Chapter 185
I remembered sitting on the dragon’s foot, but after that, my memory was hazy.
It seemed that once the tension had fully released, I had fallen asleep.
In the prison, I couldn’t sleep because it was uncomfortable, yet somehow on the dragon’s paw, I had slept so soundly…
“By the way, where is this place?”
When I opened my eyes, I found myself in an unfamiliar place I had never seen before.
A cotton blanket dried by the sun, full of the scent of sunlight, a pillow that smelled of soap, a subtle aroma lingering in the room, and a perfectly comfortable temperature.
Everything in the bedroom was something that brought peace to the mind.
‘Strange. I was clearly captured by a dragon.’
A high ceiling and a large window letting in dazzling sunlight.
The smell of freshly baked bread seeping through the cracks of the door made it clear that this place was inside a mansion.
‘Everything here seems completely unrelated to a dragon, which makes me suspicious.’
It was such a foreign feeling that I even wondered if I had been dreaming.
Tap-tap.
A strange man appeared, opening the large door.
Broad shoulders, long arms and legs.
Thin red lips and a face exuding a deep, captivating presence. His silver hair shone even more than Zeros Helin’s.
“Hmm. Awake, are we?”
The man with long hair paused for a moment, pinched his nose, and frowned.
Sensing his reaction, I sniffed him cautiously, and the stranger sighed.
“Who are you?”
Seeing me on guard, he casually placed the tray he had been carrying onto the table.
It seemed the smell of freshly baked bread came from the tray.
When my stomach growled loudly without subtlety, he took a step toward the door and half-covered his face with his hand, as if blocking the scent, and said:
“My name is Yulliter. I’m keeping you under protection for now.”
‘Protection?’
“Are you saying you’re protecting me?”
I asked instinctively, lowering my guard slightly. The silver-haired man frowned in apparent displeasure.
“Why would I protect humans when your numbers are already more than sufficient?”
“…Because you’re a guardian?”
I remembered the dragon I had seen was black.
If this was the dragon’s territory, maybe this person was also a subordinate of the dragon.
‘Well, there have occasionally been those who hated their own kind…’
I speculated he might be that type.
Of course, his tall height, which seemed to touch the ceiling, and a dazzlingly handsome face that could rival Kyle’s, made him undeniably attractive.
‘There’s no sub-male lead that looks like this.’
“I am not a guardian of humans. Moreover, since you humans have broken the taboo, you are no longer entitled to a guardian’s protection.”
“Taboo?”
This was the first I had ever heard of such a thing.
Memories of believing in a guardian for the empire during my royal days flashed by, but I had never dreamed that the so-called guardian dragon actually existed.
And now a taboo? I had no knowledge of this at all, so my eyes widened.
“The moment you covet what belongs to a dragon, the taboo is broken. You are the one who broke that taboo…”
“…I did?”
Flustered, I asked, and Yulliter paused for a moment before shaking his head.
“It is the possession of the only dragon capable of breaking that taboo.”
“…What?”
Surprised by the absurd answer, my voice rose, and the dragon’s eyes narrowed.
“You said you were starving for days. Seems that was a complete lie.”
“Actually, I never went hungry. You need strength to fight.”
Yulliter snorted at my words, then looked down at me quietly and tilted his chin slightly.
“Human, you had a fiancé, right?”
“Yes.”
I washed my hands with the clean water nearby, and Yulliter’s long hair shimmered, falling longer to the left.
“You said you couldn’t become a dragon’s bride because you had to marry your fiancé.”
“Well, yes.”
It would have been a lie if I felt no guilt toward Kyle.
But there was no other way to refuse a dragon with no conscience wanting to marry someone smaller than its own claw.
“If that dragon insists on taking you as his bride, then you’ll resist. Just as you’ve done until now.”
Seeing Yulliter smile slyly made me uneasy.
I felt strongly deceived and instinctively raised my guard.
“If I can persuade him, I’ll try. Fighting would only be a loss for both sides.”
Yulliter spun around, clearly displeased by my words.
“This place is not suitable for insignificant humans to roam freely. It would be wise not to do anything foolish like going out alone.”
After Yulliter left the room, I ate fairly comfortably.
The warm bread smelled rich of butter, and paired with the cream cheese and strawberry jam, it was perfect.
After finishing my meal, I opened the door and stepped out.
Yulliter’s warning lingered in my mind, but I figured it would be good to familiarize myself with the surroundings just in case.
The mansion was surprisingly vast.
The problem was that everything felt empty.
‘There doesn’t seem to be a single person here.’
Sure, there had been the smell of bread and food, yet…
As soon as I stepped into the hallway, the scent of bread vanished, and the warmth dropped sharply.
A chill ran down my shoulders, and when I turned back to return to the room, the hallway looked completely different.
‘What was the hallway I just walked through?’
The luxurious hallway with soft carpet and beautiful wallpaper was gone, replaced by a bare, red-brick skeleton and a plain floor.
“Was that a hallucination?”
The eerie sensation sent chills down my spine.
It felt more horrifying than watching a horror movie, and I started running desperately, unable to discern which door I should open.
‘All the doors that were different before now look exactly the same…’
Shocked, I had no idea how to find my way back.
“…Risma.”
I muttered Risma’s name out of habit, but she didn’t appear today either.
I even began to wonder if Risma had died.
Of course, I hoped she was alive and just ignoring me.
“You are the human who wandered into my forest without permission. From now on, it seems you are the one responsible.”
The voice was suddenly familiar—it was Yulliter, the one who brought the warm bread.
Thinking perhaps I wasn’t destined to die just yet, I opened the door wide. But standing in front of me wasn’t Yulliter—it was Kyle.
“……”
Seeing Kyle’s flustered gaze confirmed that he was truly here.
I ran to him and hugged him tightly, and his arms, awkwardly suspended in the air, wrapped firmly around me.
Being held in his warm embrace, I finally felt relieved knowing there was someone in this world who was here for me.
“Kyle, you came to save me.”
My nose tingled as if I might cry.
Even Risma hadn’t come looking for me.
Yet Kyle had come running all the way here, and I was deeply moved.
“Ahem. Misunderstanding.”
Yulliter, who seemed entirely lacking in social grace, broke the moment.
Coldly staring at me, Yulliter’s eyes silenced my excitement, questioning why I had such illusions.
“…Which part is a misunderstanding? This man is indeed my fiancé.”
“I’m not denying that he’s your fiancé. I’m saying he didn’t come here to save you.”
I clenched my teeth while watching Yulliter speak coldly and decisively.
“If he didn’t come to save me, then why is he here?”
“Because he kidnapped you.”
I blinked, completely unable to understand his answer.
Glancing at Kyle, his flushed face only held me tighter.
“Kidnapped? But the one who brought me here was the guardian black dragon, wasn’t it?”
Hearing my question, Yulliter was silent for a moment, then suddenly clutched his stomach and laughed heartily.
Watching him laugh as if hearing the funniest thing in the world, I alone felt awkward, not understanding the situation.
“No matter how I think about it, I don’t get it… Explain, Kyle. What is going on?”
“…The dragon who kidnapped you yesterday…”
“The dragon?”
I waited for Kyle’s answer, staring at his lips. He turned his face sharply and urgently said the last words:
“It was me.”
“…What?”
Unable to comprehend, I looked at Yulliter. Seeing that his laughter had faded, he nodded seriously.
“That’s right. The Empire’s guardian, Black Dragon Kyle, kidnapped a lowly human intending to make her his bride.”
So that was why he had reacted that way when I mentioned marrying my fiancé? He knew everything already?
“Kyle, is it true that you are that guardian, that dragon?”
“I wasn’t hiding it. I just didn’t know how to tell you, El…”
Kyle looked genuinely apologetic, while Yulliter stared at me challengingly, showing no such concern.
He seemed to regard me as a virus invading this world.
“So now, you must choose. Become the dragon’s bride and live here for the rest of your life, or quietly return to the human world.”
