"Hey!"
August's voice echoed through the quiet streets.
"Hey, wait up!"
Melania reacted to it. There was no way she couldn't considering how obvious he was. However, in the darkness, the first thing she registered was an unknown shadow approaching her rapidly, so she naturally took a defensive stance.
She was holding a bag of groceries, but she'd already prepared to drop it if things got ugly.
"Woah, relax! Remember me?"
August slowed down and let her eyes adjust so she could see him.
"You are…the boy from before?" Melania said, somewhat relaxing but keeping her guard up.
They didn't know each other. There were loads of things August could do to her right now that she wouldn't want, especially if he really was a hidden noble.
"That's right. My name is August. We met at the testing facility earli–."
"What do you want?"
Melania cut him off and got straight to the point. She was too close to home to allow any random man to take up her time.
Nothing could be allowed to go awry.
'Why is she wary?'
August understood mostly, but he didn't understand why she'd instantly assume that he was trying to do something nefarious.
'It must have something to do with her own experience.'
Her life was different from his, so they reacted to things differently.
He would probably be curious first and wary later, but Melania suppressed her curiosity and stayed cautious of everything around her.
"Um, well, I don't know how to say this without embarrassing myself, but…I'm lost. Would you mind pointing me towards the city?"
August was frank. Obviously, she didn't want to entertain him, so he was fine with just getting directions and leaving.
Melania looked him up and down.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})His clothes were dirty since he'd been sitting around on the unpaved rock that was the roads in this area. He had dark circles under his eyes, whether from worry or tiredness.
He really didn't look the same as he did when they first met, though his demeanor didn't change at all.
"Before that, how did you even get over here?"
Disregarding her first instinct, Melania asked about his situation.
"I don't really know? I was just walking, then I smelled something so I came this way, and then I kept walking, and somehow I ended up here."
"Somehow?"
"Yeah, somehow."
"Ha."
Melania almost couldn't believe it. This place was three hours outside of the city. There was nothing nearby except other decrepit houses and the bland livelihoods of the common people that often went ignored.
Was it even possible to come to this place unless one was born here?
Melania didn't think so, but everything about August told her that he wasn't lying to her.
'Is he naive or is he just stupid?'
She couldn't tell.
But with his attitude…
"If you go back to the city now, you won't find anything good."
"Crime" didn't exist here. Dragons didn't commit "crimes."
However, a draconic society was still a draconic society. It was a ruthless place where the strong prevailed and the weak were suppressed.
"Crime" didn't exist because things that could be deemed as crimes elsewhere weren't the same here.
If one was strong, one could rob and steal as one pleased. If one was strong, the will of others didn't matter.
If one attacked someone weaker, they wouldn't be punished. Unless, of course, someone stronger than them didn't like what they were doing.
If someone like August, who looked like a fallen noble, entered the city at a time like this, there was no way he'd see the sun unscathed.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})August didn't know this, so he was a bit confused.
'What am I supposed to do if I can't make it back? Sleep on the streets?'
Wasn't it a bit rude for–
"Haa…"
Melania sighed before he could finish that train of thought.
"Come with me."
She started walking without another word.
August looked around, as if he was asking the world if she was talking to him.
But seeing her continue to walk whether he followed her or not, he just stopped asking questions and rushed to catch up with her.
Melania led him through the maze-like streets of this residential district until they reached one of the many monotonous residences that outsiders would never be able to tell apart.
She only turned around to face him again when they reached the door.
"If you say anything out of line, you're gone. If you do anything even slightly suspicious, you're gone. Just be mindful, sleep, and leave in the morning. You can find a hotel or something tomorrow."
August's eyes widened slightly.
"Wait…you're letting me stay here?"
It was a sudden proposal, but not an unwelcomed one. August would much rather sleep for free than pay for a hotel, especially if he had to spend hours returning to the city before he could even find one.
"Just shut up and follow me."
Melania sounded like she didn't want to deal with this at all, but…
She was the one who brought him, wasn't she?
He asked for directions to the city, but she chose to show kindness instead.
'She has it in her, but her circumstances don't allow her to be kind, huh?'
August read it almost immediately.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})'Is this the norm around here?'
He was forced to wonder as he accepted Melania's terms and followed her into the house.
Immediately, he was blessed with warmth.
It was quite cold outside. Arulion's climate was varied and ever-
changing. It had six seasons, and currently, it was the equivalent of winter in this sector of the kingdom.
August was more resistant to cold than other dragons, who were already more resistant to cold than other races. It was one of the many benefits of an Azure Dragon lineage.
Still, the warmth was much appreciated. The instant he entered the house, he felt like he'd been healed.
"Sit over there."
Melania's voice drew August's attention. She used her head to motion over to a small chair, one of only a few in the house.
Aside from the warmth, there really wasn't much.
A kitchen, a table where four people could sit, another small chair and a worn center table that constituted the "living room," and a stone staircase leading to the second floor.
August didn't comment on it, instead opting to just do as he was told.
Melania went to the kitchen with her groceries and started putting them away.
"I'll set up some blankets for you, so you can sleep where you are right now. No matter what, the upstairs area is off-limits. If you even think about it, I'll kill you."
She still hadn't looked at him more than a few times. Melania was putting in effort to make sure this was just a random act of kindness, not something he should take for granted.
And August accepted those sentiments.
He didn't plan to impose on her for longer than he needed to, and her…family circumstances had nothing to do with him.
'I can't help but be curious, though.'
Melania's attitude towards the upstairs area was far sharper than anything else she'd said.
'Her motivation…could it be?'
August looked at the ceiling, but he didn't think too hard about it.
In the end, if Melania didn't want to share her life, he wasn't going to press about it.
He was just thankful that she decided to show him kindness.
And for that, he had to reciprocate in kind.
