Chapter 274: Control Without a Crown

His words would probably sound like an insult.

But that was the point.

Riley had no kind words to spare for a man as irresponsible and narcissistic as Chancellor Malrik.

And that was him being generous, considering that most dragons already had a tendency toward narcissism thanks to the gods apparently skipping over righteousness and humility when handing out personality traits. They could’ve picked other things but nooo.

But even then, Chancellor Malrik felt different.

That man took the word vile and made it his entire personality.

Riley took a deep breath and then started his litany of why he had such strong feelings against the guy.

“For one,” Riley said, voice sharp, “we simply can’t trust the views and opinions of someone capable of poisoning others with words.”

“Especially someone who doesn’t discriminate between manipulating gullible adults and indoctrinating the youth.”

“That kind of person should never be allowed anywhere near anyone’s children.”

The room went quiet.

Several of them turned to look at Riley, clearly taken aback by the direction he had taken. That surprise only deepened when Riley turned toward Kael and said, with complete seriousness and a faint growl that actually made the dragon lord lean back,

“If there’s ever going to be any children in this relationship, you better best believe it’s not happening if we’re going to be forced to send any child to be taught by that guy. Not happening. Absolutely not.”

Kael didn’t argue.

He simply nodded.

That only encouraged Riley, who was already seething.

“Also, I’m not sure what draconic laws exist for what he is doing,” Riley said heatedly, “but from a human perspective, that entire nest is a massive red flag for all kinds of violations. And as the Chancellor who lives there full time, he’s normally supposed to be accountable for whatever happens under his roof.”

“But more than just sucking as an educator or more than simply acknowledging the problems, he even frames the disappearances as runaways who deserve to be shamed. Who does that?”

He threw his arms up.

“Oh. Right. Apparently, he does.”

“But it doesn’t even stop there,” Riley said, pacing now. “Because it’s not just about those who disappeared. The ones who stayed have also become a problem.”

“Somehow,” he added, “he figured out a way to control society without ever being its leader.”

The dragons stiffened.

“I understand that strength and mana matter to magical beings, which is probably why the guy would never be the dragon lord,” Riley said, “but shaping the minds of the next generation means they end up unknowingly loyal to him instead of to the actual dragon lord.”

“Yes, you can overpower them,” he said bluntly, looking at Kael, “but that would mean fighting your own people instead of leading them. Because the truth is he has been molding their minds from a very young age, while you barely even see anyone’s shadow!”

Riley paused to let that sink in.

“Imagine if you didn’t graduate early,” he said quietly. “Or if Orien had stayed there longer.”

He looked at Kael again.

“You would have been matched with someone he chose before you ever had the chance to leave. He was prepared.”

Lady Cirila raised a hand and covered her mouth, visibly shaken as the implications settled in.

“And it gets worse,” Riley said. “He wasn’t just grooming potential mates for you so he could control the person closest to power. He was preparing backups.”

“In case his best bet failed.”

“With nearly every dragonling passing through that nest,” Riley continued, “how many dragons would have grown up completely free of his influence when all was said and done? And who knows when he started doing this when the guy was already the Chancellor while you were studying?!”

“Kael! He’s practically growing mushrooms in his seat with how long he’s been there! And you wonder why every single young dragon you meet seems to be after you!”

No one could answer when even the dragon lord looked like he was going to surrender without being asked to.

And yet the angry immortal had more to say.

So when he launched into everything else they had discovered, the odd sigils hidden throughout the nest, the quiet bloodletting they had overheard the dragonlings discussing like it was normal, the expressions around the room turned uniformly sour.

It was the look of people who had just realized they had swallowed something deeply bitter.

The angry black dragon could honestly understand why they hadn’t finished the investigation.

After all, he was partly at fault.

If he hadn’t ended up tangled in everything else, if the retired dragon couple hadn’t been forced to take over matters at the MBE, then they might have completed their original task by now, since the investigation into the nest had been their priority once.

But between the kidnapping, the steady deterioration of his health, and the strain it had placed on Kael’s sanity, that issue had been pushed aside.

Shelved.

And now it had come back to haunt them.

With all of those issues in mind, Riley found it impossible to believe anything that came out of Malrik’s mouth.

How could he, in good conscience, trust a man like that?

“There are many more reasons,” Riley said, forcing himself to slow down, “but that’s mainly why I believe we need to be careful about anything that involves him.”

He exhaled through his nose.

“When a shady person tells you something is a good thing, it usually isn’t. At least for everyone but said person,” Riley continued.

“Maybe this is my human upbringing talking. But being physically weak meant having to learn how to navigate rules, loopholes, and consequences. As humans, we would normally have to jump through hoops to get away with anything while all the other magical beings would just hack at each other and call it a day.”

He looked around the room.

“And I don’t know where he learned it from,” Riley said quietly, “but I am telling you, the Chancellor is as shrewd as they come.”

The thought lingered.

Suddenly, Riley could understand why the gods had chosen a more straightforward path for dragons. A shrewd human was already exhausting enough to deal with. But at least humans would die eventually.

But a shrewd immortal?

Riley swallowed.

Who knows how long the dragon society had been rotting from the inside?

__

Okay, to be fair, the ex-human thought that maybe he had let his emotions run ahead of actual evidence.

That much, he could admit.

But when the retired dragon couple finally managed to interject in his sermon to mention how they had actually discovered that Seris Thorne had also gone missing, Riley practically lost it.

It didn’t matter if that girl had the hots for his man. But a dragonling was a dragonling despite her being all that detestable.

It didn’t matter that she had been unpleasant, entitled, and exhausting to deal with.

She still had to be protected.

But apparently no one wanted to talk about her because of her reputation before her disappearance.

Everyone the Dravaryns talked to simply didn’t know jack shit.

God. Riley really had issues with missing beings.

At that point, he was practically ready to pack their bags and march straight out to look for Elder Zephyros himself, logic and preparation be damned. If they couldn’t get rid of Malrik right away, they could at least work on a lead that likely had something to do with him.

But Kael stopped him.

“Yes,” the golden dragon said calmly, “we will check.”

Riley paused.

Relief lasted exactly half a second before Kael continued.

“But the issue isn’t whether we want to look.”

“It’s figuring out where to look.”

“Huh?”

“You remember when we asked Elder Ysvara how certain she was that the dragon in her vision was Elder Zephyros?” Kael asked.

“Yes,” Riley said immediately. “What about it?”

“She said it was because of the location.”

Riley blinked.

“Then that’s good news, right?” he said. “If it’s like that, then we already know where to look for him.”

“Yes,” Kael replied. “We just don’t know where that place is.”

“???”

Lord Karion cleared his throat.

“Riley,” he said, “as you already know, we once located the white dragon crypt.”

Riley nodded.

“But that took nearly half a year,” Karion continued, “and we only succeeded because there were surviving records connected to the forbidden flame that dragon lords were required to know.”

“And because that crypt had been where the flames were sealed, there were clues left behind that made it possible to trace its location,” he added. “In general, however, dragon clans keep the locations of their tombs secret.”

“Secret enough,” Karion said gravely, “that even now, Orien doesn’t know where the tombs of our ancestors are located.”

“What?” Riley blurted.

Kael nodded before adding, “Lord Zephyros Ironscale is the oldest surviving Iron dragon. And he has been in seclusion since before my father became dragon lord. There’s very little information about him and his clan.”

Riley stared.

“Wait,” he said slowly. “So you’re saying we can’t actually physically check on him?”

“Well, not unless we figure out where to look,” the dragon lord replied.

The stunned immortal gawked at everyone.

In his mind, this was exactly why humans had emergency contacts.

Because what did you mean no one knew where to find someone this important?

Oh god.

But before he could spiral any further, a low hiss cut through the room.

“Well,” Thyrran said mildly, “it’s not exactly impossible.”

Every head turned.

“Thyrran?” Riley said, straightening immediately. “What do you mean? Do you know where it is?”

“No,” Thyrran replied. “I do not, Young Master.”

Riley visibly deflated.

But the familiar wasn’t finished.

“However,” Thyrran continued, eyes glinting, “you might.”

A green-eyed young man froze.

He lifted a hand and pointed at his own chest.

“Sorry,” he said slowly. “Did you just say I might?”

“Yes,” Thyrran confirmed without hesitation.

Riley’s eyes twitched.

“Your ancestors were involved in the construction of the Iron dragon clan’s crypt,” Thyrran said. “If you obtain your inheritance, then you might just gain access to that knowledge as well.”

The room went dead silent as everyone stared at the flabbergasted Riley.

“!!!”

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