Page 5 of Brutal Dragon King

“Fuck…” I murmur, frowning at myself while staring blankly at the intricately carved golden throne decorated with sapphire gems to match the colors of my dragon. A shiver runs through me and forces me to turn to the panoramic view of the mountainous region where the trees aim to reach for the misty skies and provide bountiful shade over The Spine with their stretching canopies.

The air out here is crispier and cooler than it is in The Emberlands, and much has to do with the pollution out there. In the mortal world, where factories and farming are overflowing, it’s no wonder the air is more dense and polluted.

The land is also polluted with the likes of other mortal creatures, like the humans from which a mate is picked. Walking up to the balustrade, I settle my hands on the metal bar and sigh.

Since I was born, I knew what my future would look like. Now that it’s on the horizon, it’s almost hard to believe that by tomorrow, a human will be sent to my palace to become my child-bearer. Humans are looked down upon amongst the dragon race, and I’d grown up with the knowledge that, as dragons, we were much superior to them.

I don’t hate them.

I just don’t see any use for them other than bearing children for my kind. If I had it my way, I’d have a fellow dragon shifter carry my royal offspring. But that’s not an option.

Then why do I have the incessant need to recall the human who’d foolishly clashed with me in the village?

Hah!

It was nothing but a reminder of how spineless and stupid the humans are!

As the sun begins to set on the horizon, it feels like the orange hues form a curtain over my last act as a king without an heir. I don’t know if it’s a good thing, or if it’s ominous. All I know is that I want it to be over and done with.

I’ll produce an heir with the human who will be randomly selected through the lottery reaping process tomorrow, and discard her as soon as my son is born.

It’s simple. I’ve made sure not to complicate things. That’s why I won’t even attend tomorrow’s gathering when she’s selected. My men will do my bidding, as they’re meant to, and she’ll be brought to the palace to do what her king needs of her. It’s not like I care what she looks like.

I don’t have a personal preference when it comes to humans. They’re all the same to me.

Reckless and foolish, vulnerable and weak.

As weak as…

“Your Majesty…” A timid voice squeaks from behind, hauling me out of my thoughts. A wave of anger washes over me as if my inner dragon has been rudely interrupted, and it extends into the curling of my fists at my sides as if its energy is commanding my human movements.

I turn to find a maidservant standing behind my throne with her head bowed.

“What is it?”

She looks up nervously, hesitating when she says, “The Queen Mother is in the great hall.”

“What is my mother doing here?” I ask irritably.

The maidservant looks up, toying with the frills on the front of her apron, “Her Majesty, the Queen Mother, is here for dinner. So is King Jaidën and King Kaidën.”

It takes me only a second to remember that I’d planned to meet with my mother and brothers tonight. I guess I’d been so busy with preparations for tomorrow, that it’d slipped my mind.

I don’t like it. I shouldn’t be distracted by the reaping to forget my royal duties. One of which is updating my brothers—who rule their own kingdoms in Nayara and parts of The Emberlands that fall under their respective jurisdictions—on what is going on in The Spine.

For now, it’s the human mate selection process that’s taking all my time. I just need it to be over so I can concentrate on real kingdom duties. Unfortunately for me, I am the eldest,and even if we’ve all lived for almost three hundred years and ruled our kingdoms, it is my duty to sire an heir before my brothers.

“Tell my family I will be down in a moment,” I tell the maidservant, who bows again.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” she says before turning around and scrambling off back to the staircase.

Sighing heavily, I glance at the sunset behind me, the sun’s disappearance behind the mist seemingly foreshadowing what’s to come after tomorrow’s reaping. I clear my throat, donning my suit of armor as the authoritative figure in The Spine of Nayara, focusing on the mind link I share with the dragon shifters in my kingdom.

Specifically the head of the Royal Guard.

“Ryu…”I call in my mind. “...Relieve yourselves of debriefing. It will not be necessary at this time.”

The pause that comes after my order has me sensing that Ryu is frowning in confusion. I can almost picture it since I’m able to detect his feelings even if he’s nowhere near me. It comes with the territory of not only being a dragon shifter but also being the king.

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