CHAPTER 41: CLAWS, JEALOUSY AND DECEIT, PART V

Hayate barely dodged the spell Haru had hurled at him. He leapt aside, staring at him in disbelief.

He looked Haru straight in the eyes.

"What’s gotten into you?!" the dragon shouted. "You have no idea who you’re picking a fight with. Even with Hoshizuma’s power, you can’t beat me. But fine, maybe it’s better this way. When Shion becomes a widower, my job will be much easier, heh," he sneered.

"You have no right to him," Haru replied in a hateful, grave tone. "You tried to take him from me, and you’ll pay for that."

"You really want to fight a dragon?" Hayate said, his golden eyes igniting with living fire.

Haru sent another magical strike his way, but the starlight shattered against an invisible barrier surrounding Hayate.

The dragon’s eyes flared even brighter. Only then did Haru realize that Hayate had teleported them away from the palace – to some distant meadow.

Within a wall of flame, Hayate shifted into his true form. Standing before Haru was now a large burgundy dragon, rising over him, golden eyes drilling into his soul.

Once, Haru would’ve trembled and run in fear – but not the Haru who carried Hoshizuma’s power.

He knew he’d be fine.

No, he was sure he’d win.

I feel strangely confident... Is this really because of that Hoshizuma’s power? M-maybe...

...But in the end, something will finally depend on me.

"Think about what you’re doing, Haru," said Hayate. "You’re throwing your life away."

"What makes you so sure it’s me who’ll die?" Haru replied.

"I’m surprised you still believe you can win against me," Hayate said, then unleashed a fierce breath of fire.

But Haru followed Hoshizuma’s advice. He redirected the energy – according to his will and intuition – shaping the starlight into a radiant shield that blocked the flames. He struck back quickly, catching Hayate completely off guard.

The blast hit Hayate’s side, leaving a deep cut. The dragon looked down at the wound in horror.

Why the hell isn’t it healing? My regeneration should –

...Hoshizuma, you bastard!

Hayate heard only the librarian’s demonic laughter echoing in his mind.

Haru attacked again, relentless.

He no longer recognized himself. It was as if, along with Hoshizuma’s power, something inside him had changed.

Before Hayate could react, another blast severed one of his wings. He screamed in pain and reverted to his humanoid form, deciding he’d be harder to hit that way.

Maybe I should’ve fought like this from the start.

Scaring him clearly didn’t work. He refused to back down.

Damn it, it hurts so much. And I can’t heal both wounds.

If he doesn’t kill me now, I’ll bleed out before the fight’s over.

Hayate turned his head and caught sight of the limp, bleeding stump on his shoulder out of the corner of his eye.

"You really know how to humiliate a dragon," Hayate growled. "Because of you, I’ll never fly again, and that’s the pride of my kind."

"Any last words?" Haru asked, raising his hand toward him.

"Think about what you’re doing," Hayate said grimly. "Even if you manage to kill me, then what? This morning, I laid an egg. Shion is its father. You can kill me, but you won’t harm an innocent child, right? Someone will have to raise it, and everyone will see Shion’s noble features in its face. Will you take my place in its life, Haru? Won’t it be worse, raising someone else’s child, one your husband made with another?"

"Shut up!" Haru yelled, firing another blast.

Hayate tried to dodge, but for the first time in millennia, his body shivered with pain and a hint of fear. Another wing hit the ground, torn and bleeding. Hayate didn’t scream, he only grimaced in pain.

"You don’t even know where you are, Haru," he said weakly. "Without me, you can’t get back to the palace. You’ve already done enough. Please... stop..." His lips quivered.

I can’t believe I’m begging and crying before such a pathetic creature as a human.

No... it’s not that he’s human. For some reason, Hoshizuma gave him power, and I can only guess why...

"Give me one reason," Haru said, tears welling in his eyes at the thought of what Hayate had done to Shion. "One reason," he repeated, his tone sharp and threatening. "Why should I forgive you for using my husband, for hypnotizing him, for trying to destroy our marriage?"

"I’m not asking you to forgive me, damn it!" Hayate shouted back. "I don’t care if you hate me, I know you do. In your eyes I’m a monster, fine. But understand this: the Hoshigane bloodline was the only one capable of carrying pure dragon power. That means this egg will hatch a true dragon, stronger than me, and– "

"Oh, shut up. I’ll count to five," Haru said, half confident, half surprised by his own coldness.

Hayate sighed.

"...Just let me live. Let me raise me child. That’s all I want. If you order it, we’ll leave the palace, go far away, where no one will find us. But please... don’t do this. Don’t separate a child from their parent."

Haru’s lips trembled, close to tears.

"You didn’t think about that when you tried to take Shion from me. What if we’d broken up because of you? Would you have replaced me in our child’s life or seen it as a burden? I think I know the answer. Sorry, this cheesy act isn’t working on me," he said, raising his hand again.

Damn it... I’m too hurt to run.

Hoshizuma’s magic has damaged both my body and my magic resistance, at least in part.

What do I have left?

A barrier? Pointless, his magic would tear through it.

Maybe I should just give up.

I can’t believe I was beaten by a mere human.

But that human became the mother of one of us.

In the end, I only fooled myself trying to take his husband.

His daughter wouldn’t have wanted that...

"If that’s all you’ve got to say, I’ll end it here and now."

Hayate gave a bitter smile.

"Raise my child well, Haru," he said softly.

That only enraged Haru even more. Shion’s husband fired several star-lit bolts at him.

Just as one struck Hayate’s neck, the dragon reached his hand toward Haru and teleported him back to the palace.

*

In little Yuri’s dream, a chain of strange events played out, ones she would never remember, but which would shape her future.

Even though she had just been born, she could already feel that this dream – and its consequences – would shape who she was meant to be.

First, she felt a touch on her hand – gentle, yet rough, like the wooden edge of her cradle. It wasn’t the hand of the one who bore her, nor the one who so often cared for her. Their hands were soft and warm.

But the slight scratch she felt in the dream was coarse and cold.

"The law of the strong..." a chilling voice echoed through her mind.

Yuri wanted to wake and cry, to be held and soothed.

But whoever owned that voice didn’t let her awaken.

"I... can... stay... alive... only if... I split... the blood..." the same voice murmured.

"And... Haru... what... about..." came a faint woman’s reply, muffled as though through a wall of snow.

Then, Yuri saw herself – from the future.

She stood before two golden, draconic eyes. Their blinding light flowed into her body.

The older Yuri screamed, then felt something beyond words.

A power yet to come. A force that, even now, had begun to grow inside her.

*

"She’s crying and won’t stop," said Maldie, trying to cradle the girl in her arms. "I’ve tried everything..."

"Where’s Haru?" murmured Shion sleepily, sitting up in bed. He’d just woken up.

Maldie sighed.

Should I tell him the truth? If I lie, he’ll be angry...

She didn’t hesitate any longer. Unsure how he’d react, she told him everything that happened that morning and how strangely Haru had acted.

"That’s impossible! I was working late last night. If Haru kills him over a false claim –"

"That thing on your neck says otherwise," Maldie interrupted, pointing at the mark.

Shion looked in the mirror, staring at the hickey in disbelief.

"That doesn’t prove anything," he said, still offended by Haru’s behavior.

"You even smelled different. I noticed it, the scent lingered in the air while you slept. You didn’t smell like yourself, or Haru – but like someone else..."

"I have to find him and stop him. He can’t just take justice into his own hands," Shion said, heading for the door.

"When you find him, tell him to come here. Maybe he can calm Yuri down."

Shion nodded and left the royal chamber. Maldie sighed, though her mood lightened a little after he was gone.

Once the prince disappeared down the corridor, Gari entered. She tried to help Maldie, but she too couldn’t soothe the crying Yuri.

"What’s wrong, little one?" Maldie asked softly, worried.

Gari looked down at Haru and Shion’s daughter, frowning.

The draconic part of her nature tensed – warning her of something.

Something unknown.

Something that made her afraid.