Debt.

Ewan thought his last hour had probably come, as there was no way out.

Falling into the void, being charred to the bone, devoured, torn to pieces... He had an infinite number of fateful choices. And the dragon would probably be the one and only cause of each of these choices. It had lunged at the young man, ready to crush the legs of the unfortunate hunter with its weight, and its mouth wide open, reaching forward to snatch the young man's body.

It was at this desperate moment that the silver bolt of lightning appeared, mowing down the dragon in mid-air, the latter's body suddenly buckled under the violence of the impact.

It was another dragon, slightly smaller, but no less fierce. It grabbed its opponent, and made it roll toward the edge of the cliff, where the land had almost stopped spilling out. Teeth were flying back and forth, each creature trying to pierce the other's neck with its sharp teeth.

Claws were tearing off and shattering scales, which were flying like enchanted powder thrown in the air before falling back into the dust, inert.

Ewan was watching the scene, dumbfounded. He seized this opportunity to get back to the shelter of the trees, while looking at the fight of titanic proportions that was taking place before his eyes.

And, suddenly, the two dragons faced each other, without making a move, catching their breath noisily.

The silver dragon growled fiercely, at the larger, pewter-colored dragon.

And in a sound almost unrecognizable to the human ear, Ewan heard the large dragon speak Drake.

"Vassh en si!" Replied the dark gray dragon in a hoarse voice, his mouth bloody, before rushing back to his new opponent.

The confrontation took on a new dimension. The blows exchanged were more violent than ever, and embracing each other in their struggle, the two dragons came dangerously close to the edge of the cliff.

The large dragon with the pewter-colored scales was pushing the silver dragon closer and closer to the chasm before them.

He didn't know what came over him at the time, but, as if not in control of his movements, Ewan grabbed his halette - a miniature crossbow usually strapped to his forearm - and started shooting at the pewter dragon he had faced earlier. The dragon became so excited by the taste of blood in its mouth that it no longer even paid attention to the tiny human, trying to gut the dragon in front of it.

The silver dragon managed to sink its teeth into its opponent's left hind leg, causing it to stumble and roll to the side. The big pewter dragon retaliated with a big headbutt to the silver one's torso; knocking the little dragon that was still biting its paw backwards.

And suddenly, both dragons fell.

Two terrible roars sounded in the valley, getting louder as the seconds ticked away. Abominable and interminable howls rose, echoing everywhere. Then silence returned, unnaturally heavy and burdensome.

The tension accumulated during the last half hour dissipated, giving way to pain and fatigue. Ewan caught his breath, still dazed, his hand burned, and the abrasions on his arms hurting. One of his forearm protections had been demolished by the blow given by the pewter-colored dragon when it had thrown him against the tree, and the young man had been scratching his skin on the rocks ever since. He breathed heavily, and realized that he probably had more wounds than he could see with the naked eye.

His horse. His horse, Fusain, must have been panicking, after hearing so much noise.

Was it alright?

His train of thoughts was derailed by the sound of a heavy flapping of wings.

One of the dragons was climbing back to his position. But which one?

He knew he couldn't face it, no matter which one it was. Then he saw it coming.

It was the silver bolt of lightning that had interrupted his fight, and momentarily saved him by diverting the other reptile's attention.

The winged monster landed heavily on the ground, raising a thick cloud of dust and soil, before heading straight for the young man. It was the dfemale dragon he had met earlier.

He recognized it now, being able to observe it more closely, but had not noticed in the darkness of the small cave the glow of its scales.

It looked like a thousand knife blades stacked on top of each other, making the reptile's natural armor seem invincible. But that was only their color. Their sturdiness was akin to all other dragon scales.

"Don't come any closer! " Ewan warned, his halette armed and ready to fire.

This did not discourage the dragon, who was stronger and in better condition. A threat that led to nothing, in short.

"Is this how you thank me, when I just saved your life? " answered the female dragon.

She thus cut short any future protests from the young man. Well, almost.

"I didn't need your help. " Ewan replied curtly.

"Oh, I see..." Said the dragon thoughtfully. "Let's go back to that moment when you were about to be devoured, alone and unarmed! "

This poking remark hurt rather badly. Ewan had found himself in a bad situation, even though he had a lot of hunts behind him, and therefore, combat experience.

He hated it when things didn't go as planned. And he hated it even more when people interfered with his work.

However...

"Are you okay? " The female dragon then asked.

Ewan pouted. The question was odd in the mouth of a dragon. But as odd as it was, the question had been asked simply, with honesty, and without ill intent.

"I'll be fine... "Sighed the young man. "But really, I didn't need your help... Why did you come? "

The dragon seemed amused that the young human was trying to retain what little dignity he had left. Ewan even thought he heard the Salamander chuckle there. Then, thinking about what answer it could give, the female dragon added:

"... I don't really know myself. " It declared. "You disturbed my nap, and even tried to kill me... "

"That's what I'm saying... What made you come to help me? "Ewan insisted.

The reptile thought again about its next words. Ewan wondered if it was really out of kindness or envy that he had been helped, or if this generous gesture was hiding something. He thought he would soon find out.

"I think curiosity got the better of me... "The dragon admitted. "But thanks to that, you owe me your life! "

"Thanks to that? "Ewan doubtfully repeated.

He didn't like where this conversation was going. Not at all.

"I saved your life. Twice, even! " Insisted the dragon, with a smile exposing its long, sharp teeth.

"Huh? "was all Ewan could say.

"I spared you in my cave, and I just saved you there. " Enumerated the dragon. Then, as if it was possible, it smiled even more, exposing a petty attitude. "Which makes it two against one! "

"E… Excuse me what?! " Ewan choked, surprised.

It was worse than anything else. The dragon wasn't entirely wrong, and he was partly indebted to it.

Indebted. The word made him grit his teeth. He owed a monster...

And he dreaded what that monster would demand in return. After all, he was currently at its mercy.

"Ah, I see... It's a matter of pride, right? " Mocked the dragon. "It horrifies you, owing your life to a monster, right? "

It wasn't wrong. At this moment, Ewan could only see a target to shoot down. And a creature capable of killing him if it felt like it. But... Ewan was not someone without reason either. The creature in question was talking to him. And had saved his life.

Although the episode of the cave is debatable.

A moment passed, without anyone saying anything, then Ewan was the first to speak again.

"Are you aware of the situation we're currently in? I don't believe that such a situation has ever occured." He said.

"A dragon, calmly talking with a human? I have to admit, it is rather strange, but not unheard of. " Conceded the dragon. "But what does that have to do with the topic at hand? "

Ewan swallowed.

"That's what I'm saying. A never-seen-before situation. And therefore, that no one would believe. " He explained.

"That doesn't erase the fact that you owe me! " Retorted the female dragon.

"That's not what I meant... Just that it's hard to believe, even for me, who has been through it. " He said.

"So you don't think you owe me? " The dragon snarled.

"That's not what I said! " replied Ewan, annoyed.

"Then what is it?" Virulently asked the dragon. "You owe me, but you won't pay your debt to me?!"

"Not if it's about money, I'm afraid! "Ewan replied.

"Who said anything about money?! " It said, raising its voice. " I'm just saying that you-"

The dragon had stopped talking, and now seemed to be staring at a point in the distance. Its shoulders seemed to droop, a sign that all animosity had left its body.

And with a worried look on its face, the reptile started to walk away without saying a word to the hunter.

As it passed him, Ewan noticed some wounds on the fire-breather's body, claws having been stuck here and there like a knife cutting through butter.

"Where are you going? We're not done talking yet! "Ewan exclaimed.

The fire-breather momentarily turned its head toward him to answer.

"The villagers are coming this way. They must have heard the commotion from earlier. " Explained the dragon. "If they find me, no need to explain to you what will happen to me..."

The reptile resumed its walk, looking forward again, then spoke one last time.

"And, it seems to me that you have to go and claim a reward ; right? "said the dragon without looking back.

Ewan didn't find anything to complain about, except that he didn't deserve the reward that much ; since he hadn't killed the dragon himself, and another dragon had done it for him. And he wasn't the type to leave an unpaid debt behind either.

He then stared at the forest swallowing the silver monster, leaving only a few traces of its presence on the ground.