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Walking through the castle's hallway, Azar caught sight of some interesting things, such as old oil paintings of past human heroes. He might not recognize them, but the weapons they wielded, Azar very much recognized.
“Armor of the damned, Hammer of the Earth Elementals, Trident of the Mermaid Emperor, …” those were the old and lost artifacts of his kingdom. Of course, he always knew it was in the hands of humans, but seeing those scummy humans wielding them and immortalizing themselves by painting still made his blood boil.
Azar took a deep breath and calmed his mind. It was too much temptation for him, just letting go and slaying all the humans here. He had to remind himself of the bigger picture every time.
“Don’t look so nervous, Azar. I promise they won’t kill you … this time !” Elly playfully told Azar.
It was still mind-boggling for Azar that the little kid who had been traveling with him for nearly two days was walking right beside him but as a totally different person. Though Elly still looked relatively the same, small, fragile, totally defenseless, and utterly ugly to Azar. The aura she gave was different. Elly became so much more commanding. The frosty eyes and the stone-cold poker face made those other humans feel compelled to bow to her. The rather annoying and weak tone was replaced with a soft but firm feminine voice, and most importantly, Elly's demeanor toward Azar was completely shifted.
“What is this !?” Elly caught Azar's eyes wandering.
“Nothing, just surprise at how much you have changed, kid,” Azar nonchalantly answered.
“Stop calling me kid ! We are basically the same age !!!” Elly was quick to protest.
Azar just raised an eyebrow at her.
“It’s true ! I’m already 18 ! And what are you, like 19, 20 !?”
Hearing her telling him that she was 18 years old almost made Azar shiver. Just the thought of having such a young female infant near him made Azar feel uncomfortable.
“Hey come on ! That’s not funny ! And may I remind you that I am the princess of this kingdom, calling me a kid is considered to be extremely rude !”
Seeing the little human next to him huffed was like seeing a little pet trying to ask for some attention.
“So, it is your highness or my princess from now on, is it ?” Azar playfully teased her.
“Well… no…” Elly played with her hair flusteredly.
“Little Elly then” Azar gently patted her on the head. She quickly knocked his hand off and said
“Just Elly would be fine, thank you.”
Azar laughed and patted her on the head once more. “Alright, Elly it is !”
This time, however, Elly did not knock his hand off immediately. “But you can only call me Elly when there are the two of us, in front of everyone it’s Princess Elizabeth for you !”
……......
They finally reached the council hall, where a tall golden lion's head was carved on the front door. On the other side of that door, the King and Queen, and high council members, were awaiting Azar. He proudly walked through the lion gate and got met with dazzling eyes. Everyone was quite amazed by how much Azar's physical appearance had changed. Gone with the grumpy, dirty hobo looks, Azar stepped in as a devilishly handsome young man. Just like the towel back then, the clothes they picked for him were too small and tight. However, it did a great job of complimenting his athletic body. The tight, short sleeve shirt made his broad and muscular chest all so clear. The slick-back voluminous raven hair looked so much better on him than the long dirty, messy hair. The only thing that remained the same was his cold and intelligent bright amber eyes on his rather playfully charming face. It was not hard to notice some of the women already blushed a little bit by his appearance.
But however charming and polite Azar may seem now, inside it was still the regular young dragon. Seeing how Elly bowed down to the king and queen, Azar knew he should follow the same. But kneeling down to a human, he would rather die.
“Azar !!! Kneel !” Elly whispered. But his rebellious and taunting eyes were more than enough to answer.
“I’m sorry, bad knees, you know from all the torturing and getting chained for hours …” Azar excused himself.
“Azar !!!” Elly shouted, “Forgive him father, he has little knowledge about our rule and costume.”
The king just waved his hand and told Azar, “I’ll forgive you this time.”
“Tell me, what is your name ?” the king asked in a commanding voice while sitting on his throne.
“Azar, just Azar” those humans were not worthy enough to know his full name.
“Hmm..” The king was clearly not happy about how Azar spoke to him, “Mind your manners boy!”
The atmosphere was instantly tensed up. To Azar, the king was no more than a dumb and worthless human, very much unfit to be called a king. While to king Henry, Azar was the man who made him look bad in front of his subjects. Even his own daughter rebelled against his wishes in front of everyone, all because of him. Not to mention Azar made him go back on his word, a king’s word. They both did not want to see each other, and they could not wait for this to be over. So even though they did not like it, they both sucked it up and pushed through.
“Your noble action of saving the princess will not be unrewarded, tell me what you wish for ?” The king said emotionlessly.
“To get out of here !” Azar bluntly replied he cared not for any reward that this human could grant him.
“Great, I’ll grant you that. So get out of here and may God always look over your shoulders,” The king quickly announced. Just by his tone and his uninterested body language, everyone was uncertain if he even listened to what Azar just asked. It was as generic and cold as a king’s speech could get.
“Oh I know he is …” Azar casually turned around and walked away in the sheer astonishment and disbelief of everyone else. The supposed hero of the hour just walked in and walked out in three minutes flat, empty-handed, without even a greeting or a goodbye.
But perhaps nobody was more surprised than Princess Elizabeth herself. Listening to the very brief conversation between her father and Azar, Elly was left flabbergasted.
“Ehmm… uh… excuse me fathers, mother !” She hastily followed Azar.
Azar walked out with pace, not even bothering to look back.
“Wait ! Azar !” Elly called out to him. “What was that !? Why are you being like this !?”
“Huh ?! Oh, by the way, where are my belongings?” Azar flatly asked.
“They are probably still being held by the guards….” Elly jumped in front of Azar. “Hey ! Stop ignoring my questions. Your gears and clothing are all in dire need of being replaced anyway ! Just leave them, I will give you an upgrade !”
“Those are MY belongings, Elly ! Not yours to decide !”. His words sent chills down Elly’s spines. The strong and commanding deep voice, those cold, threatening, piercing eyes, she had never felt so weak and small in front of anyone her whole life.
“S..sorry …” Elly's lips trembled a little.
Azar quietly made his way to the dungeon cell, where he was still held as one of their prisoners just a few hours ago. But on the way, there was something, or to be more accurate, someone caught his attention.
The sound of rumbling, of metal clashing against metal, the sound of battle. And among all that noise, there was a sound of a strong but feminine voice. But this voice was so familiar to Azar somehow, and curiosity got the better of him once more. Azar wandered toward where all the racket was coming from,
“Azar, you can’t go there, that’s where the Royal Guards train !”
But Azar did not care. It wasn’t like any of those humans could harm him anyway. So he casually bounced to the training ground and got a real treat to the eyes.
“HYAA !” Sasha was doing her daily training. But it was rather more extreme than usual.
“Hey, Elly, why are 5 of those weak and dumb men taking on only one little girl ?” Azar was genuinely confused. Elly just told him that this was the Royal Guards' training ground, but all the humans here were weak, and the fact that it took five grown adult humans with steel blades to take on one human female with a wooden sword made the scene more disappointing.
“Azar ! Keep your voice down !” Elly was shocked at how Azar could say such a thing in a training ground full of Royal Guards. If anyone could hear Azar just then, he would be in trouble.
“These men are handpicked Royal Guards, some of the best of the best. Their mission is to look after the castle and keep us safe.”
“Well, now I see how you can get so easily kidnapped,” Azar unsarcastically said.
“SHUTTTT !!!” Elly desperately tried to keep Azar quiet. “It’s not what it looks like ! They are fighting against Sasha, their captain.”
“Their Captain !???”
“Don’t underestimate Sasha, beautiful as she is, she is probably the best swordsman my country has ever had. She graduated from the Elites Academy when she was only 16 and 2 years later became the youngest captain of the Royal Guard ever ! If she doesn’t use the wooden sword, they would all be dead by now !”
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
“Interesting …”. Azar sensed a strange feeling of pride watching a young human fight so gracefully against the odds. Sasha’s reflex was as fast as the wind, her movement was as fluid as water, her stand was as firm as the earth, and her attack was as fearless as fire. Those men had no chance. Sasha looked like she was performing a dance rather than a sword fight. Azar couldn’t help but smile as he spectated the rest of the fight. One by one, each of the guards got knocked out by Sasha. And she barely broke a sweat.
“Can you people call this a training when she was clearly holding back the whole time. She didn’t even tap into her magic once.”
“Magic !?” Elly tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Sasha doesn’t know magic. Where are you getting that from !?”
“Never mind …” Azar looked closely at Sasha again. There was definitely magic flowing within her. But it seemed like none of these humans could sense them. Maybe even Sasha hadn’t herself. Though her power wasn’t that powerful, considering how rare a magic user was in the human world, Sasha would still be considered as a much greater asset than just a mere soldier like this. His focused eyes and that lovely smile of Azar did not escape Elly’s attention, and she gave Azar a relatively interesting piece of information.
“Are you her guardian angel ?” Elly asked.
“Huh !?” Azar raised an eyebrow “Guardian what !??”
“Her guardian angel. She told me about how a little boy from way back then saved her life from the hands of bandits. She did not know the boy's name, but she still remembered how fast his heart beat, how warm his body was, and how he always looked up to the stars and prayed for her safety. So she called that boy her guardian angel. For years being her best friend, I never once heard Sasha talk about any other men besides that boy. She holds no interest in any man persuading her either. So you can imagine my surprise when Sasha instantly took interest in you. She even constantly asked about your condition after you were releashed.”
“Well, I’m not an angel or her guardian. But yes, it was me who saved her.” Azar’s eyes still fixated on Sasha.
Elly sighed. “What of the odd. My best friend’s personal guardian angel now has become mine as well….”
Azar shook his head, looked at Elly and told her, “You have no idea.”
Again, Elly could hardly understand what Azar said. But before she could ask him anything, their presence was noticed. Sasha was heading their way. She had sensed someone was watching her every breath intensively, but she could never imagine those were from Azar.
“Princess,” Sasha bowed slightly at the princess, then turned to Azar. “Azar, I’m glad we finally have the chance to have a genuine talk.”
“That’s pretty impressive what you just did back there, kid” Azar smiled.
Sasha’s warm and cheerful blue eyes instantly grew annoyed. She gave Azar a slight kick in his leg and quietly told him.
“I thought I said stop calling me a kid ! I’m not a little girl anymore !”
Azar looked at how Sasha was reacting and playfully replied
“Ouch... “ He said in the fakest moan of pain possible, “I can’t believe you just did that to your own guardian angel !”. That playful, taunting amber eyes, the bright smile that could melt anyone’s heart away, and that smoky voice. Sasha's cheek instantly blushed, her eyes wide opened. Elly just smiled awkwardly and tried to hide behind Azar.
“Princess !!! I can’t believe you told him that !” It was the first time anyone heard Sasha’s rather high pitch voice. Elly had been with Sasha for a long time, and this was a very rare occasion she got to see Sasha get a bit embarrassed and showed her more feminine, almost to the point of a girly side. Elly couldn’t help but smile and laugh a bit as well.
“Oh cheer up, I am truly honored, little girl.” Azar leaned closer to Sasha's ears and whispered.
With spiteful eyes, Sasha whispered back, “Step into the training ground, and see what this little girl can do !”
“Oh ho ho … you wouldn’t want that, kid.” Azar smirked. “I don’t want to embarrass you in front of your men,” he quietly said.
“You talk tough, I have heard that a thousand times before….” Sasha slowly walked back to the training ground. “So what is this, Azar. Do you want to show these people what you got? Don't worry, I still try not to embarrass you … too bad !”
Azar gladly stepped forward and entered the training ground. Elly quickly stopped him and said
“Stop ! Azar, do not underestimate Sasha ! You saw her, she can go 1 against 5, 1 on 1, you have no chance !”
Azar gracefully walked past her and said, “I don’t underestimate her. But don’t you underestimate me ….”
And there they went, Sasha and Azar, facing each other on a battleground.
“Choose a weapon of your desire, I’ll tell me people to get it for you.” Sasha confidently said.
Azar just looked around then picked up a thin and short wooden stick. “This will do.”
Everyone burst out in laughter. They all thought that Azar wasn’t serious about the fight.
“Your funeral, Azar,” Sasha smirked. She had seen that all too often. People often focused on her looks and dismissed her ability. Azar was deemed no different from the pack.
“Show me what you got, kid !” Azar calmly stood in front of Sasha.
Like a gust of wind, Sasha attacked Azar with a swift side attack. But Azat easily blocked it with the stick.
“You have to try better than that if you want to land a hit on me” Azar smiled.
“As you wish” Sasha increased her pace and gave Azar a series of attacks. She still tried not to hurt him, but her attacks were still rather strong and difficult. A normal person without any training and experience wouldn’t stand a chance. However, Azar gracefully blocked and dodged all of them with ease. At the end of Sasha’s wave, Azar even managed to edge her back with a slight push of his stick. All eyes turned from entertained to interested. Everyone expected a total wipeout, but they got an actual duel instead.
“If that’s the best you got … I am disappointed” Azar had yet to even channel his dragon power. It was just full-on human capability.
All eyes were on Sasha. They were all stunned that she was knocked back, but none more than Sasha herself. This wasn't meant to be a serious fight, but his movement, his calm, his posture, they all screamed experience. Sasha took a deep breath and held her sword firmly.
“You asked for it” Sasha went in much more serious this time. Eyes as cold as the winter snow, breathing as calm as a still water surface, Sasha danced through the battleground. Everyone could barely hear the wind being cut before they could even see her blade. But of course, Azar could see them easily. The two looked as though they were sharing a well-choreographed dance, with Sasha being the lead, dealing attacks after attacks, and Azar swiftly replied with incredible movements, dodging and blocking all of them without hitting Sasha back. If Sasha showed gracefulness and elegance with every jab, Azar showed the simple, almost to the point of roughness but effective swordsmanship. The longer their dance, the more agitated Sasha seemed to be. Her eyes had lost the calm and iciness it once had. Her rhythm was getting offbeat, Sasha became more aggressive, a big mistake. She had gotten so used to Azar not fighting back that she became careless, and Azar would punish her dearly for that. A careless frontal jab, Azar easily parried, and Sasha left herself wide open for a counter on all fronts. And like the most showboating dancer, Azar dodged her attack with a spin move, hitting Sasha in the palm making her drop the sword. And finally, Azar got behind Sasha and gave her a slight whip from behind, making Sasha jump.
“HEY !” She shrilled. All the spectators could not hide their smiles as they saw Sasha blushed and embarrassed, which made the situation worse. Her eyes grew angry, and her breathing got extremely aggressive. Azar felt sorry for Sasha, he did not mean to embarrass her, but hitting her there was Azar’s way of dealing the least and harmless damage to Sasha.
Even though Sasha tried to keep her calm, it was easy to tell. She was affected by all the eyes and chatter everyone was giving her. With the fluster eyes, the pouty lips, and the way she held her weapon so tightly, Sasha was no longer in the right mindset. Azar could understand what Sasha was going through. Being in such an ugly, weak, and fragile body must have been hard enough for her. Azar had seen it all so many times before, back when he was a dragon. The smaller and weaker species were always being pushed around in the army. Normally those species would have some other advantages on their sides, such as good looks or expert intelligence in some subjects. But from what Azar recalled, Sasha wasn’t all that bright, and she wasn’t at all attractive either. Azar took a deep breath and sighed. He closed his eyes.
“You still underestimate me …” Azar chuckled. Then his eyes suddenly opened. The once playful eyes were nowhere to be seen. Instead, Azar’s bright amber eyes were as intimidating as they came. When those piercing cold stares came, everyone felt that the air was being sucked out of their lungs, including Sasha.
“You all haven’t heard the story, have you. How I single-handedly saved the princess from the hands of 5 mercenaries. Those that you failed to stop…” his frosty husky voice came all so commanding. All of the spectators’ hearts started to beat rapidly. That intense sense of danger was undeniable. Azar then stopped focusing on everyone else.
“Take a deep breath and exhale slowly,” Azar calmly told Sasha. His smile was still there, the tone of his voice was nothing different, even his nonchalant pose was the same, but the eyes told Sasha to set herself, as what came next would be as serious as it could be.
When everyone went silent and held their breath. Sasha could only hear Azar’s voice; she finally regained composure. That calm and focused gaze came back to her eyes. Her breathing had found its original rhythm once more.
“You have to try harder. You’re only focusing on my weapon and my shoulders, that means you will always be one and a half move behind me. Look at my feet, see how they move, see how they stand and predict my next step. Focus on my eyes, see what I’m picking up on, predict where I might strike next. And notice my breathing, when I inhale, when I exhale, when I’m at my weakest and when I’m at my strongest, and make your decision.” Azar changed his stance and took a much more serious and battle-ready pose.
Sasha did not reply a word to Azar. She just lowered her stand like a runner preparing to start a race. Sasha’s eyes fixated on Azar, and she did all he asked of her. She focused on his breathing to find his rhythm, and when he exhaled, Sasha rushed in. This gave her a split second of advantage. Azar gave out a little smirk on his face. Sasha came in like a tornado, fast and deadly. But unlike last time, Azar fought back from the start. He wanted to push Sasha to her edge to see what she was capable of and if she could tap into her magic or not.
They both did their dance one more time, but this time, Azar was taking the lead. Though he was not that skillful of a swordsman, as a dragon, Azar didn't need to train as such. However, Azar had the fighting experience, far more than any human. He was also in prime human physical condition. Azar did not have to use his dragon power yet. Sasha showed how beautiful her sword skill could be. Her feet move as fast as lightning, as graceful as a ballet dancer, and as unpredictable as a storm. And in this turn, Azar also showed the same athleticism. Like a mirror, whatever Sasha did, Azar copied. Swing for swing, jab for jab, the two exchanged blows. The sound of their weapons clashing against each other was so powerful that all the spectators could hardly believe they were made of wood.
“Get ready !” Azar kicked it up a notch. He started to come on more aggressively and pushed Sasha back in her defense. And once again, she pulled through faultlessly. Sliding and rolling through the ground to evade Azar’s swings and spin-jumping on the air to dodge Azar’s jab and instantly retaliate, they were all perfectly calculated. Sasha had watched Azar’s every movement precisely. From how his eyes shifted before he was about to attack, how his feet constantly turned to change his pose, Sasha even caught on to Azar’s breathing to predict his tempo.
Azar again got a strange feeling of pride, seeing how Sasha could pick it up so quickly. He had pushed his human body to the absolute limit. Anymore, then Azar would be tapping into his dragon ability. And Sasha still stood firm, flying through the battleground like a young sparrow. Azar could see how humans could barely keep up with her. Even more surprising, she didn’t even use her magic. Azar started to doubt that Sasha did not even know she had magic.
To the spectators, their fight was a masterful art to behold. It got to the point that everyone thought, “Those two have been practicing with each other all the time.”.
They were so in sync that their jabs sometimes even met each other right at the tip of their weapons. Their attacks were fast precise, and the sound of their weapon cutting the wind and clashing against each other was more than enough to show their strength. But Azar and Sasha always managed to block and evade perfectly, as if they could read each other's minds.
But all dances must have an end. And theirs ended when Sasha made another mistake. With fancy footwork, Sasha gracefully dodged Azar’s swing and knocked his weapon off his hand. But she was too hasty, and immediately after she got the upper hand, Sasha charged in when her form was still not perfect. With his far superior combat experience, Azar easily twisted his body and caught Sasha by her wrist. Azar pulled Sasha in and took control of her own sword. The fight was over. Azar had caught Sasha with her own sword by the neck.
“Too impatient …” Azar kindly said. Sasha turned her head and looked at him. Her eyes were still anything but giving up.
“But still very impressive nonetheless, … Sasha” Azar nodded his head slightly. They shared a smile, and Sasha finally accepted defeat.
“No more little girl !?”
Azar chuckled. “Hmm, you earn it….”
“EHEMMM !!!” A loud fake cough from a feminine voice. Azar and Sasha finally stopped locking eyes and noticed the surrounding. Everyone was smiling and chattering. Elly, on the other hand, was standing in front of them. She looked annoyed, very annoyed, crossing her hand and tapping her foot like some who had lost all composure after waiting in line for hours to pick up their orders.
“ Given that the fight is over !!?” the princess question was like a blizzard. Azar and Sasha finally understand their position after snapping out of their own world. They were very close to each other, too close. Azar held Sasha with one hand on her waist and the other holding the sword near her neck. At that point, Azar looked like he was hugging her from behind. And then they realized what it must have looked like when they smiled and softly spoke to each other. Azar and Sasha quickly separated.