“You're going to keep the King of Morilren waiting?” I whispered to Shale.
“I'm a king too, Sebastian,” he reminded me with a twist of his lips.
“I know but—”
“Finish your meal. And don't rush. I won't have our day ruined by an arrogant king with no manners.”
“All right,” I murmured.
I tried to relax and continue to enjoy my meal, but the prospect of meeting a Sea Dragon consumed my thoughts. I'd seen one for the first time on my way to Latur, and now I was about to meet a king. But I couldn't let Shale see my excitement. He was already annoyed that this King had shown up unannounced.
I mean, yeah, I guess that was rude. But the guy was a king. Didn't the monarchy get some leeway?
We finished our meal, but Shale decided to have dessert. I had some too since I didn't want to sit there and watch him eat. It was crushed ice covered in fruit syrup and was as wonderful as the rest of the meal. Very refreshing.
At last, we left, the patrons getting to their feet again when the King strode out.
“You could have told them to remain sitting,” I whispered to Shale as we settled in the carriage.
“Sebastian, I'm their king. And they're not courtiers. This was probably the first time most of them have seen me. At the very least it was their first up-close sight of me. To deny them that show of respect would be a disservice to us both.”
“Huh,” I said. “Yeah, all right. I get it.”
Shale smirked. “I'm so glad I haven't disappointed you.”
“Not yet,” I teased and wove my fingers with his.
“Hopefully, never. Now, it's time for some shopping.”
“Shale!”
“What?” He waved at the driver, and with a clomp of hooves, we headed back to the main road.
“The Sea Dragon King is waiting!”
“So?”
“So, you're being rude.”
“He started it.”
“You don't know why he showed up unannounced. Maybe he has a good reason.”
“Doubtful. Sea Dragons are simply more arrogant than land Dragons.”
I snorted a laugh.
He stared at me.
“Are you serious?” I asked.
“Absolutely. They were created for our god, with mainly his Water Magic and only a touch of Ensarena's Fire in them. Our Goddess wanted her children to have mainly Fire Magic, and so a second Dragon race was created but with the balance of magic reversed.” He grimaced before going on, “Those Dragons didn't survive. Having too much Fire proved fatal. They were too volatile, too combative. The Gods had to try again, adding more Water magic than Ensarena wanted. We were made in perfect balance—half Water and half Fire. This made us children of both Gods. I think that gives us prestige. But the Sea Dragons don't see it that way. They think because they were made first, and survived with mostly one magic empowering them, they're better than us.”
“But you can't know that. You're assuming that's what they think.”
“You haven't met a Sea Dragon and so you have no idea what I'm talking about.”
“Are they really that arrogant?”
