Chapter 165: The Dragon and the Matchstick
There were numerous things to attend to after waking up.
Like getting his body up and running.
Figuring out what had happened in his absence.
Taking care of everything that exploded while he was gone.
And facing all the political mess that the elves were trying to throw at them.
However, all of that apparently came second to convincing himself that he was still alive.
But more importantly, even that was only next to convincing everyone else that he was fine now.
At least his parents and the children were easy to deal with. They just needed to keep seeing him eat, breathe, and talk to confirm he wasn’t about to collapse again.
The real problem?
Kael.
No, seriously. Riley thought Kael would be the easiest to deal with.
Before, all one had to do was go to work as proof of life.
In fact, before, even if he didn’t go to work, Kael would look for him at home or at the hospital to settle important matters that he thought couldn’t wait.
So what was this?
Why wouldn’t Kael even look at him?
Where was all the work?
Why wasn’t he being overworked within an inch of his life like usual?
Although now that he thought about it...
Why was he complaining about not getting work? Shouldn’t he be rejoicing? Jumping for joy? Writing prayers of thanks for being left alone?
And yet, here he was.
Cornering Kael by the door.
The dragon lord raised an eyebrow, golden eyes flicking down at the twig who had just dashed across the room and practically spread his arms to block the exit.
"What are you doing?" Kael asked flatly, his voice a low rumble that carried both confusion and faint annoyance.
Riley froze for half a second. In reality, he wanted to ask himself the same thing.
What was he doing?
He didn’t even know.
The only thing he remembered was waking up, seeing Kael heading for the door, and suddenly—every nerve in his body screamed that he had to stop him.
Now he was here, half-bent over and completely out of breath, trying not to trip over his own two feet.
He was just thankful his back didn’t give out from all the sudden movement.
"Sir, please tell me what happened." Riley managed, panting slightly. "I heard the elves are after us? W-what about the children?"
He was talking fast, just rambling, and he knew it. But his brain was still foggy, scrambling to latch onto something that made sense.
Kael tilted his head slightly, as though about to say something.
For a moment, he thought of something. But he thought better of it and exhaled sharply, in a controlled way that made it painfully clear he didn’t particularly like what he heard.
He clicked his tongue lightly, a sound that carried irritation and restraint.
That small, dismissive gesture nearly made Riley’s head spin.
He could feel it.
Kael probably wanted to say something absurdly honest—or scathing—or maybe both—but had decided against it at the last second.
And how annoying was that!
It wasn’t as if he wasn’t afraid to die—he very much was—but after that experience, he figured there were things far more annoying than death.
Like this.
Like walking on eggshells around the same dragon who used to scare half the continent but was now scaring him for an entirely different reason.
It had been several hours already, and in that time, he had gotten nothing but contradictory reports.
Everyone kept saying Kael had taken care of him the entire time. That he had barely slept, barely moved, and that even they feared breathing too loudly near him.
So why, why, was the same man now acting like he had been forced into doing it?
Okay, granted that he was likely forced into doing it, but that was a workplace hazard and, in a sense, a danger to Kael himself!
So was he mad because it had been tedious?
If only. Because if it were just that, Kael, who had always been direct to a fault, would have simply said so.
When irritated, he would speak his mind even when no one wanted to hear it. And when angry, Kael, the golden lizard, would either confront the problem head-on or incinerate something—or someone—in the process.
But this was just driving him crazy!
Where did he even learn to hold back? If anything, when did that guy start avoiding anyone?
"Sir," he once again started, his voice a strained attempt at calm.
Kael turned, brow arching slightly, his usual unreadable expression in place.
And that did it.
The calm shattered.
"First of all, thank you," Riley blurted out, words tripping over each other. "For saving me. Really. I mean it. I know you had to, but still, thanks."
Kael stared, surprised but silent.
"But," Riley continued, his tone rising, "if you’re going to get this angry about it, maybe it would’ve been better if you didn’t!"
That made the dragon’s brow twitch.
Riley’s hands were moving now, wild and unrestrained, matching the chaos coming out of his mouth.
"Because right now, I don’t even know what’s going on! You won’t look at me, you barely talk to me when I know there are mountains of things to talk about! Worse, everyone kept saying you were hovering over me like a worried hen, and yet now, you’re avoiding me like the plague! So which is it?!"
Kael’s brows furrowed, visibly processing the barrage of words before finally asking flatly, "What the hell are you even talking about?"
Riley groaned, raking a hand through his hair. "See?! That! That’s exactly what I mean!" He pointed accusingly at Kael, ignoring the dragon lord’s narrowing eyes.
"If you’re angry or in need of compensation or something for, I don’t know, dragging me back from the brink of death, just say it! Because at this rate, I swear, it’s not the kidnappers or the injuries that are going to kill me—"
He threw his arms up, exasperated. "It’s hypertension! Hypertension will be my end!"
There was a heavy pause.
Kael stared at him, arms crossed, jaw set in that infuriatingly calm way that made Riley want to throw a chair.
And then, very slowly, Kael exhaled.
"You’re insane," he said quietly.
"You’re the one acting insane!" Riley shot back, red-faced.
Kael scoffed, genuinely startled by the outburst. For a few long seconds, he just stared at Riley, disbelief flickering across his face before the corner of his lip twitched.
And then he scoffed.
"Oh, for—do you even hear yourself?"
"?!" Riley froze.
Kael’s voice rose, sharp and edged with restrained fury. "For someone who kept insisting he wanted to stay alive, after almost dying like that, the first thing out of your mouth when you wake up is about those goddamned elves and those kids?"
Riley blinked again, caught off guard.
Kael took a step forward, eyes burning gold. "What, were you cursed to only care about everyone else but yourself? You almost died. And yet, not a single peep—not one—about what actually happened to you?"
The words struck harder than he expected. Riley’s mouth opened, then closed, his brain scrambling to catch up.
He wanted to be mad. He wanted to say something clever, something to bite back with, but the way Kael said it—the disbelief, the frustration, the strange tension behind every word—made him pause.
He gaped. "Wait. What do you mean by that? What else happened? Did I... miss something?"
Kael’s eyes narrowed further, his silence speaking volumes.
Riley frowned. "I asked about the elves and the children because it’s the last thing I actually remember! Also, how was I supposed to ask about almost dying right in front of the kids? You saw Orien, he looked ready to burn down the house!"
His voice cracked slightly as his frustration grew. "And who was I supposed to ask anyway? The person who clearly knows the details won’t even talk to me, much less look at me!"
Kael’s brow furrowed, and before he could say anything, Riley jabbed a finger at him.
"I woke up with you practically—" He stopped, face heating before continuing quickly, "—clinging! And now you’re acting like someone swapped your personality while I was unconscious!"
Kael exhaled sharply through his nose, looking away.
Riley stepped closer, determined. "I’m not even sure when to talk to you! Because every time I rest, I swear I can feel you checking on me. But the moment I wake up, you’re gone!"
His hands tightened into fists. "This conversation wouldn’t even be happening if I didn’t block you just now! So how exactly was I supposed to ask you anything?"
Kael turned back to him, expression unreadable. The air between them felt heavy, too charged for either of them to back down.
"Then why," Kael asked finally, his voice low but laced with disbelief, "after finally cornering me, do you still ask about them first? The elves. The children. Every time."
Riley’s jaw dropped. "That’s your takeaway?!" He threw his arms out, utterly offended.
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"Easy for you to say!" Riley shouted, exasperated. "You’ve never had to think about what to say that wouldn’t get you incinerated!"
The words echoed across the room.
For a second, everything went still.
Then, without warning, the flowers by the bed burst into flames with a faint fizzle that had both of them freezing in place.
Riley stared at the burning petals, mouth falling open. "..."
Kael narrowed his eyes, expression suddenly unreadable.
Riley turned to him, face paling. "Did—you—why would you—"
But Kael just sighed, one hand dragging down his face, his patience visibly evaporating.
"Riley," he said slowly, tone flat with disbelief, "maybe you should look at yourself in the mirror."
Riley blinked again, utterly confused. "...What?"
Kael pointed lazily at the mirror.
Riley followed his gaze.
It was just that he wasn’t sure what he was seeing.