Chapter 256: Treasures Left Behind

Well, Riley didn’t want to imagine it, but he couldn’t help himself.

Just learning that he had technically unlocked the carefully assembled protective ward to call for Kael already had him reeling with embarrassment.

But then he thought that was at least a private humiliation. Surely no one had witnessed the absurdity of it besides the dragonling who had found him annoying.

But what was this?

Not only did the prominent vassal clans know about it, but they had actually seen him gallivanting around with Kael. They may not have witnessed him letting a trespasser in, but they had clearly seen something worse!

Riley could only hope they weren’t too disappointed in him for practically invalidating years of their efforts. He couldn’t change the past, but at the very least, he could promise to survive for as long as possible. Otherwise, he truly would not have the courage to face anyone with a clear conscience.

“It is alright, son. They were surprised, sure. But they were definitely proud that you ended up mated to a golden dragon.” Renee tried not to laugh because the stories she had heard were actually much wilder.

She remembered how she first heard the oral accounts and how they were the same ones they reminisced about when her grandmother was nearing her end.

So while the stories sounded embarrassing, to Renee, they were fond memories. Well, at least for the most part.

Renee took a breath and continued.

“According to them, the egg was very lively.”

Riley almost choked.

She went on anyway.

“Apparently, an already sentient dragon egg can be quite… rambunctious. They said you rolled around the estate, hid behind furniture, and one time rolled so far away that all the vassals who had been hiding and watching panicked. One moment you were there, the next you had rolled halfway across the courtyard.”

“…” Riley covered his face.

“They had to chase after you without being detected by the estate servants. And because they were worried you might get lost or stolen, they kept closer watch. But to their astonishment, the egg had come to them as if it knew it was being looked after.”

Riley peeked between his fingers.

Renee smiled gently.

“It made them feel acknowledged. So they visited more often. Even if they had to stand very far away to avoid alerting the Dravaryns, they still came. Just to look at you.”

Riley felt his ears heat.

But Renee continued.

“At first, they considered taking you back. But later on, they realized the young master seemed to like it there. And besides, how could they possibly take someone’s fated mate away? If acting suspicious wasn’t suicide already, that definitely would have been. So they had no choice but to think of something else.”

The black dragonling lifted his head slightly.

“The general consensus was to help hasten the hatching. Remaining an egg for too long would be dangerous, especially with so many possible political enemies. But after observing the estate, they noticed that Lord and Lady Dravaryn seemed to have no idea that the egg was from the black dragon clan.”

Green eyes blinked up at her.

“And why would that be important?” She said while tilting her head.

“Because apparently, black, white, and golden dragons require greater and more familiar mana sources to hatch. Unlike other dragons, who would be able to gather mana at their own convenience, those three would usually need continuous and concentrated mana.”

Renee’s voice softened.

“But since the egg had rolled out of the protective ward, it could no longer access the mana stored specifically for it. So my ancestors thought about finding ways to help you hatch.”

“What?”

His mother smiled before nodding. “Yes. It’s rather unconventional, but you may want to see it.”

Renee reached into her bag and took out something that looked like a pretty big fang. Riley wasn’t sure what she planned to do with it—until she stood, looked down at the table, and dragged the fang horizontally above it.

It cut space.

Not scratched. Not carved.

Cut.

A thin crack shimmered open as if reality itself had been peeled apart.

Kael shot to his feet, instincts flaring. Even Riley jolted because now that he had a core, he could feel the sudden punch of mana explode outward like a silent shockwave.

Renee calmly gestured for Riley to look inside.

He leaned forward—and froze.

Inside that slit of space was a pocket, and from what he could see, within it were several items that hummed with distinctly ancient mana. As he focused, he could sense them clearly. Artifacts.

There were ornate combs with dark, shimmering teeth. Gemstones the size of fists—some glowing, some faint. Circlets and other jewelry. Curved bones that looked far too large to belong to anything human. And finally… shells.

The moment he saw them, his eyes widened.

“They found these when they decided that if you couldn’t return to the ruins,” Renee said softly, “then they would bring what made the ruins unique to you. These were carefully gathered and stored by your biological family. They left them behind as a source of mana for you.”

Riley straightened up without meaning to. His ears rang. His eyes blurred.

A warm, aching pressure filled his chest as he stared at the collection of things left behind for him.

There weren’t just a few items. For when he tried to get a better look, he realized the pocket was much larger. There were actually enough things to make him briefly panic, wondering if his family had robbed the entire burial ground because the bones were humongous—radiating strong, familiar mana that stirred something deep inside him.

He gripped the table.

For the first time, he couldn’t stop himself from wondering what his biological family had been thinking.

The moment he learned that others could identify his origins and that his clan even had a surname, the Iltherans, the questions flooded him.

What were they like?

Would they have liked him?

Why did they go through all of this?

Granted, he had assumed the worst after hearing he would have had to die and all… but the more he learned about the seals and the preparations from back then, the more he realized something else—

Maybe they had been very caring dragons.

And maybe they had enough affection for him to prepare for his uncertain future across generations.

He hiccuped quietly as he leaned closer to the crack in space.

Inside were beads.

Actual beads.

A whole collection of shiny, polished beads—just like the ones Orien once said dragons used to hoard and gift to hatchlings who always deserved the nicest beads.

His breath stuttered.

How could he not get emotional?

Renee reached out and gently placed the fang into Riley’s palm. She closed his fingers around it. Not that it was easy, given the size, but he certainly gripped it like he couldn’t part with it.

“You can finally have this now,” she murmured. “Several generations have held onto this, hoping that one day you would get to see all of this too.”

Her voice trembled with quiet pride.

“And while it’s taken so long, know that on the day you needed it most, this was what allowed the vassals to rescue you.”

Riley broke.

So much for keeping it together.

Tears spilled over as his chest caved inward, the weight of countless sacrifices—past and present—crashing down on him.

He wept.

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