A fair distance away, in the mercenary camp. Their leader was having an urgent meeting.
"He took the money from the safe. Do you think he was caught?" A woman asked.
"I expect so. We lost his signal shortly after, so I think. He was killed," A man sighed, shaking his head, "Another team, let's try with another approach next time."
"What next time? We wasted enough resources on this mission." The woman growled.
"We can't stop now," The man replied, "You know what we're dealing with, right?" He glared at her, "This contract must be finished no matter what,"
***
Above them in the sky, something was approaching at a tremendous speed, its gazes focused on the middle of the camp.
***
"All this trouble for a single woman, what could she do to be worth it?" The woman growled, "We lost several talented warriors and mages for her,"
"That is none of our business. All we need to know is that she's worth a thousand platinum coins, so someone out there. Nothing else matters," He looked around the table at the other leaders.
Most of them nodded, "We already got halfway. We only need one last push to grab her." A man between them said with a smile. "How about I go myself?"
The other gasped, staring at him and smiling, "You're going? Then we have nothing to worry about. You'll snatch her like this!" One of them flicked his finger.
***
The woman sitting in the back, her face suddenly changed as she felt a chill run down her spine. Her eyes gazed upon the ceiling, "Something is coming!" She shouted, pulling her staff.
Everyone sprung into action, pulled their weapons, and got ready. Some of them felt the presence, but the rest didn't catch it before it disappeared.
"What was that?" A man growled, "A huge mass of magic was above us, right?"
Their leader, a woman armed with a long spear looked at the mage woman, "Put a barrier up. We might be getting spied on," She took a deep breath, sitting back on her chair.
Thud! She felt something strange. She wasn't sitting on the wooden chair but on something soft.
CLACK! Everyone pulled their weapons and pointed at her, terrified. No, they weren't aiming at her, but at the strange sitting on her chair, the man she sat on his lap.
"Yo!" Arad lifted his arm, "Care to explain why are you after my wife?"
"Who the fuck..." CRACK! The leader growled, standing to attack Arad, but her head flew away, smashing into the wall in the blink of an eye.
"Why are you after my wife?" Arad asked again, blood dripping from his palm.
"Die! You bastard!" One of the leaders charged at him with a sword.
Arad glared at him, "Those are my words! You worms trying to kidnap my wife twice! My child twice! Death is too good for you!" He roared, veins bulging on his neck as his body grew large, sprouting wings and claws.
ROAR! A massive dragon emerged from the leader's tent, his booming roar shaking the whole camp.
Arad glared down at the camp, enraged, his eyes red with blood. His draconic blood boiled at the thought of those fools laying a hand on his wife and child.
"A dragon! Kill it!" A man screamed on the ground, firing a javelin at Arad's neck.
CLANG! The Javalin bounced back like a toothpick, falling on the ground and shattering in half.
CRACK! Arad's neck snapped as he glared at the ground, the wind getting sucked into his massive jaw as he took a deep breath. The void inside his lungs expanded.
CLAP! A black beam flashed from between his opal teeth, and the ground evaporated. The void ripped the camp apart, consuming everything that it touched and pulling it to Arad's stomach.
Arad expanded his wings, flying into the sky as he headed back to his home. He left a city-sized hole on the ground, an example for those who dare lay hands on his kin.
***
FLAP! FLAP! FLAP! Arad landed on the mountains of Alina, staring at the forest with a passive face. "This can't stand," He growled.
[You want to build the castle?]
"That's right. I need a fortress to protect my wives while I sleep." Arad replied, shifting back into his humanoid form and teleporting to his house's garden. He can now move up to 4km with a single cast of [Void step]
When Arad landed, he saw Aella and Merlin treating Mira on the garden's bench. "How is she doing?" He asked.
Merlin glared back at him, "Where did you go?"
"Slaughtered everyone who worked on kidnapping her," He lifted his palm, "This was in their camp. I sucked it with my breath, and a friend said it could help," A green bottle emerged in his palm.
Doma smiled inside his head, "[Antidote, they didn't make just the poison.]"
Arad nodded and approached Mira, pouring half of the bottle on her wound and making her drink the rest. Almost instantly, her breathing slowed, and her body relaxed.
Merlin and Aella sighed in relief, "Thank the gods it worked. This paralytic poison was harming her. Whoever made it didn't consider she might be pregnant,"
Arad glared at them, "That doesn't matter. What matters is that they even tried to harm her,"
Merlin stared back at her, "I know you're angry waking up to this, but it isn't our fault. Can you not take it on us?"
Arad stared at her and at his hands. He was radiating bloodlust like a crazed monster. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, "Sorry, I need to calm down."
He sat on the ground, and Aella approached him, "Sorry we couldn't protect her,"
"That isn't your fault. I'm more angry at myself." Arad replied with a passive face, "I should do better to prepare for such things,"
Aella shook her head, "You're doing enough. There was no way you could expect someone to try kidnapping her."
Arad shook his head, "Someone put a thousand platinum coins as Mira's price if brought alive. I can only think of one bastard that could want her, that vampire brat," He growled, "It's my fault for being weak and letting him escape!"
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