How To Break Qaq If The Dragon Catches The Wrong Person? Chapter 1

Chapter 1 Lost

“Prince, your fortune is good today, but it seems you will encounter some lovely little troubles.”

In the early spring of the 236th year of Velen’s New Era, inside the great hall of the Skyshine Royal Palace, the King’s personal Astrologer, Farg—an old man in a silk robe with a long, curly white beard—looked at the young and promising Crown Prince before him and said with a chuckle.

As he spoke, he handed a tied cloth pouch to Kairis, his expression benevolent: “Take this with you. Perhaps you will find a use for it.”

Kairis had just emerged from the inner chambers, having changed into his armor and intending to leave. Hearing this, he paused slightly, his gaze sweeping over the white cloth pouch in the old man’s hand. He accepted it, then gave a noncommittal nod and offered a word of thanks.

He didn’t take the words he heard much to heart.

The pouch was light, and he wasn’t particularly interested in its contents. He simply tucked it away and left the castle with the Personal Guards trailing behind him.

His father was growing older and had become quite idle after using the excuse of cultivation to dump most of the State Affairs onto him. Consequently, the King had developed an interest in Metaphysics, such as divination and fortune-telling. Recently, he had even summoned the Royal Astrologer to serve at his side, spending hours happily conversing with Farg every day.

Kairis didn’t put much faith in these things; the results of the divinations were usually ambiguous anyway.

Lately, there had been incidents of Monsters injuring people in the suburbs outside the Royal City. The nearby residents were terrified, and the matter had been reported only yesterday, urgently requiring attention.

The area was not far from the Royal City.

Thinking that he had been stuck in the Palace for too long, buried under mountains of State Affairs, it was time to get out and stretch his legs. So, Prince Kairis simply gathered a small team of Personal Guards, intending to resolve the disturbance himself.

It was early spring, and the sky was just beginning to lighten. The entire Royal City was covered in a thin, hazy mist. Kairis led the fully prepared young men to the stables.

The stable boy had already brought out his horse and was waiting.

The horse stood majestically before the rest of the herd, its coat snow-white, tall and strong, with elegant and beautiful muscle lines. It had dedicated caretakers for its diet and daily life and was extremely well-kept.

The white horse was initially a bit sluggish from being forcibly woken up, but upon seeing its long-absent master, it happily stomped its foot, regaining some spirit.

Kairis patted its head, swung himself cleanly onto the saddle, and waited until the Palace Guards behind him were ready. He simply said, “Let’s go.”

And so, the group traversed the empty, mist-shrouded streets, heading toward the less populated forest.

This was Mian’s third—or perhaps more, he couldn’t keep track—circle flying in the sky.

The entirely pearly-white Little Dragon flew through the clouds, the moisture constantly hitting his body, carrying the unique chill of early spring.

Mian flapped his wings diligently, looking down at the dense, seemingly endless forest below, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

Why… did all these places look exactly the same?

It was all woods and mountains; he couldn’t find any trace of human life.

The first reason for his dizziness was being lost; the second reason was… hunger.

He hadn’t eaten anything for over a day.

Before setting off, his mother told him it would only take half a day to reach the castle he was heading to. Thinking the journey wasn’t long, he hadn’t brought any food.

…But fate rarely favors a dragon’s wishes. After a full day of persistent flying, Mian was ultimately lost among the layers of dense forests and mountains.

He was now hungry and exhausted, feeling like he was about to Dragonfall at any second.

Finding something to eat was the priority.

Mian shook his head, trying to suppress his fatigue, and lowered his flying altitude slightly, intending to find a place to land and rest first.

As his altitude decreased, the vegetation on the ground gradually became clearer. Just as he selected a landing spot, a team of people suddenly appeared in his view.

This startled him, and he quickly abandoned his intention to descend further.

Mian hesitantly hovered in mid-air, observing the moving black dots for a while.

These people were coming from the direction ahead.

That must mean the castle wasn’t far from here!

Thinking this, Mian regained a little energy. He figured it wouldn’t be too late to rest once he reached his destination, so he diligently flapped his wings again, flying in the opposite direction from the approaching group.

Outside the Royal City, the capital of the Velen Empire, the otherwise unchanging calm morning was broken by several exclamations.

“Heavens, what was that in the sky just now? Did you see it?” a woman with thick braided pigtails and a wicker basket full of eggs slung over her shoulder shouted, looking toward a spot in the sky not far away.

“I saw it too. It was something white, and it looked like it fell into the woods!” A man pulling a Wagon beside her chimed in agreement.

They weren’t the only ones; many people outside the city witnessed the scene—an unidentified white object that had been flying in the sky nearby suddenly plummeted straight down, disappearing into the dense forest.

The City Guards at the city gate quickly noticed the commotion. After a brief inquiry into the situation, the Guard Captain swiftly dispatched a few men to investigate the woods.

Many curious citizens realized what was happening and also headed in groups toward the direction where the object fell, wanting to join the excitement.

The sudden appearance of an unknown object in the Royal City’s sky should have caused panic, but this was the Velen Empire—the most powerful and wealthiest nation on the entire Ers Continent.

Even though other nations constantly bickered, none dared to declare war on them. The citizens were too well-protected, and their courage was generally high.

Amidst the crowds flocking to the forest, a figure that seemed out of place brushed past them, heading in the opposite direction.

He wore clothes that looked simple at first glance, even a bit worn and outdated, but upon closer inspection, the material was indiscernible. He wasn’t wearing shoes, and his hair and body were dusted with grass clippings and small twigs, making him look somewhat disheveled.

His green eyes drooped, giving him a listless appearance.

He hadn’t walked two steps before his strength gave out, and he collapsed, fainting instantly.

When Mian woke up, he found himself lying on a bed.

The ceiling above was unfamiliar, a gray expanse.

After a moment to recover, he lightly coughed, and his brain slowly began to function.

“Hey, are you… are you alright?” Before he could react to his current situation, a clear voice suddenly sounded beside him, tinged with concern and confusion.

Mian looked over and saw a small human child with brown hair and freckles.

Miya was slightly stunned when the boy looked at him.

It wasn’t obvious when he was asleep, but now that the person was awake, the sense of incongruity about him intensified.

Although he was dressed simply, he possessed a face that was completely incompatible with that word—the boy’s hair was glossy black and smooth, his skin had a milky-white texture, and his pupils were the color of emeralds. His features were delicate and beautiful, and his hands were clean and slender, showing no trace of ever having done manual labor.

These were all characteristics found in someone who had been pampered and meticulously cared for since childhood.

Moreover, his demeanor was unique; Miya had never seen it in anyone else.

It was as if he didn’t belong here, but rather…

Before Miya could figure out where he should belong, the boy’s voice rang out, slightly raw and hoarse, yet very polite: “…Could I please have some water?”

“Oh, oh!” Remembering that this person had fainted not long ago and could still be considered a patient, Miya quickly put aside his thoughts and went to fetch water for him.

Mian blinked his emerald eyes and turned his gaze back to the ceiling.

He only remembered that, due to exhaustion, he had fallen near the human settlement area and was forced to transform into his Human Form—then lost consciousness after only a few steps.

He hadn’t been this weak before; even flying for two days without food or water wouldn’t have caused such a reaction. But recently, for some unknown reason, his body had suddenly become a bit heavy and he tired more easily.

He sighed silently in his heart.

But that wasn’t what he needed to worry about right now.

While the human child was fetching water, Mian propped himself up slightly and surveyed his surroundings.

This was a house built of stone.

—While it couldn’t be called completely bare, it wasn’t far off.

He could see fine cobwebs on the ceiling. The window was wide open, covered only by a thin cloth serving as a curtain, which was occasionally blown inward by the wind. The room’s furnishings consisted only of a bed, two cabinets, a small wooden table, and a sofa of an indeterminate color.

The only thing that counted as decoration was a framed photograph on the wall, showing a family of four smiling happily.

Mian shifted his gaze back to the little boy.

Miya was just returning after pouring the water.

The cup was quite full, so he carefully carried the rough earthenware mug over. After successfully handing it to Mian, he let out a sigh of relief.

Mian instinctively wanted to thank him, but his throat was dry, so he could only offer him a grateful smile for the moment.

The cool liquid slid down his throat. Once the discomfort in his voice was slightly alleviated, Mian put down the cup. The novelty of speaking to a human for the first time gradually surged, momentarily overriding the persistent hunger.

After thinking for a moment, he curved his eyes and said kindly to the boy, “Thank you for helping me.”

The boy seemed unaccustomed to hearing such words. His ears quickly turned red, and he stammered in response, head lowered: “It’s… it’s nothing. I’m just glad you’re alright now.”

“May I ask where this place is?” Mian curved his lips and inquired again.

“This is the Royal City,” Miya replied, secretly relieved that the boy had initiated conversation, as he was struggling to find something to say.

“Oh,” Mian acknowledged, then asked, “Do you know how to get to the castle?”

“Cas… castle?” Miya was momentarily confused, then understood his meaning: “Are you trying to go to the Royal Palace?”

Mian nodded: “Yes.”

“That’s not a place you can just wander into,” Miya paused, looking serious. “There are many, many guards.”

“They will let me in,” Mian insisted. “Can you take me near there?”

As he spoke, he pulled a piece of golden material from his pocket and handed it to Miya, hesitatingly asking, “Take this as payment… is it enough?”

The object felt cool in his hand. Miya looked down and saw a substantial chunk of gold.

Miya: “…”

He had never seen so much money before. When he came to his senses, he was so startled that he quickly tossed it back to Mian as if it were a hot potato, urgently saying, “I, I’ll take you there, you don’t need to give me this…”

Miya had initially been suspicious, but seeing him casually produce such a large piece of gold made him believe his claims a little more.

In truth, he had only saved this person because he didn’t look like a bad guy and hadn’t expected any reward.

But if he really could enter the Royal Palace…

Miya hesitated for a while, then confirmed, “Can you really get in?”

“Yes, I can,” Mian nodded in response.

“I don’t want the gold…” Miya struggled for a long time, but finally mustered the courage to speak: “If you really can get in… could you help me find someone?”

Before Mian could speak, Miya rushed to explain: “My sister is in the Palace, and I haven’t been able to contact her for a long time… Could you please check on her for me?”

As he spoke, his expression gradually became a little downcast.

Mian was slightly taken aback, inexplicably thinking of the photograph on the wall.

“Alright, I’ll help you look for her,” he promised confidently.