Page 248 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
And now, Kein was growling furiously outside, as if to echo her protests. Kassein rolled his eyes, while his sister grinned some more.
“Having mixed feelings, are we, Little Brother?”
“Stay the fuck out of it.”
“Oh, I’m enjoying my front row seat just fine, thanks.”
“Kassein!”
“She isn’t coming.”
“Well,” Tievin suddenly cleared his throat, ”it definitely sounds like Lady Alezya wants to come, and if I may, I think she should.”
This time, his glare landed on Tievin. Alezya stopped shouting, her eyes darting to Tievin with a hesitant expression as if she were trying to decipher what was going on.
“What?” he hissed. “She is no fighter, Tievin.”
“Yes, I do understand that, Your Highness. However, I do have to point out that Lady Alezya is right; this is her home, while our army is in foreign territory. Moreover, I would like to point out that, despite my very best efforts, it is still quite an arduous task to tell these tribes apart and, therefore, determine who is friend or foe. We might have walked into this gathering completely unaware of those people’s allegiance if not for Lady Alezya. However, Lady Alezya certainly can, and she’s the only one to speak our language, or well, the basics of it... It might be worth considering including her in the battle, sir.”
“...Tievin’s right,” Kiera shrugged. “How do you expect to fight if you don’t know which ones to slay? Are you going to explain to those people after the fight that you killed some of our allies too? Your woman went through all this trouble to get us allies and a proper battle, Kassein. I think she’s a fighter in her own right.”
“She’s pregnant, Kiera, with my child. I am not risking her anywhere near the battle. She could get injured or killed, and I cannot protect her while I–”
“Kassein, I know!” his sister exclaimed. “And I didn’t say she had to be on the ground with us. But what about letting her ride her bestie?”
“...Kein?” He frowned.
“You know another giant dragon obsessed with her?” Kiera raised an eyebrow. “Think about it. She would get a bird—I mean, a dragon’s eye view of the battlefield, be protected by Kein’s big ass, and be able to direct men and shout orders from above. And if anything happens, your dragon would be there to protect her, and you’d know instantly if something’s wrong. She’ll be safer in the skies than anywhere else; the enemy doesn’t have a dragon, do they?”
Kassein was thinking about it. He still didn’t like Alezya being anywhere near the battle, but his sister’s idea might have been a decent compromise. Alezya, who was looking between them with a frown, seemed confused. Tievin cleared his throat.
“Lady Alezya, how would you feel about flying Kein during the battle?” he asked with exaggerated gestures. “Kassein and Kiera battle, and you, on Kein?”
Alezya seemed to hesitate, glancing at Kassein.
“Not to the Onyx Castle?” she insisted with a frown.
“...No,” he sighed. “Kiera and Tievin think you should fight. But you would be safe with Kein. Flying above the battle.”
He waited while Alezya seemed to be hesitating, glancing at Tievin, then Kiera, then back to him.
“...I fly with Kein,” she finally said, sounding doubtful. “To battle?”
Kassein nodded. He didn’t want Alezya anywhere near danger, but from her spark of fury, he could tell she wouldn’t have backed down without a compromise, and Kein was likely tobe the safest bodyguard he could find her. His dragon wouldn’t allow anything to happen to her, and if things were to take a wrong turn, it would fly out of there and take Alezya back to safety.
From her expression, he could tell she wasn’t fully convinced, but it didn’t matter; her safety came first, and she had already agreed to that compromise.
“I don’t want you in the battle,” he said, ”but you would be safe flying Kein.”
She was still hesitant, but Kassein stepped forward, gently pressing his hand against her stomach.
“For the baby,” he whispered. “I want you safe. Not hurt or in danger. You will be alright with Kein. My dragon can protect you. Yes?”
After a second, Alezya finally gave him a little nod.
“Yes,” she muttered, putting her hand on his.
Chapter 19
