The Blue Mage Raised by Dragons Page 11

  “Wow. Your taste in friends is terrible,” Prika said. “Don’t worry though. You’ll become my best friend once you become my goddaughter.”

  Lindyss sighed.

  “Stop sidetracking her,” Sera said, poking Prika’s ribs, “and let her finish her story.”

  “I taught him how to control his mana and helped teach him new skills since he’s a blue mage,” Lindyss said.

  “She shot me with lightning bolts and fire balls and ice spears and dark orbs,” Vur said while nodding.

  “That’s because he drank the whole fountain!” She rose to her feet and clutched the hem of her dress with both hands.

  “Ah, such a petty reason,” Grimmy said while clicking his tongue. “Oh, how the mighty have fallen.”

  Lindyss stamped her foot. “You!” she said and then sighed. “You’re right. He reminded me too much of you; I couldn’t help but tease him a bit.”

  “Oh? So she used to tease you, dear?” Leila asked as she rested her claw on Grimmy’s shoulder.

  Grimmy snorted and stroked Leila’s cheek with his claw. “You’re the only one for me.”

  Lindyss stared at the two dragons who were gazing into each other’s eyes with faint smiles on their faces. “Oh, how the mighty have fallen,” she echoed.

  Prika sighed. “I wish I had a mate.”

  ***

  “They retreated? What do you mean they retreated?” Gale asked the demon standing in front of him. The archbishop was wearing a robe, threaded with blue lines of refined mithril. In his right hand, there was a blue metal staff, and in his left hand, there was a white book with golden inscriptions on the cover. His holy army had just arrived at the makeshift camp set up in the charred plains. Simple wooden stakes were hammered into the ground at an angle, specially made to trip up cavalry. On one side of the camp, dozens of tents with white coverings were arranged in a rectangular formation. On the other side, purple tents were arranged in a spiral pattern.

  Dustin shrugged, his gaze roaming over Gale’s attire. It was similar to his own, but the demon wasn’t holding any weapons or books. “The cavalry stopped riding and pulled back into the forest,” Dustin replied. The two leaders of the armies stared at each other before Gale stuck out his hand. Dustin raised an eyebrow and paused before grasping it.

  Gale had ordered his men to leave first and coordinate with the demons. It was his first time meeting their leader. “I appreciate your help coming out here. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I sent that letter.”

  “Please. Our lord isn’t as unyielding as your king,” Dustin said and snorted. We’re all allies in the end.

  Gale nodded. He did think His Majesty was a bit stubborn at times. “We should maintain vigilance for at least a month,” Gale said, judging Dustin’s reaction. The demon’s expression didn’t change. “That’s how long it’ll take before our mages can finish purifying the land.”

  “Why wait and defend? Why not take the fight to them?” Dustin asked with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

  Gale frowned. “We only need to destroy their cavalry to prevent another invasion. There shouldn’t be enough corpses for them to reanimate once they’re gone.”

  “And if they refuse to come out until we leave?” Dustin asked. “Destroy their source and we never have to worry about being invaded again.”

  “The consequences are too large if we fail. Not only do we not wipe them out, we also increase their numbers,” Gale said and shook his head. “All the top-ranked adventurers are in Fuselage. We can’t guarantee a victory.”

  Dustin nodded. “You’re right,” he said and clapped his hand on Gale’s shoulder. The demon’s expression softened. “It would’ve been nice to have adventured with someone as level-headed as you. If you were going to make a rash decision, I might’ve eliminated you.” He chuckled.

  Gale nodded, glad to have passed the demon’s test. “It would be nice if we could build a fortress here maintained by both our races.”

  “Maybe one day in the future our people could forget their differences, but there’s too much hatred right now. You can see it in their eyes,” Dustin said and gestured towards the humans and demons resting behind them. “It’ll be a long time until then.”

  Gale rubbed his chin. The tension between the two humans and the demons was palpable. His eyebrow raised as he faced Dustin and said, “But I don’t see it in your eyes.”

  “Because I’ve been to Fuselage,” the demon said, his expression empty.

  ***

  Lindyss stood next to Grimmy on a cliff overlooking a horde of skeletons riding into a marsh. The trees within the marsh were oozing black sap, and their leaves—the few that existed—were blood-red and pointed. The ground was brackish, occasional bubbles rising to the surface and popping, releasing wisps of black smoke. The skeletons dismounted on top of the marsh, letting their bodies sink into the ground along with their steeds. They disappeared without a trace.

  “Why’d you call them back?” Grimmy asked.

  “Nothing good comes from bothering the humans,” Lindyss said and rolled her eyes. “The undead are our buffer in case they ever invade. They shouldn’t be sent out because someone got a little angry.”

  Grimmy snorted. “I made them. I can do what I want with them.”

  “Technically, I made them. You just gave me the power,” Lindyss said with a smile.

  “Same thing.”

  “Just let me get the little victories, alright? You’re a dragon; stop being so petty.”

  Grimmy snorted again and nuzzled his snout against her, wrinkling her black dress. “I missed you.”

  “I missed you too,” Lindyss said and sighed, “but there really was no other option.”

  “Are you better now?” Grimmy asked as he crawled onto his stomach.

  Lindyss sat down and leaned her body into the crevice between his neck and shoulder. “In a decade or two, I should be fully healed. It’s gotten to the point where I can stand in the sun without having my skin fall off, but I still lose my mana,” she said as she stretched her right hand towards the moon.

  Grimmy fell silent as Lindyss lowered her arm, placing it on the dragon’s body.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. I wouldn’t be here right now if it weren’t for you,” Lindyss said as she sighed and closed her eyes. The heat coming off the dragon coursed through her body and warmed her back. She had missed this feeling.

  10

  Needles clinked. Colors flashed. Wool stitched. Lindyss pursed her lips and raised the child-sized sweater in front of her face. It was blue with the image of a large-headed bat stitched into the center. She sighed and placed it into her lap, folding it before placing it on the pile of woolen clothes by her rocking chair. The chair tilted backwards as Lindyss sank into it. She wasn’t sure why she bothered knitting sweaters for Vur when he never wore them or completely destroyed them after romping through the wilderness for a day.

  Thumping sounds drew Lindyss’ attention towards her closed door. A low-pitched whine droned through her ears, and seconds later, there was a clawing noise. Had Vur come to visit? She stood up and smoothed out the wrinkles in her blood-red dress before tucking her light-brown hair behind her pointed ears. Her heels clacked against the ground as she sauntered towards the door. As expected, her basilisk was outside, staring at her with puppy eyes and a frown on its face. A slight smile appeared on the corner of her lips but quickly disappeared. It seemed like Vur really was here. The basilisk ran into her room and curled up on her bed when she stepped outside, refusing to follow after its master.

  The sounds of bats squealing rang through the air as Lindyss walked up the stairs. She bit the inside of her lower lip. How many times had she told Vur to not harass the bats? She reached the top of the stairs and crossed her arms over her chest. Vur was chasing after a bat, a gleam in his eyes. As the bat made a turn, he lunged and soared through the air, grabbing its body in a way that wouldn’t hurt it. It squealed louder as it stru
ggled and bit at his hand. Lindyss sighed and asked, “Can I help you?”

  Vur hugged the squirming bat. “Hi, Auntie,” he said, ignoring the tiny blood droplets oozing out of his fingers. “I want more books.”

  “I don’t have anymore.”

  “What about those books you said I couldn’t read?”

  “You still can’t read them. Ask the elves for theirs.”

  “But I read all the elves’ books,” Vur said and pouted. “They told me to ask you.”

  “Did you really?”

  “Uh huh. I even read the boring ones too,” Vur said and crinkled his nose. “Why would they make a book on plants?”

  Lindyss’ brow furrowed as she tapped her feet against the floor. She rubbed her chin and stared at the ceiling. The human-shaped holes still hadn’t been repaired. In fact, the bats had used them as new sleeping quarters. Lindyss exhaled and crossed her arms over her chest before meeting Vur’s expectant gaze. “I know where we can get more books, but we’ll have to ask your parents.”

  “You’re the best, Auntie.”

  ***

  Tafel bit her lip as she pushed her peas to the side of the plate with her fork. Her mother didn’t even look up from her food while saying, “Eat your peas.”

  Tafel made a face as she stabbed one with her fork, eliciting a clink from her plate. Gabriel and Lamach were away from the castle, living in their school. Maybe they were still fighting zombies. Since they weren’t home, all her mother’s complaints had fallen onto Tafel instead: her hair was too messy, her dress was too wrinkled, her walking pace was too fast, her hands were too fidgety, her walking pace was too slow. Tafel imagined the pea on her fork was her mother and chomped on it. It still tasted disgusting, but she felt a little better after eating it.

  “Eat more elegantly,” her mother said. “I know Prim taught you manners. Show them.”

  Tafel glanced at her father. He chewed on a piece of steak as he held his hands over his plate, a knife and fork in either hand. He hadn’t spoken a word since the meal started. His motions were robotic: cut, chew, swallow, repeat. It didn’t seem like he was willing to help her this time. Occasionally, he’d spoil her by smuggling books on spells and mana control into her room, but when it came to dealing with his wife, he was willing to let Tafel suffer instead of himself. Tafel sighed as she scooped the remaining peas onto her fork instead of stabbing them.

  “Sighing’s not ladylike,” her mother said. Tafel’s eye twitched.

  Rapid footsteps sounded from the hallway. Tafel put down her fork as the door burst open. “M-Milord!” a sentry shouted and saluted. “Urgent news!”

  Tafel’s father frowned as he put down his knife and fork, wiping his lips with his napkin. “Didn’t I say no one may interrupt my meals?” he asked. “This is the only time I have to talk to my family.”

  Tafel resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Her mother would’ve accused her of being barbaric.

  The sentry bowed until his torso was parallel to the floor. “Forgive me, Milord, but there are five dragons in front of the city gates. They demand to speak with you or they’ll raze the capital.”

  Tafel’s eyes lit up while her mother’s face paled. “Go to your room, Tafel,” her mother said.

  “Yes, Mother,” Tafel said as she slid out of her seat and walked past the sentry, rounding a corner. She glanced behind herself before sneaking off in the opposite direction of her room. There was no way she was going to let a chance like this go.

  ***

  Sweat rolled down the demon lord’s neck as a giant golden pair of eyes stared at him, unblinking. A sky-blue dragon was resting her front claws on the city walls, propping up her chin. Her stomach leaned against the wall while her tail curled and uncurled, ruining the fields below. Two humanoid figures were on her head: one sitting, the other standing.

  “How may I help you, mighty one?” the demon lord said and lowered his head, staring at his feet. He flinched as a high-pitched voice that sounded like it came from a child rang through the air.

  “Books! I want all your books.”

  The demon lord’s face twisted, and he opened his mouth to speak.

  “You can’t just ask for all their books,” Prika said before he could say anything. The demon lord let out a sigh of relief. “I don’t want to carry any duplicates,” Prika finished. His right eye twitched.

  “Come again?” the demon lord asked.

  “Are you deaf? Auntie, how can he be the ruler if he’s deaf?” Vur asked. “Let’s ask her instead.” Vur pointed at Tafel who was hiding on the steps leading up to the city walls.

  Tafel froze.

  “Tafel! What are you doing here!?”

  “I wanted to see the dragons,” she whispered, unwilling to meet her father’s eyes.

  Grimmy laughed and stretched his neck to get a better view of the girl. “Aren’t you a brave child? Don’t you know dragons eat children for breakfast?”

  Tafel trembled and collapsed onto her knees before shaking her head back and forth. “Y-you can’t eat me then. I-it’s dinner time.”

  Grimmy laughed even harder and thumped his tail against the ground, causing the wall to shake. “Maybe I should kidnap you and save you for breakfast,” he said with a grin. Tafel squeaked and curled up into a ball as the dragon’s hot breath washed over her.

  “Quit teasing the little ones,” Leila said and nudged Grimmy’s neck.

  “Ahem. Sorry about that,” Lindyss said and jumped off of Sera’s head. She smiled at the demon lord. “We’d appreciate it if you gave us all the books in your royal library. Of course we’ll provide fair compensation.”

  Sweat rolled down the demon lord’s back. “I can’t do that. The royal library is a collection of all our history and knowledge. If you take it away from us, what will we have left?”

  Lindyss’ smile widened. “Then it’s fine if we use it like a library, right? We’ll be sure to come back and return the books once we’re done with them,” she said as she took a step forward.

  The demon lord took a step back. “There’s no guarantee you’ll return them,” he said while shaking his head.

  Lindyss continued towards him, her hips swaying. “I’m sure there’s some kind of agreement we can come to, don’t you think?” she asked while staring into his eyes with a slight pout. Her lips glistened red in the moonlight.

  The demon lord swallowed as he maintained his distance by walking backwards and stumbled when his foot hit the edge of the wall. He almost fell over, but Lindyss caught his shoulder and brought her face in front of his. Their noses almost touched. She tiptoed, leaned forward, and whispered into his ear, “You should be careful.”

  She smiled at him and giggled before pulling away. The demon lord’s face was flushed, and his heart threatened to jump out of his chest. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out.

  “I’m telling Mom,” Tafel said.

  Lindyss laughed and sauntered towards Tafel. “Such a cute child,” she said while squatting. She ran her fingers through the demon’s hair. “You should let the adults talk, okay? You can go play with Vur.” Lindyss put her hands underneath Tafel’s arms and lifted her up while standing.

  Tafel screamed as Lindyss lobbed her into the air towards Sera’s head. She closed her eyes and curled up into a ball, bracing herself for the pain. Instead, she was caught by a cushion of air and landed soundlessly next to Vur. Sera released the walls and took a few steps back.

  “Tafel!” the demon lord yelled. “You witch! I’ll have you burned!” He turned towards Lindyss and almost fell over when he saw her standing less than an inch away.

  Lindyss beamed as she wrapped her arm around his. “Now, now. Let the children play while we discuss business, alright?”

  The demon lord’s mind blanked when he saw her smile and nodded with a dazed expression, letting himself be led away.

  ***

  “Wow,” Vur said and grabbed Tafel’s horns. He moved his hand back and forth, running his fing
ers over the ridges before asking, “Are these real?”

  Tafel nodded and lowered her head, biting her lower lip as her face flushed. “It’s very rude to touch someone’s horns,” she whispered. Prim told her to never let anyone touch her horns unless it was her wedding night.

  “Oh, sorry. I didn’t know that,” Vur said and released her horns. “Why do you have horns?”

  Tafel clutched the hem of her dress. “I’m a demon,” she said and met Vur’s eyes. “Demons have horns. Didn’t you know?”

  “Eh? Mama said you were a human”—Vur looked down and caught Sera’s eye—“and dragons don’t lie. Right, Mama?”

  Sera snorted which caused Tafel to squeak and fall over. “Humans and demons are the same thing.”

  Vur nodded. “See,” he said and sat down next to Tafel. “I’m Vur. What’s your name?”

  “Tafel,” she replied, staring at his golden, slit eyes. “Are you a human? I’ve never met one before.”

  “I’m a dragon,” Vur said and stuck his chest out. “I just haven’t grown my wings and scales yet.”

  “Oh. I didn’t know dragons looked like this when they’re little,” Tafel said with her eyes wide.

  Vur smiled. “A lot of people don’t. Do you want to be my friend?”

  Tafel’s head bobbed up and down, her hair flying. “Yes. I don’t have any friends,” she said and looked down. “My mom never lets me out of the house.”

  “Oooo, what’s this?” Prika asked and hung onto Sera’s shoulders. “It looks like Lindyss has some competition?” She grinned at the two children on top of Sera’s head.

  In the guardroom closest to the dragons, Lindyss was sitting across from the demon lord. A piece of paper was laid out on the table separating the two. Lindyss smiled at the demon lord as he lifted the quill in his hand. “So it’s agreed then?”

  The demon lord nodded as his hand flourished, a gaudy signature appearing on the paper. Lindyss retrieved the paper, blew on the wet ink, and rolled it up while the demon lord spoke, “The boy may freely enter the library and borrow books—but no more than twenty at a time. The dragons will stop destroying our outskirt towns, and Tafel will be returned safely.”