Chapter 6

Kept Alive

By morning, everyone in the palace knew.

The human girl had survived the throne room.

Twice.

And somehow—

the Dragon King hadn’t burned half the palace down afterward.

That alone seemed enough to terrify everyone.

Evelynn noticed it immediately.

Servants stopped talking when she passed.

Guards stared too long.

One maid carrying folded linens nearly dropped everything after making eye contact with her.

It was getting irritating.

“I’m not contagious,” Evelynn muttered under her breath.

The silver-eyed servant escorting her through the palace glanced sideways awkwardly.

“That remains to be seen.”

Comforting.

Very comforting.

The palace itself looked different during daylight.

Less monstrous.

Slightly.

Massive black windows overlooked endless snow-covered mountains while golden dragonfire burned inside elegant iron lanterns along the halls. The architecture was still intimidating as hell, but now Evelynn could at least appreciate how expensive everything looked.

Apparently dragons enjoyed luxury.

And stairs.

Far too many stairs.

By the time they reached another enormous corridor, Evelynn’s legs already hurt.

“Does your king hate elevators personally,” she muttered, “or is suffering part of the architecture?”

The servant blinked. “...what is an elevator?”

“Never mind.”

They stopped outside a pair of tall black doors guarded by armored dragon soldiers.

Unlike the others, these guards openly looked at her with hostility.

One of them sneered slightly.

“That thing is attending the council?”

Thing.

Nice.

Evelynn folded her arms. “Good morning to you too.”

The guard’s golden eyes narrowed.

The silver-eyed servant quickly stepped between them.

“The king’s orders.”

That shut everyone up immediately.

Interesting.

Apparently Kael’s authority outweighed their hatred.

Barely.

The council chamber beyond looked less like a meeting room and more like a courtroom designed by war criminals.

A massive circular hall carved entirely from black stone. Long claw marks scarred several pillars while enormous dragon skulls hung mounted high along the walls.

Very subtle decor.

At the center sat a long obsidian table surrounded by dragon nobles.

Every conversation stopped the moment Evelynn entered.

The silence hit instantly.

Cold.

Sharp.

Judging.

Evelynn suddenly understood exactly how a rabbit probably felt wandering into a wolf den.

Most of the nobles looked human enough at first glance.

Until she noticed details.

Golden eyes.

Scaled hands.

Unnaturally sharp teeth.

One older woman had dark red scales climbing elegantly across one cheekbone like jewelry.

Not a single face looked welcoming.

At the far end of the chamber sat Kael.

The Dragon King looked infuriatingly calm today.

Dark clothes.

Relaxed posture.

One hand lazily supporting his jaw like this entire gathering bored him.

Which, judging by the atmosphere, it probably did.

His eyes landed briefly on Evelynn as she entered.

Then moved away again.

But somehow that tiny glance immediately made the room feel tighter.

One of the older dragon lords spoke first.

“This is unacceptable.”

Straight to the point.

Evelynn almost appreciated it.

The speaker looked ancient even by dragon standards. Long silver hair. Deep bronze scales along his throat. His voice carried enough authority to silence the room instantly.

A council elder.

Great.

Kael didn’t even look at him.

“Yes,” he said flatly. “Your personality has become exhausting.”

A few younger nobles immediately looked down to hide reactions.

Apparently the king being disrespectful to elders was normal here.

The old dragon’s expression darkened.

“You brought a human into Black Citadel.”

“She was brought,” Kael corrected lazily. “By your precious treaty.”

“That creature should have been executed after what happened in the throne room.”

Evelynn frowned. “Rude.”

Several nobles visibly stiffened.

The elder stared at her slowly.

Like he couldn’t decide whether to be offended or impressed.

Kael finally looked amused.

A dangerous thing on him.

The elder ignored her entirely and addressed the king again.

“Your fire reacted abnormally.”

The room grew quieter somehow.

Kael’s expression cooled instantly.

“Careful.”

The warning sat heavy in the air.

But the elder continued anyway.

“For years your instability has worsened. Then suddenly this human arrives and the palace fire falls silent?”

Evelynn shifted slightly.

So everyone really did know already.

Wonderful.

Another noble spoke quietly.

“There are old stories…”

“No,” another interrupted sharply.

The elder ignored them all.

“Human artifacts do not affect dragonfire.”

Kael’s gaze sharpened slightly.

“You speak as if you understand dragonfire.”

The temperature in the chamber dropped instantly.

Not physically.

Emotionally.

Every noble at the table went still.

Evelynn realized something important:

Kael might look calm today—

but everyone here was terrified of him.

The elder slowly stood.

“She should not remain here.”

Murmurs of agreement spread around the chamber.

“She is dangerous.”

“A risk.”

“A weakness.”

That last word hung badly in the room.

Kael’s eyes lifted slowly toward the speaker.

The noble who said it immediately went pale.

Too late.

The Dragon King rose from his chair.

Silence.

Real silence.

Even breathing seemed quieter.

Kael stepped forward once.

“That human,” he said softly, “survived my fire.”

Another step.

“She survived my rage.”

Another.

“And somehow half this council believes

you

are the dangerous ones in the room.”

Nobody answered.

Nobody was stupid enough.

Kael stopped beside Evelynn.

The difference in size between them was absurd up close.

He looked down at the council coldly.

“She stays.”

The words landed like a blade hitting stone.

Final.

Absolute.

The elder’s jaw tightened visibly.

“You would choose a human over your own court?”

Kael answered without hesitation.

“Yes.”

That shocked the room more than shouting would have.

Even Evelynn looked at him sharply.

What the hell?

The elder’s expression hardened.

“You are becoming reckless.”

Kael’s golden eyes narrowed slightly.

“No,” he said quietly. “I am becoming impatient.”

That ended the argument.

Not officially.

But effectively.

The elder slowly sat back down, furious but smart enough not to push further.

Kael turned toward Evelynn.

“You’ll be moved to the east wing.”

She blinked. “The what?”

“Your rooms.”

“...I get rooms?”

“You expected a dungeon?”

Honestly?

Yes.

Kael noticed her expression and looked mildly insulted.

“We are not barbarians.”

Evelynn glanced around at the dragon skulls decorating the walls.

Debatable.

One younger noble muttered quietly:

“She should remain guarded.”

Kael didn’t even look at him.

“She will.”

Evelynn narrowed her eyes immediately.

“I don’t like the sound of that.”

“You are currently the center of a political crisis,” Kael replied calmly. “Congratulations.”

Fantastic.

Exactly what she always wanted.

The meeting dissolved shortly afterward, though the hostile stares followed Evelynn the entire way out.

Especially from the elder.

That one definitely looked like he’d enjoy poisoning her tea.

The silver-eyed servant guided her through another maze of palace corridors afterward.

“This way.”

Evelynn sighed dramatically. “If I die here, it’ll be from excessive walking.”

The servant actually snorted quietly this time.

Progress.

Eventually they reached a quieter section of the palace overlooking the snowy cliffs beyond the city walls.

The east wing.

Her new “rooms” turned out to be larger than her entire home back in Ardenshire.

Evelynn stopped in the doorway.

A massive fireplace burned with controlled golden flame. Dark velvet curtains framed enormous windows overlooking the mountains. Shelves lined one wall beside a polished black bathtub big enough to drown in comfortably.

There was even fresh food waiting on a table.

Real food.

Not watery soup.

Evelynn stared suspiciously.

“This feels illegal.”

The servant looked confused.

“It belonged to a royal guest once.”

“Did they survive?”

A pause.

“…no.”

Of course not.

The servant cleared his throat awkwardly.

“My name is Serin, by the way.”

Finally.

A name.

“Evelynn.”

“I know.”

Fair point.

Serin hesitated near the doorway.

Then quietly asked:

“What exactly happened in the throne room yesterday?”

Evelynn looked toward the fire.

“I honestly have no idea.”

That part, at least, was true.

Because none of this made sense.

Not the necklace.

Not the fire.

And definitely not the Dragon King looking at her like she was both a problem—

and the answer to one.