IYAMD: Episode 83

Time passed quickly. Three days flew by in the blink of an eye, and at last, the day they had planned to lure the dragon arrived.

Jaha woke up early in the morning, completed a light energy circulation exercise, and checked his condition. His Inner Energy had grown stronger than before, but he was still uncertain how effective it would be against an unknown monster.

As soon as Jaha emerged from his meditation, Marsilia, who had been standing guard, opened his eyes and approached him.

“Are you ready?”

“Yeah.”

“How do you feel?”

“I’m fine.”

Marsilia extended his hand with a pleasant smile.

“And you?”

“I’m always fine as long as you’re here.”

Jaha shook his head at the shamelessly smooth remark but still took his outstretched hand and stood up.

“I’m going to eat first and take my time preparing.”

Right on cue, Malek stirred outside the tent.

“I have brought your meal, Your Majesty.”

“Come in.”

The meal was simpler than usual—a consideration to keep their bodies light. Jaha sat beside Marsilia and took a bite of the stew Malek had brought. His eyes widened.

The rich taste of meat fat clung to his tongue, followed by a subtle yet unfamiliar spice.

Marsilia, noticing Jaha smack his lips, leaned in.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s delicious.”

Marsilia continued eating but remarked offhandedly,

“Now that I think about it, this might be the first time I’ve heard you say something tastes good.”

Jaha scooped up another spoonful before replying,

“It’s been a long time since I could actually taste anything.”

Marsilia went quiet for a moment.

“You mentioned that before… briefly.”

Jaha nodded. Seeing this, Marsilia carefully asked,

“Since when?”

“Almost three years now.”

“…Can I ask why?”

Marsilia’s cautious tone made Jaha smile faintly.

“When I was young, I left home with my master to train in martial arts. After years of harsh training deep in the mountains, I finally returned home—only to find everyone dead. Since then…”

Even now, thinking back to that moment made his heart race like it was about to burst. His fingers trembled as he clenched his spoon tightly, but the shaking wouldn’t stop.

Marsilia placed his hand over Jaha’s and whispered,

“It’s okay, Jaha. You don’t have to say anything more.”

He wrapped both hands around Jaha’s and gently breathed warm air over them, as if trying to warm them from the cold. Only then did Jaha realize how icy his hands had become.

For some reason, his blurred vision met Marsilia’s green eyes—vivid and full of life. A deep, weary sigh escaped his lips.

“It’s okay, Jaha. I promised, didn’t I? That I would be the place you can return to.”

Jaha gave a melancholic smile.

“And then you’ll ask me to bear your child, won’t you?”

At Jaha’s teasing remark, Marsilia looked a bit flustered. He pressed a soft kiss to the back of Jaha’s hand and muttered under his breath.

“When you put it like that, you make me sound like a terrible man.”

“Aren’t you?”

Jaha asked, as composed as ever. For some reason, the rapid beating of his heart had settled.

Marsilia traced Jaha’s cheek with his fingertips and murmured,

“Maybe I am, just a little.”

Jaha rolled his eyes, but Marsilia leaned in closer and whispered,

“Because right now, I feel like I’m going mad wanting to kiss you.”

“Ahem.”

A sudden cough interrupted them. Marsilia stopped mid-motion and turned his head toward the sound.

Malek, his face slightly flushed, was clearing his throat and covering his mouth with his fist.

“I’ll take my leave. Please call for me once you’ve finished eating.”

As soon as Malek stepped out, Marsilia tilted his head with a smirk.

“I think that was permission to kiss you.”

Jaha gave him a dumbfounded look—only to realize too late that he had let his guard down.

The moment their lips met, he could taste the rich, nutty flavor unique to grain bread. Drawn in by the taste, Jaha instinctively flicked out his tongue. Marsilia’s green eyes widened slightly in surprise before curving into crescent moons.

…

After finishing their meal and stepping outside, they were met with the commotion of soldiers organizing their formations. Ballistae were set up between the open space leading to the valley and the camp’s tents, each one manned by ten knights and a couple of priests.

Marsilia clicked his tongue as he observed them. If engineers had built the ballistae, they would have been designed to pull the bowstrings automatically. But with the current lack of technology and materials, they had no choice but to draw them manually.

The sheer size of the bolts, along with the thick bowstrings, made loading them no simple task. It took two well-built knights working together just to pull back a single string, requiring a large rotation of personnel to keep up the effort.

As for the bolts, they were closer to wooden stakes, roughly carved from tree trunks. The sheer weight of them made the idea of transporting them to the valley seem absurd.

I just hope the lure works.

For days now, Marsilia had been too preoccupied with this plan to get any real rest. At night, he would hold Jaha in his arms, and for a brief moment, the anxiety would subside—only to creep back in again. Though he pretended to be asleep so Jaha wouldn’t notice, he had only managed an hour or two of proper rest each day.

As he stood watching the knights demonstrate the loading process, Jaha approached him.

“I’m ready.”

As always, he wore light attire, his hair tied up tightly. The strands swayed gently with his movements, and before Marsilia realized it, his hand had already reached out and tugged at them.

Jaha turned toward him, their eyes meeting. Marsilia gave a sheepish smile before pressing a short kiss to the strands.

“When it dangles in front of me like this, I can’t help but grab it.”

Jaha let out a small, exasperated laugh at the flimsy excuse but didn’t pull away. Marsilia took his time enjoying the soft texture between his fingers, feeling an unexpected sense of calm settle over him.

Lowering his gaze, he stared at the strands in his hand—until he suddenly became aware of Jaha’s gaze.

Jaha, his expression slightly strained, whispered in a troubled tone.

“People are watching.”

Only then did Marsilia look around. As soon as he did, several knights hastily averted their gazes.

Among them, one stood out—Darren. He was staring at them, completely dumbfounded, so much so that even after their eyes met, he didn’t manage to look away.

Marsilia let out a quiet chuckle and turned fully toward Jaha.

“No one’s watching.”

Jaha scowled and muttered under his breath.

“Everyone is, you idiot.”

The complaint, almost childish in tone, made Marsilia burst into laughter.

“This is the first time in my life someone’s called me an idiot. Do you have any idea how severe the crime of insulting a member of the royal family is?”

With a sulky expression, Jaha yanked his hair free from Marsilia’s grasp and turned away. Marsilia, undeterred, followed right behind him with a benevolent smile.

“I’ll forgive you with just one kiss.”

“Not interested.”

“Don’t be like that. Hmm? Jaha, are you mad?”

Darren, still staring blankly at the emperor, turned to Marquis Yoncen Pablo and asked,

“Why… why is His Majesty acting like that?”

Everyone else seemed unfazed, focused on their tasks as if they had seen it all before. Only Darren and the newly arrived knights appeared bewildered.

Marquis Yoncen Pablo cast a glance toward Marsilia, smirked, and replied,

“What’s the problem?”

Deren stammered in disbelief.

“I mean, His Majesty… He’s acting like that!”

“Seems normal to me,” the marquis said with a chuckle.

Deren let out a shaky breath and turned to face him.

“You call that normal?”

The marquis shrugged as if nothing was out of the ordinary and left to observe the other knights demonstrating the ballista loading.

Left alone, Darren found the situation so strange and unfamiliar that he searched for someone who could explain it. However, everyone was too focused on the ballistae to spare him any attention.

He already knew that Jaha was the emperor’s soulmate. He had an idea of what Jaha had done in the imperial palace and how the emperor regarded him. He had spent enough time standing guard outside Jaha’s chambers to believe he understood the situation.

And yet, it had only been a month. The emperor had left the palace only a month ago. How had he changed so drastically in such a short time?

For someone who had only ever known the emperor as a solemn and dignified figure, the sight before him was utterly shocking. That man, unable to contain his emotions like an impatient youth—that was his emperor?

Without realizing it, Darren tilted his head back toward the sky, as if checking whether it was collapsing or if the sun had started rising in the west. His wide, bewildered eyes trembled violently.

—

Jaha and Marsilia ran through the forest toward the valley. Sasha had accompanied them to the base of the mountain before turning back with the horses. Now, the two of them had to lure the dragon and race back to the camp.

They hadn’t felt it when they left under the knights’ watchful gazes, but now that they were on their own, worry began to creep in.

“Can that thing fly faster than we can run?”

Just before the dragon came into view, Jaha stopped and posed the question. Marsilia tilted his head slightly.

“As big as it is, it can’t be that fast. We should be able to keep up.”

“But still, it flies. Wouldn’t it be faster than running?”

Marsilia smirked and winked at Jaha.

“In that case, you’ll have to carry me.”

“Alright.”

Jaha’s immediate response made Marsilia break into a radiant smile.

“When you answer so confidently, it makes my heart race.”

“…What?”

“Because it makes me happy.”

“That’s the weirdest thing…”

Jaha felt a sudden heat rise to his face under Marsilia’s intense gaze. He stepped away, muttering under his breath.

“You’re such a strange man.”

When they reached the cliffside, Marsilia followed and summoned his divine power. A translucent green barrier enveloped both of them, and he reminded Jaha,

“I already explained that a dragon’s magic is usually tied to its color, right?”

“Yeah.”

Marsilia had carefully selected the most important details from the vast documents Serez had compiled and shared them with Jaha. Since the information wasn’t overwhelming, Jaha had memorized it with ease.

“Dark-element magic is usually some form of curse. I can purify it with my divine power, but try not to get hit if you can help it.”

“Got it.”

As Jaha prepared to descend the cliff, Marsilia lightly caught his wrist. The forward momentum pulled Jaha slightly off balance, his arm stretching back. When he turned to face Marsilia, the man swallowed dryly and murmured,

“Be careful. Be really careful. If you get hurt, I’ll be devastated.”

Jaha met his gaze for a moment, then quietly lifted himself onto his toes.

Chup.

His lips barely brushed Marsilia’s chin before he pulled away, face flushing red.

“You be careful too, Mar. ”

Marsilia wasn’t the only one who would be upset if the other got hurt. If anything happened to him, Jaha would be devastated as well.

Suppressing a sigh, he leaped off the cliff and stepped onto the air.

—

Below, the dragon was crouched in the valley, just as before. As Jaha closed the distance, the beast’s eyelids lifted, sensing his presence.

Still moving midair, Jaha drew his sword. He ran his fingers along the blade from hilt to tip, extending a sharp arc of energy.

The dragon’s eyes cracked open just as Jaha unleashed the attack. The blade cut through the air, leaving behind a cold whisper, and the crescent-shaped white light shot straight toward the dragon’s head.

“ROOOAAARRR!”

A guttural scream tore from the beast’s throat as the energy strike exploded on impact. The shockwave sent dust surging up like a thick mist, as if the blast had disturbed a bed of bones beneath it.

Jaha leaped once more, spinning midair. The force of the rotation amplified his next strike, and just as he unleashed another arc of energy, black shadows emerged from within the dust cloud.

Dark orbs shot toward him at high speed.

So that’s its magic.

Jaha twisted his body to dodge the successive projectiles. As they streaked past, they exuded an eerie, menacing aura.

They looked like simple spheres at first, but up close, they crackled with black lightning, tendrils of energy flickering around them.

One of the orbs brushed against his barrier, and it shredded apart as if something had bitten into it. In the next moment, the entire protective shield shattered around him.

Marsilia watched from the cliffside, then quickly reinforced Jaha’s barrier and shouted,

“Jaha, don’t let that touch you!”

“I know.”

Jaha answered so quietly that Marsilia likely couldn’t hear him. He didn’t know exactly what that magic was, but if he made contact with it, he’d be swallowed whole without a trace. He swallowed dryly as he watched one of the orbs that had missed him crash into the cliffside.

Magic was more terrifying than he had thought. A faint chill prickled at his temple.

When the sphere struck the rock, it didn’t simply shatter or crack—it vanished, leaving behind a perfectly round indentation. If they had gone into battle without realizing how that magic worked, they might have been obliterated on the spot.

If today’s attempt to lure the dragon failed, they would have to retreat without a second thought. Fighting in this narrow valley would mean certain annihilation for the knights.

Suppressing the urge to leap down the cliff immediately, Marsilia kept his eyes fixed on Jaha.

Just as Jaha dodged the last of the dark spheres and prepared to swing his sword again, the dragon’s head burst out from the mist. Its massive maw, large enough to swallow Jaha whole, exhaled a sinister fog that spread in all directions. Everything it touched began to melt.

“Jaha, fall back now!”

Marsilia silently called the goddess’s name over and over. Why, Goddess? Why would you send such a calamity upon us?

The sheer power of the dragon was overwhelming—it wasn’t even breathing fire, yet its breath alone was melting the surroundings. A shudder ran down Marsilia’s spine.

And in front of that horror, Jaha was still dodging and weaving, slashing at the dragon’s approaching maw. But no matter how many times he struck, his blade couldn’t pierce the dragon’s hardened scales. Even from a distance, Marsilia could practically hear Jaha clicking his tongue in frustration.

“Jaha!”

Marsilia shouted at the top of his lungs.

The dragon’s breath had already melted through Jaha’s barrier, and the black mist was now pouring over his body.

In that instant of peril, Marsilia unleashed an explosive surge of divine power. His aura enveloped Jaha, forming an even thicker barrier around him. At the same time, the light sought out any potential injuries, working to heal him.

Bathed in deep green light, Jaha cast a brief glance his way and offered a faint smile.

And then—

“ROOOAAARRR! ”

The dragon threw its jaws wide open and let out an ear-splitting roar.