The Reborn Witch had a nice 'Tea Time' with the Dragon Queen today-Chapter 10: Pride (2)

Leona sat up as the dragon examined her fellow queen. Her fur ruffled and the wolves around the throne grew alert, their eyes fixed on the dragon with a fierce protectiveness. The room was quiet, the only sound being the distant drip of melting ice and the steady breathing of the pack. Adrei felt a tension in the air, a silent challenge that seemed to ask: 'What brings you here?'

"You seem to have a story to tell, my master." The voice, though low, resonated with wisdom and power throughout the chamber, echoing off the icy walls. Leona's gaze bore into Adrei, as if she could see every thought and emotion the dragon queen had ever experienced.

Even as she remembered her vow, the dragon queen's lips curled up into a grin. It was a thrill, a challenge by a being inferior in bodies, yet superior in spirit. She took a deep breath, her scales fluttering slightly as she stepped into the light, the frosty air around her shimmering in the blue glow of the witch's eyes.

Then she noticed it, the large claw mark that marred the otherwise perfect fur of Leona's torso, a scar from the battle that ended the tyranny, the battle that Adrei had never had the chance to apologize for. The tyrant's flame is brutal, the ashes still stemming and smoking against the white fur, a contrast so palpable she almost felt the heat of her father's wrath.

But more than that injury, the dragon followed the wolf's gaze. It was focused on Demond, the witch who had once been her master. The dragon could feel the weight of the stare, the years of pain and the unspoken words that lay between the two. The silence grew heavier as the witch took a step closer, her eyes meeting those of the wolf queen, her voice a mere whisper that seemed to resonate twenty years of solitude they both shared.

"Leona. I'm here." Demond's voice was steady, yet Adrei could feel the tremor of nerves beneath it. The wolf queen's gaze remained unwavering, a silent greeting that spoke volumes of the history between them.

"In a curious form. A form that I could only recognise as a product of witchcraft." The wolf growled. The smell of iron from her master's injured feet tickled her wary soul, as she lent her sharp bloodlust towards the dragon who had caused it. The dragon's smile never wavered, her eyes filled with the warmth of a mother's love.

"So, what brings you to this lowly being's lair, daughter of destruction and betrayal?" Leona's voice, though not unkind and malicious, held an edge of accusation that sent a shiver down Adrei's spine.

"I've come to pay my dues and respect for you, Leona the Wolf Queen." The dragon queen's voice was sincere, her posture unyielding as she faced the creature that had been her wife's fiercest ally.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

"Our respect for you died the moment your kind scorched the lands of humanity aflame, Dragon Queen." Leona's words were sharp, but her gaze softened as it shifted from Adrei to Demond. The witch took a tentative step forward, her heart racing in her chest.

"Master, what is the meaning of this? Explain your alliance with one of those who brought about our allies' deaths, before I tore her down with me." The wolf queen's eyes never left Demond's, a mix of anger and confusion swirling within them.

"It is...complicated, my partner." Demond's voice was calm, yet it carried the weight of unspoken words and a history that brought relief instead of pain. The pld wolf recognised the tone, when her master drank her first ale in a delirious streak, or when she held her last as they lay battered after a desperate victory.

What follows is a story beyond the wolf queen's imagination. The tale of two, the Dragon Council's decision, and her master's transformation as the end. The wolf, rightfully, scowled furiously upon listening to the dragon's rude interruptions and the witch's gentle voice that spoke of a newfound friendship and alliance.

That was only until the talk about the peace banquet comes, that the wolf gently calmed, as if a long-awaited dream arrived. Her fur lay flat, and the eyes lost the edge of anger, as the dragon queen watched the transformation with a knowing smile. Even the war-torn wolf could not resist the relief, the happiness, the excitement for a new era where demons and dragons no longer ran rampant.

"Truly...we have truly witnessed a miracle." A smiley, praising tone came from Leona, her voice filled with a warmth that had not been heard in ages. "A dragon queen seeking peace, and you, Demond, living through to see this day, and...Alice, she has finally brought us a new age, hasn't she?"

"...she is my student, my daughter after all." The witch's voice was filled with a gentle warmth, as she stepped closer to the ice-covered throne. "Her intentions are true, and her heart is pure. She seeks to undo the damage wrought by the weakness from our generations, and to forge a future of harmony and understanding between our kind and the dragons of Tamara."

Then, the witch pointed her staff at Adrei, the dragon queen not of violence, but of peace. "And this is Adrei, the one who has revived me with a new life, and together, we shall attend the peace banquet to represent our kinship, and the alliance between our lands. Will you...not join us, Leona?"

The wolf queen's gaze drifted from the witch to the dragon, then back again. Her mind raced with questions, but the warmth in her master's eyes was unmistakable. A deep sigh echoed in the chamber, not of regrets, but of relief that her master is at good hands.

They have waited, waited and waited. Alone for years of torment, guilt and regrets they could not understand. The allies that have fallen, the foolishness that have been committed. And now, before her eyes, stood a creature that had the power to bring a semblance of reasons in the arrogant dragons, and a creature that had the wisdom to tame the fiery beasts.

It was truly a miracle to behold. Her master's act of kindness, her stubborn will to march on in the Evergreen's burning hellscape, paid off in the most unexpected way. Leona studied the dragon queen with a critical eye, searching for the deceit that had plagued her and her master for decades, yet all she found was a creature that easily bore the price of peace on her shoulders.

"Adrei, Queen of Dragons." Leona's voice was a mix of skepticism and curiosity as she studied the dragon before her. For the final time, her eyes searched for the malice of her ancestors, the same malice that had brought destruction to her master and her companions, yet the kindness and understanding bridged the tired wolf's distrust.

"My grudge with your kind...will never be ceased." Leona's voice was firm, the echoes of the past still resonating in the cave. Yet, she continued, "But if you truly wish to atone and bring peace to our lands, then it is not my decision to hinder or admonish you for the efforts. I...we have lost too much to the war, to that day, and tragedies are better left for ways of possibilities, not revenge."

The wolf's contemporary gaze then turned towards her master, narrowing as the weight of the truth, the unfortunate, cruel truth sinking in.

How would she tell her master? Is it possible for a creature of pride to forgive the descendants of those who had wronged her? Is it possible for a creature of fierceness to admit weakness for her own...demise? The Wolf Queen took a heavy, heavy sigh, the words dangled in her throat.

But it is not yet time. She has to face her death with honour, despite her master's wishes, despite their promise. Leona stood from her icy throne, her fur bristling as she stepped closer to Demond, the witch's eyes searched her, knowing the silent conversation that played out in her mind.