Romance With My Dragon Prince

A Dangerous Thought

KIERAN

I traveled on foot, keeping a swift pace while staying mindful of my surroundings. Transforming into my dragon form would have made the journey much faster, but it would also have drawn unnecessary attention. I couldn’t risk exposing myself before I understood this world’s current situation. My priority was gathering information—finding a way to blend in, acquire proper identification, and locate Stella as soon as possible.

The first settlement I reached was a bustling market town, filled with traders, travelers, and mercenaries. The air carried the scent of roasted meat, ink, and damp soil, while voices overlapped in a chaotic symphony of bargaining and gossip. I stopped at a small tavern, one that seemed discreet enough, and paid for a drink to loosen the bartender’s tongue.

When I inquired about forging identification papers, I was pointed toward a man known as Eddric, a skilled forger who worked discreetly for the right price. Eddric, an older man with sharp eyes and ink-stained fingers, studied me for a long moment before speaking.

"You’re not from around here," he noted, his tone casual but laced with curiosity.

I didn’t confirm or deny it. "I need documents. Travel permits, identification—something that won’t raise suspicion."

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Depends on how quickly you need them. Good work takes time, but desperation costs extra."

I paid him upfront, securing a promise that my documents would be ready in 30 days, at most.

After securing that lead, I immediately made my way back to the cave. The moment I arrived, a sharp unease gripped me. The entrance was open. The heavy stone I had placed for protection had been moved aside as if it weighed nothing. My pulse quickened as I stepped closer, my gaze scanning the ground. Footprints. Many of them.

I crouched down, inhaling deeply. The lingering scent was human, multiple people. My jaw tightened as dread crawled up my spine. Stella was gone.

A deep growl rumbled in my throat as I clenched my fists. Someone had taken her.

I wasted no time. I scoured the surrounding areas, questioning traders, listening to stray conversations, and even bribing a few mercenaries, but every lead came up empty. As the sun dipped below the horizon, frustration clawed at me. It was as if she had vanished without a trace.

As night fell, I abandoned caution. In my dragon form, I soared over the land, my senses heightened, desperately searching for her scent. But the moment I thought I had a lead, it would dissipate—like she had been erased from existence.

Panic gripped me, followed by an unbearable wave of guilt. I had promised to protect her. I had assured her that she would be safe. But now, she was out there—alone, vulnerable. The thought of her suffering, of being mistreated, made my blood boil. I couldn’t allow it. I wouldn’t.

Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to stay level-headed. There had to be a trail, some clue I had overlooked. I wouldn’t rest until I found her, no matter what it took. Whoever had taken her would regret it.

I swore it.

The night was slipping away, but I still hadn’t caught a trace of Stella’s scent. It was impossible. Even if she had been taken far from the cave, her scent should have lingered in the air or on the ground. I had roamed through every path, every corner of the nearby towns, and even soared over the forests in my dragon form, hoping to find the smallest indication of where she might have been taken. But there was nothing.

A gnawing unease settled in my chest. Had magic been used? That was the only explanation that made sense. Natural movement alone couldn’t have erased all traces of her so completely. If someone had teleported her away, then finding her would be far more difficult than I had anticipated. The world I was in now was vast, nearly fifty times the size of Earth, and even with my wings, it would take me days to travel from one continent to another without teleportation magic.

I exhaled sharply and forced myself to think logically. Panicking wouldn’t help. I descended from the clouds, shifting back into my human form as I landed in a secluded alleyway of a small town. At night, the streets were mostly empty, the only movement coming from guards patrolling and the occasional drunkard stumbling his way home. My dragon form had been useful in the dark, but with daylight approaching, I couldn’t risk drawing attention. A dragon in the sky would only invite hostility.

My stomach growled in protest, but I barely noticed. I pulled out a few of the wild fruits I had picked earlier and bit into them absentmindedly as I walked toward the nearest information guild. It was a common practice in this world—guilds that traded information for a price. If someone wanted to forge an identity, locate a lost item, or even hire mercenaries, this was where they came.

Inside, the scent of ink, old parchment, and burning candles filled the air. A few hooded figures sat in shadowed corners, exchanging whispered words and gold. I approached the counter, my posture tense but composed.

“I need information about a teleportation mage,” I said to the guild attendant, sliding a small pouch of coins across the wooden counter. The man barely glanced at the payment before nodding and rummaging through a few old scrolls.

“You’re not the first to ask about that today,” he muttered.

My pulse quickened. “Someone else came looking for the same thing?”

He shrugged. “Not exactly. But there have been whispers—people being taken, creatures vanishing without a trace. If a teleportation mage was involved, it wasn’t a random job.”

“Where would they take someone?”

The man hesitated, then leaned in slightly. “There’s a kingdom, far from here, that has been hunting dragons. They say dragon blood holds some kind of power, something their king desperately wants. If you’re looking for someone with dragon connections…” His gaze flickered over me knowingly. “You might want to check there.”

I clenched my jaw. If Stella had been taken to a kingdom that hunted dragons, her situation was even more dangerous than I had imagined.

I needed to move.

I pressed for more details—directions, the kingdom’s landscape, how heavily guarded it was. The attendant provided what little he knew, but it was enough for me to form a plan. The kingdom was at least a full day’s journey from here if I flew nonstop in my dragon form. Unfortunately, this town had no official teleportation sites, which meant whoever had taken Stella had used a private magician’s help.

No matter how much I hated the idea, I had no other choice. If I tried traveling by foot, I would be too late.

Stepping back into the cold dawn air, I rolled my shoulders, stretching out the tension that had built up. Then, with one last glance around, I slipped into an empty alleyway and shifted into my dragon form, powerful wings spreading wide. With a single beat, I soared into the sky, my form blending into the thick clouds above.

I would find her.

No matter what it took.

STELLA

The last echoes of shattering vases still lingered in the air, as if the room itself held onto the terror of the moment. My breath was uneven, my hands trembling as I sat in the shadowed corner of the room. The noble’s parting words still rang in my ears, promising his return in the night. My heart pounded. There was no guarantee that he wouldn’t do worse this time.

I couldn’t let this continue. I had to act.

Escape was impossible, that much was clear. They had bolted the door, strengthened the windows, and even tied me up just to ensure I wouldn’t attempt to run again. But I wasn’t trying to escape this time. I just needed a way to make myself untouchable—to keep them from daring to hurt me further until Kieran came.

My gaze flickered toward the single vase the servants had left behind. A dangerous thought crossed my mind, one that made my fingers tighten into fists. It was reckless, but it was my only choice. If they needed me alive to lure Kieran, then they wouldn’t let me die. If I was already injured, they might hesitate, they might treat me with caution rather than cruelty.

I swallowed hard and forced my trembling legs to move. Crawling toward the table, I grabbed the vase with both hands, lifting it just enough before letting it crash onto the ground. The sharp sound of breaking ceramic sent a jolt through my chest, but I didn’t hesitate. I reached out with shaking fingers, picking up one of the jagged shards. The edges glistened, cruel and unforgiving, but I forced my grip to steady. There was no room for fear.

I clenched my teeth, bracing myself. With a deep, shaky breath, I pressed the shard against the soft skin of my wrist. A searing pain shot up my arm as I dragged the jagged edge across, and a strangled gasp escaped my lips. The sting was unbearable, my body instinctively recoiling from the pain, but I didn’t stop. Blood welled up instantly, dark and warm, dripping onto the carpet beneath me. My vision blurred with unshed tears, but I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to stay silent.