Book 15: Chapter 91


    King Troy, do you hate me? asked Irina


    I looked at Irina, who was in my arms, surprised. The sudden inquiry left me speechless. I considered the question before. It was just that I was caught off guard, since she asked me the question after finishing our romp. I looked at her face. What was even more surprising to me was how serious she looked. It wasnt that sort of random, strange question, but a serious question that caused her anxiety.


    Truthfully, I have hated you and your mom before. We trusted you so much, yet you betrayed our trust. You poisoned my mom, locked me up without any consideration for my feelings, fed me drugs and forced me to do things against my will. My original n was to return home in under a month, but its been close to a month now as a result of what transpired. I told you that I have a wife and children, right? When I miss my mom, wife and children at night, Ill hate you both for everything you did.


    I hesitated for a bit at first, but decided to be forthright. There was no point in hiding it, after all. True, I did hate them before. I hated them enough to want to kill them. If I could kill them, I wouldve done so no doubt about it. My plight was only because I couldnt triumph against them. I was still stuck as their prisoner. I was merely a prisoner who had been given morefort. There was a saying that phrased it well: being a ve isnt scary. Whats scary is finding joy in being a ve. Irina became poison. I couldnt allow myself to sink any deeper.


    A mncholic look flitted across Irinas eyes. She tightly gripped my arm. She muttered, Sorry We didnt want to resort to this Its just just that Mom had no other way If you didntply we wouldnt have a future. Mom had no choice Sorry


    Theres no need to apologise. I know your reasons, and I know that you dont want to kill us or hurt us. Otherwise, Mommy Sylvanas wouldnt be alive until now. Youve treated me well, except the fact that this is kidnapping and imprisonment hasnt changed. If you release us before Mommy Sylvanas wakes up, we might be able to be friends.


    Will youe back?


    Unlikely.


    That was a stupid question. Why would I evere back? I really wondered if Irina still didnt understand. I had no sympathy for the dragon race. Zero. I never considered myself a dragon, and I never shouldered their safety. I always considered myself a human being. Perhaps I was used to it since I always lived as a human. I was in the dragons territory. The dragon race was a hazard for the North. Not a friend. If it wasnt for Dragon Mom, Id be in the Imperial Pce plotting how to kill the dragons; I wouldnt be lying there.


    I thought, I only came here for Dragon Mom. You poisoned her, and imprisoned me. If Mom doesnt kill you when shees to, you wouldve been granted the most lenience possible. I dont think that shell ever want toe back, so theres no chance I wille back, either.


    As for Irina, I felt she was somewhat pitiful. She didnt do anything wrong. She had no part in Camilles actions. Plus, she was never rude to me. In saying that, we were after different things. The ces we lived were different. And so, we couldnt even be friends. We could sleep together then, butter on, we wouldnt ever meet again.


    Irinas expression froze. Ayer of tears that made my heart throb formed in her eyes. It wasnt regret or disappointment, but something deeper. It was despair and anguish. She tightly gripped my arm hard enough to almost stab into my flesh. Her eyes made me somewhat emotional. Anybody would be emotional when they saw those pitiful eyes of Irinas.


    I pulled Irina into my embrace. She went along with me and leaned onto my chest. She softly sobbed a few times. In a hoarse voice, she said, What do you want to do to me? What do you want? You can hit me if you like I wont retaliate But but I hope you wont hate us. Please dont hate us. Please dont abandon our dragon race. Please I beg you


    Irina, Irina, calm down. Calm down first. What happened? Why are you doing this and saying this? Dont you think this is a bit too abrupt?


    Irinas tearsnded on me. The agony she showed on her face would make one think that the world was ending.


    Though I said that I wouldnt be back, Irina and I werent close to the point that we couldnt bear to part with each other, right? The two of us had been together for an awfully short period of time. It took over a decade of living together for Sylvanas to be so attached to my father, Inard. We had been together for roughly one month. That was the equivalent of running onto a stranger on a bus for a few minutes before getting off.


    Why does Irina look as though shes hurting so much? I wondered.


    I beg you King Troy Please, dont hurt my mom You can do as you please with me, but please dont hurt my mom


    I never said Id hurt your mom, nor have I ever thought about hurting you! I hated you both, but you never hurt me or did anything to me that I consider unforgivable. Perhaps I do bicker with you or offend you in some ways, but Id never hurt you. Mommy Sylvanas is your own kind. How could I hurt you?!


    Really? Really?


    Of course. Theres no point to me hurting you Irina, there has to be a peaceful way to resolve this, but only after you wake my Mommy Sylvanas up. Right now, though, do you have any news? What exactly do you two want?


    The same as before We want a child


    I sighed. I pretty much figured that out from the Irinas look. A child was the most important thing to the dragon race. However, they didnt seem to understand their own plight. Camille struck at us without a warning. She was willing to go straight to war against us for what she wanted. If the dragon race continued with that attitude, theyd end up exterminated time and time again even if they could resurrect themselves. That was the problem with the race. With that said, that was none of my business. I wasnt a part of them. I was sure Camille didnt want me sticking my nose in, either.


    I hugged Irina again. She didnt resist. Although she was arge creature when transformed into her dragon form, she was akin to a kitten in my arms. Will she have a child? I wasnt sure.


    =============


    Next day in the forest.


    Camille was prepared for death, as she was a dragon, but she wasnt willing to just roll over and die yet. She wasnt willing to be resigned to the fate of dying to Sylvanas before seeding. The dragon race had yet to be revived, and her daughter had yet to be pregnant; she didnt n to die yet. Subsequently, Camille nned to make Troy infatuated with Irina using a drug.


    Sylvanas weakness was Troy. She was able to forsake her dignity and stance for his sake. Had that not been true, thered be no way shed be willing to weather a tough life with the half-human, half-elf boy. She presumed that, if Troy stood up for Irina, Sylvanas would spare her.


    Camille wasnt sure when Irina would be pregnant. Irina hadnt shown any changes as of recent. Dragons didnt show any prior signs. Dragons were wild beasts. Their physical well-being was the key to their survival. As a safety mechanism during pregnancy, a pregnant dragon wouldnt show signs of weakness during the initial period of pregnancy. Only once a dragon egg had been formed would Irina show signs of fatigue.


    Irina, take these.


    Camille handed Irina a handful of herbs. As the initial concoction now couldnt be used, a new drug needed to be concocted. The so-called love potion couldnt actually bestow true love. Its main purpose was to trick young girls craving love. Lucia bought a bottle before. As opposed to calling it a love potion, it might as well be called an aphrodisiac. In essence, it forced the consumer develop feelings for the person in front of them. The drug heightened said feelings to the point of obsession. Should the consumer coincidentally deeply love the person in front of them, they would fall even deeper in love and be more loyal ifbined with the potion. If the consumer didnt love the other, on the other hand, itd only cause the consumer to be besotted. But nheless, Camille was satisfied with that much.


    All right, responded Irina.


    Irina seemed to be slightly absentminded. She went to grab the herb but inadvertently missed, leading to the herb dropping to the ground. Irina responded in a startled manner. She quickly crouched down to pick it up. She fearfully looked up at her Mom. In a quiet voice, she apologised, Sorry, Mom, I am somewhat distracted.


    Camille hopelessly sighed. She sat down next to a tree and said, Never mind it. It doesnt matter, but youre likely to get hurt in that state. Be careful. Were in the forest at the moment. You space out for longer and longer periods nowadays. What are you thinking about recently? Troy or something else? Tell Mommy.


    Irinas gaze showed hints of nervousness: The truth is is I do not know what I am thinking about, either. I just space out before I know it Mom Sorry, sorry Maybe I am not getting enough sleep. I will look after myself when we get home.


    Camille scanned her daughter. Her gaze stopped on her daughters abdomen. A joyful thought came to mind. She pulled her daughter over with one arm and then threw aside the basket of herbs. She excitedly eximed, Come home with me, Irina. Come home with me. Ill give you a check-up! Maybe. Maybe youre pregnant!