Firebolt (The Dragonian Series)(62)

My alarm clock went off again at 4:45, and I rolled out of bed to get ready for my two-mile run with Lucian. My abs still hurt like hell from yesterday’s training but I pushed through it.

Lucian didn't care about my pain either, and we ran the same path we’d taken yesterday. After the trillionth sit-up, we walked back to the academy. I was so grateful for that. He wanted to know more about me and asked about my life with Dad. He looked at me with soft eyes as I told him about Dad's paranoia that made us move every three months. When he had questions regarding why Dad did it, I couldn't answer. The only thing I did know was that it had something to do with the dragons and the conversation that he had with Matt right before he died.

I swallowed hard when he empathized with how hard it must have been to lose my mother to the plague at such a young age. When he saw my look of shock at his statement, he quickly explained that Master Longwei had explained to everyone at the school the unfortunate events of my mom’s passing. If they only knew. This prompted another thought I hadn’t even considered. If Master Longwei had told everyone that she had died, how the hell did the Viden know she had abandoned me? Was she really that good?

The conversation about Dad brought tears to my eyes. He dabbed one softly with his thumb and then kissed me.

“I'm sorry for your loss, Elena. Your dad sounded like an amazing dragon, well, except for the paranoia part,” he joked.

“Do you think you're up for a fancy affair at the palace next weekend? It's my mom's birthday, and you would do me such a big favor if you came.”

“Lucian, please,” I begged. “I'm not ready to meet your parents or go to a fancy party. Sorry.”

“It's fine. However, it's something we need to fix, otherwise it's going to become a huge problem.” I had to suppress my smile. “You know, if it was any other girl, they wouldn't hesitate to come.”

“I'm not any other girl,” I snapped back, hating how people always compared me to others.

“That you aren’t,” he agreed, and I laughed at how formal he sounded. His arms wrapped around my waist. “That's one of the reasons I'm so crazy about you.”

“You’re crazy about me now?” I flirted, and my heart started to beat fast as he bit his lower lip. Crap, that's so hot.

“You know you make me crazy,” he admitted, and I just kissed him. It was a long one, and we were out of breath when we finally parted.

“No running back?” I said hopefully.

“There's still time.” He slapped me hard on my ass as he ran away. The chase was really stupid,because he was crazy fast and before I could spell the words“blink my eyes” he was gone. I found him a couple of minutes later running in place.

Switching back to walking, he started to talk about a way to enhance his hearing ability, so he could use it the next time he was going to try to claim Blake.

Cheng's theory popped in my head.“You know Cheng? He helps me with History─”

“He doesn’t believe that anybody can claim Blake,”he interrupted me, taking the words right out of my mouth.“Just like no one ever believed King Albert claimed any dragon.”

“What do you mean?”

He smiled. “He wasn’t born with a mark,Elena.”

“What?” I was shocked.

“You heard me. Back then,they didn't know about the mark-thing. He believed in what was in here.”He tapped on his chest.“If your mind and heart are in the same place, you can do whatever you want.”

“But didn’t you have to be special to claim a dragon with abilities?”

“Or just really smart,” he said, and grinned. “Why do you think Master Longwei allows the rich to pay so that their non-gifted kids can attend Dragonia?”

I huffed, remembering Becky's conversation and how she’d complained about that. Did she mean King Albert? “He really claimed a Night Villain?”

He nodded. "He claimed the first Chromatic dragon. He started everything.”

“How?”

“It's one of the legends you'll cover soon. Some say that he studied one for years. King Albert was really good with his hands, enhancing equipment was his specialty. He made a shield of the thickest metal that helped him block their acid breath and slobber. They’re evil dragons,and why he chose a Night Villain, no one knows.”

“What do they look like?” I asked, intrigued.

“Extremely ugly. Their faces look like they have been burnt. It’s almost like they aren't immune to the acid themselves. I guess it was one of the reasons King Albert chose the Night Villain.”

“So he claimed one of the most evil dragons just by studying them for a long time?” I said, not completely convinced.