Married To The Last Ice Dragon-Chapter 232: Papa?

River felt a lump on his throat and swallowed hard as he saw her tearful gaze turn fearful. Fear that she had gone astray, become dangerous, and a monster. It wasn’t her fault, it wasn’t her fault that she had hurt her mother so badly. He wanted to tell her, but her expression told him he shouldn’t. She knew exactly what he was going to say.

She looked away from him, trembling, and her eyes met Penelope’s, which were filled with pity. "Katherine, it’s not your fault." Penelope’s voice, like her demeanor, was calm.

"Don’t." Katherine growled and stood up, looking at Darren, who looked at her as if she had just lost her mother, then at Kion, who had his head bowed.

"Here." He exhaled and stretched his arms out. Four massive ancient books appeared on his hand, stacked on top of each other, as did six scrolls.

Katherine shook her head as she gathered the books. Her heart felt heavy, and her grip on the books was firm.

"Katherine." River called as he approached her.

"Don’t," Katherine said quietly, causing him to come to a halt.

"Katherine.." He called once more, this time pleadingly.

"I’d prefer to be alone." Katherine looked at him and whispered. He watched her tears stream down her cheeks, the pain in her eyes making him choke, but he noticed a faint smile stretching across her lips. A trembling smile. She vanished from his sight.

"How did she figure it out?" Kion inquired of River, who shrugged.

"Take good care of her." Kion nodded as River told him referring to Valerie.

"I cannot believe this." River groaned in frustration and walked away from them.

"She must think that her mother will not forgive her." Penelope spoke quietly, her gaze fixed on the unconscious Valerie. "She needs to understand that it wasn’t her fault."

Kion and Darren turned their attention to the shadow dragon, who appeared to be lost in her thoughts.

...

Sage and Cyrus returned to the town, which was now devoid of all houses, with their gaze fixed on the forest where the mages were. Reagan, Darius, and Mihai arrived at the scene at the same time, all with solemn expressions that elicited a smirk from Cyrus.

"The statkus mages have all been wiped out, mostly by the golden dragon," Reagan reported.

"Good. We’ll go back to the mansion." Cyrus said curtly, and everyone bowed their heads in respect.

Sage smiled as she saw Stefan, Arthur, Mirabella, and Victor, but she was especially happy to see Mirabella. She had participated in the battle, which was very impressive.

"Hello there," Mirabella said cheerfully, her gaze fixed on Sage, who smiled brightly.

"What an uninvited visitor." Cyrus sighed and rolled his eyes.

"How about this unexpected visitor steal your wife for a while?" Mirabella asked, not looking at Cyrus, and then drew Sage away.

"I fear that the statkus mages’ alliance with the ice gods will make things more difficult than expected." With a heavy sigh, Mihai said.

"Everything is suspicious. They aren’t stupid to believe she won’t fight back if they attack her people." Darius spoke while clutching his chin.

"They want her fire core before my birthday, which is in a week." Cyrus said blankly, and they all looked startled.

"I believe what happened tonight was a test for some reason. I believe something bigger is on the way." Reagan rubbed his face to hide his irritated expression.

Cyrus responded with a hum. "Indeed." Then he turned his attention to Mirabella and Sage, who were having a serious conversation. They looked like close friends. He was relieved.

When Sage vanished from his sight, he knew she was being summoned by Anghel, but the manner in which she vanished scared him. It gave him the impression that she had left his life and would never return. But it was all just fears... Fears he would make sure never came true.

"Take the mages to Leimpia city. Except for Reagan, you can all leave now." Cyrus told them, and they all walked away except Reagan, who stared at him with wide eyes.

"Where have Ashton and Florin gone?" Cyrus arched his brow.

"They are with the mages in the forest." Reagan replied.

Cyrus nodded and returned his gaze to the forest, only to see a familiar small figure running with excitement while being chased by Kion.

She giggled excitedly as she walked through the ash snow, her golden hair blowing in the wind, but her short legs were quick.

"Tamara, please wait! Where are you going?" Kion yelled, panting heavily as he pursued his younger sister.

Cyrus suddenly vanished from his spot and appeared in front of the child, startling her and causing her to halt her steps. She looked up at him with wide eyes, then started laughing and raising her little arms to him, signaling him to carry her.

"No." Cyrus hissed coldly and tilted his head to the side.

Her face fell, and she dropped her arms, pursing her lips. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she began to sob loudly.

Kion took a step behind her and in front of Cyrus, looking slightly surprised. He was about to run up to her and grab her when Cyrus stood on his heels in front of Tamara and patted her on the head.

She paused her sobbing, rubbed her eyes, sniffed, and looked at him. "I... I’m terrified." She stuttered, and he noticed that she wasn’t afraid of him, but of what she had seen in her short life.

Strangely, she reminded him of his childhood, only he wasn’t as innocent as she because of the darkness that consumed him like no other. He had seen a lot of terrifying beings at his young age, and those who wanted to kill him had stained his hands with blood several times. He didn’t want this child to live on as she had. Danger surrounded her. He was perplexed as to why she wasn’t afraid of him.

He laughed. "Go to your brother." He stood up and whispered. He would only put her in danger. He was already a danger to his wife.

"No." Her little voice yelped angrily, and he looked down at her, seeing her raise her hands to him, signaling him to carry her.

"Why?" He cocked his brow.

"Papa!" She abruptly announced and giggled while standing on her tiptoes.

Cyrus and Kion both froze.

"Papa?" he exclaimed, stunned. "How unexpected." He thought of her as a stupid child. Cyrus couldn’t imagine himself as a father. He didn’t want to think about it.

"Does that look like a bruise?" Sage, who had just arrived on the scene, asked Tamara to look at her ankle and see if she had a deep wound from a stab. The blood had dried, but the wound appeared to be very fresh.

Cyrus, recognizing the severity of the injury, immediately took Tamara into his arms and stared at Sage, who widened her eyes in fear.

"Sumera?" With a gasp, she inquired.

"What?!" Kion was shocked. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"You don’t protect your sister, do you? She was stabbed by a statkus mage, and you didn’t notice?" Sage raised her voice at Kion, who was completely taken aback.

"No! Will she be okay?!" Kion was very concerned.

Sage sighed and looked at Cyrus, who nodded before disappearing with the young mage. She then returned her gaze to Kion and nodded.

"Yes."

Kion sighed and closed his eyes, while Sage smiled faintly. She had actually witnessed Cyrus and Tamara’s interaction. It was adorable. But she was shocked when she heard the little mage call him "Papa." Why did she call him that?

"It appears that my sister adores the ice dragon." Kion bowed his head in respect. "Your Majesty, I require your assistance."

Sage knew exactly what he wanted the moment he said those words.

"What exactly is it?" She managed to appear interested.

"Please take Tamara in. I am incapable of caring for her."

Sage slowly nodded. She would gladly take in the young mage, but she had no idea if Cyrus would like the idea.

"Very well," she sighed, and Kion raised his head, a happy smile on his face.

"Your Majesty, I will be eternally grateful." Sage couldn’t help but smile when he looked and sounded so happy and grateful.

"Where has Katherine gone?" Sage inquired, her eyes scanning the room.

"Here." Katherine’s voice was dull as she appeared suddenly behind Sage.

Sage turned around to see her eyes swollen, as if she had been crying. "What’s the matter?" She inquired worriedly, holding Katherine’s hands.

"M...mother... my... Mother! Sage, I am a monster! I am terrible!" Sage’s heart was heavy as Katherine burst out crying. She drew Katherine into a hug and patted her on the back to calm her down.

A sonic shriek was heard at that precise moment, shocking everyone present, causing them to cover their ears with their hands and fall to their knees.

Sage drew away from Katherine, trying not to fall on her knees despite her hands covering her ears.

She looked up to see a bright ice blue light building in the sky, heading straight for her. Her eyes widened as the force fired at her. The blast hit her hard, and all she felt was excruciating pain that caused her to scream before collapsing into darkness.

When the sonic sound faded, everyone turned their heads to the spot Sage had been standing on for a minute. The particular earth was strongly cracked open, as if it had been punched, and everyone was pale in the face seeing that there wasn’t a sign of her. Not at all.

"SAGE!" Katherine screamed in terror.

...

A/N: We will be entering the second volume of the book. Steady updates will begin on May 19th 2023. ^_________^