The Dragon King and His Fallen Star novel Chapter 30

Chapter 30: A Feeling Yet to Be Named

EIRLYS’ POV

I didn’t realize how fast I’d been walking until I reached my room and slammed the door harder

than I meant to. The sound cracked through the air echoing like the wood might split in two.

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I leaned against it, breath coming in sharp bursts, my hands trembling. It wasn’t because of the

injury. The cut was shallow; I barely felt it. I’ve had wounds that went far deeper. Ones I never got

to bandage.

So why was I shaking?

Maybe from exhaustion. Orryx had pushed me hard-running and swinging until my limbs ached.

But that wasn’t all.

It was Kierygan.

And what he did. I didn’t understand it. But more than that, I didn’t understand what it made me

feel. Because it didn’t just stir something inside me. It made me light up.

No, not light up.

I glowed.

It wasn’t fear or anger that made me glow. And it wasn’t just happiness, either. It was something deeper. Something I don’t understand yet.

I wonder if he could tell.

I pressed my back hard against the door, as if I could disappear into it. I didn’t.

Sweat clung to the back of my tunic, sticky and uncomfortable. Suddenly, my training clothes felt

too tight. I needed to breathe.

So, I pushed away from the door and decided to bathe, change into something clean, something loose, and soft.

Then maybe I’d lose myself in the books again. To forget everything else.

I climbed into bed and reached for the book Evander had given me. It was old, the spine worn and fragile, but the stories inside were alive. They were full of kings and empires, wars and wonders.

I sank into the pages. One chapter. Then another. Then another.

I was so deep in the world of the book, I didn’t hear the first knock. The second came firmer and

sharper. And I startled.

I opened the door, my heart already rising into my throat-only to stop altogether.

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Chapter 30 A Feeling Yet to E Named

Kierygan stood before me.

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He didn’t speak right away. Just looked at me, his eyes as unreadable as ever. “There’s someone l

want you to meet,” he said.

That was all he said. No explanation. No glance back. He simply turned and walked. I was too

startled to ask, so I followed without question.

We moved through the stone halls and descended the stairs in silence. I tucked my hands into the

sleeves of my gown, my fingers twitching with nerves.

When we reached the heavy wooden doors of his study, he pushed them open without hesitation.

Inside, I saw Callum first-leaning casually against the hearth, arms crossed. There was a smile on

his face, but not his usual smirk of mischief. It was softer. Warmer.

Beside him stood two women.

Both had pale hair. One has ash and gold, the other the color of honey. They smiled when we

entered. I wasn’t sure if it was meant for Kierygan or me. I smiled back anyway.

“I’d like you to meet my mate, Nerissa,” Callum said, motioning to the woman with the ash-blonde

hair. “And this is her sister, Solara.”

Nerissa offered another kind smile. “It’s good to finally meet you, Eirlys,” she said, her voice gentle.

Solara gave me a small, graceful nod.

Then Kierygan spoke. “Solara will be your tutor. Shell be giving you etiquette lessons.”

I blinked. “Etiquette?”

“She’ll teach you how to carry yourself,” Kierygan said. “How to speak. How to blend in.”

Solara stepped closer, her smile poised somewhere between kindness and amusement. “That’s right,” she said. “For starters, we’ll work on not wandering the halls in your nightgown.”

Her eyes swept over me-from the wrinkled hem of my gown to my bare toes against the stone floor-before she added, with a hint of mischief, “Especially not barefoot.”

My face flushed with heat. I hadn’t known. And even if I had, I hadn’t had time to think. My head was still spinning from what happened at training-then he appeared. And without a second thought, my feet just followed him.

“I… I wasn’t planning to wander,” I said, glancing at Kierygan. His expression gave nothing away.”

But he…”

Solara shook her head gently. “It’s fine,” she said, voice light, breezy. “Callum already explained your

situation.”

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Chapter 30 A Feeling Yet to Be Named

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Her tone softened, but there was still a certain sharpness in her gaze. Not unkind, just watchful. As

if she were already assessing what else might be wrong with me.

Callum cleared his throat and gently placed a hand on Nerissa’s back, a quiet signal that it was

time to go. Solara gave a small nod, then glanced back at me. “We’ll begin your lessons tomorrow,”

she said.

Callum tossed me a wink as the three of them filed out. I stayed rooted to the spot. The door

clicked shut behind them.

I hesitated. Should I follow? Was I meant to leave with them? Or stay?

Then I glanced down, and immediately regretted it.

The light from the study’s tall window had shifted, spilling across the stone floor and catching the

sheer fabric of my gown. My breath caught. The sunlight was filtering right through it.

I remembered what Grace had told me once while helping me dress. What Emma had said with a

laugh I didn’t quite understand. Danaiah’s gentler warning. Even Kierygan’s firm instruction.

Some parts of my body are private. Not meant to be seen by anyone.

Though I was clothed, the thin fabric clung to my skin, and the harsh light made it worse. Now that.

Solara had pointed it out, I suddenly felt bare-uncomfortable and exposed.

I turned to Kierygan, my fingers curling at my sides as if I could somehow shrink. I opened my mouth to excuse myself, to ask if I could go.

But he spoke first. “How’s your hand?”

“It’s fine,” I said quickly, tucking it behind my back as though that might end the conversation.” Really. It’s…”

He stepped forward and took my hand without a word. I flinched. Not from fear, but from surprise. His touch was firm, not rough. He turned my palm upward and studied it. The skin had closed, but

it was still raw and pink.

My heartbeat quickened, a strange warmth blooming beneath my skin. But I didn’t want him worrying over something so small, so I tried to pull away.

“It’s nothing,” I murmured. “I’ve had worse. Mistress and Master, they…”

His grip tightened, and something shifted in his eyes. The cold was gone, replaced by a flame that

burned hot and sharp.

“Don’t call them that ever again,” he said. His voice was low, but the edge in it sliced clean through the air. “They are not your mistress and master anymore. You don’t belong to them.”

His eyes burned into mine. “You belong to me now. You are mine.”

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I stared at him, unsure

didn’t

how to me, let alone speak. His words should have frightened me. They

Instead, the way he said mine made something strih me. Something I didn’t have a name for yet.

Finally, I found the courage to ask, “Are you my new master now?”

For a moment his gaze seemed to soften. Or maybe I imagined it. Because when I binked, the

stone was back in his eyes.

1 didn’t bring you here to be a slave, Erlys he said stepping closet.

My heart thundered in my chest, but I forced myself to hold his gaze, cinging to the last stred of courage I had. “Then why am I here?” I asked quietly. “What do you want from me?

He let out a low, rumbling growl. For a moment, I thought my questions had angered him. But before I could recoil, his arm slipped around my waist. I gasped. A small, startled sound escaped my lips. But I didn’t pull away.

He was already crouched before me, yet he still seemed to tower over me. I had to tit my head just to meet his eyes. Slowly, he leaned in, and my knees weakened. I reached for his shoulder to steady myself.

He stopped just above my neck. I could’ve sworn he was breathing me in.

“I want you,” he rasped, his voice rough against my ear, his breath warm on my skin. Then added, ‘to be who you want to be. To be who you’re meant to be.”

For some reason I can’t explain, I felt this urge, this pull to move closer. So I did. I leaned in, pressing my face against his chest. It was warm. So warm against the crisp spring air drifting in through the window.

His arm tightened slightly, holding me there. I let my eyes flutter open, and saw it again. That soft, radiant glow humming beneath my skin.

I stilled and looked up to make sure he wasn’t burning. But he wasn’t even flinching. He was just

looking at me.

His eyes were locked on mine.

I don’t know how long we stayed like that. Long enough for the rest of the world to fall away.

Then the door burst open.

“What the hell is happening here?” a voice snapped-sharp, furious, and unmistakably Mirael’s.

The moment shattered.

I pulled away, my glow flickering out. My heart pounded, and without daring to look at either of them, I turned and fled. Back to the only place that still felt remotely safe. My room.

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Chapter 31 steady Ground

Chapter 31: Unsteady Ground

KIERYGAN’S POV

The door slammed shut behind Eirlys as she ran, and the silence that followed was louder than the

noise. Her scent lingered in the air: wildflowers after rain.

Faint, but still intoxicating.

Mirael didn’t move. I, on the other hand, returned to my desk and tried to get some work done.

“What the hell was that?” Mirael demanded, her voice like frost sheathing a blade.

I didn’t feel like explaining, and frankly, I didn’t owe her anything. So I stayed silent, eyes on the parchment I was flipping through, pretending it needed my full attention. I strained to catch the sound of Eirlys’s footsteps retreating down the hall. But all I could hear was Mirael’s fury.

“I asked you a question,” she snapped, stepping deeper into the room. “You were holding her. While

she lit up.”

Still, I said nothing.

She hissed through her teeth, sharp with impatience. “You know what that light is, don’t you? You know how dangerous it could be for you. You shouldn’t be near her at all.”

At last, I turned to face her. “Do I look burned to you?”

She stopped pacing. Her mouth flattened into a hard line. “Not yet.”

“What do you want?” I asked, dryly.

Then came the shift-subtle but unmistakable. Her voice dipped lower, her posture eased, just enough to wrap her next words in something that almost resembled vulnerability.

“The full moon is approaching,” she said. “I thought maybe we could try the binding rite again.”

I let out a heavy sigh, then leveled a hard look at her “No,” I said flatly.

Her expression didn’t change, but the stillness in her eyes hardened. “We said we’d try again. You

said…”

“I said I’d consider it,” I cut in. “And I did. The answer is no. That’s done.”

She moved to the chair across from me and sat with deliberate calm, folding her arms like she

meant to stay. “You’re shutting me out. Ever since we returned, it’s like I’ve become invisible to you.

You don’t visit. You barely speak. I’m not blind, Kierygan.”

I didn’t flinch. But I knew exactly where this was headed.

“I was with you when you were nothing but a fugitive, exiled in the Misty Valley,” she said, stepping

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toward me. “Thelped you gather you is beg to yoycare Hogach, fod y

changed, Vier? What more do you

from me?

“Mel” I said, my voice low box fem “Cont

But she didn’t stop

“I thought I mattered to your she pressed, ker sprechining THE WATERS, DE B

I thought what we built meant something*

“It did,” I said. “But what you want to be what you think eser

The air in the room tightened

&

“Why?” she snapped, “Because of her? That glowing line playing of port

I stood. Slowly, “Careful”

She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyst “shes ich pocent, helpless other what you the coN? Someone you can protect instead of someone who fought beside you?

“I’m not having this conversation” I said coldly

“No” she said, rising, “You’re just throwing away ever thing we were for something that one rea

“I haven’t thrown anything away, I said, my voice thing cold “But won’t be manipulated for by you. Not by anyone?”

That landed, I saw it-just for a breath-before she pulled herself back wete

Her voice, when she spoke again, was low and fight “Whaterer etachment you think your e formed with that girl, it needs to end. Before she bine you alive?

“Eirlys is under my protection” I said, each word deliberate “She’s not going anywhere?

“You’re not thinking clearly, she bit out. When she destroys you those you remember who warned you first.”

Then she turned sharply and strode out, her boots striking the stone louder than neSESSEY.

Mirael was wrong about a great many things when it came to Eirlys. But she was right about one thing: I wasn’t thinking clearly

Not always, anyway.

Because when I stormed toward her, reckless and half-mad with panic… When she was in my arms. glowing like the sun and soft as moonlight…

I wasn’t thinking at all.

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