Chapter 32

'...Did my rushing him increase his rebelliousness?'

He almost felt angry at the ignorant words. Not because of Rahu's defiance, but because he worried the boy who knew nothing might encounter the magical beast in the forest.

However, Kinaine quickly calmed his emotions.

He bent his knees slightly to meet Rahu's eyes and spoke gently.

"Rahu, I'm not ordering you, I'm worried about you."

"Worried?"

Why was it that at those words, Rahu's eyes crinkled even more fiercely?

"You're worried? Who are you to be worried?"

"What?"

Though he asked back at the incomprehensible words, no answer came. Rather, only the glare directed at him grew more intense. His gaze was so fierce that Kinaine wondered if he had made some terrible verbal mistake.

Had he cursed Rahu's parents instead of saying he was worried just now?

Bewildered, Kinaine couldn't continue speaking.

"Ha!"

However Rahu had interpreted Kinaine's silence, he let out a sharp laugh. His already sharp eye corners rose even higher. It seemed they might touch his eyebrows.

"You dare bring your lover to the dragon's palace?"

What was this child saying?

When Kinaine couldn't say anything to these sudden, incomprehensible words, the following voice grew even sharper.

"As expected, you can't abandon your vulgar nature. I don't know how promiscuously you lived outside the dragon's palace, but non-virgins can't become bride candidates. My... no, the dragon isn't blind, he won't pick up and eat a rag that everyone else has used... What, what are you doing!"

When Kinaine brought his face very close and sniffed, Rahu pushed him away as if having a fit.

"You who have no principles...!"

"Are you drunk?"

"What?"

It was natural to wonder if he had eaten something wrong when he was rambling incomprehensibly. Knowing his own senses weren't normal, Kinaine deliberately sniffed again. He could see the fine hairs on Rahu's skin standing up.

'Indeed. Though I don't smell alcohol particularly.'

Had he picked and eaten something wrong in the forest?

Though his personality had never been gentle, he seemed especially on edge today. He must have either eaten something wrong, or being alone in such a place for days had negatively affected his mind.

It was understandable. Extreme anxiety makes normal judgment impossible. Kinaine knew well, having experienced it himself.

Rahu had witnessed his tribe's downfall before his eyes. His heart couldn't be unwounded. Even acting tough was probably a defense mechanism to hide his wounds. Then seeing even the bride candidate, their only hope for tribal salvation, being treated poorly...

He was different from Ramu who tried to endure somehow in the same situation. Though they had identical faces, the twins behaved completely differently.

"..."

Rahu finally fell silent, perhaps realizing he had said strange things. Kinaine soothed him.

"It's alright. You're anxious, aren't you? It's natural to feel more anxious after being alone in a place like this."

Come to think of it, he was wearing the same clothes as the first day. Fortunately, though he seemed to have washed well as there was no smell.

'Or not? Is my sense of smell too dull from the medicine to smell it?'

Though the question occurred to him, he dismissed it as unimportant. Anyway, his appearance was neat, showing no signs of having slept outdoors for days.

In reality, Rahu gave off no unpleasant smell at all. If Kinaine had been in a normal state, he would have smelled a pleasant scent instead.

Kinaine looked up at the sky.

'More importantly, the sun seems about to set.'

Though magical beasts could see as well at night as during the day, humans couldn't. If the sun set now, he would have to wait until tomorrow.

The first test had a period of one week. However, today was his only chance.

It was because of the medicine he had taken to take the test. This medicine was so toxic that taking it consecutively would harm the body instead, so he couldn't take it again. In other words, he had to catch a magical beast before the medicine's effects wore off.

'For that... I need to send this one away first.'

Kinaine tried to persuade Rahu who was silently watching him.

"Rahu, I understand why you're anxious. We haven't known each other long, so you're unsure if I can be trusted."

"..."

"But please believe this much at least. That I'm just as desperate as you all are. I too have a wish I absolutely must fulfill by becoming the dragon's bride."

The winged boy, his face now expressionless, took in the young man's appearance.

Why was it? At that moment, Kinaine was reminded of a deity statue he had seen in a temple when young. The massive statue, about 5 meters tall, had looked down at temple visitors like a stern judge. Rahu's eyes now looked similar to that statue's.

"What's your wish?"

"..."

Kinaine couldn't open his mouth. It was a question he couldn't answer. At least not yet.

Telling Rahu, who already distrusted him, "I turned a city to stone with black magic and want to undo it" would surely not lead to good results. He might try to drive him out, saying he wasn't qualified to be the dragon's bride.

Yet he didn't feel like lying either.

When Kinaine couldn't answer, a cold air spread across Rahu's face.

"Hmph, no need to hear it. What humans want is obvious. Money, honor, power... or perhaps all three?"

"That's not what I want."

Kinaine was sincere. Sincerity showed in his expression, his eyes, his tone. No one could think Kinaine was lying.

However, Rahu sneered.

"I don't believe anything humans say."

His dark purple eyes were cold as if frosted over.

At that moment, the dragon's face seemed to overlap with Rahu's. That was how strong the hatred felt from Rahu was.

'Did Rahu hate humans this much?'

He hadn't seemed that way...

Of course, most spirits seemed to have negative feelings toward humans. The dragon just had particularly strong negative emotions.

At this point, Kinaine accepted the fact that not only had he failed to open Rahu's heart, he hadn't earned his trust either. Even if it hadn't been that way at first, considering everything that had happened, his antipathy could well have grown.

Though it left a bitter taste, what could he do? Kinaine had known since he was very young that not everyone could like him.

"I see... I can't change how you feel. But it's true that this place is dangerous. You probably didn't know, but there's a magical beast here right now."

Kinaine thought Rahu would be startled, but Rahu wasn't surprised at all.

'Why isn't he surprised?'

Puzzled by this reaction, Kinaine carefully studied Rahu's face. He wondered if he was just putting on a brave front, but... it didn't seem that way at all.

"Aren't you scared?"

"Why should I be?"

Did he think this was a lie too?

"It's not a lie. The magical beasts that were sealed have been released for the first test."

Though Kinaine explained the current situation, Rahu still wore an expression that seemed to say 'so what?'

Whether he was fearless or just didn't know how terrifying magical beasts were. Either way, trying to drive him away by scaring him seemed to have failed too.

Kinaine sighed.

"No choice then. I'm going to go, so you stay right here. Don't come any further inside."

Time was running short. Kinaine gave up trying to persuade Rahu and moved toward where he suspected the magical beast was.

Thud thud.

Pat pat.

At the light footsteps following his own, Kinaine swallowed another sigh that was about to escape.

Ramu, you really were such a mature child. Unlike your twin brother.

Finally, Kinaine stopped again and asked:

"Why are you following me?"

"Who's following you? I'm going where I want to go, and you're the one blocking the way."

...He really couldn't be reasoned with.

'Nothing else for it.'

He could only hope Rahu would get scared and run away after actually seeing the magical beast.

Kinaine started walking again. After walking for some time like this.

"What's with those clothes? You dare try to become the dragon's bride candidate looking so shabby."

Kinaine checked his torn clothes without particular response and continued walking.

But the criticism didn't stop. Rahu, who had somehow stuck close behind him, sneered.

"Even so, trying to face a magical beast alone. Do you love money that much? Well, humans do love money terribly."

Kinaine answered with what sounded like a sigh.

"Spirits don't seem much different."

Why else would places like the Gold Pot exist? Kinaine had long since realized that fundamentally, the spirit realm wasn't very different from the human realm.

"True. But at least spirits protect their own kind. Unlike humans who harm even their own kind to get what they want."

Having lost everything to betrayal by his blood brother, Kinaine couldn't say those words were wrong.

However.

"Not all humans are like that. You'd know if you visited the human realm."

"You think I haven't been there?"

"You've been?"

He looked at Rahu in surprise without thinking. After being silent for a moment as if lost in thought, Rahu's muttering could be heard.

"All I felt there was disgust."

Though he didn't know what, it seemed Rahu had experienced something unpleasant in the human realm. Perhaps that was why he had come to hate humans?