Page 163 of The War God’s Favorite

Cassandra felt bad for her, and couldn’t help but glare in Vrehan’s direction. The Prince was watching Shareen go, but hadn’t moved himself. He was about to say something, but the War God opened his mouth first.

“Father told you to leave, Vrehan.”

The ice and enmity in his voice were so intense, the whole area became as cold as the Onyx Castle for a few seconds. Cassandra wondered if the Second Prince would argue or try to fight Kairen.

After a long scowl, he stood up silently and walked away in a strange silence. The air was thick with tension, so much so that absolutely no guest dared to say a word for several minutes after the Prince was gone. Cassandra, who hadn’t realized she was holding her breath, suddenly exhaled. She felt sorry for Shareen, but couldn’t help but be grateful that Vrehan was gone too - at least for the night.

Just as the awkwardness and tension began to settle, the Emperor took his seat, looking drained. Glahad and Krai, who were obviously faster to calm down, seemed unwilling to leave now. Both dragons were overlooking the area with curious eyes, their front paws on the roofs of the building. They looked like they were speculating if they could fit into the area if they climbed over. The answer was a resounding no. Even if the area were clear of people, there would still be too many food stalls and tables left everywhere.

The braver of the guests were slowly trickling back in, since the dragons had stopped growling like feral beasts. Cassandra, who had just been delivered a humongous platter of meat, grabbed one of the big chunks by the bone and stood up, walking over to Krai.

“Hinue! What are you doing?” asked Missandra, skeptically following behind her.

She kept glancing back at Kairen hoping he would stop Cassandra, but he wasn’t even looking their way. Meanwhile, Cassandra was still walking over towards the building Krai was on, waving the piece of meat through the air as it sniffed out the aromas drifting through the wind with deep interest.

The dragon growled softly and lowered its head as much as possible into the garden so that Cassandra could throw the meat. Krai caught it, happily eating the little snack with a satisfied expression. When it finished licking its lips, she smiled and extended her arm, making Missandra squeak.

“Hinue, are you crazy!? That is a wild creature! He can eat you!”

“He won’t,” said Cassandra with a confident smile.

Indeed, Krai only touched her hand with its snout, eyes wide open, curious as to what its favorite human was playing at. Cassandra scratched the dark scales a bit before stepping back and grabbing Missandra with her other hand.

“Oh, no, no, no,” said Missandra, “I am not going to do this.”

“It’s alright, he’s a good boy.”

Missandra did not believe a dragon several times her size could be anything close to a “good boy”! However, she only half-heartedly struggled as Cassandra confidently pushed her in front, talking to the dragon.

“This is my younger sister. Can you try not to eat her? Please?”

Krai was staring at both of them, sniffing with curiosity. Of course, there was no way to know if the dragon understood. It tilted its head to the side and growled a bit, making a curious impression, as if chatting with her. Its claw was scratching against the roof though, so maybe it was just getting a little impatient.

Cassandra smiled, but it was time for the dragon to go before the building really collapsed. She wasn’t sure the Imperial Palace was fully dragon-proof.

“See you tomorrow,” she said to the dragon, before walking away, still holding Missandra’s hand.

Krai apparently didn’t understand as the black dragon was still on the roof, growling a bit and trying to grab her attention. Cassandra ignored it and walked back to her seat, where she couldn’t see it anymore. Releasing Missandra’s hand, she washed her other one that was full of meat juice and whatever dirt Krai had on his scales.

As soon as she let go, the younger sister’s legs turned to jelly, and she fell to her knees with a huff of relief. Dahlia crouched down next to her.

“Are you alright?” she asked.

“I am not! That was the most terrifying experience of my life.”

The young servant girl chuckled. It was the first time Missandra had lost her fierce and feisty attitude like that. Cassandra laughed too and gave her a few minutes to regain her composure. Missandra kept pouting after that though, stating that her older sister had risked her life with the crazy idea of befriending a dragon.

The last of the guests were slowly coming back now at the Emperor’s insistence, and attempting to resume the party as if nothing had happened and two enormous dragon heads weren’t still hovering over them. Glahad and Krai soon grew bored though, and after a little while longer, both of them flew away. It was a magnificent sight to watch the Golden Dragon actually spread its wings and fly. Glahad was shining brightly in the moonlight, while Krai was like a black shadow, hard to follow while swiftly soaring through the dark blue sky.

The New Year Celebrations were supposed to last for a full week, all day long and into the nights, but of course, people had to take breaks. At the Emperor’s party though, most people tried their best to stay as long as possible so as not to offend the host. And the Emperor seemed to have incredible stamina despite his age, not showing any signs of fatigue.

Kareen, however, was soon bored and decided to leave. She was obviously upset after Shareen was kicked out, and no one could manage to keep her any longer once she had made up her mind - much to the Emperor’s disappointment.

It was especially true for Cassandra as her pregnancy was taking a toll on her. Several hours into the night, despite her best attempts at staying entertained, and eating and drinking, Cassandra kept dozing off and could no longer argue with Kairen about leaving. The Prince gently helped her up and took her in his arms, no one commenting on their early departure. Cassandra felt bad for being among the earliest to leave the party, but it couldn’t be helped, she was already half-asleep.

Kairen dismissed both Dahlia and Missandra when they reached the room and placed her gently on the bed. Cassandra was completely out of it, she didn’t even feel him undressing her and removing her jewelry. She was just relieved to be finally laying in bed. She hadn’t even realised her back was hurting so much until then.

Finally, the War God laid down next to her, wrapping her up in his embrace, and once she felt her skin against his, she let go and fell into a deep sleep.

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