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The official surrender of the kingdom of Pandreia was brief.

But it seemed to take hours.

Kel watched Taegus intently the entire time, swallowing around a knot she hadn\'t realized was growing in her throat.

The last time she saw him, he lay bleeding on the forest floor, minutes away from death. Time for worrying what became of him was hardly available between everything else going on, but the boy had always lingered in the back of her mind.

She\'d never wanted to face it--to actually say the words out loud--but deep down she\'d been certain.

Certain that her friend was dead.

To see him in front of her now, caused a wave of relief to flood over her.

After the formalities ended, the ball continued. In between the dancing couples, Kel\'s and Taegus\'s eyes still seemed to always meet each other as they continually searched the other out among the crowd.

She sat at the head of the room next to Calix while Taegus mainly lingered near the walls. Neither of them danced. (Not that any soul in the room was brave enough to approach the Dragon Emperor\'s fiancé in the first place.)

Though she was happy to see her old friend alive and well, Kel was still a bit perplexed.

For Taegus to be here surrendering with his home country, he must have defected from the Serin military. But when?

".. and why?" Kel murmured aloud.

"Why what?"

Oh. She didn\'t realize the Emperor had heard her.

"I saw somebody I didn\'t expect to see here," Kel shrugged, hoping he would drop the issue.

She wasn\'t quite sure how Calix would react to another man catching her attention, but she had a feeling it wouldn\'t be anything good.

"Ah. That Pandreian boy?"

Unfortunately, Calix--whose eyes had been glued to Kel--already noticed who she was watching.

"Uh.. yeah."

Kel sighed. She should have known it was futile to attempt to shrug off the issue.

Glancing over at Calix, she noticed his gaze had also focused on Taegus now. He observed the boy quietly for several minutes before speaking again.

"I didn\'t kill him."

"Excuse me, what?" Kel coughed.

At what point in time had the Emperor specifically not killed Taegus? No, maybe it was better to ask when the Emperor had a reason to kill him at all?

"I sent him home discreetly," Calix continued. "That\'s why he\'s here."

"What do you mean you \'sent him home\'?" Kel echoed.

"It looked like he would die from his wounds if I didn\'t finish him off first," the Emperor explained. "And I was tempted to."

".. To finish him off?"

Kel gulped. Calix must have been the one who found Taegus bleeding in the forest.

Did that mean the Dragon Emperor had been out searching for the lost patrol all on his own?

Or.. searching for her?

"I was in a hurry, so I left someone behind to stay with him and see if he survived," Calix went on. "In which case, I instructed the both of them to return to Pandreia."

"So that\'s why.." Kel mumbled.

Now she understood why she\'d never seen Taegus since Serin\'s takeover of Mevani. And why all the other soldiers dodged the subject when she brought it up. They must have thought the boy died with the rest of the ill-fated patrol.

"But he was alive the whole time." She felt a smile tugging at her lips.

"Yes. And to think he\'d have the guts to come here," Calix snorted.

Kel quickly resumed a neutral expression.

Perhaps, Taegus really would die at the Emperor\'s hand this time if she continued to smile because of him.

But Kel\'s happy expression would be the least of the Pandreian boy\'s dangers, as it wasn\'t long before he approached her of his own accord.

"Your Majesty," the boy bowed to Calix before turning to Kel, "and Your Highness. May I have the honor?"

He extended his hand politely as he spoke.

"Oh.. uh.." Kel paused, unsure whether to accept his invitation, when Calix cut in.

"The Empress Consort is feeling unwell," he replied coldly. "Which is why she isn\'t dancing with me right now."

"As a demonstration of good faith between an Emperor and his new people," Taegus refused to back down. "If you would permit it, Your Majesty."

She could almost see the tension between the two men as they locked unhappy gazes.

Many of the crowd members\' interest had already been piqued due to the foreign man daring to approach the Dragon Emperor, and they now watched eagerly as the two exchanged words.

Among the intrigued onlookers were the (former) crown prince of Pandreia and Vitocian nobles. They had already surrendered to Serin, but they could change their minds in an instant. It would be ugly, and the Empire would triumph in the end, but if the two countries\' representatives chose to fight instead…

Calix couldn\'t afford to act rashly right now.

And he knew it as well.

Time slowed to a standstill in the large hall as he thought back to that day in the forest.

"If any of the others had survived, they would have met the same fate," he had scoffed, poising his sword just above the boy\'s neck.

But as he moved to strike, his arm stayed still, as if held back by something.

With a sigh, he\'d glanced at the boy\'s uniform, marked with the same black dragon as his own armor and the skin on his back.

He had still been frozen in that position when the rest of his men scurried up behind him.

"This one is alive!" one of the officers gasped, only to halt as he saw Calix\'s raised sword.

"ARGH!" Calix grunted, shoving his weapon back into its sheath and whirling around.

"Y-Your Majesty!" the man called behind him. "He needs immediate medical attention!"

"You."

Calix paused, pointing to one of the medical officers that had just arrived.

"Treat him. Stay with him."

The young medic had nodded, dashing forward to attend to the injured boy.

"Everyone else!" Calix called out. "Prepare the soldiers! We\'re leaving immediately!"

As his men dashed off to inform their subordinates and make preparations, a timid voice stalled Calix.

"Sire.." the medic he had assigned to the wounded Pandreian boy said, "what shall this man and I do?"

"Stay here," Calix repeated his earlier order. "And if he lives, go back to Pandreia."

".. but I\'m not from Pandreia??" the medic\'s perplexed voice had echoed behind him as he stomped away.

Fortunately, the man had followed his orders anyway. Or, perhaps, it was unfortunate since the bold Pandreian was now standing in front of his Queen, making a ridiculous request.

Calix glanced at Kel and noticed her carefully observing the envoys from Pandreia and Vitocia.

Of course, she would be more concerned about politics than the two men literally fighting over her right in front of her. She was wild, irrational, and occasionally immature, but she was indeed a woman who had been trained as royalty.

Once again, Calix was reminded of what an excellent choice she was to rule the Empire by his side.

Looking back at the Pandreian man, he cleared his throat.

"Go ahead."