End in tragedy

"Don't spout rubbish, you know everything I said was the truth. Azure is the culprit!" The serpent's face darkened, "You are too blinded by his facade to see that he is the most wicked being on earth!"

"Your words aren't helping, lady, I will slit his throat." Rhea said adding more pressure to the dagger on Rinus' neck, she then said, "First let's start with an apology. You should apologise for being aggressive and rude to us."

The serpent's face darkened even more like a smoke had been burned on it, "I won't!" She refused through clenched teeth.

Rhea raised an eyebrow, her dagger pressing more to Rinus' neck, "You won't?"

Almost immediately the serpent exclaimed, "I am sorry!"

Rhea smiled in satisfaction, "Good, now that you're calm let's sit somewhere and have a nice chat." Rhea still held the dagger around her cousin's neck while talking to the worried serpent, "There is a shed with stone chairs around the street over there, "she gestured with her mouth to a direction, "Go sit there."

The serpent gritted her teeth in anger, she gave Rinus a worried glance before doing as she was told and walked ahead. She had the urge to bite Rhea to death, but knowing her poor Rinus' life was in the crazy girl's hand, she obeyed and went to sit under the shed.

Rhea on the other hand was pleased with herself to the point of bursting, "That's how you tame a demon like that stubborn serpent." She said smugly to Draven, "Here, hold him, don't let him go unless you want that crazy serpent to have the upper hand again." She handed Rinus over to him then walked ahead to the shed.

Without a word, Draven gripped Rinus' collar as if he was clutching onto a limp rag doll and gazed indifferently at Rhea's vanishing back. While he appeared disinterested on the surface, he couldn't suppress his inner thoughts. He pondered how Rhea, a person without any noble mannerisms, could be of noble birth. She conducted herself like a thug, lacking any trace of delicate and refined conduct, even in the way she walked.

Unbelievable. He shook his head in disbelief.

--

Both parties now seated under the shed, stared at each other in silence.

It was Rhea who first broke the silence, she turned to the serpent woman, Sila, "First of all, let's clear the misunderstanding concerning Rinus' condition."

Sila coldly snorted, "What's there to clear? Isn't it already obvious who's behind his condition." Her words still pointed at Azure as the culprit. Sila had lived long enough to know spells and the people who possessed them in Birhhan.

Rhea took a deep breath to control her anger and her protective instinct of defending Azure, she then remarked, "You know what, I don't care what you think or who you think the culprit is. Right now, I want to know how Rinus ended up with you. Did you kidnap him?"

Sila sneered irritatedly, "Kidnap him? What do you take me for? You should watch how you speak to me lady, or else...!" Sila was mad to the point her voice was trembling, scales began to appear on her face, her serpent form threatening to take over, but seeing that Rinus was still held by Draven, she immediately restrained herself and said,

"The first time I met Rinus was at the borders of Birhhan twenty years ago... I was smitten by his bravery, but then fate seems to bring him back, a year ago I saw him again in the Draconia territory, but this time, he was in a bad state."

When Sila said those words, Rhea looked on in astonishment, "The Draconia, you mean the the southern part of the dragon realm?!"

Twenty years ago, after the ice dragon's betrayal, an unceasing conflict between Draconia and Birhhan plagued the lands. If Rhea's calculations were right, that period also marked the unfortunate demise of Jurian, the real general. During those times, the creatures from Draconia sought refuge in Birhhan, lurking in the shadows and causing harm to the people of Birhhan. 

To tackle the situation, the Emperor sent the most powerful magical nobles to support the general. As a result, the evil creatures were exiled from Birhhan, leading to a significant reduction in their numbers in Birhhan. However, some daring demons still managed to infiltrate Birhhan and continued their malicious activities, causing harm to non-magical humans.

This prompted the Emperor to send the fire controllers a year ago to cast out the remaining demonic creatures from the capital city and other towns. Despite Rinus being assigned to the task, he failed to return.

In Birhhan, any creature from the dragon realm or Draconia were considered an outcast who were meant to be killed. Because they possess evil in their blood, Just like this serpent and this... Dragon.

Over the years, Rhea had only come across demonic creatures like this serpent. While rumors of the outcasts invasion into Birhhan spread, it was sudden and bewildering to hear that Rinus had been discovered in the enemy's realm.

What was he doing there? Rhea thought.

Rhea couldn't hide her surprise, "In what condition did you find Rinus in Draconia?" She asked Sila.

"What condition?" Sila stared at Rinus and coldly snorted, "Even worse than he is now!" She tenderly looked at Rinus, then added, "His body was so hot I couldn't even touch him. The hairs on his body was burning off, his eyes were red, one could tell he was under a flame spell. His inner flame was burning him up."

Rhea silently listened to Sila.

"When I saw him in Draconia, I couldn't dare leave him there. If any of the dragons smell his presence, the only outcome would be death. Seeing his condition, I knew whose spell he was under, so I didn't dare to bring him to the capital as well, I was afraid the person who harmed him would do it again. I didn't know where to take him so I brought him to this town to avoid any of those fire leaders." She said,

"The flame in his body was getting worst and made him unconscious for months. I didn't know what to do, so I had to steal the Aurius family treasure. It was a magical object that creates a temporary zone of absolute zero temperature, and all heat is instantly absorbed. It could be used to stop flames and extinguish them instantly..." Sila paused and coldly glared at Rhea, who sat across from her on the bench, she then sneered,

"But if I knew by stealing it I'd attract a crazy person like you..."

Rhea's lips pulled up, "Speak properly if you don't want to lose your dear Rinus."

Sila resumed to speak suppressing her anger, "With the help of the object, Rinus was able to regain consciousness, however, I never expected he'd wake up like a child. He knew nothing, not even his name. Hence, I decided to watch over him and also looked for ways to break him from the spell." She muttered softly, "But despite all my efforts, I still couldn't find a way to do so."

Rhea gave Sila a suspicious glare, "How should I know if everything you spoke is the truth? For all I know you might be lying to us."

"What will I gain by lying to you when the situation had turned this way!" She looked at the contemplative Rhea then added firmly, "Don't even think about taking Rinus back to the capital, I won't let those crack head fire leaders to hurt him again. They are all traitors who deserve to rot in hell!"

Although, Sila was a serpent, she was still a dragon snake. She was aware of how a fire controller had ruthlessly killed the ice dragon king twenty years ago.

Rhea was tarried out of her thoughts by Sila's harsh words. She raised a brow and sized her up and down, "Hmm, you should watch how you speak about the Birhhan leaders. They are our protectors, you are in no position to curse them." Rhea clasped her hand, "You are an outcast in Birhhan, why do you care about a fire controller then?" She narrowed her eyes, "Are you trying to take advantage of Rinus because he is now a fool?"

Hearing her words, Sila's face suddenly flushed, "Rubbish, every word that escapes your mouth is nonsense..."

"I'm talking nonsense? You are a dragon snake with demonic powers." Rhea said in amusement, "You seem to like my cousin, and you even went as far as to risk your life for him. Aren't you scared that when your leader finds out you'd be executed?"

Sila was silent for a moment before saying, "I've liked him on first sight, and seeing him in that condition, I couldn't bring myself to leave him there, I helped him without thinking twice about it."

Rhea had only jokingly asked the question, but she wasn't expecting to receive such serious, earnest, and loving response. She awkwardly scratched her neck and sympathetically said, "Your love for him, It might end in tragedy."

"I know," she said with a bitter smile, "I only want to save his life. That's all I want."

Rhea nodded her head, she then smiled, "You're actually the first outcast I've seen to be this nice. It was said in the Birhhan book, that you all are evil, but I guess the book doesn't always hold the truth. I hope your love story ends well then."

Sila blinked, she looked at Rhea in bemusement, "Does this mean you're giving me permission to be with your cousin?" The excitement in her voice couldn't be missed as she asked.

"Yes, as long as Rinus is willing. Then I'm fine with it. Who cares if he's a fire controller and you an outcast. As long as there's love, then I will do anything I can to support your relationship."

The two hadn't finished talking when Draven who had been quiet the entire time, suddenly chimed in with a sneer,

"Love...there is no such thing between two different entities. It will end in tragedy."

His cold words made the hard-earned harmonious atmosphere between the two ladies quieten down. The pair simultaneously turned their heads towards him.

Looking away from Rhea's gaze, Draven turned his attention to Sila. "This man is a fire controller, and those of his kind are typically loyal to the Emperor and their leaders. They also have a reputation for exiling those who are outcasts from Birhhan. It is unwise to trust them. He is only staying with you due to his present condition. If he were to recover, he would surely discard you. My advice to you is to avoid trusting any fire controllers, as your love and trust may lead to your downfall." He remarked while still maintaining his indifferent face.

For a moment, the atmosphere fell into complete silence after he spoke. However, Sila soon broke the silence with a bitter smile as she spoke, "If Rinus decides to take my life, I would die under his hands without any resistance."

Draven's irritation was evident by the tight corners of his mouth, but he was interrupted by Rhea before he could say anything. "You cannot speak on love as if you know all about it. Not everyone is like you. You are not in the position to give love advice, when you have yet to understand its true value," she stated firmly.

Locking eyes with Rhea, Draven's intense cold blue gazed at her. "Don't say things when you know nothing about the whole truth!" he warned with a tense jaw.