Bound To The Ice Dragon King
Chapter 134: Guilt

Chapter 134: Guilt

Draven was sitting causally in his room, silently drinking his cold afternoon tea, when he suddenly heard the door to his room banged open, slightly startling him and breaking his peaceful atmosphere. He looked up towards the door and saw Rhea standing there breathing heavily like she’d run a marathon.

A frown settled between his fine thick eyebrows as he took note of her drenched clothes as if she’d rolled in the snow. "Why are you wet? Did you play in the snow?" He asked with such seriousness that didn’t make his silly question sound funny at all.

Rhea heaved a sigh, "I dug a grave," she replied nonchalantly as if digging a grave was a normal thing to do, she walked around him and sat opposite his chair, "I dug it to bury someone in it, it was exhausting to do such a thing alone in a graveyard covered with snow. I’d have called you to do it, but I thought it would be a waste of time to come get you."

Draven stared at her, the frown on his face only deepening at her words. She dug a grave and buried someone? He wanted to ask who she buried, but Rhea cut him off with her own question.

"When do you plan to launch your attack at the fire controllers and get back your dragon form?"

Draven set down the teacup he had been holding in midair after Rhea barged into his room, he then said, "In two days when the moon is on its full peak in the sky. At that time, my dragon would naturally respond to the calling of the night moon. That’s is the best time to attach it back with my body, then after that, we will launch a full attack."

Rhea frowned, "But that mountain cave is filled with hot lava, does that mean your dragon is in the lava?" She asked, slightly bemused. How could the dragon survive in such hot atmosphere for such a long time?

Draven’s demeanor was still as nonchalant as ever, he shrugged, "I’m an ancient Dragon, one of the oldest on earth, nothing would be powerful enough to hold me or my dragon form back, but fire. That volcano is the only place Alina think was hot enough to hold my Dragon form." He raised his teacup and took a sip, before adding, "That lava might be my weakness, but it can’t stop me from unsealing my Dragon form."

Draven’s calmness almost made Rhea believed it wouldn’t be that hard to unseal his form, but she was well aware how dangerous that place was for him. One wrong move could kill him and his form. And that thought alone terrified her for a reason she didn’t want to admit to herself yet.

However, if Draven would be taking the risk to step into that dangerous place, she couldn’t allow him go alone, and right now, she also had a mission to achieve, and she could only do that if Draven succeeded. With that thought, Rhea didn’t hesitate before saying,

"If that’s the case, then I’m coming along with you to the mountain." She declared.

"Hmm," Draven hummed nonchalantly, he had already planned for her to come along, so he wasn’t surprised that she declared it, but what made him curious was, "What made you change your mind all of a sudden?" He asked.

He thought with Rhea’s personality, she wouldn’t bother asking to join him or even mention wanting to come after she had already decided not to go. However, she would still join him without notice to uphold her pride. She was the type of person who wouldn’t admit to going back on her word and would pretend nothing had happened by going with him to the mountain. But now, she was here, announcing her intention to come along.

Rhea paused for a moment, then, as if trying to hide her emotions, she grabbed Draven’s teacup from his hand and quickly drank it. Meanwhile, Draven observed her with a deep frown. Before he could comment on her uncouth behavior of drinking from his cup, he remembered the night he had shamelessly kissed her, and he kept quiet. He watched as she poured him another cup of tea and then finally spoke, handing it back to him as if she hadn’t just drunk from it.

"Elliot, Gail’s lover, committed suicide an hour ago in the graveyard. It was his body I buried," she said bitterly, recalling how he had taken his own life.

Draven arched an eyebrow, his disbelief evident in his voice. "So, you’re saying he took his own life too? The fire controller killed himself for his lover?"

Rhea nodded solemnly. "Yes, he ended his life in a horrific manner."

Draven fell silent, he thought through everything. Elliot had appeared unaffected the first time Draven glimpsed him at the mountain that night, he didn’t look like someone who would resort to suicide for the person he loved. Additionally, considering the fire controllers’ upbringing to solely eliminate the outcasts, it was quite surprising to learn about his suicide.

Interrupting his thoughts, Rhea spoke with determination. "Draven, I’m willing to face the dangers of the lava and accompany you, as long as we can unseal your dragon form. Even if it means breaking the seal with half of my blood. However..."

Draven saw a rare sight - a glimmer of murder flashed in her dark eyes as she spoke. "You must help me capture Oriana and force her to submit before me."

Draven arched an amused eyebrow, asking, "What prompted your sudden desire for me to capture Oriana on your behalf?"

Despite Draven’s curiosity, he had no qualms about assisting her in capturing Oriana and forcing her into submission. He was even willing to capture additional people if it would bring her satisfaction. He couldn’t quite pinpoint the source of this newfound feeling, but he felt compelled to fulfill any request from this girl, as long as it meant he wouldn’t have to witness her tears again. Nevertheless, he was simply curious to know what made her suddenly want him to get Oriana for her.

Rhea explained, "Oriana has gone too far this time, if she wasn’t there that night Gail went to meet Elliot, none of them would have committed suicide. They would have been planning their future and expecting their unborn child." She muttered determinedly, "I want her to pay for their deaths and I want her to admit to her wrong doings."

Draven locked eyes with Rhea, "What wrong do you want her to admit to?" He asked.

"I want her to know that she was wrong about the fact that dragons are creatures with no heart to love or feel loved. I want her to know that every other creature has the heart to love sincerely, I want her to admit that the evil ones are the ones that kill the innocent for a crime they never committed. I want her to admit to being the evil witch."

Rhea kept her gaze fixed on Draven’s eyes, unyielding. She could see her own reflection clearly in his light blue eyes. She took a brief pause, getting lost in his gaze. Those eyes alone had the power to ignite her heart and make butterflies flutter in her stomach. Without averting her eyes, she expressed, "Furthermore, I want her aunt, Alina to face the consequences of her actions someday. I want her to acknowledge her wrongdoings and submit to you. I want her to experience suffering for betraying you. And I eagerly anticipate witnessing the day you ultimately bring about her downfall."

Draven’s gaze finally wavered, he lowered his eyes in escape to hide his emotions. He stared at the tea in his cup, it was so he could avoid meeting Rhea’s gaze again. The tea in his cup shook, like his heart was also shaken.

Guilt tugged at his heart. Rhea actually still wanted to help him and make him succeed in his one goal. To him, he thought she was impractically naive to think that way when he was planning to cause her death to finally achieve his goal of revenge. How could she be naive enough to wish someone as evil as himself well? Yet, how could she so easily make his damn cold heart warm up in an instant?

She didn’t even have to try to make him feel like a total idiot, her words alone was enough to shake him. That night when he revealed his intentions to Zack, he himself couldn’t believe he would be cruel enough to cause her death someday. He had drowned himself in alcohol to clear her off his mind and to stop the guilt from eating at him. But yet he found himself kissing her and crying like a bastard after he’d already made up his mind to take back what was his after getting back his Dragon form.

And now, here she was expressing her desire to witness his triumph in seeking his revenge? How could she witness his success when she might not even survive to see that day once he took out the only thing that was keeping her alive? He couldn’t possibly abandon his two-decade revenge scheme for the slight affection he had developed for this young human girl.

To attain one’s desired goal, sacrifices must be made. And without a doubt, he would not allow Alina to best him once more due to his attachment to Rhea. He had two choices: either accept defeat and ensure Rhea’s survival, or let Rhea perish and emerge victorious in the battle...

During the long silence, Draven merely swirled his teacup and broke his reflection in the clear tea. He then took a sip, before saying, "You still need more training. Before the day after tomorrow, you have to master how to shield your body from the heat with the core. Thus, we will start the training right now before then." He declared seriously.