Chapter Text
Of course, things didn't go according to Cale's plan. In the original novel there were ten bombs in total, and when only eight were found, Cale had already guessed something was weird. The moment two of the expendable magicians jumped on them, he knew they had the missing two bombs on them.
He briefly considered all his options. He'd probably lose an arm if the bombs went off, but thanks to the Vitality of the Heart he'd be able to regenerate it quickly. However, everyone else around him would not be so lucky. Cale bit his tongue as Rosalyn moved in front of him to protect him.
With one last look at everyone else around him, he raised his hand and used the Indestructible Shield, effectively imprisoning the two enemies. When the little dragon noticed this, he secured Cale's shield with his own magic shield.
The two bombs detonated and Cale felt the blast press against his shield, effectively injuring his hands. He hissed immediately, absolutely hating pain. Although the two bombs were surrounded by two shields, Cale could see some people getting hurt nonetheless.
Finally, the explosion was over and Cale looked at his hands, which were slightly injured. Of course, they would heal quickly, but he would have liked it more without any pain at all. In the distance, he heard voices talking worriedly to him. These only got louder as he spat out blood. What they didn't understand was that this blood made him feel a lot better and he really wasn't badly injured.
"The second plan didn't seem to work either," hissed the cloaked magician who seemed to be behind it all. Quickly, Cale looked up at him while everyone else was still focused on him. How could they lose sight of a powerful opponent?
The still-flying mage snapped his fingers and a dark-skinned woman appeared behind him.
"Time for the final plan," he murmured. Cale was shocked. It was bad enough that the reality differed from the novel, as the two magicians jumped at them with bombs on them. But he had even less idea of the third plan. Could it be that more bombs were installed?
He quickly looked around until his gaze fell on the prince, who was staring wide-eyed at the two flying figures. Finally, the prince, who had just been watching the whole thing the whole time, moved towards the two people.
Cale looked back at the woman, who raised her hand and with a few words, clearly casting some magic. He was shocked to find out that the hand was pointed at him, so he backed away and turned to face the dragon.
*Surround me with a barrier again.*
The dragon looked at him and mumbled something about how weak he was. However, a short time later, Cale was surrounded by a barrier. The prince was only a few feet away from them when the woman cast her magic at Cale. However, instead of bouncing off the dragon's barrier as expected, the dark, almost water-like substance shot through the shield and hit Cale.
It wasn't as painful as he expected, but the blow threw him back a few feet until his back slammed into someone else, presumably the prince. The impact knocked the Prince off his feet and they fell to the ground together.
Shortly thereafter, he heard a moan below him and when he felt a hand on his shoulder, he quickly rolled off the prince. He immediately propped himself up on his forearm and looked up at the two magicians. The leader laughed and shouted:
"There are so many colors of blood I like. It makes me want to put it up on display. "
This guy was definitely insane. He quickly looked at Choi Han, who was arguing with a guard, and nodded to him. He seemed to want to check if Cale was okay, but then nodded as the two magicians teleported away. Cale hoped Choi Han and the others would be able to follow them.
Finally, he looked beside him where the prince was already sitting up and rubbing his head. He was a little too close to the man for his liking, so he finally pushed himself off the ground and stood up. While dusting his pants, he looked down at the prince, who was staring at his own wrist.
Cale watched in confusion as the prince looked from his wrist to Cale's. Seeing nothing weird, Cale just raised his eyebrows.
"I would apologize for knocking the prince over, but I suppose I didn't have much influence over it," Cale said to the prince. He didn't pay him much attention, so he turned to the dragon hovering right next to him.
*Is there something different about me? Do you know what effect that magical ray had?*,he asked the dragon in his mind. The dragon stared at him for a few moments.
*From the woman came the same kind of magic that surrounds the prince. I assume it's some kind of magic I don't know yet, since it was able to get through my barrier. I'm a powerful dragon, so I'm a little confused as to how this could have happened.*
Cale just nodded slightly and looked away from the still invisible dragon before anyone could notice. The ancient power was already healing all wounds, although there weren't many as the prince had softened his fall.
While the king began to tell everyone that the situation was under control, the prince got up again and finally looked from Cale's left hand to his face.
"Thank you for stopping the explosion. Many lives have been saved thanks to you, young master Cale," was the first thing the prince said. His perfect mask was back where it always is.
"I will reward you handsomely."
After the prince said this, Cale started to smile and held out his hand. His hand was quickly seized by the prince.
"Then I look forward to my reward, your highness," Cale answered quickly. The prince relaxed slightly as they shook hands, so slightly that even Cale almost didn't notice. He raised an eyebrow in confusion as their hands parted. Alberu just smiled at him.
*The unknown magic subsided for a short time when your hands touched,* it came from the black dragon hovering behind him. Again, information that Cale was probably not meant to know, casually told by his dragon. Unless it had something to do with the magic ray that hit him.
Smiling, Cale took a step back and allowed himself to be examined by a priest whom the others had fetched, as they thought he was seriously injured. He endured it and kept glancing at the prince who was talking to the king.
After a few minutes, Alberu asked to take him back to the castle in the carriage, which Cale quickly accepted. He sensed that Alberu wanted to discuss something with him. If he was lucky, it would only be about his reward. Now that he had played his trump card, he wanted to get the most out of it.
Alberu held the door open for him and Cale only looked at him for a few seconds before he entered the carriage without hesitation. Alberu followed him and together they drove off.
"You and I are alike," came the prince, who rested his arm on the edge of the window. His eyes never left Cale.
Of course, they were similar. Thanks to the dragon, he knew that the prince was hiding behind a mask. To everyone, he looked like a weak prince, but he hid a strong power unknown to the dragon. Cale had lost his cover of a useless trash a bit, saving so many people a few minutes ago.
Luckily Cale didn't have to answer when Alberu spoke again: "Do you need any treatments?"
"I am healthy, but shouldn't I still get the best doctors and priests to check?"
Alberu's mouth twitched and Cale thought he was going to start laughing until the prince caught himself. He opened a gap in the curtain that separated him from the eyes of the people and waved to them. Cale could observe that Alberu never moved his right hand even a little bit the whole time. The prince also asked Cale if he was on the side of the attackers, which Cale of course declined.
"So the reward you were talking about…", Cale started, but was interrupted by the prince.
"I'll come to you later so we can finish this conversation," Alberu said when the carriage came to a standstill.
"If it's a talk with the star of our nation, then this humble Cale will always be available."
Cale could almost feel the disbelieving stare. He smiled contentedly, knowing he had upset the prince. Finally, the carriage came to a halt. Alberu leaned forward and placed his right hand on Cale's knee to push himself up. He let out an almost imperceptible breath and took his hand off Cale's knee again. The prince could have used anything to help him get up, so Cale sat confused as the prince opened the door and stepped out.
When Cale saw only the back of the prince's blond head, he had only one thought in his mind: I wonder how he really looks.
Cale lay in his bed and went through everything again in his mind. Unfortunately, Choi Han and the others were unable to catch the magician or his companion who shot him. Still, Choi Han had his arm cut off and burned, which is a lot worse for a magician than the boy thinks at the moment.
Rosalyn had also informed him that she would need Lock and Choi Han to protect her on the way home. Cale had agreed, after all, she needed all the protection she could get after revealing her identity. He also had a strong dragon and the ancient powers at his side. What could happen to him?
When Cale opened his eyes again, he was staring straight into two bright blue eyes.
"I'm honored, your Highness, but I'm into brunettes," was the first thing Cale said before he could think straight. Alberu quickly pulled back and put a hand over his mouth to hide his smile. Apparently, there was a joke Cale wasn't privy to.
*The prince's true hair color is brown,* said the dragon lying next to him on the bed.
Cale had to try really hard to keep smiling at the prince and not answering out loud to the dragon. At first, he didn't warn him that the prince had entered his room while he was thinking, and then he gave him this totally unwanted information.
"I assumed you were asleep."
"That doesn't make the situation any better," Cale said while sitting up. Alberu stood in front of his bed with his arms crossed.
"I smell weird scents around you."
"And I thought I'd just washed," Cale replied without even glancing at the dragon. Not for the first time that day, the prince stared at him in disbelief and shortly afterwards shook his head.
"Did the priests find anything about the shot that was fired at you?", Alberu asked, almost too curious for Cale's liking.
"No, according to them, that beam just threw me back."
Of course, Cale didn't believe them. Or rather, he didn't trust them because of their lack of magic. The dragon told him that the longer the day went by, the stronger this strange magic grew around him.
" What are you doing here now? I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow?", Cale asked him to get off the subject. Apparently, he'd hit a sore spot, as the prince flinched a little, without losing the smile on his face.
"I just wanted to check on you."
Cale immediately narrowed his eyes and frowned. Something was wrong.
*Look out. I don't trust him. Something is wrong here,* the dragon said, flying closer to the two men. He kept sniffing and Cale quickly looked away from his dragon and at the prince.
"Then I am very honored, your Highness."
The dragon stretched out its claws and touched Cale's left wrist where the scent was strongest. A dark liquid formed around his wrist right in front of Cale's eyes. At first, it was almost invisible, but after a few moments, he could make out the clear cord connecting his left hand to Alberu's right hand.
Alberu followed his gaze and his smile seemed more fake every second.
"You can see it too, can't you?", he finally asked after they had been silent for a few seconds. Cale looked back at Alberu. That's what he'd looked at when Cale yanked him to the ground. He knew that this spell would do something... But what was that exactly?
Cale shook his left hand since Alberu could obviously already see it, so Cale didn't have to hide it. However, this only further confirmed his theory that the man in front of him was not human. Cale finally only got to see it after the dragon more or less accidentally made it visible. Except of course, the prince also had a little dragon, but Cale would have already known that.
"Yeah, apparently you've seen it for a while. Do you know what it does?", Cale asked him. Alberu grimaced and hesitated briefly before saying, "No, I'm not sure yet."
Cale knew the prince wasn't telling him the truth. It could be related to the fact that the prince probably isn't actually human, or some other reason entirely. Cale collapsed back into his bed and stroked his wrist with his other hand. He could reach through the liquid, but he still felt the change in the environment.
"You're not human, are you?", the prince suddenly asked. Cale looked at him in disbelief and stared at him for a few seconds.
*The only one in this room that isn't human is yourself,* the dragon whispered.
"Of course I'm human, your Highness. What else should I be?"
The prince looked at him penetratingly for a few seconds until he said, "Of course you're human. I'm human. We're all human."
That was too much evidence in one sentence that the prince is absolutely not human.
"Can we continue the conversation tomorrow? Right now I just want to be lazy and get a good night's sleep," Cale uttered. In truth, he just wanted to have a private conversation with the dragon, and to be honest, he didn't trust the prince. At the moment, he didn't even know if he was truly evil or just reinforcing a big secret while still being good. The only thing he knew for sure was that the prince is much stronger than he cares to admit and had a possibility of about 100% that he wasn't human. Not exactly the kind of person Cale feels safe with.
The prince hesitated and then nodded. He took a few steps back, only turning to say, "Good night, young master Cale."
When he finally left the room, Cale relaxed and pulled the covers back over himself. The dragon was able to make himself visible again, still staring at the door through which the prince had disappeared.
"I think you have a problem, weak human," came from the dragon after a few seconds of silence. Cale cupped his hands over his eyes and let out a desperate moan. An unknown connection with a very untrustworthy person had just been really missing in his life. He wanted to relax and rest for the next few days before he could get the next ancient power, but now this plan was shattered.
The whole problem with him showing the ancient power to everyone would have been stressful enough. He really hoped he could downplay the whole thing. Maybe say that was all his strength and now he was badly injured because of it, he was just trash, after all.
"Human," came from the dragon beside him.
"Mmm?" Cale replied without taking his hands from his eyes, still lost in thought.
"I think we're going to have another problem."
Cale groaned. His life really couldn't leave him alone for a few minutes. He removed his hands from his eyes and immediately saw what the dragon meant with the other problem. Cale was surrounded by a faint shimmer. He knew that glimmer well because it surrounded him every time he was hurt.
It was the glimmer that always surrounded him when he had to use the Vitality of the Heart. The man sat up quickly and looked down at himself. He didn't have any visible injuries on his body, so he shouldn't need that ancient power right now. The only thing he felt was the band on his left hand wrapping a little tighter around his hand.
He turned to the dragon, who was staring back.
"I can feel the unknown magic emanating stronger from the band again," said the dragon, pointing to the band. Cale hated how clueless he felt. Not a single word was spoken in the novel about a force like this. Perhaps, it was introduced in the other novels he hadn't read.
Just as he looked back at the dragon, he saw it turn invisible and point to the door. A few seconds later, Cale could hear fast footsteps until the door was thrown open by a certain prince. The moment his gray and the prince's blue eyes met, Alberu took a deep breath as if he had been dunked underwater for a few minutes. When Cale looked down at him he saw that his pajamas were covered in sweat. The moment Alberu started breathing again, the sparkle of his ancient power disappeared around him.
"I suppose there's more to the whole spell than you meant to tell me, Your Highness."
Cale saw Alberu bite his lip hard, entered his room and slammed the door hard behind him. He ran his fingers through his blond, now-imperfect hair. It was a little messy. His white sleep shirt was slightly untied. Cale quickly realized he shouldn't look any further down, so he locked eyes with the prince again.
Cale sat up while Alberu came closer to him. The closer they got, the more Alberu's body relaxed. Meanwhile, Cale carefully sat up in his bed and glanced at the dragon, which was watching the prince closely. Thanks to the dragon, Cale immediately felt a little safer.
"You don't feel anything? Nothing at all?" Was the first thing Alberu asked. Cale blinked at him briefly before shrugging. The prince dropped into a chair right next to Cale's bed.
"It wasn't that bad at first, but the further and further away I am from you, the worse it gets. It's like someone is crushing my whole body."
"So the closer we are, the less pain will be inflicted on you," Cale muttered to himself.
"But this spell is double-sided," came from Alberu. Cale turned to him and stared at the man in front of him for a few seconds. He looked a lot better now than when he burst into the room. He thought for a moment before making a decision.
"I haven't felt much but a little discomfort so far. Apparently, the whole magic is just one-sided, unless of course you're a pro at this and you can prove me wrong."
An attack was the best defense. The prince would have to reveal his own identity to convince Cale. If Cale judged him correctly, Alberu would never do that so lightly, just to convince Cale in an argument.
Of course, Cale knew why it had no effect on him, after all, he has the Vitality of the Heart. It usually heals his wounds, but he still feels the pain. But for some reason, thanks to that, he didn't feel the pain that the prince felt. Maybe because there was no wound to heal, so it just heals his pain.
Alberu stroked his face again and looked at the ceiling for a few seconds. But as expected, he didn't argue against Cale. He didn't have to tell the prince that he had more than one ancient power in his possession.
"How far away can you go?" Cale asked after a few seconds of silence.
"Today at noon I was able to distance myself from you for a long time until I had to come to you as the pain was unbearable. After I visited you, as you already know, it was only a few minutes before it became unbearable. I think..." the prince hesitated, avoiding Cale's gaze until he took a deep breath and looked into his face again.
"It has to do with the fact that I touched you in the carriage, but not when I visited earlier. As soon as I touch you, all the pain goes away completely."
A silence fell between the two. Not for the last time, Cale wondered if the situation could get any worse. He could feel the dragon moving slightly next to him, but it made no move to help him out of this situation in any way.
What should he say?
I know you have similar magic to the one that chains us together, so it would be very nice if you could untie that thing from us. Since you are not human and possibly an evil creature. I happen to have the information from a dragon who's also next to us right now, and while we're at it, I'm not even Cale.
Cale sighed and sank against the wall of his bed.
"I'm tired and just want to sleep," Cale finally uttered. This whole situation could be a problem for Future Cale tomorrow.
"The room next to mine is empty as far as I know. It's not the perfect solution, but we can try if that distance is close enough to calm the spell."
Alberu thought for a moment and then nodded. The very last option would have been to sleep in the same room as the prince, but Cale didn't like sleeping in a room with possibly evil non-humans. A dragon that could kill him at any second was enough for him.
The prince got up from his chair and hesitated before holding out his hand for a handshake. The pain must be so bad that the prince voluntarily touched him skin to skin since they were both not wearing gloves. Cale raised his hand and placed it in the prince's hand. He could see exactly how the prince's entire body relaxed and he closed his eyes briefly. A strange energy surrounded them, which the dragon seemed to be able to feel as well, as he stood up.
A short time later the spell was broken and the prince released his hand again.
"Good night," he murmured and quickly left the room. Cale could hear the door of the room next to him opening and closing. His hand still tingled slightly from the touch and it took him far too long for his liking to forget the slight pressure and finally fall asleep.