idea that her beauty captivates me in ways that no human should.

It's preposterous, and I have to do everything in my power to remain unbothered. Rising to my feet, my fingertips remain braced on the desk when I tell my mother in a firm, authoritative tone,

“You will handle the ritual proceedings, Mother. I do not wish to be overly involved. I have more important things to take care of.”

“Hestios…” Mother acknowledges, and to my relief, the subject changes when I update her about our plans to conquer Khyronia.

“... He's aware of our plans, and he's preparing troops all around his city,” I reveal.

“I take it you and your brothers have your plans in place?” Mother speculates, and I continue sternly.

“Yes,” I concede with a firm nod. “King Hestios thinks he's formed a clever plan to keep his kingdom safe from us, but we're the Nayara brothers, after all,” I wink. “Nothing will stand in the way of us getting what we want.”

“Not even Raven?” Mother asks about the Khyronian king's mate. In his quest to be a more powerful kingdom than the Nayara Dynasty, Hestios mated with a witch. The only shortfall was that she wasn't able to conceive a child.

This extraordinary phenomenon only ever occurred between my parents, and through them, my brothers and I were born. The world couldn't handle too many powerfully bred dragon shifters and stopped with the three of us.

“We can handle a witch,” I assure my mother, standing pridefully tall. “It's Hestios that should be afraid. He will lose not only his kingdom but his head too if he tries standing inour way.” Taking a deep, firm breath, I turn toward the study window and gaze out at the morning sun overlooking The Spine.

“Brothers…”I call mentally to my brothers, who've each taken a different responsibility when it comes to our plans. Jaidën is in charge of rounding up our troops since his people undergo extensive combat training. Kaidën, on the other hand, rules his kingdom in a more tech-savvy way, and he's in charge of outlining the route we'll use to attack Khyronia.

“...I hereby call forth your attendance to The Spine tonight. We have much to discuss.”

“Got it, King Haidën.”They reply in unison, though they're on opposite sides of the Dynasty.

I turn to Mother, who'd been in on our brief conversation, and notice the trace of a frown on her face.

“The ritual—” she begins, just as I expected, but I interject with a raised hand to stop her.

“Like I said before, you will handle the ritual proceedings. It isnota grand affair that demands my attention,” I say firmly before stepping out from behind my desk. “Now, if you'll excuse me, Mother, I have a game this morning.”

After bidding my mother goodbye, I head down and meet my guards in the hallway. They bow their heads when I appear, and I dismiss the others, except Ryu, my close friend, and head of the guard.

Patting him on the back, I'm grateful for the respite of today's air hockey game in the rink. I need the distraction so that my mind doesn't dwell on what will inevitably occur between the human and me.

I also need to blow off some steam, and there's nothing like a game of air hockey to soothe both my human and my dragon.

The playful pat on Ryu's back informs him that I've just dropped my standing as his king and taken on the role of his friend. He lifts his visor and grins at me, eyes sparkling with jest.

“You're in a good mood,” he comments as we walk out onto the veranda.

“Am I?” I quip with a chuckle. “I was hoping the game would put me at ease.”

“Well, after yesterday…” his voice tapers off, and I frown at him.

“What about yesterday?” I ask with a quizzically lifted brow.

He clears his throat into a fist. “The thief…”

“Oh… right…” My throat feels dry, so I cough to clear it. “It was a trivial thing,” I dismissed with a shrug. “These lowly thugs don't deserve to breathe the air we do.”

“Of course. Fucking humans.”

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