The girl frowned guiltily and began crumpling the green leafy train in her hands as if she had no other concerns.
“I certainly didn’t attack you,” I said. Since when do I have to justify myself to them or explain anything to them? I wonder what kind of dragon put me in this awkward position. Probably it was some strange foreign beast that had escaped from the cage of some eastern sultana and flown into our midst. I remembered my travels in the eastern countries, when I had sought allies and enemies for Queen Serafina, whom I had loved for a short time. Sheikhs, rajahs, sultans or their viziers sometimes kept river and sea dragons in their special pearl cages. They could not be kept captive for long and could not be bribed with caresses. Such creatures did not usually breathe fire, but poisonous water, which put them to sleep and drove them mad. One sultan’s daughter died thanks to such a pet. Those lands stretched far across the oceans, but they were the only lands I had not explored where magic existed. If some dragon I didn’t know had come, it must have come from there. True, I hadn’t seen it yet.
“I’ll fix it,” I promised. But no one really believed me. They’d never disrespected me like this before, and there were only a tiny handful of my subjects here. Maybe I should blow fire on them for good measure. They’ll know not to honor their emperor.
“Maybe you just don’t remember,” Palm murmured uncertainly. “There are means to stupefy even our minds so that we forget something or someone…”
“Is it oriental remedies?” I revived. I hadn’t studied them yet, unlike the local ones, but I could use one to forget Rosa. “Do you know how to make them?”
Palm was even startled.
“I have never given anything like that to anyone,” she immediately began to justify herself.
“That’s not what I mean. I need a cook who can make such tinctures in the castle kitchen. You know how many gory details I want to forget after night raids on mortal lands.”
I didn’t mention the fact that I only want to forget Rose, of course. Why would anyone want to know about my heartbreak?
My wily and beautiful friend Queen Serafina, whose late husband introduced her to complex Eastern magic, opened my eyes to how much magic is hidden even from me in far off overseas domains. But Palm, apparently, though a countrywoman of the local fakirs and sorcerers, knew nothing of such things. Probably her tree had been taken out of there when it was too young, and now I had to create a new home for it by magic. And all because some dragon, be it a dragon, had started attacking my domain. I even suspected the intervention of Princess Odile. Maybe she decided to take revenge for the betrothal she had once broken, waited centuries, and conjured something. Not that she really wanted to marry me, but the thought that she had naively lost all my dragon treasures with me, still did not give her peace.
And I, a simpleton, even began to think about whether to support her financially. The thing is, I had flown over her kingdom more than once, and I began to notice that over the centuries it had become noticeably impoverished. It was because Odile’s mortal husband, the king, had died and could no longer support his immortal and eternally young wife, who was always short of money, with riches from the tomb.
Even though I was a dragon, I loved doing charity work. I supported not only friends, but also former detractors. For example, Simon’s society, and even Baptiste de Villiers and the detective Gabriel, who had hunted me in Roshen. But whoever set such an attack on me as the fire-breathing beast that burned my domain, I would grind to powder with my own hands. To hell with charity and compassion, it’s time to restore order. I am first and foremost an Emperor in my Empire, and I must protect it.
“What did the dragon that came at you look like? Did it look exactly like me? Or is it only in color?
The silence became long.
“Well,” the azure nymph shrugged. Her naked skin resembled flowing water. “There’s not much to see when fire from the heavens is raining down on you. I barely managed to slip out of the burning stream. The water was on fire! Can you imagine? Where the creek had been, all that was left was a toxic black sludge.”
“I’m sorry,” I nodded, “but that description won’t help me much in my search for the raider.”
“I thought that dragon was a little smaller than you,” Cypress interjected. “I didn’t get a good look at it, though. And I’m not as sharp as dragons. Humans need a telescope to spot a raider.”
“Is it smaller?” That definition wasn’t much help either.
“Well, he is more elegant. And he didn’t shine as bright as you do. You were like the sun, but his glittering scales were more like moonlight. I turned around as I ran away from him across the field and noticed his eyes were emerald, not aquamarine like yours when you turn. As soon as I looked right into them, he covered his mouth for some reason, even though he was about to rain fire down on me. And he had spikes on his head in the shape of a crown. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was a crown of thorns. Even you don’t seem to have one. Or you’ve decided to transform yourself with a little magic.”
Cypress didn’t know what to insult me with and what not to, so she stuttered at every phrase.
“It is a crowned dragon! It’s truly amazing,” I didn’t even believe her, but if she had an accurate look at it, I now had a clue where to look for it. I’ll have to look in the ancient volumes in my library. There’s probably some mention of such a creature somewhere. It could have been hibernating for a long time, like in the mountains, and now it’s awake. Such beasts wake up either from a century-long hunger, then after satiating a couple of villages, they fall asleep again. Worse, if they have been slumbering in the vents of a volcano, and the fire within them has grown to an unbearable burning. Then the dragon will not rest without burning most of the world. It’s time to take action. It’s just strange why, after attacking a couple times, it’s disappeared, and I haven’t heard of any new fires yet.
Just in case, I’ve sent my spirit spies to every corner of the empire. Have them sniff around, ask around, and report back to me. The efforts of Percy, my steward, will be enough to rebuild housing for the dwarves and the rest of the wicked and give them healing elixirs. Well, what awaits me is an evening feast with the dryads and the azure nymph. I invited them into the castle, ignited numerous candles with my breath. The viands appeared on the table. The wine, slightly diluted by the fire, quickly cheered everyone up and ignited an inordinate passion. In my new bedroom there were wide oriental beds, and no more empresses. I was going to invite all the ladies to my room for the night. My good looks usually captivated women so much that they would throw themselves into my arms, regardless of the risk of burning in them. Only now it was as if I was possessed by an insidious genie. I wanted to seduce with the help of charms, to deceive, to lure into a love net and to kill. It was as if some demon had come through the windows into the banquet hall and hid behind the curtain, taking the shape of a woman in a golden dress with a high openwork collar and a hoop of moonstones on her forehead.
I could not see the lunar vision as I was drunk, but the lovely dryads were already hanging on my arms and shoulders, kissing me and noisily thanking me for the wonderful dinner. Cypress offered to play the lute, Ash offered to sing, and others offered to dance.
– It’s a pity we didn’t invite our sisters, Cherry and Lilac,” complained Willow, “but their houses haven’t burned down yet, and they had no reason to come here. Maybe we’ll invite them next time.”
“Of course,” I nodded eagerly and finished my glass of fiery wine. Everything inside of me was on fire. I put my arms around Willow and began to unfasten her corset. The laces were thin green vines. There was bark growing on her breasts instead of nipples, but I liked the strangeness of it.
“Cherry and Lilac are probably more charming than any of you,” I muttered drunkenly. What I’m reduced to without Rose. I’d never