Page 45 of The Wild Prince’s Favorite (The Dragon Empire Saga #3)

It was late, but Kassein didn’t feel sleepy at all; he felt angry.

He hadn’t felt so infuriated in a long time.

If he weren’t so worried about Alezya’s state, he would have immediately gone after whoever had done this.

Truthfully, he was ready to burn the whole mountain down.

But she had a fever, and with her injuries so visible, making her suffer so much, he felt bound to her side.

He couldn’t entrust anyone else to watch her, and he couldn’t leave her alone in his tent.

He knew Kein had gone on a rampage in the mountains about an hour ago, and he didn’t care.

For once, he felt grateful for his dragon’s madness.

He only wished he’d been up there too, going after whoever had done this to her.

Her injuries were hard to look at, not because of their appearance, but because he could imagine the pain she’d gone through.

From the bruises on her arms, she’d tried to protect herself, and yet her head was covered in bruises still.

His blood boiled even more, thinking how quickly this must have happened.

There hadn’t been much time from when they parted ways to when Kein brought her back. Did her people attack her as soon as she had gotten back? Why? Did she know this would happen? If so, why had she chosen to go back anyway?

Kassein stared at the tears that had dried on her cheeks. He hated not knowing. He hated that they’d made her cry and hurt her, and he hated that there was nothing he could understand about all this. He wished she could explain why she’d gone back, why she’d risked all this.

However, right now, what he wanted most was for her to be at peace and safe. He’d protect her. He wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

He sighed and readjusted his position against the bed.

He didn’t want to sleep; he wanted Alezya to know she was safe now.

Whatever had happened to her, he wouldn’t let it happen again.

Perhaps Tievin hadn’t realized, but Kassein didn’t just want to keep Alezya in the camp; he never wanted to let her go back.

Still, his Intendant’s words stayed in his mind. He hated asking for help and he certainly didn’t want any from Kassian. He’d be the last person he’d ask help from, ever. And anyway, what could his older brother help with? He’d be the first one to send Alezya back to whatever hell she came from.

Even if it wasn’t his older brother, Kassein didn’t want to ask for help from his family.

If one of them knew, they would all know, and it would only be a matter of time before the Emperor was aware.

He didn’t want that, he didn’t even want his parents to know what was happening here.

He liked being left alone, he liked that the North Army was his refuge, the one place he didn’t feel watched.

He’d been sent here as a punishment, but now, it had become his best excuse to ignore them.

He hated his family’s suffocating concern and the more distance he put between himself and them, the better.

And this was the farthest place from them he’d managed to get to.

Still, there might be another option. Someone else he hadn’t considered before.

.. He turned his eyes to the fire, thinking.

That might not be the worst idea. Out of all the people he knew, only they could help Alezya, and they wouldn’t snitch either, as they wanted their family’s attention even less than he did.

The hardest part would be finding them; he hadn’t seen them in months, had no idea where they were, and they most likely didn’t want to be found.

If it was for him though, he knew they’d come.

He turned his eyes back to Alezya. He was still reluctant to bring anyone to the camp, but Tievin’s words did hold some truth.

If she were to stay, Alezya would need help.

By the next morning, at sunrise, Kassein had made up his mind. He’d barely slept, but his mind was clear, and he was now determined.

He waited until one of the medical unit soldiers showed up at dawn, visibly surprised to find him still seated by the bed and awake.

“C-Commander, did you not sleep at all...?” the man whispered.

Kassein didn’t answer and instead, stood up.

He glanced at Alezya as if to be sure she was still there. Her tears had dried, and at last, she seemed to be getting some proper rest.

She’d only woken up a couple of times during the night to drink medicinal herbal tea and gone right back to sleep.

He could tell something was weighing heavily on her heart, but for now, he was happy to let her rest. He was annoyed that he couldn’t do more, but she had already drank the only bottle of lake water he had, and he wouldn’t get another one without going back to the Imperial Palace, which was a hard no.

He stepped out of the tent, stretching his sore limbs.

The only issue with scales appearing to heal him was that they were stiff and often reduced his mobility since they were not as stretchy as his actual skin.

He hated the sensation of dryness they gave him, but he had to ignore it, for he knew it was only temporary.

The weather outside was beautiful again, with a clear sky and the first streaks of sunlight over a fresh, white coat of snow.

Kassein wasn’t moved by that beauty; he only walked up to his dragon.

Kein was lying beside the tent, and the dragon was awake.

It glared at its owner as soon as it saw him, although it was too lazy to lift its head.

Only a few swift flickers of its tail, throwing waves of snow left and right showed its annoyance.

Kassein planted his feet before his dragon, glaring right back down at it.

“Find them.”

Kein answered with an annoyed growl and moved its head in another direction, very obviously ignoring his order. Kassein took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. He’d expected this much; it was only fair his dragon would be as reluctant to leave Alezya as he was.

“It’s for her sake,” he said.

The dragon growled a bit louder, darting a glare back. It wasn’t fully convinced yet and was still grouchy. Its tail movements had doubled in speed. Kassein crossed his arms.

“Should I ask someone else, then? Who? Someone from the palace?”

The dragon furiously growled, springing to its feet. Kassein didn’t flinch when the fangs came an inch from his face, only keeping his green glare on the dragon. The two of them were in an odd stand-off, the handful of guards on watch staring in nervous awe.

“The sooner you go, the sooner you’ll be back,” Kassein said.

Kein let out another couple of annoyed growls but finally decided to move.

The dragon stepped past its owner, not without purposely bumping into him with its huge body and, after a couple more steps, finally took off.

Kassein turned around to watch. The orange scales were particularly striking in this cloud-free sky, and the dragon stayed visible for a long while before it finally flew far enough to the west.

Although Kassein didn’t care about sending his dragon away, he hoped Kein wouldn’t take too long to find them. He needed the help more than he was willing to admit.

“Commander? May I ask where Kein went off to...?” asked Tievin, appearing tired, wrapped in another coat, and staring curiously into the distance.

He’d definitely noticed the dragon had taken an unusual direction, west. Kassein sighed and walked back to the tent.

“I followed your advice.”

Those four words rendered Tievin speechless.

He stopped walking behind the Prince, blinked twice, and looked around as if to find someone to confirm he wasn’t the only one who had heard that.

The two men posted at the entrance of Kassein’s tent glanced at him, confused about this situation, and didn’t say a word.

While Kassein had already walked back inside, Tievin glanced at the sky.

“Ancestors, be proud,” he sighed.

Then, he stepped inside the tent. He didn’t need to ask; from the direction Kein had taken, he knew who Kassein had sent his dragon to find, and while he was surprised by his choice, he found it to be a good one.

“I’ll organize everything for their arrival,” he said, glancing over to Alezya. “Also, since we’re out of the Lake water, should I send someone–”

“No.”

There it came again. Tievin took a deep breath, bracing himself for another tough discussion.

“Sir, for your safety–”

“I said no.”

“But I can send–”

“If you send someone, my mother will know.”

Tievin so badly wanted to roll his eyes.

Gods forbid the Prince’s mother found out he’d used up all his vials.

.. Still, with such a strong refusal, he didn’t dare press the matter further.

Instead, he took a mental note to find a way to send someone to retrieve a vial without the Prince or his family knowing.

It wouldn’t be an easy feat, but his most important job was to ensure the Prince’s safety.

He’d rather have the Prince be very, very mad at him than risk his neck back in the Capital. .. and his father’s wrath.

“I understand,” he said. “Then, I’ll just take care of the accommodations.”

He left the tent. At least, with some luck, he would soon have someone else to help him convince the Prince... and Kassein was definitely going to have to be more flexible with that person here.

“Get them to have the breakfast ready early, and add some extra meat to it,” he told one of the men guarding outside. “...And tell them to double the surveillance rounds.”

Tievin still couldn’t shake off the feeling that Alezya’s arrival at the camp would stir things up badly with the tribes. There was something wrong about this whole situation, and his gut feeling had rarely been wrong. For once, he didn’t like that the Prince’s dragon had left the camp.