Not giving Ikalles any chance to speak, Rairin left the small courtyard where they were and returned to his wife, waving to a guard. Then, he ordered – Call the scribe. I'll make a pronouncement this afternoon.
The guard bowed and left quickly to carry out the order that the king had ordered him. Rairin then nodded to Bavellis, who was still waiting to speak - What do you want, general?
Ikalles approached at this moment, still a little stunned. He bowed to the queen and the little prince, standing quietly beside the king. Bavellis looked for a while, hesitating a few times.
The king sighed and spoke calmly – There is nothing that needs to be hidden from the queen or the guardian. Even the prince should not be deprived of any important matter. Just speak.
Bavellis nodded as he knelt – Your Majesty, the port was sacked this morning. I arrested some dragons that I thought were suspected of sharing classified information about our maritime domains. Does Your Majesty wish to interrogate them?
Rairin took a deep breath to contain himself, first the business with Ikalles, and now this, he wouldn't freak out in front of his wife and son. Ikalles sensed the changes in his emotions and released his aura to calm the king's hatred.
– How dare they invade our territory and plunder our goods? – Jiaohui suddenly asked.
Rairin looked at his wife, finally calming down.
Bavellis rose, asking seriously: – Does His Majesty wish to question the suspects?
Rairin nodded, looking at Ikalles with narrowed eyes – Ikalles, come with me.
Ikalles bowed slightly: – Yes, majesty.
Jiaohui watched as the king left with Ikalles and Bavellis, and narrowing her eyes, she remained silent.
Long remained at his mother's side. His understanding was clear. Feeling as strange as his mother, a sudden attack like this, even during the day, was a little odd.
A maid suddenly appeared, drawing both of their attention. Jiaohui's expression was frightening, making the maid uncomfortable as she spoke, "H-your majesty, miss. Aruna… she's here for the student's annual report.
The queen relaxed her expression as soon as she heard Aruna's name. Nodding, she smiled at Long and held her hand to him. Long took her hand and accompanied his mother to listen to the report as he did every year.
Aruna was waiting for her in a spacious room, gently denying what the servants offered her. The queen laughed as soon as she saw her, speaking excitedly – Aruna, my dear, it's so good to see you.
Turning around, Aruna didn't bow to her, just walked over to greet her – Jiaohui, how has my queen been?
Jiaohui smiled, holding Aruna's hands. She replied – Pretty OK, and you, my friend?
Aruna walked with her to a small sofa – You look radiant, my friend. I don't even dare to imagine what makes you so happy these days.
Jiaohui continued smiling. A servant walked up to them and served them some drinks. Long remained glued to his mother like a small accessory.
Aruna then noticed the boy behind Jiaohui and greeted him – Little prince, how have you been?
Long smiled, nodding to Aruna – I've been fine, and you?
– Very well, thank you – Aruna looked at the queen smiling, with a mutual understanding of congratulating the boy's education in the palace.
Jiaohui motioned for Long to sit next to her, and Aruna started some reports, introducing her best students and how much they had grown over the years at the institute. Long paid attention to every word, and when he finally heard the name he wanted, he lowered his head and smiled.
Aruna noticed his actions and spoke a little more about Huanxue.
– Young Huanxue has improved a lot over the years. Her growth is almost absurd. I don't know if the queen remembers, but I commented on her success in passing her skills level the last time I was here.
Jiaohui lowered the cup she had just brought to her lips, watching the slight change in her son's expression. She narrowed her eyes – Oh, yes, I think I remember. How many of them does she have anyway?
Aruna smiled slightly – She is thirteen years old, my queen, and she is already at a very high level for her age. But, to see how she is a little prodigy. Her abilities did not stop growing, and her tutor had to change her period several times.
Jiaohui nodded, taking a sip of her tea. She was expressionless in front of the lines about the girl, speaking after placing her cup on the small table – This young woman, I would like to meet her one day.
Aruna nodded – As you wish, my queen. Huanxue will be honored to meet you – Looking carefully at Long, Aruna noticed the prince's shy expression. He was smiling as he seemed to be lost in his thoughts.
Jiaohui looked at Long from the corner of her eyes. Then, seeing him smile to himself, she raised an eyebrow. Long was exactly like her father in personality. Then, sighing lightly, she spoke – My beloved son, I need to talk alone with Miss Aruna. Go and learn something with your father.
Long quickly turned severe, rising to his feet, he bowed to the queen – As my mother wishes – And nodding to Aruna, he left.
Aruna looked at Jiaohui when Long left the hall, asking – Is there anything else my queen wants to know?
Jiaohui looked at her with narrowed eyes – Is that her? Huanxue?
Aruna smiled – I thought you told me that you didn't want to know too much about your future daughter-in-law…
Jiaohui rolled her eyes, then looked at Aruna expectantly – Tell me quickly! How is she?
Laughing lightly, Aruna spoke – She is a brilliant young woman. As I said, she is improving very fast, one of the best students in our institution.
Jiaohui nodded thoughtfully – You said once that this young woman was from Tui Province, right?
– Exactly, if I'm not mistaken, it's the same region as her majesty's hometown.
Jiaohui looked at Aruna, knowing what she was implying. She rolled her eyes, Aruna laughed – No need to worry, my queen, the prince has good taste, just like the king.
In the throne room, the atmosphere was very different from the room where the queen talked to Aruna, the relaxed atmosphere between the two allowed for a calm environment. In contrast, in the throne room, all those present could no longer bear the cold and heavy air that the king emanated.
Ikalles did his best to calm the atmosphere, but the king looked pissed off this time.
Rairin rubbed his temples. Frustrated, he took a deep breath and asked with a serious expression – How many ships were lost?
Bavellis replied as he looked at the men kneeling in front of the throne – fifteen large ships and eighteen fishing vessels.
Rairin opened her eyes and stared at the suspects in front of her. His gift was apparent, and his anger only further aggravated his dominance.
The men captured as suspects trembled with fear. They were chained before the most powerful dragon of their race, not just him, but other important figures of the empire, such as the General, the Commander, and the Guardian.
– Aren't you going to tell me who told you to do this?
The king's voice was low, which only made him more frightened.
They didn't answer. Bavellis furrowed his brows and approached them, striking the hardest among them. The one who was struck was a fire dragon. Considering its malformed appearance, it was probably a half-breed. Dragons had a certain contempt for this mix, and that's why when they were going to praise others, they used the term a lot: pure blood.
They insisted on highlighting this characteristic, and it was only a short time ago that this term fell into disuse, as some 'half-breeds' were discovered within noble families. Therefore, to avoid offending the royal blood dragons, others stopped using the term. Only within the nobility itself did the phrase continue to be used.
Rairin had nothing against them as long as they didn't cause any trouble. Other races could easily manipulate half-breeds, call them monsters or half-demons, and they would run to hide or even take their own lives, others, afraid of judgment, would hide and be ashamed of their blood.
To dragons, they weren't dragons, and to the other half of their blood, they were monsters. And because of that, those who didn't give up on living ceaselessly sought the approval of others, acting as loyal servants or slaves.
Rairin grew more and more irritated. They refused to budge.
Ikalles pursed his lips, looking at everyone present in the hall. There was something strange about this situation, half-breeds were less affected by their race's gifts of dominance, but still they shouldn't be as strong.
The men kneeling in the hall couldn't be considered strong, so the problem would probably be...
Ikalles squinted at the king. That was dangerous.
Feeling suppressed, the others in the throne room glared at the three suspects.
Rairin had already noticed something strange about his constitution, but he decided to put it aside, thinking it to be a small and insignificant matter.
Long had arrived at this time, and although he was already used to his father's aura, his feeling was a little uncomfortable.