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But Dash wasn't the one at fault.

There were a lot of things that were his fault--a lot of things that no apology could ever be enough for--but at that time, all he had done was extended his hand. Kel was the one who chose to accept it.

"Dash was just trying to protect me," Kel insisted firmly, her own fiery gaze burning against the emperor's.

"Yeah?" the emperor lowered his voice. "Is that why he hid you away in some obscure village, making himself the only person you could rely on?"

"He only did that so you couldn't find me!" Kel retorted, instinctively repeating the same explanation she'd heard from Dash over and over again.

Besides, it wasn't as if Dash was the only person she could rely on while in Tael. She also had Nesta and Harrow who took her in, and if she had wanted to run away, well…

"What about Halseva?" Calix shot back. "At the most bustling port in Pandreia, no, in the whole continent, you could have easily gotten on a ship and started a new life across the sea."

"Uh.. well.."

Kel remembered Dash talking about preparing a place for her to go in Prandreia, but for some reason, she felt tongue tied.

"And how about Vitocia?" the emperor prattled on. "The westernmost kingdom and farthest from Serin, littered with quaint towns and thriving cities. Wouldn't you be safe there?"

Kel bit her lip. When Dash told her why he had chosen to take her to Tael, it made complete sense. The small northern village really did seem like the safest place for her.

But now, none of the things Dash had told her seemed like a suitable rebuttal for the emperor's accusations.

"Ah. Is it your hair?" Calix questioned, glancing to where Kel had subconsciously grabbed one of her golden locks as she was deep in thought. "That issue could have easily been solved with mehndi paste or some other dye."

"Right.." Kel tried to swallow around the lump in her throat.

It was Dash the emperor was attacking, so why did she feel so hurt?

Because she felt bad for her friend or because, once again, she'd let herself be fooled by him?

"I can't blame him too much, though," Calix's voice softened as he took the piece of hair out of Kel's fingers and held it to his lips. "I've often thought of locking you away, myself."

Several minutes later, Kel burst out of the emperor's tent, dressed in her uniform with her hair tied up.

The Dragon's Heart had already come to life with several soldiers bustling about.

Completely oblivious to the commotion around her, Kel idley made her way to the infantry division where her squad would no doubt be frustrated with her tardiness.

"Oi newbie, are you alright?"

Alaric's voice shook Kel from her daydream. When she looked up, she had already arrived at her squad's tent which was, strangely enough, still standing.

"Do you have a fever or something?" Alaric took a step closer, reaching for her forehead. "Your whole face is completely red."

"Ah.." Kel touched her burning cheeks, ducking away from her squadmate's hand.

How could her face not be red after the exchange she'd shared with the emperor?

After the mood had changed between them, she'd scrambled off the bed to get dressed. She was afraid she'd be devoured if she spent another second in the dark tent, entangled in Calix's arms, feeling his hot breaths against her neck.

The emperor had watched amusedly as she fumbled with her chest wrapping and then clumsily tugged the rest of her clothes on, only speaking when she was finished.

"Are you going to play soldier again?" he had asked playfully.

"Mmm," Kel nodded vigorously, not daring to meet his eyes.

"That's fine," Calix had chuckled.

"But tonight, you're coming back to play with me."

Kel flinched as the words replayed in her head. How could the man switch from being adorable and innocent one minute to furious the next and then suddenly become incredibly provocative?

"Do you want to go inside and rest?"

Severin had come up next to Alaric while Kel was busy with her thoughts.

"Uh what?" Kel asked, glancing between the two men, both clearly concerned about her current state.

"Rest inside the tent," Severin repeated, motioning to the squad's tent. "We received orders this morning that we aren't moving today, after all."

"Oh! No!" Kel exclaimed, waving her hands.

The last thing she needed right now was to be alone with the memories of each part of her skin that had been explored, caressed and kissed by the Dragon Emperor.

Severin and Alaric looked at each other and shrugged.

"Maybe the newbie just needs some fresh air!" Matty's high-pitched voice joined the conversation. "Seeing as we suddenly have to make assignments for patrols now that we're stationary for the day."

"You're just trying to get out of your assignment!" Alaric rolled his eyes as the boy's curly head bounded up to them.

"I would never! I'm just trying to do what's best for our dear squadmate," Matty defended himself dramatically.

​ "Ha! You punk!" Alaric shot back, rubbing his fist fiercely against the boy's head.

"Hey! It hurts," Matty whimpered.

"Enough, you two," Severin demanded, shaking his head at the two soldiers' childishness. "Kel clearly isn't feeling well, so Ma-"

"N-no!" Kel jumped in, shocking all three men.

"I mean, I'd like to go on patrol please, Sir," she immediately corrected herself.

"... Alright then," Severin conceded, much to Matty's joy. "You have about an hour to prepare."

The hour until the morning patrol left passed slowly for Kel.

Everywhere around her were discussions regarding the sudden change in plans and possible reasons the emperor may have called for it.

With each guess made by the speculators, Kel's anxiety grew. Thankfully, nobody asked her for her opinion, which probably would have sent her over the edge.

When the time finally came to meet at the edge of camp, Kel's momentary relief was crushed at seeing a familiar face among the crowd.

Taegus, completely unaware of the chaos behind Kel's feigned smile, waved happily to her with a genuine grin of his own.

The group had scarcely made it past the tree line, however, before Taegus began to notice that something was very wrong with Kel.

"Hey…" the silver-haired boy said softly, pulling Kel to a halt as the rest of the patrol group continued forward.

"Did the emperor find out that you're.. you know.. not a boy?"