Chapter 2: A Fateful Encounter

When I was a child, I wanted to become a Dragon Knight. I idolize them for their honor and power. I also wanted to have a dragonoid friend who will bring me up to the clouds and soar in the sky. But I never knew that this bubbly idiot will be the woman I would spend the rest of my life with, as a Dragon Knight.

Three years ago is where we first met.

There was a time when we had a fieldtrip in the Goldcliff City. The city is purely urbanized and has been polluted for many generations. The main source of energy in this city is objects called radiation crystals, which produces thick smoke and radioactive wastes. And we are here to learn more about these so called radiation crystals.

All students had a great time, but not me. When I and my friends were wandering to some shops in the square, there was a kid who snatched my bag. I chased them until I got lost into a part of the city where all disgusting dragonoids live. The slums.

Given that I have an aristocratic background for being a noble, I knew deep inside myself that I would never have a dragonoid friend because of their filthy mischievous nature.

Those poor dragonoids only have plywood as the walls of their homes. They all wear ragged clothing. Beggars everywhere. Almost everyone is holding a cup or a basket for begging money. Some of them prefer searching garbage cans or stealing apples in a small store. Men, women, elderly or children. They all look so pale and weak, and also sickening.

Nighttime came, and I failed to retrieve my bag. All my things are in there, so I can’t survive without it. I was lost at that time, so I didn’t know what to do. I decided to enter an inn in the slums which are filled with athletic and muscular dragonoids who looks like they could drink liquor every day.

Red eyes. They are all gleaming at me, a human with a noble lineage. I can sense their hatred, but I continued to stay. I really need some place to stay. I have no choice.

“You seemed totally troubled and exhausted. What do you like?”

That was the first time I saw her. Airelina Frembell. Her red hair was not that long at that time, it only reached her shoulders and is tied in twin ponytails to look cuter to customers. She was the one and only stewardess of the inn.

“I…I…don’t have any money in me. Is a glass of water free?”

She gave me a glass of water. She seemed friendly, as she talked to me comfortably like we’re close friends. I feel relaxed with her also, even if she was a dragonoid. Those red eyes have no hostility in them. Or so I thought at that time.

“So you’re telling me that some kid snatched your bag and now you lost your way and you don’t have any place to stay? Worry not! I’ll give you something to eat and place to stay for the meantime, for one condition. You should do the dishes on the back. Pleeease~ Like totally, I’m the only one left here! Is it a deal?”

At first, I am quite annoyed by her speech pattern and bubbly attitude. But I didn’t have any choice. If you think of it, it is really the best offer I can get. So she gave me a delicious meal and a place to sleep by being her dishwasher just for this night.

The next morning, he insisted to help me find the snatcher. She said that she’s quite close to the slum people so I let her be. We searched everywhere; the dirty wet market, the orphanages and visited some random houses.

Night came and I failed to retrieve my bag again. I don’t know what to do at that time but Airelina said that she can lent me some money and I can just pay it later. That relieved me a little, but there’s nothing better that reclaiming my own bag…

When I was washing dishes, Airelina introduced me to the other crew of the inn who were absent the past night. There was a big guy whom you can easily mistake as a grizzly bear. His complexion was somewhat brownish, and he has a black Mohawk hairstyle.

Then there is this guy who looked like a mercenary judging from his leather armor and bronze sword on his back. He may be eighteen years old, and he look handsome but dirty due to some grease on his face.

Then there was a snotty dirty kid who has this spiky red-dyed hair. He was wearing a white torn dirty jersey.

The grizzly bear guy is Brow, who serves as the inn’s bouncer. The mercenary is named Richard, who is the one in charge of the dishes. And the snotty kid is Gaz, who seems to be familiar to me.

That kid is the one who stole my bag!

I chased the kid in the kitchen, in the bedrooms, and in the tables breaking some plates, bottles and glasses on the process. I finally cornered him in the counter and kicked him in the face brutally asking “Where is my bag, you filthy lizard?!”

The kid was really terrified. In an attempt to stop me, Richard pointed his sword towards my throat. Airelina helped the poor kid to stand up. All their customers…all the dragonoids…including Airelina and Richard glared at me furiously.

“You have to leave. Now.” Richard furiously said to me.

I didn’t care what I just did to the kid. He’s just a filthy dragonoid who snatches anyone’s property to live. So I immediately left the inn.

Airelina accompanied me until we reached the hotel where I’m supposed to stay during the duration of my field trip in this city.

Before we bid farewell to each other, there was a hint of tears on Airelina’s crimson eyes.

“I thought you’re better than other humans.” She said. “I hope we never see each other again…like…totally…ever again…”

And that is what almost happened. I enjoyed my field trip for three days. For three days, the events that’s supposed to happen in this trip happened. The duration of our field trip is about eight days so I stayed in Goldcliff City long enough to get myself into trouble again.

On the fifth day, I noticed some posters in the bulletin board. It says

Wanted. Dead or Alive. Brow Gattling and Richard Astherson of the terror group Arcadia.

The posted faces are the ones I met in the slums. They are the ones responsible for bombing the powerplant, which happened three days ago, the day I departed from their inn. I never knew that those guys are actual terrorists! I’m so lucky that I returned here, unharmed.

But does that means… Airelina is also a terrorist?

That didn’t bother me much. I’m just glad that I’m still alive. Hanging around with terrorists will make my life in danger in so many ways. I’m so lucky to be casted off the inn in one piece.

The next day, according to our itinerary, is a learning experience from a power plant. There was six of it in the Goldcliff City. I’m sorry, only five more. The one has been completely destroyed by the terrorists.

According to our tour guide, the power plant is run by radiation crystals of some confidential origin. A single power plant ran by these mysterious crystals are capable of giving electricity to the whole continent, but it was still in the development stage. Approaching the crystals are dangerous, so they hid it somewhere deeper in the powerplant.

It was already afternoon when my life’s fate has changed. We were still in the power plant at that time.

There was a tremor. The building shook and there was another series of explosions coming from the other wing! The alarm came noisy, and there was a loud announcement.

“Location Breached. All personnel must evacuate using the emergency exit. This is not a drill.”