The Cursed Prince

Emmelyn cleared her throat and nodded. "Okay. Let's ride the dragon. I want to see this through to the end immediately."

"Renwyck, let me go up with Emmelyn and we will wait for you in front of the castle. Then I will send Aslain to come back and pick you up with Lysander," Maxim told his wizard.

"All right, Your Majesty," said Renwyck. He turned to his dragon who was leisurely licking his claws and spoke to him in a foreign language. Aslain's ears perked up and he turned to Maxim. The king smiled at him and walked closer to pat the majestic animal's back

"Good boy," he said.

Aslain lowered his back all the way down and Maxim motioned Emmelyn to climb the dragon's back. Emmelyn did it hesitatingly.

She was not as brave as she was in the past because now she just wanted to stay alive for Harlow and was afraid of taking unnecessary risks.

But seeing Maxim's calm demeanor, she told herself it was okay. She wanted to quickly meet Margueritte and talked to her.

So, Emmelyn climbed the dragon's back with Maxim's help. After she was seated, she held on to the dragon's neck anxiously. Maxim jumped lightly and sat behind her.

"Let's go," he whispered to Emmelyn's ear and tapped Aslain's neck lightly. "Take us to the top!"

SWOOSH...!

Emmelyn suddenly pressed her front body to Aslain's back and held on tightly by the sudden movement.

"Whoaaa..!" Emmelyn already expected riding the dragon would be scary, exhilarating, and nerve-wracking at the same time, but nothing prepared her for what she felt once Aslain took off to the sky.

The thing was, the dragon playfully jumped down from the cliffside they were on and caused his passengers to turn into a panic before he started flapping his wings and went up.

Maxim was not surprised by this because he had known Aslain for a long time. So, he just scolded Aslain for scaring Emmelyn. 

"I am sorry, Aslain has no manners," said Maxim apologetically. "Sometimes I think he used to be human and was cursed by a powerful witch to become dragon because he offended the witch greatly. This dragon has too much personality."

"Huh?" Emmelyn turned her head and looked at Maxim with pursed lips. "I am scared shirtless, but you turn this into another joke-telling moment."

"Ahaha.. I did, didn't I?" Maxim scratched his head and chuckled. "Sorry, I just wanted to make you feel more relaxed. My first time riding a dragon, I almost peed my pants. So, I imagine this would feel so scary for you."

"You did?" Emmelyn batted her eyes in astonishment. She didn't expect Maxim who always looked so brave and unfazed could feel that way. So, he almost peed his pants?

"Yeah, I am telling you the truth," Maxim said. He reached out his arms and said to Emmelyn, "You can hold my arms while we are flying. You will be okay."

Emmelyn slowly rose up and sat properly on Aslain's back. Her stomach churned but she already felt slightly better. Then, as she saw Maxim's arms reached out to her sides, she reluctantly touched them as if touching fire.

Maxim chuckled and nodded. "Go ahead, you will feel more balanced."

"Uff... okay."

Emmelyn gripped his arms and braced herself for the ride. Once she had felt more confident, she actually could enjoy the flight toward the mountain top.

"Are you okay?" Maxim asked Emmelyn, clearly pleased that she had leaned her body to his and held his arms tightly. "We will land soon. That's the castle right over there."

"Yeah.. I am fine," Emmelyn replied. She held her breath in awe at seeing the beautiful earth under them. It was too breathtaking.

So, this was what it looked like, to see the land from above... This was how birds felt.

"It's amazing," she whispered.

Renwyck and Lysander were no longer seen as they were left behind on the cliff, waiting for Aslain to return and pick them up. Emmelyn could see the path going up the mountain top under them, and the ground was covered in white snow.

The temperature felt more chill in the air and Emmelyn soon gritted her teeth.

"I got you," Maxim whispered when he heard the sound of her grinding her teeth. He moved his body closer and hugged Emmelyn with his arms, which were still gripped by her. They immediately shared the warmth and Emmelyn felt better.

She was thankful for this gesture and didn't even think about the fact that Maxim was said to be in love with her. Emmelyn didn't want to dwell on such stuff. She only wanted to get the job done.

And now the job was to meet Margueritte and save Kira.

"That's her castle," Maxim said when they moved closer to the blue castle they saw from below. It was a small castle but built with a very beautiful design. From the top, it looked like a castle made entirely of ice.

It had two towers and one main building with a huge dome, supported by many tall pillars. It looked unreal.

"How did she build her castle in a place like this?" Emmelyn asked in wonder. As Aslain flew closer and closer to the castle, she felt more in awe by the magnificent building.

She thought the snow queen was a fitting name for a powerful witch who lived in an ice castle.

Aslain made several swirling motions over the castle grounds before he folded his wings landed gracefully.  It was a smooth landing.

Emmelyn felt so relieved when they finally reached the ground.  Maxim immediately released his hug from her body and jumped down from Aslain. Then, he helped Emmelyn get off the dragon's back.

"You can go back to Renwyck and bring them here," he said to Aslain. The dragon seemed to understand his words and immediately flew.

"That was amazing..." Emmelyn gushed. "Scary... but amazing."

Maxim was amused to hear her words. He also liked riding dragons. He thought it was truly a magnificent creature.

"We can ride it again to continue our journey to Castilse, if you want," he said.

"What? No... it's really far," Emmelyn shook her head. "The dragon will be tired."

"He will not," Maxim shook his head. "Aslain didn't feel our weights. Trust me, he must feel like transporting two ants just now."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Huh... I don't believe you," said Emmelyn, pursing her lips.

"Why not?" Maxim asked in astonishment. Shouldn't Emmelyn feel excited about another opportunity to ride an amazing dragon?

"Because you are a good liar, and you lie so much," Emmelyn blurted.

She had seen Maxim for who he really was. The man was truly her kindred spirit. Lying was part of his gene. He could easily lie without batting an eye, just like her.

Maxim scratched his head and smiled sheepishly. "I did, didn't I? But I never mean you any harm...."

"I know that."

Emmelyn patted his back and ended their conversation. She still wanted to smack the man for lying to her, but she couldn't do it. Not only because he was a king, but also because Emmelyn saw herself in Maxim. She lied too. A lot.

"Hello...." Emmelyn decided to greet the castle owner and made their presence known. She didn't want Margueritte to think she just had guests without manners who came unannounced.