The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL] Chapter 145: Headlines of a Thief

Owls hooted well into the night.

Tucked inside a sleeping bag, a human slumbered, blissfully unaware of the massive changes already underway.

anwhile, a certain dragon lord was busy with what he called housekeeping.

Kael stood on the edge of a high ridge, golden eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. In his hand, a single mana crystal pulsed with faint light, a shard of the very item that had dragged them into this ss. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled it into the distance.

The crystal arced across the night sky.

A heartbeat later, Kael vanished from where he stood.

Space folded, a temporary gate ripped open in the exact direction of the crystal’s pull, and in the blink of an eye, Kael appeared right where the shard landed. His hand closed around it with effortless precision.

It would have been simple if he had just been tossing and catching a glowing rock.

But he wasn’t.

Each throw was a probe, the crystal leading him closer to the end.

They were the sa mana crystals filled with the lingering energy of the blasted object, and Kael had no qualms about using them against its owners.

Wherever it flew, Kael followed.

Again and again, he cast them far, his figure flashing in and out of existence as if teleporting.

Every ti he reappeared, the air rippled with power, and if anyone or anything was unfortunate enough to be caught up in it, they would have been reduced to ash, silenced before they could even scream.

The mountains shook with muffled tremors. Probably a reflection of the dragon’s annoyance.

If it were up to him, he would have simply destroyed the Codex outright and been done with it. But by the looks of it, those vermin would drag in everyone without regard for anyone else, so he’d have to do it like this.

An hour later, the last crystal dimd, its trail ending with a dull spark. Kael caught it between two fingers and crushed it to dust.

He stood still, his expression cool, not a single hair out of place. His suit, sharp and immaculate, settled against him as though the chaos of the night had been nothing more than a stroll.

By the ti Riley stirred awake, groggy and ready to face the disaster of the day, the dragon lord was already back at his side, guarding as if he had never left.

Only this ti, Kael laid a hefty pack in front of him, tossing it down like luggage he had accidentally picked up along the way.

Riley raised a hand, his eyes still blurry from sleep, blinking owlishly at the bundle as if it were an optical illusion. It took him a solid mont to even focus on what it was.

Then the recognition hit.

The cave practically shook with the force of his scream.

Holy fucking hell!

Kael’s brow furrowed as he eyed the human who nearly tore off his ear. "What’s the matter with you?"

What’s the matter with ? Riley wanted to screech. No, what’s the matter with you?!

Because before him sat a pack that housed what could only be the allegedly missing Moonveil Codex.

"!!!"

His brain broke into every stage of grief at once.

Denial: No way, it had to be fake or a hallucination from waking up too suddenly.

Anger: That lizard had to be insane.

Bargaining: Maybe it was a copy?

Depression: Oh, this was going to ruin his life.

Acceptance: ...no, actually, he wasn’t accepting this.

"Wait—wait—" Riley’s voice cracked as he pointed. "Did you have that the entire ti? Was this all just... a farce?"

Kael gave him a flat look, all golden displeasure, before finally saying, "I retrieved it earlier."

Retrieved? My good Sir, what retrieved?! Riley scread internally. More like stole back!

He pressed his palms over his face, trying to calm down enough to ask, "Why? Why would you take that thing back right now of all tis?"

Kael blinked slowly. "You don’t want to stay here longer, right?"

"Huh?"

"I don’t, but..." Riley’s voice rose an octave. "Are you just planning on handing it over and being done with it?" The idea terrified him. Because with how desperate these elves were, they could spin their story ten ways to hell.

In fact, even with his brain moving at the speed of molasses fresh from sleep, Riley still managed to imagine the headlines: The Dragon Lord and his pet had stolen it all along. And knowing his boss, who despised explanations, the dragon lord would probably just scowl and refuse to defend himself because it was ti-consuming.

Riley clutched his stomach, looking like he was about to be sick. Kael, on the other hand, looked even more annoyed. What was the twig’s problem now?

"My Lord," Riley begged, his voice thin with dread, "please tell you thought of a way to protect yourself when you did this? Because if not, we’re about to return to the headlines as thieves!"

Kael tilted his head, and for a heartbeat, he thought this was tied to those words Riley had kept from him earlier. Clearly, this twig was worried about him again.

Exasperated but faintly pleased, Kael lifted his hand and brought out a small magical orb.

"You’re not the only one who can record." His tone was flat, but Riley swore he caught the faintest twitch of smugness in his expression.

In truth, Kael had not planned on sothing this tedious.

But when Kael pictured Riley being forced to sit through yet another press conference that would force him to use even more words for the ears of such scum, the golden dragon begrudgingly decided to leave proof behind.

Riley sagged in relief, shoulders slumping.

Then another thought slamd into him, and his stomach twisted anew.

His original proposition had actually been partially similar to what Kael had just done.

Before he’d been asked to sleep, he was actually going to suggest looking for the Codex and preparing for a way for the public to know that it had been recovered. But assuming it wouldn’t be that easy, his alternate plan was to force the hands of the Elven royalty so they could actually figure out what was happening.

After all, wasn’t it a bigger issue that soone was out there itching for Kael’s blood?

But now... with the Codex in their hands, it wouldn’t be long before the guards discovered it was gone!

Oh, but wait.

Were there even guards left?!

Also, a bigger question lood.

What about the missing child?