Semua Bab The Dragon Queen: Runaway Bride : Bab 61 - Bab 70

"I'm coming for my queen." Those five words followed me long after the war council ended.No one spoke after King Eldric read Roland's message aloud. The bloodstained banner remained spread across the council table like a warning no one wanted to touch. One by one, the generals, nobles, and dragon commanders left the chamber with grim faces, knowing the kingdom had crossed a line it could never step back from.The meeting stretched deep into the night because there was too much to prepare. Scouts were dispatched to every border, messengers rode out to the neighboring villages, and every captain received new orders before leaving the palace. By midnight, soldiers had already begun reinforcing the nearest towns with wooden barricades and watchtowers while dragon riders prepared for constant patrols.No one dismissed Roland's threat anymore. He had destroyed an entire fortress in one night. If he could do that once, he could do it again.I stayed until the very end of the meeting, listen

"...So," Tristan said with a curious smile, "this must be—""You can stare at her later." Valdanus stepped between us before Tristan could finish, wrapping an arm around his cousin's shoulders and pulling him into another quick embrace."You've been gone for months," Valdanus said. "The first thing you do after coming home is ignore your family?"Tristan laughed. "I knew you'd miss me.""I missed the peace and quiet.""Liar."Estevan threw an arm around Tristan from the other side, trapping him between the two brothers."You've already stolen enough attention for one afternoon," Estevan said. "Come inside before the servants decide to build a statue in your honor.""I wouldn't stop them.""I know you wouldn't."King Eldric shook his head, hiding another smile. "You three haven't changed at all.""I take that as another compliment," Tristan replied.The palace came alive after Tristan's return. By evening, every hallway seemed louder than it had been in days. Servants who had spent the

"So... are we training, or were you just trying to steal me away from Tristan?" I folded my arms as I looked at Valdanus. A hint of surprise crossed his face before the corner of his mouth lifted. "I invited you to train." "You interrupted our conversation." "That happened too." I laughed. "You could have waited five more minutes." "I could have." His answer came so easily that I didn't know whether he was teasing me or admitting it. Before I could ask, Tristan's voice drifted across the training grounds. "I knew it!" Several soldiers looked up as Tristan strode toward us with his usual confidence. "You weren't inviting Pandora to train," he declared. "You were rescuing her from my company." Valdanus picked up one of the practice swords. "You think too highly of yourself." "I know I do." The soldiers nearby chuckled. Tristan looked around the training grounds before his eyes landed on the practice weapons lined against the rack. His grin grew wider. "Actually..." He reache

Pandora's POV "The dragon turned around?"The scout looked exhausted as he stood before King Eldric in the council chamber."Yes, Your Majesty."Every noble at the table exchanged confused looks."Our border patrols saw it flying toward Scorish," the scout continued. "It crossed the eastern mountains before... stopping."King Eldric frowned. "Stopping?""It circled above the peaks for several minutes."The scout hesitated, as though he still didn't understand what he had witnessed. "Then it roared.""What happened after that?" Valdanus asked."It turned around."Silence settled across the room."It wasn't driven back by soldiers," the scout added. "No dragon riders reached it in time."King Eldric leaned forward. "So why did it retreat?""We don't know."…..Hundreds of miles away, Roland tightened his grip on the reins. The corrupted dragon had ignored him. It had been flying straight toward Scorish until its massive body stiffened.A deep growl rumbled through its chest. But not on

The palace felt smaller than usual that day, as though the walls had drawn in closer around him. Tristan went through the motions he knew so well—joking with the servants, arguing lightly with Estevan over lunch, and spinning one of his impossible travel stories to make a group of young knights laugh. No one seemed to notice anything different in him, and that was exactly the point. He had spent years perfecting the art of smiling when his heart wasn't in it.Dinner passed in much the same way. King Eldric talked patrol routes with the commanders while Valdanus listened with his usual calm focus, and Pandora chimed in now and then with thoughtful questions about the villages along the eastern border. Tristan found himself stealing glances at her across the table. She looked just as kind, warm, and beautiful as she had that morning—nothing had changed for her. For him, everything had.When the meal ended, Estevan caught up with him in the hallway. "Where are you disappearing to now?" h