Chapter 113: And it was romantic.

The morning came faster than Kai wanted it to.

He stood in his private chamber on the First Floor, already in his human form, adjusting the collar of a dark navy shirt he had pulled from the Dungeon Shop Market.

It was simple, fitted, and paired with black trousers and boots that made him look like a well-dressed commoner.

The same disguise strategy as last time.

’Alright. I told her to wear something nice. That was two days ago. Two entire days of avoiding eye contact with Lyra because every time I walked past her in the corridor, she looked at me like I had personally proposed marriage. Which I did not. I told her to wear something nice. That is not a proposal. In any civilized society, that is a neutral statement.’

He ran his fingers through his semi-long black hair, pushing it back.

’So why does it feel like I am about to walk into something far more dangerous than a dragon fight?’

A knock came at the door.

It was not soft.

It was not measured.

It was the kind of knock that said, I have been standing here for twenty minutes, and I refuse to wait a single second longer.

“My Lord. I am ready.”

Kai took one last breath, pulled the door open, and immediately lost the ability to form coherent thoughts.

Lyra stood in the corridor, her hands clenched at her sides, her cheeks already flushed, and wearing an outfit that looked like it had been selected through a combination of Carlotta’s guidance and sheer desperation.

She wore a fitted black dress that fell just above her knees.

It was elegant in its simplicity, with no decorations or frills, as if someone had told her the goal was to blend in and she had interpreted that as wear something that makes you look like you could assassinate a nobleman at a formal dinner.

Her long silver hair had been brushed until it gleamed, falling over one shoulder like a river of moonlight.

Her curved horns, normally a point of pride, had been wrapped with thin black ribbons in an obvious attempt to disguise them as some kind of elaborate headpiece.

It was not convincing.

But the most striking thing was her expression. She was looking directly at Kai with an intensity that could have melted stone, while simultaneously trying very hard to appear casual about the entire situation.

She was failing spectacularly.

“You look…” Kai started.

Lyra’s entire body tensed, as though the next word out of his mouth would determine the trajectory of her entire existence.

“…ready.”

Lyra blinked.

“Thank you, my Lord,” she responded, her voice perfectly controlled despite the fact that her left eye was twitching.

’Good enough.’

Kai stepped out and began walking.

“Follow me. We are heading to the eastern exit.”

“Where are we going, my Lord?”

“A city called Thornwall. It is a trading port near the southern coast of Traona. Smaller than Rambosa, less famous than Gatevally. Goes in accordance with what Carlotta told me.”

’More importantly, the kind of place where Carlotta has not already mapped out every romantic restaurant and lantern tree in a five-mile radius. If I take Lyra to Gatevally, Carlotta will find out within the hour and I will never hear the end of it.’

Lyra walked three paces behind him, as she always did. But today, something about the distance felt different. She kept inching closer, then catching herself and stepping back, then inching closer again, like a pendulum that could not decide where to settle.

“My Lord.”

“What is it?”

“Am I allowed to walk beside you?”

Kai glanced over his shoulder. The look on her face was so earnest it was almost painful.

“You are, has that ever been a problem?.”

Lyra moved to his side in an instant, her shoulder nearly brushing his arm. The speed at which she closed the gap suggested she had been waiting for permission since the moment they left the room.

“Not at all, my lord.”

’She is already glued to my side and we have not even left the dungeon yet. This is going to be a long day.’

…

They arrived at Thornwall just before midday.

Carlotta’s teleportation magic was not available for this trip, since Kai had specifically not told Carlotta about the outing.

Instead, they used the dungeon’s transportation crystal to reach a point outside the Jaun Land, followed by a short walk through the countryside.

The walk itself was uneventful, except for the part where Lyra annihilated a wild boar that had the misfortune of running across their path.

“It was looking at you, my Lord.”

“It was a boar, Lyra. It was looking for food.”

“It was looking at you with intent.”

Kai decided not to argue.

Thornwall was a port city built along the edge of a crescent-shaped bay. The buildings were stone and timber, stacked close together, with narrow streets that wound between fish markets, taverns, and merchant offices.

The harbor was full of ships, their sails folded for the day, rocking gently against the wooden docks.

Unlike Gatevally’s romantic golden glow, Thornwall had a rugged charm. The air smelled of salt and smoke, the streets buzzed with merchants haggling over crates of goods, and the people moved with the rough efficiency of a city that valued commerce over aesthetics.

It was not romantic.

It was, in Kai’s opinion, the perfect place for Lyra.

’Gatevally was Carlotta’s pick. She wanted beauty and atmosphere. Lyra does not care about lantern trees and floating candles. She cares about being near me to i am allowed tobe a bit loose here. The setting is irrelevant to her. But if I had taken her somewhere romantic, she would have read too much into it.’

They passed through the main gate without issue. Kai’s disguise held, and Lyra’s horns, wrapped in their black ribbons, drew a few curious looks but nothing more.

Port cities attracted all manner of races, and a woman with an unusual headpiece was hardly the strangest thing walking the streets.

That said, the problems started almost immediately.

The first incident occurred at a street vendor selling grilled fish on skewers.

Kai stopped to buy two, handing one to Lyra. She accepted it with both hands, cradling it like a sacred offering.

“My Lord, you are feeding me.”

“I bought you a fish. That is not the same thing.”

“You thought of me. You saw food and your first instinct was to acquire sustenance for me. That is the behavior of a mate providing for his partner.”

“It is the behavior of a man buying lunch.”

While they were standing there, a young woman, a merchant’s daughter by the look of her fine clothes, bumped into Kai’s shoulder while passing through the crowd.

“Oh, I am sorry,” the girl said, turning around with a smile. Her eyes lingered on Kai’s face for a moment too long. “I did not see you there. Are you new in town? I do not think I have seen someone like you around here before.”

She was flirting. It was subtle, but unmistakable.

Kai opened his mouth to respond with something dismissive and move on.

He never got the chance.

Lyra stepped between them so fast the air cracked.

She did not say a word. She simply stood there, positioning herself directly in front of Kai, her back to him, staring down at the merchant’s daughter with the kind of expression that made grown soldiers reconsider their life choices.

The girl’s smile vanished.

“I, um, I was just…”

“You were just leaving,” Lyra said. Her voice was calm, pleasant even, but her eyes were two pools of absolute murder.

The girl turned and practically sprinted into the crowd.

Kai sighed.

“Lyra.”

“Yes, my Lord?”

“You cannot threaten every woman who makes eye contact with me.”

“I did not threaten her, my Lord. I simply established my presence.”

“Your presence made her run.”

“Then she understood the message. I see nothing wron, my lord, did that make you upset? If so i apologize.”

’This is going to be a very, very long day.’

…

The second incident happened at a clothing shop.

Kai had made the mistake of stopping to browse a display of leather gloves near the shop’s entrance.

He had been thinking about getting a new pair for his Aron disguise, since the current ones were starting to show wear.

The shopkeeper, a middle-aged woman with a friendly smile, walked over.

“Looking for something specific, dear? We have a lovely selection of– oh my, your hands are quite large. I will need to measure you.”

She reached for Kai’s hand.

Lyra caught the shopkeeper’s wrist mid-air.

“Do not touch him.”

The words came out like a command from a general on a battlefield.

The shopkeeper froze, her eyes going wide. She looked at Lyra, then at Kai, then back at Lyra, trying to determine whether she was about to lose her hand or merely her dignity.

“Lyra,” Kai said firmly. “She is a shopkeeper. She was going to measure my hand for gloves.”

Lyra’s grip loosened, but she did not let go immediately. She studied the shopkeeper’s face for a full three seconds, as if running a threat assessment, before releasing her wrist and stepping back.

“My apologies,” Lyra said stiffly. “You may proceed.”

The shopkeeper, to her credit, recovered quickly. She measured Kai’s hand with trembling fingers, wrapped the gloves in paper, and handed them over with a smile that was ninety percent terror.

“Have a wonderful day,” the shopkeeper said, her voice an octave higher than when they entered.

Once they were back on the street, Kai looked at Lyra.

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