Page 77 of Mage of the Dragon Prince
“Give me your word that you will keep your distance from him,” Kitaro demanded. He ignored his dragon’s cries to take their vengeance.
“I have already grown bored with him,” Mitsuki airily claimed. “I have more entertaining things to do with my time than subject myself to his offensive presence.”
Kitaro held the sword a moment longer at Mitsuki’s throat before lowering his blade. “I am holding you to that.”
“Do as you will.” Mitsuki took back the Divine weapon to return to the wall. “It matters not to me.”
Kitaro’s dragon still felt deeply unsettled and wished to continue the fight, but Kitaro withdrew. He had earned his victory over his brother, but he also didn’t trust that Mitsuki would honor his vow to stay away from Vanra. The thought of his older brother harming Vanra enraged his dragon past the point of reason.
When Kitaro returned to their room, Vanra was still sound asleep. His peaceful expression helped calm the shifter prince’s agitation.
As he drew closer to the bed, Vanra stirred with asleepy noise. It sounded like an attempt at saying Kitaro’s name.
Kitaro walked over to him, brushing the dark hair from his beautiful face.
The touch made Vanra wake up. He looked up at Kitaro with a shy smile. “Morning.”
“My apologies for waking you. Please continue to sleep if you wish.”
Vanra’s violet eyes fluttered shut, but they flew wide as he caught sight of the blood staining Kitaro’s pale shirt. He bolted upright with panic. “Why are you bleeding?”
Kitaro looked down at his arm, surprised to see how much had seeped into his shirt sleeve from Mitsuki’s attack. Due to the adrenaline rush from the fight, the severity of the gash had escaped his attention.
He pushed up his stained sleeve, revealing a deep slice in his skin that would never heal despite his shifter healing powers. “It appears I was not as fast as I thought.” Kitaro scowled over the fact that his brother had landed such a hit. His pride was more injured than his arm.
“What happened?” Vanra reached out to bring Kitaro’s bloody arm closer to better inspect the damage. “Why isn’t it healing?”
Not wanting to admit what had occurred, Kitaro remained vague. “My brother decided it was time to play a game.”
“Agame?” Vanra repeated in disbelief. “With what, a Divine weapon?”
Kitaro shrugged. “He enjoys high stakes.”
Vanra’s expression darkened. “Did you try to punish Mitsuki for last night? You promised me you wouldn’t!”
“I did not break that promise. I only went to warn him to stay away from you.”
Vanra huffed in frustration. “I didn’t want you to confront him about it at all! Let alone get hurt in a fight with him!”
“It was an unfortunate consequence of his challenge.” Kitaro shrugged. “I won the bout, though. The matter should be resolved now.”
“You may have won, but there’s no way Mitsuki will leave things as they are.” The scent of Vanra’s distress pained Kitaro more than his wounded arm. “Why would you do something as stupid as fight with Divine weapons?”
“They were the terms of Mitsuki’s challenge to me. On my honor, I could not back down. Not when I knew there was a chance I could keep you safe from him.”
Vanra tugged on Kitaro’s hand. “Please sit.”
Kitaro complied and dutifully sat on the edge of the bed near Vanra. “I did not mean to upset you.”
“Well, you did.” He sighed as he inspected the wound closer. “I really wish you hadn’t confronted him.”
“Violence is the only language Mitsuki understands. I had no choice, Vanra.”
“What would you do if I couldn’t heal this?” Vanra demanded.
The answer was an easy one. “Proudly wear the scar that was evidence I protected you and defeated my brother. It would be my honor.”
Vanra started to respond before he stopped himself. “Look, I understand shifters function under a different moral code than humans, but please don’t get hurt for my sake again. It’s too upsetting.”
