The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL] Chapter 387: Beyond Reason

There are many things in life that no sensible person would ever wish to witness.

For instance, seeing a wounded innocent child, or indeed any child at all.

It truly makes no difference if they have been naughty, nice, or the direct cause of someone's escalating frustration. Those details are irrelevant. The fundamental truth remains.

Children should not be harmed.

Full stop.

And yet... an individual who had spent considerable time amongst children—enough time, one would assume, to know better—still chose to perpetrate such an act.

In broad daylight, no less.

Consequently, to the profound astonishment of Riley and the assembled Dravaryns, upon their return after dispatching Thyrran to observe the Nest, they were met with... a blood-soaked Orien.

The atmosphere within the dragon lord's office had barely stabilized following Kael's abrupt entrance.

They had just forcefully reopened a portal Kael had created without preamble, and Riley’s heart plummeted the instant his eyes fell upon his parents lying on the ground.

For a fleeting moment, nothing else registered.

His immediate impulse was to rush to their side, to question what had transpired and ascertain the severity of their injuries.

However, he found no opportunity to do so as a powerful sensation struck them all simultaneously.

The mana pervading the area beyond the MBE was not merely unstable; it was in a state of violent turmoil.

Lady Cirila was the first to react.

"I will attend to Lawrence and Renee!" she declared, already in motion. Without awaiting affirmation, she self-appointed to remain behind.

The rest of them acted without hesitation, activating portals directly for the lobby, arriving just in time to hear it.

"NOOOO!"

A scream—utterly raw, fractured, and painfully recognizable—pierced their hearing and then plunged directly into Riley's chest.

What they witnessed next felt unreal, considering their amicable parting that very morning.

It had been an unremarkable day, yet they had shared breakfast and engaged in their usual banter.

Certainly, there were the customary complaints, but genuine smiles had been present on those young faces only hours before.

So, what in the blazes was happening now?

Liam, his small frame almost lost amidst the towering figures surrounding him, was on the floor, straining to support a significantly larger, hooded individual.

While others might not have immediately identified the prone figure as the dragonling Orien Vathros, those attuned to his mana signature could certainly recognize him.

It was simply far more challenging to process the sight, given the dark, heavy blood saturating his leg, spreading ominously across his long cloak.

In that instant, Riley’s mind struggled to truly comprehend the scene.

They had ventured out with the intention of apprehending a criminal to safeguard the children, only for such a devastating event to occur right under their watch, befalling the very children they desperately sought to protect.

While the precise sequence of events remained unclear, it was evident that Orien had been shielding Liam.

Disregard the crowd of distressed magical beings in various states of shock, or the red dragon that had begun emitting menacing growls the moment they arrived; based on the dragonling's dire condition, the true perpetrator was not a rampaging beast.

Floating just above the children was another cloaked figure, claws bared, malice radiating outwards like a potent venom.

One might have assumed this sudden confrontation had unfolded over an extended period, but in reality, only a few seconds had elapsed.

Yet, it was more than ample time for the sheer brutality of the scene to leave an indelible mark.

Then, reality descended with a—

"Tsk."

The sound was sharp and laced with annoyance.

Chancellor Malrik, concealed within his robes, narrowed his gaze.

He could sense it even as he deliberately suppressed his draconic essence and mana, prioritizing his hydra lineage.

The dragon within him strongly objected to such an unrefined action, but the circumstances rendered it unavoidable.

And what a prudent decision it proved to be, given the immense pressure emanating from the entity before him.

Had he not temporarily sealed away his draconic power, he would have been immediately overwhelmed by the suffocating aura radiating from that monstrous being.

The true dragon lord had made their appearance.

They had arrived precisely as everything was reaching a critical juncture. The runt was injured. Vulnerable. An easy target.

Perfect.

But now?

Now, a tactical retreat would be necessary.

Then again, knowing where to proceed and how readily the runt's vulnerabilities could be exploited was hardly a wasted effort for the day.

Who could have predicted such a strong protective instinct towards that lowly being?

Thus, the Chancellor's strategy was simply to leverage the available resources and execute a successful two-pronged assault.

At this juncture, it mattered little if the recovery of the red dragon was unsuccessful. It was abundantly clear that, among everyone present, the runt harbored far greater concern for the other child than for their own well-being.

Of course, the wasted exertion concerning the red dragon was regrettable, and a potential risk of his recovery existed. However, with his current disruptive actions, he would inevitably face consequences of some kind.

That particular individual would likely be sacrificed to cover the incompetence of the MBE.

Viewed from that perspective, the situation wasn't entirely unfavorable.

Furthermore, none of these turns of events could be precisely attributed to him. Or at least, not entirely.

He wasn't truly to blame for the fact that the child, much like his own useless uncle, had chosen to settle for a mere human.

Malrik adjusted his position, already making preparations to teleport away. His thoughts raced, swiftly calculating potential escape routes, backup plans, and subsequent actions.

However, his contemplation was abruptly halted.

One instant, he was poised to depart; the next, the Chancellor's eyes snapped open, wide with an expression of sheer distress.

He found himself utterly immobilized.

Not even a fraction of an inch could he move.

He remained suspended in the air, but the undeniable certainty grew that this was happening against his own volition.

It felt as though invisible bonds had ensnared him, locking him in place.

"!!!"

Yet, if Riley were to be exacting, he might remark that the offending fool was nothing more than a creature confined within a stark cage.

After all, despite the fugitive's valiant, almost admirable endeavor to mask his mana signature, a single detail had clearly been neglected.

If he intended to behave in such a manner, the least he could have done was to eradicate that lingering, suspicious scent.