Page 25

Alina knew she would be caught—there was no question of that.

The consequences were already carved in stone.

She would be locked away, confined to her gilded cage, denied the simple freedoms others took for granted.

No more dances beneath candlelit chandeliers, no more stolen laughter at grand festivities.

The mere thought of it made her tighten her grip on the reins, urging her dragon ever higher, higher, until the wind screamed past her ears.

There was a wild, untamed power in flying—an intoxicating freedom that made her heart race in defiance.

The wyverian prince, however, refused such human frivolities as saddles.

His people rode without them, bare-backed, as though woven from the very wind itself.

The thought sent a shudder through Alina.

No reins, no straps—nothing to tether them to their beast. It was chaos incarnate, and the idea of it unsettled her to her very core.

What if the wyvern twisted suddenly, tilting to the side in one violent motion?

What then? A saddle was security, a safeguard, a promise that the sky would not simply swallow a rider whole.

At last, when both dragons reached the pinnacle of their ascent, their powerful wings leveling into a slow, steady rhythm, Alina looked down at her kingdom—really, truly looked at it—for the very first time.

How strange it was, to see her world from above when she had only ever been allowed to observe it through windows, framed by stone walls meant to keep her in.

She inhaled deeply, the night air crisp and untainted.

‘You look almost happy,’ the wyverian prince observed, his dragon edging closer.

It was a female, smaller than Alina’s but far more dangerous.

Under certain lights, her scales gleamed a shade of deep, untamed green—so unlike Alina’s red-gold beast. She had never been assigned a dragon of her own; such things were reserved for men.

Women rode only when it was expected of them, only when their presence was a decoration, a spectacle for the eyes.

And so she had been given a tamer creature, one deemed unremarkable enough for her to borrow for a day and then return, forgotten.

‘Almost?’

‘I know how to fix such a tragedy.’

Before she could demand an explanation, he tilted his dragon sharply, and suddenly, he was plummeting .

Alina’s heart leapt into her throat as she watched him fall—watched the ground rise to meet him in a blur of darkness and impending disaster. A thrill of panic seized her chest, but instinct took over before reason could intervene. She dove.

The wind roared around her, a deafening, all-encompassing force. The world rushed towards her with terrifying speed, the city of Spark becoming clearer and clearer with every passing second. Her grip on the reins tightened as though they were her last tether to life, her stomach twisting violently.

And then, just as she was certain the wyverian prince had lost his mind—that they would both meet a swift and merciless end—his dragon snapped upward, slicing through the air with impossible grace.

Alina barely had time to react before she did the same, her dragon pulling up mere moments before they would have been swallowed by the city below. The bay stretched out before them, a glistening mirror beneath the water’s silver touch.

The castle, carved from the very bones of the mountain itself, loomed over the water, its balconies suspended above the yawning abyss.

High above, where the land twisted and rose into jagged peaks, volcanoes sat in silent vigil, their breath curling into the sky in lazy tendrils of smoke.

It was there, amidst the molten heat of summer, that wild dragons made their nests, guarding their eggs in the heart of fire itself.

The two dragons glided over the water, their shadows dancing over the waves. To their right, white sands stretched in an unbroken ribbon, soft and untouched, while to their left, the endless sea whispered secrets to the wind.

‘I've never seen a place quite like it before,’ Kai admitted, his gaze drinking in the castle’s grandeur.

It was a marvel, sculpted by time and sweat, its crimson spires reaching towards the heavens like the claws of some ancient beast. Smoke curled from the distant volcanoes, their warmth ever-present, wrapping the city in an eternal embrace.

‘It is beautiful,’ Alina said, pride curling through her voice like embers in the dark.

With a final sweep over the sea, they guided their dragons downward, touching down upon the shore with practiced ease.

The sand was soft beneath Alina’s slippers, but as soon as she stepped onto it, her body went rigid.

Any moment now, the guards would come. She could already feel the weight of their hands dragging her away, already hear the disappointed murmurs of her parents—the whispers of shame at her reckless disobedience. But she would not regret this.

Not now. Not ever.

‘Why are you looking at me like that?’ the princess asked, her voice edged with wary curiosity as she caught the wyverian prince staring at her, a smirk of satisfaction carved into the sharp lines of his face.

‘Are you so afraid of breaking the rules, princess?’

‘Rules are not meant to be broken. So yes, of course I am.’

Kai’s hand drifted over the scaled neck of his dragon, fingers idly tracing patterns along its ridges as the beast lay resting, its chest rising and falling in slow, measured breaths.

His dark eyes, however, were not on his dragon but on the sea, gleaming with the reflection of moonlight and something far more dangerous—something calculated.

Alina recognised that look. The prince was plotting something.

Something reckless. Something she was certain she wanted no part of.

Then, without warning, Kai began to undress.

Alina whirled around, her cheeks burning with an immediate and terrible heat.

‘What are you doing?’ she squeaked, barely managing to keep her voice steady .

‘We should bathe.’

‘No, we should not. What would my father say if he caught us in the water together?’

‘I’d hope he’d ask if the water was any good.’ He chuckled, the sound rich with amusement. ‘Are you coming or not, princess? You are probably sweaty after the ride.’

‘I am not sweaty . It is the middle of the night, and there is a cool breeze. It is bad enough I ran off with you in the middle of a feast, stole two dragons, and rode when it is forbidden.’

‘You didn’t really steal them, they are your dragons. You are the princess. Or are you not?’

Alina risked a glance over her shoulder—just a brief one—and then gasped, whipping her head back so fast it nearly made her dizzy.

How could he stand there without a care in the world, naked like the day his mother birthed him?

What if someone saw ? Did he not care? Wild things!

The stories had always whispered that the wyverians were untamed, but until now, she had never truly believed them.

A part of her longed to walk away, to pretend none of this had happened. But Holy Fire , it had felt extraordinary to break the rules, even if only for a fleeting moment. And if she had already done the unthinkable… well, what was one more sin in the eyes of her god?

Before her mind could caution her otherwise, her fingers moved to the laces of her gown, loosening them with a quiet determination.

The silk cascaded down her frame, pooling at her feet like liquid moonlight.

She left her undergarments in place—she was reckless, but not that reckless.

Turning away from the shore, she stepped into the water, following the prince into the depths of the sea.

‘Are you not hot with so many layers on?’ Kai mused, his voice smooth, almost lazy .

‘It is just an undergarment.’

‘Swimming naked is one of the most pleasurable activities one can do, especially at night, princess.’

Heat coiled up Alina’s spine like a serpent, slithering beneath her skin and tightening its grasp around her throat. ‘I am glad to hear that you find the activity so enjoyable, wyverian. I find myself occupied by more important matters to have the time to swim naked.’

Kai let out a sudden, unrestrained laugh, rich and deep.

‘And what exactly does the princess do that occupies her time so much?’

‘Well, believe it or not, there are many tasks that must be attended to, which the queen cannot.’

‘Such as?’

Annoyance flared within her. She turned towards him sharply, water rippling around her waist. ‘Such as… Feasts like the one you enjoyed tonight do not plan themselves. Someone must sort out the themes, the colours, choose the flowers, what food shall be eaten and…’ Alina stopped abruptly at the sight of Kai’s expression.

Her face darkened. ‘Are you mocking me?’

‘No, I would not dare.’

‘You are. You think that what I do is silly.’

Her shoulders slumped slightly. Was it silly? Her entire life had been dedicated to the careful curation of beauty—dresses, hairstyles, the etiquette of court. There was nothing else. No greater purpose.

But then, Kai’s voice softened. ‘My sister loves planning events.’ A pause. ‘There is nothing wrong with loving something and putting effort into it.’

Alina exhaled, long and slow, before the words left her lips unbidden, spilling forth like a confession.

‘And yet, I hate it. I hate everything about it. Spending hours sitting and pointing at fabrics and flowers… for what purpose? Surely life must mean more than wearing a beautiful dress or making others jealous of what I have. What is the point in any of it?’

It struck her then—how much she had just revealed.

How utterly ridiculous she must seem, standing there in the water, bare-shouldered and vulnerable, confessing her loathing of her own existence to a prince she barely knew.

What is wrong with me? Ever since the wyverians had arrived, something inside her had begun to shift .

A voice shattered the moment.

‘Alina!’

The name cut through the night like a blade, freezing her in place.

The water seemed to turn to ice, anchoring her feet to the seabed. Slowly, dread curling in her stomach, she turned towards the shore.

Hagan stood at the water’s edge, his face a storm of fury and barely contained worry.

Her body tensed. Was he alone? Or had he brought the entire Red Guard with him, ready to drag her from the water in disgrace?

‘Get out of the water immediately!’

Kai moved beside her, slow and deliberate, his presence solid and unwavering. His voice was a blade wrapped in silk. ‘You don’t have to do as he commands, princess.’

Alina’s chin lifted. ‘He does not command me.’

The flicker of something unreadable passed over Kai’s face, but she had no time to dwell on it. What choice did she have? She had been caught swimming—nearly naked—with the enemy prince, the man her family had been forced to accept into their bloodline. She was a living scandal waiting to happen.

She moved towards the shore, the weight of the moment pressing down upon her, and Kai followed, unhurried, unfazed. It was almost comical to see the flash of dismay on Hagan’s face when he realised the wyverian prince was entirely, unapologetically naked.

‘Alina…’ Hagan’s teeth ground together.

Kai’s voice was velvet and steel. ‘Shouldn’t you address her properly?’

‘The princess went missing and is found here, alone with…’ Hagan’s hands clenched into fists.

‘And yet, I do not see anyone else searching for her.’ Kai turned his back on him, utterly dismissive as he pulled on his clothes. Then, just as he fastened his belt, he cast Alina a knowing wink.

She stiffened. The casual, teasing nature of it set something alight in her chest—something sharp and infuriating. Did he think everything was a joke?

Her gaze snapped to Hagan. Had he been following her? Spying on her? The thought burnt hotter than the shame of being caught.

‘Prince Kai Blackburn is our guest, Hagan,’ she said coldly, straightening her shoulders.

She probably looked absurd—her soaked gown clinging to her, her hair dripping seawater—but she would not be cowed.

‘The prince petitioned to see the castle and the grounds. I, as the princess, had an obligation to fulfill my duty.’

Then, without another word, she stormed off, the sand shifting beneath her feet as she tried—and failed—to move with regal grace. But before she left, she turned, her voice carrying like a quiet command.

‘Do bring back the dragons to the keep, Hagan. That is a command.’

And then, with one last, lingering glare at Kai, she turned on her heel and vanished into the night.