Arthur liked returning to Edolas. He’d first gone there somewhere under 4 years ago. When he had, there had been the vibrant city of magic at its heart; King Faust’s capital. And the rest of the world had been stripped clean. Wastelands had predominated, and people were losing their industrial base.
He still remembered that as much as the manga’s always a happy ending philosophy had made Mystogan’s rule seem idyllic, that he had mentioned ‘since the wars ended’. It had been heading towards a bloody war of some sort. Assuming the empire hadn’t splintered and we just weren’t informed of it.
What he saw, though, was a world where magic was having a resurgence. Selene had moved the capital. She had made herself unpopular in the original capital by forcibly exporting its bread and circuses to the rest of the world at the beginning of her reign. Good for overall prosperity; but it had proven she was an enemy of the old elite.
Not that they dared do anything about it. Well they’d tried. The first time had been after the Great Storm. Arthur didn’t like thinking about that storm; it was - after all - the true cost of this prosperity. The second time she’d actually used one of her favors to have Arthur help her put it down. It had been a much further reaching conspiracy and something of a real - if short lived - war. Arthur had added to the faces in his nightmare during it. There hadn’t been a third time.
The Great Storm’s aftermath had been lacrima in amounts not seen on the surface of Edolas since the half-legendary past. Lacrima free for the taking. It had led to that longer war. A wealth of magic had been born which hadn’t been seen in centuries, and some had tried to use it to make a play on Selene’s life. They even almost succeeded.
For the last year, though, Edolas had been peaceful. Selene had even started to be… well she was still letting Prince Jellal do most of the real work as head of government, but she was taking being head of state seriously at least, and did seem to be concerned for the well-being of the people.
Arthur was pleasantly surprised that he was able to make it to the palace to announce himself. It was still under construction, but it was coming along smoothly and quickly.
Coco still didn’t like him for his part in Byro’s death and the destruction he had caused. But she was still working for the Dragon Queen, and he was still Selene’s knight. When Selene told her to go fetch him and bring him into her presence, she obeyed.
Selene was reclining on a couch, enjoying the entertainment of some magic tool performers as she ate delicacies. She was wearing her human form, which was to be expected, but when Arthur entered, she rose to a vertical position and clapped her hands before dismissing the performers rather brusquely and through manifested portals.
“So to what do I owe you returning here without me summoning you? What bit of help do you need this time?” Her sharp tone was somewhat mitigated by the dismissive hand wave of a spell which sent one of the small tables in front of her teleporting to in front of Arthur.
“The staff passed its first test. If it can pass its second I think I’m ready to figure out when and where to take on Acnologia.”
Selene froze for a moment, her eyes narrowing as she stared at him. Arthur couldn’t help but flinch back under the sheer intensity, and rage, of that gaze.
“Are you serious?” She said after a few moments. She was feeling torn. It was a step towards her goals. It was proof that Arthur really was the valuable piece she saw him as. It also meant that the killer of her son was no longer trapped in a living hell, where his own power had betrayed him, and he lived every day fearing if this would be the one where he betrayed all he had stood for, and was killed by those he called family. Arthur had convinced her that making him kill Georg was not worth it at that point, but she had never forgiven the Dragon Eater. She had, though, allowed his state of living torment to count as vengeance enough, but now that it was over… she would have to reconsider. But it would not do to show Arthur that wrathful, vengeful face. He was too idealistic. She forced a smile onto her face; it was easy enough. Her face was a mask, a dragon’s instinctive expressions were largely different from a human’s; she had taught herself to emote and make expressions, but that was ultimately acting.
“Would sir Arthur speak thus if he was not, my heavenly lady?” Tabby said, stepping forward.
“It can work on someone just shy of dragonification without me having to push it anywhere close to its limits,” Arthur said. “If it can fix Irene Belserion, and if she will agree to let me try and turn her human again in truth and not merely improve her human form. Well it should be able to work on Acnologia.”
“If he’s willing,” Selene said as she popped a piece of fruit into her mouth and a moment later spat out the pit. “I still don’t think he will be.”
“If it’s capable of that, then even if it can’t force him to become human again it should be able to at least disrupt him for me to kill him.”
Selene sipped a cup of sake. It was… possible. She’d spent a fair bit of time weighing Arthur of late. His Takeover Magic was increasingly scary. If the staff worked as well as he hoped, it was as much of a threat to her as Acnologia. Arthur’s magic might be able to bind her to him as a slave, or worse. Even now it might be too late to safely dispose of him.
But he was mortal. He would die. That idea pleased her less than she’d have thought it would. Maybe it was the simple fact that he was very useful. He’d refused to let her avenge Kurnugi; something that still rankled her. But he had fought against an army for her. And even when she had feigned defeat by their tool, he had not betrayed her. He had personally rushed to her aid, in the very heart of the most dangerous field of combat, risking an anti-dragon weapon.
He’d apologized afterwards for failing to capture it or its creator intact, because it’d have been useful to bring down Acnologia. She was fairly certain it had been him kicking himself over it because it could help his guild, but that wasn’t something without merit to it. He was loyal to those he called family. He had talked to her about his desire to ensure that Igneel’s faction survived Acnologia. About how he felt they should live because, like her, they had worked to help humanity.
She had come to the conclusion that if she didn’t do something out and out evil he was unlikely to kill her. Georg was the bone that stuck in her throat, but it might be possible to get around that after Acnologia. Or just torment the old fiend with the fact that she was one of his allies and that her crimes would be forgotten and forgiven, and he would have to live with that. But she wasn’t certain that was enough revenge for her son.
“So did you come to me just to give me a status report? I’m used to you wanting me to teach you something you can use as a weapon against me.”
“I don’t want weapons against you,” annoyance was audible in his tone. “I’ve said it before, I don’t want to have to kill you. Or even fight you. I’d rather…”
“We just be friends. You’ve said it before. It doesn’t change that you had me teaching you how I turned to a human form to help make a weapon against dragons on my level. And usually you only come here if you want something.”
“I wanted your permission to go south, and to see if you had any preference for the method I took due to the chance that Acnologia might notice.”
Selene scowled for a moment. He was being earnest. The annoyance in his tone irritated her. He really had only come before when he had needed something. But this was the first time in three years he’d been able to say ‘I’m done with my main project’.
“Boat? Something that doesn’t rely on magic. Is that all?”
“That's all I needed. Unless you have some business, I guess I will go back to Earthland and book myself passage.”
“Wait,” Selene said. “I think that this deserves some celebration, don’t you agree? We’ll have a feast tonight.”
Arthur seated himself beside Selene at the feast. He was the guest of honor. Though the speeches before the speech made his stomach sink. Selene was talking about the danger that Acnologia represented, not to her, or him necessarily, but the danger that Acnologia presented in theory to anything and everything. It wasn’t even the danger that the dragon king might obtain power over space and time and transcend to godhood. It was just the danger that he might go on a full blown murderous rampage.
It was why Arthur was going on his quest. But being reminded of just how deadly and dangerous Acnologia was - at length - and how brave and noble he was for agreeing to go on the quest… Arthur didn’t know how to feel about it. He had too many people looking at him. Too many strangers gauging him and judging him. He was surprised that Selene was so willing to announce that her knight and protector would be gone beyond her ability to call him for an indeterminate but extended period. He still remembered the Anti-Dragon Cannon which had brought her down during the rebellion, and how it had turned his own dragon magic against him. If it hadn’t been for his takeover magic being able to suppress his dragon seed almost completely, and Tabby being there to help they might have lost.
How many of the people here had been backers for the rebellion? Arthur didn’t know and couldn’t know. Maybe none of them. Maybe many of them. But right now they were toasting his bravery and the many ways he had aided Edolas in the restoration of magic, stopping the Great Storm (with the fact that it was caused directly by his actions in restoring magic diplomatically sidestepped), putting down the rebellion, and even in overthrowing the Tyrant Faust. The more that Selene talked him up the more he found himself wondering how many of those here hated him for these very acts. He wanted to return to Diabolos, or the shadows. Or even the streets of the city; the common people were much more likely to look on overthrowing the Tyrant Faust as something favorable; it was the common people who had started celebrating its anniversary as a holiday, not the elite.
All in all, Arthur had not forgotten the time he’d been stabbed after the Great Storm. It had been a common soldier, but he knew there were many in the court who had lost friends and loved ones when he had lost control while attacking the castle. He didn’t know who among them, but it left him with a sense of paranoia that kept him looking for whose eyes held hidden venom all through the toasts that were given in his honor.
Once the toasts had passed though, it was time to eat. The meal itself was a feast. The actual food was about the same as usual for when Selene dined, but that would normally be for herself, and maybe a few close intimates. Most of the court were visibly pacing themselves, eating only a little of each of the many courses of the meal so that they could at least show themselves eating a little of each course. Arthur was one of the exceptions there. He ate heartily with a dragon slayer's appetite, though he tried to watch how much he drank. Drinking with Selene was always dangerous because she always seemed to make sure people’s cups were topped off.
The dinner was not a quiet one. There was music, and performers to entertain, but it was not just that. There were conversations. It was a feast, too large for everyone to talk to everyone, but Arthur was at the Queen’s table, seated to her right in a position of high honor; he was in the heart of the ostensibly most important discussion.
It was a who’s who of influential figures. The leader of the White Out Temple, Queen Shagotte, an influential duke, a powerful duchess, Mystogan, Coco, Pantherlily… they ruled Edolas. And Arthur felt himself the odd man out. He was Selene’s agent, but as they talked about the frivolities of current events in Edolas - things like the popular plays or new performers and artists - he knew nothing of them. He hadn’t spent much time of late in Edolas, and when he had it hadn’t been to pursue living there. He was a transient butterfly floating into and out of lives.
His introspection was interrupted by Selene’s hand on his thigh. If she’d been human he’d have taken it as a rather clear and overt sign. But as a dragon god? His mind was racing with forbidden thoughts. She was beautiful, possibly the single most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life, but she was also terrifying. Arthur had spent enough time around her to have internalized that whatever she looked like she was not human. Which didn’t mean she wasn’t a person; just that there was a gulf between human behavior and hers. It wasn’t always big things, but she had never been a child like a human was for good or bad. She’d been born an apex predator, and only learned socialness when it became obvious she needed it to survive. Worse was that she had a tendency to screw with him for the sake of it. This wasn’t even the first time she’d flirted with him. Though usually she did that in a way that would make things even more awkward for him; like the time she kissed him in front of Lisanna.
At first Arthur didn’t react beyond a shifting in his seat, and an awkward face which he found he had to excuse as having eaten a bit too quickly. It was too public of a place to do much more than that. But her hand lingered for a time, and it returned there later.
By the time for dessert Arthur decided to be what he classified as bold. If she was messing with him he’d mess back. And if she wasn’t… He’d been living as a hermit far too long to pass up.
He placed his hand on her leg, sliding it lightly beneath her kimono. And he kept his overclocking as high as he dared, his Archive in full combat readiness mode to react if she decided to attack in response. She hadn’t killed him over Georg, and this was a far less offense really, but he was playing with fire and he knew it.
She shifted a little, almost as if inviting him further in, and he felt his heart start to pound. But then she pushed his arm away as she reached for the glass holding the sundae. It was a thing that took two hands to eat, so it was time to return both hands to where they could be seen, but Arthur could not be certain if that was all it was.
As the dinner finished, Selene rose. “Arthur, I believe we need to discuss your upcoming journey, join me. And the rest of you, you are dismissed, as I now take my leave.” She spoke with the imperiousness of a queen. Her arm moved in a light flourish, a shining moon forming across the ground beneath them both. Arthur let his armor fade; he didn’t expect an attack from Selene at the moment.
They appeared in a room with tiled floors, and shower heads. It was a communal shower, and Arthur recognized where it must be; likely it was the shower room on the way to Selene’s personal (lacrima powered) hot spring.
Selene was already beginning to disrobe, removing her obi and yukata and throwing them into a clothes bin. Arthur began to do likewise, evans his mind raced trying to figure out just what Selene’s intent was here. She was stunningly gorgeous, one of the most powerful beings in existence both in personal magical strength and socio-political clout. She was, in a word, attractive. In two words: stunningly attractive. In three: quite a catch.
On the other hand she was a dangerous entity whose mind wasn’t quite human and who had regularly displayed behavior that bordered on the sociopathic in a human. She enjoyed trolling him, had teleported him into a random dimension in his sleep once to see if he could find his way home, and possessed a manipulative streak that she didn’t always bother to even try to hide. She’d called him out on only ever coming to see her when he needed something, and she hadn’t been wrong, but it went both ways; their existing relationship was one where they were both using each other.
And his overclocked mind was racing through this all. Whether it was worth attempting to pursue her or if he should run for the hills before falling into her web. The overclocking of his brain helped divorce him from his hormonal response; it was there, but he was running his brain through his Archive which was not as easily affected by his hormones and chemistry.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Arthur had time to think while washing off, taking a shower to avoid contaminating the hot spring with filth. The showerhead drowned out other noises enough to prevent talking regularly so Arthur was able to think. She’d been touching him throughout the dinner, and brought him back here to form some skinship in a traditionally Japanese manner. She might not human well, but she knew he found her body distracting and attractive, and she had shown the ability to use it to manipulate individuals before. She knew this was something that went outside of human norms.
But was it an invitation, or her attempt to mess with him? It was a conundrum Arthur had still failed to solve when he and Selene had finished showering, and were moving into the expansive hot spring. There was sake heated and waiting for them; but Arthur didn’t know if there were servants who prepared that whenever she walked into the showers or if this meant she had been planning this even before dinner.
By the time they had reached the hot spring - more an artificial heated lake than anything else - Arthur was realizing the irony that he was more afraid of the prospect that she might be interested in him, than he was in the actual prospect of having to fight a dragon.
Selene was diving in and swimming to one of its shores, by the sake, resting her back against the stone in the shallows. Arthur was a bit slower to join her. It was obviously a place of comfort and relaxation for Selene, but to Arthur it was a new place.
Eventually he’d settle against the stone, a few arms lengths from the dragon goddess, prompting her to beckon him closer, with a pleasing smile. “Come on now, you don’t need to be that far away. An intimate conversation is more pleasant, don’t you agree?”
By the time she was satisfied, her elbow and arm pressed against him when she moved her sake cup.
The queen did not get all touchy feely normally. She was not normally one to push into your personal space. It was clearly a sign, but further progression was stymied by the fact that Selene began to actually talk about the mission and proposed journey south. Grabbing her and kissing her in the middle of the discussion would probably do more to piss her off than anything. It also gave Arthur time to consider whether he wanted to pursue it.
There was a temptation from the point reward and bounty. He didn’t know if she’d qualify as a god - as dragon god was really a title of power not divinity - or merely as a dragon, but it was worth a lot of points to sleep with her, and the opportunity seemed to be presenting itself.
But she was someone he worked with. Someone where if something went wrong it would be awkward quickly. More significantly he wasn’t certain he really trusted her, and Arthur knew himself; if he got erotically entangled with her he’d get even more emotionally entangled with her. If she was manipulating him, would whatever fleeting pleasure he obtained from being with her be worth it? Though rebuffing her would be dangerous on the fallout front as well.
The fact that she was just plain attractive, and he’d spent most of the last year as a virtual hermit did not help these considerations.
Still they discussed the journey to the south. Whether he should go by Anima or boat, whether he should visit Ishgar or deal with Tartaros before going to Alvarez, contingencies for if Acnologia noticed him, and what sort of resources would be needed, and return hoped for from the trip.
And then Selene clung to his arm, her face seemingly flushed from the alcohol - though Arthur knew enough even in his tipsy state to know that however drunk he was she was far less drunk - and pressed against him, smiling towards him a predatory, feline grin. “So, you really think you have a chance against Acnologia with that stick of yours? That must mean you think you could beat me.”
“We decided that 3 years ago, didn’t we?” Arthur responded without really thinking about it.
“Did we?” Selene pulled back a dangerous look in her eyes.
Arthur’s territory armor formed across him. A stupid, pig-headed pride was stirring in him and he could feel it. “I thought so. A direct, head to head fight between us could only end one of two ways.”
“And how do you figure that?” Selene asked.
Arthur hesitated. He was on thin ice and he could feel it. Did he back down? Did he demonstrate? Did he bluster? He raised his right arm, azure scales covering it already, and a dragon’s talon forming where his hand had been. “My spatial magic can block yours, even in your true form.”
“There’s more to a dragon fight than magic, and I have more magic than spatial,” Selene said.
“I can eat your Moon Dragon Magic.” A part of Arthur was screaming at him to play it conciliatory and cool. To back down and not make a conflict here.
“But my speed and strength,” Selene said in a warning tone.
Arthur listened to the other voice. “Don’t scare me.”
They glared at each other for a time. Like two stray cats, or strange dogs. Or maybe like a pair of praying mantids preparing for their dangerous courtship.
“I don’t scare you?” Selene finally said, her tone less angry than before, and more conciliatory.
“You do,” Arthur admitted. “But not because you’re a powerful dragon. You’re terrifyingly smart, and you wouldn’t have to fight me in a direct fight and we both know it.” He had the feeling he’d just put his foot in it there, and winced internally at himself.
“I won’t have to fight you at all, will I? You’d protect me rather than fight me, wouldn’t you?” She was leaning towards him now, pressed close enough it’d be easy to just move an arm to wrap her up. And her tone, her look, her words all were playing on the primal instinct to protect a woman and keep her from harm.
“Of course,” He said, his arm rising to wrap around her waist and pull her close into a kiss. The die would be cast, the rubicon would be crossed, and hopefully whatever future pain it might possibly cause would not outweigh the pleasure in the now.
Maybe it’d even teach him to be less Kull and more Conan.
Selene could feel Arthur finally fall asleep behind her. His arms wrapped close around her, his hands possessively upon her body. His armor was gone. She could kill him so easily right now. And then she could get revenge for Kurnugi by killing the Dragon Eater. But that wouldn’t leave her safe. Acnologia and the other dragon gods would be out there still and she’d have lost her best piece.
Besides he might not be handsome, or charming, but he was loyal, reliable, and powerful. It’d been centuries since there’d been anyone she’d been willing to share her nest with. And she had enjoyed tonight.
He would protect her now. She was certain of it. There were still probably things she could do to forfeit that, but she didn’t think he would actually fight her unless she directly threatened his life even then.
He shifted in his sleep, pressing a little closer against her. She found herself smiling a bit. And then felt a pang of a feeling he couldn’t immediately place. She’d been preparing a threat to his life for some time. She’d mostly abandoned hopes that it’d pay off years ago, but she’d still been providing the enemies who managed to escape death at his hands with support, and a network, and funneling them together.
Selene realized that she was going to have to tell him about that. Not because she was afraid he’d be mad when he found out; she could always explain her reasoning and she was fairly certain that even though it’d upset him that he’d accept it as something which was worth doing to increase the chance that Acnologia was dealt with either because he grew from the conflict or because they managed to surpass him and become a more effective weapon against Acnologia than he was.
She would have to tell him because she didn’t want them to kill him. Even if they could prove a better weapon. She wanted him to live. She wouldn’t necessarily call it love; she wasn’t wholly certain what humans meant by the word to be honest.
But she preferred having him present and at her side.
Taberius was concerned. The sun had reached its zenith and yet there had been no sign of Arthur all through the morn. In fact, he had failed to find a single individual who had seen him since Selene had teleported them both away at the feat’s end.
Taberius had overslept himself. But upon forcing his way into Arthur’s room he had found no sign of his having ever even arrived at it. The door had not even been locked, the windows still lay shuttered, and the bed had been made, yet the servants claimed to have not entered it that morning.
Minerva was no help. She’d not seen him either, and received no alert or message. And once she was informed he was not simply oversleeping, she began to feel some of Taberius’s growing concern.
Worse, the queen had refused to leave her room this morning, canceling her appearances, and delegating her duties as she: “did not feel well and did not wish to be disturbed.”
Taberius could only come to one conclusion. Selene had killed his master and been badly wounded in the process. Minerva rejected his conclusion, arguing that Selene would have had them seized and imprisoned if that were the case, or even killed in their sleep.
Taberius lifted a water bucket, determined to find the truth. His skill with water magic was minimal, Aqua Aera barely usable through his Moon Dragon Slayer Magic, but if he could push through Selene’s protective spells to view her chambers he could prove she was badly wounded.
It proved futile. Selene’s magic was simply too strong. But that just meant he’d have to sneak into her chambers.
He was halfway up the castle tower to her personal bedroom when he was contacted by Arthur via Archive. Only he couldn’t be certain it was Arthur and not some trick. His teacher was telling him all was well, and he had simply chosen to sleep elsewhere for the night. But that was highl… Ok, Tabby had to admit that it had happened more than a few times during their relationship that Arthur had decided not to sleep where he was supposed to and to teleport to some inn for the night. But he found the entire situation suspicious.
It was only when Arthur explained he had found himself a companion for the evening, and wished to spend the day with her that Tabby accepted his story. It was not too unbelievable. If he had not expected Arthur to call him for preparations to leave he would have not left his lady who he had met from Queen Shaggotte’s entourage the evening before.
He was, however, left wondering what had left Queen Selene indisposed in that case. His first loyalty might be to his master, but they were both her knights. If she’d been wounded or attacked it was their duty to rush to her aid.
Arthur dismissed his concerns with the fact that if she needed help she’d not have ordered to be left undisturbed, and that it was not their duty to break into her quarters.
Taberius finally began to climb down from the tower then, sufficiently rebuked, and considering what he would do with the surprise day off.
It took time to arrange a boat trip to Alvarez from Guiltina. Trips simply did not leave often. Diabolos still owned a controlling stake in a ship that did, but it was a guild and a guild was a business even if it was a family. The ship was scheduled to leave on its next trip in 16 days, and hastening it would be financially detrimental, and that was ignoring the difficulty of provisioning a naval ship for a multi-week voyage.
So they had waited a little over 2 weeks to leave. Taberius was a little surprised that they spent that time at Edolas castle and not principally at Diabolos. He was not the only one, as Kirin and the others who came to see them off teased Arthur about it and how now that he’d made the staff he was abandoning them for a Dragon God.
The teasing stopped when Selene appeared. The dragon eaters of Diabolos went hushed, and an uneasy tension hung in the air. Taberius was surprised again. She had seen them off that morning, wishing Arthur well on his task. Taberius was far more comfortable around the Dragon God than his guildmates. They were all dragon slayers - even if he was a different variety than they were - but she was a queen he had pledged his sword to even before joining the guild. To them whether she was enemy or friend was still uncertain.
The uneasy silence was broken by Arthur himself. “Selene?” He made her name a question.
“I couldn’t see you off properly in front of the court,” She said. “Not that this is as private as I’d like.”
Curiosity grew on the faces of the Diabolos mages, even as a smile spread across Arthur’s face. “Properly?” His tone was almost eager, and somewhat playful as he stepped towards Selene.
“You know what I mean,” She said in an irate voice.
And then, to Taberius’s shock, Arthur’s arm was around her waist and pulling her close for a kiss. With the clamor the guild was making, Taberius couldn’t catch what Selene and Arthur said to each other after the kiss, but the cat moved quickly.
He darted between the lovers and the dragon slayers, body checking Kiria as she led the rush. Even as he changed from a small, knee-high light weight, to a muscled mass nearing 8 ft tall. Gone was the image of a gray tabby, and in its place was an appearance more like some form of gray and white tiger. “Stop!” He demanded.
Kiria rolled to her feet, flipping up to stand. “Let the two have their moment, we can demand explanations when they’ve had it,” Taberius continued, even as Minerva appeared beside him to support his efforts to play bulwark.
“He’s right,” Kirin stated gruffly, with a sigh in his voice.
“I respectfully merely need to know what the meaning of Sir Arthur doing such a thing with one of the dragon gods is?” Madmole said.
“I’d kiss a looker like that, even knowing she’s a dragon.” Skullion’s statement broke their fixation on Arthur and Selene, drawing the group’s attention to him instead. The masked man shrugged as they looked towards him. “What? I can recognize a beautiful woman when I see one.”
Kiria hit him, lightly, in the stomach. “Then why haven’t you ever recognized me as one?”
“I said beautiful woman, not teenage brat,” Skullion answered.
“Promise me you’ll come back,” Selene said as the kiss broke.
“Of course I will,” Arthur answered. Her arrival had shocked him somewhat. Their relationship had been one restrained to private settings. She’d promised to make it something official if - when - Acnologia was dealt with, but had been rather firm on that it wouldn’t be wise to confirm the long standing rumors that the queen and her knight were romantically entangled until she could take him as an official consort. He had thought that’d included Tabby and Minerva, though given this appearance he had to assume it did not.
“Quickly and safely,” She said.
Hearing the naked worry in her voice, Arthur felt bad about himself for suspecting that this might be just something to mess with him in front of his guildmates. She’d done such more than once with Lisanna, but now he was beginning to suspect that might have been more a matter of jealousy than merely a desire to mess with him.
“As quickly and safely as I can without compromising the plan,” Arthur responded.
She squeezed his hand then, and Arthur didn’t think he’d ever seen her look so vulnerable, or concerned about something.
“I don’t intend to take any unnecessary risks,” He added.
“Good,” Selene stated.
One and then the other looked towards where Taberius and Minerva were holding off the other Diabolos mages.
“I guess I should deal with them,” Arthur said.
Selene shook her head. “I’ll stay,” She said. And then as if thinking better of it. “If you want.”
Arthur wasn’t sure whether her presence would make things more or less of a headache. But feeling her hand in his he didn’t want to let go of it yet. “Together then.”
“So when did you and the dragon start locking lips?” Kiria asked when the two lovers approached.
“Recently,” Arthur answered.
“So not when you and Georg fought?” Kirin asked.
“You think that’s why I spared the bastard?” Selene said. “No. I did that because Arthur was right. If I took revenge against him then I’d have had to kill all of you, and become the monster he saw me as.”
Kiria gritted her teeth a little. Kirin was looking better since Minerva had helped deal with the dragon-ghost haunting him. It had helped calm him too. But even Kirin looked annoyed by the tone.
“Then, may I congratulate you both on the happiness you seem to have found together,” Madmole said diplomatically.
Kiria smiled then, and looked straight at Selene. “Yeah. You’re lucky. The guild master is a real catch.”
“Saying I’m not?” Selene audibly bristled, the death glare she gave Kiria being palpable.
“None of us need to fight here,” Taberius said. “We share enemies, and we are not enemies.”
Kirin nodded. Arthur’s new relationship rubbed him the wrong way, but he had visited Edolas during Arthur’s tenure as guildmaster. He’d had to know if there was any merit in his willingness to trust dragons. And he had to admit that even when there was a rebellion against her rule, Selene had been no more harsh than a human ruler - less in fact once her overwhelming power superiority was established - and that while the common people had sometimes talked about the good old days under Faust when men were men and ruled over themselves, their quality of life seemed to have improved.
He didn’t really approve. But… Kirin had long ceased to object to taking her money or jobs, and while it had rankled him at first to work for a dragon, the jobs themselves had not been any more questionable than your normal ones; none had fallen into the category of jobs that were to be dismissed as immoral.
“So is it serious?” Kiria asked. “I mean are you two going to…”
“I intend to make him my consort, once Acnologia is dealt with,” Selene said.
“What does that even mean?” Kiria questioned.
“It means to have him recognized as my lover before the court,” Selene stated. “Trusting him with politi…” She broke off. “Yes, it’s serious.”
Kirin snickered at the surprise on Arthur’s face. That it was actually serious was news to him. Kirin didn’t like the situation, but Arthur had earned trust. And he’d give it to him. “I guess we can expect to see you at the guild sometime then, your highness.” She was a queen, and repeat employer, and Kirin was reminding himself to be polite to her on those grounds.
“I can just imagine the look on Georg’s face,” Kiria said with a snicker. Kirin knew how much he’d hate that. Having to be polite to the dragon. Kirin wondered how much of a disaster it would end up as, though. He suspected that if Georg exploded on Selene, Arthur would side with the dragon over Georg and… He looked at Kiria, and Madmole and Skullion congratulating Arthur. The guild might very well be split between who to side with. There’d been a time Kirin would have sided with Georg on principle. He wasn’t sure that was true now.
“That might just be worth coming over for,” Selene said with a smile.
The ship’s captain approached. The boat needed to leave if they were going to make the tide.