Free Web NovelChapter 10: The Cold Road Home
Zera grew more unsure the longer she looked.
According to the books, a true dragon should have been massive, with iron-hard scales, wings broad enough to blot out the sky, and magic so heavy it bent the air around it.
In the old stories, whenever a dragon appeared, clouds split apart. Mountains shook. Even rivers darkened beneath its shadow.
But the little girl in front of her matched none of that.
No giant wings.
No steel-cutting fangs.
She couldn’t even drink milk without getting it all over her face.
Again and again, Zera looked at Puff, trying to find something—anything—that fit the word dragon.
All she saw was a tiny girl sitting on a chair, her feet swinging under her, wrapped in Kael’s cloak and so focused on drinking that she never even looked up.
Kael stood off to the side with his arms folded. When he heard Zera’s question, he barely lifted his eyes.
"How should I know?" he said. "I’ve never seen a dragon before."
Zera froze.
Slowly, she turned to look at him.
"But, Master Kael... then how do you know she’s a dragon?"
Kael paused.
He looked down at Puff, at the cloak hanging messily around her, at the way she had finally gone quiet now that her belly was full.
Then he snorted.
That was it.
No explanation.
No proof.
Just a snort, as if the matter was already settled and he couldn’t be bothered to argue.
Zera parted her lips, then closed them again.
To be honest, she didn’t think Puff looked like a dragon.
Not even a little.
But Master Kael had said she was one.
If Master Kael said she was a dragon, then for now, Zera would treat her like a dragon. Besides, she knew far too little to prove him wrong.
While Zera was still trying to accept that, Puff finally finished the bowl.
She lifted her head.
White milk was smeared across her cheeks, with one small drop still hanging from her chin.
She didn’t wipe it.
She didn’t care.
She pushed the empty bowl aside.
Someone else could deal with it.
The wooden bowl tapped softly against the edge of the chair.
Then Puff turned her head and looked straight at Kael.
"Da... da."
Kael’s eye twitched.
"Tch. Dumb dragon. What now?"
Puff didn’t answer.
With her milk-covered face, she raised both arms toward him and stared.
Her meaning was obvious.
She had eaten.
She had drunk.
Now there was only one thing left.
Pick her up.
Kael glared at her for two seconds, his face twisting the same way it had when she bit him earlier.
"You little brat. Belly’s full and you’re still acting spoiled. You really know how to live, don’t you?"
He cursed under his breath, but his feet were already moving.
Zera watched as Kael bent down and lifted Puff from the chair.
It was not gentle, exactly. First, he tugged the cloak higher around her so she wouldn’t slip out of it.
The moment Puff was back in his arms, she wriggled into the most comfortable spot.
Then she rubbed her face back and forth against his chest and buried her head there.
Kael’s whole body stiffened.
He looked down.
A large white stain had appeared on his shirt.
"Hey! You little—" Kael’s voice shot up. "Did you just wipe your face on my clothes?!"
Puff raised her head.
Half the milk was still on her face.
The other half had somehow ended up on Kael’s shirt.
She watched him get mad, and the corner of her mouth slowly curled up.
"Hee..."
"Laugh again. I dare you," Kael said darkly. "Once we get back to Crownspire Palace, I’m dealing with you."
He said it like a threat.
Puff wasn’t scared.
She could already tell when Kael was truly angry and when he was only being loud.
His arms were still around her.
The cloak was still wrapped around her.
He was not going to hurt her.
So she kept laughing, her little shoulders shaking.
That made Kael even angrier.
But he couldn’t exactly throw her on the ground, so all he could do was keep a dark face and carry on.
After staring for a while at Kael and the little "dragon" in his arms, who was now full, happy, and already guilty of dirtying his clothes, Zera said softly, "Master Kael... let’s go back. The wind is getting stronger."
Her voice was quiet.
She was only a maid. In front of Kael, she did not dare say too much, especially when he was in such a foul mood.
But if she said nothing and became a problem later, he would definitely snap at her too.
Sure enough, the night wind had already started pushing through the gate, blowing the torch flames sideways.
Long shadows stretched from the foot of the city wall, and cold rose from the stones as if it had teeth.
Zera’s skirt fluttered in the wind. She held it tighter by instinct.
Kael glanced at her.
He knew she meant well, so this time he did not blow up.
He only let out an impatient sigh.
"Yeah, yeah. I’m going, alright?"
Only then did Zera quietly breathe out.
"Yes, Master Kael. I’ll have the carriage prepared right away—"
"Mm. I’ll drive."
Kael cut her off and pushed Puff toward Zera.
"You get inside with her first."
Zera took Puff into her arms without thinking.
The moment Puff was handed over, she blinked, then reached up and grabbed a fistful of cloth at Zera’s chest.
Zera’s whole body went stiff.
Her breathing almost stopped as she looked down at the tiny creature who had just been called a dragon.
"Master Kael... you’re going to drive?"
"Obviously."
"But, Master Kael, I’m your maid. I should be the one—"
Kael stopped and turned his head.
One look from him was enough to shove the rest of her sentence back down her throat.
"I said I’m driving, so I’m driving. I don’t want to hear another word."
He adjusted Puff in Zera’s arms, then pointed toward the carriage.
"Now you. Hold on to this little moron, get in the cabin, close the curtain, and sit still."
He paused, still sounding annoyed.
"Otherwise, if the wind really picks up, both of you will freeze."
Nights in the Suncrest Empire were never comfortable.
At this hour, the wind was already slipping through the gaps in the city walls, carrying the chill of stone and iron soaked in night dew.
Stay outside too long, and the cold would creep through your cuffs and down your collar until even your fingers went stiff.
Kael did not explain any of that.
He just pushed Zera—and Puff along with her—into the carriage cabin, then moved anyone in his way with a cold face.
Once Zera had settled into the seat, he shut the door and gave it a quick check to make sure it would not rattle open during the ride.
The reason was simple.
The wind was strong.
Zera was not dressed for it.
Puff had nothing but a cloak wrapped around her.
At the very least, they would not be hit by the cold all the way back to Crownspire Palace.
But once those thoughts came out of Kael’s mouth, they turned into cold orders and bad temper.
Maybe that was just how he was.
Maybe he really didn’t know how to say anything properly.
"Da... da."
Puff’s voice came from inside the cabin.
Kael had just climbed onto the driver’s seat. Hearing her, he turned and looked at the curtain.
"What?"
Behind the fabric, there was silence for a moment.
Then Puff slowly squeezed out one word.
"Cold..."
Kael’s hand paused on the reins.
The wind pressed against his back, slipping through his thin clothes and stealing the last bit of warmth from his skin.
Firelight touched the side of his face, but the wind bent the flames low.
Kael sat there with his back to the cabin, still looking impatient.
"Tch. It’s nothing."
He said it like he didn’t care.
But in that black, freezing night, something in his chest moved.
Only a little.
Small enough that he could pretend it had never happened.
Of course, Kael would never admit that one soft word from a milk-covered little brat had gotten to him.
He turned his face away and tightened his grip on the reins.
"You two, hold on."
The horse blew out a white breath and lightly stomped against the stone road.
Kael snapped the reins.
The wheels began to roll, grinding over the uneven cobblestones beneath the city gate.
Even at night, the capital of the Suncrest Empire felt heavy and closed in.
In the distance, lamps lit one by one along the streets, trembling in the wind.
The carriage moved down a road stitched together by darkness and firelight, its wheels rumbling through the quiet.
Still dressed in only thin clothes, Kael sat up front and drove them slowly toward Crownspire Palace.
