Stolen by the Rebel King
Chapter 258: Dragon Slayer I

Chapter 258: Dragon Slayer I

Atticus had thought that maybe, just maybe, Daphne would offer him a quick peck on the cheek, akin to a pat on his shoulder for a job well done. He hadn’t expected her to lean in and press her lips square against his, kissing him as if the world was about to end and it were the last time they would ever do so.

Thus, of course, he responded with equal fervor, wrapping his arms around her to hold her tighter against his body. He deepened the kiss, his tongue easily prying open her lips to reach further in.

By the time they separated, both of their faces were red and their breaths were heavy. Yet, even when they had torn their lips apart, their gazes never left one another.

Zephyr pulled a face at their display of affection. He could practically see the string of honey that tied their eyes together, emphasizing their hesitance to part.

"Need I remind you that there is a dragon on the loose?" Sirona snapped, quickly bursting the bubble that the couple had been in. "It would be nice if you could, oh I don’t know, put an end to its rampage before the entire town scorched down to the bone― including us? Now with the power of love, I’m sure you can kill it and help me harvest its organs."

"Killjoy," Atticus muttered under his breath before complaining loudly to Sirona. "Is killing it not hard enough? Why must you make my job tougher!"

His words caused Daphne to giggle. Her laughter sounded like the tinkling of fairy bells, bringing a small smile to Atticus’s face. He turned to face his wife instead of that annoying healer that wouldn’t leave him be, his voice much softer and sweeter than whenever he addressed Sirona or Zephyr.

"I’ll be back soon," he promised, his fingers unwilling to part from hers even though he had already begun to rise into the air, his feet leaving the ground with the help of magic.

"Be safe," Daphne replied. "I love you."

Gone was the small, discreet smile from Atticus’s face and instead, it was replaced by a full-blown grin as he nodded confidently.

"I love you more," he said.

The second their fingers parted, he shot to the skies, sending a strong gust of wind blasting in their direction in his wake.

The three of them had to raise their hands to shield their faces from the strong winds― if they hadn’t, sand and dust would no doubt fly right into their eyes. By the time the air settled back down, Atticus was already gone, and they could crisply hear the sound of the dragon’s roar echoing through the heavens above.

"Should we help him?" Daphne asked.

"Hiding is the better plan," Sirona said, "If you went out there, he’d be too worried about you to fight effectively. Send him instead." Sirona jabbed a finger at Zephyr, who only blinked innocently at them.

"Me? Wait― does it mean I’ll also get a kiss?" Zephyr asked excitedly, bounding over to Daphne as though he was a puppy instead of a griffin. "I’ll help!"

Sirona snorted, wondering if Atticus knew that he had yet another competitor for Daphne’s affections. Daphne only smiled indulgently and pressed a gentle kiss on Zephyr’s forehead.

"You should be careful too. If it’s too difficult, you can always come back!"

Zephyr shook his head, affronted by the very thought."I would never return like a coward!"

Then he took to the skies once again, leaving Daphne to worry about him.

"We should make our way back to the others," Sirona said grimly, "It’ll be safer for us there."

Daphne reluctantly nodded. She didn’t want to leave this particularly nice hiding spot, but she knew how quickly things could go wrong. The dragon was raining fire all over town, and all it took was one strong blast to destroy their makeshift shelter. Not to mention, Atticus was flinging debris at the dragon to slow it down.

At least on the outskirts, her siblings could help control the fire. On their own, Sirona and Daphne were sitting ducks!

They slowly made their way back to the others, keeping their bodies plastered to the building ruins to ensure they weren’t seen. Thankfully, Atticus and Zephyr seemed to have the dragon occupied, so much so that they were engaged in a fierce aerial battle!

***

"What are you doing here?" Atticus demanded as he watched Zephyr fly up to meet him, tossing yet another volley of bricks at the dragon’s head, hoping to blind him. Unfortunately, it only caused it to roar in outrage as it dodged the blows.

"Helping you!" Zephyr exclaimed.

"Fine! Go and distract him then!" Atticus ordered, and before Zephyr could even protest, Atticus all but flung him towards the dragon, causing him to shriek in surprise.

"You foul beast!" Zephyr screamed, and he wasn’t referring to the dragon. What did Daphne see in this man?!

The dragon turned its large beady eyes on Zephyr, attracted by the noise. Its pupils narrowed as it focused on Zephyr’s figure, seemingly recalling him from before.

Zephyr gulped. Then the dragon struck. It flew straight for Zephyr, determined to tear him to shreds with its very sharp teeth.

"What do you want me to do?!" Zephyr wailed as he quickly rolled in midair to dodge it.

"Make sure its head is not facing me," Atticus said evenly, gathering magic in his hands. He summoned a bevy of swords from the fallen knights and began to fuse them together with his magic, in order to form something big and sharp enough to slay the dragon.

Dragon scales were notoriously tough, and so was their hide. While Atticus was strong, he wasn’t powerful enough to pull out the scales with his bare hands. Even the bulk of the damage he managed to deal the dragon earlier was due to flinging projectiles at it!

He could only do this now, because Zephyr was such a good distraction. Zephyr seemed to attract the dragon’s attention effortlessly, the same way cats were fixated on yarn or a mouse. The same could not be said for Alistair and Leonora, who the dragon batted away without much fanfare, leaving Atticus to do most of the work. Daphne’s siblings were wholly useless!

At least that little chicken his wife saved was useful. Zephyr’s very existence screamed ’prey’ to the dragon, and he dodged the flamethrowers and sharp teeth like his life depended on it. He didn’t even dare to waste his breath yelling at Atticus, but Zephyr was definitely cursing him under his breath!

"Shit shit shit! This bastard! Oh god that was close!" Zephyr shrieked. Atticus smirked; if Zephyr knew that his screaming was making himself more enticing to the dragon, he would have kept silent.

Then again, if Zephyr had not figured it out, Atticus certainly wasn’t going to tell him. He wouldn’t have a better chance.

Eventually, Zephyr had run out of energy. His wings were beating slower than before, and he had to take deeper breaths. The dragon had nearly taken off one of his wings during its latest attack, and Zephyr could only mourn his beautiful plumage as he saw his feathers slowly drift down.

Unfortunately, the dragon wasn’t done. Zephyr prepared to dodge another bite, but this time, the dragon twisted its neck. Zephyr yelped out in shock due to the dragon’s sharp movements but it had moved too quickly and swiftly. His wings had already turned significantly smaller than before and his movements were sluggish.

Zephyr hadn’t the strength nor speed to dodge in time. He could only watch, face pale and lips dry, as an explosion of dragonfire was blasted right towards him.