Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Once upon a time, the kingdom of Tempest was ruled by the dragons. They were wicked and cruel dictators who demanded sacrifices from the people they held dominion over. The people lived in fear, terrified that they or their loved ones would be the next to be fed to the dragons.

Thankfully, one day, a hero emerged. A man named Hart Vortex rallied the people of the kingdom to his side and formed an army to finally overthrow their tormentors. Vortex was able to vanquish the evil dragons and the people gratefully declared him their new king.

But, there was one dragon left. This was a sneaky, cowardly dragon who had hid itself during the fight to avoid being defeated. On the day of Vortex’s coronation, this dragon stole away the young Prince Ryuunosuke, the new king’s beloved son. The prince was spirited away to a lonely castle guarded during the day by a creature made of vines and thorns and guarded at night by the very dragon that stole him.

Sixty years have passed along with the beloved King Vortex, leaving his successor Mael Stronghart on the throne. No knight has yet to rescue Prince Ryuunosuke, but King Stronghart still believes that the old prince may still be saved and returned, thus finally freeing the kingdom of the lingering shadow of the dragons’ cruelty.

Kazuma sighed as he and Susato finally pulled up to the old castle they were searching for. It was the middle of the night and they would have been there much sooner had a storm not forced them to take the longer way and their horses hadn’t refused to go near this place.

“Kazuma-sama, I really think we should wait until tomorrow night before we go in. I don’t want to get stuck in there with the dragon after the vine wall comes back up in the morning.” Susato, ever the pragmatist, attempted to convince him to put their quest on hold yet another day.

“It’ll be fine, we’re just going to scope the place out quickly to find the most likely hiding spot for the prince, and deal with the dragon tomorrow.” 

He just wanted to get this over with. This quest was his last and only chance to prove the Asougi clan wasn’t just full of good-for-nothing traitors. If he could just get in with the king and the court, he could have an opportunity to prove his father never lied.

“The prince is an old man by now, I don’t think he’ll be spending his nights cowering in a closet. He’ll probably be asleep in his bedroom.”

“And we’ll need to find where that bedroom is, Susato-chan.”

She shook her head at him, “With a castle like this, the prince’s room is probably the most conspicuous one. But, fine,” she sighed, “We can take a quick glance at everything tonight if you really need to.”

“I do.” With that, Kazuma walked purposefully up to the wide-open gates of this surprisingly well-preserved castle as he could hear Susato sigh again from behind him.

“Before we go in, promise me that at the first sign of the dragon, we leave?”

He stopped and smiled at his sister. “Don’t worry. I won’t put us into any unnecessary danger.”

As they stepped past the gate and into the opening courtyard, Kazuma was shocked at how clean this place looked. All the flowers and bushes that decorated the entranceway looked well-manicured as if they were trimmed every day. Even the crawling vines that covered the stone walls looked like they were deliberately placed rather than overgrown, and the stones themselves that made up the building were clearly weathered but nowhere near crumbling. This place was a wonder and far from the falling-apart ruin he had initially envisioned.

“Susato-chan, do you… feel anything from this place?” Kazuma asked as he gazed up at a beautifully-sculpted fountain depicting a dragon spewing water from its mouth.

“Well, it’s certainly magical. I don’t even have to perform a spell to feel that. And it’s likely this magic that’s keeping this place so well-preserved.”

He nodded and reaffirmed his grip on Karuma. He had assumed so, but it was nice to hear confirmation from an actual wizard.

When they got to the front door, he nodded to Susato to tell her to step to the side of the door as he grabbed the handle and slowly opened it. It didn’t even creak as it swung open all the way with barely any force. He jumped back just in case the dragon was inside, but when he peeked in he saw nothing but an empty room that took his breath away.

It wasn’t that the place glittered with opulence under the light of fireless lamps, there was hardly any gold in sight, but everything that he could see was beautifully designed. The floor was made of a dark marble accented with a rainbow of different types of stone. Every stone brick set into the wall had been carved with intricate patterns of nature and adorning the walls were large tapestries, each depicting a human with reptilian features standing in front of a dragon. When he looked up he could see the ceiling had been painted to depict even more dragons, but instead of still portraits, they seemed to be vivid scenes from a history he didn’t know. At the center of the room was a grand staircase, made of rich wood and stone, leading up to another large set of doors.

“It’s beautiful…” He heard Susato whisper in awe next to him.

“Yes, but unfortunately we don’t have time to gawk. Let’s keep moving,” Kazuma affirmed as he strode across the room to the staircase and the other doorway.

“Shouldn’t we look at the side passages first?” his sister asked as she pointed towards the much smaller doors along the other walls.

“You said yourself we should be looking for someplace conspicuous.”

Kazuma could feel her judgemental stare as he opened the great door in front of him. Thankfully, this time the door only opened slightly instead of all the way, and what he saw through the crack stopped him in his tracks.

The door opened to another open-air courtyard, but what caught his attention was the great dragon sleeping in the middle of it. Its body was slender and long with small spikes and tufts of fur decorating the length of its spine and head. The dark navy, almost black, tufts stood stark against the ghostly white of its body which seemed to glitter in the moonlight. Its head sported great, jagged horns of a shiny translucent blue and a pair of whiskers that he hoped were just twitching in the wind. Since it was curled up in slumber, it was hard to tell exactly how big the thing was but it was still the biggest creature Kazuma had ever seen, and the claws on its feet looked like they could easily tear him apart. 

“Oh, shit,” he breathed.

“We should turn around now.”

“No. It’s sleeping. We can sneak past it for now.”

“Kazuma-sama-”

“I know I said I wouldn’t put us in any unnecessary danger, but it’s sleeping and I want to get a look in there.” He pointed across the courtyard to a great tower attached to the rest of the building. It had an enormous window with a fluttering curtain concealing the contents of the room. It was exactly the type of conspicuous room they were looking for.

Susato gave him a hard stare for a moment before giving an exasperated sigh and whispering, “Alright, but let me cast a quieting spell first.”

He relented and watched as she took her thick spellbook from a bag strapped to her waist and flipped through it. For the next few minutes, he observed as she performed a complicated ritual complete with ominous chanting. There was a flash of pink light and Kazuma felt like he was muted. To test it out, he took a step and barely heard his boot heel echo on the stone floor as it had before.

Susato snapped her book shut with only a whisper of sound and placed it back in its hold, “Okay, let’s go.”

He nodded and the two of them crept out into the courtyard. They kept to the outskirts of the area, giving the dragon a wide berth, but the steady breathing echoing from the beast had Kazuma on edge. He tensed, straining to hear any slight change in the rhythmic noise. Thankfully, they were able to get across and reach the nondescript door near the tower without awakening the dragon and they both breathed a sigh of relief.

The door opened onto an intersection with two branching hallways and a spiraling staircase leading up. As they started to ascend, they could see candles with wax that didn’t seem to melt and eerily bright flames lighting the way upwards. When they finally reached the top, they found a wooden door with a word messily written on it in a language Kazuma didn’t understand or recognize.

“Can you read this?” he asked as his sister was already pulling out a reference book.

“I believe it’s written in Draconic. Give me a moment,” she said as she flipped through the pages and murmured to herself, “I think it says… ‘Ryuunosuke’. Oh, this must be the prince’s room!”

“Perfect,” Kazuma said and he swung the door open to reveal the largest bedroom he had ever seen. The room had typical furnishings one would expect from a bedroom, like a desk and a wardrobe, but the place had a towering ceiling and a mass of pillows and blankets on a bed that looked big enough to fit several families of people. Clothes and books were scattered all across the room, haphazardly thrown on both the furniture and the floor.

It was clearly lived in, but there wasn’t a prince in sight.

“Where is he?” Kazuma questioned as a feeling of dread started to fall over him.

“Perhaps, he’s in another room? But I really was expecting to find him here. In fairy tale stories, the trapped prince or princess is always found at the top of a tower like this.”

“This isn’t a fairy tale, Susato-chan, but maybe it is just a story.”

“What do you mean?” she asked with concern.

“What if there never was a prince?” As Kazuma looked around the room, the scale of everything just seemed too off to him. Everything was massive like this was a room meant for a dragon and not an aging human prince. “What if this was always just a pointless quest doomed to fail?”

“Kazuma-sama, don’t say that! I’m sure the prince is here somewhere. We just have to keep looking.”

“Think about it, Susato-chan. It’s been sixty years, and not one knight or adventuring party has been able to rescue him? We just walked right past that dragon! Everyone who’s come here had probably wasted so much time trying to find the prince that they inevitably failed to outrun the dragon!”

“Kazuma-sama,” Susato whispered sharply, but he wasn’t listening.

“This was a suicide mission, wasn’t it?! Vortex and Stronghart have been sending people out to die for sixty years! I was never meant to redeem my family with this! I was only MEANT TO DIE!” The more he talked, the more his voice rose into a panicked hysteria. 

“Kazuma-sama!” Susato yelled and grabbed his shoulders to turn him around to face the window.

Kazuma’s voice instantly died in his throat as he caught the stare of cold, black eyes looking back at him. He froze as he took in the sight of the dragon leaning halfway through the window, gripping the frame with its vicious-looking claws. He couldn’t help but notice a rough, obsidian collar wrapped around the its neck.

He snapped out of his stupor and moved to grab Karuma, but in a lightning-fast movement, the dragon snatched up both him and Susato by their collars and flew out the window. Kazuma could hear his sister scream as he desperately tried to stab at the jaws that were keeping them hostage. He had almost managed to slice off one of the beast’s whiskers before he was unceremoniously dumped onto the ground in front of the main gate.

The two of them scrambled to their feet as quickly as they could and Kazuma brandished his sword, but the dragon just… stared at them. It didn’t make any more movements except to dart its gaze back and forth between them and the exit. Was it… trying to tell them to leave?

Susato decided to venture a question, “...Do you not want to eat us?” 

Kazuma was about to scold her ‘ Why would you talk to the dragon?’ but he stopped when he noticed that the dragon had nodded .

Huh.

“Um, Mr. Dragon, where is the prince?”

The dragon only blinked at her in what seemed like confusion.

This time, Kazuma asked with a heavy feeling settling in his gut, “Is there a prince living here? Has there ever been a human prince here?”

The dragon gave a sad, slow shake of its head in response. Its eyes seemed to say I’m sorry as it did so.

Fuck. Of course. Why did his panicked musings have to be right ? Kazuma fell to his knees and let out a muffled scream of frustration into his hands.

Susato’s voice echoed above him, “But that doesn’t make any sense. If there was never a prince, then why was his name written on the door?”

He looked up and saw the dragon shrug its strange shoulders. Actually, why were they listening to this beast? The dragons were supposedly cruel and vicious. Why were they listening to what it was saying?

Kazuma stood up, took Karuma in both of his hands, and settled into a fighting stance.

Susato stepped in front of him and held her arms out, “Kazuma-sama, wait! I don’t think it wants to hurt us. I don’t think it wants to hurt anyone…”

“How can you say that?! Of course, it wants to hurt us! It’s a dragon!”

“Then why hasn’t it hurt us yet? And why does it seem so sad…?”

Now that she said it, he could finally recognize the deep sorrow that swam in the creature’s eyes. It was trapped. “You can’t leave here, can you?”

Kazuma felt a pang in his heart as he watched the dragon give a mournful nod.

Susato spoke again, “Are you cursed? Is there a magical reason you can’t leave?”

Another nod.

“In that case, is there any way you can help us break it and free you?”

The dragon drew back in surprise and seemed to think for a moment before turning around and beckoning them to follow it. 

As they passed through the castle foyer and back out into the main courtyard, Kazuma could see the beginnings of sunrise peeking out over the tops of the castle walls. “Shit, the sun is rising; we’ll be trapped in here for a whole day!”

As he and Susato started to bicker over whether this really mattered since the dragon wasn’t going to eat them, they stopped in their tracks as they glanced back at it.

As the light of dawn touched down on the beast, a strange void seemed to burst from the dragon’s skin. It wasn’t darkness, but something that had to be the opposite of light. The black energy seemed to glow, but didn’t provide any light. The two of them looked away as it spread over the creature and caused a pain behind their eyes. When they opened their eyes again, the void and the dragon were gone, and they stared in shock at the sight that greeted them.

A young man, who looked about Kazuma’s age, was lying on the ground, curled up like he had just been sleeping. He had a small, but round frame and short-cropped hair in a strange, spiky hairstyle. He started to stir and sat up while yawning. As he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he finally noticed the two people staring at him. In a panic, he scrambled back and squeaked, “Who are you? How did you get in here?”

Susato and Kazuma both responded, “What the fuck ?”

Chapter Text

The mysterious young man continued to stare at the two siblings, waiting for some response other than shocked swearing, although his wide-eyed gaze seemed to focus on the katana strapped to Kazuma’s waist.

“You- Dragon-?!” Kazuma blurted at the same time that Susato spluttered, “Prince- What-?!”

“Um, could either of you please tell me what’s going on?”

“We should be asking you that!” Kazuma shouted, “Where did you come from?! Where did the dragon go?!”

“Kazuma-sama, I think… we all should take a moment to breathe and calm down before demanding explanations,” Susato calmly dictated, proving once again to be the level-headed one.

After a moment of silence, in which everyone took deep, steadying breaths, the man spoke again, “So, um, who are you people, and what dragon are you talking about?”

This time, Susato explained, “My name is Susato Mikotoba and this is my brother, Kazuma Asougi. We are adventurers that came to this castle to rescue Prince Ryuunosuke Vortex from the dragon that lives here. Though, we found this dragon wasn’t a threat and were told the prince was never here.”

The man blinked and suddenly exclaimed, “Oh! You’re here to rescue me! But my name’s not Vortex, it’s Naruhodou… and there’s never been a dragon here.”

“Wait, what?! You’re Prince Ryuunosuke? But you’re not a decrepit old man!” Kazuma blurted.

“Thanks for noticing…”

“Prince… Naruhodou… could you please explain your situation to us? This is getting very confusing,” Susato asked as she pulled out a notebook to start writing down his story and attempt to sort through this mess.

“Okay,” Naruhodou (apparently) finally stood up and started to explain, “I’ve been living alone in this castle for a very long time, and because of the vines surrounding it, I haven’t been able to leave. And truthfully, I don’t really remember much of my life before I got stuck here, but I think I do remember being a prince of some kind. Oh, also I’ve kind of been cursed to fall asleep as soon as the sun sets and I wake up when the sun rises.”

“Okay…” When Naruhodou stood up, Kazuma could see a shining, black collar around his neck that looked a lot like the one he had seen on the dragon, “Well, first of all, I don’t think it’s a sleeping curse that’s your problem. I’m pretty sure you actually turn into a dragon when the sun sets.”

“What.”

“Yes, I think Kazuma-sama is right. We were speaking with a dragon when suddenly there was a flash of… darkness and when it cleared, you were in its place. The dragon also wore a necklace similar to yours. This would also explain why no one’s been able to find you for sixty years since one can only enter the castle at night!”

“Wait, has it really been sixty years since I’ve been here?!” The prince clutched his head in his hands as he started to panic, “Also I’m a dragon?!”

“Naruhodou-sama, please calm down.” Susato placed a comforting hand on his shoulder in an attempt to stop him from spiraling.

Kazuma looked up at the storm clouds that had started to gather in the sky and became thoughtful. “Yes, it’s been sixty years, but you look like you’re somewhere in your twenties, not your seventies...”

“Perhaps, the magic that keeps this place preserved has affected him as well?” Susato suggested.

“I don’t know. I knew I’d been here a while, but the entire time I never once questioned my age. I didn’t even notice. Did the castle really…?” Naruhodou’s mumbling voice was still laced with panic, but he was starting to calm down.

“Regardless, I think it’s about time you got to leave here.” She smiled at him and pumped her fists determinedly.

“But what about the vines and the… dragon… thing?”

“The vines disappear when the sun goes down and as for the dragon thing, I’m sure we’ll find some solution around here,” Kazuma explained, “Before you had turned back into a human earlier, you were in the process of showing us something that could help us break your curse. Do you remember what that was or have an idea?”

“Um…” As Naruhodou brought a hand to his chin and thought, Kazuma took the opportunity to study the prince a little more. On closer inspection, his features weren’t completely human. His ears had a slight point and his nails were sharper than they should be, almost like claws. The freckles on his face formed a pattern reminiscent of the scales on his dragon form. Lastly, his eyes, which Kazuma had thought were black at first, were actually a dark brown and his pupils were vertical slits. As his gaze lingered on the prince’s eyes, he found himself drawn in. He felt like if he were to fall into those dark depths, he wouldn’t be greeted with a cold void, but with a warm embrace. 

They were beautiful.

Naruhodou suddenly looked up and met his gaze. He stared back for a moment and muttered, “Why is he looking at me like that?” before flushing slightly, looking away, and speaking more clearly, “Um, well, I honestly can’t think of anything that could help.”

“But you had something in mind earlier, is there really nothing you can think of?” Susato asked.

“I’m sorry, I really ca-”

Naruhodou was cut off by the abrupt sound of Kazuma’s stomach rumbling loudly. They had been awake all night, and he hadn’t eaten anything since early evening yesterday.

“Oh! Are you hungry? I can get you some breakfast if you want.” The prince looked at him with nothing but concern in his beautiful eyes.

“There’s no need for you to make us anything, Naruhodou-sama. We don’t want to impose; we have rations to eat,” Susato stated as she pulled out one of the dry, flavorless bars they had been mostly subsisting off of over their journey here.

“Oh no, I wouldn’t make anything; I’m a terrible cook! But I can ask the castle to.”

“You can what,” Kazuma interjected.

“The castle takes care of itself and I can ask it to do things like help me find something or make me food.”

Kazuma and his sister looked at each other in shock before Susato gushed, “Can you show us?!”

“Sure.” Naruhodou then walked over to the closest wall, knocked on one of the bricks, and spoke in a strange, growly language. There was a small glow and he turned back to them explaining, “If you’ll follow me, the food will be in the kitchen.”

Kazuma was still skeptical of this, but he nodded his head at his sister and followed the prince further into the castle. On the way, he asked, “So how does this work exactly? You can just ask the castle for whatever you want?”

“Within reason, of course. For example, I can ask it to get me a book, but that book has to already be in the castle somewhere.”

“I noticed you made the request in Draconic, right? Is that a necessary part of the process?” Susato inquired, her hand poised to note down his response.

“Uh-huh.” He nodded. “I tried other languages, but that’s the only one that works. Also, the castle doesn’t like it if you make requests rudely,” he laughed, and sharp, intimidating teeth glinted in the candlelight.

“Oh, is this building sentient?!”

Naruhodou paused and ran a finger along one of the stones in the wall; the rock emitted a faint glow in response to the touch. “I like to think so sometimes. It makes it less lonely here.”

Neither of the siblings knew what to say to that, so they stayed quiet as they went the rest of the way.

After passing through several other rooms and hallways, they entered a cozy little room full of barely used cooking utensils and appliances. Off to the side was a moderately sized table displaying a feast of breakfast foods. Kazuma started to drool over the assortment of eggs, breads, meats, fruits, pastries, and even rice balls. Pitchers of water, different juices, and what looked like coffee were scattered across the table as well.

Naruhodou sat down and immediately started digging in as Kazuma and Susato gaped at the meal before them. He swallowed his mouthful and spoke, “You can eat as much as you like. It won’t go to waste, and I can always ask for more.”

Kazuma didn’t need any more prompting as he sat down and started to shovel food into his mouth. It was fresh, warm, and the most delicious thing he had ever eaten in his life. The dishes were cooked to perfection and he could tell every ingredient was of the highest quality.

After happily eating in silence for a few minutes, Susato spoke up, “This is really incredible! The wizard who enchanted this castle must have been incredibly powerful. Whenever I try food creation spells, they always come out tasting horrible.”

“Even so, you must still be a really good wizard! Everything that I’ve read says that those kinds of spells are really difficult to design and even creating the food takes a lot of skill!” Naruhodou exclaimed after washing down his food with some apple juice.

“Oh, I’m not really that good… but thank you. Do you study magic as well?” She replied sheepishly.

“Sort of. It’s easy to get bored here and there are a number of magic textbooks in the library, but none of the spells I try ever seem to work. I even asked the castle to help me make an arcane focus, but I couldn't even get the most basic ones right…”

“You just have to keep trying! I’m sure you’ll get it right eventually.”

“Except, I’ve apparently had sixty years to get it right.”

“Well… I guess magic’s not for everyone.”

“So is that what you do here all day by yourself?” Kazuma asked as he polished off his plate.

Naruhodou started playing with his fork as he answered the question, “Not all the time, of course, although I do spend most of my time in the library. It’s big, but I’m pretty sure I’ve read every book in there at least twice. I’ve even taught myself a few languages while I’ve been here. Oh, and I practice archery sometimes as well.”

“You must be well-versed in quite a few topics then!” Susato clapped her hands excitedly.

“I guess.” He shrugged. “There’s not much else to do once you’ve seen every inch of this place.”

“You must know this place really well then,” Kazuma replied.

“Yeah… except for this one place in the basement.”

Kazuma leaned forward. “The basement?”

“Yes, there’s this one place that every time I go near, I get really sick. I’ve tried investigating it, but I can never keep going for very long.”

“Why didn’t you mention this before? What we’re looking for could be in there!”

The prince sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess I just didn’t think of it…”

Kazuma stood up and slammed his hands on the table excitedly, “Well, Prince Vortex, I bet you that place has exactly what we need to break your curse. And I promise you, I’ll get you out of here so you can do more than reread the same old books for the rest of your life.”

He expected the prince to be grateful, but instead, he just frowned deeply and reiterated, “Asougi-san, my name is Ryuunosuke Naruhodou . I know I don’t remember much and you could be right about that being my real name, but I would prefer it in the meantime that you called me Naruhodou.”

Kazuma was shocked at the harshness coming from this man, whom he had honestly thought seemed like a pushover, but he lowered his head and relented, “I apologize, Naruhodou-san.”

“Thank you.” He sighed, “I guess you’ll want to see the basement now?”

“Yes, please.” Susato nodded.

The two siblings followed close behind as Naruhodou led them through the castle and down to the lower levels. They passed what seemed to be several different storage rooms and cellars before he, looking incredibly queasy at this point, stopped outside a nondescript hallway, “Down there, you’ll find a door, but I don’t know what’s behind it. I never got that far.”

Susato gave a small bow. “Thank you, Naruhodou-sama, we’ll take it from here.”

He returned the bow and responded, “Okay, I’ll be waiting out in the main courtyard when you’re done.” With that, he turned on his heel and walked quickly back the way they had come.

“Shall we get going, Susato-chan?”

She only nodded in response and allowed him to lead the way down the hall. The door they found at the end was just a plain wooden slab with an iron door handle. Kazuma hesitantly opened it to reveal a well-lit staircase leading down.

As they made their way down, they found the staircase opened into a chamber lit by large, brass sconces with a single stone pedestal in the center. Resting on the pedestal was a single black key that looked to be made of the same material as the collar around Naruhodou’s neck.

“I guess this key must unlock that collar that Naruhodou-san wears,” Kazuma stated rather blandly, stepping toward it.

“And I assume that must be what is preventing him from leaving. Kazuma-sama, wait!” Susato called out to him to stop him from picking up the key, but it was too late. He had already swiped it off the pedestal.

As soon as he touched the key, Kazuma heard a rumbling noise and a distant inhuman screech sound from above, “What is that?!”

“Probably some kind of defense mechanism that I could have told you about, had you let me examine it first!”

“Whatever, let’s just go back and find Naruhodou-san.”

As they raced back up the stairs toward the courtyard, the screeching they heard grew steadily louder until it was nearly unbearable by the time they arrived at a door to the courtyard. Kazuma’s blood froze as he looked in horror at the thing that awaited them outside. The great plant whose vines had formed a protective dome around the castle had descended down into the courtyard in a huge, wriggling mass of vines and thorns. The buds that were spread out along the vines had opened to reveal mouths with large, razor-sharp teeth; he realized belatedly that these flowers were the source of that horrible noise. And at the center of the creature, wrapped in thick, undulating vines was Naruhodou. He hung limply in its grasp, blood dripping from numerous wounds caused by the large thorns.

“Naruhodou-san!” “Naruhodou-sama!” They both called out to the young prince, but there was no response other than the continued shrieking of the deadly flowers.

Kazuma hardened his resolve, pulled Karuma from its sheath, and charged into the fray.

Chapter Text

Kazuma could only hear the flowers’ horrid screeching in his ears as he charged forward. As soon as he stepped within range, several vines shot out at him. He ducked and weaved to avoid some, but for most, he took head-on with Karuma’s blade. A few even bounced off his armor, and he was eternally grateful that he hadn’t removed it for stealth purposes. As he fought, he could swear that the cobblestones beneath him were pushing his feet in the directions needed to avoid the larger vines.

He was distracted for a moment by the disgusting wriggling of the severed ends of the vines when his eyes caught a blur of movement headed straight toward his face. He had no time to react before Susato swooped in and sent the vine flying away with a single kick. He knew his sister used strength-enhancing spells to help her fight, but it was always disarming to see her fight with nothing but gloved fists and well-booted feet.

“Kazuma-sama!” she yelled above the sound of the plant’s screams. “We need to get that collar off of Naruhodou-sama! I believe it’s acting as a conduit for the plant!”

“What makes you think that!?” he yelled back as a stone beneath him gave way, allowing him to narrowly avoid being swiped by a thorn.

“Because it didn’t become aggressive until you touched the key! All living creatures have a survival instinct, which means that if you unlock that collar, it will likely hurt it!”

It seemed like solid reasoning to him and he tried to always trust Susato’s instincts. 

He redoubled his efforts to make his way to the center of the creature where Naruhodou was, but he found himself getting increasingly side-swiped by the curling tendrils. He had several cuts on his face and other places where his armor didn’t protect him. Kazuma had just rolled away from a vine aiming for his legs when he heard a crunch of metal and felt a burst of pain from his left arm. He looked over to see one of the flowers had locked its maw around his arm. He screamed and desperately tried to wrench his arm from its grip, having dropped Karuma at the shock of pain. It wasn’t until Susato ran up and punched the flower, crushing it with a sickening squish, that Kazuma was able to fall back.

His head was swimming with the pain coming from his arm and the constant shrieking of the plant. He barely registered it as Susato grabbed his uninjured hand and dragged him back into the safety of an inner room of the castle.

“Susato-chan, what are you doing? We need to rescue Naruhodou-san!” He vaguely noticed that she had thankfully grabbed Karuma on their way back inside.

“I know, but you’re not fighting as well as you usually do! And look at your hand!” She frantically gestured down to his injury.

At that, he finally looked down to inspect the damage. He had lost his gauntlet to the creature, leaving his hand exposed, and there were deep puncture wounds in his arm. It wasn't completely mangled beyond repair, but he was still lucky it wasn't his dominant hand.

“I just- I can’t think straight with that endless screaming in my ears!” He slammed his hands over his ears in a desperate attempt to shut out the noise even as it caused more pain to shoot through his arm.

Susato gave him a pitying look before contemplating, “I have a spell that could silence it, but it would mute everything around us and we wouldn't be able to hear anything.”

“Then do it.”

“But, we won’t be able to communicate after I cast it, and are you sure you’ll be able to fight without your hearing?”

“Just do it! We can figure out a plan of attack before you cast it if you want, but I can’t handle this noise anymore!” He knew he probably wasn’t thinking straight, but his head was pounding and he needed the screaming to stop.

“...” She gave him an unreadable look before speaking again, “Did you notice that the stones in the courtyard seemed to be… helping us?”

Kazuma thought back to the fight. “Yes, actually… Do you think the castle is trying to help us save him?”

She nodded. “Yes, and I think you should focus on listening to it when we go back out there. Since we won’t have our hearing, we’ll need something else to rely on.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll do my best to cover you so you can focus on getting to Naruhodou-sama since you have the key.” She handed Karuma back to him, took out her spellbook, and flipped through it to find the right ritual. “Are you ready?”

He took the katana in his good hand and nodded. He was ready as he’ll ever be. It only took about a minute or so for her to cast the spell, but Kazuma could feel every second ticking down. Naruhodou needed them.

Kazuma could instantly feel it when the spell settled on him. The noise finally stopped and the silence was a blessed relief. He readjusted his grip on his sword, gave his sister a nod, and charged back outside with her.

It was jarring to be running into a fight with no sense of hearing, but he listened to Susato’s advice and let the stones beneath him lead him on the right path. He still had to slice at some of the vines that came his way, but it was far easier to avoid them and press forward than it was before. The closer he got to the center, the more the vines pressed in on him, and the more he had to rely on Susato to keep them off of him.

When he finally reached the heart of the tangled mass, he could see Naruhodou was still wrapped tightly in the creature’s grip. The vines seemed to be concentrated around his neck, forming a protective barrier around the collar.

Kazuma stopped for a brief moment to take a deep breath before steeling himself and continuing forward, dropping Karuma and taking the key out of his pocket. He sprinted forward and allowed himself to step on a stone that jutted out from the rest of the ground. As he stepped on it, it lifted up and he used the momentum to propel himself upwards and leap toward Naruhodou who was hanging in midair. He landed on top of the vines and grunted in pain as he could feel numerous thorns jab through the gaps in his armor.

Kazuma grit his teeth and climbed up towards Naruhodou. A vine suddenly wrapped around him and tried to pull him away but he reached out with his injured hand and grabbed onto a thorn jutting from one of the vines around Naruhodou’s neck. He strained against the force pulling him away and shoved his free hand holding the key into a space between one of the vines. He started to feel around for the collar and its keyhole when the tendrils his arm was sandwiched between crushed down around it. He screamed as his left arm was pulled out of its socket and he felt the bones in his right start to crack.

Even as he felt the thorns rip through his other gauntlet and both hands became slick with blood, he held on. He couldn’t afford to let go, not when Naruhodou’s life depended on it. He pushed down the pain and forced his hand to keep searching for the keyhole. The edges of his vision were starting to blur and blackout when he finally felt a small hole beneath his fingertips. He used the last of his strength to surge forward and shove the key in, turning it as he did so.

There was a moment of stillness as he felt the collar crack open and then Kazuma was falling. The plant collapsed, all life drained out of it, and he landed in a heap on top. He could barely move and all he could feel was a searing pain in his whole body, but nevertheless, he dragged himself toward Naruhodou and started weakly tearing away at the vines that were still wrapped around his body. 

Suddenly he felt a pair of steady hands wrap around him and drag him away from the prince. He attempted to struggle but relaxed when he felt himself gently placed on the cool stones, away from the thorny vines. The last thing he saw as his consciousness faded away was Susato pulling Naruhodou’s limp body out of the tangled mess of the plant’s corpse.

Chapter Text

When Kazuma finally awoke all he could feel was a bone-deep soreness throughout his entire body, but especially his arms. Whatever he was currently lying on was incredibly comfortable, squashing any desire to get up. He could hear soft voices coming from nearby, but he wasn't quite ready to deal with that yet so he stayed still and kept his eyes shut.

"Thank you again, Susato-san. I really feel completely fine!"

"That's good. I admit healing spells aren't my specialty and I'm afraid you'll still have a few scars on your neck…"

"Well, do they at least look cool?" Kazuma heard soft laughter from Naruhodou.

"Now, Naruhodou-sama, you should be more concerned about being healthy." Susato chided but there was no real bite to it.

“Yeah… Asougi-san will be okay, right?”

“For the third time, yes, he should make a full recovery. Kazuma-sama may have been grievously injured, but he always gets back up. Even when I tell him not to.”

Another soft chuckle and then in a serious tone, “He was just trying to save me… I feel like it’s my fault he got so injured…”

At that, Kazuma snapped his eyes open and sat up, even as the sudden movement made his head ache and vision swim. “It wasn’t your fault.” As he turned toward them, he realized that they were still in the courtyard, but some kind of makeshift hospital tent had been set up. His left arm was now covered in stiff bandages and his right had been wrapped in even more and was nestled in a sling.

“Asougi-san!” “Kazuma-sama!” As Susato rushed over to his side, helping him sit up more slowly, Kazuma noticed the deep bags under her eyes.

He tried to stand up completely, but she placed her hands firmly on his shoulders to keep him sitting on the bed. “You’re still recovering. You need to keep resting.”

Kazuma turned a hard look at his well-meaning sister. “Just let me do this one thing, and I’ll do whatever you tell me from now on.”

They continued to glare at each other even as Naruhodou muttered in the background, “She really wasn’t kidding about the stubbornness.”

Finally, Susato sighed, “I know that promise likely won’t last long, but fine.” She then started to help Kazuma stand up.

As soon as he had steadied himself, he dropped down into a kneel and bowed his head toward Naruhodou. “ I’m the one who owes you an apology, Prince Naruhodou. Because of my rashness, you were hurt and could have died. I’m deeply sorry.”

“But, you didn’t have to do that. And you wouldn’t even be here risking your life if it weren’t for me. And I’m the one who told you about the basement!”

“Naruhodou-sama,” Susato interjected, “It is not your fault that we chose to come here.”

“And I should have let Susato-chan investigate before I thoughtlessly grabbed that key. I am entirely to blame here,” Kazuma added.

“But… you got hurt trying to save me…”

“Tell you what,” Kazuma gave a little smirk, “how about you drop the honorifics and we’ll call it even. What do you say… Naruhodou?” He wasn’t entirely sure why he decided to offer this as a way to barter an agreement, but for some reason, he liked the way Naruhodou’s face flushed slightly when he suggested it.

But he wasn’t prepared for Naruhodou to get up and stand in front of him, placing his hand under Kazuma’s chin and picking his head up. His gaze wandered to the pale scars striped across the prince's neck, but his eyes snapped up as Naruhodou looked him right in the eyes and urged, “Promise me then, Asougi, that you won’t put yourself in this kind of danger on my behalf again. You could have died, and I don’t want others to suffer for me.”

Those damned eyes were drawing him in again. They were so warm and full of compassion and Kazuma just wanted to stare into them forever. He could feel his own face start to redden slightly as he nodded. “I swear it.”

The smile that Naruhodou gave in return made Kazuma’s traitorous heart skip a beat. The prince looked up then and murmured, "The sun's going down…"

Susato responded, "You should be fine since we got the collar off, right?" But just as soon as she finished that thought, twilight descended and the two siblings watched in shock as that mysterious darkness returned and Prince Naruhodou turned back into a dragon once more.

"What?! But-?!" Kazuma sputtered and tripped backwards as the sudden girth of Naruhodou's dragon form pushed him back.

Susato quickly grabbed him and helped him back onto the bed as she asked, dumbfounded, "Did it really not work?"

"Was all that for nothing?" An empty pit seemed to open up in Kazuma's stomach.

The dragon, Naruhodou, looked back at them and Kazuma felt like his gaze was clearer than it had been last night. He felt like he could actually read the thoughts behind his eyes.

No, it worked , they seemed to say.

"Your curse is more complicated than we thought, isn't it?" Kazuma asked.

Naruhodou nodded and then abruptly took off into the sky. He soared high up above the castle and storm clouds started to gather around him, lightning flashing. It was difficult to tell if it was coming from the storm, the dragon, or both.

And then, Naruhodou started singing. It was a keening, low-pitched melody that mixed with the sound of rain and thunder and it rang with the sound of freedom . It almost made Kazuma start to cry; it certainly had Susato clutching her chest with glistening eyes. 

Honestly, the sight and sound of it all was breathtaking. An indiscernible emotion rose up in Kazuma’s chest that he had never felt before and couldn’t name. But, it was over all too soon as Naruhodou settled back down on the ground in the courtyard and the storm above started to dissipate.

“So does this mean you’re free to leave the castle now at any point?” Susato asked as the remaining lightning charging the air finally settled down.

Naruhodou nodded and Kazuma protested, “But what are we supposed to do now? There’s still some kind of curse affecting you and we can’t just take you back to the capital like this.”

Susato lifted a finger to her chin in thought before addressing Naruhodou, “Do you have any idea how to fix this? Is there perhaps anything in the castle that could help?”

Naruhodou shook his head before lifting a claw and pointing in the direction of the main entrance.

“Are you saying we need to seek outside help?” she suggested. Another nod from the dragon and there was a moment of quiet before she suddenly clapped her hands together and squealed, “Oh, perhaps we could ask the great detective Herlock Sholmes for help!”

Kazuma vaguely felt like he had heard the name before, but he still asked, “Who?”

“He’s an alchemist that uses his wits and his inventions to solve crime in the city of Stromberg! Stories of his exploits have been published in periodicals all across the kingdom!” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “You should have heard of him, Kazuma-sama.”

Now that he thought about it, he had heard Susato talking about those stories before, “Okay, but how is a detective supposed to help us break a curse?”

“Well, his partner is known to be an excellent curse-breaker!”

Kazuma was pretty sure that his sister just wanted an excuse to meet her literary hero, but he kept his mouth shut and decided to respond, “Well, I haven’t got any better ideas so we might as well, even if Stromberg isn’t on the way back to the capital.”

“Oh, how exciting!” Susato pumped her fists in the air. “Now then, how should we deal with Naruhodou-sama’s dragon problem during our journey?”

It was at that moment, however, that Kazuma felt a wave of exhaustion pour over him and he yawned, “Actually, can we talk about this in the morning?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes, you should get more rest,” Susato said and then gently forced him to lie back down. As soon as Kazuma’s head hit the pillow, he fell back into a deep sleep.

When Kazuma opened his eyes, it was still dark out, but dawn was approaching. As he looked around he saw Susato sleeping soundly on the bed that Naruhodou had occupied earlier and the dragon-shaped prince was lying in the middle of the courtyard looking up at the lightening sky. After slowly getting up, he walked over to the dragon and cleared his throat. Naruhodou looked down at him and tilted his head inquisitively.

“Um, do you… know what happens to you during the day?” The question had been on his mind since last night when the dragon hadn’t seemed confused at all after his sunset transformation.

Naruhodou nodded and leaned his head down to gently bump his snout on Kazuma’s shoulder. Thank you , his eyes seemed to say.

“You’re welcome,” Kazuma returned, smiling softly.

As the sun finally rose, Kazuma shielded his eyes against that strange void that once again emanated from the dragon’s body. When he opened them again, he looked down at Naruhodou’s small human form lying on the ground again. He reached down to shake the prince’s shoulder and when Naruhodou looked up at him, he smiled, his eyes crinkling with warmth, and greeted, “Oh, good morning, Asougi.”

Kazuma ignored the small flutter in his chest as he helped his companion up off the ground. He cleared his throat again and addressed the prince, “Are you ready to leave today, assuming we can figure out what to do with you at night?”

Naruhodou frowned. “I get to pack first, right?”

“Of course, but I’m afraid you’ll need to pack light. It’s a day’s walk to the closest town and we only brought two horses with us.”

“Oh… There’s so much to leave behind…”

The look of sadness on the prince’s face made Kazuma frown, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. It wasn’t like they could take the whole castle with them. “I’m sorry, but you still have time to decide what to bring. We haven’t decided on a full plan yet after all.”

“You’re right. Should we wake Susato-san up to discuss it…? I kind of want to let her sleep more. I think all those healing spells she cast yesterday really tired her out.”

Kazuma agreed. His sister had looked absolutely exhausted yesterday and he knew how worn out she would get whenever she used too much magic. “How about, for now, I’ll help you pack and we’ll leave a note for her when she wakes up telling her where we are.”

“Okay!”

With that, they wrote a note to Susato and headed up to Naruhodou’s room to begin packing. They managed to find a decently sized bag among the mess, and the prince began shoving clothes into it.

“So, do you even remember how you ended up here in the first place?” Kazuma asked as he watched Naruhodou sort through his clothes, all of which seemed to be simple, but very high quality.

Naruhodou stilled and when he spoke he sounded drained, “Honestly, no. When I think back to that time all I get are vague memories of being terrified and… the feeling that I’ve lost something important.” Some life came back into voice and he continued, “But I’ve never felt scared while I’ve been here; I’ve always felt comfortable, if lonely… even when I realized I always had to go to bed at a certain time,” he finished with a laugh.

Kazuma sighed. He was hoping to get some answers for the inconsistencies between Naruhodou’s story and the legend, but it looked like the amnesia problem had struck once again. “Well, maybe when we fix your curse, you’ll remember?”

“That would be nice. I’d like to have more concrete memories of my family…”

Kazuma was surprised to hear this, but he knew he shouldn’t have been. If Naruhodou didn’t remember that King Vortex was his father, it makes sense that he wouldn’t remember his family. He wondered where he had gotten the name Naruhodou from…

He was still lost in thought as he heard Naruhodou mutter in frustration, “Oh, where is it?”

He was about to ask what he was looking for before the prince suddenly spoke up in what Kazuma assumed was Draconic and he watched in shock and fascination as the curtain on the window started to move and rummage through a pile of blankets on the floor. A brief moment later, it presented a small book to Naruhodou, and… patted his head after he took the book with another murmur in that strange language.

He had just watched a fucking curtain pat a man’s head.

What.

Kazuma had to take a moment to process what he had just seen before he could ask, “So, uh, what’s that?”

“Hmm? Oh, this? It’s a book of tongue twisters. I’ve memorized them all by now, but I still wanted to bring it with me…”

“Tongue twisters?”

“Ah, yes, speaking fast is a hobby of mine!”

“That’s… an odd hobby…” This prince was certainly a strange man.

“I think they’re quite fun. Would you like to try one?” 

Kazuma blinked. “Sure, I guess.”

Then, with perfect diction and grace, he started reciting without even looking through his book, “‘She sells seashells by the seashore. The shells she sells are seashells, I’m sure. So if she sells seashells on the seashore, then I’m sure she sells seashore shells’.”

Kazuma’s head immediately started swimming as he tried to process all those words and he barely heard Naruhodou mutter, “He doesn’t look good…”

Naruhodou cleared his throat. “How about you try the short version: just ‘she sells seashells by the seashore’.”

Okay. That seemed much more doable. “She sells sheashells… She shells… See sells… ARGH!” He bit his tongue and the prince started to laugh uproariously, aggravating him even further. “I’ll overcome your challenge one day. Just you wait, Ryuunosuke Naruhodou!”

The prince tried to suppress his laughter and choked out between giggles, “It’s not some great challenge, Asougi. It’s only a tongue twister.”

Kazuma was about to retort back when they heard a knock at the door and Susato’s voice filtered through, “Kazuma-sama? Naruhodou-sama? May I come in?”

“Of course, Susato-san.” As she walked in Naruhodou asked, “Did you have a good rest?”

Susato smiled and replied, “I did, thank you.” She did look considerably better than she had last night. When she noticed Kazuma’s look of frustration, she gave a small laugh before asking, “Are you almost done packing, Naruhodou-sama?”

“Yes, I think so, just a few more things…” 

As Naruhodou continued going through his belongings, Kazuma addressed the elephant in the room, “We still need to decide how to deal with our… dragon problem.”

“Oh, I already discussed it last night with Naruhodou-sama.” Upon receiving nothing but blank stares, Susato elaborated, “Er, well, I offered ideas and he nodded at the ones he liked best.”

“Did you decide on our best course of action?” Kazuma inquired.

“I can cast an illusion spell that will hide Naruhodou-sama’s dragon form, but he will still be physically present, so we will have to spend all our nights camping on the road. We won’t be able to stay overnight in any towns along the way and we’ll be restricted to only traveling during the day.”

Naruhodou quietly spoke up, “I’m sorry that I’ll be inconveniencing you…”

Kazuma turned around and scolded him, “We came here for you. You’re never going to be an inconvenience, no matter how drastically we may need to change our plans.”

“I… Thank you. Both of you.”

“You’re welcome,” Susato assured before she continued with more seriousness, “However I have to ask; are you capable of defending yourself? I only ask as the roads can be quite dangerous with wandering beasts and thieves.”

Kazuma interjected before the prince could respond, “We were more than enough on the way here. I don’t think Naruhodou should have to worry about that.”

He tensed when Susato directed a stern glare at him, “You injured both of your arms quite badly. I did my best to heal them, but it will be at least a week before you’ll be ready to wield a sword again.” He opened his mouth to protest, but she continued, “And don’t forget you promised you’d listen to what I tell you to do.”

Kazuma snapped his mouth shut and nodded obediently at his sister. Then it was Naruhodou’s turn to speak, “Well, to answer your question, I’m pretty good with a bow…”

The prince spoke in Draconic to the castle and a quiet rumble started up. After a moment, some of the stones in a wall nearby moved aside to reveal a cubby containing an elegant longbow with a matching quiver full of arrows and a blue wristguard. As Naruhodou brought them over, Kazuma could see the bow was carved with intricate patterns of dragons curling around the curves of the wood and the quiver was decorated with scenes of a stormy ocean. 

“Oh, what lovely craftsmanship!” Susato exclaimed before asking, “Now then, do you have everything you need?”

“Um, there is one more thing.” Naruhodou made yet another request to the castle before turning back to them. “This one will probably take a little longer.”

As they waited, Kazuma spoke, “So to review, we walk to Precipice, the closest town, pick up our horses, head to Stromberg, and if this great detective can fix your curse, we take you back to the capital to King Stronghart?”

Susato nodded. “Yes, I believe that is the plan. By the way, Naruhodou-sama, do you know how to ride a horse?”

The prince looked very uncomfortable, darting his eyes around as he replied, “No, not at all.”

“It’s okay, you can ride with me,” Kazuma offered.

“You don’t know how to ride a horse with only one barely working arm, Kazuma-sama,” Susato once again reminded him he still had yet to fully recover.

He sighed, “Well, I guess I can sit behind you and show you the ropes from there. What do you say, Naruhodou?”

“I don’t think there’s much of a choice here…” The prince still looked nervous, but he gave a small smile anyway.

Finally, a small rumble sounded and Naruhodou walked up to the wall and blocked whatever he had asked for from view. Eventually, he turned around, holding a pair of shining gauntlets. He walked over to Kazuma and spoke, “I noticed you had lost yours to the plant, so I asked the castle if it could find some more for you.”

“Thank you…” As Kazuma inspected the steel gauntlets, he found they were tinted red and engraved with patterns of swirling smoke. When he tried the left one on, it fit almost perfectly. Besides Karuma, these were the most high-quality items he’d ever owned.

Nauhodou looked up at him with those warm eyes and their strange pupils and smiled hesitantly. “Do you like them?”

“They’re beautiful and even better than my old ones. Really, I can’t thank you enough.”

“That’s good. I also have one more thing.” Naruhodou retrieved a box from the hole in the wall and presented it. “Those ration bars you had earlier didn’t look that great so I asked the castle to make some better ones. Hopefully they do taste better?”

“Is it alright to try one now?” Susato asked as she reached toward the box. When the prince nodded, she grabbed one out and took a bite. “It tastes much better than our old ones!” She handed the bar to Kazuma so he could try it as well. When he did, he couldn’t help but agree. It was nothing compared to the breakfast they had yesterday, but it was leagues better than the ones they had been eating on the way here.

“Speaking of food, shall we have a real breakfast again before we get on the road?” Susato suggested and the other two readily agreed. 

After they all filled themselves with a hearty breakfast, Kazuma and Susato stood in front of the main gate, waiting for Naruhodou to finish changing his clothes and gathering the rest of his things.

“You know, there’s still so much that doesn’t add up here,” Kazuma wondered out loud.

“Yes, and it’s a shame that Naruhodou-sama can’t really explain any of it, at least, in his human form anyway.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, it just seems like his dragon form knows more, but then again he can’t explain either because he can’t speak.”

“We can at least try, even if it will be difficult.”

“Yes… The thing that concerns me the most is what happened to all the adventurers before us. None of them ever returned, and we know now that he wouldn’t have hurt them, so…”

“...What stopped them from coming back?” Kazuma finished the thought for her.

It just didn’t add up. Something had to be going on behind the scenes here, and he hoped whatever it was wasn’t going to sneak up on them when they least expected it.

“Stopped who?” The two siblings jolted at the sound of Naruhodou’s voice from behind them.

Kazuma choked on his response as he turned to look at the prince. He was wearing an elegant ranger’s outfit, dyed a dark blue and accented with shining bronze threads. He wore the wristguard from earlier on his left hand and had his bow and quiver slung over his back. Additionally, he now had a simple gold earring shaped like a lightning bolt hanging from his right ear. 

All in all, it was a very handsome look. And, unfortunately, Kazuma couldn’t stop staring.

When Naruhodou noticed his staring, his eyes bulged and darted around nervously, “Um, why are you looking at me like that? Does my outfit look weird? I thought it would be best to wear something practical…”

“No, no it looks… nice.”

“Thanks…” Naruhodou didn’t sound convinced.

Thankfully, before Kazuma could keep talking and make more of a fool of himself, Susato stepped in, “I take it you’re ready to go now?”

“Yes, I’ve got everything.” He took a deep breath, scrunched his eyes shut, and finally took a step over the threshold. He let out a weak laugh and murmured, “I can finally leave…”

Kazuma and Susato both gave him an encouraging smile and started up the path, but stopped when they realized the prince wasn’t following them.

“Is something wrong, Naruhodou-sama?” Susato asked as she walked back over to him.

“...” Naruhodou was resting his hand on the wall and a soft glow was emanating from the stone, “It’s just… This castle has taken care of me for so long. I know it seems silly to say, but it’s been like a friend to me all these years…”

She rested a hand on his shoulder and reassured him, “It’s not silly. I think it feels the same way towards you and it’s understandable to be a little afraid of leaving someplace that you’ve been for so long.”

He smiled back at her. “Thank you, but it’s been long enough. It’s time for me to leave.” He whispered one last thing to the castle in Draconic and marched away with determination, leaving his old home behind.

Chapter Text

With every step forward, Kazuma desperately wished they hadn’t had to leave their horses in Precipice. The town was called so not only because it lay in the outer edges of the kingdom’s borders, but because it rested on the edge of a plateau overlooking a deep valley where the old dragons’ castle was nestled. This meant that the return journey to the town was entirely uphill and now both his arms and his legs ached with each step. 

The physical exertion was grating on his mood and he felt a wave of annoyance as Naruhodou spoke up behind him with gasping breaths, “Exactly how long will it be until we reach the town?”

Kazuma was about to snap back a sharp response about spoiled princes when Susato cut him off, “Unfortunately, we still have a ways to go, but we can take a break if you need, Naruhodou-sama.” Kazuma opened his mouth to protest, but she gave him a stern look and continued, “Hurrying won’t change anything as we won’t make it to town before nightfall anyway.”

While he didn’t want to waste time, he couldn’t deny that he probably needed a break; he was still feeling the fatigue from his battle with the plant guardian yesterday morning, and from Naruhodou’s loud breathing, it was clear that the prince wouldn’t make it much further at this rate.

The three of them flopped down on the side of the road, not caring how dirty they would get from the dust settled on the ground. After recovering from their exercise and eating some trail rations for lunch, Naruhodou spoke up, “So what exactly does everyone think happened to me sixty years ago?”

“Allow me to explain,” Susato declared as she pulled out a book and started to tell the story of how King Vortex freed the people from the dragons’ rule and Prince Ryuunosuke was stolen away to the castle. As she regaled them, Naruhodou’s face never lost an expression of deep discomfort. When she finished, she snapped the book shut and reminded them, “However, we now know the legend doesn’t completely line up with the truth. Your curse really did surprise us.”

Kazuma wondered just how much of that story was wrong.

“How did the history get so mixed up?” Naruhodou sighed as he looked down at the ground and absentmindedly fiddled with one of the straps on his boot.

“Perhaps the dragon cursed you and left you in that castle, hoping that people would try to kill you, thinking you were the dragon they had heard about,” Kazuma offered.

“That would be a rather twisted way of getting revenge…” There was something in the prince’s voice that made Kazuma feel like there was something he wasn’t saying, but just as he was about to ask, Naruhodou stood stock-still and stared at the ridge of trees overlooking the path they were on.

“What are you-” Kazuma started, but the prince shouted, “Susato-san, watch out!” 

He launched himself at Susato and tackled her to the ground just as an arrow whizzed by right where her head had been. Kazuma’s eyes followed the trajectory of the arrow to the trees, but he couldn’t see anyone. He ran to his sister’s side and watched as Naruhodou scrambled to his feet, bow in hand, leveled his breathing, and shot an arrow straight into the treeline. He heard a feminine scream and finally saw movement in the greenery, but he still failed to actually catch sight of their attacker.

“How did you…?” Kazuma asked, awestruck, as he looked at Naruhodou, still staring intently at the trees, hands still poised to let off another shot.

After a moment, Naruhodou finally relaxed and replied, “I saw someone moving up there, but I think they ran away when I hit them.” The prince’s demeanor shifted back into its usual shyness as he asked, ”Anyway, are you alright, Susato-san? I’m sorry for jumping on you like that.”

“No, no, it’s alright. I’m fine…” Her voice wavered and it hit Kazuma then that were it not for Naruhodou’s exceptionally sharp eyes, his sister would be dead. “Thank you, Naruhodou-sama, that was… an excellent shot.”

“Oh, well, I’ve had sixty years of practice, I guess.” He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and flushed slightly from the compliment. “Um, anyway, was that one of those bandits you talked about?”

Kazuma shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. They usually try to intimidate people first before resorting to violence. They’re not ones for subtlety.”

“Then… who was that?”

“I don’t know… We should keep going.”

The other two readily agreed and they resumed their climb up to the town of Precipice.

They had gotten about three-quarters of the way to town before the sun started to sink and they decided to make camp for the night. They had to leave most of their supplies with their horses in town so it didn’t take long to set up their sleeping bags and a small campfire. Since Kazuma’s arms were still recovering and Susato needed to set up the illusion spell, they had to rely on their rations for dinner rather than hunting for something fresh in the nearby woods. 

“So how does this illusion spell work?” Naruhodou asked as he munched on his bar.

“Well, it’s a sigil-based spell, meaning you will only stay invisible as long as you stay in the ritual circle that I draw,” she dictated as she showed him a diagram of the circle from her spellbook.

“So no wandering around then?”

“Yes, which is a shame since you seemed so happy to be flying around last night.”

“Did I?” he asked before taking another bite and mumbling around his food, “I wish I could remember what it feels like to fly…”

“...” She didn’t respond to that before getting up and inspecting the area surrounding the camp to find a suitable place to draw the circle.

Naruhodou watched in fascination as Susato took a stick and carefully sketched out a large circle in the dirt and started to draw in complicated symbols on the edges. “Naruhodou-sama, if you could step inside the circle, I’m almost done.”

He stepped inside, but she hadn’t quite finished it before the sun officially set and he shifted back to his dragon form.

“WOT THE-?!” They all turned to look as a startled voice suddenly shouted from the woods.

Kazuma got up and, despite his injury, put his mostly good hand on Karuma and yelled back, “Who’s there?”

Whoever had been spying on them tried to scramble back further into the trees, but Naruhodou shot forward and pulled a wriggling young woman in dirty, ratty clothes out by the scruff. He placed her on the ground and blocked the path back into the woods as she sat frozen in terror. She curled up with her hands over her head and pleaded, “Please, don’t eat me!”

Kazuma stepped forward and interrogated her, “Who are you? Are you the one who shot at us earlier?”

“Huh? Wot are you talkin’ about? I was jus’ gonna rob ya when ya fell asleep.” As she talked, she kept glancing back at the dragon looming behind her. “Look, I promise I won’t take nuffin, jus’ don’t let it eat me!”

Susato sighed, “Naruhodou-sama isn’t going to eat you. He doesn’t eat people.”

“Huh? But ain’t ‘e that dragon that’s got ev’ryone goin’ mad?”

“What do you mean everyone is going crazy?”

“Last night, we all saw that big storm and a dragon flyin’ around over the old castle. Ev’ryone’s leavin’ town now cuz they fink that old prince bloke is dead and now that dragon’s gonna come an’ eat us all.”

Well, shit.

If the news spread then people would start panicking and any whiff of Naruhodou's current existence would likely incite some kind of mob. They needed to be extra careful from now on.

Kazuma put on his best intimidating voice and addressed the girl, "Alright, he's not going to eat you and we're not going to hurt you, but you have to swear not to tell anyone what you saw."

"Now, 'ang on a minute, wot are you lot doin' wiv this dragon anyway?" She crossed her arms and mirrored his sternness, "You let 'im out didn't ya?"

"Well, yes, but," Susato hesitated, trying to choose her words carefully, "He's not a real dragon."

"Wot?"

"This is actually Ryuunosuke Naruhodou. He's the old prince everyone has been looking for, but he's been cursed to turn into a dragon at night."

"Wot?! That's 'im?!" She whirled around to get a better look at the dragon. "But ain't you s'posed to be an old codger by now?"

Naruhodou narrowed his eyes and huffed at her, sparks flying out of his nostrils.

"It's a long story." Susato walked over and helped the girl to her feet before continuing, "But, for now, could you please not tell anyone else about him. We're looking for a way to break his curse before taking him to King Stronghart."

The girl stood and thought for a moment before pulling out a coin and carding it through her fingers. "Alright, but I want a piece o’ the loot."

"Excuse me?" Kazuma asked, his hand still resting on Karuma's hilt.

"I bet the king's gonna 'and over a lot o' gold to whoever brings the prince in. So if ya want me to stay mum, take me wiv ya an' let me 'ave a piece o' it."

Kazuma wasn't doing this for the money, but hearing her try to blackmail them still sent his blood boiling. He stalked forward and shoved his finger in her face, hissing "You're in no position to bargain here, and we're more than capable of making sure your mouth stays shut forever."

"Kazuma-sama!" Susato came up and slapped his hand out of the girl's face, "It would be dishonorable for us to harm her, and, besides, letting her come with us won't hurt. It's not like we care about the money anyway."

"But-" He looked to Naruhodou to ask for his opinion, but the look in the dragon's eyes told him he agreed with Susato. Kazuma sighed, "Fine, but you know the journey we're taking is not a quick one. It will be a while before you'll see any reward."

"That's fine wiv me. Pretty soon there won't be no more pockets left to pick in town, so I might as well get goin' now," she said as she tromped over to the campfire and settled down with a ration she had somehow managed to steal from one of them. "So anyway, you lot got any names?"

"My name is Susato Mikotoba and that is my brother, Kazuma Asougi," Susato answered as she resumed her work on the ritual circle. "And yours?"

"Name's Gina Lestrade." She finished her introduction at the same time that Susato finished the circle and Naruhodou suddenly vanished from view, "Blimey! Where'd 'e go?!"

She giggled, "He's still here; he's just invisible at the moment." 

Naruhodou poked his head out of the boundary of the circle and amusement gleamed in his eyes as both Kazuma and Lestrade jumped back in alarm. It was incredibly disconcerting to see a disembodied dragon head floating in midair, and he breathed a sigh of relief when the dragon retreated back inside the spell.

After recovering from the shock, Lestrade spoke up again, "So why don't ya want the money? Wot's the point of doin' all this if ya don't even want the reward? Unless you're one of those 'igh and mighty knight types that do it for the 'onor or somefink."

The image of his father's head rolling off the executioner's block flashed in his mind and Kazuma growled, "It's none of your business, Miss Lestrade."

"Cor, no need to get ya knickers in a twist. I was jus’ askin'."

Kazuma moved to put out the fire to put an end to any further conversation, but Susato's voice stopped him, "Wait, Kazuma-sama, I think there’s something we should talk to Naruhodou-sama about before we go any further in our journey.”

He sighed and followed his sister into the circle so he could actually see Naruhodou while they talked; Lestrade followed after them in silent curiosity. When they entered the circle, Naruhodou tilted his head and looked at them expectantly.

“Naruhodou-sama, there were others that came to that castle before us, right?” He nodded and Susato continued her questioning, “What happened to them?”

The dragon paused in thought before reaching down and drawing in the dirt with a claw. He drew a crude rendition of himself pushing away several stick figures holding weapons.

“So, they all attacked you and you chased them out of the castle?” 

Naruhodou gave a nod in response.

“And you never killed any of them?”

He shook his head vigorously. He seemed upset at the idea that he would have killed them.

“But… if all of them left the castle alive…” She started to draw in on herself, pulling her hands close to her chest, “Why did none of those adventurers ever return home?”

Naruhodou pulled back in shock before pushing his head in closer, eyes wide with concern and confusion. Kazuma heard the beginnings of a storm rumbling overhead.

“So, you didn’t know that every person that’s gone to rescue you has ended up dead?”

He shook his head in disbelief and looked down at the ground in horrified contemplation, but suddenly, his face scrunched in anger and he growled deeply, lightning striking nearby in time with his outburst.

“Naruhodou, are you alright?”  Kazuma asked, wanting to reach out to his agitated companion, but not wanting to risk the sparks flying off of his scales. “Do you think you know what happened to them?” The crack of thunder from the lightning nearly drowned out his question.

Naruhodou reached out and drew an archer’s arrow in the dirt; he then pointed back down the path the way they had come.

“An arrow…?” Kazuma wracked his brain for what this could mean. “Are you talking about the person that attacked us earlier?”

He nodded.

“But what does that have to do with those other people?”

“‘E’s sayin that some bloke’s been killin’ the people that come out o’ that castle.” Lestrade shook her head at them. “Ain’t it obvious?”

Kazuma looked to Naruhodou for confirmation and was greeted with a nod. “But, why? Why stop people from returning?”

Quiet descended as no one seemed to have an answer.

Eventually, Susato broke the silence. “Since Naruhodou-sama didn't kill our attacker, does this mean they’ll try again?”

Kazuma felt like a bucket of ice cold water had been dumped on his head. They were going to be hunted, weren’t they? Whoever was responsible for all these inconsistencies was going to hunt them down like animals.

He wasn’t going to let that happen.

“I’d like to see them try.” He took a deep breath before declaring, “I don’t care if they’ve been hunting down adventurers for sixty years. I’m not going to let anything stop me from taking you where you belong, Ryuunosuke Naruhodou. I won’t rest until I can complete my mission.” He refused to let the Asougis be branded as traitors for the rest of history and he refused to let people believe that his father was as well.

“You’re awful confident for a bloke wiv a broken arm,” Lestrade interrupted his speech with a smirk.

“It won’t be broken forever!”

The storm finally settled down as Naruhodou let out a strange noise that sounded like a laugh. A weird, growly dragon laugh. Kazuma would find it charming if it wasn’t at his expense.

“Gina’s right, Kazuma-sama, but even with your injury, I think the four of us will be enough. We have an advantage, after all, we already know they’re after us and we know Naruhodou-sama injured them.” Susato reassured them as she pumped her fists with determination. "Oh, and I hate to ask, but, Gina, are you capable of defending yourself?"

She pulled a knife from seemingly out of nowhere and responded, "If I 'ave to."

Susato smiled. “That's good. Now, I think it would be wise to set up a schedule so someone is always awake and on guard.”

The other three readily agreed and it ended up that Kazuma had the last watch of the night. They put out the fire and Kazuma settled into sleep to the sounds of Susato starting up a conversation with Lestrade as she began her watch.

Chapter Text

Kazuma grumbled when Naruhodou nudged him awake for his watch, but he quickly shook himself and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes so he could guard properly. To pass the time, he tried practicing the tongue twister that Naruhodou taught him, but two hours and a raw tongue later, he still hadn’t gotten it right. He gave up for the moment and decided to enjoy watching the sunrise once again. He debated whether or not he should wake Susato and Lestrade yet when he felt a light tap on his shoulder and turned to see Naruhodou looking at him with wide eyes.

“Um, Asougi,” He pointed at Lestrade lying down on the ground using Susato’s cloak as a pillow, “Who’s that?” 

Oh, yeah. It was still strange to him that the prince was only aware of what happened to him half the time. “That’s Gina Lestrade. She’s… She’ll be joining us in our journey going forward.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Um,” Kazuma was starting to have trouble keeping his thoughts in order when those dark eyes were so captivating to look at. “She caught your transformation last night and she wanted a piece of whatever reward came from taking you back to the king in exchange for her not to tell anyone.”

“Hmm.” Naruhodou settled down next to him on the log he had been using as a chair. “Is it really that bad if people find out?”

“A lot of people in this kingdom have a deep-running hatred of the dragons.” He handed Naruhodou a ration bar for breakfast as he continued his explanation, “And the other night, the people in Precipice spotted you when you were flying around. According to Lestrade, it incited a panic and since people in crisis are not well-known to act logically, it’s much safer if no one knows about your condition.”

“Oh…” 

“And, another thing, apparently people think this means you’re dead.”

He blinked. “Does that make things easier or harder? Would people get suspicious if they hear my name?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t be worried about that to begin with; naming your kid after the lost prince isn’t an unheard-of practice. Though, if you went by Vortex then maybe people would be more likely to think twice about it.” Naruhodou hummed in response and Kazuma was reminded of something that had bothered him. “Where did you get the name Naruhodou from anyway?”

The prince looked at him incredulously. “I didn’t ‘get’ it from anywhere. It’s just my name.” He frowned and looked away while muttering, “For now, I guess…”

“You really don’t like the idea of having a different name, do you…?” 

“No, it's just… The name Vortex feels… wrong, somehow.”

“I’m sure once you get your memories back, it’ll all click into place.” Naruhodou didn’t respond and an awkward silence descended before Kazuma broke it by declaring, “Anyway, you should get your stuff together so we can leave soon. We only have so much daylight.” 

Naruhodou nodded his head and Kazuma moved to wake up the two girls so they could continue their journey. He woke Susato easily enough, but when he tried to rouse Lestrade, she kicked at him. He was about to kick back when Susato stopped him. "Kazuma-sama, don't be rude. She can sleep a little bit longer since she has no things to pack up."

He grumbled, but he left the girl alone and noticed that his sister had tied her hair up into a bun rather than the usual loops. "Oh, is it a boy day today?" Kazuma asked, pointing at the bun.

Susato nodded, "Yes," and returned back to packing up his things.

Eventually, after getting all their things together and allowing Susato to wake Lestrade up, the four of them were finally ready to head to Precipice.

The walk was just as grueling as the day before, but he noticed his aches less as he listened to Naruhodou and Susato explain to Lestrade everything that had happened to them so far and the prince's real story. 

When they finished, Lestrade asked, “But why would ya want to leave? Sounds to me like you ‘ad a pretty sweet deal livin’ there.”

Naruhodou replied quietly, “While I admit I already miss it a little, I didn’t want to be alone anymore… My only friend was a building , after all,” he added with a derisive chuckle.

“I dunno, wouldn’t be worth it to me. Too many folks out ‘ere would sell ya out jus’ for a quick bob.”

“But, not trusting anyone seems like it would be just as lonely.”

She only shrugged in response.

“That’s a bold way of saying you don’t trust us, Lestrade,” Kazuma quipped as he continued his march, unperturbed.

To be honest, he didn’t care if she didn’t trust them. The only thing he needed was for her to keep her mouth shut and if it came to it, Karuma was plenty enough to cut out her tongue and ensure she did. He knew it was harsh, but this mission was the only thing he had left at this point and he wasn’t going to let some pickpurse put it in jeopardy.

“I don’t ‘ave to. I know you lot need me to stay mum, so I know ya ain’t gonna run me off.” Her voice shifted lower as she added, “And I can take care o’ myself, so I don’t need no one else.”

“Regardless of how you feel about us, if you ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask,” Susato earnestly reassured her. “You’re a part of our group now, and we all need to take care of each other if we want to succeed.”

“...” At Lestrade’s silence, Kazuma glanced back to see her face was a mixture of disbelief and gratitude.

No one said anything else and they continued their hike in silence.

It was early noon when they finally made it to where the town was in view, and Kazuma could see caravans of people leaving, heading in either the direction of the inner kingdom territories or the border. He was about to point this out when he heard Naruhodou cry out behind him, "Where is it? What happened to my earring?!"

Kazuma turned to see the prince frantically checking his pockets and scanning the ground around him.

Suddenly, Lestrade laughed beside him, "Took ya long enough, 'Oddo! I swiped it off ya ages ago."

"Wha- Give that back!" He leaped forward and snatched it out of her hands.

"Blimey, why's it so important to ya?" She pulled back in surprise at how fast he had managed to grab it. "It's jus' a trinket, ain't it?"

"I…" He cradled the earring in his hands and looked down at it, frowning.

When he failed to elaborate, Susato urged gently, "Naruhodou-sama?"

"I don't know... I had it on me when I first ended up in the castle and it's always felt… important."

Lestrade pulled her hat down over her eyes and mumbled, "Sorry…"

Susato cleared his throat, "Well, I'm sure Gina won't try to steal it again, right?" He leveled a stern glare at their new companion and she nodded back with a slight flush.

With that sorted out, they continued on their way. As they arrived and started to file into the town against the direction of the traffic, Kazuma noticed the people around them kept shooting them strange looks. He was about to ask Lestrade if she knew anything when he noticed Naruhodou had gone pale and shaky and his eyes were constantly darting around. He leaned in and whispered, “Naruhodou, are you alright?”

“Gah!” The prince jumped in surprise, which, unfortunately, only drew more attention to them. “Sorry! Um, what did you say?”

“I asked if you’re okay. You don’t look well.”

“No, sorry, there’s just so many people here. I haven’t been around this many people in… well, you know.”

“I’ll admit I’m not a fan of crowds either, but don’t worry.” He smirked and grabbed hold of Naruhodou’s hand, “We won’t let you get lost.”

Naruhodou ogled their linked hands as Kazuma pulled him along to catch up with Susato and Lestrade.

When they finally got past the initial flood of people leaving, they could easily see that this town was going to end up completely abandoned soon. Very few people were still milling around and almost all the storefronts had been closed and boarded up.

“It’s going to be rather difficult to get more supplies here, isn’t it?” Susato muttered as he looked around.

“Doubt the shopkeeps took ev’rythin’ wiv em in the ‘urry. I bet you could find what ya need left be’ind,” Lestrade offered nonchalantly as she played with a coin between her fingers.

“Are you suggesting we steal supplies?”

“Is it really stealing if no one’s going to come looking for them?” Kazuma pointed out to his brother. “And it’ll save money, so we can invest in another horse, which we’ll need with two extra people here.”

He sighed, “Very well, but I want no part in it.” He turned to Naruhodou who had kept a thoughtful look on his face during this whole conversation, “And neither should you, Naruhodou-sama. It would be unbecoming of a prince to steal from his people.”

“Hmm? Uh, okay.”

Susato narrowed his eyes at the prince who shied away a little before speaking again, “We’ll find someplace to eat lunch first, and then Naruhodou-sama and I will retrieve our horses and other supplies while you two find the rest.”

“Wait, should Asougi really be the one to go with Gina? He’s only got one arm to carry things…”

Susato looked like he wanted to object, but the prince did have a point.

“Looks like you’ll get to have some fun, Naruhodou.” Kazuma nudged him a little. “Try not to go wild.”

“How am I supposed to ‘go wild’ on traveling supplies…?”

With everyone’s roles officially declared, they set out to find some food. Unfortunately, even with Lestrade’s inside knowledge of the town, they ended up wasting a considerable amount of time finding a place that would feed them. In the end, a stall owner who apparently owed Lestrade a favor was willing to make them some fried potatoes before he left town with everyone else.

To be honest, they weren’t the best fries he’d ever had, but warm food had been a scarce occurrence for him in the past month or so that they’d been on the road, so he enjoyed it nonetheless. He could tell from Susato’s face that he had the same thought; Naruhodou, on the other hand, had a strange look of both surprise and reluctance as he chewed his greasy bundle.

“Is it not up to your standards, little prince?” Kazuma teased, enjoying the look of annoyance that he received in response.

“I’m not some kind of snob; I can still enjoy food even if it’s not perfect.”

“So, you admit you were spoiled.”

Naruhodou raised an eyebrow. “That’s rich coming from someone who was practically moaning the entire time he ate almost every bit of food on my table.”

Kazuma could feel his face flush and Lestrade guffawed, “Got no table manners, eh, ‘Soggy?”

Susato, the traitor, laughed too.

“You would too if you’d only had a proper meal once a week for a month!” Kazuma shot back. He may be exaggerating a little, but it felt that way sometimes. And it’s not his fault it had tasted so good .

“Except, Susato-san managed to eat just fine without disturbing the peace.”

“Disturbing the peace?! I wasn’t-”

“He is right, Kazuma-sama,” His brother replied primly, folding his hands in front of him. Lestrade continued to cackle.

“Whatever, don’t we have things to do? We don’t have all day,” Kazuma grumbled as he glared at his companions.

“You’re right, there’s only so much daylight left.” Susato pulled out a notebook and handed Naruhodou a piece of paper. “Here, I made a list ahead of time of all the things we’ll need. When we’re all done, we’ll meet at the eastern town entrance.”

The prince nodded and turned to the pickpocket beside him. “Well, Gina, lead the way.”

The two groups waved each other off and headed to their respective destinations. Kazuma and Susato made their way back to the stables where they had boarded their horses and other less essential supplies. They breathed a sigh of relief when they found that the proprietress hadn’t left yet and all their things were still there.

“Mrs. Morgan!” Susato called out. “Thank goodness, you’re still here.”

The aging woman turned around and yelped in surprise, ”Bloody hell, you two are still alive?! I thought for sure you’d been gobbled up!”

“No, we managed to avoid that particular fate,” Kazuma explained. “But if you thought we were dead, why have you still stuck around?”

“Even though every single one of you quest-takers has ended up dead, it’s common courtesy to wait a few days before sellin’ your things.” She placed a hand on her hip and smirked, “And it gave me an excuse not to leave right away with the rest of them. I’ll take my sweet time packin’ up all my things; I’m gettin’ old and if a dragon eats me, then so be it.”

“Regardless, you still have our gratitude for not getting rid of our things yet.”

“Like I said, no trouble at all.”

Susato stepped forward and handed the woman a pouch of money. “Here’s the second half of our payment. We’d like to be ready to leave as soon as possible.”

Morgan took the pouch and tossed it back forth before eyeing them suspiciously. “Now hang on, you two head down to the castle and suddenly the vines are gone and there’s a dragon runnin’ amok. Care to explain that?”

Kazuma’s mind ran blank, but thankfully Susato was quick to respond, “I assure you, we had nothing to do with this. When we first arrived at the castle, it was the middle of the night and we didn’t want to risk entering at such a late hour. The next night, we had barely set foot on the grounds before we saw the dragon suddenly start flying. We know as much as you do about what happened.”

He felt like he should be more concerned about how easily his brother was able to lie, but, at the moment, it was exactly what they needed.

Unfortunately, Morgan didn’t seem fully convinced. She crossed her arms and replied, “And what of those arms of his? Looks like a pretty serious injury for folks who didn’t do nothin’.”

He smiled slightly and innocently responded, “In our haste to escape from the sudden appearance of the beast, Kazuma-sama tripped on a rock and fell down a slope.”

Kazuma choked and started to flush in embarrassment for the second time that day; Susato was going to pay for that later. But as much as he wanted to object, the lie had worked. Morgan doubled over in laughter and managed to choke out, “Oh, not gonna let him keep his pride, huh? You shoulda just told me the dragon did it!”

“It’s always best to stay truthful, no?”

“Alright, I get you. Give me a moment to get your things in order.”

The two siblings watched as Morgan expertly saddled up their horses and made sure their packs were securely tied, even taking the extra bags they were holding and arranging them all on the horses’ backs.

“One more thing,” Kazuma asked, “Do you happen to have an extra horse you’d be willing to sell us?”

“Unfortunately, no, the only ones I had to give away were already bought out by other townsfolk. But what you need another horse for?”

“We… met someone on our way back here and they invited themselves to join us.”

“Her name is Gina. Do you know her?” Susato added.

Morgan’s eyes widened and she blurted, “You’re bringin’ that little brat with you?! I’m surprised she was willin’ to put herself in a group, but, I suppose with everyone leavin’...” She looked up with some regret in her eyes. “You watch out for her, would ya? She’s had a rough life.”

Susato took hold of both of the reins from Morgan and spoke, “We will. And thank you again, Mrs. Morgan, and good luck. I hope you’ll do well in whatever new life you find.”

“Aw, don’t worry about me, lad. My wife does enough of that already.”

“Then tell her good luck from us, as well.”

They said their farewells and made their way over to the eastern entrance. They ended up waiting about twenty minutes before they heard Naruhodou’s voice call out, “Susato-san! Asougi!” They turned and were surprised to see both of their companions’ arms laden with goods. Lestrade was even sporting a new outfit; she had traded her ill-fitting rags for a sensible white shirt with the top few buttons open and a fancy pair of riding pants and boots, topped with a dark green coat whose collar had been turned up. She still had the same hat with the red ribbon, however.

“Sorry, I hope you weren’t waiting long?” Naruhodou said as he started to unload his burden.

Kazuma shook his head. “It’s fine, we already expected to be done first, but I didn’t expect you two to come back with so much…”

“Ol’ Coop nearly left ‘is whole store be’ind. It’d be a crime not to accept that loony old codger’s charity.”

“If there was so much left, are you completely certain he already left town?”

“Place was boarded up, same as the rest. And, besides, wot’s wrong wiv takin’ a little more than we need? If I’m gonna meet the king, I think I should get to ‘ave some new clothes.”

“Yes, they’re quite lovely…” Susato piped up in a strange, dreamy tone. Kazuma turned to look and saw his brother’s cheeks were dusted with pink and he was staring right at Lestrade.

Oh?

He had wondered why Susato had been so quiet at the other two’s approach, but here seemed to be his answer. And he just got the perfect ammunition.

“Oh, are they, Susato-kun? What exac-” He was cut off by his brother reaching out and performing a Susato Takedown on him. The impact knocked the wind out of him, but he somehow managed not to damage his arm further.

“You should be more careful, Kazuma-sama. You seem to be getting clumsy.”

He heard snickering and opened his eyes to see Lestrade openly laughing while Naruhodou was failing to suppress a smile. He groaned and slowly picked himself up off the ground. “Can we just finish putting things away, so we can fucking leave already?”

This, unfortunately, incited more laughter, but, thankfully, they did start putting things away with more seriousness. While they were doing so, Lestrade asked, “Why’d you want all this stuff anyway?”

“Well, a lot of it is for you, Gina. You wouldn’t want to sleep without a proper tent, would you?” Susato replied as he adjusted the straps on one of the packs.

It took a moment before she finally answered, “I don’t need all this. I’ve slept wivout a roof over me ‘ead plenty o’ times.”

“But that’s horrible!”

“Doesn’t bother me anymore. I’ve ‘ad to deal wiv it me whole life.”

Susato leaned in towards her and declared, “Well, we won’t let you have to deal with that anymore!”

This time it was Lestrade’s turn to start turning pink.

Kazuma decided to let them have their moment (and not risk another takedown) and turned to the prince. “Are you ready to learn how to ride, Naruhodou?”

The prince’s already pale face drained even more and he slumped forward. “I don’t exactly have a choice, do I…?”

He laughed, “Nope!” Then in a more gentle manner, he placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Now the first thing you need to do is relax . The horses can tell when you’re nervous.”

The prince’s eyes started up their now-familiar wandering. ”They can?!”

On second thought, he probably shouldn’t have told him that. “Just take a deep breath, Naruhodou.”

He did and then slapped both of his cheeks with his hands before replying with a little more confidence, “Okay. I’m ready.”

Kazuma walked over to his horse, grabbed its reins, and beckoned Naruhodou to follow him. “First thing, when you put your foot in the stirrup, don’t stick it in all the way. Settle on just the ball of your foot.”

Naruhodou grabbed hold of the horn of the saddle with one hand and positioned his foot as instructed. He looked over and waited for Kazuma to continue. “Okay, now stand up and swing your leg over, and don’t sit down too hard.”

The prince stood up and looked like he was about to panic for a moment before he took a deep breath and moved his other leg up and over the horse, gently sitting down as he did so. He sat tense in the saddle and stuttered, “What now?”

“Make sure your other foot is in the stirrup and here,” he handed the reins to Naruhodou, “Don’t hold them too tight. Keep them loose.”

He looked utterly terrified as he took the reins, but at least he kept them slack like he was supposed to. Kazuma grabbed a box that had been discarded nearby and used it to give him the height he needed to climb behind Naruhodou. It was difficult to balance when his right arm was bound in a sling, but he managed anyway. It was a tight fit between Naruhodou and the extra packs on the back; he had to practically press right up against the prince’s back, but nevertheless, he still fit. 

He leaned back and looked up to see Naruhodou had gone ramrod straight and looked like he was wound tighter than a spring. He placed his hand on the prince’s thigh and tilted to the side to get a better look at his face. “This is going to be a lot harder for you if you don’t relax.” Naruhodou’s whole face had gone red.

He darted his eyes around and muttered under his breath, “But, you’re right there .”

Kazuma retorted, “Yeah, I’m right here to teach you, so calm down, or I’ll use Karuma to make you.”

“Yes, threatening me is really reassuring, thanks.” Naruhodou turned his head slightly to side-eye him and Kazuma was struck by how close he was to his face. He noticed the prince’s dark eyes had flecks of amber in them.

Godsdammit they were pretty.

He cleared his throat and leaned back to nod at Susato and Lestrade, who were seated firmly on their horse and looking suspiciously smug. Susato took the cue, however, and urged his horse forward.

“Alright, Naruhodou, squeeze your legs together slightly to get going.” He complied and the horse started to walk forward slowly, following Susato’s. Naruhodou looked down at the ground nervously as they continued forward and Kazuma reached over to push his chin up toward the road. “ Don’t look down. Look forward, straight between the ears.”

“Okay… Can you… take your hand off my face now please?”

Kazuma snatched his hand away and mumbled, “Sorry…”

As they continued forward, Kazuma had to occasionally reach forward and guide Naruhodou’s hands to keep them from veering off course. Eventually, though, they were able to settle into a more relaxed rhythm, and the four of them set off as their journey truly began.

Chapter Text

This journey was going excruciatingly slow.

It’s not that it was boring. Monotonous, sure, but never boring, not with Naruhodou and Susato’s penchant for rambling about whatever caught their fancy; even if with the both of them, there were several times the conversation fell into a discussion of complicated magical theory that Kazuma could barely wrap his head around. Naruhodou also liked to sing quiet songs to himself during lulls in conversation.

No, the company wasn’t the problem. It was the time .

Having their travel time restricted to the day was annoying, but at least Kazuma had been prepared to deal with that and it wouldn’t end up wasting too much time. But what he wasn’t ready for was the constant fucking breaks they had to take for their horses. Because they had ended up traveling with more people and supplies than they originally planned for, the horses were overloaded and if they didn’t want to overwork them, they had to stop more often.

They were a few days out from Precipice now, but it felt like they had barely made any progress.

“How far away is the next town?” Kazuma asked as he let his horse drink from the shallow river that followed the road they were on.

Susato pulled out the map and studied it for a moment. “The closest settlement on the map is a town called Verdance. At the pace we’re going, though, I believe it will be at least a week and a half before we arrive.”

He groaned, “You’ve gotta be kidding me. We’re never going to fucking get there.”

“Well, there’s likely someplace unmarked on the map that we might be able to get another horse before we get to Verdance.”

“But that’s not a guarantee.”

“Look on the bright side, Asougi,” Naruhodou piped up, “At least we get to enjoy the scenery.”

Kazuma looked over and noticed that he and Lestrade had taken off their shoes and outer layers and were currently playing around in the river. “Good to know you’re having fun, Naruhodou, but I don’t care about the scenery.”

“Oh, take the stick out o’ your arse, ‘Soggy. It ain’t like we’re on a deadline,” Lestrade retorted as she inspected a rock she had picked up from the riverbed.

“Except, in a way, we are. The more time passes, the more people that are going to hear about what happened at the castle, and the more dangerous it will be if anyone finds out about Naruhodou before we’ve broken his curse.”

“Kazuma-sama, I know you’re worried.” Susato came over to rest his hand on his shoulder. “But, we can’t force ourselves to go any faster than this without another horse.”

He sighed, “Alright, but I still think playing in the river is a little unnecessary.”

Lestrade stuck her tongue out at him and then jumped forward, splashing water directly in his face.

He coughed and sputtered from the sudden wetness, “WHY YOU-!” He dashed forward and kicked a wave of water right up into her face, but she jumped out of the way before it could hit her. They went back and forth like this for a couple of minutes, eventually grinning from ear to ear and not caring as their clothes got wetter and wetter when suddenly a great spout of water shot out and completely soaked the two of them from head to foot. He looked up at the sound of laughter and saw that Naruhodou had enlisted the magical capabilities of Susato and he sat grinning on top of a large serpent made of water.

“You’re gonna pay for that!”

He ran toward the prince, but Susato called out, “If you can catch him!” and he sent the serpent spinning circles around Kazuma.

He watched its movements and at just the right time, he reached out and grabbed Naruhodou’s arm, pulling him off of the serpent and down into the water. The prince sat up on his elbows, spit water out of his mouth, and frowned before breaking out into a fit of giggles. Kazuma splashed himself down next to him and couldn't help but start laughing too. Pretty soon, all four of them were laughing their heads off and, with the exception of Susato, were sitting drenched in the river.

Kazuma couldn’t remember the last time he had this much fun, getting to just act like a carefree child for once. It was nice.

But, unfortunately, he couldn’t let it last, not when they had so much hanging over their heads.

He got up and attempted to squeeze the water out of his clothes a little before declaring, “Okay, that’s enough. We need to get going again.” Kazuma glanced down and saw that both Naruhodou and Lestrade looked disappointed, but they got up anyway. He felt a little guilty about it, but they had to keep going.

They all dragged themselves out of the river and Susato addressed Lestrade first, “Here, let me dry your clothes for you.”

Kazuma stood by Naruhodou and waited for his brother to finish casting the simple spell needed to dry her clothes. Now that they were finally out of the river, he could notice how the prince’s thin undershirt clung to his skin, easily showing off the curves of his body. His arms were toned and well-muscled from his skills with archery, but his stomach stuck out in a soft curve, likely from all the delicious all-you-can-eat meals he’d been having for the past sixty years. Kazuma longed to reach out and feel the contrasting hardness and softness of Naruhodou’s arms and stomach with his own hands.

“Asougi?” Kazuma snapped his eyes up to the prince’s face. “What are you looking at?”

“Uhhh…” Despite the mounting mortification at being caught ogling his friend’s thick body, his brain refused to work and he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Naruhodou’s. All he could think about was the way the water droplets dusting his eyelashes sparkled in the sunlight and reflected the amber specks of his irises.

“Oi, ‘Soggy! It’s your turn!”

Thank the gods for Gina Lestrade .

Kazuma practically sprinted away towards Susato, nearly bowling Lestrade over in the process. “Watch it!” she yelled at him, but he didn’t slow down one bit.

“You don’t need to run, Kazuma-sama,” Susato scolded.

“Shut up, Susato-kun.”

As soon as he was done drying his clothes, Kazuma marched over to their horses and made sure they were ready to get back on the road. Once everyone was dry and they were ready to leave again, they heard a shout coming from the road, “Stop right there!”

He looked up to see three strange-looking men standing at the top of the slight incline, doing some kind of odd pose and dance where they turned their backs to them and announced, “We’re the Three Skulkin Bruvvers! Sulky! Nash! And Ringo!” As each of them said their names, they turned their heads around to look back at the group. “And you better ‘and over the gold, if ya wanna grow old!”

Naruhodou snickered beside him.

“What are you laughing about? They’re trying to rob us.” Kazuma didn’t know what was more amusing: how ridiculous these three brothers were or the fact that Naruhodou was as equally unimpressed with them as he was.

“I just thought it was a clever rhyme.”

“We ain’t rhymin’, we’re robbin’!” The one called Ringo yelled out.

“If you’ll excuse us, gentlemen, we need to get going, so I’d appreciate it if you left us alone.” Susato bowed and attempted to deploy some courteous diplomacy.

Unfortunately, it seemed these brothers weren’t interested in a peaceful resolution. “Now ‘ang on, you ain’t goin’ nowhere ‘til we see some loot!” The one called Sulky growled out.

“No,” Kazuma replied bluntly. They had wasted enough time, and he wasn’t about to keep entertaining this nonsense.

Sulky pulled out a knife and brandished it in the air. “This ain’t a choice, guvnor.”

“Oh, watch out! You’ve made Big Bruv Sulky mad!” “Ya don’t wanna mess wiv ‘im, ‘e ain’t shy ‘bout slicin’!” The other two added, pulling more ridiculous poses as they supported their brother.

“Neither are we. If you-” Kazuma cut off as Sulky threw the knife at him, and he would have lost an eye if Naruhodou hadn’t grabbed an arrow and blocked the knife as it was inches away from his face. The knife clattered to the ground and the arrow seemed to be undamaged despite taking such a hit.

“Cor blimey, tha’s cheatin’! ‘Ow’d ya move so fast?!” Nash blurted out as his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

Susato cleared his throat, “If you continue to accost us, we will be forced to defend ourselves.” He punctuated his statement by muttering a quick spell that caused his hands to glow briefly and settling into a fighting stance.

The three brothers glanced back and forth between the magic, the bow that Naruhodou pulled out, and Lestrade’s own knives before babbling, “No need for that, guv, we’ll be on our way.” With that, the Skulkins turned tail and ran back wherever they had come from.

"Ya know, 'Oddo," Lestrade spoke up as she put her knives away, "'Ow do ya move so quick?"

"Huh? I don't know, I just… do." He shrugged. "I'm not that fast, am I?"

"No, your speed is definitely a little unnatural at times," Kazuma pointed out.

"Oh…"

"For now, I don't think you should worry about it. It's not as if it's causing problems."

Naruhodou didn't seem all that reassured, but he didn't say anything else as they got back on their horses and continued, even as clouds gathered and a light rainfall began.

They were back on the road a while before Kazuma remembered what he wanted to ask. He reached around and grabbed one of Naruhodou's arrows out of its quiver. When he inspected it, he found it was slightly heavier than normal, and the whole thing had a strange sheen to it. "What are these made of?"

"What do you mean?" Naruhodou turned his head to look behind him, but Kazuma turned it back to face the road.

"You stopped a knife with this and it was completely fine. A normal arrow would break, or at least crack."

“Is that not a normal arrow…? Are they not usually made of metal?”

“Metal?! Why are your arrows made of metal?” Kazuma waved the offending object around. “And how is it so light?”

“I don’t know! They’re just what the castle gave me and the ones I’ve always used.” Naruhodou’s voice filled with annoyance, “What does it matter anyway?”

“A fully metal arrow should be too heavy to fly properly.” He shook his head. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“Have you considered not worrying about it? It’s not like it’s causing problems.”

Kazuma stared in shock at the back of his head as he registered that Naruhodou had thrown his own words back at him from before. A pang of guilt ran through him as he realized he shouldn’t have brushed off something that the prince had clearly been bothered about.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s just an arrow,” The prince responded bitterly as his fists clenched around the reins in his hands.

“No, for earlier, I shouldn’t have belittled your concern like that.” He sighed, “It’s yet another thing about you that doesn’t make sense, but that’s no excuse to ignore your feelings about it.”

“Thank you… and, trust me, I wish I could make sense of my own damn self as much as you do.”

Kazuma smiled. “I’m sure we can help you figure it out eventually.”

Naruhodou laughed, “Well, I’m glad I’m giving everyone a nice, intellectually stimulating mystery to solve.” 

He knew he was joking, but he still responded, “You’re a person, not a mystery, Naruhodou.”

The prince turned his head around to give Kazuma a soft smile before turning back to the road and saying nothing else.

The skies above cleared and the drizzling rain finally stopped.

A few days later, Kazuma was at the reins now that Susato had finally deemed his arm healed enough to remove it from its sling, something which Naruhodou made no attempt to hide his relief of. Lestrade was showing the prince some sleight-of-hand tricks with a coin when Kazuma noticed some buildings in the distance. He pointed them out to the group and urged his horse forward at a faster pace, which caused Naruhodou to fling his arms around his waist and cling to him, burying his face in his back; Kazuma did his best to ignore the feeling of spiky hair tickling the back of his neck. Beside him, Lestrade mirrored Naruhodou’s movements as she kept one hand on her hat and the other desperately gripping Susato’s waist as she bounced in her seat.

Soon enough, though, they reached the threshold of a small village. As they entered the outskirts, they passed by a small house and Susato called out to the man tending the garden outside, “Excuse me, sir, but is there a place around here where we can rest our horses?”

The man looked up from his task and smiled amicably. “Ah, more travelers running from the dragon, eh? You’ll find a farm in the eastern part of the village; just ask for Sam and he’ll help you out.”

“If you know about the dragon, why do you seem so calm?” Kazuma asked. He inwardly sighed as it seemed to be too late for them to outrun the spread of this news.

The man shrugged. “I don’t have the money to uproot myself, and I’ve lived here my whole life. I don’t want to leave.”

He acted nonchalant, but Kazuma could see the sad resignation in his eyes. He wished he could reassure him that he was never in any danger of a dragon eating him. Instead, he bid him thanks, and the group continued further into the village, searching for the farm that had been mentioned. 

Eventually, they found the farm and a farmhand directed them to the stable where they found the man named Sam. Upon greeting them, the man whistled low and proclaimed, “That’s a mighty hefty burden you’ve got on those horses. Sure you need all that stuff?”

“We have a long journey ahead of us,” Susato explained, “And, we were unable to find another horse when we left.”

“If that’s the case, why not just join a caravan? You wouldn’t have to worry about weight, and it’d be safer.”

“We… prefer to travel by ourselves, but if you could help us get another horse, we would greatly appreciate it.”

Sam sucked on his teeth before responding, “I could part with one for a good price. How’s about… forty gold pieces.”

Kazuma crossed his arms and glared at the man. “That’s a rather steep price, isn’t it?” That would take up nearly all of their remaining funds, and he would rather not be left penniless.

“I’m already taking care of your horses for free, and I still got expenses to pay, even if a dragon’s wandering about now.”

“That’s cobblers if ya ask me!” Lestrade exploded, marching forward and throwing her hands down in front of her. “You’s pilferin’ us wiv that price! Make it twenty-five or I’ll steal the diff’rence off ya anyway.” She punctuated her statement by flipping a coin that she had likely taken from the man’s pocket.

“Alright, I’ll give it to you for thirty, but you stay away from my pockets, you little thief!”

She huffed at him, but backed off and let Susato handle the transaction. Once they had everything situated, Naruhodou asked, “Is there a place you would recommend for us to get some food?”

“The tavern in the main square serves some mean chicken, and Miss Ayaka really knows how to make a dumpling.”

Kazuma did his best not to make a face at the mention of chicken, but judging by the look Susato gave him, he hadn’t succeeded. Naruhodou thanked the man for the recommendation and the four of them headed to the center of the village. On their way, Kazuma noticed that every person they passed seemed to be haunted by an aura of doom; people were friendly, but he could clearly see that everyone was terrified of what fate awaited them.

Was this how people lived their entire lives when the dragons still ruled?

He didn’t let these thoughts linger as they made it to the main square and saw a large building with a sign hanging over the door that read ‘The Hen’s Blessing’. As he stepped through the door, he found the place was packed with people. Almost every table and chair was occupied as both local residents and weary travelers mingled and ate together.

The four of them managed to squeeze into a small table hidden in the corner that may have been peaceful if it weren’t for the man nearby loudly regaling a group of enraptured villagers with a tale of how he managed to escape the dragon.

“The beast was the ugliest thing I’d ever seen, but it was massive, three times the size of this buildin’! And its teeth and claws were twice as big as I am! It could tear ya to ribbons in a second or eat ya whole if it liked!” He snapped his fingers and the people listening jumped back in alarm. “It looked at me with nothin’ but evil and hunger in those beady, black eyes. I tell ya I woulda been a goner if I hadn’t outsmarted it!”

“You outsmarted a dragon?! How?!” One of the audience members cried out.

“Aw, outsmartin’ a dragon ain’t hard, they’re stupid things, I tell ya! I only had to throw a rock behind it and it forgot I was even there! It even watched me throw it! But you wanna know what I think?”

“What? Tell us!”

“I think it’d be real easy if we all got together and hunted this beast down. Tie it up and carve its heart out just like King Vortex did!”

The entire time they had to listen to this man’s story full of lies, Naruhodou drew in on himself, face paling as he clutched his own arms, eventually outwardly flinching at the man’s last point about cutting out his heart. Kazuma grabbed hold of Karuma and prepared to teach this man a lesson when Lestrade snapped, “Oi! Shut up already! Your story’s full of shite and so are you!”

“And who’re you to tell me I’m lyin’?” The man sneered, “Hang on, ain’t you that sneaky lil’ diver that used to hang around the markets in Precipice? You gonna call me a liar when I bet you’ve never said a true word in your life?”

“That’s enough.” Kazuma and Susato both stood up at the same time and stared the man down with every ounce of righteous fury in their bones.

The man started to laugh at them but choked on it as Kazuma unsheathed Karuma and sliced the mug of beer in his hands to bits while Susato cast a small spell that sent the man’s bowl of soup flying up directly into his face.

“How- How dare you!”

“Shut. Up,” Kazuma growled as he pointed his blade at the man’s throat.

His brother turned to address the audience, “No one has had any contact with that dragon as no one was near the castle when it appeared. Anyone that tells you otherwise is lying.” 

The villagers all glared at the man who turned and fled the tavern dripping in spilled alcohol and warm soup, completely humiliated.

As they sat back down, finally having earned some peace, Kazuma turned to the prince and asked, “Are you alright, Naruhodou?”

“You didn’t have to do that, you know…”

“Like ‘ell I was gonna let ‘im keep talkin’ about you like that!” Lestrade leaned over and poked his forehead.

“Yes, we could clearly see that his story was upsetting you, Naruhodou-sama. And it was unacceptable the way he spoke to you, Gina.” Susato looked between the both of them, clenching his fists in front of him.

Naruhodou only smiled weakly while Lestrade pulled her hat over her eyes. “I can fight me own battles.”

Kazuma rested his arm on the table and brought two fingers to his forehead, “That may be so, but of course, we’re not going to let anyone badmouth you. I’d say you have more truth to you in your little finger than that man had in his whole body.”

“Aw, don’t tell me, you’re gettin’ soft on me, ‘Soggy?”

He grimaced but didn’t answer. While he had only known her for a week, it had been surprisingly easy to take a liking to her, even with her prickly manner. She was blunt and sharp and he appreciated how she didn’t take shit from anyone. Any snide comment directed at her was easily pushed back.

"No need to say nuffin, I know I'm real charmin'."

"While there may be some who might agree with that." He directed a sideways glance to Susato, who reddened slightly, before continuing, "I wouldn't say your street urchin charm is universally appreciated.”

“Don’t listen to him, Gina, it’s easy to see your charm!” Susato clapped his hands and turned to the prince. “Don’t you agree, Naruhodou-sama?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s easy…” Naruhodou muttered under his breath, but at the dangerous glare from Susato, he quickly amended, “Er, yes, I think you’re quite charming!”

Lestrade leaned back smugly in her chair. “Looks like you’re the odd one out, ‘Soggy.”

He was saved from responding by one of the servers finally coming over to ask what they wanted. While everyone else ordered some chicken and dumplings, as was recommended, Kazuma settled on some vegetable soup. When the food finally arrived, it was brought by a different person than the one who took their order. Normally, he wouldn’t have really noticed this, but the new server was a young woman wearing a ridiculous hat with a comically large brim that hid the top half of her face from view. She was limping slightly as she delivered the food.

Naruhodou was the first to start digging in, and Kazuma ignored the loud sniff as the prince took a whiff of his chicken. He was about to take a spoonful of his soup when Naruhodou smacked Lestrade’s fork out of her hand and fiercely spoke, “Wait! Don’t eat that!”

“Oi! Wot was that for?! Let me eat some real food!”

“No, it… It doesn’t smell right…”

Susato put his utensils down. “Do you think there’s something wrong with it?”

“Maybe… You can check if something is poisoned with magic, right?”

He nodded and pulled out his spellbook and a piece of chalk. The rest of the group watched in silence as he performed the short ritual and the food on his plate started to glow a sickly green.

“I s’pose that means it’s gone bad?” Lestrade asked quietly. Susato nodded and she quickly pushed her plate away from her. Susato then tested everyone else’s plates and found each one gave off that same eerie glow.

“Do you think it’s the same person who tried to kill us when we first left the castle?” Naruhodou’s voice was quiet and tense.

“Naruhodou…” Kazuma began as an unsettling thought registered in his mind, “Do you know exactly where your arrow landed then, or were they too far away for you to see properly?”

“Um, it was the right leg, I believe.”

Kazuma slammed his fist down on the table and shouted, “DAMN IT!” He frantically looked around the tavern and eyed the door to what he assumed was the kitchen. He ignored his companion’s startled calls as he vaulted over tables and chairs full of people to get to the kitchen as fast as he could. As he burst in, he ignored the employees’ shouts of alarm and demanded, “Where is that woman with the big hat and the limp?!”

“What do you want with Miss Brett? Surely she hasn’t done something wrong?” One of the cooks asked, eyeing him distastefully.

“Done something wrong? She tried to kill us! Where is she?!”

“Kill you? Surely not! She’s only been here a few days, but I don’t think she’d try to kill anyone!”

He scoffed, “How can you say that if you’ve only known her a few days?” He laid a hand on Karuma’s hilt and leaned in, “ Someone poisoned our food, so unless you’d like to meet the blade of the Asougi clan, I suggest you tell me where she is .”

“Kazuma-sama!” Susato’s voice rang out behind him and he turned to see the rest of his companions had followed him into the kitchen. “What are you doing?”

“That woman who served us, she was limping on her right leg .”

“Oh!”

“Um, why does that matter?” The cook asked nervously, darting wide-eyed glances to Karuma.

“A week ago, we were attacked on the road and when we struck back, this person was injured in their leg. It’s no coincidence that a woman with a limp shows up at the same time we almost get poisoned,” Kazuma explained.

“Well, in that case… Miss Brett said she was heading to her room. It’s the first door on the left upstairs.”

He relaxed his grip on his katana and nodded. “Thank you.”

The four of them rushed upstairs and Kazuma wasted no time kicking down the door of the bedroom. Unfortunately, it seemed they were too late; things were scattered around as if someone left in a hurry, and the window was wide open. When he poked his head out the window and looked around, he saw no sign of the woman that tried to kill them. He ran a hand through his hair and growled in frustration.

“It’s alright, Asougi. I’m sure we’ll find her eventually.” Naruhodou reached out to reassure him.

“And what if you don’t notice next time and she actually ends up killing one of us?! It’s not alright ! None of us are safe as long as she’s still out there!”

He hated this. He hated feeling helpless. For the second time, he failed to notice the people around him were in danger and he failed to protect them. Instead, the one he was supposed to be protecting was the one who was protecting him.

“Worryin’ about it’s only gonna make ya too tired to notice when it does ‘appen.” Lestrade shook her head at him.

“Gina’s right,” Susato added. “While I understand your desire to do something, and we do need to keep an eye out, we can’t focus on it too much as there’s not much we can do about it. The only thing we can do is stay alert and careful.”

He still wanted to scream in frustration, but he could only sigh, “Alright, but we should at least look around here first before we go back downstairs.”

A quick search of the room turned up nothing except a small scrap of paper with the words ‘deal with it or face the consequences’ written on it in a formal hand.

Well, that was… alarming.

“I suppose this confirms there’s someone else behind these attempts?” Naruhodou pointed out as he read the words over Kazuma’s shoulder. “Though, we probably could have already guessed that since this Brett woman doesn’t look like someone who’s been hunting down adventurers for sixty years.” 

Kazuma crumpled the piece of paper in his hand and gritted his teeth. “Just one more thing to add to the pile of worries we’re apparently not allowed to worry about.” He sighed, “Let’s just go back and find something to eat that’s not going to kill us.”

He pocketed the paper and tried to tamp down his concerns as they returned downstairs and got some clean food to eat.

Chapter Text

Luckily for Kazuma, at least some of his frustrations were alleviated by the addition of another horse, finally allowing them to pick up the pace of their journey. Naruhodou was terrified of riding by himself and Lestrade outright refused to take the reins, so the third horse was linked to Susato’s and carried the majority of their supplies. They continued in this manner for a little less than a week before they arrived at another town.

As they approached, Kazuma could see a large arch made of numerous colorful flowers marking the main road into town. Susato piped up beside him, “This must be Verdance! I read that they hold a week-long flower festival every year during the blooming season to celebrate the beauty of nature. They even hire witches to grow flowers that don’t normally grow in this time and climate so there’s always a wide variety of flowers to view. Oh, how exciting that it seems we’ll be able to see it!”

“A festival, huh? Do you think they’ll be serving all kinds of flower-related foods?” Naruhodou’s excited voice echoed behind him.

“Thinking with your stomach first, Naruhodou?”

“What? If Susato-san is right about this being a special event, then I bet all the chefs in town probably work hard to make delicious, specialty foods! I wonder if they’ll have sakura cakes…”

Kazuma could only let out a short laugh and shake his head at his friend’s dreamy food ramblings while Susato responded, “To answer your question, Naruhodou-sama, they change the menu around a little every year for variety, so I couldn’t say if they’ll have sakura cakes or not.”

“Wot kind o’ stuff do they do ‘ere?” At Lestrade’s question, Susato launched into a whole spiel about the traditions of the flower festival and what they were likely to find there.

She was wrapping up a speech about makeshift greenhouses as they passed through the arch and a woman called out to them, “Hello there! If you’re looking for someplace to stay, the inn at the second right turn on the main road still has some space available.” The woman had the same tired look in her eyes everyone in the last village had, but her smile was much more genuine.

“We’re not looking to stay the night, but we do need a place to stable our horses while we check out the festival,” Kazuma explained. 

“Sunny’s will do just fine with that; it’s in the same place. Enjoy the festival!” She waved them off and they set off in the direction she indicated.

“She was real chipper, eh?” Lestrade said as they got out of earshot.

“It seems even the threat of a dragon isn’t enough to dampen the excitement of such an obviously looked-forward-to event,” Kazuma replied as he gestured around at the colorful decorations and flowers accenting the streets and buildings.

It really was elaborate, what these people had put together despite the threat looming over their heads. Garlands of flowers in every color of the rainbow had been strung across the buildings, forming a colorful canopy above their heads. Soft petals and leaves had been scattered across the stone road, muffling the sounds of foot traffic, leaving only the excited chattering of locals and tourists to fill their ears. Signs decorated with whole flowers pointed the way to various amenities in the town even as people would occasionally shout at them to ‘try the dandelion wine!’ or ‘don’t forget to visit the greenhouses!’

And the smell .

Gods, it smelled heavenly here. Kazuma expected it to be overpowering with this many blooms around, but the sweetness in the air only made his head feel more clear as it brought to mind fond memories of watching the cherry trees blossom with his parents. He could practically taste the sakura manju he used to eat as he breathed in the sweet scent of flowers.

After they made their way to the aforementioned Sunny’s and took care of their horses, Kazuma was honestly at a loss as to what to do next. There was so much they could do and it was clear from the looks in his companions’ eyes that they wanted to see everything this town had to offer. After some debate, they decided to see the greenhouses that Susato was so excited about and try some of the local fares after they were done with that. 

The greenhouses were exactly as breathtaking as Susato hoped they would be. Kazuma was awestruck by all the different kinds of flowers he saw; he had no idea they could be so diverse. From exotic, tropical flowers to the most mundane of daisies, the greenhouses had all of these mixed together in the same plots and rooms, forming a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of shapes and colors and smells. He and Susato were eyeing some delicate, white snowdrop flowers positioned next to some vibrant violets when he realized they had lost track of Naruhodou and Lestrade.

They were easily found though, as he heard Lestrade’s voice call out, “This one kinda reminds me o’ you, ‘Oddo.”

“...In what way? It just looks like a bird to me.”

“Nah, see, it’s all spiky like your ‘air.”

Kazuma turned the corner to see Lestrade pointing at some indeed spiky-looking tropical flowers while Naruhodou was running a hand through his equally spiky hair. “I don’t think it’s that spiky…”

“No, I’d say Lestrade is completely correct in her comparison. One can hardly tell the difference,” Kazuma responded as he strolled over with a smirk.

“The resemblance is quite uncanny,” Susato added as she covered her smile with a dainty hand.

Naruhodou slumped over in defeat even as he mumbled, “But it actually is a bird.” At that, Kazuma finally noticed the small plaque in front of the plant proclaiming it to be a bird-of-paradise flower.

“Can we go see something else now?” The prince pouted, “There’s plenty else to do besides ganging up on me.”

Kazuma laughed, “Well, I did see signs for something called the ‘Tusspells’ Flower Museum’. Would that please you, Your Spiky Highness ?”

The withering glare he received in response only made Kazuma grin even more.

The museum turned out to be yet another greenhouse full of blooms, but instead of neatly maintained plots were detailed sculptures made of hollow bases stuffed with flowers and leaves in carefully matched palettes to form a recognizable figure. The statues ranged from large animals in frozen motion to still-lifes of people doing mundane tasks like sewing or dancing to grand scenes of epic tales; Susato quickly pointed out a figure that was labeled to be Herlock Sholmes investigating something on the ground with a magnifying glass. Kazuma didn’t think he looked all that impressive.

At the center of the museum was a large stage, whose contents were hidden from view by a circular curtain hanging from the ceiling. There was a line trailing out the entrance, and the chatter of festival-goers was much louder inside; this must be the main exhibit of the flower-sculptor and judging by the audible gasps coming from behind the curtain, it must be quite a sight. 

It took about ten minutes to finally get inside the stage (during which concluded a pointless argument about what materials the frames of the sculptures were made of) and as they entered, Kazuma’s breath was taken away. What lay in front of him was an enormous scene depicting the late King Vortex plunging a sword down into the chest of a dragon caught in the action of swiping at the king with its huge claws; the king’s face was a mask of anger and determination while the dragon’s was twisted into a ferocious snarl. Behind these central figures was another pair that depicted a much smaller dragon clutching a screaming child in its talons; the child’s face was… vague, however, as if the artist was unsure what he should look like, unlike the clear details of the other figures.

Kazuma was so lost in the grandeur and intricacy of the sculptures that he failed to notice the storm gathering outside until a bolt of lightning struck the roof of the greenhouse and shattered glass started to rain down on them. The screams and shouts of the crowd around him faded into the background when he noticed Naruhodou had fallen to the floor, clutching his head. It didn’t look like any of the glass had hurt him, but something was clearly wrong. Kazuma quickly knelt down and rested a hand on the prince’s shaking back and spoke gently, “Naruhodou, hey, look at me. Are you okay?” 

His entreaties seemed to fall on deaf ears as Naruhodou continued to tremble and stare vacantly at the ground while tears pooled in his eyes.

Susato waved her hand in front of his face, but his gaze stayed unfocused and unseeing. “Oh, dear…”

“Wot’s wrong wiv ‘Oddo?” Lestrade had joined them on the ground, voice filled with concern, “Did all that lightnin’ scare ‘im?”

“I don’t know…” 

He reached out to shake Naruhodou a little to try to get his attention again, but the prince suddenly whispered in a voice so quiet that Kazuma almost hadn’t heard it, “Father…”

Kazuma froze. Was this sculpture bringing back Naruhodou’s memories?

He reached out and pried one of Naruhodou’s hands away from his head and squeezed it. This finally got his attention and he snapped back to reality and mumbled, “Huh? Where…?”

“Naruhodou, are you alright? Did you remember something?”

“I…” His face scrunched up in frustration and confusion. “There was… something, but I lost it…”

“You said ‘Father’, were you remembering King Vortex?” Susato asked gently.

“Maybe…?” He grimaced and pulled his arms tight around himself. “I think I would like to leave now…”

“Yes, let’s get something to eat, shall we?”

Naruhodou weakly nodded his head at her and gave a small smile. Kazuma helped him to his feet and guided him to the exit, keeping a firm, but reassuring grip on his friend’s hand.

Thankfully, the storm didn’t last for long, and the witches in town were able to quickly clean everything up so the festival could continue. So, while Naruhodou and Susato went off to find some desserts, Kazuma and Lestrade set out to find an actual meal. They eventually decided on some tempura-fried flowers of various kinds and zucchini blossoms stuffed with soft cheeses.

Kazuma went to pay for their food, but Lestrade stopped him and waved around some coins. “I got it.”

He raised an eyebrow at that but didn’t address it until they had their food in hand and were waiting for the other two to meet back up with them. “You stole that money, didn’t you?”

She tensed, gripping the bag of food in her hand. “So? Divin’s real easy in crowds like this… You gonna rat me out?”

“If I was going to do that, I would have addressed it while we were getting our food, well within hearing range of the vendor. No, actually, I think it’s a good idea we avoid using as much of our personal funds as possible. And besides, you’re really only taking pocket change.” 

“....” Lestrade was quiet for a long moment before finally speaking, “Ya know, you ain’t ‘alf bad, Kaz.”

“I’m sorry?”

“I fought you was real stuck up, always paradin’ around and never wantin’ to do anyfin’ but keep goin’... And I know ya don’t really want me ‘ere, but ya ‘aven’t run me out yet, so… fanks.”

No, he couldn’t justify making her leave anymore. She had nowhere else to go at this point, and any misgivings he had were completely gone now as it was clear she had started to care about them and would never put Naruhodou in danger.

“...You’re not so bad yourself… Gina. I admit, I misjudged you on our first meeting, but you’re far from some common thief. You’re a valuable member of this group and we would be remiss to lose you, if only for your sharp commentary and quick fingers.”

She pulled her hat over her eyes and scuffed her boot on the ground. “I guess I can see why Sooze and ‘Oddo like ya so much,” she bumped him with her elbow, “Even if I fink you’re still a bit o’ a git.”

Kazuma smiled at her and bumped her back with a bit more force. “Keep that ‘charm’ up and you might find yourself being forced to take more than one watch tonight.”

Gina stuck her tongue out at him and he returned the gesture with a smile.

“You two seem in good spirits.” Kazuma turned at the sound of his sister’s voice and found her and Naruhodou holding more goods than they should have and sporting pink and blue flower crowns, respectively. He wasn’t sure what kinds of flowers they were, but the vibrant blues looked quite lovely paired with the prince’s dark hair and eyes.

“Find what you were looking for?” He looked pointedly at the bundles in their arms and extra accessories.

“Perhaps we got a little carried away…” Susato admitted while Naruhodou sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck.

“Who cares, I’m starvin’. Let’s eat already!”

With Gina’s succinct declaration, the group settled at one of the various tables scattered around for the festival-goers and dug into their food. It seemed Naruhodou was right about extra care being put into the festival food as it was absolutely delicious. While Kazuma wasn’t generally a fan of sweets, the lavender scones and sakura-matcha cake the other two found had him craving more long after he was finished, and the rose milk tea was the perfect blend of sweet and rich to top off the meal.

Kazuma sat back with a sigh of contentment but was alerted by a sudden commotion coming from the direction of the main square and the sound of folksy music starting up. After questioning a group of people nearby, they were informed that a dance was starting up. Since it was still early afternoon and there was plenty of time before sundown, Susato suggested they join and everyone else agreed, with varying levels of interest.

In one corner of the square was a makeshift stage where a small band was playing looking out over the rest of the area which was a blur of color and movement as people danced along either in groups, pairs, or by themselves. From the balconies, spectators were throwing flowers and petals down onto dancers, adding even further to the fanciful scene in front of him.

“It looks and sounds so lovely…” Susato sighed dreamily as she looked at the party before them. She suddenly got a fierce look in her eyes as she said, “Please excuse me for one moment,” before dashing off to the side somewhere.

The remaining three looked at each other bewildered before someone came up to them and called out, “Don’t just stand there! Come join the dance!” Kazuma didn’t even have the time to reply before they grabbed his hand and dragged him down into a group of people dancing in a circle and kicking their legs in time with the music. He wasn’t much of a dancer, but he did his best to follow the movements of the others.

Eventually, the song ended and he was thankfully freed from the group. He looked around him, a little disoriented, searching for his companions; when he finally spotted them at the edge of the square, he trudged back over to them.

“Did you have fun, Asougi?” Naruhodou called out with an amused smile.

“Why don’t I drag you around until your head spins and see how much fun you have?”

“That’s not a very nice way of asking me to dance.”

“Who said anything about dancing?”

“What does that mean?” Naruhodou mumbled under his breath.

Good question. Kazuma didn’t know either. It just kinda… came out.

There was some snickering from Gina before Susato finally came back. “I apologize for running off like that.” She gave a small bow and Kazuma noticed she was holding a delicate pink rosebud in her hands.

“Wotcha got there, Sooze?”

“Ah, this is…” His sister’s face went as pink as the flower she was holding, “This is for you, Gina. Would you let me put it in your hair?”

Now it was Gina whose face turned a matching rosy hue, “Oh, uh, sure.” She then leaned her head down and allowed Susato to tuck the flower into her crown of braids. “‘Ow’s it look?”

“The pink looks lovely with your golden hair!”

“I fink pink’s more your color, but if ya say so.”

Susato nodded before nervously holding out her hand. “Would you like to dance with me?”

Gina went wide-eyed for a moment before taking the offered hand and muttering, “Yeah, why not.”

The two girls ran off hand in hand, and Kazuma watched as they eagerly joined the crowd, whirling and laughing as they danced without a care in the world except for each other.

“I suspect you’ll be seeing more of Gina than you thought you would once this is all over. I don’t think Susato-san will want to let her leave.”

“No, I don’t think I’ve seen my sister quite so obviously smitten with anyone in her life.”

“That’s nice…” Naruhodou sported a strange, almost wistful look on his face, but before Kazuma could ask, the prince continued, “Anyway, you didn’t seem to enjoy dancing all that much, so would you like to find someplace to sit for now? And honestly, I’m craving more of that milk tea…”

Kazuma laughed, “Tell you what, you wait here and I’ll go get us some more.”

He left Naruhodou behind to continue watching the festivities while he went in search of those drinks. It took him longer than he would have liked to finally find the right vendor and when he returned to the square, he found the prince surrounded by a group of people and looking rather uncomfortable.

As he walked over, he saw one of the men tuck a rose behind Naruhodou’s ear while one of the women gushed, “Oh, I love your ears! They’re so cute and pointy!”

Naruhodou flushed and stuttered, “Uh, er, th-thank you…”

“Won’t you join us for a dance?” Another crowed.

“Um, I don’t…” 

Kazuma stormed over and slammed the drinks down harder than necessary on the table nearby and placed one hand on his friend’s shoulder and the other pulling Karuma just slightly out of its sheath as he growled, “Can’t you see he’s not interested .”

“Asougi!”

The group warily eyed his sword, but as they failed to back down he hissed, “That means get lost .”

With that, they ran off and Kazuma sat down, pulling the rose from behind Naruhodou’s ear and tossing it to the ground. “I’m sorry about that. I should have just brought you with me.”

He shook his head. “It’s not your fault; you didn’t know. And besides, I don’t even know why they all were so interested in me.”

Kazuma stated what should have been obvious, “Because you’re beautiful.” 

Red bloomed across the prince’s round cheeks and he squeaked, “Oh!” He quickly looked away and distracted himself with his newly acquired tea.

There was a long pause as the both of them sipped their drinks before Kazuma finally broke it, “Anyway, I’m surprised you just wanted to sit down. I figured you’d at least want to try dancing.”

“I’m not really interested in dancing with strangers, and…” Naruhodou ducked his head and mumbled, “I don’t actually know how to dance…”

“This isn’t some formal ball, it doesn’t matter if you don’t know how to dance. With parties like this, it just matters that you’re having fun.”

“And you’re such an expert on fun?”

“I know how to have fun!”

“Then prove it.” Naruhodou’s eyes gleamed with something dangerous as he smiled, baring those sharp teeth. “Teach me how to dance, Asougi?”

“Only if you show me how you dance on your own first. I still intend to prove my point about it not mattering.”

“Hmm.” He thought for a moment, hand on his chin, before sighing, “Alright, it’s a deal.”

Naruhodou stood up and grabbed Kazuma’s hand, pulling him down to join the whirling crowd. However, the prince quickly deflated once they were in the thick of it; he looked down at his feet and mumbled, “I don’t even know how to begin…”

“Just listen to the music and do what feels right. Don’t think too much about it.”

“Okay…” Naruhodou closed his eyes and cocked his head before starting a strange shimmy with his shoulders.

Oh, fuck, it was adorable.

He stopped, however, and looked down at the ground again, “I look weird, don’t I?”

“No, you look like you're having fun,” Kazuma replied before he started mimicking Naruhodou’s movements. It actually was pretty fun.

Naruhodou laughed a little and picked his shimmy back up. He soon started moving the rest of his body, bouncing his head and waving his arms and stomping his feet, all in perfect time with the music. Kazuma tried to follow, and while the prince’s movements were a little silly, it was clear he had better rhythm. Naruhodou noticed this and grabbed both of Kazuma’s hands, moving him along so he was more in time with the music.

The two of them started to twirl, and to Kazuma, Naruhodou’s joyous laughter replaced the music, pulling him into its sweet sound and intoxicating him. He let himself be spun around, the world passing by in a dizzying blur except for Naruhodou’s clear and earnest face. One of the prince’s hands shifted to his back and Kazuma felt himself dipped low to the ground, his face tantalizingly close to his friend’s bright grin and pointed teeth.

Naruhodou pulled him back up and his heartbeat ran like a rabbit sprinting away from a fox. Or in this case a dragon, whose sharp teeth on his neck would likely yield the same result of making his heart give out.

Yeah, thinking about Naruhodou’s teeth on his neck was definitely not a good sign.

“Asougi? Are you okay? You look a little unsteady.” Naruhodou’s hand was on his waist, burning a hole through his clothes.

“Yeah… I think I need to go sit down. I’m feeling a little dizzy.” This wasn’t technically a lie; his head was definitely spinning with something .

“Oh, I’m sorry, did I go too fast?” 

“No, I’m just… not a dancer.”

The prince smiled and, holding Kazuma’s hand, led them back to their table. The two of them sat in comfortable silence as they finished off their drinks. Eventually, Susato and Gina arrived, flushed and out-of-breath from their physical exertion. “Don’t tell me you lot jus’ sat ‘ere the whole time. Ain’t you bored?”

“No, we danced a little, but Asougi did get dizzy after only one song.”

“Oh dear, are you alright, Kazuma-sama?”

“I’m fine, it’s passed now.” He waved his hand around. “Anyway, sunset is relatively soon, so we need to get going.”

With that, the four of them retrieved their horses and supplies and left Verdance behind to make camp in the outskirts, even as Kazuma couldn’t shake the images of Naruhodou’s bright smiles from his mind.

Chapter Text

After another two weeks of travel and looking over their shoulders, the four of them finally safely arrived upon the outskirts of Stromberg. Small farms and houses were littered across the landscape and the city rose up in front of them, an imposing edifice of impenetrable stone. Over the grand walls that surrounded the city, Kazuma could see tall towers and buildings that seemed to scrape against the sky; and even at a distance, it was easy to tell some were in better shape than others.

“This place is a lot bigger than any of the others we’ve visited…” Naruhodou muttered against his shoulder, voice laced with sleep and nervousness.

Lately, the prince had been falling victim to terrible bouts of fatigue and had often ended up falling asleep against Kazuma’s back as they rode onward ( that had certainly taken some getting used to). And as much as Susato tried to help, his medical prowess was limited and he was unable to determine the root cause of it. But the worst part of it was that they couldn’t even take Naruhodou to a doctor without risking someone finding out about his dragon half. (That, and he’d stopped singing to himself during the quiet moments.) Once they broke the curse, though, they were taking him to a professional as soon as possible.

Kazuma desperately hoped this great detective’s partner was as good a curse-breaker as Susato said they were.

“Yes, there will likely be a lot more people than you’re used to, but as long as you stay close to us, you’ll be safe,” Kazuma reassured him as he patted one of Naruhodou’s arms that was currently wrapped around his waist. “And if everything goes well, we’ll even find a cure for you in there.”

At that, Naruhodou perked himself up by taking a deep breath and slapping his cheeks. “You’re right, I should be more excited. Susato-san, what do you know about this city other than that Herlock Sholmes lives here?”

“Oh, Stromberg has a long history of being a center of learning for all kinds of disciplines, both artistic and scientific! While many of the institutions here were shut down after King Vortex took power, there still remain quite a few academies, including the second largest library in the kingdom… though that too was considerably downsized. But, this is still the place to go to receive the best education; my father even spent a few years here to learn about medicine and curse-breaking!”

“Why were so many things shut down after the new king came?”

“Well, many of the institutions had ties to the dragons and King Vortex was more interested in funding law enforcement and peace-keeping in the kingdom, so they either fell into disrepair or were actively destroyed as reminders of the old regime. After all, no trace of the history of the dragons’ rule was left unburned…”

“Wait, are the only records left of the old history just… people’s memories?” Naruhodou’s voice rose in distress as he responded, “But why would he want to hide that kind of tangible history?”

“I don’t think he was trying to hide anything, I think it’s just that many people wanted nothing to do with the dragons after they were dethroned, King Vortex included. However, not everyone agreed with this decision. I think it was foolish as well, but, unfortunately, everything has already been destroyed…” Susato trailed off once again as he contemplated the loss of so much history and knowledge.

“Wot’s it matter, anyway? Wot should we care ‘bout some old dead lizards?”

While Gina was right in a way, it still bothered Kazuma that there was nothing left of that time besides testimonials… including most of his own family history.

“But it’s… it’s history ! That shouldn’t be forgotten!” Naruhodou cried out.

“Too late now, innit?”

“It’s certainly a tragic occurrence, but Gina is right. Though perhaps...” Susato was thoughtful for a moment before continuing his thought, “When you get back to the capital, you might have enough influence to try to find anything that wasn’t destroyed.”

“Influence?” Even though Kazuma kept his eyes trained on the road, he just knew Naruhodou was adorably tilting his head in confusion.

“As the old king’s son, people have been excited about your potential return. While I doubt King Stronghart would have you take the throne when you get back, I imagine you would be quite respected in the royal court. Enough so that you could possibly start a campaign to restore what was lost.”

“...I guess there are some advantages to being the apparent son of a dead king I don’t remember,” Naruhodou replied, dry as a desert.

Kazuma snorted, “Careful, Naruhodou, don’t let your enthusiasm show too much.”

“Oh, sorry, I forgot a prince should be more proper. Don’t tell my father, would you, Ser Asougi?”

“Your secret’s safe with me, Little Prince.” He couldn’t help a smile at the small huff of amusement he heard from his friend in response to the silly nickname. He also couldn’t help the warm feeling he got whenever he would banter like this with Naruhodou.

That had been happening a lot since their visit to Verdance.

And that strange dream he had a few nights ago… He had woken feeling uncomfortably warm and wet and very confused.

He was starting to have some complicated feelings about Ryuunosuke Naruhodou.

“If you two could quit your flirtin’, we’re almost there.” 

Gina’s voice easily cut through Kazuma’s revelry, and he whipped his head around to face her. “You have some strange ideas about normal conversations, Gina.”

“Tell that to ‘Oddo,” she said with an infuriatingly smug smile.

Kazuma turned to look at Naruhodou, but the prince quickly pushed him back forward and yelped, “Keep your eyes on the road, Asougi!”

He rolled his eyes and responded, “I know what I’m doing.”

“Hush, Kazuma-sama,” Susato scolded. “We’re coming up on the gate now.”

The face of the walls surrounding Stromberg was interrupted by a large arch whose opening was blocked by an intimidating, iron gate. The entrance was flanked by two equally intimidating guards who kept their hands trained on their swords as the group approached.

“State your business, travelers,” one of them barked in a gruff voice. 

“We’re here to see the alchemist, Herlock Sholmes. We have need of his services,” Susato stated with an incline of his head. 

The other one raised an eyebrow and asked, “As an alchemist and not a detective?”

“Yes, is that a problem?”

“Nope, was just curious.” He waved up to the guards on top of the wall and they started operating the mechanism to open the gate. “You can go on through, but try not to cause any trouble with any of his strange experiments.”

“Of course.”

As they passed through the gate and got into the city proper, the first thing Kazuma noticed was how different this place was compared to other towns and villages they had passed through. Unlike the doom and resignation that haunted the other places, Stromberg was filled with an aura of such severe austerity, he found himself sitting up as straight and rigid as he could, and the gray skies overhead did nothing to soften the harshness of his surroundings. Many of the passersby on the street were wearing different kinds of uniforms that he assumed marked them as students of one of the various academies in the city. The people tended to avoid each other and weren’t nearly as friendly as in the places they had been previously. When they asked someone about where they could stable their horses, the person merely pointed down a street before moving on their way again.

“You know…” Naruhodou’s mumbling voice picked up behind him, “I think I may have been here before…”

“Really?”

“Yes, there’s something vaguely familiar about this place… Maybe I came here a lot?”

“Wot? Why would ya wanna come to a gloomy, stuck-up place like this?”

“I don’t know, it was just a suggestion; and I’m sure it’s not this dark all the time. Though, I don’t think it’s my fault this time…” Naruhodou trailed off in contemplation as if he hadn’t just said something that made no sense.

“What do you mean by that? Why would the bad weather be your fault?” Susato inquired with a fierce look.

The prince snapped back to attention as he realized all three of his companions were giving him strange looks. “Oh, um… None of you ever noticed…?”

“Noticed what?” Kazuma asked, restraining himself from shaking Naruhodou to get the answer out of him faster.

“Um, well… I noticed a while ago, back when I first ended up in the castle actually, that the weather tends to take a turn for the worse whenever I get upset…”

“What,” all three of them responded.

Kazuma wanted to ask if he was just fucking with them, but now that he thought about it… he could think of several times clouds had rolled in to complement Naruhodou’s roiling emotions.

Just exactly what kind of curse was at work here?

Gina only shook her head and commented, “You’ve got a lot goin’ on, doncha, ‘Oddo?”

“All the more reason to hurry to Baker Street to find Mr. Sholmes!” Susato added, “And perhaps the more time we spend here, the more likely you’ll remember something since you seem to think you’ve been here before. Though if you could get all your memories back once your curse is broken, that would be the most ideal.”

“Hmm…” Naruhodou settled into a thoughtful silence at that, still observing their strict surroundings.

After traveling a little way down the indicated street, they finally found the stables they were looking for. Thankfully, the people who ran the stables were much more friendly than the initial residents and they even offered to make sure they could get a carriage ride to Baker Street where they would find the great detective Herlock Sholmes. As they passed into what appeared to be a more residential district, their surroundings became much more colorful and welcoming. There was no longer an oppressive feeling of austerity hanging over them as they arrived at the doorstep of 221B Baker Street, but Kazuma still felt like he should be keeping as stiff as possible.

When Kazuma knocked on the door, there was a beat of silence before an explosion could be heard coming from inside and a few moments later a young girl with vivid pink hair tied up in the shape of a bow opened the door with a bright smile. For some reason, her presence made Kazuma feel almost… small.

“Hello there! You all must be here to see Hurley.” She looked around at the four of them with sharp eyes, her gaze lingering on Naruhodou as she continued speaking, “He’ll be excited to hear your case as soon as he’s done cleaning up. Come in!”

They were still caught off guard by the noise earlier and the general demeanor of the girl so they could only wordlessly follow her further into the house. She led them into a cluttered sitting room seemingly split in half to form a neat parlor on one side and a jumbled office on the other.

“You can make yourselves comfortable here while I get some tea and cakes!” The girl announced before rushing off down a hallway to what was presumably the kitchen.

Kazuma was looking curiously at the mismatched decor when he felt Susato grab his arm and squeal, “Oh, Kazuma-sama, can you really believe we’re here in Herlock Sholmes’s suite!? Do you know many famous cases have been solved right here in this room?” 

“Yes, you’ve told me plenty.” He smiled fondly at his starstruck brother as he continued, “Though, it’s a little surreal to be standing in a place that only exists as words on a page for so many people. Tell me, does it live up to your expectations, Susato-kun?”

“Yes, it’s all exactly as described in the stories! There’s that slipper and Mr. Sholmes’s violin and those initials on the wall burned in with alchemical fire…” he trailed off and the excited gleam in his eyes seemed to dim a little.

“What, are they not what they’re supposed to be?”

“No, those initials are K. N., but they should be K. S. for King Stronghart…”

“It seems not everything is exactly as it is in the stories.”

“Yes…” Susato carded his fingers together and looked down at the ground in disappointment before perking up again. “But! That’s just a small detail. I’m sure the great detective is just as incredible as described!”

“Oh, are you a fan of my stories?”

Kazuma and Susato jumped as the little girl returned with a tray of tea and cakes in hand. Susato turned, wide-eyed, and inquired, “Your stories?”

“That’s right! My name is actually Iris Sholmes, but I write The Adventures of Herlock Sholmes stories under the pseudonym of John H. Watson. After all, it wouldn’t make much sense for a great detective to be running around with a little girl, would it?”

“So… So the curse-breaker John Watson doesn’t exist…?” Susato’s voice went low and quiet as he asked and Kazuma felt his stomach drop as he realized the implications.

He wanted to scream.

“There’s no need to look so down just because I changed some of the setting. Just because I’m not an older gentleman doesn’t make me any less of a writer or a curse-breaker!”

Kazuma whipped his head up at her and blurted, “Wait, you’re actually a curse-breaker? Isn’t that a rather complicated field of study, especially for someone your age?” He didn’t know that much about magic, but he had spent enough time around Doctor Mikotoba and Susato to know that this was not an easy discipline to learn. It was apparently even more difficult than regular wizardry.

“Sure, it was difficult, but I’m a fast learner! So you don’t need to worry; I’m sure I can handle whatever curse you have, Prince Ryuunosuke!” Ms. Sholmes clapped her hands and smiled sweetly at Naruhodou.

“Wha-?! How did you know?!” Naruhodou jumped back in surprise and stared at her.

She put a finger to her forehead and swept it out in an arc as she replied, “Well, allow me to present to you Iris Sholmes’s Logic and Reasoning Spectacular!” She snapped her fingers and it felt like everything seemed to focus on her.

“Now, anyone skilled in either wizardry or curse-breaking can detect powerful magics. For example, I can see that you’re quite a competent wizard,” she directed her gaze at Susato before turning and pointing directly at a startled Naruhodou, “and you have a very mysterious aura. I can tell there’s some powerful magic at play in you.”

“That is true, Naruhodou-sama, I can feel it as well,” Susato added.

Naruhodou slumped over in response and muttered, “Oh, great…” 

“And, since all of you seemed so upset when you thought I wasn’t a curse-breaker, it was easy to deduce that that magical energy is curse-related!”

“But how did you know that Naruhodou was the lost prince?” Kazuma asked and crossed his arms. “How could you have guessed that when he’s supposed to be over seventy by now?”

“Well, there are a few indications.” She shrugged before gesturing at the whole of their group. “First of all, I can tell that you’re new to Stromberg and have been traveling for a while. When I opened the door, I could see you had that same rigid posture everyone who first comes to this city gets and the dirt on your clothes tells me you've been on the roads for a while." She turned and pointed at Gina, who flinched a little at the attention. "That flower in your hat has lingering magic. Am I correct in assuming it's a preserved one you got in the town of Verdance during its annual flower festival?”

“Yeah…”

“Now, since Verdance is right on the way between here and Precipice and taking into account your general travel weariness, I guessed that’s where you came from!”

“Was knowing that we came from Precipice really enough to guess Naruhodou-sama’s true identity?” Susato gasped, the disappointment from earlier having completely disappeared as he became enraptured by the young Sholmes’s guesswork.

“Not quite.” She suddenly twirled and started to put more emphasis on Naruhodou. "The other thing is your attire. The style of your clothes is older and not one you'd see normally nowadays. And that bow you have is carved with dragons which is a strange thing to own in Tempest, and everyone knows you've supposedly been locked in a dragon's castle so it makes sense that all your belongings would come from there."

"But… isn't that still a pretty big leap in logic? I mean I've barely aged at all…" Naruhodou pointed out.

Ms. Sholmes whirled even closer right up into the prince’s face as she continued, “The last thing is your less-than-human features. Your pointed ears, sharp teeth and nails, and your slitted pupils tell me some kind of magic has affected your appearance, meaning you not looking your actual age is not unexpected!”

She backed away and finished off with a curtsy and a succinct declaration, “And that’s it! Thank you for listening to one of my great deductions!”

“.......”

"Blimey…" Gina's soft exclamation just about summed up everyone's current emotions.

“That was… very impressive, Miss Sholmes,” Kazuma added. He could only be thankful that she hadn’t mentioned anything about dragons and they might still be able to keep that particular aspect of Naruhodou’s condition secret.

“Please, call me Iris! And thank you, but I’m only borrowing a page from Hurley’s book. The Logic and Reasoning Spectacular is originally his technique, after all.”

“Oh, that reminds me, you said your name was Sholmes. Does that mean you're his daughter?” Susato asked tentatively.

“Not quite. When I came to live with Hurley, I just took his name. Though I guess he is a little bit like my daddy now.”

“How long ago was that?”

“Around twelve years ago.”

“Twelve years? And how old are you exactly?” Naruhodou piped up.

“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask a lady her age, Runo?” Iris crossed her arms with a pout, but there was still a gleam of amusement in her eyes.

“Runo…” Naruhodou’s voice came out not as a question but as a quiet something that Kazuma couldn’t identify.

As the prince stood in contemplation, a loud voice cut through the room, “Iris! Why didn’t you tell me we had clients?”

Kazuma turned to see a man with a soot-covered face and a patch of clear skin in the shape of goggles around his eyes appear beside him. He whirled around the room, taking a close look at each of his guests, and Kazuma recognized him from the Tusspells’s exhibit as Herlock Sholmes.

“Oh…” Susato had his hands clasped together in front of him and the stars had returned to his eyes. “You must be him… The Great Detective!”

“That’s right, it is I, the one and only Herlock Sholmes!” He punctuated his introduction with a flourish of his hand and a small bow. “And there’s no need to explain your situation to me, sir, for I have already deduced exactly what you need!”

“Really?!”

“Quite right! You have traveled a long way to seek my services in pursuit of an auspicious return to The Eye!”

“The… Eye?” Naruhodou interrupted in confusion.

“The capital of our fair kingdom, dear fellow. What did you think I meant?”

“Oh, I thought it was called… Nevermind.”

“Dragon’s Rest, you mean? It hasn’t been called that in sixty years!” Sholmes laughed loudly before spreading his hands in front of him and continuing, “Which brings me to my first point of deduction, dear prince.”

“We’ve already ‘eard all that. Iris already gave ‘er own show,” Gina cut him off before he could go off on whatever spiel he had planned.

“I see…” All the man’s exuberance drained out of him and he dropped his head, mumbling, “I can see I’m not needed then…”

Iris walked over and patted his arm, reassuring him, “It’s okay, Hurley, I’m sure there’s other things you can deduce.”

“Of course!” He suddenly perked up and pointed a finger in the air demonstrably. “There’s still the matter of your end goal.” He started spinning around in the same fashion Iris had earlier and ended up pointing directly at Kazuma. “It all starts with you!”

“What?” Kazuma was starting to get the feeling this deduction wasn’t going to be nearly as impressive as the first one.

“Yes, that sword on your hip, it’s the family heirloom of the Asougis, correct?”

Kazuma flinched, “How did you…?”

“It is always wise to remember our history, no? And I deduce that you intend to follow your family’s history!”

“Excuse me?” He placed a hand on Karuma’s hilt, wary of what this detective was about to suggest.

“Your ancestors were traitors to the current crown as they sided with the dragons, and I can see you have your eye right on the throne!”

“What.”

“Yes, you have come heavily armed with weapons and artifacts taken from the old dragons’ castle,” he pointed out Kazuma’s gauntlets and Naruhodou’s archery set as he continued, “with full intention to stage a coup! You made your way to that castle to seek the lost prince as an ally for your aspirations as surely the people would support him and his endeavors!”

“But!” Sholmes then snapped his fingers and shifted the attention to Naruhodou. “You hit a stumbling block in your quest when you found the prince afflicted with a terrible curse!” he gestured to Naruhodou’s inhuman features. “The people would never follow a prince they believe to have succumbed to a dragon’s corruption, so you have come to me and my dear Iris for assistance in breaking this curse and, perhaps, to even aid in your revolution.”

“.......” 

“Well, have I astounded you with my spot-on deductions?” Sholmes smiled and put a finger to his head before sweeping it out in an arc, mirroring Iris’s gesture from earlier. 

“You’re off your rocker, ain’t ya?”

“Gina!” Susato scolded.

The smile stayed plastered on the detective’s face as he replied, “Surely I didn’t get anything wrong?”

“Well… You’re right that we came here with the intention to break Naruhodou-sama’s curse, but…”

“Your accusations of treason are completely baseless. My ancestors’ actions have no bearing on my personal decisions and goals,” Kazuma fumed even as he knew that statement wasn’t completely true. He couldn’t escape what his great-grandfather had done, and he did partially take this quest to try to make up for it in some capacity.

Sholmes pulled out a pipe and put it to his lips as he responded coolly, “So it’s a coincidence then that an Asougi handed the prince over and then another one got him back?”

Kazuma froze. He couldn’t respond. Not without admitting that everything he’s done so far has been for completely selfish reasons.

“Handed me over…? Asougi, what is he talking about?”

Kazuma could feel Naruhodou’s gaze burning into him, but he couldn’t answer. He refused to look up, staunchly staring down at the floor with his fists clenched at his sides and desperately trying to ignore the guilt that was bubbling inside him.

He should have known it would have to come out eventually.

“I think we should leave Mr. Asougi to answer that question for you later, when he’s ready.”

Kazuma finally looked up, expecting to see anger on the prince’s face, but instead only finding concern on those handsome, gentle features.

And it only made him feel worse.

He felt a hand on his arm and Susato’s soft voice beside him speaking, “Yes, I think later would be best. And it has been terribly rude of us not to introduce ourselves.” He gave an elegant bow and continued, “My name is Susato Mikotoba. It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Sholmes.”

Taking the cue, the other three introduced themselves as well, though none with the same enthusiasm as Susato.

“Naruhodou, you say?” Sholmes’s eyes seemed to gleam when the prince said his name.

“Er, yes, I know it’s likely not my actual name, but it is what I prefer at the moment.”

“I see.” The detective closed his eyes and brought out the pipe again, “Did you know, Mr. Naruhodou, that this city of academics once went by a different name? It used to be called Naruhodo. Do you know what that means?”

“‘I understand’ or ‘I see’, but my name isn’t spelled the same.”

“Quite right. But an interesting occurrence, nonetheless, wouldn’t you say?”

“I suppose…”

"Who cares 'bout all this name bizness, we're 'ere to fix 'Oddo!" Gina stomped her foot and brought the conversation back to what was important. “That’s wot you do, right, Iris?”

"Of course! One moment, please," Iris declared before grabbing what was a small stool and folding it out to form what looked like a makeshift examination table. "If you could sit here please, Runo?"

Naruhodou nodded and sat down as he watched Iris start to gather various instruments and supplies for her work.

Kazuma still couldn't understand how a girl so obviously young could be so capable, but she moved with practiced ease and no hesitation, leaving little room to question her skills. She placed a pair of goggles over her eyes and he watched in fascination as she mixed together some herbs and strangely colored liquids before inserting the mixture into an odd device and spraying a vapor directly into Naruhodou’s face.

The prince sneezed and coughed, “Was that necessary?”

“Yep! Now hold still,” Iris said before starting up an incantation.

Kazuma was distracted from the process by the sound of a deep voice yelling, “Sholmes! How many times must I tell you to keep your experiments away from my belongings!”

He turned his head to see a frighteningly pale man with a vicious-looking scar on his face storm into the room, angrily waving around a hot pink cloak. Normally, Kazuma would laugh, but Iris’s weirdly intimidating presence was nothing compared to the heavy sense of sheer menace coming from this man. As the man stilled and surveyed the room, Kazuma got the distinct impression that this man hated him, and judging by his companions’ faces, they did too.

“Oh, Uncle Barry, don’t be mad at Hurley. I needed something to test out my new dyes and I thought you should try out some more color in your wardrobe.” Iris clapped her hands and smiled sweetly.

This man was her uncle? If that was the case, why did she take the Sholmes name?

Kazuma wanted to ask about it, but he knew it was likely a sensitive or complicated topic that, frankly, wasn’t any of his business.

“I wholeheartedly agree with Iris. It’s quite a fetching color, wouldn’t you say?” Sholmes added with amusement.

It took a moment for the man (Barry?) to respond as his gaze settled on Naruhodou who was still facing Iris with his eyes closed. “Forgive me the discourtesy of interrupting your work, Iris, but I would appreciate that you would ask my permission next time.” Even as he spoke, his eyes never moved from the prince, and the almost pained expression on his face never changed.

“You’re no fun,” she pouted, “but, I’ll forgive you as long as you play nice with our guests.”

He nodded, clearly easily cowed by his niece, and turned to take a seat in the corner, but was stopped by Sholmes, “Hold on, my dear fellow, if you could join me in the library for a moment?”

Barry glared at him before silently leaving the room with Sholmes following close behind. Iris then made some adjustments to her goggles and returned to her work.

“That was your uncle? I don’t recall him ever being mentioned in The Adventures of Herlock Sholmes ,” Susato said with a finger to his chin.

“Oh, that’s because Uncle Barry asked me to keep him out of the stories. But, he still wouldn’t show up much anyway since he doesn’t get out a lot and he doesn’t really like people.”

“I see…” 

After a few more minutes of watching Iris perform various complicated-looking tests, she removed her goggles and declared, “I think I’ve figured out your diagnosis, but first, a few questions. What’s the main symptom of your curse?”

The room fell into silence as the other four looked at each other, trying to avoid discussing the full extent of the problem.

“If you’re trying to hide the fact that it’s dragon-related, I’ve already figured that out,” Iris spoke again when it seemed no one else would, “and don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone else.”

“Ah, in that case…” Naruhodou cleared his throat, “I forcefully turn into a dragon at night, but I don’t actually get to remember any of it.”

“Hmm, any other minor symptoms, besides your appearance?”

“Um, I can summon storms when I get upset, I can move unnaturally fast, and I’ve lost almost all of my memories from before I was cursed.”

Iris folded her hands behind her back and looked at them seriously as she said, “This curse is incredibly powerful and complicated, both in its original nature and the fact that it seems the caster was unable to perform it correctly. Your mind or your soul or even both were cracked in two, but not completely, and unfortunately, I can’t fix this.”

“What?!” Kazuma shouted and leapt to his feet. “Are you saying this is incurable?!”

This couldn’t be happening. They had spent all this time getting here only to find that it was all a waste? That Naruhodou would have to spend the rest of his life hiding in the night?

“Sooze said you’re s’posed to be the best o’ the best or somefink, and now you’re sayin’ there’s nuffin ya can do?!” Gina shouted as well, anger and panic lacing her tone.

“While the curse itself has multiple components that I could attempt to address individually, it would be dangerous and I could even end up making it worse. But, I didn’t say that it couldn’t be cured. There’s always two surefire ways to break any curse!”

“Oh, you mean…?” Susato asked hesitantly.

“Are you familiar with curse-breaking, Susie?”

“I learned a little from observing my father’s work, but not enough to truly be practical… I think it would be better if you explained.”

“Alright.” Iris nodded and continued, “The first way is by getting the wizard who cast the curse to undo it, but obviously that won’t work here since we don’t know who did it. The other way is by utilizing the world’s most powerful magic.” She clapped her hands and announced with complete seriousness, “True love!”

Naruhodou blushed a deep red and stuttered, “T-True love?!” Kazuma definitely imagined the quick sideways glance directed at him.

“That’s right! Just a simple kiss from someone who truly loves you with all their heart will easily break any curse! And it doesn’t have to be romantic either, a platonic or familial kiss will work just as well.”

She leaned over and pressed a small peck to the prince’s cheek and said, “Obviously that one didn’t work, but it really is that simple.”

“Well, it may not have broken my curse, but I’d say it did make me feel a little better,” Naruhodou added as he smiled at her, and she giggled in response.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Kazuma cut through this gushy nonsense. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You really expect us to believe some random kiss is enough to break a curse that even you admitted was incredibly complicated?”

“Actually, Kazuma-sama, true love’s kiss has been well-documented as an effective method of curse-breaking. It’s not a fairy tale,” Susato interrupted with a glare.

“That’s right, Kazzie. Even if you don’t believe in true love, it’s still powerful magic.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t believe in true love, I just think it’s ridiculous that you claim it’s some infallible cure-all!”

Honestly, he wanted to believe that it was, but this world was far too cruel to allow such a romantic idea. Love couldn’t save anyone. If it could then his mother would still be alive.

“Well, I fink that true love stuff is cobblers,” Gina tossed her head petulantly, “and ain’t that like sayin’ ‘Oddo’s never gonna get better? ‘E ain’t got no one who loves ‘im.”

“Gina! How could you say that?!” Susato gasped.

“Wot? Anyone who used to know ‘im is prolly dead by now, and we barely know ‘im. I doubt even Kaz could fix it.”

“ Excuse me ?” Kazuma snapped. Why did she feel the need to single him out?

“You’re right.” Naruhodou’s quiet voice halted the building argument. He sat still on the table, head bowed and hands clasped together in his lap, speaking calmly, “It’s been sixty years. There’s no one who knows me anymore; no one who loves me enough to break this. I’m going to stay stuck like this forever.”

“Don’t talk like that, Runo! It’s never too late to find someone who loves you! Maybe it might take a while, but it wouldn’t be forever.”

“And how long is a while? Which would come first, true love, or someone finding out about my dragon half and hunting me down like an animal?”

“Naruhodou-sama… You know, I think the king would understand it’s not your fault. He never called off the campaigns to save you and I think people would just be happy that you’re free. And…” Susato gently laid a hand on his shoulder, “It’s not impossible that there’s someone who knows you. There’s a chance you could still find someone, probably in the capital.”

Naruhodou lifted his head to look at Susato before turning his gaze back to the floor and mumbling, “Maybe…”

“I believe it would be wise to abandon that particular endeavor.” Kazuma turned to see that Barry and Sholmes had returned, the former now swirling a glass of wine in one hand.

“Uncle Barry!”

“The capital is a cesspool of hatred for the dragons and the old regime. Going there would only put yourselves at more risk than you are now.”

“But the capital is Naruhodou-sama’s best chance at finding someone to break the curse and I do think that once the situation is explained to the king he won’t be in danger anymore.”

“Not to mention, the only other option is letting him basically live the rest of his life on the run,” Kazuma added.

“It is easy to stay hidden from the public eye if you know how to do so. He would not necessarily be ‘on the run’ as you say,” Barry retorted as he glared at them, making Kazuma struggle not to cower.

“I say, why don’t we ask Mr. Naruhodou for his opinion on the matter. It is his life we are discussing after all,” Sholmes stated, bringing attention to the prince who hadn’t made a peep since the other two men returned to the room.

Naruhodou stood staring straight at Barry with a look of intense consternation on his face.

"Naruhodou? Is everything alright? What are your thoughts on the matter?" Kazuma said softly and placed a hand on his arm.

The prince snapped out of whatever trance he was in and darted his eyes around the room. "Well, um, I think, if…" his eyes turned downcast and his voice dipped low as he continued, "If going to the capital is my best chance to find someone who knows me then I think that's where we should go."

"Ya sure?" Gina asked skeptically.

"Yes, I think it would be best for all of us."

The sudden sound of shattering glass indicated that Barry had thrown his cup against the wall in a rage. "To risk your very life on the smallest of possibilities is foolish! But do as you will," he declared with one last frosty glare before sweeping out of the room, leaving Kazuma, Susato, and Gina to breathe a sigh of relief.

"'E's a real ray o' sunshine, huh?"

"Don't be too hard on him. Uncle Barry just… doesn't get along with other people very well…"

Kazuma snorted, "That seems like an understatement. But speaking of… Naruhodou, you seemed very upset by him. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. He just felt… almost familiar, but there was also something that felt… wrong ." He shook his head. "I'm probably not making any sense. It's not like he could possibly be someone I know; he looks far too young for that."

"Perhaps he's a relative of someone you knew and that familiarity comes from a family resemblance?" Susato suggested.

“That would make sense…” Naruhodou trailed off into a huge yawn.

“Shit. What are we going to do about that now? You can’t see a doctor if you’re still cursed.” Kazuma closed his eyes and grimaced. Nothing would ever go right as long as this fucking curse was still affecting him.

“What’s wrong with Runo? If you need a doctor I could help; I have a little bit of medical knowledge,” Iris offered with a cheery smile.

“Oh, really? Well, it’s nothing too serious; I’ve just been getting tired a lot recently…”

“When did that start and is it something that’s stayed the same or gotten worse?”

“Well… I actually started feeling it a couple of weeks after we left the castle, but it didn’t really start affecting me until about a week ago.”

“Wait, this has been going on for that long, but you didn’t tell any of us?” Kazuma interrupted.

“It wasn’t really a problem, so I figured you didn’t need to know. I didn’t want to worry you, but then it became unavoidable…”

“Naruhodou…”

“Regardless, you should let me examine you, so back up on the table!” Iris instructed and started a more conventional medical examination as the prince complied.

Kazuma couldn’t help but think he should have been more observant. He should have noticed something was wrong. W hy hadn't Naruhodou told them earlier? Sure, he gave a reason, but did he really think that waiting until he was toppling off his horse in exhaustion would make them worry less? Or was that just an excuse and the real reason was he didn’t trust them?

No, that wasn’t right. If he didn’t trust them, he wouldn’t have willingly put his life back in their hands when he made the decision to continue to the capital.

Kazuma just wanted Naruhodou to be okay , and it was hurting more than he cared to admit to see his friend brush off such a serious problem because he didn’t want to feel like a burden.

“Honestly,” Iris’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts, “I can’t find anything that’s off. Have you been getting enough sleep at night?”

“Um, I don’t actually know. I’m not aware of what I do at night.” He turned and addressed the rest of the group, “Have any of you noticed anything?”

“I can’t say I’ve really been paying attention… I apologize,” Susato said with a guilty look.

Kazuma and Gina both shook their heads. He honestly had no idea what Naruhodou’s sleeping habits were like considering the dragon had to be hidden from view at all times, but he really should have paid more attention. Maybe he could keep him company sometime…

“In that case, I really don’t know what to tell you other than to ask someone to watch how well you sleep.” Iris shook her head sadly.

“In the meantime, there are two spare bedrooms up in the attic if you have need of a nap, Mr. Naruhodou,” Sholmes offered with a genuine smile.

“Thank you, Mr. Sholmes. It would be nice to sleep in a real bed again. I miss my old one…”

“I don’t think you’ll find a bed like that anywhere else,” Kazuma quipped.

“Hey, I can dream, can’t I?”

Kazuma felt much better having gotten a smile out of the prince.

“Oh, but we need to leave ourselves some time to get back to the city outskirts before sundown so we really can’t stay much longer,” Susato spoke, clearly disappointed about having his time to speak with his literary hero cut so short.

“If you need someplace to hide for the night, there is ample space in the cellar that I think would hold a dragon well enough. There is no need to leave so soon, Mr. Mikotoba.”

“That’s right, I’m sure all of you would enjoy a night in a real bed, and I’d be happy to make you all dinner as well!” Iris added cheerfully.

“Oh, we couldn’t possibly impose on you so much.”

“It’s no matter at all! Iris loves to entertain guests and it’s been some time since we’ve had any. Now, would you care to hear what I’ve been working on? It is always best to get a second opinion in the matters of science and magic.”

It seems Sholmes knew exactly what to say to convince him as Susato immediately accepted and the decision was made to spend the remainder of the day and night at 221B Baker Street.

After some frankly confusing, but very interesting conversations, a delicious dinner, and making sure Naruhodou was safe and comfortable in the cellar with Iris offering to watch him, Kazuma finally settled down in one of the attic rooms. He had been flopped on the bed, enjoying the comfort when he heard a knock on the door and Susato’s voice, “Kazuma-sama? May I come in?”

“Of course.” He sat up and watched as his brother made his way over and sat down on the bed next to him.

Susato took a deep breath and looked at him with concern. “Are you alright?”

“Well, obviously I’m frustrated that Naruhodou is still cursed and we don’t have a guaranteed way to cure him, but as you’ve said before, we have to make the best of a situation and focus on what we can do rather than just worry about it.”

“No, I mean with Mr. Sholmes bringing up your family history. I know you didn’t want Naruhodou-sama to find out about that yet.”

He grimaced. “No, It’s my own fault for not telling him sooner, but… None of you should have to worry about that. This is solely my burden to bear.”

He had closed his eyes so Kazuma was completely unprepared to find himself suddenly being flung off the bed and onto the floor, a victim of a Susato Takedown once again.

“Wha-”

“Kazuma-sama.” Susato stood with his hands on his hips, glaring fiercely down at him. “You are allowed to share your burdens, especially when they may affect others as well. Do you not think that Naruhodou-sama would want to hear about the small bit of his past that you know?” His face softened and he kneeled on the floor beside Kazuma. “And do you not think that we would want to help?”

Kazuma avoided his brother’s gaze as he responded softly, “But, you don’t deserve to be dragged into my problems. You and Naruhodou and Gina would have stayed safe if I had never selfishly taken this quest.”

“We all made the choice to be here, and you cannot claim that you dragged me along when you tried to leave without me.”

“I didn’t want you to get hurt over something that isn’t your problem!”

“.....” Susato was quiet as he helped Kazuma up to a sitting position before he spoke again, “I knew the dangers as well as you when I went after you. And while we may not be related by blood, I have known you all my life; you are my brother, and any problems you have I will want to help you shoulder.” He clutched a fist to his chest as he added in a quivering whisper, “I may not be the best wizard or brother, but I do not want you to be hurt and have it be my fault that I did nothing to support you.”

“Susato-kun…” Kazuma could feel hot tears start to burn his eyes so he reached out and held his brother close and murmured back, “I’m sorry. I’ve only been thinking of myself and what I want so much that I have failed to consider your feelings. I won’t do it again, I promise.” He pulled back and pressed his forehead against Susato’s as he continued, “And, you’re an excellent wizard and an even better brother and sister. Don’t forget that.”

Susato sniffed with tears now gathering in his eyes and hugged him again. “Thank you, Kazuma-sama.”

Eventually, the two siblings pulled apart and Kazuma declared, “Now as for the shame of the Asougi clan, I may not feel ready to tell Naruhodou yet, but I will soon. I think I did need that push from Sholmes, actually."

Susato smiled warmly and said, "I'm glad to hear that. It will be for the best when you do."

"I know, and thank you, Susato-kun, for beating some sense into me.”

He giggled before replying with a bow, “Have a good night, Kazuma-sama.”

And with that, Susato returned to his room with Gina, and Kazuma was left by himself once again. While the conversation was necessary and for the best, it did leave him feeling drained and ready for nothing but a good, long rest in a soft, comfortable bed.

Chapter Text

Due to the schedule they had been on for the past month or so, Kazuma woke well before dawn. Instead of heading downstairs to see if anyone else was awake, he leaned on the windowsill and took a moment to observe the sleepy city outside. It looked like it had rained sometime during the night as the lanterns fueled by alchemical fire lit the streets in a soft, yellow glow and reflected on the wet road causing the stones to seem to glitter. Despite the early hour, there were still a few people walking around and leaving their homes, likely heading to work or school.

It was an idyllic little scene, honestly, and it made Kazuma wonder if Naruhodou would be better off here. Hiding would be relatively easy with the strangely large cellar Sholmes had, and the prince could spend his days learning at one of the academies or finding someplace to put his talents to use. He imagined that Naruhodou would make a pretty good teacher with how much he loved to discuss the books he had read in his castle library. And of course, it would leave him with plenty of opportunities to find someone to love who would break his curse if Iris was to be believed…

For some reason, the thought of Naruhodou falling in love sent a knife of discomfort twisting in his gut.

But the prince had already made his choice, and Kazuma couldn’t help the selfish happiness he felt at knowing they wouldn’t be parting ways yet. And that he would still have the opportunity to prove to everyone who looked down on him that his father was no traitor and not every Asougi was destined to be one.

Kazuma took a deep breath and sighed. He was being too contemplative for such an early morning, so he got dressed and headed down to find someone to talk to.

Unfortunately, the person he ran into in the main living suite was the one person he’d rather avoid. He caught Barry (or Barok as he eventually learned yesterday) in the middle of eating a muffin and fiddling with a small dragon figurine, though this one was different from how Naruhodou looked as it sported a pair of wings and had a stockier body. As soon as Kazuma entered the room, he felt a shiver run down his spine as Barok directed a cold look in his direction, though the effect was somewhat diminished by the fact that the man currently had his mouth full.

“.....” Kazuma wasn’t sure how to address him, so he ended up awkwardly staring him down as he finished chewing.

“Kazuma Asougi.” He stiffened as Barok continued, “...How intent are you on fulfilling the failure of your ancestor?”

What the fuck was that supposed to mean?

“...If you’re referring to Sholmes’s ‘deduction’, I have no intention of committing treason of any kind.”

The man closed his eyes for a very long moment with a constipated look on his face before finally speaking again, “I hope you know you are leading him to his death with this stubborn insistence on meeting the king.”

Kazuma bristled, “No matter how incompetent you believe us to be, we know the potential dangers, and who are you to say what Naruhodou should do with his own life? If he wants to go to The Eye, then let him, and I will do everything in my power to get him there.”

“You know nothing of what truly lies in wait for you there.”

“I’ve lived my whole life in the capital; I think I know what to expect.”

Barok directed a hateful gaze at him and Kazuma took a step back as the man hissed in a voice filled with fury and pain, “You know nothing! You are dooming you and your companions to be lambs for the slaughter!”

Kazuma steadied himself with a hand on Karuma’s hilt and stepped up into his face, “I will never let anything happen to them. I would gladly lay down my life before I allow any of them to be hurt!”

“If you change nothing, then you will. You will die just as much of a failure as Kotarou Asougi, and your dear friends will not survive long enough to mourn you.”

Kazuma felt his blood boil and, with no hesitation, unsheathed Karuma to show what he was capable of, but before he knew it, Barok had the blade gripped in his hand. Kazuma tried to wrench his katana back, but the other man’s grasp was unyielding despite the fact that Karuma’s sharp edge had ripped through his glove and should have drawn blood.

Something seemed to glow in Barok’s eyes as he growled down at him with derision, “If you continue your ‘quest’ as is, Ryuunosuke’s blood will be on your hands, Asougi.”

Finally, he released Karuma and, with a sweep of his cloak, left the room without another word, leaving Kazuma standing with his family sword still in his hands and trembling with rage and apprehension.

Still shaking, he carefully placed Karuma back in its scabbard and ran a hand down his face, letting out a shaky breath. To be honest, despite his confidence and bluster, Barok absolutely terrified him; the man simply seemed to be made of pure intimidation. What was worse, though, was the possibility that he could be right. They didn’t know for certain that Naruhodou would be accepted by the king in his condition, and if he was hurt or even killed because of their ill-thought plan…

No. Kazuma wouldn’t let that happen. If something happened, then they would figure it out, but Naruhodou wanted to go and Kazuma wouldn't let anything happen to him, Susato, or Gina.

He couldn’t let anything happen.

He took a deep breath to calm himself down and decided to head down to the cellar to talk to Naruhodou and Iris.

The cellar had absolutely no business being as big as it was. Kazuma had no idea how it managed to even be built like this. The ceiling was so tall that the whole place echoed like a cathedral, and yet it was just an unusually long staircase away from an otherwise normal home.

He hadn’t checked the time before coming down here, but he was still mildly surprised to see Naruhodou in his dragon form. He was curled up on the floor amidst the crowd of wine casks with his head propped up on a pile of pillows and blankets while Iris lay tangled up in the mane of fur around his head, sleeping soundly with a smile on her face.

One of Naruhodou’s eyes opened and settled on Kazuma. He looked like he was about to move his head before he remembered where Iris was and he ended up merely waving his tail in greeting. Kazuma chuckled quietly as he waved back and made his way closer to the pair. He was about to whisper to his friend to ask if he should wake Iris up, when she started to stir and sat up, rubbing her eyes.

“Good morning, Kazzie, Runo,” she yawned as Kazuma helped her to her feet.

“Good morning, Iris. Did you have an eventful night?”

“Hmm, what do you think, Runo?”

The dragon shrugged in response, a weird grumble coming from his throat, which elicited a giggle from the little girl.

Kazuma glanced between the two of them, who seemed oddly close despite having only met the previous day. “So… did you figure out what was wrong…?”

“Oh, I think it might be better to explain when everyone’s awake and Runo can talk properly.”

Before Kazuma could respond, Naruhodou nudged Iris with his snout and vigorously shook his head, staring at her with desperation and more strange noises echoing from him.

“But-” she stopped before sighing, “Okay…”

Now, what was that about?

“What-” he was stopped from asking about it by the familiar darkness returning and the prince shifting back to his human form.

Kazuma sighed inwardly at the interruption but bent down to rouse his friend awake anyway. It took a few solid shakes before he blearily opened his eyes and mumbled, “G’morning…” He stumbled a bit as Kazuma helped him to his feet.

“I guess this means I should get started on breakfast!” Iris declared as she turned toward the stairs.

“Oh? What’s for breakfast?” Naruhodou perked up slightly, though he was still leaning on Kazuma.

“You look ready to fall back asleep still standing up, and yet you’re interested in food already?”

“I don’t have to be fully awake to enjoy good food, Asougi.”

Kazuma rolled his eyes and quipped, “Then why don’t you offer to help if you’re awake enough to make excuses?”

“I’d rather not poison you all with my attempts at cooking.”

Iris giggled and addressed the both of them, “Well, I’m making omelets and both of you are welcome to help if you’d like.”

Kazuma nodded. “I’d be happy to, though I think we should keep Naruhodou away from the food if his claims of poisoning are to be believed. Personally, I’d like to make it back to the capital with my stomach intact.”

Naruhodou huffed and the three of them headed upstairs to make breakfast for the household.

After a satisfying meal and making sure everyone was ready to go, they were finally ready to leave Baker Street and return to their journey with a new goal in mind. 

“Ah, Iris, before we leave, were you able to figure anything out about Naruhodou-sama’s condition last night?” Susato inquired.

“Well… I don’t know everything, but… I know the problem can’t really be fixed right now.”

“Oh dear…”

Kazuma narrowed his eyes. Iris didn’t seem the type to lie about this, but considering the strange interaction she had with Naruhodou earlier, he couldn’t help but wonder. “Are you sure?”

Iris directed a look at him that, while it wasn’t quite the same glare her uncle had, had the same effect of sending a chill running through him. “I know it would be very difficult to treat as long as things stay as they are now.”

“I see… Thank you anyway, Iris… Well, if there’s nothing else then we should be on our way.”

Before the four of them could leave, however, Sholmes stopped them with a warning, “While I am sure you are all very capable of taking care of yourselves, do watch your backs out there. One never knows for sure what is lurking in the shadows. And,” he stopped and pulled a small hare figurine wearing an approximation of his own outfit out of his pocket and presented it to them, “if you feel you have need of my assistance again, do not hesitate to give a small tug to the ears, and I will know.”

Kazuma took the offered doll and inspected it while Susato asked, “How does it work?”

“I have a counterpart that will tell me when you have called.” He then pulled out from another pocket the dragon figure that Kazuma had seen Barok playing with earlier.

“Oh, what an interesting design!”

“You have our dear Barry to thank for that.”

Kazuma questioned that, but he bowed slightly anyway and said, “Thank you for the gift, and for offering us your home for the night.”

“Think nothing of it,” Sholmes replied and returned with a bow of his own.

Barok, who had been lurking in the corner during the exchange then spoke up, “This place is always open to you, Prince Ryuunosuke, if you so desire.”

Naruhodou tensed and got that same concerned expression as he looked at the other man. “Um, thank you for the offer, Barok, but… for now… I think I am best suited elsewhere.”

Hurt flickered across Barok’s face, and he bowed out of the room, offering no more acknowledgment.

It seemed then that they were ready to go until Iris rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Naruhodou. She buried her face in his stomach and implored, “Be careful, okay?” The prince startled before wrapping his arms around her in turn with a soft smile.

She pulled back and he kneeled down in front of her and spoke softly, “How about this? Once we arrive safe and sound, we’ll send a message so you know we’re okay.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

She gave a small smile and finally allowed them to leave. For some reason, Kazuma got the feeling this wouldn’t be the last they would see of the residents of 221B Baker Street.

The next night, Kazuma was determined to spend some time with Naruhodou and see if he couldn’t figure out the problem. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Iris, but he wanted to see the situation for himself. So during his watch for the night, he stepped into Naruhodou’s circle to talk to the prince. Instead of sleeping, he found the dragon staring up at the sky with a forlorn expression; he apparently hadn’t noticed Kazuma’s presence as he didn’t turn his head away from the stars.

“Naruhodou…?”

The prince jolted and whipped his head toward Kazuma. He raised himself up just slightly and tilted his head in questioning.

“Are you alright? Look, I know Iris said this isn’t a problem we can fix yet but is that really true?”

Naruhodou nodded, but he tensed and averted his eyes.

“...You know exactly what’s wrong, don’t you? And you know how to fix it as well.” The dragon still refused to look at him and Kazuma clenched his trembling hands. “ Please , just tell us what’s wrong so we can help .”

Finally, Naruhodou looked at him and slowly shook his head. 

You can’t.

“What do you mean we can’t? Does it have to do with the curse?”

Naruhodou tilted his head back and forth in a so-so sort of manner.

Kazuma sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Could you be any more vague? What the hell am I supposed to…” He trailed off as an idea came to mind.

He thought back to the melancholy look the dragon had earlier and the unfiltered joy and freedom he had when he had flown over the castle that first night after they had removed the collar.

“Is this… because you can’t fly around anymore?”

Naruhodou flinched before nodding, slow and sad, guilty even.

“ Shit . I guess Iris was right after all, but still, you should have let her tell us. Maybe there really is nothing we can do, but if you don’t tell us these things we can’t even try to help.”

The prince shook his head. How can you?

Kazuma threw his hands in the air in exasperation, “I don’t know! But maybe we can…” He started to pace back and forth as he racked his brain for some way to fix this problem. “What if we… You can summon storms at whim, right?”

A hesitant nod in response and Kazuma continued, “What if you summon a storm and then fly above the cloud cover so no one sees you?”

An aggressive shake of the head. Too dangerous .

“What’s dangerous is letting you waste away like this! Do you think you can even make it to the capital at this rate?”

I’ll be fine…

“No, you won’t. Look… Susato-kun never said anything about the circle having an upper limit so if you just fly straight up you can get above the clouds with no one seeing you. It’ll work, please just…” he placed a hand on Naruhodou’s snout and pleaded, “I can’t keep seeing you like this…”

The dragon looked away and closed his eyes for a long moment before laying his head and neck flush against the ground, giving Kazuma a pointed look.

“What… are you doing?”

Get on.

“You want me to what.”

Naruhodou continued to stare at him with the same expectant look until Kazuma eventually relented and climbed onto the back of his neck, entangling his hands into the mane of fur to keep his grip. A storm slowly built and clouds began to block out the stars, then without warning, the dragon shot up straight into the sky at a near-vertical angle. Trying not to scream, Kazuma desperately clung to Naruhodou’s neck, using both his arms and his legs to keep himself from falling off.

Finally, after a terrifying moment of flying directly through a swirl of lightning and rain, they broke through the clouds and started coasting above the storm layer. It was cold up here, but Kazuma couldn’t bring himself to care, what with how beautiful it was. The moon and stars were so close he felt like he could reach out and touch them, and they sparkled above his head like a blanket of fireflies, lighting up the sheet of clouds beneath him. And speaking of, the clouds were a much more entrancing sight when he wasn’t being rained on or risking being struck by lightning. It was far easier to appreciate how they flashed with light like a river of flickering lanterns when he was gliding above them. 

Then, Naruhodou started to dip up and down the cloud line, twisting his body in loops as he flew in and out of the storm. Lightning crackled around Kazuma, but never for very long before he was pulled back into the calm above the storm, and the process was repeated. His pulse pounded in his ears along with the sound of the wind and thunder as he held on to Naruhodou for dear life.

It was absolutely terrifying. And exhilarating .

As his limbs started to go numb from the wetness and the cold, the dragon turned and headed down to the ground.

In a straight line.

This time, Kazuma really did scream as they hurtled right towards solid earth. He closed his eyes and braced for impact, but slowly opened them again as he realized they had stopped moving and were landed safely back inside the circle.

He rolled off of Naruhodou in a heap, shivering from the cold and adrenaline, and splayed himself out, savoring the unmoving dirt beneath him. It would probably be a while before he was ready to do that again. 

“You’re trying to kill me…” he muttered before he felt a soft warmth encompass him and pull him away from his place on the ground; Naruhodou had wrapped the furry end of his tail around him and tucked him into his side. 

Kazuma looked up at his friend, whose eyes were now shining with life and a little electricity, and settled back where he could feel every reassuring breath the dragon made before asking softly, “Feeling better?”

Naruhodou only responded by gently nuzzling his snout against Kazuma’s hair.

He smiled. “Good to know.” He yawned then and nestled further into the cozy fur around him, letting his eyes slip closed as Naruhodou turned his head away to take watch.

Kazuma awoke to the feeling of fingers idling in his hair and the sound of a softly hummed lullaby in his ears. For a brief moment, the sweet sensations threatened to lull him back to sleep before he registered that someone should definitely not be playing with his hair. He jerked upward and looked around, embarrassed to find that he had apparently been sleeping with his head in Naruhodou’s lap for who knows how long.

The prince scrambled backward, red in the face, and squeaked, “Asougi! I-I’m sorry! It’s just, you were there when I woke up and you looked so peaceful so I didn’t want to wake you… I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable…”

“No, it’s okay, you didn’t make me uncomfortable.” No, knowing now that it was Naruhodou, Kazuma probably would have sat there forever if he could. “Um, anyway, how are you feeling?”

Naruhodou blinked. “Huh?”

“I mean are you feeling better this morning? You have a beautiful singing voice and I haven’t really heard it since you started getting noticeably sick…”

“O-Oh! Um, thank you.” The prince looked away and fidgeted with his earring before responding, “Well, I actually do feel better this morning. I didn’t wake up feeling tired like I normally do, and I actually feel refreshed for once!”

Kazuma breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I think we won’t have to worry about your sleeping problem anymore as long as we’re careful.”

“What do you mean? I thought Iris said it couldn’t be fixed right now?”

“Yes, Iris meant well, but I think she was too caught up in what you wanted to offer a solution. Anyway, the problem seemed to be that you hadn’t been able to fly since we left and I guess being earth-bound isn’t healthy for you.”

“I see…”

They fell into a companionable silence before Kazuma got up to start getting ready to leave but was interrupted by Naruhodou’s quiet voice, “Asougi, can I ask you something?”

“Go right ahead.” He moved back to sit down next to his friend who now had his legs curled up in front of him with his arms wrapped around his knees. 

“Why did you go to that castle to free me?”

Kazuma froze. Yes, he knew he’d have to tell him soon, but he didn’t think he’d ask so quickly. “I…”

“You don’t have to tell me if you’re still not ready to, but… I would like to know.”

He looked over to find Naruhodou’s gentle eyes patiently looking at him. “I’m sorry, I should have told you sooner. You deserve that much, but I was afraid because… It’s selfish.”

“I know.”

“Y-You do?”

“I may not have had any contact with anyone for sixty years, but I’m not naive enough to believe anyone would risk as much as you have for a complete stranger solely out of the goodness of their heart. No one’s that selfless,” Naruhodou replied seriously, not breaking eye contact.

Kazuma couldn’t keep it up. He looked away and muttered, “You saw right through me from the beginning, didn’t you? If you knew we had ulterior motives, then why come with us? We could have lied about wanting to rescue you. What if we’re leading you on this quest just to kill you at the end of it?”

“I know you won’t. And to tell you the truth, I had thought about it, but I decided I didn’t care.”

“That doesn’t seem like a smart decision.”

“Maybe not, but… can I tell you a story?”

“...If you want to.”

Naruhodou took a deep breath that shook as he exhaled before staring straight ahead and starting, “I don’t know how long it was into my stay, but at some point, I realized that the only way I was getting out of that castle was when I died. And one day, I decided I wanted to leave.”

Kazuma’s eyes widened and his gut twisted as he realized where this story was heading. “Naruhodou, you don’t have to-”

“Let me finish.” The prince’s gaze was sharp and piercing, but it softened and his voice cracked as he added, "Please?"

Kazuma nodded and he began speaking again, “So, I headed into the little ‘armory’ that the castle had; it’s really just a storage place for training weapons and things for recreational activities, but there are a few actual weapons in there. But as I reached for one of the spears, the castle’s walls suddenly moved around and it hid every sharp object in that room from me behind a wall. I…” 

Naruhodou stopped and swallowed hard before continuing, “I banged on the wall, screaming at the castle to let me in, to let me leave like I wanted to, but it wouldn’t listen. Eventually, I heard a noise, and another wall opened to dump a bunch of things at my feet. It was a pile of my favorite things. All my favorite books and my archery set and snacks, but on top of the pile was one of those old fairy tale books. You know the ones where a knight goes to rescue a princess that’s been trapped by a beast or a curse or something. I hated them.

“I didn’t use to. I used to really like them; I thought they were nice and romantic, but when you’re the one stuck in that kind of situation for so long, it starts to feel like they’re mocking you. But it got the point across; the castle was telling me I shouldn’t give up like this, and that I should enjoy the little things that I have.

“...I cried for a long time after that, but after I left that room, I never tried again. That’s not to say I didn’t think about it; that happened plenty, but every time I thought about it I remembered that I should still have hope, and what would be the point in dying if I never got to have another slice of strawberry cheesecake ever again, you know?” 

Naruhodou finally looked at him with a laugh and a soft smile, “And it was all worth it because I finally got out. All thanks to you, my knight in shining armor.” He reached over and squeezed one of Kazuma’s hands in his and gently said, “So, no, I didn’t care because I was tired of waiting and I wasn’t going to pass up this opportunity to leave. And… I just had the feeling I could trust you.”

“Naruhodou…” Kazuma placed his other hand on top of his friend’s and offered,  “I’m sorry that you had to go through all that. You don’t deserve such things.”

“It’s okay, I’m out of there now, and I owe it all to you and Susato-san.”

“Still, I… You don’t deserve what you’ve gone through, what you’re still going through.”

“The point of this story wasn’t to make you feel bad for me; the point was to tell you I really don’t care how selfish your reasons may be, and neither was this a guilt trip to convince you to tell me. I just… thought you should know.”

“Right, sorry, but you do deserve to know, and… I'm okay with telling you."

Kazuma took a deep breath and tried to calm his roiling emotions. To be honest, he still just wanted to reach out and hold Naruhodou close as if he could somehow erase his friend’s pain and loneliness with a desperate hug. He couldn’t quite quell the trembling in his hands as he continued, “I suppose I should start at the beginning with what Sholmes mentioned about my family’s history with dragons. And you.”

“He said they had sided with them and that one of them is responsible for what happened to me; is that right?” Naruhodou asked with no judgment to be found in his face or voice.

“It is. From my understanding, the Asougis had a long history of having served at the sides of the dragons despite their treatment of humans. And apparently, my great-grandfather, Kotarou Asougi, served as the right hand of the dragon king and was directly responsible for you ending up in that castle. He was apparently the one who kidnapped you and handed you over to the dragon in the first place.”

“...So you’re trying to redeem your family by basically undoing what they did? Is that why you wanted to rescue me? It sounds like you’re just trying to right a wrong and that doesn’t seem very selfish to me.”

Kazuma sighed, “No it definitely is. It seems noble, but I’m also just tired of being judged for something I didn’t do.”

“What do you mean?”

“People in the further territories usually aren’t familiar with that part of the story, but back in the capital… I’ve gotten plenty of derision from people who think I’ll end up as just another traitor. There have been many times I have been refused entry or service because of my family name.”

“That’s not fair…” Naruhodou took hold of Kazuma’s hand and asked softly, “They’ve made you feel like you have to be ashamed of who you are, haven’t they?”

Kazuma shook his head. “They probably would have if my father hadn’t made sure I didn’t feel that way. He always told me that no matter what our family did or what others would say, what makes me an Asougi is having the conviction to do what I choose is right.” He stopped and pulled Karuma out of its sheath, allowing it to gleam in the light of the sun as he continued, “My ancestors may have used this blade to oppress, but my father used it to protect, and so do I. I may be ashamed of the Asougis’ history, but I am not ashamed of being one, and I will proudly carry Karuma at my side until it is time to pass it on.”

“You say that, but… why hide it from me if you’re so unashamed?”

“Well, I…” Kazuma avoided the prince’s eyes as he returned Karuma to its sheath. ”I didn’t think you would trust us if you knew the truth.”

“You know… there is a reason that I thought I could trust you when we first met. I recognized Karuma.”

“You what?!” Kazuma leaned in to Naruhodou’s face in shock.

He quickly shook his head and clarified, “Not in the way you’re thinking! It just felt vaguely familiar and… reassuring.”

“ Reassuring ? This is a blade that was wielded by a man who kidnapped you. Why would you find that comforting?”

“I don’t know! For some reason, looking at it makes me feel… safe. I know it doesn’t make sense, but it’s true.”

Kazuma shook his head in disbelief. “You’re just full of mysteries, aren’t you? …Though this does make me wonder if perhaps the stories I’ve been told aren’t completely true. There were already discrepancies, but this makes me think some of it might be deliberate lies.”

“Honestly, almost none of what I’ve been told has felt right, except what you said about your great-grandfather being the reason I ended up in the castle. That does feel true.”

“You know that only makes the Karuma thing even more confusing, right? And thank you for the reassurance that if one thing is true, it’s that my family sucks,” he added dryly.

“Asougi! That’s not true; your father sounds like a good man.”

“...He was. But that didn’t stop people from turning on him at the first possible opportunity.” Kazuma dug his hands into the dirt and spat out, “He was accused of sympathizing with the dragons and spreading seditious ideas. My mother, Mikotoba-sensei, and I were the only ones who came to his defense, but no one believed us and he was executed for treason.” 

He heard Naruhodou gasp, but the floodgates were open and he kept going, “...I watched him die. Against my mother’s and Mikotoba-sensei’s urging, I attended his execution, and… He caught my eye right before it happened and he smiled at me as they chopped his head off.”

He closed his eyes to hold back the burning tears that threatened to spill out. He could never forget that moment and the sadness and apology in his father’s eyes as he looked at him. It haunted him, and he hated it. He wished he had never looked at all.

Then he could feel strong arms wrap around him and Naruhodou was gently murmuring in his ear, “I’m so sorry, Asougi…” Kazuma refused to let his tears fall, and he gripped his friend so tight that it must have hurt, but the prince only continued to run his fingers soothingly down his back and whisper reassurances in his ear.

Eventually, Kazuma let go and pulled back, wiping his eyes and taking shuddering breaths. Naruhodou then softly added, “I think he would be proud of the man you are. I think you’re incredible and I think your father would think so too.”

He curled his hands into fists and gritted out, “But he wasn’t given that chance. He wasn’t even given the chance to see me become a man. He died knowing me by a different name, and I don’t even know whose fault that is.”

“You think there was someone specific involved in what happened to your father?” Naruhodou asked as he laid a hand on Kazuma’s shoulder.

“I know he was framed. The crown knights said they had it on good authority that he was caught discussing lies about the dragons being good, so someone must have made this up to get rid of him.” 

“Is that another reason you decided to save me? To get yourself some fame or whatever so you could investigate, and people would finally believe you?”

“...Yes, actually, that’s pretty much exactly it.”

Naruhodou fidgeted with his boots as he started, “What if I could help? Susato-san said that I would probably have a lot of influence with the court so when we get to the capital…” his darting eyes finally settled on Kazuma and he spoke seriously, “what if I helped you prove your father’s innocence?”

Kazuma was stunned, and he sat there with his mouth hung open before he finally responded, “You would do that for me?”

The prince smiled with a grin to match the morning sun and simply said, “Of course!”

Kazuma was sure he hadn’t done anything to deserve this wonderful man looking at him so sweetly with such beautiful eyes and he felt his throat start to close with unshed tears. “Thank you, Naruhodou. I… Thank you.”

“Ryuunosuke.”

“Huh?”

With a shy smile that looked like it was painted by the gods and made Kazuma’s heart beat faster than a taiko drum, he said, “You can call me Ryuunosuke if you’d like.”

“Very well then. Thank you… Ryuunosuke.”

Ryuunosuke ducked his head and Kazuma was in awe at the pink splashed across his cheeks and ears as he replied, “You’re welcome… Kazuma.”

Now it was Kazuma’s turn to change hues as he felt a warmth rush through his entire body. His own name had never sounded so sweet than coming from the delightful lips of the most beautiful man he’d ever seen. This name was a final gift from his mother and he chose it with pride, but it had never felt more fitting than when he heard it in Ryuunosuke’s clear, resonant voice.

Kazuma slowly reached up to place his hand on his friend’s cheek, but the moment was broken by the sound of a scream echoing across the camp.

He bolted to his feet and looked to see Susato’s tent on fire and a group of heavily-armed people standing at the crest of the hill overlooking their camp. At the forefront of the crowd stood a woman with a mask wielding a glowing crossbow, and Kazuma knew that Brett had finally come to finish what she started.

Chapter Text

The first thing Kazuma did was race toward Susato’s tent to make sure his brother was okay. There was a moment of relief when he saw that Gina had already pulled him out and the two of them were preparing for a fight, but then a burst of dark magic flew right over his head and Kazuma knew that this was not going to be as easy as he’d like. 

“Stay back here!” he shouted as he pulled Karuma out, settling into a defensive stance to wait for his enemies to come to him; he knew better than to charge forward into an uphill battle, and the oncoming storm, likely from Ryuunosuke’s upset, was starting to make it difficult to see.

They braced themselves with the help of a small protection spell from Susato and did their best to dodge the oncoming barrage of spells and arrows; he cursed when he realized that none of them were actively casting spells and were instead using magic-infused artifacts that wouldn’t tire them out. Kazuma worried that they would have to move forward to gain any advantage in the fight, but then arrows started to fly out from behind him, each finding a mark in the limbs of their attackers, despite the sheets of falling rain.

Ryuunosuke truly was an exceptional shot.

And thankfully, this was enough to get quite a few of them to meet them down in the small valley. When the closest one got within range, he sprinted forward and moved Karuma in an upward slash only to be stopped by the other’s sword that then erupted in flames, the heat searing Kazuma’s face and forcing him to pull back. The assassin then went on the offensive, pushing him to focus on dodging and parrying and trying not to get his face burnt off.

He was lucky the rain seemed to dim the fire.

Kazuma finally managed to get the upper hand when the other swung wide and he landed a kick to their stomach. As they doubled over in pain, he took the opportunity to smash Karuma’s handle against the back of their head, knocking them out.

During the brief reprieve he gained, he took stock of how the others were faring. Two men were bearing down on Susato, but one punch from him had one of them crumpling to the ground with a hand clutching his face. A few feet away, Gina was being accosted by another one swinging their fists; she was quick on her feet and could dodge well enough, but it was obvious that she didn’t have the proper training that Kazuma and Susato had, along with their enemies.

He moved to help her, but a woman with a glowing spear moved into the corner of his sight and swept his feet out from under him. He rolled over just in time to avoid his head being sliced through, but a freezing cold burnt his cheek where the blade had grazed him, and ice cracked through his wound and on his skin.

He quickly scrambled to his feet and barely dodged a stab to his chest before he sliced upward, forcing the woman back just slightly as he nicked her arm. He continued his offensive push forward, but a downward swing with too much force had him stumbling past her. Kazuma’s head then snapped back as something rigid dragged against his neck and he gagged at the shaft of the spear being pressed to his throat.

He dropped Karuma and clawed at the hands holding the spear in place. He struggled to take in small, desperate gasps as the pressure increased and his vision began to blur. A scream of pain echoed in his ear and, without warning, he was released and he fell down, coughing and gulping in the heavy, wet air.

The woman was lying on the ground, shaking and bleeding from a wound in her back and Kazuma looked up to see Gina’s crooked grin as she held a bloody knife and panted, “Gonna make me do all the work, Kaz?”

He let out a choked laugh as she hauled him to his feet. “You seem to be taking care of it just fine.”

He claimed Karuma from where it had fallen when something whizzed past him and Gina let out a grunt of pain, falling to the ground and clutching her left shoulder. A crossbow bolt had hit her and a revolting green substance was spreading out from the wound.

Poison.

“GINA!”

Icy fear settled cold in his chest as thunder and Susato’s cry roared in his ears and Barok’s words echoed through his mind.

You are dooming you and your companions to be lambs for the slaughter!

Kazuma didn’t even have time to react properly before a spiked chain wrapped around him and yanked him to the ground. Every point of contact burned and hissed as fire seared through his wounds, not even letting him bleed. The stench of his own cooking flesh overpowered everything else.

As he lay helplessly in the mud, tears streaming from the pain, he could see Susato fighting against three more attackers, struggling to get to Gina, and Ryuunosuke was bursting out of his invisibility circle and sprinting to her side at an inhuman speed. If Kazuma wasn’t already immobilized by the chains constricting around him, the sight that he witnessed next would have.

Ryuunosuke ripped the bolt from Gina’s shoulder and held her down as he sank his teeth into her flesh. Her scream echoed through his bones as he watched the prince rip a chunk out and spit it onto the ground, blood dripping down his chin.

The ball of muscle and skin melted into a goo as the poison completely overtook it.

The shock subsided then when Kazuma realized what his friend was actually doing. He had seen how quickly the poison spread and there was no way Susato would have been able to get there in time to save Gina with his magic.

He could feel the bindings around him loosen and he looked to see their wielder staring in shock and horror at the grisly sight before them. Kazuma saw his chance and pulled the chains off, wincing at the blistering heat of the metal, and grabbed Karuma before stabbing the man in the leg.

He struggled to his feet and grabbed his katana with both hands, preparing to swing again when the man whipped his chains out and around Karuma, attempting to pull it out of his hands. He underestimated Kazuma’s strength, though, and when he pulled back on his blade, he was able to tear the chains from the other man’s grip and unbalance him.

Kazuma threw them aside and ran up to kick the man in the head, keeping him down.

“Kazuma! Watch out!”

He barely turned his head at the call of his name when he was shoved down to the ground. He looked just in time to see Ryuunosuke standing over him as a bolt of lightning struck him square in the chest.

Right in his heart.

“RYUUNOSUKE!”

The scream ripped itself from him, tearing through his throat, his lungs, and his heart as he watched in slow-motion horror as his friend's body convulsed and he staggered back. But instead of falling to the ground in a twitching, lifeless heap as he should have, Ryuunosuke stumbled forward, his movements so fast that Kazuma’s eyes could barely follow. The prince pulled three arrows from the quiver on his back, shooting them out in rapid succession as the electricity now coursing through his body conducted through the metal and accompanied the trajectory of the arrows.

They were all headed toward the same target: the person wielding a staff that sparked with lightning.

The first one landed through their ankle and into the ground, pinning them in place.

The second one landed in the shoulder of the arm holding the staff, the electricity in the arrow seizing the muscles and locking their grip in place.

The third one shattered through the glass focus at the tip of the staff where its magic was concentrated.

The resulting explosion of lightning spread out across the group, striking everyone in the area and wiping out the remainder of their attackers that had stayed behind at the hillcrest.

Except one.

Brett had managed to avoid the blast and she stood with crossbow in hand, glowing sickly green and pointing straight at Ryuunosuke, who had now collapsed onto the ground, the storm fading with his consciousness. The bolt flew forward, but before Kazuma could do anything, it bounced off a barrier that had cropped up around them.

With the majority of their forces gone, the remaining assassins gathered those who were still alive and ran off, leaving Susato able to put his whole focus into protecting and healing their two fallen friends. He nodded at Kazuma, assuring him that he could handle this and giving him permission to do as he pleased.

Brett wasn’t leaving, and Kazuma was more than happy to charge forward and engage her. She pulled out her own sword at his approach and he struck with every ounce of strength he had left.

He had no awareness of his own movements as he fought her; he swung wildly and moved on instinct, his muscles shifting in long-memorized patterns from years of training with his father and practice of his own accord. The only thing permeating his mind was the rage at what this woman had done and the fear that Ryuunosuke and Gina wouldn’t be able to recover.

He started to gain an advantage, using his superior size and weight to force her back and give himself more momentum, the sound of clashing steel increasing in frequency. He bore down on her until, in one brief pause, he slashed sideways and cut through her wrist, his blade reverberating as it reached bone. Brett screamed and fell to her knees, clutching her bleeding hand. Kazuma raised Karuma above his head, preparing to bring its justice down upon her, but she managed to slip something out of her pocket and throw it on the ground. Whatever it was had erupted into a cloud of smoke that burned his eyes and left him hacking his lungs out.

His vision suddenly whited out as he felt something stab into his hip and he fell to the ground, pain shooting through his leg. The smoke finally cleared and Brett was gone and Kazuma was left clutching his bleeding wound and tasting bitter smoke and failure in his mouth.

He somehow managed to heave himself to his feet and limped back to his companions. Every step seemed to agitate every tiny wound on his body, but the heat of battle still coursed through his veins as he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Ryuunosuke’s unmoving form.

Each aching step only brought him closer to the consequences of his own actions.

It was all his fault after all. His job was to protect them, and he had failed miserably.

As he got closer, he could see Susato was covered in cuts and bruises and Gina would seem to have fared better were it not for the fact that she held her arm close to herself and there was a nasty, raw scar on her shoulder peeking through her torn clothes. And as for Ryuunosuke, the gore had been wiped from his mouth, his shirt had been ripped open, and, oddly, there was no scar on his chest, but he still wasn’t moving.

When Kazuma finally got within a few feet of them, he collapsed on the ground, unable to go any further.

“Kazuma-sama!”

He could feel gentle hands and the slightly stinging warmth of Susato’s healing magic, but he pushed his brother’s hands away. “You need to save your energy for more important things. Ryuunosuke is more important.”

“If I do not heal you, you could be permanently injured or even die! And… I don’t think I can help Naruhodou-sama anymore…”

Despite the burning of his wounds, a chill settled in his bones. “What… What do you mean by that?” he asked quietly, searching Susato’s scared face.

“There… doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with him, but I can’t seem to be able to wake him…”

“No… Y-You have to keep trying! We-We need him! I… I need him!”

This couldn’t be happening. Kazuma was supposed to protect him. He couldn’t lose him. He…

He loved him.

The realization slammed into him full force, knocking the breath out of him as he was struck by his own feelings.

Oh, gods, he had fallen in love with Ryuunosuke Naruhodou.

And it was all his fault that the man he loved was seemingly on death’s door.

“No…” The tears finally started to fall then as Kazuma stared at the muddy ground and his breathing turned erratic. It felt like that spear was back on his throat, crushing his airways, and preventing any kind of relief.

It was all his fault.

Hisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfault-

“OI!”

A shout and Kazuma was slapped across the face.

“Look at me, Kaz. Jus’… deep breaths, ‘kay?”

Gina was looking at him and breathing in and out at a deliberate, steady rhythm, and Kazuma realized that she wanted him to copy her. He did and he eventually found himself able to breathe normally again.

When he had finally calmed down, he squeezed his eyes shut and whispered, “I-I’m sorry.”

“‘S fine. Wouldn’t be the firs’ time I’ve ‘ad to calm someone down. Lot o’ the other orphan kids in Prec’pice would flip when a storm came in. All that lightnin’ is scary when ya ain’t got a proper roof over your ‘ead.”

“Thank you…”

"The best thing we can do right now is wait and hope for the best since we’re too far away to make it back to Stromberg before sunset," Susato said as he went back to healing Kazuma's wounds.

He let his brother tend to his wounds as he murmured, “...I’m sorry you have to exhaust yourself with healing us like this.”

“It’s alright, I was already prepared to do this if I had to.”

“Still… We could use Iris’s help right now; I wonder what would happen if we used that doll Sholmes gave us. He never really specified what it did.”

“You can give it a try later if you like, but I would prefer to heal you as much as I can first.”

He nodded and let Susato quietly return to his work as he would occasionally glance at Ryuunosuke.

…What was he even supposed to do now? He had fallen in love, but what was he supposed to do? It’s not like trying to kiss him would do anything; it wouldn’t work and it would only leave the both of them feeling worse than before. Not to mention, Ryuunosuke was so much better and worth so much more than he was. Ryuunosuke was the beloved lost prince, kind and clever and beautiful, and Kazuma was nothing more than the hated son of a treacherous family.

Kazuma didn’t deserve him.

His thoughts were interrupted by a rustling noise and a soft groaning. Ryuunosuke was slowly sitting up while rubbing his chest with a discomforted expression.

“‘Oddo!” Gina exclaimed as she leaned over and punched him in the arm.

“Ow! What was that for?”

“For bitin’ me! And… for scarin’ us like that,” she added as she looked away, hiding her eyes.

He cringed. “I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know how else to get rid of the poison, and I didn’t think I could help Susato-san get to you in time… I’m sorry for hurting you.”

“You did the right thing. I wouldn’t have been able to help her as fast as you,” Susato reassured him. “Gina owes you her life.”

“You don’t owe me anything; I’m just happy you’re okay.”

“Yeah, wotever.”

As Ryuunosuke let out a small laugh, Kazuma found himself scrambling forward and launching himself at his friend, wrapping him in a desperate hug.

“Kazuma! I-It’s okay. I’m fine.”

“...Why did you do that?” he asked in a choked voice as his eyes started to water again.

“What…?”

“Why did you push me out of the way?”

“I-”

Kazuma pulled back and gripped both of his hands on Ryuunosuke’s shoulders, unable to hold back the tears streaming down his face as he shouted, “That could have killed you! It should have killed you!”

“I wasn’t going to let you die… and I had a hunch I would be fine. Maybe it was stupid, but, of course, I was going to take that risk when I know it would have killed you.”

“You shouldn’t have done that! Your life is more important!”

“Just because I’m some kind of lost prince doesn't mean my life is any more important than anyone else’s.” Ryuunosuke crossed his arms and gave a stern look. “Especially yours.”

“You idiot, I’m not worth it!” He let his hands drop, and he slumped over, his hair hiding his face as he whispered, “I’m supposed to be the one protecting you, and I’ve been nothing but a burden to all of you…”

A choked sob fell from his lips and he sat there, hunched over on the ground as he started blubbering and wailing like a disgusting fool.

He knew what they must think of him.

Pathetic. Useless. Good for nothing. A failure.

But he felt gentle, calloused fingertips on his wet cheeks lift his head and Kazuma looked up into dark eyes flecked with amber as Ryuunosuke firmly stated, “Your life is very much worth it, Kazuma. And you don’t need to be some kind of protector for that to be true.”

“But you and Gina both got hurt because of me. Because I failed to protect you!”

“That is not a job that you are responsible for. You are not a burden for being unable to prevent things that were out of your control,” Susato said as he offered a reassuring hand on his back.

“C’mon, you fink we’re gonna kick ya out or somefink cuz ya lost a fight? We wouldn’t know what to do wivout your stuffy arse,” Gina added with a smirk.

“You’re not a failure, and even if you were, we wouldn’t care. We…” Ryuunosuke removed his hands and glanced away, flushing slightly as he continued, “I like having you here because you’re you.”

“Don’t ya know we gotta keep ya around for your fun-lovin’ charm?”

Kazuma sniffled pathetically as he glanced between the three of them. He had promised Susato that he would share his worries, but it didn’t stop him from feeling the shame at having to have them reassure him like this. It had spilled out without his meaning to, after all.

…But it felt good. To be told he wasn’t a burden. To be told he was wanted. 

Even if he still wasn’t sure he deserved it.

He started weeping again, but it wasn’t from the crushing helplessness or inadequacy anymore. It was out of relief.

He could feel two sets of firm arms and a more hesitant pair wrap around him and he croaked, “...Thank you…”

Eventually, he was able to compose himself and declare somewhat shakily, “We should take stock of everything and see what that doll does.”

Upon inspection, it seemed that Susato’s tent was really the only casualty among their belongings, which was unfortunate, but not something that couldn’t be easily remedied in the next town they passed through.

“Guess you’ll have to share my tent or Gina’s until we can get a replacement.”

“You can ‘ave mine, Sooze. I’m used to not ‘avin one and I bet Kaz’s is stinky.”

“I don’t smell! Yours is probably the worst out of all of ours,” Kazuma retorted

Susato giggled from his place where he was leaning on Gina’s shoulder before responding, “You don’t have to sleep outside. The tents are big enough for two people. We can share.”

“Alright, I guess…” Gina mumbled as she turned away with a tinge of color in her cheeks.

“Anyway, let’s see what this thing does,” Kazuma started as he pulled the hare figurine from his pocket. The morning was wearing on him, but he was determined to try to do something to lighten his brother’s burden.

The other three sat and watched him as he tugged on the ears and dropped it in surprise when the thing started moving. It pulled a tiny piece of chalk out of its own pocket and started drawing a ritual circle on the ground. When it was done, the doll gave a little bow and there was a flash of light and the inside of the circle revealed the main suite of 221B Baker Street.

Susato gasped, “Is this a scrying spell of some kind?”

“If it is, that would mean they can’t see or hear us,” Ryuunosuke said, “so this must be something different.”

“But that kind of face-to-face communication magic hasn’t been achieved yet!”

“Hmm… Mr. Sholmes?”

Eventually, the detective came into view and his welcoming smile fell as he took in the state of them and gasped, “My word, what trouble have you all gotten yourselves into so quickly?”

“Sorry to bother you again so soon, but we were wondering if you could help us somehow…?” he said as he rubbed the back of his neck and glanced at Kazuma and Susato who were barely keeping themselves upright.

“Of course, dear fellows! You look like you’ve gone through quite the battle.”

“You could say we had a rough morning…” Ryuunosuke started as he explained the situation, including the fact that this wasn’t the first attempt on their lives.

“Hmm, a rather troubling predicament,” Sholmes pondered as he pulled out his pipe, “What happened to the ringleader?”

“She got away. I couldn’t stop her,” Kazuma answered, looking away with gritted teeth, “and she’s just going to keep trying.”

“That’s not your fault,” Ryuunosuke said as he leveled a soft look at him.

He didn’t respond and Sholmes took the opportunity to speak again, “In any case, the four of you need some time to rest and recover, and I’ll see what I can do to help you be prepared for what might come.”

“Thank you, but what exactly are you going to do? Please, don’t trouble yourself too much on our behalf.”

“Nonsense, dear fellow! It’s of the utmost importance that you are able to make it to where you need to be. This kingdom is in need of its prince, after all.”

“I don’t think I’m that important…”

“Bullshit. You’re the most important person here,” Kazuma interjected. “You’ve practically been the most important person in the kingdom for the past sixty years, except for the king.”

As he said the words, he realized that there was no way he could ever have Ryuunosuke the way that he wanted.

“I, uh, I guess…” The prince did not look convinced and Kazuma was pretty sure he just said that to avoid an argument. “Anyway, where are Iris and Barok?”

“They are currently preoccupied at the moment, but I’m sure Iris could be convinced to come upstairs and give your wounds a remote diagnosis.”

“If she wouldn’t mind. I’m fine, but…”

“The rest o’ us feel like shite,” Gina commented from her position where her head was resting atop Susato’s.

“Very well. Do try not to keel over while I fetch our dear curse-breaker,” Sholmes said as he whisked out of the room.

“I think they already have…” Ryuunosuke mumbled before he got up and started a slow pace around the camp, hand on his chin as he continued rambling under his breath, quiet enough that Kazuma couldn’t hear what he was saying.

Ever since he had woken up, Ryuunosuke had been strangely energetic, and his movements right now were so oddly fluid that Kazuma found himself getting distracted by the sway of his hips.

Or maybe they had always been like that and his realization of his feelings had made him more aware of these things.

Which was a problem he still wasn’t sure how to deal with.

He couldn’t just tell Ryuunosuke. The prince had enough to deal with; he didn’t need to be dealing with lovesick fools on top of strange curses and everything else. Not to mention, he deserved better and his promise to help Kazuma find out exactly what happened to his father was not a guarantee that he would want to stay close with him.

No, Ryuunosuke couldn’t possibly feel the same way.

“Hm? What is it, Kazuma?” Ryuunosuke’s voice jolted Kazuma out of his own head. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Just… you’re going to wear a trench into the ground if you keep going like that. Sit down already.”

“Right, sorry.” He then took a seat next to Kazuma and sighed.

Kazuma leaned over and rested a hand and his chin on his friend’s shoulder. “What are you thinking about so fiercely anyway?”

“Um!” Ryuunosuke’s eyes started darting around and his posture turned rigid. “...I… just can’t seem to understand why someone is trying so hard to kill us. And I don’t really like the answers I keep coming up with.”

“Uncle Barry, wait!”

Iris’s voice announced the man’s presence before he came sweeping into the frame with a cold, heavy fury.

“Fools, the lot of you! Look at what has already come of your stubbornness. Your refusal to understand the danger has almost taken your very lives!”

“Yeah, well, we ain’t dead yet. Not like you were any ‘elp wiv that,” Gina pointed out with a glare.

“I gave you a warning, and you failed to listen to me. You are lucky that your failure this time did not lead to your demise.” Barok directed his attention to Kazuma and continued, “It seems to me that you cannot even fulfill the one duty you tasked yourself with.”

He flinched at the comment, moving away from Ryuunosuke, and, in a lightning-fast movement, the prince shoved himself into the frame of the circle and growled, “Do not talk to him like that. It is not his fault.”

Despite being threatened by someone not even in the same room, he actually stepped back in shock before bowing low and saying, “...Pray, forgive me the discourtesy, Prince Ryuunosuke.”

“You should be apologizing to him, not me.”

“Ryuunosuke,” Kazuma interrupted, “it’s fine… I know it’s not my fault.”

The prince looked at him gently before responding, “Good. Please, don’t forget that.”

“Regardless, it is obvious now that you should be giving up on this asinine quest. If you stayed here you would no longer be putting yourself at risk,” Barok said as he crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

It was then that Iris finally interjected, “But you know he can’t do that; if he stays in the cellar, he’ll die. And speaking of,” she addressed Ryuunosuke, “you seem to be feeling a lot better, Runo. Did you figure out a safe way to fix it?”

“Um, yes, Kazuma helped me.”

“Wait, is your sleeping sickness not bothering you anymore?” Susato spoke up though his voice still sounded drained.

Iris then briefly explained the problem and Kazuma offered the solution that he had come up with, leaving out the fact that he had joined in on the midnight flight.

“That was pretty clever, Kazzie! Looks like summoning storms is a pretty useful skill.”

“Unfortunately, I don’t know how to control it during the day…”

“Maybe some practice will help.”

Gina snorted, “Are ya sure you’re even ‘uman at this point?”

“...I don’t know…” Ryuunosuke curled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, hiding his face.

“Naruhodou-sama, no matter how complicated your curse is, I’m sure you’re still human!”

“And even if you weren’t, you’re still a person, ain’t ya?”

“Thank you, Gina…”

Despite Susato’s insistence, Kazuma wasn’t so sure that was true anymore. Maybe Gina did have a point. What was true and what was not had become so jumbled in his head that he couldn’t say for certain anymore that the prince was completely human.

Which was another realization he wasn’t prepared to deal with at the moment.

“Anyway, Iris, you have some medical knowledge, right? Any suggestions?” he gestured at their obvious injuries.

“Oh! Hmm, let me see…”

After a makeshift inspection and some brief back and forth about what exactly they went through, she gave some instructions for them to follow so they would all heal the best they could.

“Now then, there is one more thing before we shall leave you to your rest,” Sholmes announced after they were done. “Do you have a map on hand?”

Susato pulled out the map they had been following and showed it to him.

“Perfect! There is an alternate route I would suggest that may be safer than your normal one. It will add about a week onto your schedule, but I believe it will still be more beneficial.”

“An alternate route? I suppose that would increase the likelihood of throwing the survivors off our tail,” Kazuma observed.

“Exactly. Here.” Sholmes then shoved a map into their frame of vision that had a line drawn on it outlining a path to The Eye from Stromberg. It diverged from the main roads quite a bit, but it wasn’t wildly off-course. Susato carefully traced the route onto their own map.

“Do not hesitate to call again if you require our assistance in the future, dear fellows! We would love to assist you in your endeavors.”

With that, the image faded and the four of them were left on their own again.

“I suppose we should take the opportunity to rest and recuperate and follow Iris’s instructions,” Ryuunosuke suggested. “I can watch the camp while you sleep. I’ll be fine to stay up for the rest of the day.”

Kazuma wasn’t about to argue; he could feel the exhaustion settling into every fiber of his muscles and bones, and he gladly crawled into his tent and sleeping bag.

Kazuma couldn’t sleep. He had woken up in the middle of the night, and, despite the fatigue still weighing down on him, he couldn’t fall back asleep.

As he lay there, he couldn’t help but think there really was enough room for two people to share. His tent felt cold and empty, and he wished the space beside him could be filled with Ryuunosuke’s warm presence.

It also didn’t help that whenever he closed his eyes, he could see the prince’s unmoving body and hear Gina’s horrible scream. 

He wasn’t getting anywhere with this.

He sighed and got up, taking his blanket with him as he left his tent. As he exited, he ended up crashing straight into Susato and Gina.

“Kazuma-sama! ...Are you having trouble sleeping as well?”

“...Yeah. I, uh, figured I’d keep Ryuunosuke company since I couldn’t go back to sleep.”

“We had the same idea actually.”

Kazuma let out a small huff of laughter as he turned toward Ryuunosuke’s circle, the other two following behind him. The dragon was waiting for them as they entered; he was wide awake as he tilted his head and looked at them expectantly.

“‘Ey, ‘Oddo, mind if we stay out ‘ere wiv you for a bit?” Gina asked as she avoided his gaze and shuffled her feet.

The corners of Ryuunosuke’s mouth curled upward in a semblance of a smile and then the fluff of his tail was wrapping around them and pulling them towards his side in a similar manner to how Kazuma had ended up last night. He then moved his head around onto the ground so his body formed a protective circle around them.

The three of them were now squished up against each other in a nest of fur, but none of them really minded. They repositioned themselves until Susato was pressed right against the dragon’s stomach while Gina sprawled herself on top of him, and Kazuma had turned so his head was on Ryuunosuke’s neck and his legs were tangled up with Gina’s. 

He had never felt so safe and comfortable as he did now falling asleep surrounded by his friends and family and wrapped up in a dragon's embrace.

Chapter Text

Two weeks passed with no sign of Brett. Kazuma wasn’t sure whether to contribute this to the hefty blow they dealt to her and her forces or Sholmes’s alternate route, but he wasn’t about to let his guard down any time soon.

Though it wasn’t easy to stay focused with Ryuunosuke around. His daydreaming had only been getting worse. His thoughts would often wander to his desires to run his hands through the prince’s spiky hair or to wrap his arms around him at night or to see if that clever tongue would be just as skillful in his mouth. Not to mention, the more intimate thoughts that plagued his dreams.

But Kazuma was doing his best NOT to think about that as they neared what looked to be the ruins of a dilapidated village, hidden from the main roads by a thick forest but right along the way of their new route. Unfortunately, as they approached, their horses started to thrash around and refuse to go any closer. Since it was late afternoon, they made the decision to set up camp in the outskirts and investigate the town the rest of the day, much to Ryuunosuke’s displeasure.

“If the horses are so upset, you would think that would be a sign not to investigate the creepy village,” the prince mumbled as they started towards the ruins.

“Hey, we found you in a place horses didn’t want to go. I’d say very good things can come from places like this,” Kazuma said as he grabbed hold of Ryuunosuke’s hand to keep him from lagging behind (and just because he wanted to hold his hand).

“You also found a giant plant monster that almost killed three of us.”

“And I would gladly fight ten more of those for you.”

Ryuunosuke looked away as he responded, “Well, you promised you wouldn’t do things like that anymore, so you shouldn’t.”

Kazuma laughed and squeezed his hand. “Anything for you, Ryuunosuke.”

“ Blimey .”

He glanced over to see both Gina and Susato looking rather exasperated. He had been getting quite a few of those looks for the past two weeks.

He ignored them and turned his attention to the ruins they were quickly approaching. Now that he was closer, he could see that they weren’t falling apart from age. It looked as if everything had been burned; the long overgrown grass and vines failed to cover the scorch marks marring the crumbling walls and stones scattered around. Not a trace of wood or straw or any other flammable material could be seen among the charred rubble.

What was truly unsettling, though, was the silence.

The only sound was the crunch of their shoes on the grass and gravel and the wind whispering through the stones.

“I don’t like this place,” Ryuunosuke stated bluntly as his eyes darted around the messy area.

“This place looks very old. Whatever did this is probably long gone,” Susato attempted to reassure him even as she nervously kept her hand on her arcane focus pinned to her cloak.

“But what if there are ghosts or something? It’s obvious this place was burned on purpose, so what if there are still vengeful spirits lurking around here?” he fretted as he glued himself to Kazuma’s side.

“Ghosts aren’t real,” he wrapped his arm around Ryuunosuke’s shoulders as he continued, “but if they were, I promise I would protect you.”

“They’re incorporeal; swinging your sword around isn’t going to do anything.”

“And you know that to be true? There were textbooks on ghosts in that big castle library of yours?”

“No, but-” he cut off at a clattering sound coming from behind a wall. “W-What was that?! A g-g-ghost?!”

Kazuma pushed the prince behind him as he drew Karuma and the others tensed. The sound of something shuffling through rocks echoed in the quiet space as they waited with bated breath for whatever it was to reveal itself.

A small, fluffy black dog with three heads emerged from the ruins, tail wagging and tongues lolling as it bounded towards them.

Gina immediately ran to greet it, letting it lick her face as Ryuunosuke exclaimed, “A hellhound!”

“This little guy’s s’posed to be from ‘ell? But ‘e’s so sweet!”

“The name comes from their excellent sense of smell and the saying that they could chase someone all the way to hell. I read that they can even smell guilt!”

“That’s true,” Susato added as she bent down to scratch one of its many ears. “It’s why they’re so widely used by the peace-keeping knights; you can see a lot of them in the capital, but they’re still rare and even supposedly extinct in the wild!”

“They’ve been completely domesticated?”

“Yes, a few years after King Vortex came to power, he ordered all the wild ones to be rounded up so there would be more available working hounds. The domestic ones are rather aggressive… It’s a wonder there’s one wandering around out here without a collar.”

“He must be a little rebel then, huh?” Ryuunosuke said as he hesitantly patted one of its heads, receiving a small lick in response.

“Well, I’m gonna name ‘im Toby!” Gina declared, picking him up. The puppy yipped happily and furiously wagged his tail. “See, ‘e likes it!”

“I don’t think we can really keep a dog with us while we travel,” Kazuma said.

He wasn't a fan of hellhounds to be honest. He had seen too many instances of knights using the beasts as an excuse to arrest anyone they growled at.

“Wot, you wanna leave ‘im ‘ere wiv no one to take care o’ ‘im?”

“Oh, Kazuma-sama, let’s keep him, please? He’s small enough to fit in our laps while we ride.”

“But-” Gina shoved the dog into his face and the three pairs of pleading black eyes were too much for him to handle. “Fine…”

“Ya ‘ear that, Toby? You get to come wiv us now!”

She put him down and Toby started running circles around them and barking before tearing off towards the far edge of the town.

“‘Ey, wait!”

The four of them chased after the dog, weaving through the overgrown rubble; Toby disappeared behind the largest standing wall, and when they rounded around it they stopped in their tracks.

An empty field dotted with rows of weathered, makeshift grave markers greeted them.

“Aw, hey little fella, we thought you ran off.” 

Kazuma looked to see Toby had been running to find two people that seemed to be placing fresh flowers on the graves judging by the cart full of flowers nearby. One was a short woman with a pair of glinting glasses and the other seemed much taller, but it was difficult to tell since they were crouching down next to Toby.

“Oh!” the woman holding flowers noticed them and gasped while the other one narrowed their eyes mistrustfully.

“We’re terribly sorry if we disturbed you. Is that your dog?” Susato asked as she gave a polite bow.

“Do we look like knights to you?” the one petting Toby snapped. “But a better question is who are all of you and what are you doing here?”

“We mean no disrespect. We’re only passing through on our way to the capital.”

“No one passes through this place. There’s no reason for you to be off the main roads.”

“There is no need to interrogate them,” the woman bowed her head as she continued, “I apologize for my friend’s rudeness, it’s just that… this place isn’t exactly public knowledge.”

“Oh, we had no idea this place was here. We only chose to take a less direct route to avoid the traffic on the main roads from those fleeing the dragon,” Susato easily lied.

“Like running would even change anything,” the other scoffed, getting up to lean against the cart. “It can fly , I don’t think distance matters much to it. If it's even real.”

“What do you mean by that?” Kazuma asked.

“I’m just saying it's been almost two months and it hasn't shown up again. It decided to pop up for a day then disappear again? ‘Cause the old prince is dead or something? Which, if you ask me, is another thing that doesn’t make any fucking sense.”

“You don’t think he’s dead?”

“Personally, I’m not convinced he was ever in that castle to begin with, and if he was, why wouldn’t the dragon have killed the old fuck right away? Why would it wait?”

“You should be more respectful; that prince is an important person,” Kazuma growled when he noticed Ryuunosuke looked uncomfortable.

“No. I say good riddance to the little shit. With him gone, there’s nothing for people to march themselves to their death to anymore.” They crossed their arms and looked away as they added, “No more idiots running off on an unwinnable quest.”

“Are you referring to the adventurers in the past that have tried to rescue him?” Ryuunosuke asked quietly.

“Like I’m gonna talk about that with some random strangers, especially ones that clearly think this prince is some sacred martyr.” They glared at them before addressing their friend, “You can finish with the flowers by yourself, Selia. I’m going back to wait by the trail.”

"Wait, are ya takin' Toby?"

"What, the dog? We just found him today and if you've already named him, sounds like he's yours now."

With that, they waved a flippant hand and stormed off.

The woman sighed as she watched the other, “I’m… sorry about that. Anna is… The topic of Prince Vortex is a touchy subject for them, and all this anxiety about the dragon has been aggravating as well.”

“What happened? Did they lose someone to that quest?”

Selia looked closely at Ryuunosuke before sighing again, “Yes. Both their brother and their sister attempted to free the prince a few years ago, but obviously, they never came back. Ever since then, Anna has been very critical of the situation and any who seem to support it.”

“That doesn’t seem like an unreasonable reaction. They lost their family after all…”

"I'll admit it's been difficult for me to stay positive about it as well; their sister was my partner, but still, it feels cruel to say such things about him. Especially now since it seems he never got to leave. It is a rather tragic fate."

"I can imagine…"

There was a moment of quiet before Susato finally asked, "If I may ask, what are you doing here? You and your friend said earlier that this place isn't often visited or traveled through."

Selia looked away across the rows of graves before answering, "I'm paying my respects. Because no one else can or will."

"Wot 'appened 'ere?"

She glanced between the four of them, seeming to study their intent as she asked, "Do you really want to know?"

"We would like to hear the truth," Ryuunosuke responded, quietly but fiercely.

"Very well. It was about forty years ago, near the end of King Vortex's reign, that crown knights arrived on the king's orders to slaughter everyone in this village and burn it to the ground."

"What?! Why?!" Kazuma gasped.

"The people in this village named this place Haven in hopes that it would be a safe space as they sympathized with the dragons and didn't trust the king. Obviously, that mistrust wasn't unfounded."

“I don't understand. Were they attacked because they were planning on overthrowing the monarchy?"

"No. They simply wanted to live their lives in peace."

"How do you know all this?"

Selia looked down and fiddled with the flower in her hands as she said, "My mother was one of the few survivors that managed to escape. She grew up here and after the attack, she and the other survivors came back to properly bury everyone, but she was the only one who would come back every year to pay respects to everyone. I have heard the story from her lips countless times, enough so that I feel it would be wrong of me not to carry on the tradition even after her death."

“But why would the king do such a thing? Were they really attacked so needlessly?” Susato questioned, doubt creeping into her tone.

“If you’re suggesting that my mother lied to me, I can’t stop you from believing that. There were times that I felt she was hiding things from me, but regardless of the truth, I know that whatever happened here was far more harsh than necessary. Feel free to peruse the gravemarkers to see what I mean.” With that, she went back to her work of carefully placing bundles of flowers on the graves, clearly declaring their conversation finished for now.

Taking the hint, and now curious as to what she was talking about, Kazuma started walking down the rows, reading off what was written. Each one had a name and a number that he assumed was their age. They were also grouped by family. He read a few names per family before moving on to the next one.

Ariella Hawking, 34

Kilie Hawking, 41

Hazel Hawking, 12

-

Iyesa Nosa, 70

Aido Nosa, 31

-

Saburo Hughes, 76

Eva Hughes, 50

Takuma Hughes, 8

-

Satoru Hosonaga, 62

-

Hanako Takahashi, 21

Nelle Takahashi, 6 mo

These weren’t even close to every name in every family, but Kazuma had to stop reading at that last one as his stomach started to churn. Even a six-month-old infant had been killed along with every other man, woman, and child that the knights had gotten ahold of. It was a completely indiscriminate massacre, and it made him clench his fists and grit his teeth at the injustice of it all. 

The rage boiling his blood began to simmer down when fat raindrops started falling on his head. “Ryuunosuke…?” Kazuma reached a hand out to his friend who had turned pale and shaky. He looked like he was going to be sick.

“I don’t… I don’t like this place, ” the prince whispered emphatically as he wrapped his arms around himself.

“I’m wiv ‘Oddo. I fink we should leave this place alone. It ain’t right…” Gina said as she scooped Toby up into her arms.

“You’re right. We should be getting back to camp anyway; it’s getting dark soon.” Kazuma turned toward Selia who was now finishing up with the last of the graves. Anna had also apparently returned to help with the cart. “Thank you, for telling us this story.”

“You told them?!” Anna exclaimed, glaring at their friend before addressing Kazuma, “Your thanks would only mean something if you promise not to tell anyone else.”

“We could, but why? People should be aware of the injustices that happened here. It wouldn’t be right to let it be lost to history!”

“And I’d rather not risk having mine or Selia’s name on King Stronghart’s hit list. If the wrong person finds out we’ve been doing this, that’s a surefire way to get branded a sympathizer and have our heads chopped off! So don’t fucking tell anyone!”

He would argue, but Kazuma knew damn well they had a point. So he nodded and gave a solemn bow as he swore his silence. He bid farewell to the two and turned to head back to the camp with the rest of his companions.

Things were quiet as they settled down to eat dinner, huddling under one of their tarps to avoid the rain. But there was someone who hadn’t said a word since they realized the extent of the atrocity that occurred here.

“Susato-chan… are you alright?”

She startled, nearly dropping her water flask as she responded quickly, “I’m quite alright, Kazuma-sama, just… concerned about what we found today.”

“You don’t need to pretend to be okay. Finding children’s graves is enough to rattle anyone.”

“I… don’t understand how King Vortex could have been so cruel. Yes, some of his decisions and policies have been questionable, but he was still a good man, right?”

“Personally, I wouldn’t be too upset if we found I wasn’t actually related to him,” Ryuunosuke muttered.

“‘E killed babies, Sooze. I don’t fink anyone who would do that could be good,” Gina added as she fed some scraps to Toby.

“...But he saved people from the dragons, didn’t he…?”

No one responded to that. Kazuma didn’t think that justified the slaughter of innocent people, and he knew Susato was smart enough to already know that.

Ryuunosuke then abruptly got up, declaring, “Have a good night, everyone,” as he walked into his circle with the sun sinking below the horizon.

Kazuma lost track of how long he’d been laying in his tent trying to sleep.

He couldn’t help but think of his mother and the paranoia that plagued her until it eventually wore her down and took her away from him. She had spent the last year of her life constantly looking over her shoulder, full of fear that the crown knights would be coming for her and Kazuma next, that they wouldn’t be satisfied with just his father’s life. And now it seemed as if that fear wasn’t completely baseless.

He wondered if she knew more than he thought she did.

The howling wind and drumming rain outside weren’t helping his insomnia either.

“Oi, Kaz! Get up!”

“Huh? What’s wrong?” Kazuma looked to see Gina barge into his tent, soaked to the bone and wearing a panicked expression.

“It’s ‘Oddo, ‘e’s gone!”

“What?!” He leapt to his feet as his blood ran cold. “What do you mean he’s gone?!”

“I went over there to ask if ‘e could stop the storm or somefin, but ‘e weren’t there!”

“Are you sure he’s not just flying around?”

“I called ‘is name an’ everyfin, but ‘e never came back.”

“ Shit. Did you try getting Toby to find him?”

“I didn’t fink o’ that. But ‘ow do we get ‘im to do that?”

“He needs something with Ryuunosuke’s scent on it. Come on, there should be plenty of things in his bag that will work.”

On the way to get the prince’s things, they bumped into Susato. “What’s going on? I heard shouting.”

“Apparently, Ryuunosuke’s missing.”

“What? But where could he have gone?”

“That’s what we’re going to find out.”

It didn’t take long for them to grab one of Ryuunosuke’s shirts to let each of Toby’s heads get a good whiff of, and as soon as he caught the scent, he tore off towards the ruined village. As they continued to follow him, the sound of a wordless melody could be heard tearing through the wind. It was slow and mournful, and it made Kazuma’s heart hurt as he recognized the sad voice.

They turned around the wall that hid the graveyard where they finally spotted Ryuunosuke lying on the ground with his head held high as he sang a dirge to the stormy sky. 

Toby barked as he reached his target and the dragon stopped singing, but he didn’t look at his companions as they approached.

“Naruhodou-sama…?”

No response.

“Ryuunosuke? What are you doing out here?”

Nothing.

“C’mon, ‘Oddo, why d’ya sound so sad?”

Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at them, nothing but pain and grief swimming in those depthless pools. He looked back towards the graves.

“Did you… Do you recognize some of these names?” Kazuma asked as he hesitantly moved closer to his friend.

A slow nod.

“But these people were… They weren’t on your si-”

Before Susato could finish her thought, Ryuunosuke whirled around and snarled at her, baring his teeth as lightning sparked across his scales, but just as quickly as it came, the aggression faded, and he laid his head on the ground, the fight seeming to have drained out of him.

With how comfortable Kazuma had gotten with the dragon, it had become easy to forget just how dangerous he actually was. 

Tentative and slow, he reached out to place a hand on Ryuunosuke’s snout. “I-It’s okay.”

The dragon looked at him for a long moment before squeezing his eyes shut and shifting closer into the touch.

“I know it must hurt, but you can’t stay out here for too long. You never know if someone could be nearby.”

Ryuunosuke let out a soft growl before picking himself up and abruptly flying off towards their camp. The remaining three of them looked at each other uncertainly before trudging back to their tents as the rain never once let up.

It was still raining as they woke up and started packing their things. Kazuma went to ask Ryuunosuke if he was ready, but when he peered into the circle, he saw the prince sitting with his legs curled into his chest and his head buried in his knees. He waved the others over before approaching his despondent friend.

“Ryuunosuke, what’s wrong?”

He moved his head just slightly to look at Kazuma, but he didn’t respond.

“You can’t mope forever; we have to leave soon. You can talk to us.” he sat down next to Ryuunosuke and smiled encouragingly. Gina and Susato also arrived to sit with them.

“...What if I don’t want to go?”

“I thought you made it pretty clear you didn’t like this place.”

“No, I mean what if I didn’t want to go to the capital?”

“‘Ang on, you’ve been ready to scarper off there the ‘ole time; now ya don’t wanna go?”

He looked away from all of them, drawing his arms tighter around his knees as he said, “I never really cared about going. Well, I did at first, but then I stopped, and now… now I just don’t want to.”

“Why? Why say you wanted to go if you actually didn’t?” Kazuma asked.

“Because… Because that’s what you all wanted, and I wanted to stay with you. But that was just delaying the inevitable. I don’t want to be alone again, but once we get there, you’re all just going to leave me…”

“That’s not true! You’re not going to be alone!”

“Why? Because I’ll have a royal court happily welcoming me into their arms? I don’t give a shit about them.”

“No, I mean-”

Ryuunosuke cut him off as he suddenly stood up and said, “I’m just a means to an end for you, aren’t I? Once you get what you want, your money, prestige, or whatever, what reason do you have to stay with me? I’m apparently so important to everyone, but do I really matter?”

“Of course, you matter, you’re our friend!” Susato exclaimed, leaning towards him with determination. “Even after we safely return you to the king, we wouldn’t to abandon you completely!”

“You’re not just an objective for a quest; you’re a person and we care about you,” Kazuma said as he reached for one of Ryuunosuke’s hands and entangled their fingers.

“It wouldn’t be as fun wivout ya, and you really fink we’re gonna let ya ‘ang out all day wiv stuffy nobles?” Gina declared with Toby yipping an agreement.

Tears gathered in the prince’s eyes and he sniffed, “Thank you…” before wrapping his arms around Kazuma in a tight hug.

When he pulled back, Kazuma reached out and placed a hand on his cheek, wiping away some of his tears with his thumb. Ryuunosuke’s eyes widened and he flushed an adorable pink, but he didn’t move away.

“So, Ryuunosuke, what do you want?”

“I, um!” His wandering eyes finally settled when Kazuma pulled his hand away and he continued, “...Well, I still don’t really want to go to the capital or meet the king…”

“Is there a reason for that?”

“From what I’ve seen, the monarchy doesn’t seem… all that great. I also don’t think I’d be as welcome as you believe. I mean, that person, Anna, they hated me! And I doubt they’re the only one that does.”

“That’s… a good point actually.”

“If I may, I don’t believe that going to the capital is still a bad idea,” Susato interjected. “You don’t have to meet the king and let him know you’re there, but I think my father might be able to help us with your curse. He is a curse-breaker so he may be able to offer some more insight. We also can’t forget that the capital is still your best chance to find someone that knows you.”

“I would also like to hear Mikotoba-sensei’s input as well. He’s been doing this longer than Iris has, I’m sure.”

“Would it be safe? Barok said hatred towards the dragons is strongest in the capital,” Ryuunosuke said as he worriedly glanced around.

“We won’t let anything happen to you. I promise. As long as we’re careful, everything will be fine,” Kazuma assured him with a hand on his arm.

“...Okay. We better get going then!” He added with a smile that lit up his whole face and seemed to clear away the clouds in the sky, making Kazuma’s heart stutter.

With that, they left the ruins of Haven behind and set off for the capital of Tempest with a new purpose in mind and a new companion at their side.

Chapter Text

The closer and closer they got to The Eye, the more nervous everyone seemed to get. Which was understandable since the general attitude of the citizens around them was getting more and more aggressive toward the dragon, leading them to take more precautions when they set up camp for the night.

The suspiciousness was bad enough that as they neared the gates of the next city on their route, Kazuma stopped and removed his cloak to throw it over Ryuunosuke’s shoulders, pulling the hood up. His hands lingered on the prince’s collar as he adjusted the thick fabric.

“What’s this for?”

“To hide your ears and eyes. You can never be too careful.”

“Oh, thanks.” He smiled and it was a shame that the shadow of the hood prevented the sun from catching on the amber in his eyes.

“Though I must say, you look better in blue.”

“I don’t know, I like red too. …It reminds me of you.”

“Ahem.” Susato cleared his throat, eyeing the two of them. “We’re almost at the gate now.” 

This city was smaller than Stromberg, but it still had a checkpoint at the gate before anyone was let in. The guards also looked to be performing more detailed inspections on those passing through; they even had a fully grown hellhound sniffing at incoming visitors. Ryuunosuke kept his head down as they waited their turn.

“State your business,” one of the guards snapped as the four of them approached.

“We’re only passing through to replenish ourselves and our supplies on our way to the capital,” Susato stated with an incline of his head.

They huffed and looked like they were going to say something else, but then they noticed Toby. “Oh, is that a hellhound? I didn’t realize you were knights, you aren’t wearin’ any uniforms. Sorry, you can go on through without an inspection, just make sure to get that hound on a leash as soon as possible.”

“Of course. Thank you.”

They all breathed a quiet sigh of relief when the guards waved them through, though Kazuma didn’t like the way the guards’ hellhound was eyeing them as they passed.

“Are things normally so… militant here?” Ryuunosuke asked as they led their horses through the crowded streets towards a stable.

“Why’d they wanna go through all our stuff? They fink we’re gonna be ‘idin’ a dragon in our knickers or somefink?”

Kazuma snorted before responding, “No, they’re just being overly cautious. Policing who comes in isn’t going to stop a dragon, but it is supposed to make people feel safer. We’re lucky Toby gave them the impression that we were knights.”

“Do you think they wouldn’t have let us in if they noticed my ears and… everything else?”

“They probably would have dragged you into their barracks to interrogate you. Or just arrested you on the spot. Those darting eyes of yours are a surefire sign of a guilty conscience.”

Ryuunosuke blanched and Kazuma laughed as he patted his back. “Don’t worry, we wouldn’t have let that happen. Now let’s give our horses someplace to rest and grab some lunch.”

“If I recall, when we passed through here on our way over, there was a stall that sold the most delicious fritters! We should stop by again,” Susato added.

They took care of their horses and set off to find some lunch. It took some time to find what they were specifically looking for since it had been almost three months since he and his brother had been here last, but they eventually found it tucked in one of the marketplaces.

The woman running the stall nearly dropped the knife she was holding when she saw them and cried out, “What in the ‘ell?! You’re not those two quest takers, are ya?!”

Kazuma had forgotten that the last time they were here, their mission had come up during conversation, leading the woman to offer them their food for free as either a thank you or a pity last meal; he wasn’t sure what she had thought of them. “Er, yes, we are, but we were unable to make it to our destination before the whole… dragon thing happened. Unfortunately,” he replied, sticking to the lie Susato had come up with back in Precipice.

“Sounds like you got pretty lucky if you ask me. Didn’t think I’d end up seein’ your faces again, but I think this time you better pay for your food.”

“Don’t worry. We intend to, but thank you again for your charity last time.”

“‘Course, now whaddaya want?”

As everyone took the time to decide what they wanted, a sudden gust of wind blew through, giving a pleasant chill but also, unfortunately pushing Ryuunosuke’s hood off his head.

“Ah!” He quickly grabbed it and put it back on with a nervous smile, accidentally showing his teeth, but not before the woman narrowed her eyes at him.

“...You’ve got some strange features, boy,” she said, chopping through a pepper with more force than necessary.

“I, um…”

As Ryuunosuke floundered, Susato cut in, “Naruhodou-sama was cursed as a child. The only reason he wears that cloak is to not alarm others. He’s quite harmless, I assure you.”

“I see.” The woman continued to aggressively cut her vegetables, not saying anything else.

The rest of them stood awkwardly in silence as they waited for their food to be ready. When it was done, they grabbed it and paid as fast as they could. They maneuvered around until they found a proper place to sit and eat, and, despite the woman’s suspicion, she still made a rather delicious fritter.

As they were getting ready to grab a few more supplies for the final leg of their journey, Kazuma noticed that clouds had gathered in the sky. “Ryuunosuke? Are you alright?” he asked as he pointed up.

“Hm? Oh.” Ryuunosuke’s expression twisted with annoyance as he continued, “You know, sometimes it is just a rainy day. I’m fine, I promise. You don’t have to keep asking that every time it gets even slightly gray outside.”

“I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“Thank you for the concern, but please, shut up, Kazuma.” Ryuunosuke smiled and leaned up to place a small kiss on Kazuma’s cheek.

And that certainly did shut him up. His brain completely ground to a halt as blood rushed to his face and he attempted to process what his friend had just done. 

And it seemed, the prince also had to process what he did as realization slowly dawned on his face and he squeaked, “Um! Well, anyway! Y-You and Susato-san should go get the rest of our supplies while Gina and I… go find a leash for Toby! We’ll meet you by the south gate later!”

With that, he grabbed Gina’s hand and dragged her off down a side street, her laughter echoing after them. Kazuma stood agape with one hand brushing against his cheek where Ryuunosuke had kissed him.

“Close your mouth, Kazuma-sama.”

His jaw snapped shut but not for very long as he wondered out loud, “...He kissed me…”

“Yes, we all saw that, and I do hope you’ll do something about it. It’s been long enough.”

“Huh?” He whipped his head toward his brother who was simply staring at him with an unimpressed look.

Susato placed his hands on his hips and scolded, “Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about. You’ve been terribly obvious about it. It’s practically insufferable.”

Denying what he was referring to would be pointless so instead, Kazuma protested, “I’m not that obvious!”

“.....” He was greeted by more of the same exasperation before Susato finally responded more gently, “You really should tell him how you feel.”

“He’s… I’m not…” He wasn’t good enough for him. “I can’t just say it!”

“Yes, you can. It’s very simple.”

“Oh, really? Then why haven’t you told Gina how you feel, Susato-kun? You’re not so subtle yourself.”

He looked ready to perform a Susato Takedown as he blushed furiously and retorted, “I-I’m certainly better than you! You flirt with Naruhodou-sama practically all the time!”

“I do not!”

“You do! And besides, Gina and I… It’s not the same thing!”

“Isn’t it?”

“Yes! I mean, No! You… You need to kiss Naruhodou-sama to break his curse!” Susato pointed an accusatory finger at him.

Kazuma choked as he struggled to respond, “W-Well, that’s… I can’t do that either!”

“And why not? It’s rather self-explanatory.”

“Because it wouldn’t work! I mean, he kissed me earlier, but nothing happened!”

“That’s because you need to be the one to kiss him .”

He crossed his arms and pouted, “That’s not fair. …And besides, I don’t want to disappoint him like that…”

“Kazuma-sama…” Susato relaxed and said softly, “True love’s kiss is real. You don’t have to keep stubbornly refusing to believe in it. And surely trying would be more beneficial than refusing to do anything .”

“I just…” He slumped against a nearby wall, sinking down until he was sitting on the ground as he muttered, “I can’t do it, okay? It wouldn’t be fair to him. I don’t want him to feel like he owes me.”

“I doubt that would be the main thing on his mind,” Susato reassured as he sat down next to him. “I think he would mostly be pleased that you care so much.” 

“Not if he doesn’t feel the same way.”

His brother let out a deep sigh. “You should give him more credit. I think he’s just as smitten with you. He did kiss you earlier.”

“He only did that because I was being annoying, and he wanted me to shut up.”

“You would have received far more kisses by now if that were the case.”

Kazuma ignored that comment and threw his hands up in exasperation. “Okay, but why do I have to be the one to do this? If trying is so beneficial, then why don’t you do it!?”

Susato deflated slightly as he answered, “Well… it would be improper. And presumptuous.”

He knocked the back of his head lightly against the wall and ran a hand through his hair as he sighed, “Neither of us are going to get anywhere with this, are we?”

“...No. But perhaps I should talk to Gina soon…” Susato suddenly looked up with determined fists. “Alright. When we get home and we’re no longer constantly on the road… I’ll tell her how I feel!”

“Nice and simple?”

“Shut up, Kazuma-sama, or do I need to give you a kiss to make you do that?”

He was never going to live that down, was he? “Ugh, let’s just finish getting more supplies.”

Kazuma stood and helped his brother up, the two of them returning to their duties with no further conversation.

When they walked out of the general store with what they needed, it was pouring down rain and lightning flashed above them.

“Do you think…?” Kazuma muttered as he mildly regretted giving away his cloak.

“It’s been overcast all day, you really shouldn’t get yourself worked up over him every time there’s a thunderstorm.”

“I know it’s probably fine, but I don’t like it. I would feel a lot better if he was here.”

“Then we better get going. I’m sure the two of them are done by now and waiting for us.”

Kazuma had to wait a few more minutes since Susato was feeling generous enough to cast a spell to keep them safe from the rain, but they eventually started making their way to the meeting spot.

As they were passing by the jail where guards or knights would hold interim prisoners, they heard frustrated cursing. “Hold still, you mangy mutt! Who trained this thing, and why do we have to deal with it in the middle of a storm like this?!”

“Maybe the dragon trained it to be uncooperative? Just so we would have a hard time with it?”

“Yeah, I’m sure the fucking dragon was planning on getting caught like this. Sounds like a very solid plan.”

Kazuma and Susato only looked at each other, wide-eyed, before they dashed toward the noise to investigate. When they neared the main entryway to the jail, they found three knights shoving a wriggling, biting Toby into a small crate.

Kazuma was already two steps forward with Karuma half unsheathed before Susato stopped him. “Wait. There are knights and guards all over the place. We need to be careful.”

“What are you going to do? Try to convince them to just hand them over? How are we supposed to be subtle about this?!”

“...I have an idea. Please, let me try…” His brother’s hands were shaking and he was biting his lip to keep it from trembling.

“...Okay. I trust you.”

Susato straightened up into a dignified posture and marched toward the knights, Kazuma following suit.

“Pardon me, but what are you doing with our hound?” Susato’s voice was clipped and professional, demanding attention even as Toby perked up and gave a happy bark at their approach.

“ Your hound?” the apparent leader of the group asked, judging by the way the others seemed to fall behind him. “As far as I’m aware this dog belongs to the dragon and its traitorous companion.” 

“It does not. It belongs to us, and we would appreciate it if you returned it to us along with the two people that I presume you have in your custody.”

Where in the hell was he going with this?!

“So you're boldly admitting to consorting with dragons?” the leader said with a hand on his sword.

Susato didn’t falter as he responded, “Not in the way you think. My brother and I are knights, and we have been leading the dragon to the capital to bring it into royal custody under direct order from King Stronghart.”

“You expect us to believe that it just willingly handed itself over to you?”

“No, we tricked it into believing that we wanted to help it. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to get this far. Why do you think it hasn’t attacked anyone since it was first seen?”

The doubt on their faces shifted into genuine consideration at that, but then one of the others asked, “But why do you have an untrained hellhound? If you’re on some special mission, shouldn’t you be properly equipped?”

“Well… we aren’t actually official knights. This was more of a… a way to prove ourselves.”

Susato was starting to falter so Kazuma took the opportunity to step in. “That’s right. We were given an untrained dog to go with us on this quest because it wasn’t truly given in an official capacity. This was meant to be a way to prove ourselves because… my name is Kazuma Asougi.”

As expected, distrust immediately fell into their expressions. “An Asougi ? Now you really expect us to believe you’re not working with the beast?”

He did his best to stay calm when faced with that familiar contempt as he responded, “My family’s past does not dictate my own actions. I intend to fix what my ancestors did. Now if the king saw fit to give me the chance to prove that, enough to give us a hellhound, who are you to judge otherwise? After all, this plan only worked because the vile, stupid beast trusted me due to my name.” Those last words tasted like poison as he spoke, but he had to convince them.

There was a long moment of consideration before the leader finally said while opening Toby’s crate, “Alright, you can have the dog, but we’re keeping the dragon.”

“What?!” Kazuma could barely feel any relief at getting Toby back as he shouted, “Did you not hear us?! We’re doing this for the king!”

"Yeah, but you messed up and we're more than happy to clean up your mistake. After all, the people who bring in the dragon are sure to live comfortably for the rest of their lives."

"You have no right! Let them go!"

The man stepped forward and shoved Kazuma to the ground as he growled, "Know your place, traitor, and let someone who actually deserves it handle this."

"Hii-yah!" Before he could even react, Susato had tossed the knight, sending him crashing into the front doors of the jail. " Do not speak to him like that. Now if you'll excuse us, we will be taking our leave."

He grabbed Toby's leash and hauled Kazuma to his feet, dragging the two of them away from the knights.

"What are you doing?! They're still in there; we can't just leave!"

"There's nothing more we can do there. What we need to do now is wait for sundown and trust Naruhodou-sama and Gina."

" Wait ?! What are you thinking?! We can't just fucking leave them in there!"

"WHAT ELSE ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO?!" Susato's whole body was trembling and his eyes were glistening with unshed tears. "We can't just barge in there, there are too many knights here. We wouldn't be able to fight them all, and I don’t… I don’t know what to do… I don’t know how to help them, Kazuma-sama …”

The helplessness came crashing down on him once again and the only thing Kazuma could do was pull his brother into a bone-crushing hug. “...I’m sorry. You’re right, though. They don’t know about Ryuunosuke’s curse; if the two of them haven’t already figured how to break out, it’s basically a guarantee when the sun sets.” He pulled back with his hands resting on Susato’s shoulders. “They’ll be okay. You’re right and we just have to trust them.”

This was as much of a reassurance for Susato as it was for himself. Ryuunosuke and Gina were both capable and clever; they weren’t helpless. He had to remember that.

Susato nodded and took a deep, shaking breath before he said, “Then we… we should get our horses from the stables and prepare ourselves to leave the city as soon as possible. We should also have Toby be ready to follow their scents so we can easily find them if they don’t find us.”

Solemn and quiet, the two siblings did as Susato suggested and packed everything so they could run at a moment’s notice. When they returned to wait by the jail, the sun had almost set and, despite the rain, the place was alive with activity but not the alarm that would indicate Ryuunosuke and Gina had managed to escape. Almost as soon as the sun sank below the horizon, a loud ‘CRACK’ rang out across the area.

A quiet hush descended for a moment before a rumbling could be heard as the walls of the jail started to crack and the stone began to crumble. A flurry of movement surged toward the building as knights and guards rushed to investigate, but just as quickly, the dragon finally broke through and bricks and metal rained down on everyone. Lightning charged the air as Ryuunosuke curled protectively around Gina and urged her to climb on his neck even as the guards recovered from the shock and started to attack. Arrows flew toward him, and while most bounced off his thick scales, some struck the gaps and a few grazed Gina. Before long, though, he was able to take to the skies with an accompanying crack of thunder.

Kazuma and Susato urged their horses to follow when he noticed that on the battlements of the city wall, knights had pulled up a ballista, aimed toward the sky, and ready to shoot. He watched in horror as a bolt was shot and it struck the dragon right in his side. Ryuunosuke roared and his movements staggered, but he kept going until he had disappeared into the storm clouds.

They couldn’t follow him by sight anymore so Susato gave Toby one of Ryuunosuke’s shirts and they galloped through the streets towards the closest exit. Luckily, due to the chaos, the gate was already open and they were able to speed past with only Toby’s noses pointing them in the proper direction through the darkening night lit only by flashes of lightning.

It felt like an eternity as they raced off toward an unknown destination; the only thing keeping them on track was Toby’s barks every time they seemed to veer off course. Anxiety twisted Kazuma’s gut and permeated his mind. He had no idea how long Ryuunosuke could fly for in his condition and if or when the city forces would find them. He hoped the intense storm would waylay them for as long as possible.

He couldn’t help but blame himself for letting his friends run off by themselves even though he knew that they had to be more careful. 

Eventually, Toby led them to a rocky landscape that marked the beginnings of the mountain range that ran along the northwestern edge of the kingdom. The twisting arrangement of the rocks left the place a maze, not to mention, Kazuma could barely see five feet in front of him with how heavy the rain was. So they had to dismount and let Toby on the ground so he could lead them better through the craggy, wet labyrinth. Susato’s rain barrier spell had long since faded, but no matter how drenched he was, the panic and worry running through his system kept him from noticing the cold.

As they climbed deeper into the low mountains, the rocks began to form outcroppings and overhangs and even caves that gave them some reprieve from the rain during their search. It was in one such cave that they finally found Ryuunosuke and Gina.

The dragon was lying on his side, breathing heavily, the ballista bolt still buried deep in his flank as dark red blood steadily leaked out of the wound into a disturbingly large puddle. Gina was latched onto his neck, her face buried in his mane as she shivered from cold or fear, Kazuma couldn’t tell. At the sound of Toby’s excited barking, though, she jerked up and stared at them like she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing. It was obvious that she had been crying.

“Oh, Gina, I’m so glad you’re alright!” Susato rushed forward to give his friend a hug.

“Sooze… I’m glad to see ya too, but- but ya gotta ‘elp ‘Oddo! ‘E ain’t… I don’t fink ‘e’s gonna make it much longer…” She nearly shoved him off of her as she frantically waved at Ryuunosuke’s wound. 

“You’re right.” He moved to help Ryuunosuke but grimaced as he inspected the wound. “I’ve never worked on anything other than people before… but first things first, we need to get that bolt out, though I don’t think it’s going to come out very easily…”

Before anyone could react, Ryuunosuke shifted, groaning softly as he wrapped his tail around the bolt and pulled it free with a growl. He dropped it on the ground and collapsed as blood started to gush from the now gaping wound, stark against his pure white scales.

“Ah!” Susato jumped into action, scrambling to start up his healing spells to stop the blood flow.

There was so much blood and it was starting to make Kazuma feel dizzy. He turned away, grabbing Gina’s arm as he did so and murmuring, “Come on, let’s start a fire so we can get warm and dry and let Susato-kun do his job.”

Kazuma went through the motions of making a fire in a daze, mindlessly grabbing the sticks and kindling they had stashed for emergencies since there was no wood available in their rocky environment. He grabbed some blankets for himself and Gina and settled down, watching the flickering flames and listening to the crackling wood and falling rain, and trying desperately to ignore the low growls of pain coming from Ryuunosuke.

None of this would be happening if he hadn’t let them run off like that. They would all be safe and unhurt if he hadn’t gotten so distracted by something as simple as a kiss on the cheek. If he hadn’t been so pathetic, he would have made sure they stayed together.

“You good, Kaz?”

Gina’s voice halted his internal spiraling. “...Shouldn’t I be asking you that? You were the one who just got arrested.”

She hunched over with crossed legs, looking away from him and Toby curled up in her lap. “It ain’t like I never ‘ad it rough before; I’ll be fine. But I bet you’re sittin’ there finkin’ it’s all yer fault or somefink.”

He winced at her spot-on assessment before he sighed, “I can’t fully deny that, but will you at least tell me what happened? How did they even know about Ryuunosuke?”

“It was that bleedin’ fritter lady! She sold ‘im out! A ‘ole load o’ knights showed up an’... didn’t even ‘ave time to get me knives before they grabbed us.”

“Did they hurt you?”

“Not really, just tied us up, but…” She curled in on herself even further as her voice dipped low and she continued, “At first they said they was gonna off me since they didn’t need me, but then ‘Oddo yelled at em real scary and they took me wiv ‘im.”

“Gina… Are you really sure you’re fine? You shouldn’t try to bottle it up… it’s not pretty when it boils over.” His breakdown after Brett’s attack was proof enough of that.

“Yeah… guess I don’t wanna end up like you, wailin’ like a baby in front o’ ev’ryone.”

“Good to know I’m leading by bad example.”

She let out a snort before she turned serious, “You know, I fink get ‘ow ‘Oddo felt in that castle a little bit. When we was in that cell, I ain’t ever felt so trapped an’ ‘elpless. Kinda lonely, though ‘avin’ ‘im there wiv me ‘elped.” Toby licked at her hands and face, earning a small laugh as she tugged him closer.

Kazuma placed a gentle hand on her back and said, “I’m sorry.”

“Ya know it ain’t yer fault, right?”

“I… I do, but thank you for the reminder.” 

Gina suddenly leaned over to rest on his shoulder before muttering, “...We’re all gonna stay together, right?”

“Huh? I thought we already established that we would be, and I think at this point, we’re basically stuck together…” he trailed off as he realized that since the knights had found out about them they likely wouldn’t be able to just waltz home anymore.

“Good. …I didn’t say nuffin’ before, but when ‘Oddo was talkin’ ‘bout ev’ryone leavin’ ‘im, I was kinda worryin’ the same thing.”

“Well, I can promise you, you’re free to stay with us as long as you’d like.”

She didn’t say anything else as she continued to lean on him, absentmindedly scratching at Toby’s ears. Then Kazuma noticed how quiet it was; the storm had stopped. He looked over to see that Susato had finally finished and Ryuunosuke had fallen asleep. 

His brother staggered over, grabbing a blanket and slumping on the ground next to Gina. “Dragons are terribly complicated creatures.”

“But ya still fixed ‘im up nice an’ good, yeah?”

“I believe so, but it’s hard to tell…”

Kazuma once again looked behind him to focus on the steady rise and fall of the dragon’s chest. “As long as he’s still breathing, I would call that a success.”

“Hmm… everything very nearly fell apart on us today…” Susato mused before he stopped with a strange look on his face.

“Sooze?”

With no indication or ceremony, Susato leaned over and kissed Gina right on the mouth. When he pulled back, she sat there gaping like a fish with a bright red face.

So much for that plan of waiting until they got back home.

With cheeks just as pink but determination sparkling in his eyes, Susato stuttered, “I-I’m terribly sorry for doing that without asking, but I… I like you very much, Gina! You’re… very charming. And spunky. And clever. A-And pretty. And I would very much like to take you out on a proper date when we can…” He trailed off and looked at her hopefully.

“Blimey, Sooze, I, uh…” She struggled with her words, clearly still not used to such earnest displays of affection. “I, uh, like ya too. You’ve always been real nice to me, an’ you’re smarter’n all o’ us an’ real pretty too o’ course...” She floundered with what to say for a few more moments before deciding on returning the kiss with her eyes screwed shut.

Susato’s eyes widened before he gazed fondly while Gina flushed and looked away.

Kazuma cleared his throat. Loudly. “Not to ruin your moment, congratulations, but we do still have a problem.”

“Oh, sod off, Kaz. Can’t we relax even a bit?” Gina snapped with a hard glare.

“Maybe if there wasn’t the chance that we could be currently hunted by hellhounds right now.”

“Oh, that’s right! I forgot they had at least one hellhound,” Susato gasped. “Do you think they managed to get our scent?”

“Well, I did lose me ‘at. Dunno if they found that. Is there any way for a ‘ell’ound to lose a scent?”

“Not that I know of… Perhaps we could call Mr. Sholmes? Though I should probably inform Father of our predicament first.”

“Do you even have enough energy for that? Honestly, Susato-kun, you look exhausted right now.”

“I can handle a simple message; I won’t use too much magic.”

“If you’re sure…”

Susato settled in to focus, closing his eyes as he whispered the incantation to send a telepathic message to his father. Kazuma and Gina could only sit back and wait. Ryuunosuke still didn’t stir.

Eventually, he opened his eyes and nearly fell over. Gina caught him just in time before he collapsed face-first into the fire. “Ya alright?”

“Yes, I’ll be fine with some rest. Father said he has a way to stop a hellhound from finding our scent, but we’re still almost a week away from the capital, and I’m not sure we’ll be able to outrun them for that long.”

“What if we ask ‘Oddo to take us when ‘e wakes up. ‘E can fly real fast.”

“We don’t know when he’ll wake up and how far we’d be able to get before the sun rises. Not to mention, we’d have to leave our horses behind and likely a lot of our stuff,” Kazuma interjected.

“The night is only halfway over; we can get a few hours of sleep to let Naruhodou-sama and I recover, then we can ask him what he thinks,” Susato said with a prominent yawn.

He didn’t want to waste time in such a precarious situation, but with the two of them in this state, it was clear they wouldn’t be able to do much of anything. “...Alright. I’ll wake you both when we have about three hours before sunrise.”

“Thank you, Kazuma-sama.” He then proceeded to boldly lay his head in Gina’s lap and promptly fell asleep. 

Gina froze, unsure what to do, and looked at him helplessly.

“...Don’t look at me. I can’t help you. Just let him sleep.” Kazuma passed her a few blankets so she could get more comfortable and moved to take up watch at the cave entrance.

Toby joined him, resting his heads on his lap as Kazuma kept a careful eye on their surroundings and checked the time based on the position of the moon. A few hours later, he saw no sign of any knights and went back in to wake the others. Susato and Gina woke easily enough, although both of them were still groggy. Ryuunosuke, on the other hand, took quite a few shakes and shouts to wake before he finally blearily opened his eyes and yawned wide enough for Kazuma to see each sharp tooth in his mouth.

He tilted his head in questioning. What?

“I’m sorry to wake you, but we need to discuss what we’re doing next.”

He and Susato explained their current situation along with Gina’s suggestion.

“Do you think you’ll be able to carry us that far right now, including all our supplies?”

The dragon closed his eyes and thought for a long minute before he finally looked at them and nodded.

“In that case, I’ll inform Father that we’ll be arriving in the morning.”

With that, the three of them wasted no time in gathering their things and securing them to Ryuunosuke’s back as best they could. As soon as everyone had gotten as comfortable as possible and there was sufficient cloud cover, they took off toward the capital at a near break-neck speed, leaving Kazuma wondering why they hadn’t decided to travel like this in the first place.

It wasn’t as cold as the first time he had gone flying with Ryuunosuke since he made sure to grab some blankets to protect themselves from the wind and the temperature, but three hours spent flying was enough to make him feel like he would never be warm again. They had only just made it to the forest that was within a few miles of the city when the sun rose and they tumbled at least a full story onto the ground when Ryuunosuke shifted back to his human form. Thankfully none of them were too injured from the fall.

The only thing left to do was let Susato tell his father that they had arrived and wait for him to come find them.

Chapter Text

The only thing stopping Kazuma from carving a path in their campsite with his shoes was Ryuunosuke’s head resting on his shoulder.

They had set up a campfire almost as soon as they had crash-landed and before Kazuma had even gotten warm again, his friend had collapsed in exhaustion on top of him. He came to a few times, but it wasn’t long before he would nod off again. There was comfort in the warmth of the other’s body seeping into him, but Kazuma was still itching to do something about their situation, even when he knew there wasn’t anything he could do.

Susato was just as restless. She had gone back and forth with fixing her hair, eventually settling on her loops, and she had hunched over her notebook, scribbling who knows what until Gina had wrapped her arms around her and pulled her until her back was sitting flush against her chest.

Both of them had turned rather pink.

About an hour after they had landed, Ryuunosuke awoke with more presence than he had the other few times.

“What… are we doing right now…?” 

“Waiting for Mikotoba-sensei to get here, but more importantly, how are you feeling?” He shifted so he could wrap an arm around his friend’s shoulders.

He groaned and turned his head so his face was buried in Kazuma’s neck. “Like I just sprinted twenty miles. Everything aches. ”

Ignoring the feeling of warm breath ghosting against his skin, Kazuma responded, “Well, you did just fly for three straight hours after getting shot with a ballista.”

“Is… Is that what that itching in my hip is?”

“Most likely.”

“I apologize if it didn’t heal well, Naruhodou-sama. I was unsure how to use healing magic on a dragon…” Susato said from her place in Gina’s arms.

Ryuunosuke finally lifted his head to look at her. “I’m sure I’d be dead if it weren’t for you, Susato-san, so all I can do is thank you.”

“You’re welcome, and I’m glad to see that you are at least awake and cognitive.”

He looked like he was going to respond, but then he snapped his head towards the woods and called out, “Who’s there?!” At the same time, Toby got up and growled.

A familiar voice reached Kazuma’s ears. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you, Your Highness.”

“Mikotoba-sensei!” Kazuma hurried to his feet as his not-quite adoptive father emerged from the trees, leading a single horse.

“Father! You’ve made it!” Susato also cried out as she ran to greet him.

As soon as they reached him, Mikotoba pulled them both into a hug and said, “I’m very glad to see you’re all right… I missed you.”

Kazuma melted into the hug, gratefully accepting the familiar, reassuring embrace.

“Us as well,” Susato murmured.

He pulled away and turned to the other two who had hung back from the reunion. “Allow me to introduce myself, I’m Dr. Yuujin Mikotoba. It’s an honor to meet you, Prince Naruhodou, Miss Lestrade.”

“Ah, yes! It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Mikotoba-sensei!” Ryuunosuke nearly shouted as his eyes darted around and his back went ramrod straight. 

“Uh, yeah, nice to meet ya too, Doc,” Gina offered with a nod of her head.

He nodded his head back at her before addressing the whole group. “Forgive me for taking so long to get here. Things have not been going well in the city.”

“What’s happening?” Kazuma asked.

“As you can imagine, there was a recent influx of people hoping to seek refuge from the ‘dragon’” —he looked pointedly at Ryuunosuke— “and a general foreboding and mistrust from all the chaos as well. Meaning it’s very difficult to get in and out of the city.”

“So we can’t go home anymore?”

A knot started to form in Kazuma’s chest. It wasn’t surprising, but still… they were so close. Despite everything, he still wanted to believe that they would be able to go home.

“I believe I could get Susato-chan and Miss Lestrade into the city, but not you and Naruhodou-san. I’m sorry.”

“What…? I understand Ryuunosuke, but why not me?”

“...It’s better if I explain on the way. We need to ensure those hounds can’t follow your scent anymore and get you away from here.”

“‘Ow are ya gonna get ‘em off o’ us?”

Mikotoba reached into his bag and pulled out a large flask filled with an iridescent purple liquid. “I have a potion that I received from a good friend some time ago. According to him, one drink of this will alter your scent enough to confuse even a hellhound. And I think it would be best if all of you take a sip just to be safe.”

Kazuma was the first to reach for the flask as he muttered, “I… wasn’t aware you knew any alchemists…”

“Can’t an old man have a few secrets?”

“Er, I didn’t mean… I’m sorry.” His guardian only laughed goodnaturedly, and Kazuma quickly took a swig of the potion to hide his embarrassment. “Why… does this taste like roasted pheasant?”

“Hm, I think that’s just his preferred flavor.”

Kazuma didn’t know how to respond to that so he handed the flask to Susato. The rest of them spared no time with the drink, allowing them to get moving as quickly as possible. They eventually decided to move their camp to a spot along the coastal cliffs closer to the capital. Since he was still unsteady on his feet, Ryuunosuke ended up riding on the horse with most of their belongings while everyone else walked.

“So why wouldn’t I, specifically, be allowed into the city?” Kazuma asked as they started the walk out of the woods.

“Ah… People have begun to blame you for everything that’s happening. Being an Asougi has made you a convenient scapegoat, even for the king.”

“Even King Stronghart?!” Susato gasped.

“Yes, he has in fact put a price on your head, Kazuma-kun. You wouldn’t even be able to get near the gates without being arrested.”

“That’s not fair. They don’t even know that he’s done anything!” Ryuunosuke exclaimed accompanied by the telltale sounds of thunder rumbling overhead.

Mikotoba sighed, “Unfortunately, this long-standing prejudice is reason enough, and… you shouldn’t have declared your intentions to the king when you left.”

“I… thought it would be best to be transparent about this. It's not like I knew what was going to happen. I had no idea that Ryuunosuke was, well…"

"Sorry."

Kazuma gave a stern glare to his friend as he scolded, "Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault you were cursed."

"No, but… I'm still sorry you have to deal with all this. It's really not fair how they treat you…"

"Is someone gonna tell me why people fink this is Kaz's fault? Wot did 'e do?" Gina interrupted with a pout.

"Oh, I guess you're the only one that doesn't know… I apologize." Kazuma then explained as simply as he could the sordid history of the Asougi clan.

“...Who gives a rotter wot yer grandad did? You ain’t done nuffin. You’re even ‘elpin’ ‘Oddo!”

He didn’t think she was going to judge him for this, but a sense of relief still washed through him at her words. “Thank you, Gina… Now if only others shared your opinion. At this point, it seems like I’ll never get to go home again.”

“I’m sure we’ll clear your name somehow!” Susato added with fierce determination. “Perhaps Father, Gina, and I could speak to the king and explain the situation?”

“You could try, but I think the only thing that would convince him is Ryuunosuke’s curse being broken and him explaining everything himself.”

Presuming the traditional story is true.

“Father, do you think you would be able to break it?”

“...I will take a look once we get settled.”

Once they had gotten a decent enough distance away from the forest, they set up camp in their usual fashion since no one knew for certain how long they would be staying there. As an extra precaution, Susato drew an invisibility circle around the whole camp rather than just one spot for Ryuunosuke.

After getting themselves situated, Mikotoba sat down with the prince to start diagnosing his curse. He had brought a bag of curse-breaking supplies and started a procedure similar to the one Iris had performed all those weeks ago. 

Once he was finished, Mikotoba pulled back with a shake of his head and a sigh, “I’m afraid there is nothing I can do. This curse is… complicated, far beyond anything I’ve ever seen. The only cures are the ones you’re already aware of.”

“...There’s really nothing we can do right now?” Kazuma hated how his voice cracked when he asked. Could something go right for just once?

His guardian gave him a strange look as he responded, “There is always true love’s kiss.”

“But how are we supposed to find anyone if Naruhodou-sama can’t get into the city?” Susato lamented with her fingers carded together.

A heavy silence descended on the group as the clouds opened up and rain beat down on the tarp above their heads. Toby laid his heads on Ryuunosuke’s leg and whined.

“So that’s it then?” Ryuunosuke’s resigned voice pierced through the quiet. “I’m just… going to stay like this? A monster ?”

“What? Of course you’re not a monster!” Kazuma leaned towards him, trying to reach for his hand, but Ryuunosuke pulled away.

“But that’s what everyone thinks, right? It’s the whole reason we can’t fucking do anything. I’m the whole reason everything’s gone to shit! The reason you can’t go home…”

He was hunched over, arms at his side and hands clenched into fists as he continued, “And now you’re basically saying that I’m going to stay stuck in this limbo where I don’t even know if I’m human or not! I just- I just want to know what I am… I just want to remember, and stop feeling like there’s something missing…”

“I can’t help you remember, but I can tell you what you are,” Susato started with a gentle smile. “You’re our friend, no matter what.”

“But what if I’m not human? I know you want to believe I am, Susato-san, but what if I’m not?”

“I… I do want to believe you’re human. I also want to believe that King Vortex was a good person that never lied, but I realize now that not everything I want to believe is true. And if there’s one thing I know for certain is that you are my friend, and I care about you very much. I promise nothing will change that.”

“She’s right. We’re long past the point of caring about what you are. We care about you and want to help you.” 

Kazuma pulled his friend in for a hug and Susato joined them. Gina and Mikotoba stayed back, however.

The smile that Ryuunosuke gave them after they let him go was more rueful than reassured as he said, “Thank you for the… assurances.”

“Is there something still bothering you?” When Kazuma reached for his hand again, the prince let him take it, but he didn’t return the squeeze.

“I’m fine.”

“It’s still raining.”

Something tense flitted across Ryuunosuke’s face as he snapped, “Sorry I’m still not feeling very hopeful about the strange curse haunting my entire existence.”

“Well… there’s really nothing we can do about that right now…”

“Is there really?”

Kazuma looked away guiltily and caught Susato’s eyes that held the same discomfort.

“Cor blimey, you two are ‘opeless. Ya really gonna sit there an’ do nuffin?” Gina, in her ever-blunt fashion, cut through the tension.

“I-I don’t see what we can do,” Susato said, attempting to avoid the obvious problem.

“Guess I gotta be the first one to do it since neither o’ you are ever gonna do anyfin.”

With no further ceremony, Gina stood up and, grabbing Ryuunosuke’s collar, dragged him in close so she could plant a kiss on his cheek.

Instantly a bright, white light burst from the point of contact, nearly blinding him. After blinking away the afterimage and allowing his vision to clear, Kazuma gaped at the sight that greeted him.

Ryuunosuke was definitely not human.

The first thing Kazuma noticed was the horns; jagged structures of translucent blue, like that of his dragon form, now sprouted from his forehead, the wisps of hair along his hairline curling around them. His complexion had darkened to a rich tan and the freckles that once dotted his cheeks had given way to scales of varying shades of dark blue that ran up the bridge of his nose and down the sides of his neck, disappearing beneath his clothes. The once gently pointed ears had completely transformed into the floppy, cow-like ears of a dragon. Additionally, his hands were now covered in rough, blue skin and scales, and his nails had shifted into long, sharp claws. His eyes, wide with wonder, shone golden in the sun as the dark amber that was once mere speckles overtook the brown, making the slits of his pupils even starker against his irises.

Oh gods, he was somehow even more breathtakingly beautiful than before.

Ryuunosuke’s face broke into a wide grin, lighting up his face like the north star, like something Kazuma would chase to the ends of the earth. The smile also showed that his teeth had, for the most part, stayed the same with the exception that his canines were even more elongated and viciously sharp.

Kazuma wondered how easy it would be to cut his tongue on them. 

“Gina!” Ryuunosuke cried out as he leaped to his feet and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her up and twirling around. The movement revealed that he now had a long tail covered in dark scales and electric blue fur. Toby was running around them, adding happy yips to the scene.

“‘Ey! P-Put me down!” Gina yelled back, trying in vain to wriggle out of the dragon’s grip.

“Sorry,” he laughed, putting her down, “I just… Thank you! I…” He giggled again before saying in a soft tone that was equal parts smug and elated, “I love you too, Gina.”

She flushed just as red as she had when Susato kissed her and tossed her head. “Oh, sod off, ‘Oddo. It ain’t nuffin… Don’t go expectin’ another one.”

Ryuunosuke laughed once again before turning toward Kazuma and Susato, pulling them into another hug with no warning. “And thank you both as well…”

Kazuma was still dumb-struck by the transformation so Susato had to be the one to respond, “But we didn’t do anything… Gina was right. Who knows how long we would have sat and done nothing if she hadn’t stepped forward…”

“You got me here, didn’t you? I wouldn’t call that nothing. And, um—” his familiar shyness returned only now it was accompanied by his ears tilting back in shame and his hands fidgeting with the fur in his tail—“I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable for not wanting to try. I’m sure it felt like a big responsibility for you.”

“No, it wasn't fair to you that we were too caught up in our heads to even try. But more importantly, what… are you?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m a dragon… Oh! I’m sorry if my appearance scares you, but I promise I have no intention of eating any of you!”

“I don’t know, ‘Oddo, sayin’ it like that makes ya seem suspicious,” Gina added with a mischievous smirk.

“What? No! I only said that because I know it’s public assumption!” Ryuunosuke’s eyes had gone wide and he waved his hands nervously.

“What are those teeth for then, eh? Not eatin’ people?”

“Yes?! I swear I’ve never eaten a person!”

“You look beautiful, not scary.” Kazuma’s mouth finally started working again and he blurted out what he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about.

“Ah, thank you…” A bright pink flush snuck out from beneath the outer edges of the scales on his cheeks and when he looked away, Kazuma could swear he saw sparks of electricity fly from his horns.

Mikotoba cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention as he said, “Naruhodou-san, do you remember everything now?”

His tone quickly turned somber as he admitted, “I… Yes, I do. I remember everything that happened.”

“So what is the truth? If you are actually a dragon, then who really are you?” Susato asked quietly, pulling out her notebook.

“The whole truth, huh?” Ryuunosuke took a deep breath and straightened his back, taking on a regal demeanor that left no question of what he was. “The kingdom of Kaira, or Tempest as you know it, had been ruled by dragons for thousands of years. Specifically by the Naruhodou family. My family. My name is Ryuunosuke Naruhodou and I am the last surviving dragon of that royal lineage.”

Chapter Text

When Ryuunosuke was abruptly awoken, the first thing he saw was his father’s advisor and friend, Kotarou Asougi looming over him with a carefully stone-faced expression. 

“Get up, Your Highness.”

A distant scream filtered in from his open window along with the sounds of shouting and weapons clashing amidst rain and thunder.

He was wide awake now as he was unceremoniously pulled from his bed. “Kotarou-san, what’s going on?” 

“The castle is under attack.”

“What?! By who?!” As far as Ryuunosuke was aware, they were still on good terms with the neighboring countries and he hadn’t heard any news of more distant places turning aggressive.

Unfortunately, Kotarou didn’t answer as moved to open the passage that was hidden behind one of the tapestries on his wall. He looked back at Ryuunosuke, gaze as steely as ever, and gestured for him to enter the secret route.

Something was very, very wrong. 

The passages were used for convenience and escape, and if this were a normal attack he should have been told to gear up and help, not hide. But, knowing the other man wouldn’t answer any questions until he wanted to, he relented to the silent request.

After they had gone a good way down the stairs, Ryuunosuke spoke up, “Will you tell me what is happening? Why won’t you let me fight?” 

Kotarou finally stopped and turned to look at him, placing firm hands on his shoulder as he demanded, “Do you know of Lord Hart Vortex?”

“That’s… That’s the wizard in charge of the Tempest Fields, right? What does he have to do with this? Surely, he’s not the one attacking us; he governs a farming community!”

“Lord Vortex is a far more powerful wizard than any of us were aware of.” He squeezed his hands in a tight, almost painful grip before removing them and continuing, “He has cast a spell over the entire kingdom. Everyone has been affected except for those of us that were here in the castle at the time.”

“...What kind of spell is it?”

“He has enchanted the people to believe that you and your family are monstrous dictators. These are not foreign invaders; the citizens that you love and have vowed to protect are the ones knocking down your door to kill you.”

Ryuunosuke stumbled back, nearly tripping on the steps and scraping his horns against one of the wall sconces. 

His people were the ones attacking?

He understood now why Kotarou hadn’t asked him to fight. He could never willingly harm an innocent person that had been manipulated against their will even if they were trying to kill him.

“What…? Why would he do this…? And what about my family?! You should be helping my father right now!”

“Listen to me, Prince Ryuunosuke,” —when Kotarou looked at him, he could finally see the fear flashing in his cold, grey eyes— “the only reason I am able to ensure your safety right now is because you did not wake in time for breakfast.”

A yawning pit opened in his stomach and the lightning in his veins flared up, sparking out of his skin and adding an eerie glow to the passageway. 

“Y-You don’t mean…? They’re not…?”

“I don’t think so yet, you dragons are resilient, but I know Vortex targeted them first. By the time I realized what was happening, the halls were already being swarmed, and I couldn’t get to the dining hall.” He stopped and rested a hand on Ryuunosuke’s shoulder. “But I know my duty to your father and your family, so I am doing what I can by getting you out of here.”

The storm brewing in his chest settled slightly at the news, but he still wrapped his arms and his tail around himself to try to quell the twisting of his gut. “Where are we going? Zeppeki?”

Kotarou nodded and continued down the stairs as he said, “The castle will offer you protection if Vortex’s forces manage to get there as well.”

Ryuunosuke already knew what Zeppeki Castle was capable of (he had heard enough droning lectures from his grandmother about the wizard who enchanted it when he was young) but he nodded along and followed the head of the Asougi Clan down the stairs. Every so often as they descended through the hidden halls, he would catch the sounds of battle echoing from other areas of the castle.

As they approached the next landing, Ryuunosuke heard voices discussing which paths to take. He recognized some of the voices, but when he moved to go toward them, Kotarou stopped him. “Wait. You don’t know if they’ve been affected by the spell.”

“Right…”

They waited in tense silence as the group continued to speak amongst themselves until the footsteps and voices started to get louder and Kotarou drew his sword. Though he had been the head of the clan for quite a few years now, it was still strange to see Karuma in his hands. Ryuunosuke had known Sayaka, the previous head, all his life, and seeing Karuma in anyone else’s hands normally felt wrong.

But this time, the comfort of the familiar, elegant blade overpowered the uneasiness.

When the others turned the corner and spotted them, Ryuunosuke froze. 

They were indeed knights that he recognized; he wouldn’t consider them friends, but they were good enough acquaintances that he knew their names and had had several pleasant conversations with them. They were noble people whom he trusted to defend him and his kingdom. People that had once trusted him.

Their clothes and armor were stained with blood. Blood that likely came from innocent people that had considered them friends.

And all their faces twisted with an ugly hate as soon as they set eyes on him. 

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t even breathe as they charged toward him and Kotarou. Karuma was swept up in a clean arc, blocking the oncoming attack from the woman leading the group, but the hallway was wide enough for two, and another was moving past, right toward him with a blade aiming for his throat.

Ryuunosuke lost control of the hurricane raging inside him and flinched away as lightning burst from his body. The electricity stunned their attackers enough for Kotarou to make swift work of them.

He could only stare helplessly at their unconscious forms as he struggled to rein himself in, the burning heat of electricity in his body fighting to be released. He could feel a roar start to crawl its way up his throat, accompanied by the familiar smell of building ozone.

“Prince Ryuunosuke!”

The shout cut through the buzz in his head, and he blinked harshly. Kotarou was staring at him, concern lacing his usually impassive face, and his hands hovered awkwardly in the air, clearly wanting to provide comfort but not wanting to risk the lightning currently sparking off Ryuunosuke’s skin.

“Are you… okay…?”

Ryuunosuke took several deep breaths, steadying himself and slapping his cheeks as he wrestled control over the storm in his body until it was a mere tingling in his skin and horns.

“I-I’m sorry.” He pulled on his earring slightly to ground himself a little more. “I’m fine now.”

A curt nod in response and, “Good. We need to keep moving.”

They continued on their path in silence, though Kotarou now kept a hand trained on Karuma’s hilt. 

On the last landing before reaching the basement level, he heard approaching footsteps from another hallway and tensed as Kotarou unsheathed Karuma again and they moved away from the passage. Fortunately, the people that emerged seemed relieved to see them. Ryuunosuke recognized the man leading the group; it was one of the knights, Satoru Hosonaga.

Kotarou was all business as he barked, “Ser Hosonaga, report what you’re doing right now.”

Hosonaga stood to attention as he said, “I’m doing my best to evacuate as many non-combatants from the castle as I can, Asougi-sama! Ser Nosa and a few other knights are assisting me as well,” he finished before coughing slightly.

“Good. Where are you taking them?”

“We decided the teleport to Naruhodo would be our best op-”

“No. You can’t trust that you’ll be safe there. Take the teleport to the foot of the Tengoku Mountains. It’ll be easier to assess the situation later if you get yourselves away from a major city.”

For some reason, it hadn’t quite registered with Ryuunosuke until then that when Kotarou said ‘everyone in the kingdom’, it meant everywhere in the kingdom. 

The van Zieks were in Naruhodo right now.

Had the spell affected them as well? Did they think him a monster along with everyone else? Or had they been unaffected and left to face everyone around them suddenly turning on them? Were Klint and Lottie and Barok and Iris…?

Oh, Heavens, Iris was only six. She had only just begun to talk and could barely fly!

Ryuunosuke didn’t know what scared him more: the thought that little Iris would be facing the wrath of people she knew or that she would look at him with the same twisted hate those knights had.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Ryuunosuke startled at the sudden address and looked to see that one of the people Hosonaga was leading had stepped forward with a worried expression. She was one of the younger cooks that he was friends with.

He swallowed sharply and took a deep breath before answering, “I-I’m fine, Miss Kilie. Thank you.”

“Hang on, I think I have…” She rummaged through the pockets of her apron and pulled out a small blueberry muffin, and held it out to him with a smile. “I don’t completely understand what’s going on right now, but I’m sure things will turn out all right. You and your family have been very good to this kingdom, and I don’t think you’ll be thrown out so easily.”

He gratefully accepted the treat and responded, “Thank you, I hope you’re right…”

The muffin was sweet and near melted in his mouth, but a bitter taste still lingered as he considered the situation. 

A loud crash sounded distantly above them and Kotarou snapped, “We need to keep moving. Come on.”

He led the way down the last stairwell to the bottom level of the castle and they finally made it to where the teleports were. Ryuunosuke watched as Hosonaga led his group to the Tengoku teleport and waved goodbye as they disappeared in a flash of blue. Even though the sigils were glowing as normal, he was still relieved to see proof that they were still working.

Kotarou was waiting by the Zeppeki gate, watching him, as he said, “They should be safe there. No one else should be around there.”

Ryuunosuke nodded and when he stepped toward the teleport, the Asougi spoke again, “When you get there, tell the castle what has happened… I think it works better when it knows what’s going on…?”

He wanted to laugh at the uncertainty on Kotarou’s face, but he tamped down his amusement and responded, “It does like to be informed, but are you not coming with me?”

“Now that I know you will be safe, my duty is to be with my king.” His eyes were determined and hard as steel.

“Kotarou-san… can you promise me something?”

“What is it?”

Ryuunosuke thought of his family. 

He thought of his father, open-minded and ready to forgive, but fierce when he had to be. 

He thought of his mother, now fragile and almost at the end of her extended lifespan, but as stern and kind as he had ever known her. 

He thought of his brother, carefree and flippant, but passionate about the things that mattered to him. 

He thought of his sister, intelligent and stubborn and the one most likely to rule next and yet soft-hearted at her core.

He wanted to be able to see them again.

“Please, make sure my family is safe. If Vortex takes the throne, can you promise to bring them back to me?” Ryuunosuke knew it wasn’t a fair thing to ask, but he still wanted to hear it.

“I…” Kotarou hesitated, glancing away and thumbing at Karuma’s handle. When he looked back, his gaze was soft and vulnerable and painfully human. “I swear to do my best, Your Highness. I promise.”

“Thank you.” 

Ryuunosuke took one last look at the walls of his home and stepped into the teleport. As he was transported away, he hoped this wasn’t the last he would see of this place.

Once arriving it didn’t take long for Ryuunosuke to get restless. He kept shifting back and forth between his dragon and human forms and pacing around the halls of the castle. As capable as Zeppeki Castle was, it offered no way for him to know what was going on back home. For a moment he wished he were human so he could cast a scrying spell of some kind.

At some point, he felt a rumbling vibrate through the whole castle. “What are you moving around for…?” he wondered out loud.

He decided to investigate the teleport room first, but as soon as he started down the stairs, a wall formed in front of him.

“Let me through.” At the lack of response, he added with a little more desperation than intended, “Please?”

There was a long, heavy moment of stillness before the wall finally moved out of his way and he was free to continue. He didn’t like how he could still hear the distant sounds of shifting stone. When he made it to his destination, a sickening wave of anxiety rolled through him when he saw the sigils were no longer glowing.

Then he saw the trail of blood leading out of a different doorway.

Dread pooled in his stomach as he slowly followed the dark, red drops out of the chamber all the way up to the main courtyard. When Ryuunosuke stepped outside, he found Lord Hart Vortex waiting patiently, looking unrumpled and put together as he held Kotarou Asougi’s head in one hand.

“Ah, good, you’ve arrived, Your Highness.” 

He tossed the head so it came to a rolling stop on the ground at Ryuunosuke’s feet. Thunder roared in his ears as his gaze met his old companion’s glassy, unseeing eyes frozen in an expression of shock. Blood still dripped from the stump of his neck.

“Or should I say, Your Majesty, since you are the only one left.”

Ryuunosuke snapped his head up to meet Vortex’s icy eyes and cruel smile. 

“ What have you done? ” His entire body trembled as he growled at the wizard, not bothering to suppress the lightning that now jolted through him.

“I have taken the liberty of removing that which stands in my way.” He twirled his unicorn-topped staff so it smacked into his palm and glowed with magic as he continued, “As the last living dragon in this country, you are my only obstacle left.”

The last living dragon?

The entirety of the Naruhodous and the van Zieks were dead then. Ryuunosuke didn’t have any family left.

And this wizard was the one responsible.

The storm finally broke and he shifted into his dragon form. A hurricane swept through within and without himself as wind and rain swirled around, pushing Vortex flat on his back.

Rage was not an emotion he was well acquainted with, but it burned as white hot and familiar as the lightning he now called from within himself and the cloud-filled sky above. With a roar as loud as thunder, he poured his fury and grief out from his mouth in liquid lightning that seared the air as it fell onto Vortex. The wizard managed to summon a shield for himself just in time, but Ryuunosuke didn’t falter. He shot forward and dug his claws into the magic, never letting up as he continued to breathe every drop of lightning inside himself onto the monster that murdered his family.

The shield eventually started to crack, but so did Ryuunosuke.

He had lost everything . His kingdom, his people, his family . Each of their faces flashed in his mind along with the thought that he would never see them again.

Even if he killed Vortex, it wouldn’t bring them back; he didn’t even know if the spell he cast would fade or not.

So what was the point?

What was the point of fighting?

What was the point of continuing to live if he had nothing?

Ryuunosuke closed his mouth and backed away before slumping onto the ground and closing his eyes. He might as well just let Vortex end it.

He listened to the wizard’s labored breathing and the low hum of magic in the air. He waited for Vortex to make his move, but instead, he just felt a soft tingling sensation and heard, “What is this?!”

When he opened his eyes he saw a thin shield of golden light surrounding his body as Vortex bombarded him with dark magic from his staff.

“Stop that,” he murmured to the castle. “Don’t waste your magic. Just let him kill me.”

The building’s magic didn’t fade, however, and Vortex redoubled his efforts, now wielding his staff like a club and beating Ryuunosuke with it. He vaguely felt pain radiating from each blow, but he knew none of it would do any real damage.

As long as Vortex had the intent to kill him, Zeppeki Castle would interfere; that was its final defense. But its protective magic wasn’t inexhaustible, so Ryuunosuke lay there and waited to see which would give in first.

Unfortunately, the disheveled and wild-eyed wizard seemed to be the loser.

“Very well, if I can’t kill you, then perhaps I can get some use out of you.”

Ryuunosuke tensed as the man started up an incantation and a lightless void began to emanate from his staff. He couldn’t bring himself to move as the magic shot towards him and struck him in his chest.

If he was screaming, he did not know it.

Every other sense failed him as an unimaginable pain permeated every fiber of his being. It felt like his very soul was being cracked and torn apart as his entire world became nothing but this excruciating pain ripping through every individual spark that made up his body and consciousness. It felt as if that void was severing through the connections that held him together as a living, thinking creature.

And then everything abruptly came to an end in blissful nothingness.

Chapter Text

Kazuma had been unable to say a word as he sat in mute horror listening to Ryuunosuke’s story. He couldn’t even fathom how painful it must have been to lose everything all in one day like that. He couldn’t blame his friend for wanting to give up.

And then, of course, there were the thousands of questions that now ran through his mind at finally hearing the truth.

Ryuunosuke took a deep breath as he finished, “When I woke up after that, I couldn’t remember anything… during the day, anyway, and I think you know the rest of the story.” When he looked up, he glanced quickly between each member of his captive audience, though his eyes settled on Mikotoba as he added, “Although I wonder how much of that you already knew, Mikotoba-sensei.”

The man in question startled and grimaced when Susato directed a piercing glare at him and asked, “What does he mean by that, Father?”

“...I was privy to some of this information beforehand.”

Ryuunosuke turned sheepish and said, “Sorry. Iris told me, but I didn’t mean to blurt it out.”

“That’s quite alright. It’s about time I tell you all anyway.” Mikotoba crossed his arms and began to explain, “When I went to study in Stromberg, I became well-acquainted with both Herlock Sholmes and the van Zieks. I learned from Lord van Zieks that his comrades had turned on him and his suspicions that King Vortex was responsible, and, in fact, the adventures that Lady Iris writes about are based on my own exploits with Sholmes.”

“What?!” Susato gasped, her anger quickly turning into shock. “ You’re the Great Detective’s partner?!”

“Why didn’t you tell us this?!” Kazuma butted in as well.

He held up his hands placatingly as he spoke, “I do apologize for keeping this a secret, but the things that I learned with Sholmes and from the van Zieks would have put both of you in danger. I had to be very careful to hide what I knew, especially after what happened to Genshin…”

“Wait…” A realization came to him and Kazuma felt sick to his stomach. “Does… Does this mean my father was killed for telling the truth?! ” He turned helpless eyes to his guardian. “Mikotoba-sensei, did he know? ”

Mikotoba closed his eyes and he responded solemnly, “While Genshin never quite told me directly, I suspected he knew more than he let on, and my guess was essentially confirmed when he was arrested. I am sorry, Kazuma-kun. I wish I had been able to stop it.”

“He…” His head was starting to pound and all he could think of was his father’s face right before he died, staring at him full of apology and resignation. “Do you know… Do you have any idea who was the one who betrayed him?” he gritted out, trying and failing to keep his voice from shaking.

“...I’m afraid I could never figure that one out. I couldn’t think of anyone Genshin might have told who would have been willing to betray him like that; and there is still the possibility that it was someone unrelated who simply wanted him out of the way and knew it would be easy to frame an Asougi.”

Kazuma curled his trembling hands into fists as his mind whirled with this new information. Not only had his father done nothing wrong, but he was punished merely for knowing the truth.

Someone had to pay.

He was going to find out who did this and make sure justice was served. Even if he had to wield Karuma against King Stronghart himself, he would find them and ensure retribution was given. If his family’s sacred blade had to be stained red, then so be-

“Kazuma.”

His rampaging thoughts halted and the red haze in his head cleared when Ryuunosuke placed a gentle hand on his knee and curled his tail around Kazuma’s lower back.

Dark amber eyes full of warmth and promise looked back at him as he said, “It’s okay. We’ll find out what happened to him. I promised you I would help, remember?”

It took a moment for Kazuma to find his voice again, distracted as he was by the dragon’s closeness. “...I don’t think your original plan is going to work anymore.”

Ryuunosuke huffed, rolling his eyes, “Obviously not, but I want to find the truth, and going forward from here…” He leaned away from Kazuma and removed his hand, but not his tail as he continued, “I want people to know the truth about what really happened. I’m not completely optimistic that I’d be able to take my throne back, but I don’t want everyone to be lied to anymore. And I won’t let my family be seen as monsters anymore either.”

“Yes, the public view of dragons is unacceptable, and what King Vortex did… He deserves none of the praise that anyone has given him! Why, if he was here…” Susato’s eyes flashed with a fury that Kazuma was eternally grateful he wasn’t on the other end of.

“Susato-chan is right, and Vortex is lucky he’s already dead,” Kazuma growled. “I wouldn’t hesitate to show him every inch of Karuma’s blade for what he did.”

“Thank you both for your sentiments, but that wouldn’t be necessary.”

“You’re too forgiving, Ryuunosuke. That man deserves to be rotting in hell for eternity.”

The prince shook his head and laughed, his sharp teeth glinting. “I didn’t mean that I think he shouldn’t be punished. I mean that I would prefer he be rotting inside my stomach rather than on your sword.” 

Mikotoba and Susato looked shocked and horrified at the grisly comment, Gina laughed her head off, and Kazuma blushed slightly since he found it kind of hot.

“Wot ‘appened to ‘dragons don’t eat people’?”

“Well…” Ryuunosuke’s eyes darted around and his ears flattened back. “That’s not entirely true…”

Gina’s eyes widened and she blurted, “Are ya serious?”

“I mean, it isn’t like Lord Vortex made people think! It’s a punishment reserved solely for the worst criminals. It only happened once in my lifetime.”

“But why? It still seems like a strange thing to do, even if it was rare,” Susato mused with a finger on her chin. “Was there some kind of symbolic reason for it?”

“There was, but I don’t actually remember it?” Ryuunosuke muttered as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Naruhodou-sama!”

“Sorry… Although I do remember the, er, simplified reason that my brother told me. He said it was so they end up in death the same as they were in life: nothing but a piece of shit.”

She glared at him at the same time that Gina cackled, “Sounds like a good enough reason to me!”

“Your brother sounds like a smartass,” Kazuma added.

Ryuunosuke laughed a little at that, but his eyes held a sad wistfulness and a deeper sorrow. “Actually…” Any mirth he had faded and he continued seriously, “Mikotoba-sensei, may I ask you something?”

“Ask away.”

“Do you know if… if Lord Vortex ever did anything in those mountains?” He pointed to the distant range that they had come from. “Do you know if anything ever happened there, specifically at the tallest peak?”

Mikotoba blinked, confusion etched in his features. “The mountains? Nothing comes to mind, however, I think Susato-chan is more of a historian than me.”

“Oh!” She jumped slightly as everyone turned their attention to her. “Well, from what I recall, nothing significant has happened there. After all, the peaks are too steep for humans to be able to climb without extensive magic.”

Tension visibly left Ryuunosuke’s frame as he sighed and a relieved smile bloomed on his face. “Oh thank Heavens, at least they’re safe…”

“Wot is? Wot’s up there?” Gina asked as she idly scratched one of Toby’s ears.

“Oh, it’s… it’s just an important place…”

“Could you tell us more?” Susato perked up in curiosity, hand secured around her pen. “If you’re comfortable doing so, of course.”

“...Okay.” Ryuunosuke lifted his gaze towards the peaks and started to explain with a faraway look, “On that tallest peak, at the point closest to the sky, is where all the dragons in my family are laid to rest. Well, where they should be.”

Lightning sparked between his horns and his tail thrashed back and forth as he growled, “I doubt Lord Vortex was kind enough to lay my family to rest where they belong. He must have-” Ryuunosuke stopped and his face crumpled with grief as he continued in a quiet voice, “He must have shattered them as soon as he killed them.”

He was still sparking so Kazuma nudged his foot with his own in an attempt at comfort.

“Shattered?”

Ryuunosuke had his eyes screwed shut but he still nudged back. “Mhm. When we die, we don’t leave behind a body; those turn into dust and our hearts crystallize into glass, which is what we leave on the mountain. …My father told me it’s so our souls can still feel the sky even when we’re dead, but if our heart gets broken, then… then…” He couldn’t finish his thought and wrapped his arms and his tail around himself. Toby came over to whine at his feet.

Susato looked like she was about to cry as she spoke, “Oh, Naruhodou-sama, I’m so sorry…” 

“I wish we could undo the tragedies that have occurred, but for now, I think we should focus on amending what we can. The greatest difficulty will be convincing people of the truth,” Mikotoba said somberly.

“Since Vortex is dead an’ all, the next best thing is to expose ‘im!” Gina added with a pointed finger.

Ryuunosuke let out a breath and smiled. “You’re right, and I think Naruhodo would be the best place to start, er, Stromberg I mean.” It was easy to catch the clear derision in his voice as he corrected himself.

“Ah, do you think Sholmes and Lady Iris would have better luck in convincing people? I would say appealing to the public will likely be more successful than convincing the current monarchy,” Mikotoba pointed out.

“They do have a certain amount of fame that will be helpful, and I’m hoping we could use Iris’s publishing connections to make the most important records in the Archives there widespread and public. I wish we could appeal to the current court, but considering how King Stronghart has decided to blame Kazuma, I don’t think it would go well, not to mention I don’t trust someone who Lord Vortex put in charge.”

Susato frowned as she asked, “What archives are you talking about? I thought there are no more official records from before King Vortex revolted?”

“Well, any records he may have destroyed would have been copies.” Ryuunosuke smirked. “You see, there’s a hidden Archive in Naruhodo where all the original copies of every official document or history or anything deemed important, really, are kept; it was only known to my family and anyone we considered trustworthy enough to tell. And I know Lord Vortex never found it because that’s where Barok and Iris have been hiding for the past sixty years. Everything there is still intact! The history of Kaira isn’t lost at all!”

Ryuunosuke’s beaming smile was infectious and Kazuma found himself grinning along as Susato exclaimed, “Oh, that’s wonderful! There must be so much to learn in there! It’s incredible that it’s managed to stay safe this long.”

“Yes, when Sholmes and I managed to crack open the secret entrance we found in the basement of Baker Street, we were quite shocked to find so many remnants of history, including some living relics. …I’m still surprised we managed to convince Lord van Zieks not to kill us.”

“He tried to what?! I’m sorry he did that. He really didn’t use to be like that…”

“I didn’t take any offense. He never elaborated on the details, but I understand he went through a very traumatic experience that made his caution justified.”

“Yes, Iris told me he hates humans now, but still…”

“Ya know, I could do wiv an apology from ‘im,” Gina said with her arms crossed.

“Honestly, I think he owes all of you an apology.”

“Well, I suggest that we call Sholmes now to discuss our plan, and I’m sure you can ask for an apology then,” Mikotoba added.

“Oh, I almost forgot about this thing,” Kazuma muttered as he pulled out the small blue hare.

He pulled on its ears and watched as it came to life, jumping around and drawing that same ritual circle on the ground for them all to look through. This time all three residents of Baker Street could be seen lounging in the suite, but upon noticing them, Sholmes jumped to his feet and smushed his face against his side of the window, shouting, “My dear Yuujin! It’s been far too long since I’ve seen your face!”

Mikotoba let out a long-suffering but fond sigh. “You called me just a few days ago.”

“Exactly! It’s been so long that Mr. Naruhodou has begun to mold!”

“Is he talking about my scales…?”

Before Sholmes could say anything else, Iris pushed him out of the way and squealed, “Runo! You did it! You broke your curse!”

“Well, certainly not by myself, but yeah, I’m all better now thanks to Gina!”

At the mention of her name, Gina colored and turned her head away. Susato giggled.

“Ryuunosuke…” Barok’s cold exterior seemed to melt and a small smile ghosted his lips as he bowed and said, “It’s good to see you looking like yourself again.”

“...It’s good to be myself again.” Ryuunosuke returned the smile with a gentle one of his own, but then he frowned and started speaking in a sharp, guttural tone. It sounded like the Draconic he spoke back at the castle, but there was something different in the strange syllables that Kazuma knew he had no hope of being able to replicate. They definitely weren’t sounds that a human could make.

Barok flinched at the apparent scolding and looked away guiltily as he murmured back in the same language.

“He’s right, you were very rude,” Iris spoke up, “but you don’t need to worry about that other part, Runo. I finally convinced him to teach me how to fly after you left before.”

“Oh, good. I know it’s not as important for you as it is for me, but you still should have learned ages ago.”

“Once again, please forgive me the discourtesy, Iris. I only wished to keep you safe.” He then turned toward the rest of them and gave a low bow. “My apologies to you all as well. I was undeservedly harsh to you, especially you, Mr. Asougi. I allowed my… disdain for humans to govern my words and actions.”

Kazuma crossed his arms and didn’t say anything. Gina gave him an unimpressed look. Susato was the one to reply with a bow of her head, “Thank you, Lord van Zieks. Your apology is appreciated.”

“So, Prince Naruhodou, shall I deduce why you’ve started turning blue?” Sholmes sprang back up into their vision, pointing his finger in the air.

“Um, I don’t think that’s necessary…”

“Hurley, everyone here already knows why, and there are more important things to discuss! Like what we’re going to do now!”

Sholmes slumped over and went off to sulk in the periphery.

“Yes,” Barok started, “am I correct in assuming you will be taking your throne back? The original usurper is long dead, and this kingdom belongs in your hands, provided you are ready to take it.”

Ryuunosuke looked down and fidgeted with his tail as he responded, “I… didn’t think I’d be the one to rule, but I am ready to do so. However, we first need the people to be on our side. I can’t do anything if they still think I’m a monster.”

“We were thinking that we could use the historical records in the Archives along with your connections to explain the truth,” Mikotoba said.

Iris brought a finger to her head as she thought out loud, “Hmm, Hurley and I could set up an author conference and use it as an opportunity to explain everything with all of our proof or I could publish a tell-all using the records.”

“I think doing both would be the most effective, but are you sure your publishers would even print that?” Ryuunosuke asked.

Iris’s eyes glowed slightly as she gave a sweet smile full of menace. “Oh, I can make sure they do it.”

“Don’t be too cold with them, Lady van Zieks.” The two of them shared a laugh before he continued, “Anyway, even with all that, I’m still worried how people may react to me.”

Sholmes then came back into the thick of things, holding his pipe to his lips and suggesting, “If I may, you are a non-threatening and earnest fellow. I think you will be surprised by how many people are willing to listen as long as you present yourself as such. Not everyone in this country is so approving of our current king.”

“That’s true. I bet those two people we met in Haven would be willing to believe us, but those others who arrested Gina and I… Do you really think anyone in the capital would be willing to listen?”

“It would be helpful if you had someone in the court willing to advocate for you, otherwise I doubt you will receive any support there,” Barok said.

“Oh!” Susato gasped before slapping her palm with her fist and pointing in the air. “Jigoku-sama has a high position in the royal court. We could ask him for help, couldn’t we, Father?”

“I suppose we could. Seishirou isn’t an unreasonable man; he could be an invaluable ally. He would know who could be trusted to help us.

“With that being said, Naruhodou-san, if he can set something up for us, would you like to make a formal statement in the capital once Lady Iris is able to distribute the records and make her own statement with Herlock?”

“Well, I was thinking of joining Iris and Mr. Sholmes, but if you think he could get us an opportunity for me to talk to everyone safely then I would like to address things here.”

“Very well,” Mikotoba turned to address the Baker Street residents, “then we’ll leave you three to take care of things on your end while I will head back into the city to contact Seishirou. Susato-chan, you’re welcome to come with me if you would like.”

“I’d be happy to! It will be nice to see home again… Oh, Gina, would you join us? I’d love to show you what we can of the city!”

“Wot? Ya fink I wanna stay ‘ere all alone wiv them?” She jerked a finger at Kazuma and Ryuunosuke. “‘Course I’m gonna go wiv ya!”

“Glad to know we’re such good company for you,” Kazuma drawled.

“Well, it seems a revolution will soon be upon us!” Sholmes declared, drawing everyone’s attention. “I wish you all luck, my dear fellows, and I look forward to seeing this kingdom returned to its former glory. It is an honor to be of service, Your Royal Highness Prince Ryuunosuke Naruhodou,” he finished with a flourish of his hand and a small bow.

Ryuunosuke straightened and responded with a regal bow of his own as he said, “Thank you, Mr. Sholmes. Truly, I appreciate your support, and hopefully, this revolution won’t be a bloody one.”

“Quite right!”

With that and some goodbyes from the van Zieks, the magic faded and they were left by themselves again. Mikotoba turned to address Kazuma, “I am sorry that we have to leave you here alone for now. After we speak to Seishirou, I’ll see if there’s anything I can do to make the two of you more comfortable out here.”

Kazuma smiled at his guardian. “I’ll be fine. At this point, I’m more used to sleeping in a bag than on a real bed. If anything you should be more concerned about Ryuunosuke.” He smirked at his friend. “You get to deal with tents now.”

“Do I really have to? I mean, I can just sleep in my dragon form, same as before, and be just as comfortable. In fact, you might as well only leave one tent for us; I don’t think I’ll be needing one.”

“Are you sure? Surely that can’t be good for your back,” Susato said, tilting her head in concern.

“A human spine is very different from a dragon one.”

“That does remind me, before we leave, do you mind if I ask you a few more questions?”

Ryuunosuke gave somewhat of a nervous smile as he responded, “To be honest, I was expecting you to ask that eventually. I’ll answer what I can.”

“Thank you.” She readied her pen again and directed a focused stare at him. “So why don’t Iris and Lord van Zieks look like you? They’re dragons as well, correct?”

“They are, but we’re not the same kind of dragon. I think of them as sort of cousins, but we’re not actually related in any way. But to answer your question, I really don’t know why they look more human than me; we’re just… different,” he finished with a shrug and a noncommittal flick of his tail.

“I see. Is that also why they seem perfectly fine to stay in Baker Street? They don’t get sick if they can’t fly like you did?”

“That’s right, and before you ask, I don’t know why I get sick like that. It just… feels… wrong to be separated from the sky like that.”

Susato’s eyes sparkled with her endless curiosity. “How interesting! I didn’t even know there were different kinds of dragons! Oh, do you also have some kind of special diet?”

“No? I eat regular human food same as you, but I did use to go hunting on occasion. I usually caught whales and dolphins, but I did catch a kraken once! It tasted really good!”

Ryuunosuke smiled like hunting down legendary sea monsters wasn’t a completely insane thing to do.

“I dunno wot a kraken is, but ain’t whales real big? ‘Ow d’ya eat those?” Gina stared at the dragon with the same disbelief that Kazuma was feeling.

“Obviously, I only eat the smaller ones that I can carry.”

“Ryuunosuke, you just admitted to eating a kraken. Why would that be obvious?” Kazuma said, struggling to comprehend the scale of his friend's life.

“Well, I had some help with that one…” he pouted and his ears tilted downward. “Anyway, don’t you have other questions?”

“Yeah, I got one,” Gina piped up. “Wot’s that earrin’ all about? It was important to ya, right?”

“Oh…” he gingerly fiddled with the jewelry as he explained, “It was a gift from my mother for my hundredth birthday. It’s the only thing I have left of her and any of my family…”

Kazuma choked.

“Yer ‘ow old?!”

Ryuunosuke glanced around at the varying levels of surprise and mildly admitted, “...I’m 357, to be exact.”

If Kazuma wasn’t already sitting down, he probably would have fallen over in shock.

He shouldn’t be surprised considering how Ryuunosuke had spent sixty years alone and came out looking no older than twenty-five, but hearing the actual number was jarring.

“How long do dragons live?” Susato managed to ask.

“Um, about 1700 years, give or take a few hundred.”

“Oh my… that is a lot to process…”

“Maybe you should save any more questions for later then.”

Mikotoba took the chance to speak up, “Naruhodou-san is right. We should be going soon if we want to make it back before dark.”

Everyone agreed with that, and they all helped pack up most of the supplies for Susato, Gina, Mikotoba, and Toby to take with them back into the city. Kazuma and Ryuunosuke were, in fact, left with only one tent, but they kept an extra sleeping bag and blankets just in case.

After saying their goodbyes and watching the other three set out to the distant city, Ryuunosuke murmured, “They’re all going to be okay, right?”

“Hm?” He glanced over to see his friend’s expression was tight and filled with worry. “Hey, they’ll be okay. If anything I’d be more worried for whoever may end up getting in Susato-chan’s way.”

“I know, but… just because they are capable doesn’t guarantee they will be safe.” Ryuunosuke looked at him, pain lacing his features. “ I can’t lose them. I don’t think I could handle that again…”

Sparks and small arcs of lightning were flying off him so Kazuma couldn’t touch him, but he looked his friend in the eyes and said, “I cannot guarantee nothing bad will happen, but I promise you, I’ll be right here with you. I won’t leave. ”

“Kazuma… I know you didn’t really have a choice, and I know you’d rather be with them, doing something productive, but thank you for being here.”

It definitely wasn’t easy to admit, and even now, his mind still whispered to him that not doing anything right now was making him a failure, but he took a deep breath and gave Ryuunosuke a reassuring smile. “...You’re right that I wish I could be more active, but you know what? I don’t need to be useful, and I have you to thank for helping me realize that.”

Ryuunosuke brightened with a heart-stopping smile. “I’m really glad to hear you say that.” His expression then turned thoughtful and he moved away toward the makeshift pavilion they had set up. “Actually, there’s something I want to ask you.”

“What is it?”

Kazuma followed and watched Ryuunosuke rummage through his bag and eventually pull out a bright red scarf. He carefully tore off a long strip of it, cutting through the fabric with one of his claws.

“Um, why are you ripping up your clothes?”

When Ryuunosuke turned around and held out the scrap of fabric with a deadly serious look in his eyes, Kazuma found himself standing as tall and straight as he could to match the severity.

“Back when the Naruhodous were still ruling, we had a tradition of allowing the most respected and trusted knights that served us directly to wear whatever they wanted and forgo the formal uniform. The only thing they were required to have to indicate their status was a simple red hachimaki headband. This isn’t a proper hachimaki, but it has the same sentiments.

“So would you, Kazuma Asougi… become my first knight and most trusted companion?”

Ryuunosuke’s face was soft and pleading and he was looking at him like he was something that shouldn’t be looked away from, like he was the only thing in the world that mattered.

Kazuma knelt down and bowed his head, looking away from that too earnest gaze. “I would be honored, Your Highness.”

“Then look at me and promise me something.”

He lifted his head to meet those now golden eyes shining with an unnameable emotion.

“Promise that you’ll see things through to the end for me and with me.”

“Whatever you wish, I’ll do it with you… partner.”

The dragon’s smile had always felt like the sun to him, warm and inviting and something to bask in, and right now it warmed Kazuma all the way down to his toes, melting his worries.

“Partner… I like that.”

With that, he knelt down as well so he was at eye level and leaned forward to tie the fabric around his forehead. Kazuma involuntarily held his breath as Ryuunosuke’s face came inches away from his. When it was secured in place, Ryuunosuke still didn’t move away and ran a finger along the frayed edges of the makeshift headband.

“It’s a little rough, but it will do for now, Ser Asougi.”

His clawed fingers then moved to trail down Kazuma’s cheek, the sharp nails ever so slightly grazing against his skin and sending a shiver running through him. Ryuunosuke’s eyes darted toward his mouth.

Kazuma licked his lips as he thought how easy it would be to lean forward and steal a kiss. He just had to move.

So why couldn’t he?

A sigh and Ryuunosuke slumped back. “You know, I thought it would be easier for you to kiss me without that curse hanging over our heads.”

“I-I just-” Kazuma’s face was on fire now and he blurted, “I’ve never kissed anyone before!”

He immediately regretted admitting it as Ryuunosuke let out a breath of laughter. “Oh is that the problem? You know there’s an easy way to remedy that.”

He wrapped his tail around Kazuma’s back and pulled him in closer while he moved his hand under his chin, whispering in a low voice, “If you’re worried about a little inexperience, I can teach you, and what better way than a hands-on lesson?”

Kazuma gulped.

Despite the charged words, he didn’t move any closer until Kazuma nodded his head.

He used to think that sappy romance novels describing a kiss as electric was a sweet but dramatic exaggeration, but when Ryuunosuke’s warm, soft lips met his own, it really did feel like a bolt of lightning had shocked his system. His mouth tingled as he leaned into the gentle pressure.

Ryuunosuke pulled away and let him go, smiling softly as he let Kazuma get his bearings.

“Um. Wow.”

He laughed, “Was that a good enough first kiss for you?”

“Yeah. It feels a little surreal actually.”

“Surreal?”

“I guess… I’m still kind of surprised that you even wanted to kiss me.”

Ryuunosuke’s laughter died away and he grabbed one of Kazuma’s hands, placing it on his chest and declaring with a reverence that Kazuma was sure he would never fully understand, “You have my heart, Kazuma Asougi. You are my heart.”

Warmth spread out from his chest and he smiled. “I love you, Ryuunosuke, and I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to tell you.”

He pressed his forehead against Kazuma’s, sparking that tingling in his skin again. “I was willing to wait however long you needed.”

“I think you’ve done too much waiting for the past few decades already.”

“If it took that long just to meet you, then I would gladly do it again.”

This time, Kazuma took the initiative in pressing his lips to Ryuunosuke’s and put a hand on his new partner’s cheek, feeling the cool smoothness of his scales. A few kisses later, Ryuunosuke’s hand made its way into his hair and Kazuma let out a soft moan as claws lightly scraped against his scalp. Apparently not one to waste an opportunity, Ryuunosuke slipped his tongue inside his mouth.

He tasted like lightning, or at least what Kazuma assumed lightning might taste like. He tasted hot and sharp and everywhere his tongue went was left buzzing with feeling. And maybe it was the tongue twisters or maybe it was just experience, but Ryuunosuke seemed to be hitting all the right places. The only things Kazuma could register were the electric touch of Ryuunosuke’s hands on his skin and the tongue in his mouth.

Actually, it kind of felt like there was more tongue in his mouth than there should be.

Also, his face was starting to feel a little numb.

“Kazuma, are you alright?”

Somehow he hadn’t felt it when Ryuunosuke pulled away and he opened his eyes to see his partner’s distressed face.

“‘M fine,” he slurred, his tongue not really moving the way he wanted.

“You don’t sound fine.” Ryuunosuke reached out a hand to his cheek, but then his eyes widened and he snatched it back as he swore, “ Shit. I’m so sorry! Why didn’t you tell me I was hurting you?”

“Y’ weren’t.”

“You really didn’t notice I was mildly electrocuting you?”

“Oh. Wait. Wuzzat really happ'ning? Thought ‘t was jus’...”

“You didn’t think it strange that you started losing feeling where I was touching you?”

“‘S jus’ tingly.”

Ryuunosuke gave him a hard look before sighing, “Well, either way, no more kisses for tonight, I think. I really don’t want to hurt you.”

Kazuma pouted, “Izzat gonna happ'n every time?”

“No, it’s just that right now, I’m still getting used to being uncursed again. It’s like… It’s like I’ve been walking around with a weight on my back for sixty years and now it’s gone and I’m overcompensating. Ugh, I haven’t let it get out of hand so easily like this since I was a kid. ”

“Y’ shock people ‘lot back then?”

He gave a sheepish smile and blushed as he admitted, “My dad had to put rubber caps on my horns to stop me from hurting someone every time I got too excited about something.”

Kazuma tipped his head back and laughed as much as he could while he was still getting the feeling back in his jaw.

“You wouldn’t be laughing if you knew how uncomfortable they were.”

“Sorry, sorry. Got ‘nother question though.”

“What is it?”

“...Can I see your tongue?”

Ryuunosuke gave him a questioning look but complied anyway and stuck his tongue out. It extended out from his mouth all the way past his chin.

Kazuma was not proud of the places his mind went at seeing that.

“Sorry if it’s a little weird. Anyway, how are you feeling?”

He frantically shoved his unsavory thoughts to the back of his mind and responded, “‘S fine. M’ face still feels tingly.”

“I’m sorry, I should have realized sooner…” Ryuunosuke cringed and went quiet as he looked out toward the ocean beyond the cliffs in the north. “How bad of an idea do you think it would be to go fishing right now?”

Kazuma stared dumbfounded at his friend. “Fishing? Don’ think we have the supplies for that.” Never mind the fact that the cliffs were a sheer drop hundreds of feet above the ocean and they were public enemy number one right now.

He shot back a grin full of sharp teeth. “Oh, I already have all the equipment I need.”

Ah. So it was that kind of fishing. Honestly, Kazuma was kind of curious to see what Ryuunosuke could catch, and the prospect of eating something other than trail rations was tempting.

“If y’ think y’ can do it without being seen…”

“Well, the method we cooked up before seemed to work.”

At that, Kazuma moved to look at the sky and saw that it was already turning grey. However the storm was building much slower than the ones Ryuunosuke used to call before; it was more natural, actually.

“Are y-” As turned to ask his partner if that was on purpose, he was shocked to find that he had already shifted into his dragon form. And it was different. And Kazuma had seen it before at the Tusspells’ exhibit in Verdance stealing a child.

Ryuunosuke’s pure white scales had turned into a mottled pattern of dark blue and the navy fur had shifted to bright electric blue tinged with white at the edges. His horns were longer and now branched like forked lightning still in the same shade of light translucent blue. His amber eyes were dark and depthless as they reflected back the grey sky.

“Is it really that shocking of a difference?”

“Wh- Y’ can talk?!”

“Yes, and it was extremely frustrating not being able to do so before.”

“Oh,” he said lamely. “Well, can I come with you?”

The dragon laughed like rumbling thunder as he responded, “That wouldn’t go well for you.” He then nuzzled his snout against Kazuma’s head. “But I promise I’ll be back soon, my heart.”

He took off and left Kazuma tingling at the contact and blushing at the endearment.

By the time Ryuunosuke came back about an hour later, the tingling and numbness had disappeared and Kazuma’s stomach was rumbling. The dragon swooped in and dropped a single huge tuna at his feet.

“...I can’t eat all that, and I don’t think we have enough supplies to preserve all of it.”

“I’ll eat whatever’s left.”

“So was catching one this big just an excuse for you to get more for yourself?”

Ryuunosuke’s lips curled up and he let out a noncommittal hum; the dragon made himself comfortable on the ground, curled so his body made a large semicircle around the campfire. Kazuma just shook his head and started cleaning and cooking the catch.

As he did so he asked, “So what happened to those whales and dolphins you claim to eat?”

“Oh, I caught a large shark and ate it while I was out. I didn’t bring it back because I thought you would be more familiar with a regular fish.”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t know how to cook a shark.”

Ryuunosuke laughed and Kazuma looked to admire the contentment on his face. He could certainly get used to this.

They didn’t talk much as he finished making the food, but it was a comfortable quiet that was easy to settle into. When he was done, Ryuunosuke shifted back into his human form so he could enjoy the food as well. Kazuma had always been partial to fresh fish so getting one this fresh was a treat, even if it didn’t end up seasoned as well as he’d like.

After they were done eating, they fell into quiet, easy-flowing conversation. Ryuunosuke shared a few stories of his childhood and his family, though each one sent a pang through Kazuma’s heart at knowing the loss that his partner had suffered. In turn, he shared a few stories of his own about growing up with his parents and the Mikotobas.

He even managed to grab a few quick kisses during the conversation.

Eventually, the sun sank below the horizon and it was almost strange to see Ryuunosuke’s human form in the nighttime. Although Kazuma would admit the way his horns shone in the moonlight was rather enchanting.

Later he found himself yawning and Ryuunosuke spoke up, “Ready for bed already?”

“Hey, you’re the one responsible for the strict schedule we’ve been on.”

“I suppose that’s true. You can go to sleep if you want; I won’t mind staying up by myself for a bit.”

“Will you join me when you’re ready? There’s plenty of room.”

Ryuunosuke stiffened and looked away. “No, I think I’ll sleep outside tonight…”

“Oh.” Kazuma tried not to sound too disappointed. It wasn’t like he would be missing out on any cuddles—Ryuunosuke was still avoiding touching him—but he wanted the comfort of his partner’s presence. “Are you sure you’ll be more comfortable out here?”

“Yeah, it’s just… I feel safer being in my dragon form, and… and I don’t dream like that either.”

“You don’t dream?”

He shook his head. Kazuma didn’t ask what kind of nightmares he was trying to avoid.

Instead, he marched into his tent and dragged all his sleeping stuff outside.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m sleeping out here with you whether you like it or not.”

Ryuunosuke stared for a moment before breaking into a soft smile. He walked over and gave Kazuma a small kiss on the cheek. “Thank you.”

When he went to sleep, he wasn’t wrapped in warm fur as he had been in the past, but he still felt the calming safety of Ryuunosuke’s presence.

Chapter Text

Kazuma woke to the oddly familiar sensations of a hand in his hair and a low crooning song in a language no human could articulate. When he opened his eyes, there was Ryuunosuke, calmly singing with his eyes closed and his claws lightly brushing through the strands of Kazuma's hair. He could only stare for a moment in wonder at his partner’s face haloed by the morning sun.

That’s right, Ryuunosuke was his partner now…

A giddy smile spread across his face and Kazuma leaned into the touch. “Good morning. You look pleased.”

“Oh!” Unfortunately, Ryuunosuke stopped singing and snatched his hand away. “Sorry, I was doing that without asking again…”

“No, you don't have to stop. It's nice. I like it.”

“Oh, okay.” His hand resumed its gentle fiddling.

Kazuma hummed and said, “So I take it you're all settled now? No more accidental lightning?”

Ryuunosuke leaned over and placed a chaste kiss on the space between his eyebrows right beneath his new headband, lingering for a moment. “You tell me.”

The contact still sent a zing flying through him, but it wasn’t the same as before. He felt it more in his head instead of his skin. “Hmm, doesn’t feel as dangerous, but you should give me another just to double check.”

Ryuunosuke chuckled, “Well, if you need to make sure, who am I to object?” He pressed another kiss to his lips and smiled against his mouth.

He pulled away and went back to playing with Kazuma’s hair and humming a soft tune.

Kazuma grabbed one of his partner’s hands and interlaced their fingers together as he murmured, “Hey, can I ask why you like to sing so much?”

“Ah, it is a dragon thing actually. We had a lot of songs for a lot of different situations.”

“So what was that song you were singing earlier about?”

A blush crept out from under his scales and he darted his eyes away. “Um, nothing really.”

“You’re a terrible liar, Ryuunosuke.”

“You should be smart enough to figure it out. Are you really going to make me say it?”

Kazuma smirked at Ryuunosuke’s ever-reddening face and pointed out, “Yesterday you declared that I had your heart and now you don’t want to explain a simple song? Tell me, what kind of raunchy things are you singing to me?”

“It’s nothing like that ! It was just a courtship song, and it’s difficult and embarrassing to explain the exact meaning…”

“If you really don’t want to then you don’t have to,” Kazuma murmured as he closed his eyes and shifted to get a little more comfortable in Ryuunosuke’s lap.

He let himself melt into the other as he continued to sing, but eventually, Ryuunosuke stopped and spoke up, “So, are we going to get up and eat breakfast, or are you going to laze around all day?”

“Mmm, just a little while longer; it’s not like we have anywhere else to be.”

“Look at you, my strong, hardworking knight,” his partner chuckled and moved his hand to play with the strands of his headband. But then he tilted his head and one of his ears flicked up as if to catch some distant sound.

“What is it?”

“Do you hear that? That ringing?”

“You have better ears than me. I can’t hear anything.”

“There’s bells ringing over in the city, I think. There are a lot of them. They’re really quite loud if I can hear them all the way from here.”

Kazuma finally sat up at that. “Bells? Are you sure about that?”

Noticing his alarm, Ryuunosuke rested his tail over Kazuma’s legs and asked, “Yes. Does that mean something special?”

“That’s… The only time the bells get rung is when there’s an execution scheduled for the day.”

Ryuunosuke’s whole body tensed and his eyes widened with fear as he slowly asked, “You don’t think…?”

“I… I don’t know. If it is them, it’s strange that this would be happening so soon. My father was arrested a full week before he was executed.”

“...I don’t like it. It’s too much of a coincidence. I-I can’t just leave this alone; I have to know if it’s them or not.”

His partner got up then and Kazuma hurried to follow suit. ”I do agree with you, but we can’t exactly walk in and ask. They’ll likely shoot you on sight and arrest me before I could even say anything.”

“Then it's a good thing we won’t be walking.”

In a flash, Ryuunosuke shifted into his dragon form and a storm quickly started brewing in the sky.

“Well, that’s one way to make an entrance and get a jump start on our plan…”

“We’ll just have to deal with the consequences. I’m not risking any of their lives no matter how small this probability may be.”

“No, you’re right. I just want you to be prepared for what may happen.”

This is how the others must have felt having to accommodate their plans because of Kazuma’s rash impulses. It was exhausting and yet another reminder of something he needed to work on.

He grabbed his armor, putting it on as fast as he could and moved to climb on the dragon’s back, but Ryuunosuke stopped him, saying, “Wait a moment.”

“Huh? Don’t you want to get going as soon as possible?” 

Kazuma stared at him incredulously before he heard something in the distance. It sounded like a dog barking. As he squinted in the direction of the capital, he saw a small black shape getting closer and closer to their camp.

“That’s not Toby, is it?”

“Looks like him to me.”

His blood ran cold upon hearing that and he strained, “If Toby is out here by himself, then those bells have to be for them.”

“I know.”

Ryuunosuke’s face pinched with worry as they waited for Toby to reach them, and sparks intermittently flew off him and his tail twitched in agitation. He looked just as scared as Kazuma felt.

Eventually, Toby came sprinting up to them, barking up a storm. Kazuma wasted no time in scooping up the frantic hellhound into his arms and clambering onto Ryuunosuke’s back.

“Are you ready?”

He adjusted his hold on Toby and nodded. “Yes.”

Without another word, he took off, flying up into the lower layer of the storm so they could still see the ground beneath them for the most part.

It only took a few minutes for them to reach The Eye, but every second felt like it lasted forever. When they made it to the central square, Ryuunosuke flew in a circle for a brief moment, observing the scene below them but still keeping within the cloud line. It was difficult to see due to the clouds and the distance but Kazuma could make out a large crowd gathered around a raised platform and seven distinct figures on the platform.

“It can’t be…” Ryuunosuke muttered, his voice strained and ringing with fear and anger.

Before he could ask, the dragon roared and swooped down, crashing into the center of the square after allowing the crowd to run off. Kazuma slid off and turned his attention toward the stage, ignoring the screams of the crowd and the knights that came to face them. Susato, Gina, and Mikotoba were all standing with their hands tied behind their backs while the royal doctor and executioner, Courtney Sithe stood by with her axe at the ready. A woman with a mask stood next to the executioner and Jigoku was also there, gaping wide-eyed at the dragon that slammed down in front of them. King Stronghart, on the other hand, barely moved as he glared at Ryuunosuke, tightening his grip on his obsidian, unicorn-topped staff.

Looking at the three of them, his guardian, his sister, and his friend, tied up on that stage, Kazuma felt like he was a child again; he was sixteen years old staring up at his father's impassive face, resigned to his fate. He was once again small and helpless, watching his family torn away by an unjust system and listening to the jeers of a merciless crowd that would be more than happy to see his head roll too.

Toby barked and tugged on the straps of his greaves, snapping Kazuma back into reality to pay attention to what was happening.

“ You, ” Ryuunosuke hissed as he stalked closer to the platform, lightning crackling around him. “Let them go.”

Kazuma had never heard such visceral fury coming from any one person before and he had to pause when he saw how monstrous Ryuunosuke looked, eyes narrowed in predatory rage and mouth pulled back in a savage snarl revealing a maw of razor-sharp teeth. He even must have lost control of the weather because the gentle storm they had used for cover had turned into a full-blown tempest, whipping around anything that could move in every direction.

Calmly the king spoke, spreading his arms out in a grand gesture, “The dragon finally decides to make an appearance! Unfortunately, I have no intention of bowing to the whims of a tyrant. You and your co-conspirators will face the same fate the rest of your kind did from my predecessor.”

“SHUT UP. Do not pretend with me, Hart Vortex. You are the tyrant, and I will not let you take my family from me again!”

What?

“Ryuunosuke, that’s not-”

Before Kazuma could point out that was very much not the same person from sixty years ago, Stronghart spoke out again, laughing “You seem to have gone mad over the years! As if anyone would be foolish enough to listen to the demands of a deranged beast!”

Not listening, Ryuunosuke lunged forward and snapped his jaws in front of Stronghart’s face with the king stumbling back just in time to avoid getting his head bitten off. At this, the knights surged towards them, separating Kazuma from his partner. Ryuunosuke backed off a little, clearly not willing to take his anger out on those who had not personally wronged him.

Taking the opportunity, Stronghart raised his staff as a signal and Sithe shoved Mikotoba to the ground, raising her axe above his neck while the masked woman pulled out two knives and held them to Susato’s throat.

“NO!” Ryuunosuke’s rage faltered, fading into fear as he desperately stared down Stronghart. “Don’t touch them!”

The king stayed his hand and declared, “You and your compatriots are a danger to the peace of this kingdom. I see no reason to listen to you and put my people at more risk.” He paused and smiled cruelly. “It is not as if the lives of a few humans are going to really stop you anyway.”

Ryuunosuke couldn’t do anything drastic without risking Mikotoba’s, Susato’s, and Gina’s lives, and Kazuma and Toby were still cut off from him by the knights, but on the other hand, Stronghart must know, judging by his almost mocking tone of voice and hesitance to follow through with the executions, that if he hurt them, there would be nothing to save him from the dragon’s wrath.

They were at a standstill.

That is, until his partner decided to do something foolish.

“Then take me.” Ryuunosuke shifted into his human form, inciting confused murmurs from the crowd around them, and raised his hands, pleading, “If you let them go unharmed, then I will give myself over to you, willingly and without a fight. You may do whatever you wish to me as long as you promise me their safety.”

“Wot the ‘ell are you doin’, ‘Oddo?! ‘E’ll kill ya!” Gina screamed.

Unfazed by her outburst, Stronghart nodded. “Very well. That is an acceptable option.”

“Do I have your word you won’t hurt them?”

“Of course.”

The king snapped his fingers and the executioner and the other stepped back while the knights came forward to seize Ryuunosuke who stood still and let them tie his hands together.

Kazuma finally broke from his stupor and shouted his partner’s name. He charged forward with Karuma, fully intending to fight the entire royal knighthood even if it would kill him to keep them all safe when Ryuunosuke barked, “Kazuma. Don’t.”

“I’m not going to let-!”

“Remember what you swore to me,” he cut him off with a sharp glare. “I can trust you to keep your word, right?”

“I promised I would see things through to the end with you. I can’t fulfill that if you do this!”

“I also asked you to do it for me, but that’s not the one I’m talking about right now.”

Kazuma felt his stomach drop as he remembered what else he had been asked to do all that time ago.

Promise me then, Asougi, that you won’t put yourself in this kind of danger on my behalf again.

“No…” His voice cracked as he begged, “Please don’t make me do that, Ryuunosuke!”

His partner only looked back at him with tears in his eyes as he apologized, “I’m sorry, my heart, but I can’t lose anyone else. I leave it up to you and the rest of our family to make things right.”

Kazuma couldn’t keep his grip on Karuma anymore and his treasured family sword clattered to the ground as he collapsed to his knees. He sobbed as he watched the knights drag his prince away to the king’s castle, practically kicking him when they realized he was never going to fight back; his cheeks burned from the warmth of his tears even as the rain continued to fall, as cold as ever. His new headband that he had once never wanted to remove now felt like a choking promise, too tight as if it was trying to crush his skull.

As they disappeared through the streets, Stronghart’s voice rang out above the thunder, “Soon the last vestiges of the dragons will be gone and this kingdom will be free from their tyranny! It will be a time to celebrate!”

“Naruhodou-sama and his family were no tyrants!” Susato cried out as she stepped towards the king. “You are intending to kill an innocent man who has done nothing wrong! He- He willingly sacrificed himself for us; can’t you see that he has no intention to hurt anyone?”

“Yeah, ‘Oddo wouldn’t ‘urt anyone that didn’t deserve it!”

Stronghart glared at the two of them before speaking, “That beast is a threat to this kingdom and I will not allow it to disrupt the perfect order I have established here.”

Kazuma scoffed as he finally picked himself and his sword up off the ground, stalking toward the stage and shoving past any knight in his way. “ You haven’t done anything but take advantage of a good man’s selflessness. Your predecessor is the one who originally tore this kingdom apart; unless you’re admitting to Ryuunosuke’s accusations that you really are Hart Vortex in some way?”

Kazuma noticed then that the king’s staff was made of the same shining, black material that Ryuunosuke’s collar and key from the castle had been.

The man’s gaze turned positively freezing and a muscle twitched in his jaw, which was enough for Kazuma to realize that he was right. He didn’t understand how they could be the same person, but somehow the man responsible for all the tragedy and pain his partner had experienced and his own family’s ruined reputation was standing right before him. His hand clenched around Karuma’s hilt as rage bubbled to the surface, displacing his grief.

The one to blame for all the injustice was here within reach of the Soul of the Asougi Clan.

But Kazuma didn’t get the chance to enact any revenge because Vortex was raising his staff and declaring, “Clearly, you cannot be trusted with freedom regardless of what the dragon has exchanged. You are threats and will be executed accordingly.” 

With the unspoken command, the knights surrounding him grabbed Kazuma before he had the chance to do anything, taking Karuma from him and forcing him forward until they had him pinned to the ground next to Mikotoba, his face pressed against the cold, wet wood of the platform. The others had also been forced to kneel down as their deaths became imminent, and even Toby was trying to squirm away from a knight who had grabbed him by the scruffs.

This… This couldn’t be the end, right? Were they really doomed to fail? To achieve nothing in the end but to repeat a sorry history?

The frustration and helplessness burned in Kazuma’s veins as he still struggled. He couldn’t accept an end like this, but as the shining glint of the executioner’s axe caught his vision, he couldn’t help but close his eyes and lament that Ryuunosuke would be outliving those he loved once again.

Kazuma waited for the final slice but instead, his ears were met with the sounds of confused screaming and angry shouts. Opening his eyes turned out to be a fruitless endeavor as it seemed the entire world had descended into darkness. A pitch-black void extended all around him with no light anywhere to be seen. The hands holding him in place released him, but with no vision, his scramble to get up was pointless; he only had his ears and his hands to guide him.

“Mikotoba-sensei?” he called out as he swept his hands along the floor in front of him, hoping to find his guardian who had been the one closest to him.

“Kazuma-kun? Over here!”

Kazuma followed the sound of Mikotoba’s voice until his hands met something solid. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. Someone cast a spell here, but I couldn’t tell you who.”

“Do you think it’s someone trying to help?”

“I can’t say for sure, but most likely.”

As Kazuma fumbled to find the bindings around his guardian’s hands and untie them, someone grabbed his shoulder and shoved something into his hands. It was something long and skinny and slightly curved. Was it Karuma? He’d have to take his gauntlets off to be sure, but before he could, a woman spoke, “Don’t drop that. Now hold each other’s hand so you don’t get left behind.”

Hold whose hand? “What-”

His protest was cut off by a firm hand grabbing his and Mikotoba’s voice. “I think it’s better that we leave our questions for later.”

His guardian (or at least that’s who he assumed was holding his hand) pulled him to his feet. He was led forward for a short distance and then he heard that same woman’s voice give the same instructions to someone else and Susato and Gina’s voices giving their assent. Then he was being tugged along to who knows where just barely able to keep himself steady considering the number of times his feet knocked against something that almost tripped him.

“Oi, blimey, that ‘urts!”

Gina’s voice cried out and Kazuma felt that familiar panic come rising up again. He wrenched himself away from his guardian and ran toward where he heard his friend’s cry, but he passed over some kind of threshold, and light flooded back into his vision, nearly blinding him.

“Ow, fuck!”

“Oh, my apologies for not warning you.”

He blinked back tears and barely squinted his eyes open, trying to see what was going on. Gina, Susato, and Mikotoba were all there in the light as well, each shielding their eyes. Toby, too, had managed to follow them and was sticking close to Gina’s heels. Kazuma was relieved they all appeared to be safe, but then he turned his attention to the woman who had gotten them out of there; it was the masked one who had seemed more than willing to cut open his sister’s throat earlier.

“You!” He unsheathed Karuma and pointed it at her even as his vision was still adjusting. “What do you want with us?!”

She didn’t move, unfazed. “We need to keep going. That spell won’t last forever, and the knights will make their way out eventually.”

“And you expect us to just go with you after you tried to kill us?!”

“Wait.” Mikotoba put a hand on his shoulder. “You’re… Dr. Gorey, correct? Dr. Sithe’s daughter?”

She nodded and pushed her mask up, revealing pale, girlish features.

“The executioner’s daughter?!” Susato squeaked. “Why… are you helping us?”

Gorey stared back at them, unblinking. “King Stronghart did not stay true to his word. He lied to the dragon about not killing you. And I want to know why you think he is Hart Vortex.”

“And that’s enough for you to commit treason here?” Kazuma crossed his arms, still wary of her and her intentions. 

She finally looked away and said, “No, but I don’t need to explain my full reasoning to you. We need to find a place to hide if you don’t want to get caught again.”

Kazuma opened his mouth to argue, but Susato cut him off, “Yes, we are very much still at risk where we are now, and even if you don’t fully explain yourself, thank you for helping us as you already have.”

“I agree, we need to get out of sight first before deciding what to do next. We also need to get out of this rain soon,” Mikotoba said. “If you wouldn’t mind, Dr. Gorey, I have a place in mind that we could go.”

She nodded and deferred to him to lead the way.

“No,” Kazuma spat. “We have to go back and get Ryuunosuke. We can’t just leave him behind!”

“Yeah! We gotta save ‘Oddo first!”

Gorey looked up in thought as she responded in a bland tone, “He will have been secured within the royal castle by now. It is too late for you to do anything about that.”

“But we gotta do somefin’! ‘E called us family…” Gina’s voice cracked and she looked away, trying and failing to hide the tears building in the corners of her eyes. Toby hugged her legs and whined.

“I know you’re all worried about him,” Mikotoba started, “but you have to remember he gave himself up willingly. Once he finds out what King Stronghart has done, I’m sure it won’t take long for him to escape by himself. We, however, don’t have the same luxury of being a dragon so we need to get somewhere safe.”

Kazuma knew his guardian had a point and apparently so did everyone else as no one said anything in opposition. Instead, they all quietly followed Mikotoba through the city streets to a place they could hide. Eventually, they ended up in the marine district, making their way to an old warehouse tucked away from the bustling hub of the port. Mikotoba led the five of them up to the second floor, and after Gorey returned her arcane focus to her, Susato quickly got to work drawing up an invisibility circle as an extra precaution.

“So,” Kazuma started, trying to keep his voice level even as his emotions were still spiraling out of control, “Is anyone going to tell me what the fuck happened? Why was Jigoku…?”

“‘E sold us out!” Gina exploded.

“Yes, we were wrong about him,” Mikotoba added in a much softer tone. “Seishirou has only ever cared about his own ambitions and position. When we told him the truth and what we wanted to do, he said he needed some time to talk to those who may believe us, but instead, he brought the knights right to our door.”

“He really betrayed us?” Kazuma asked quietly.

He had always looked up to Jigoku. The man had helped him and his mother after his father had been killed and before he had officially moved in with the Mikotobas. He admired his ambition and drive to work in the royal court. Jigoku had even encouraged him to go on this quest to save Ryuunosuke.

Kazuma thought he was someone that would care about doing the right thing.

“Yes, he did,” Susato confirmed quietly. “Kazuma-sama, there’s… something else that you should know.”

Mikotoba butted in, “Susato-chan, wait. We don’t-”

“He deserves to know.”

“Yes, but we can discuss this later. We’re all dealing with enough right now.”

“Stop hiding things from me!” Kazuma shouted. “You knew the truth about King Vortex, and if you had told us that from the start, we could have avoided half of the problems we faced in getting here and been more prepared! Whatever you found out, I can handle it.”

His guardian winced and sighed, nodding.

Susato was the one to speak up and explain, “About your father… Jigoku-sama was the one who reported him to the knights.”

The ground started to sway under his feet and Kazuma couldn’t hear anything over the pounding of his own heartbeat.

“He… what. ”

“We- We don’t know all the details, but when the knights arrived and arrested us, he mentioned how it reminded him of when he had done the same to your father…”

All this time, Jigoku had acted as a friend, like he cared about Kazuma and his family, but every smile and shared laugh and encouragement had been a lie. He had betrayed Genshin Asougi and sent him to the executioner’s block.

He wondered if Jigoku had hoped this quest would kill him.

Kazuma tensed for a moment as white-hot rage burned through his entire being, but then an eerie calm settled in his body. He turned on his heel and headed towards the stairs and the warehouse exit.

“Oi, Kaz, where the ‘ell you goin’?!”

He didn’t answer her. He needed to find Jigoku.

“If you go out there, you’re going to get caught,” Gorey’s impassive voice added.

He didn’t care. Jigoku needed to pay.

He got one foot on the staircase before a hand grabbed his arm and flipped him onto his back. His sister loomed over him, staring down with a stern, unreadable expression.

“Kazuma-sama, you can’t go out there. I understand you’re upset and angry, but you can’t possibly fight the whole crown by yourself.”

“ I don’t care, ” Kazuma hissed as he picked himself up. “I have to make him pay.”

“Not yet.”

“Get out of my way, Susato-chan.”

“No.”

He unsheathed Karuma and she responded with a fighting stance of her own.

“Oi, knock it off!” Gina yelled, coming forward to get in between them. She placed a hand on Susato’s shoulder while Toby growled at Kazuma and made him step back from the staircase. “Put your damn sword away, Kaz. Sooze is right.”

“You don’t understand!” Kazuma’s voice turned manic as he started to plead, “I have to go out there. I have to find him, and I have to kill him. ”

“Kazuma-kun.” Mikotoba was there now, putting a gentle hand over his white-knuckled grip on Karuma.

He was shaking now.

“He almost got you all killed! He took Ryuunosuke away! He- He took my father from me! ”

He was fully crying now as he collapsed to his knees and sobbed, “He killed my father! ”

His guardian pulled him into a tight hug, and Kazuma clung to him like a child as he continued to wail.

He wanted his father back.

He wanted Ryuunosuke back. He wanted Jigoku dead. He wanted Vortex dead. He wanted his family to be safe.

He wanted and wanted and wanted and wanted-

He wanted it all to be over.

Eventually, he managed to get his hiccupping sobs under control and pulled away from Mikotoba, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. When his guardian asked if he was alright he could only offer a mute shake of his head. He felt too numb to say anything; he just quietly followed the others back to where they had been sitting before.

Kazuma leaned back against an old crate with Toby in his lap as they all sat in silence for a while. Eventually, Gorey spoke up, her mask back on her face, “I want to know why you think King Stronghart is King Vortex. His death was well documented, and necromancy has long been outlawed; Mama even showed me the notes written by the royal doctor at the time.”

Kazuma just glared at her, not saying a word. Did she really think he was willing to explain that right now?

“Dr. Gorey,” Mikotoba started gently, “I think it’s best to leave that for later.”

“Hmm. Fine. What do you intend to do now then?”

“I think our first course of action should be to contact Sholmes and the van Zieks and explain the situation. Since we told Seishirou we were working with them, they could be in danger.”

“That’s right, we have to warn them immediately!” Susato exclaimed with a hand over her mouth. “Kazuma-sama, do you still have that doll Mr. Sholmes gave us?”

Thankfully, he hadn’t left it at their camp so he fished it out of his pocket and tossed it to her.

“What is that?” Gorey asked, stepping far too close to Susato and peering at the device in her hands.

“Oh, this is… a communication device that will allow us to speak face to face with others far away.”

“That kind of magic hasn’t been achieved yet or at least documented for public use and study. How did you get it?” She brandished her knives and sharpened them against each other, but didn’t make any other move.

Susato glared back at her, unperturbed. “It was a gift from someone else, so I’m afraid I can’t explain it yet. Now if you wouldn’t mind, we must make an important call.”

“Hmm.” Gorey stepped back and Susato pulled on the ears while the others gathered around her. Kazuma stayed back, not moving from his spot with Toby.

Soon enough, Iris’s voice echoed out from the newly drawn ritual circle, “Hello again! Are things going well over there? Is your friend going to help?”

As succinctly as she could, Susato explained everything that happened.

“Ryuunosuke did what!?” Barok’s voice shouted. “You let him offer himself to be slaughtered without stopping him!?”

“There… There was nothing we could do. We had our hands tied.”

“And knives ‘angin’ over our ‘eads!”

“From my understanding, not all of you were incapacitated as such.”

Kazuma flinched, bringing his knees up and curling in on himself. Barok was right. Ryuunosuke would probably still be here if he had decided not to keep his promise.

“It’s not Kazuma-sama’s fault! If he had tried to do something he would have been killed! And Naruhodou-sama was so desperate to make sure we all got out of there alive…”

“I do believe the only one at fault here is our current king,” Sholmes chimed in.

“Yeah, an’ ‘Oddo’ll get out o’ there real quick I bet! I’ve seen ‘im break out o’ jail wiv me own eyes.” Gina grinned, smug as ever and seemingly rather proud of her friend.

“Yes, I doubt Naruhodo-sama will stay put once he finds out what happened.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Barok started in a dark tone. “If he is isolated enough that he never hears what truly happened, then he would have no reason to escape. Stronghart could kill him and none of us would have any inkling that it happened!”

Something in Kazuma snapped, and he stumbled to his feet, pitching forward as he finally got his voice to work. “W-We have to go save him. We have to get him out of there. We can’t let that happen. ”

“Before you go rushing off to a daring rescue, dear fellow, I must assure you that this hypothetical is quite unlikely to occur,” Sholmes added abruptly but in a surprisingly gentle tone. “Do you think King Stronghart would do away with his noble adversary in such a clandestine manner? I believe he is going to want to make a spectacle of it to ensure that this whole kingdom knows of the dragons’ final downfall.”

“You mean…”

“An extremely public execution with enough time between then and now for the whole of the citizenry to hear about it and attend is the king’s most likely course of action. While it is a gruesome thought, it gives us enough time to regroup and make a move to prevent it.”

“It’s a horribly cruel idea, but I think Hurley’s right. It should give us plenty of time to arrive at The Eye and save Runo!” Iris confirmed, clapping her hands.

“You’re going to come here?” Susato asked.

“Well, since stealth isn’t really an option anymore, you’re going to need all the help you can get.”

“I fink it’s a good plan. All those knights would run screamin’ if there was two dragons after ‘em!” Gina added.

“I don’t object to flying to Dragon’s Rest to stop this execution, but what do you all intend to do after?” Barok said. “Our original plan has fallen to pieces, and if Ryuunosuke has determined that King Stronghart and Lord Vortex are one and the same, then taking anything from that usurper peacefully will not be an option.

“If Ryuunosuke does not do it himself then I will ensure he pays the price of old.”

“Ya mean you’re gonna eat ‘im?”

“In simple terms, I will kill him.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about Ryuunosuke not wanting to do that,” Kazuma muttered. His partner had already tried.

“In either case, do you all have a plan?”

“Well,” Susato started, bringing a finger to her cheek in contemplation, “if you all bring some of the more important documents with you, we could still try to explain the truth. Although if Naruhodou-sama decides to kill King Stronghart before we can convince the people… But- But I’m sure he will be reasonable and try to discuss things first.”

“Naruhodou-san did express how important it was to him that the truth was revealed. I doubt he would object to such a discussion,” Mikotoba said.

“An’ if nufink works, we can all just leave, right? No need to stick around if nobody wants us ‘ere. Figure out wot to do later once we’ve got ‘Oddo.”

“That is true. As long as we stay on guard we should be able to leave whenever we wish,” Mikotoba explained before addressing the Baker Street residents with a frown, “But either way this is all only dependent on if Naruhodou-san fails to escape by himself.”

Breaking her silence, Gorey finally spoke again, “How do you plan on informing him of where we are?”

“Oh!” Susato exclaimed. “I can send him a message telepathically, right now! We won’t have to worry whether he finds out what happens or not.”

“Why did you not do this earlier?” Barok interjected, glaring at her.

“I… I forgot that I could. With all the chaos, it slipped my mind. My apologies.”

“It’s okay, Susie, you’ve been through a lot, but all that matters is you can do it now,” Iris reassured her.

“Right!” 

With that, Susato closed her eyes and started the incantation, but a few moments later she opened them again with her brow furrowed in concern. “Something’s not right. I can’t contact him.”

“Wot ya mean?”

“When I think of him and search for his energy with my magic I can’t find him. Something must be blocking me…”

“It must be King Stronghart,” Gorey said. “I know he is capable of blocking others’ magic. He may have done so to tamper with the dragon’s own magic.”

Susato paled and she stuttered, “Th-Then that must mean Naruhodou-sama won’t be able to escape by himself!”

Mikotoba laid a hand on his daughter’s shoulder and consoled her, “Don’t panic yet, Susato-chan. Remember we already settled on a plan for if he couldn’t. It’s not as critical as you think. But,”—he turned toward the van Zieks—“this does mean we should be more urgent. How long will it take you three to get here?”

Barok answered with a scowl and his arms crossed, “I am far behind Ryuunosuke in terms of swiftness, and I have… atrophied during the past few decades, so it will more than likely take at least three days for me to fly there.”

“Alright, that should still be enough time. In the meantime, we will try to find a way out of the city once things have calmed down slightly. We won’t be safe here forever.”

“Please stay safe, everyone!” Iris called out before they all said their goodbyes and ended the transmission.

Mikotoba heaved a deep sigh before he looked at Kazuma and Susato and asked softly, “Are you alright?”

“Huh? I…” Kazuma swallowed thickly as his words failed him. 

Ryuunosuke was well and truly trapped and unable to escape and Kazuma’s mind swirled with horrible possibilities of what Vortex may be doing to his partner.

Susato was in a similar state of upset as she wrang her hands together and muttered, “I’m just so worried about Naruhodou-sama…”

“It will be okay. We will all get through this safe and sound, alright?”

His guardian pulled them both into another hug and Kazuma whispered back, “...Okay.”

“I will see if we may be able to leave the city soon,” Gorey declared before getting up and marching over to one of the windows. She was quiet for a moment before she commented, “That’s odd.”

“Wot is?” Gina asked as she got up as well to see what the problem was.

“It’s stopped raining, but the storm has shifted strangely. You should see for yourselves.”

With nothing else to do, the others complied with her suggestion.

At first, Kazuma didn’t know what she was talking about; when he looked out the window all he saw was an eerily empty blue sky. It seemed as if the storm had completely dissipated, but then off in the distance, he noticed a massive wall of dark, grey clouds. It was difficult to see, but no matter where he turned his head they were still there in every direction.

They were in the eye of an enormous hurricane.

And Kazuma could only think of one source of such an out-of-place event.

Chapter Text

Sneaking out of the capital and returning to their previously abandoned camp, luckily still within the boundary of the placid eye of the hurricane, was surprisingly easy. 

The hard part was the waiting.

There was nothing for them to do as they sat and waited for the Baker Street residents to arrive. Conversation was more often than not rough and stilted since everyone was filled with worry, well, except for Dr. Gorey. She seemed completely unperturbed by the situation, taking advantage of the lull to ask about the dragons’ real history and what Ryuunosuke’s intended plans for the future had been. At least Toby was there to help dispel tension.

Kazuma, however, hated all this sitting and waiting and not knowing what was happening to Ryuunosuke. All he knew for certain was that his partner was still alive and very, very upset or angry. The entire time that they waited the hurricane surrounding them never died down.

No one could get in or out of the city and its outskirts via conventional methods, and Kazuma couldn’t even imagine the kind of destruction that was happening where the storm raged; days of powerful, unending wind and rain were likely enough to level anything standing upright. He worried that the van Zieks wouldn’t be able to get through it to arrive safely.

Thankfully, his worries on that subject were unfounded as after three days of waiting, a massive dragon came flying into their camp. 

Barok’s dragon form was a shining silvery hue with rough, iridescent scales that seemed to shift colors between grey and purple. Contrary to Ryuunosuke’s smooth, slender form, his body was thick and muscularly defined with large leathery wings sprouting from his back and no fur to be seen anywhere. With the curved, segmented horns sprouting from his head, he looked just like the corresponding communication device that Sholmes had shown them.

In a wobbly flight pattern, Iris, currently a dragon, leaped off her uncle’s back and dived down to the group. Her scales were a bright, shimmering pink mottled with iridescent grey, and everything about her was like a scaled-down version of Barok, right down to the nubs of her horns.

“Mickey!” she exclaimed as she barreled into Mikotoba, knocking him down.

“Oof, hello Iris, it’s good to see you too,” he grunted as he attempted to hug her and gingerly picked himself up off the ground.

Iris backed away and shifted into her human form before addressing everyone, smiling brightly, “I was really worried about you all, but it looks like you’ve been able to stay safe!”

“Oh, yes, it’s been very… calm,” Susato said, interlacing her fingers.

She didn’t mention how after so long, the calm was more unnerving than anything else. The eerie stillness felt wrong in the midst of the looming potential disaster.

“I had assumed the other dragons coming would be related to Mr. Naruhodou, but that is clearly not the case,” Gorey stepped in, sharpening her knives against each other and staring at Iris like she wanted to dissect her. “I was not aware there were different kinds of dragons.”

Barok’s massive foot slammed down between them, frost crusting the grass at the impact point, and he snarled at Gorey.

“Aw, come on, Uncle Barry, I’m sure she’s just curious,” Iris pouted, arms crossed.

“Yes, while I would like to examine your insides, I don’t experiment on the living. I prefer to interact with the dead.”

“Like necromancy? That’s an exciting discipline!”

“...No. It’s illegal.”

Barok scoffed, “Yet another ridiculous law Vortex passed to enforce his own beliefs on the populace.”  

Gorey seemed to perk up at that, but she was interrupted by Sholmes, who was currently glued to Mikotoba’s side with the other’s arm around his shoulder, “A fascinating history indeed, Lord van Zieks, but there are more pressing matters to attend to. Iris, my dear, you said you thought you heard something strange right before we got here?”

“Oh, right! I heard bells; they’re still ringing actually.”

“Bells?!” Kazuma jerked forward, nearly shouting, “We have to leave immediately! That means they’re planning to execute Ryuunosuke today! ”

“We gotta burst in there just like ‘Oddo did for us!”

“Yes, we mustn’t waste a moment!” Susato added fiercely.

“They’re going to see you coming from a mile away,” Gorey pointed out blandly.

“There’s nothing we can do about that,” Mikotoba said, “but I’d say the execution does put things in our favor as it means Naruhodou-san will be easy to find. We will know what to expect for the most part.”

“I concur. They may be expecting us, but that is a double-edged sword as we are expecting them as well,” Barok agreed, flexing his wings out.

They all nodded and soon everyone was climbing on his back and setting off for The Eye.

Kazuma felt exposed as they flew through the empty sky with nothing to hide them. The fact that he somehow ended up sandwiched between Iris and Gorey, with Toby in his lap, and that Barok was definitely a slower flier than Ryuunosuke didn’t help his discomfort either, but thankfully, it wasn’t too long before the city came into view. Seeing the green banners with Vortex’s unicorn crest hanging limp in the still air made Kazuma start to feel sick again.

He didn’t get to ruminate on that for long as Iris cried out, “Look! They have a ballista already set up!”

Looking where she was pointing, Kazuma tensed as the knights had a bolt loaded and ready to fire, but, noticing it early, Barok was easily able to swerve out of its trajectory. He then flew in close to the city’s wall, opening his mouth to let out a stream of icy breath that froze everything on the ramparts in place.

“Cor, this’ll be easy!” Gina hollered as they swept past the now-frozen walls toward the main square.

“Do not celebrate yet. They were expecting us, and Vortex may still have an underhanded trap waiting for us.”

Kazuma wanted to side with Gina on this one since he doubted anyone could set up something significant in such a short amount of time, but, unfortunately, Barok was right. As they neared the center and the execution platform came into view, Iris gasped and clutched her head while her uncle swayed midair and started to fall, his wingbeats stuttering. He completely lost control, spiraled downward, and they all went tumbling onto the hard stones of the square. They had ended up on the outer edge of the open space. Bruised and aching, Kazuma looked around to find Barok and Iris both collapsed, shaky and pale, and all of them surrounded by crown knights.

“I see you’ve all returned to fulfill your sentences! Don’t expect you will be able to escape again.”

Vortex’s voice rang out across them, grating on Kazuma’s ears. He stood on the head of the platform, glaring smugly as he gripped his darkly glowing staff with one hand behind his back. The hush of the crowd was only broken by the sound of loud, desperate sobs coming from Ryuunosuke who was kneeling next to Sithe, wrists chained together and shaking just like the van Zieks.

Kazuma unsheathed Karuma and held it tight, squeezing until his knuckles turned white. His breaths shook just as much as Ryuunosuke.

“We don’t intend to escape!” Susato shouted, settling into a fighting stance and letting her fury show unmasked. “We won’t be going anywhere until you let Naruhodou-sama go and admit what you’ve done!”

Vortex shook his head. “I have done nothing but preserve the peace of this kingdom, but very well, take your own deaths in stride.”

With his casual words and a wave of his hand, the knights marched forward, weapons bared and faces grim. Barok managed to snap at a few of them and scatter some with his tail, but it was obvious there was no way he could protect himself and Iris in his current state. Thankfully though, Kazuma’s worry about being unable to advance wasn’t so much soothed as distracted when Sholmes pulled out a potion, drank it, and proceeded to breathe fire onto a large swath of knights; Mikotoba, taking the detective’s side, used his own simple martial arts to dispatch the disoriented ones that had tried to escape the flames.

“Worry not, fellows! Yuujin, Toby, and I will stay with the Lord and Lady van Zieks. Lord Vortex and Prince Naruhodou await your attention,” Sholmes laughed as he pulled out more potions from his bag, grinning like a madman.

Kazuma was too off-put by his demeanor to do more than nod and turn to Susato and the others. His sister and Gina, now armed with a pair of knives Gorey had given her, nodded back at him and faced the coming onslaught.

Kazuma led the charge forward, clashing the steel of his family sword with that of the knights’. It was surprisingly easy to take them down and move past them; he had, after all, spent much of his childhood sneaking around to watch them train, learning their movements and strategies with the intention of joining them one day. He had to laugh now as he cleanly parried their blows and stepped out of the way of their swings, using Karuma as an extension of himself to disarm them and slice at the gaps in their defenses.

He once dreamed of fighting with them for his kingdom and rejecting his heritage, and now here he was, fighting against them for a different king and following exactly in his ancestor’s footsteps.

His arrogance faltered, however, when he was met with an opponent wielding a magic-infused halberd and not dressed in royal armor but nondescript clothes like those of the assassins that once tried to kill them.

In hindsight, he should have realized earlier that Vortex was the one behind Brett and her cohorts.

This new aggressor did not, unfortunately, share the familiar patterns of the knights, and Kazuma was forced backward, jumping away from the long reach of the blazing weapon and debating on how to gain the advantage. Another downward swing from the other pushed Kazuma down into a crouch with Karuma raised to push back against the halberd. He managed to push the weapon away, rolled forward, and sprang up to directly headbutt them in the stomach with as much force as he could; they let out a groan and crumpled to the ground, clutching their midsection.

His progress continued to stall whenever he met a similar “rogue” opponent; he certainly suffered more wounds than he would have otherwise. Dealing with magic weapons was almost always a guarantee of injury, but Kazuma didn’t falter in his charge, and he had the others at his side to aid him when he needed it. 

They were finally close to the foot of the platform when Vortex yelled, slamming the end of his staff on the ground, “Enough of this! Dr. Sithe, go through with the execution already.”

Kazuma, Susato, and Gina all cried out and frantically tried to get up there as she kicked Ryuunosuke to his hands and knees and swung her axe down. 

“Mama, stop.”

And Gorey’s simple but firm request worked.

Sithe stopped, inches away from slicing through Ryuunosuke’s neck, and looked down at her daughter. “Maria. Why are you doing this?” Except for the slight shake in her hands, she was entirely stiff and emotionless.

“I’ve learned an interesting history from these people. I don’t think you should kill that dragon. He is no criminal, but King Stronghart is.” Gorey was startlingly calm as she stated her case to her mother, but she never lifted her mask off her face.

“Dear, you’ve been lied to,” Sithe said in a surprisingly gentle tone. “Just come back and-”

“Dr. Sithe,” Vortex snapped, cutting her off. “You will face the same death sentence as Dr. Gorey if you do not cease talking and finish your current job.” 

“...I thought my daughter was to receive a lighter sentence, Your Majesty.”

“No traitor to this crown will be allowed to remain alive. That should be abundantly clear by now.”

The executioner’s face hardened and she stepped back, dropping her axe on the ground and not saying another word. The message was clear.

“Very well,” Vortex sighed and pointed his staff at her, starting a chant for some kind of spell.

Susato, using her own magic, leaped straight on top of the platform and swung at him, breaking his focus, but it wasn’t enough to make him drop his staff. The king’s personal guards soon swarmed in, blocking her off and interrupting her chance at taking him down. Kazuma and the others, meanwhile, took the opportunity to follow suit, climbing on top of the stage, albeit in more slow and clumsy manners.

Kazuma was the first to reach Ryuunosuke’s side, kneeling down and giving his partner a once-over. “Are you alright? Did he hurt you?”

Ryuunosuke clutched his hands as well as he could while he was still bound and gasped through the tears streaming down his face, “I thought you all were dead; he told me he killed all of you!”

“Oh, he tried, but don’t worry,” Kazuma said, quelling the hatred that shot through him and gently cupping Ryuunosuke’s face in his hands, “We’re not going to let that monster take anything else from you.”

“Kazuma… Watch out!”

“Wh-” He didn’t even have time to turn before a great force smashed against the back of his neck, sending him sprawling to the floor and gasping for air as the world reverberated around him.

“NO!”

Ryuunosuke’s scream echoed past the roaring in his ears, but then someone grabbed him by the collar and tossed him until he rolled to a stop on his back a good meter away from where he had been. He caught a glimpse of Gina running to the prince’s side before someone else blocked his view.

Jigoku.

The man who may as well have murdered his father now straddled Kazuma’s body, wrapping his thick hands around his neck and cutting off all of his airflow. Kazuma struggled to kick and push him away, but Jigoku was heavier and stronger than him and his attempts only grew more feeble the longer he was choked.

“You should have died on that quest like you were supposed to!” Jigoku hissed as he squeezed tighter. “I should have turned you in along with Genshin all those years ago.”

The black creeping into Kazuma’s vision turned red and he used his remaining strength to thrust his hand up into Jigoku’s face, breaking his nose with a sickening crack. He fell back, screaming and clutching his face, giving Kazuma immediate relief as he gulped down each breath of air. A clatter sounded nearby, and Kazuma looked to see one of Gorey’s knives lying next to his head. He didn’t even think as he snatched it and threw himself at Jigoku. As the man yelled again, he grabbed his tongue and sliced it off with the knife. Jigoku’s garbled howling faded into the background as Kazuma dropped the bloody tongue in disgust and stumbled back over to his prince’s side, still heaving in great gasps of air.

Ryuunosuke caught him as he fell, his hands having been freed from their chains by Gina’s expert lockpicking skills, and pulled him in close. He trembled around Kazuma even as he gently caressed his face. Kazuma didn’t think he could get up and fight again, but it didn’t matter anymore since the only ones left fighting now were Susato and Vortex himself.

A wizards’ duel was difficult to watch, or more accurately it was difficult to follow.

The glow of magic and echo of incantations muddled Kazuma’s senses and the most he could understand was that Susato was purely on the offensive. Her spells and movements never seemed to strike home while Vortex constantly deflected but never hit back. Eventually, Susato stepped back, breathing heavily, relaxed her posture, and dropped her magic.

With a bow of her head, Susato declared, “My apologies, Your Majesty, it seems I’m no match for you.”

“Wot?! Sooze-!” Gina called out and tried to step in, but Ryuunosuke grabbed her wrist, holding her back.

“Wait.”

Vortex leaned against his staff and laughed, loud and malicious, before spreading his arms out and gloating, “What a sensible young woman you are. At least one of you is smart enough to-”

Right in the midst of his snickering, Susato punched him directly in the face. 

And just that magicless, mundane swing was enough to send the king, the traitor, the usurper, crumpling to the ground. She picked his staff up, raised it over her head, and, ignoring the man’s protests, smashed it down onto the ground, shattering the crystal unicorn head with a burst of dark light.

Having lost his arcane focus, Vortex was utterly powerless now and his spells useless. This didn’t stop him from lunging at Susato, trying to grab her, but as soon as he moved, Ryuunosuke shot forward, shifting into his dragon form and pinning him down with one foot.

“You’ve lost, Lord Vortex. You cannot use your magic to deceive people anymore,” Ryuunosuke snarled.

The man only sneered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have never used my magic in such a way.”

“Cease your lying! Tell the people gathered here the truth. Tell them what you've done, and I may consider showing you mercy.”

“Showing your true colors by threatening me? Do you think these people would ever join your side if you kill me? You would only prove yourself to be the monster you are.”

Ryuunosuke pressed his foot down harder, making Vortex wheeze in pain as lightning started to crackle around them. “Tell me, how much pain do you think you can endure? Killing you would be the mercy. I will only be the monster if you make me be.”

Vortex finally looked scared, face paling, and grunted, “Fine. You’re right. I am Hart Vortex.”

Immediately, the crowd around them erupted in confused murmurings, echoing questions of how this was possible and whether his words could be trusted under threat.

The dragon released him and stepped back. “Get up then, and regale this crowd with the whole truth they deserve. You will not spare any detail and you will speak so everyone can hear.”

And he did. He explained the whole story of how he “grew dissatisfied” with the dragons’ policies and spent years designing a spell to alter the entire kingdom’s memory and turn them to his side, how he manipulated the memories of a small army before enacting his full plan, how he stormed the castle and let everyone else fight for him, not even being the one to kill the dragons himself, how he created the story of the lost prince to convince people to try to kill Ryuunosuke, and how he used magic to keep himself alive by transferring his mind to another.

“You may claim my methods were harsh, but I have always had this kingdom’s best interests in mind. I trust you all realize that,” Vortex finished with an ugly smirk.

Ryuunosuke, who had been standing silent the whole time but with a storm boiling in his eyes, finally spoke up, “The only interests you have kept in mind are your own. You are nothing but a greedy usurper who pulled people in against their will. You have turned my kingdom into a festering police state where no one may voice any dissent against your own personal views without fear of retribution. You are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent people, including those you sent on a ‘quest’ that had no real goal!”

“You were the one who killed all those people. I had nothing to do with them.”

The dragon leaned in and growled, “I never harmed a single person that stepped foot in that castle. Their ill fates were met outside at the hands of your assassins. Don’t lie to me. ”

“...That was for the good of the people. If those adventurers had been allowed to tell others that the dragon did not harm them, it would have created unrest and confusion. Sacrifices must be made when running a kingdom.”

“That should never include innocent lives. ”

“Regardless of that morality, it’s already been done, and the people lived peacefully because of it. So go on, throw me in jail for keeping the peace. If they let you, of course.”

“I’m afraid that is not what your punishment will be.”

Ryuunosuke didn’t hesitate for a second more before shattering Vortex’s calm facade by picking him up between his teeth and tossing him in the air. The wizard’s undignified scream was cut short as the dragon snapped his jaws around him, swallowing him whole.

Damn.

He really just ate him, huh?

The shocked silence that followed was eventually broken by Gina. “So, uh, did ‘e at least taste good?”

Ryuunosuke looked at her and laughed, rumbly and spiteful. “No, he tasted quite vile, but he made a satisfying meal nonetheless.”

“Runooooo!” Iris came flying up then, landing on his head and laughing with him. They exchanged a few words in Draconic before she jumped and glided to the ground. He moved down and wrapped himself around Kazuma, Susato, and Gina in a heavy embrace and whispered a thank you.

Unraveling himself, he shifted into his human form and addressed the crowd of knights and bystanders gathered in the square who had witnessed everything that happened, “The first thing I’d like to say to you all is I’m sorry. I’m sorry that this happened this way, that some of you have been hurt, but I hope that won’t affect your decision to trust me.

“I can assure you that the story your king just told you was the complete truth, and I hope the details of it were enough to convince you that none of it was a lie made for an attempt at survival; I can even prove it if you let me.

“I understand some of you may think what I did just now was harsh, and I understand if that means you don’t want to trust me. But I promise you all right now that I only want to help. I want to make your lives better. I want you to be able to live without fear or judgement. Any grievances you have, I will do my best to listen to them; this is as much your kingdom as it is mine.

“You don’t have to crown me king right away, but if you give me a chance, I promise I will rule with the kindness and compassion that you all deserve.”

He bowed low and waited for a reaction.

As the quiet after his speech dragged on, Ryuunosuke started to fidget nervously, glancing back at Kazuma and the others and fiddling with his tail. “Um, I-”

“You literally just ate our king,” one of the still-conscious knights spoke up. Judging by his uniform, he was the captain of the king’s guard. 

“Erm, yes, s-sorry, perhaps I should have waited…”

The captain let out a bark of laughter and crossed his arms. “I’ve been serving at that man’s side for decades; it admittedly hasn’t been as comfortable as you would think. You say you will listen to us. What does that mean exactly?”

“Well, I do mean exactly that.” Ryuunosuke regained his confident posture and spoke clearly, “I’ve been disconnected from society for a long time, so I don’t completely know how everything has changed. In this case, would it not be best for me to listen to what my people have to say about how they’ve suffered rather than try to change things however I please?

“I don’t want to be a tyrant. As I said before, I only want to make things better.”

The captain stared, seeming to think for a long time before admitting, “That’s more openness than I ever heard from King Stronghart the entire time I served him. Alright, I can’t speak for everyone, but I’ll give you a chance. It’s not like there’s anyone else in line.”

Ryuunosuke grinned brightly and bowed to the knight. “Thank you. I hope not to disappoint you.”

A murmur started up in the crowd at that exchange and soon there were scattered shouts of ‘Give him a chance!’ and other similar sentiments rippling through the people. It wasn’t as unanimous-sounding as he would have liked, but it was a good start. And they had plenty of time.

Kazuma pulled himself to his feet and went to rejoin his side. When his partner looked at him, his eyes were shining with happiness. Kazuma hugged him tight and rasped through his sore throat, “You did it.”

Ryuunosuke’s warm and relieved laughter tickled his ear as he said, “We still have a lot of work to do, but… I think it’s going to be okay.”

Susato and Gina came to join the hug as well and when Ryuunosuke pulled away, he looked at all three of them and murmured, “You all will help me, right?”

Susato put her hands on her hips and scolded, “What a ridiculous question, Naruhodou-sama! Of course, we will!”

“Yeah, there’s no way you could get rid o’ us now!” Gina added, reaching up and ruffling his head.

“Right, how silly of me.” Ryuunosuke smiled again and a soft, cool breeze swept through, promising sweet relief and clear skies.

Chapter Text

Ryuunosuke was right that they had a lot of work ahead of them. Despite Vortex’s confession, and all the historical documents in the Archive under Baker Street providing physical proof, many people still believed the old tale of Vortex’s rebellion and refused to trust a dragon. It was difficult to completely overturn more than half a century’s worth of misinformation and subsequent mistrust, but eventually, through diplomacy and kindness, they managed to earn the trust of the vast majority, and about a year later, it was finally the day of Ryuunosuke’s coronation as the new king of Tempest (oddly he hadn’t fought much to change the name back to Kaira).

There were only a couple of more hours until the ceremony, and Kazuma… wasn’t really looking forward to it, particularly the after-party. Of course, he was ecstatic that his partner was finally getting his kingdom back officially and all their hard work was paying off, but he had never done well with large gatherings. His reputation had drastically changed from the prejudice he used to face, but the shift to people fawning over him with gratitude for his role in taking down Vortex was overwhelming.

“Kazuma-sama, are you alright?” Susato was giving him a concerned look, head tilted and eyebrows scrunched. He was currently helping Gina fix her coat, adjusting the collar to the perfect angle. They all had to look their best today, and that meant Iris deemed it necessary to make the three of them matching blue-grey and silver suits, each with their own unique accents.

“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Kazuma sighed and waved his hand, trying to dismiss his brother’s concerns. “Just a little worried about the ceremony.”

“I’m sure it will be fine; we have taken plenty of security measures, but,” Susato started, turning a particularly piercing stare his way, “will you be alright during the festivities afterward?”

“I can handle one party, Susato-kun.”

“Is there somefin bad about parties?” Gina asked, loosening her shirt collar and undoing Susato’s work. “Ain’t they just eatin’ an’ dancin’ an’ talkin’?”

“Yes, but Kazuma-sama isn’t very good at the talking part.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

“Wh- Hey!” Kazuma objected to their combined teasing. “I just don’t like crowds, that’s all.”

“Maybe if ya didn’t scare folks by glarin’ all the time, it wouldn’t be so bad.”

“I don’t glare at people! …Not on purpose anyway,” he grumbled, crossing his arms.

“Yes, unfortunately, I don’t think there’s a way to fix your… natural intimidation,” Susato said hesitantly as he turned to Gina to fix her buttons again.

“Aw, c’mon, Sooze, can’t I keep ‘em open? Feels too tight.”

“It’s not too tight, and we must look our best for the ceremony!”

“Why’s lookin’ nice mean I gotta be choked ‘alf to death? I bet ‘Oddo don’t even care!” Gina pouted while pulling at her collar with a grimace.

“That’s just how ceremony is, Gina. You’ll have to get used to it as a member of the new royal court. We all will,” Kazuma offered, not bothering to hide his amusement at her predicament. Truthfully, he thought she looked better with the buttons undone, but it was more fun to tease her, and he wasn’t about to argue with Susato either. 

“Me an’ Toby ain’t got as much to do as you two so I should get to dress ‘ow I like.”

“You’re going to have plenty of attention as the one officially credited with breaking Naruhodou-sama’s curse.”

“...So if that makes me more important than you, then ya should listen to me.” 

Susato’s hard stare was only met with a shit-eating grin, and Gina kissed the frown off her boyfriend’s lips before he could object. 

The argument was lost as Susato flushed and muttered, looking away, “Well, if you’re going to be so insistent, then do what you will.”

“If that’s all it takes to convince our new royal wizard, then I fear for the court’s future,” Kazuma commented drily.

Susato tossed him.

“If that’s all it takes to take down the new captain of the royal knighthood, then perhaps Naruhodou-sama should consider someone else,” he replied primly.

Kazuma groaned and told him to shut up as he picked himself up off the cold floor. He rubbed his back as he grumbled, “I’m not giving up this headband any time soon.”

“Speakin’ of ‘Oddo…” Gina piped up with a frown and a finger to her temple. “‘Ave ya checked on ‘im today?”

“No, I haven’t seen him at all since this morning, but now that you mention it, I should go see him.”

Susato’s amusement melted into a quiet concern as he agreed, “Yes, please do.”

Looks like the other two were just as worried.

As the coronation approached, Ryuunosuke had been steadily getting more anxious and distant. He kept insisting that it was just basic nerves, but his nightmares had been getting worse too. It had gotten so bad, he had even refused to sleep in his human form for the past couple of weeks just so he could avoid them. The comfort Kazuma tried to offer never seemed to do much, especially since he didn’t even know what he dreamt about; every time Ryuunosuke had woken from one, he would cling to Kazuma with quiet sobs, refusing to discuss it.

But that didn’t stop him from trying. So, with a wave of goodbye, he left Susato and Gina to continue with their final clothing adjustments and went to go find his partner. 

Thankfully, finding Ryuunosuke wasn’t much of a challenge since he was still getting ready in the dressing room Iris had commandeered earlier this morning. He knocked on the door and Ryuunosuke and Iris’s voices filtered through, telling him to come in.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anyth-” Kazuma’s words caught in his throat as he saw Ryuunosuke’s attire for the occasion.

His partner was adorned in a complicated junihitoe, several layers of colorful robes with the topmost layers bearing brilliant blue hues from light to dark and intricate patterns of waves and clouds. Gold paint decorated his eyes and lips to match the chains and beads adorning his horns, and he still wore his same earring as always.

The spitting image of a regal king. All that was missing was the crown.

Ryuunosuke smiled, coy and smug. “Got any thoughts you’d like to share?”

“I- …You look lovely,” Kazuma mumbled, his face burning. He could still leave him at a loss for words so easily.

The other two giggled, embarrassing him further, and Iris spoke, beaming as she clapped her hands together, “I’m glad you like it, Kazzie. I worked really hard on it!”

“Well, you did a wonderful job.”

“Thank you!” She turned to Ryuunosuke, mouth turning down into a stern frown. “Alright, Runo, you’re all good to go, but you’re not allowed to mess your outfit up, got it?”

“Yes, I’ve got it, don’t worry,” he laughed. “Thank you, Iris.”

“Mhm! Now I better go check on Hurley and Mickey to make sure they’re ready. Uncle Barry too.”

“Oh, if you’re going to see Barok, could you give him a message for me?”

“What is it?”

Ryuunosuke spoke his request in Draconic and Iris nodded with a smile before leaving. Kazuma had been trying to learn the language lately, but he couldn’t catch much of what was said, only something about a thank you.

“So,” Kazuma started, moving closer to his partner and wrapping his arms around his waist, “how long exactly did it take you to put this outfit on? It looks quite complicated.”

Ryuunosuke leaned into him and sighed, “Far too long if you ask me. There’s so many layers so don’t you even think about messing it up.”

“I’m not! I just thought it was surprising. It’s not Iris’s typical style.”

“...You’re right. It’s not.” Ryuunosuke’s voice lowered as he continued, “It’s supposed to be like the ceremonial wear my family once had.”

“Oh.” Kazuma tightened his hold. “I… probably should have guessed that. Most things about the proceedings today are going to be based on what your family used to do, right?”

“Yes.” His partner pulled away and stood in front of the available mirror, inspecting his own glamorous reflection with a stony-faced expression. “...I got to see the crown yesterday.”

“Huh?”

“The smiths came by to show me their work and check that they had crafted it properly. They did an immaculate job in recreating my family’s crown. It’s a perfect replica.

“And brand new.”

Ryuunosuke curled his hands into shaking fists as he spoke, the calm facade unraveling as more words spilled out, “It’s no longer missing a gemstone from when my great-great-grandfather traded it in a gesture of peace with a neighboring nation. There’s no scratch on the front from my grandmother’s war days. There’s no dent in the side of it when my brother smashed it against the floor when he was young. There are no more bite marks on the back from when my father let me chew on it when I was a baby…”

“Ryuunosuke…”

Kazuma tried to reach out to him, but he collapsed to his knees in a colorful heap of fabric as he finally broke down completely, trembling with choked sobs and sparking with grief-fueled lightning.

“It’s all gone! But I’m still here… and I shouldn’t be…”

Kazuma knelt down in front of him, trying to get his attention and cautiously resting a hand on the edge of his clothes. 

Ryuunosuke either didn’t notice him or just ignored him as he continued in broken gasps, clutching his head, “It shouldn’t be me getting the crown! Ryuuko should be the one wearing these clothes and taking the throne! She was always better than me, more thoughtful and clever. I may have wanted to rule, but I would have happily watched my sister take this place. So why! Why am I here and she’s gone… Why am I the only one left… I don’t deserve this…”

He lifted his head and looked at him, tears flowing and lightning flashing in his eyes. “Why did it have to be me…?”

“Ryuu, I… I don’t know, but you do deserve this; I’ve seen how hard you’ve worked and how much you care. You’re going to be a wonderful king, and I think your sister and all the rest of your family would be so proud to see you here.”

“I just- I miss them so much…”

“I know. I know what it’s like to miss the people you’ve lost, but it’s okay to live and be happy. They would want that for you. We want that for you. I’m so glad I got to meet you, Ryuunosuke, and I know the others are too,” Kazuma murmured and raised a hand to cup his partner’s cheek once he had calmed down enough to not risk electrocution.

Ryuunosuke sniffed and returned the gesture, covering Kazuma’s hand with his own. “I am too… Thank you, and I’m sorry for melting down like that.”

“It’s alright. You’ve been through a lot, but just know I’m here for you, love.”

He gave a watery smile and leaned in for a gentle kiss, resting his forehead against Kazuma’s after and whispering softly, “Would it be selfish of me to ask you to stay here forever?”

“Ha, I’d gladly give you my forever, as short as it may be compared to yours,” Kazuma murmured back, his voice growing thick. In truth, he hated thinking of how Ryuunosuke would outlive him by the thousands.

“...Oh!” he exclaimed after a quiet pause and pulled away, grabbing Kazuma’s hands in a sudden excitement. “That reminds me, we finally figured it out!”

“Figured out what…?”

“Well, there’s an old spell that Susato-san and I have been researching. We have the full instructions and everything in the Archive, but it was written and designed so long ago that we’ve been having trouble deciphering the proper components, and with everything else we’ve been doing, it’s been hard to find the time to work on it.

Ryuunosuke grinned, sharp and full of life. “But about a week ago, he said he finally figured it out, and he thinks he can cast it.”

“Okay, but what is this spell? It must be something big if you’re so excited, but I have no idea what’s going on.”

His smile turned shy, and he squeezed his hands tighter as he explained, “It’s a longevity spell that when cast on a human will allow them to live for at least five hundred more years.”

Kazuma’s eyes widened and his breath caught, hoping he hadn’t just misheard. “You mean…?”

“You still wouldn’t live as long as me, my heart, but our forever needn’t be so short as a normal human lifespan.”

Kazuma’s heart soared, and a grin slowly spread across his face, but Ryuunosuke kept talking as he started to fidget with his tail.

“Ah, but that’s only if you want it, of course! I know it hurts to outlive so many people, and I understand if you don’t want to do that, but Susato-san already said that he wanted to do it for himself so I don’t know if that will affect your decision, and Gina-”

“Ryuu!” He cut off his nervous partner’s rambling. “Of course I’ll do it! I would gladly take every second more I could get with you.”

“Really?”

“Yes!”

With that, Ryuunosuke crashed into him, smashing his wildly smiling lips against Kazuma’s with fierce joy. Kazuma returned the embrace with just as much glee.

Pulling back with a lopsided grin, he asked breathlessly, “So, should we be planning a wedding for after the coronation?”

Ryuunosuke laughed and leaned in, resting his head on Kazuma’s chest. “I wouldn’t mind that, but maybe give me a bit of time to get used to being king first?”

“I can do that. We’ve got plenty of time now.”

“Yes, we do,” he said, humming in contentment.

They lay there on the floor in a heap for some time before Ryuunosuke finally pulled away and wiped his eyes, smearing the paint on them even more than his tears from earlier had. Combined with his rumpled robes, he looked like a beautiful, jewel-toned mess.

“Iris is going to be pretty mad at you, you know,” Kazuma teased.

“Huh?”

“You’ve ruined your makeup and wrinkled your clothes.”

Ryuunosuke snorted. “You say that like it’s all my fault.”

“I had nothing to do with it.”

“The gold paint on your mouth would say otherwise.”

“Blaming me sounds like an abuse of power, Your Majesty.”

Ryuunosuke laughed, lightheartedly and gently smacking Kazuma with his tail. “I’m not even king yet.”

“But you will be soon, and you look like a mess. Let’s just hope Iris gets to fixing you before Susato-kun gets his hands on you. You should have seen him fighting with Gina just to keep her shirt collar all the way buttoned,” he described as he got up and offered his hands to his partner to help him up.

“He does like to keep things nice and tidy,” Ryuunosuke said with a smile as he took Kazuma’s hands. “But I get the feeling that Gina’s probably going to win that one.”

“Oh, she did, but anyway, how are you feeling now?”

He rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. “Still… nervous, but I can do it. I miss my family, but I’m not alone.” He melted into a warm smile, his golden eyes lighting up. “I found a wonderful new one.”

“Yeah,” Kazuma started, taking the other’s hand and bringing it to his lips, kissing the cool scales. “We all did.”