The Things We Can Do

His heart not only felt heavy, it was almost as if its beat were slower. More strained.

“Cursing plight. Think I came to live all the way over here to have visitors?!”

Yuushin bit his lip. Bowed his head.

“Forgive me, master. But…can you let us? Please?”

The Sapphire Fang stared at him for a few long seconds, eying the group behind him—Vel, Johnny, and Heidi—her left eye twitching as conflicting emotions passed through her gaze. There was pity. Annoyance.

Concern.

With a long sigh, she banged the door open—hard enough to make the entire shack shake.

“Hah, seriously! That look of yours is no fair at all. I’m only doing this because you’re my student, ya hear?! I’m not running a freaking charity here.”

Behind him, Johnny leaned closer, his voice coming lower than a whisper.

“Dude, your teacher is pretty weird.”

Yuushin shushed him.

“Thank you for letting us in!” Heidi gave the old woman an apologetic smile, taking her boots off before crossing the door. “We didn’t want to have this discussion at the inn.”

The master’s eyes shifted to Vel’s, dark shadows filling them. A silent conversation Yuushin could not even pry on.

“He’s not ready yet.”

They all stopped in their tracks for a second, Yuushin’s heart freezing alongside all the blood in his body.

Vel didn’t glance his way. “I know.”

She simply closed the door behind her, saying not even a single word.

Though small, the Sapphire Fang’s living room felt spacious and cozy—with enough space for the entire group to sit down and talk. And they needed to talk.

Heidi and Johnny sat together, across his master, while Vel chose the cushion right beside him. And leaning against the coffee table with crossed legs was Kez, looking more ragged than the last time Yuushin saw her.

And that made his heart feel even heavier.

He clenched his fists, trying to think of the right words to say. The right things to ask.

“Princess Kez'vethra Zek'riv'thel from the Kaztharan clan. After being chased by Veritux and being afflicted by death knell plight for so long, shouldn’t you have returned home?”

While Heidi and Johnny seemed surprised—just like Yuushin—by Kez’s lineage, the Sapphire Fang widened her eyes at the mention of the death plight.

Is Kez a known figure here?

Well, if she were a princess, then it made sense.

But does this mean Lyr knew…?

The dragon clicked her tongue, averting her golden eyes. “I’ll be home when I feel like it. After being trapped on Yrun’Dïr for so long, it’s not odd to want to stretch my wings a little, is it?”

Although Vel did not react, Kez seemed to be speaking for both of them. And as Yuushin’s eyes sought the demon ruler almost on their own volition, he kept wondering how true those words were for Vel herself. If she, like Kez, was also experiencing her freedom after a long time.

“Yet your body is not fully recovered. So why bother to put yourself at risk for a Veritux priest?”

Kez’s golden eye got darker, the cold shadows crossing her gaze and making her features look harsher, rougher. Yet though her expression was somber and gelid, the dragon’s tone sounded like a lament. A pained thought she could barely voice as her eyes gazed through a window.

“I owe him. And by Kaztharan honor, it’s my duty to pay this debt.”

Johnny blinked, his eyes brimming with tears as he let out a soft whisper.

“I think I just found my wife…”

*thwack*

Heidi hit him in the stomach with her elbow, turning to Kez right after.

“You said Veritux has him, right? Where are they keeping him?”

The moment Kez clenched her jaw, Yuushin knew things were even more complicated than they appeared. And he really wished he was wrong.

“Right below Khunar’s headquarters, in their bloody dungeon. I tried to fly there unannounced, yet they tripled their defenses since the last time I went there. Max I could do was try to get a sense of his energy and rely on my dreams, but he’s too deep below.”

Dreams?

Noticing the question in Yuushin’s eyes, Vel mumbled close to his ear. “It’s a unique power from dragons who possess a royal lineage—prophetic dreams.”

He gave a brief nod, understanding filling his eyes before it turned into something else. Something that made his heart beat slower, heavier.

“Wait, if you were seeing Lyr through your dreams…you said they were going to kill him.”

Kez said nothing.

The air in the space got colder, tenser, Yuushin’s heart thumping against his chest—its sound echoing in his ears.

Yuushin asked again, the question Kez refused to answer. “What did you see, Kez? What were they doing to him?”

Heidi placed a hand over her mouth, her eyes stricken with terror, while Johnny continued to stare at the ground, the rage barely contained within his gaze. Yuushin, however, was not trying to hide his.

“They are doing what those Veritux folks do best. Which is why if you want to save Lyr, we need to move fast.”

“I’m in.”

Johnny was the first to speak—his voice unshakable. And when his brown eyes glanced over the group, Yuushin could see it clearly. The sheer determination burning within them.

“I’ve been here for little more than a month, and I already want to kick their asses so bad I’m goin' off the rails, man.”

“You are still too weak.” Vel’s words to Johnny did nothing to lessen the glow in the man’s eyes. Yet when she turned to Yuushin, it made his heart throb. His gut clenched. “None of you is ready yet. Can you understand it? The true weight of this choice—the risks and consequences of this quest.”

I know this…

Yuushin clenched his fists, trying to prevent them from shaking.

I know I’m not strong enough yet. More than anyone else in this room.

Yet even more than that…

“I won’t let him die. I refuse to let the Arch Bishop do this again—hurt someone like this. No matter what happens, no matter what I have to do, I’m going to save Lyr.” Then the man raised his eyes, meeting that lilac gaze once more. “So please, tell me how I can do this.”

Vel stared deep into his eyes, the faintest of smiles touching her lips.

“Retsugo Yuushin. Human from a world in the Beyond…you are quite odd.” She then crossed her arms, shifting her attention toward Kez for a second before glancing toward the three otherworldly humans. “There is actually one way that we might have a chance. An opportunity to save your priest friend and strike against Arch Bishop Decimus.”

Johnny's smile grew, a new kind of excitement shining through his voice.

“That’s our Queen of Darkness! Lay out the plan for us, we will do it however, whenever.”

The female demon didn’t chuckle, didn’t smile, didn’t sigh, didn’t even flinch. Her voice didn’t change, her tone didn’t shift—it was as if the ruler was talking about which flavor of tea they should try next.

“We are going to use me as bait.”

Which made her words even more jarring to Yuushin.