"Hoho," came the amused laughter before Ron appeared beside him. "I do not believe he likes that plan, Young Master." Ron then held out his hand. "You should let this old servant do this for you."
Cale sighed but handed the mana cutters over to Ron. He then looked at the baby dragon who flinched as Ron drew near him. "I'm not telling you what to do, I'm only giving you a suggestion. You should always let your enemies suffer first if you have that luxury." Cale told the dragon absentmindedly. With a snap, the collar was cut off. Cale pulled out a bottle of healing potion and passed it to Ron.
The old man then poured half the contents on the creature before tilting its head up. The dragon glared at him and refused to open its mouth. Ron plastered on the biggest benign smile, and Cale swore he saw the dragon flinch again. "Drink this. The Young Master made sure to get you the highest grade potion. A young thing like you needs to recover quickly so you can grow up quickly."
"That's right," Cale said with a nod of his head.
The dragon didn't open its mouth but allowed them to open it for him without fighting. The rest of the potion slid down its throat, and the wounds and scars, both new and old, began to heal. The black dragon looked at itself in amazement and flexed its wings before curling back up in itself. "You will tame me?" A cute little voice growled.
Ron and Cale, who had stood back up by then, frowned at the question.
"Why the fuck would I tame a dragon. You are a majestic being of the noblest species, and a child. Dragons, especially children, should be free and happy." Cale dropped the spatial pouch that he had especially made for the dragon. "There are two more potions in it, money just in case, a map of this continent, and food."
The four humans each took out teleportation scrolls. Marcus and Beacrox were the first to tear their scrolls. "Live freely," Cale told the small dragon before he and Ron tore their own scrolls.
The dragon looked to where they had disappeared from. The faint traces of mana were still there and he focused on the coordinates that he sensed from it and remembered them.
With shaky, trembling wings, he rose up into the sky and flew toward the mountain where he had been kept chained up for two years. He released his mana and completely destroyed the mountain and the hideous dungeon in it.
He heard shouts from the distance and turned to find a large number of humans riding horses toward his direction. Some were even pointing up at him in fear and awe.
The dragon smirked proudly before following the humans who had released him. He was curious about them, especially the one that the three older ones seemed to follow. That one also spoke as if he might know something about dragons.
. . . .
The light around Cale disappeared and he was standing in his office in the building that he owned. Beacrox, Marcus, and Ron were already there with Felicity checking them over for any injuries. When he appeared, she moved to his side and began checking him.
"I hope those bastards suffered!"
A smirk covered Beacrox's face and Ron chuckled. "They did not have quick deaths," Ron reassured her.
"Good," Felicity hummed.
Once she moved away from him, Cale dusted off his suit and moved to sit on the comfortable couch. "Right about now, the dragon should be destroying the base right in front of the knights."
"Do you think so?"
Cale nodded at Felicity. "It is what anyone who had their pride hurt would do, destroy things. Hopefully the knights were far enough away to not attract its attention but close enough to see the dragon."
Before anything else could be said, a light appeared in the room. Becrox had his sword drawn while Ron grabbed his daggers. Both were looking menacingly at the light.
Cale frowned when the light disappeared to reveal nothing. "I can't believe it followed us." The three assassins and mage flinched at hearing his words.
The invisibility spell dropped to reveal scowling blue eyes. "Do you know other dragons?"
"No," Cale replied bluntly. The blue eyes widened minutely and the tail dipped toward the ground. Cale sighed, not able to see a child pouting and miserable. "If you wish, I could help you look for some but you will have to stay with me." He continued before the dragon could protest or destroy them. "While with me, I'll make sure you learn everything that a majestic being such as yourself should know."
The dragon perked up and the tip of its tail curled upwards slightly. "You'll teach me magic and language?"
Cale shook his head. "I'm rich. I'll find you a trustworthy person who will teach you anything you want to know, as long as it's within reason."
The dragon blinked. "I will allow it, weak human."
Cale felt his lips twitch and was unable to hide his smile. What a cute response, it was both dragon and child-like. He then turned his attention toward Felicity and introduced her to the dragon. "This is Felicity, she's a highest-mid-grade mage. She is one of my people and should be able to suffice as a magic instructor until I can find a highest-high-grade mage or an archmage. Or a dragon. Whichever comes first."
The dragon turned bright blue eyes onto the mage. "Felicity," he murmured, as if trying to commit her name to memory.
A small pulse of black mana came out from the dragon and coated Felicity. Her eyes widen and she looked at the small dragon in amazement.
Cale stood up from his seat. "Remember the coordinates for this location. You can teleport here to learn from Felicity when both of your schedules allow it."
The wings and tail of the dragon fluttered. "I remember, I am smart."
The corners of Cale's lips twitched. The dragon was a child after all. "Thank you for your help Marcus, Felicity. It's time for me to head back, I did promise to have dinner with my sister after all." He walked out the door with Ron and Beacrox following behind him.
"You don't live here?" The dragon asked curiously as it followed them.
Cale shook his head. "This is a business that I own. I live somewhere else," he said with a satisfied smile, thinking about the grandeur of the Henituse Estate.
Once they reached the bottomed floor, the dragon turned invisible. Cale knew it was still there because he could feel tiny paws gripping onto his shoulder. He was amazed and amused at how friendly and social this young dragon could be, especially after the life it had just been freed from.
The first floor of the Secret Garden was a pub while the second floor held rooms for rent. The third floor was his office and where the more hidden part of his business took place. The first floor was busy with people dining on delicious food and drinking exquisite wine. It was becoming a rather popular place since its opening almost three months prior.
Instead of calling a carriage, they walked the short distance back to the estate. He could hear the excited chatter of the dragon by his head. Its curiosity ran in overdrive as it took in the new sights and asked Cale questions about everything. Cale happily answered, he had forgotten how much he loved children.
The walk back home took much longer than it should have. The curious dragon kept flying over to the various stalls and asking about the different smells coming from the restaurants and cafes. Cale was only able to reign the young dragon in by promising to show him around Rain City later in the week.
They arrived up to the large wall that surrounded the estate. The mansion could be seen through the gates opening in the distance.
"You live here?" The black dragon was gazing up at the Henituse's massive estate with sparkling eyes, not that anyone could see since he was still invisible.
Cale smirked. The money that his family had been able to make and save up, and the luxuries that they were able to have made him feel proud. "It is, though this is technically my family's home. It will always be my home but I am hoping to move out when I'm older."
He is and always will be a Henituse but he had a determination to move out. He didn't want to still be living with his family when White Star finally makes his move in the future. The reason was simply because he didn't know what kinds of trouble he would bring his family since he was going to do everything in his power to mess up that bastard's plans.
"Oh, will your home be this impressive?"
"Probably not," Cale answered truthfully.
Ron and Beacrox hid their smiles at this adorable interaction. Felicity would definitely be upset to have missed it. Marcus and Felicity were given orders to stay at the Secret Garden to make sure it was running smoothly.
They were met with the knights who were on shift. They gave him a stiff bow, his recent conduct at the local bars already spreading throughout the staff.
-"why do they act like that?" The dragon's voice flowed into his mind, not missing the stiff expressions of the guards with hidden venom in their eyes.
"Later," Cale whispered quietly enough that only the invisible dragon next to him could hear.
They walked up the long driveway since a carriage had not been called for. The large gardens and beautifully crafted marble statues greeted them.
"I'll have lunch prepared," Beacrox told them once they entered the estate. "Is there anything you have in mind?"
Cale's eyes glanced in the rough position of where the dragon would be. "Hm, something good for growth, and a lot of it." Cale wasn't too happy with how small and thin the baby dragon was. Weren't children his age supposed to be chubby?
A small smile appeared on Beacrox's stiff face. "Yes, Young Master. Shall I also prepare sweets for afterwards?" After Cale gave him an affirmative nod, Beacrox rushed off toward the kitchen.