Wolf Princess Sold to the Dragon King novel Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Mate-Magnet Mounted 5 Dragons (Relax, Maddox)

"Commander."

Every man on the field saluted with a fist to the chest.

"Captain Sparrow. I see you have met my wife."

Without a care in the world, Maddox kissed Guinevere on the lips. The kiss was not a gentle polite one. It was entirely too long.

When he drew back, her face was on fire.

He moved behind her, casually, and pulled her against his chest, arms wrapping around her.

No soldier on the field could look away. This was Maddox Drakencrest, and none of them could reconcile what they were watching.

"How did she do?"

"She just passed the first trial," the captain answered.

Maddox stiffened behind her. He turned his head to Ryker. "On her first day."

Ryker was not fazed. "Perfect score." He tipped his chin towards the field. "Forty-five seconds on her third lap."

Maddox blinked a few times, taking it all in. Then he looked back down at Guinevere tucked under his arm.

He went still behind her again.

She pulled out of his grip and turned to face him, her brows knit.

He shook his head, then he laughed, and he kissed her forehead.

"You wanted a frame of reference, Gwen," Ryker said, without looking at her. "To be combat-cleared, the course must be completed within ten minutes at an eighty percent accuracy."

He paused.

"The fastest time that has ever been completed at one hundred percent accuracy is three minutes by the man currently standing behind you. And not on his first attempt."

This time, Guinevere was speechless.

The captain glanced at her. "A wolf-dragon combination. Who would’ve thought..." He shook his head.

Maddox looked at the split arrows on the targets, then down at Guinevere.

"Of course you did that."

"If I were to place her now, she would be a Skyrunner," Ryker noted.

Of course Ryker would put her in the most dangerous position the Drakencrest army had on its roster.

"And I would veto that."

Ryker let out a dark laugh. "I do not think you would, Commander."

"I have twenty dragons that have been mindlinking me as volunteers," Captain Sparrow added.

Maddox glanced behind him, to find that none of his warriors were doing what they should be doing.

Every one of them was frozen, watching. Then they began to move as one, in sudden unified stretches and workouts that they had absolutely not been doing until the moment he turned his head.

Guinevere waited for more context. None came.

"One more round in you?" Ryker asked.

She had barely broken a sweat. She had been expecting this to be considerably harder, and she was beginning to wonder if she was missing something.

Ryker did not wait for her to answer. "You do."

Maddox’s eyes darkened.

Ryker: You wanted me to train her on her first day. The condition was that you would not intervene.

Maddox: She is still bruised. Her ribs are not healed.

Ryker: This is a skills assessment. Go back to being king and I will handle her dragon training.

"Skyrunner. Lethal simulation. Captain, give me your four fastest dragons that have dropped fewer than twenty riders in their careers."

He winked at Gwen, who shook her head. Hopefully he was kidding. She was going to pretend he was.

Maddox did not move. His jaw was tight. There was no version of this simulation that he was going to allow to run without him present on this field. None.

"Are you going to tell me what this one is beforehand?" Gwen asked.

"No."

Maddox pinched the bridge of his nose.

Maddox: Ryker.

Ryker: Trust the process.

Five warriors moved to the field. One by one, they shifted and launched into the air. No introductions were given.

Ryker handed Gwen a bow and quiver, then ran out onto the field.

Gwen looked down at the bow and quiver and then blinked up at the dragon waiting for her. She pulled out of Maddox’s arms, and she moved to the field in a blur of motion, jumping onto Ryker’s back.

Maddox blinked.

"Oh, that is the tip of the iceberg, Commander," Sparrow said next to him.

Ryker vaulted into the air. Gwen stood waiting for arrows or targets to appear. He went full speed.

Arrows flew. She caught them, her wolf instincts on alert. This part of the exercise she understood.

Then came the gold orbs. Same as before, exact same spots in the air. She did not understand why five dragons were flying alongside them this time.

Gwen: What am I looking for here?

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