252 Interview with a dragon (1/2)

”Me!” Knucker replied with a small smirk.

”What in the world are you doing here!!??”

”Well, for one thing, I work here...” he shrugged.

The king noticed that Evlin was finally dropping her childish act and was actually treating the situation with the seriousness he wanted.

”Ah! So you do remember him after all! I'm glad!”

Evlin glared at the king as if wondering how this person could let such a dangerous being get so close to him, ”You absolute moron!! That thing is not a human!! It's a creature from another dimension sent here to create chaos and destroy!!”

The king smirked at her as well while crossing his arms, ”Hehe... Look who's talking...”

”Oh my Lord...” Evlin whispered.

Her team was also in disbelief as they gazed at the man standing next to the king. After hearing so much about this guy from Hana and seeing his action as he fused the demons with dragon parts and sent them to attack the temples of the gods, they all were expecting someone a little more threatening.

Knucker looked just like a regular man in regard to his physique. He wasn't particularly strong like Auren or Daren nor was he as tall as Lilith and Detra. The only thing menacing about him was his stare, a pair of orange eyes that looked at someone as if he knew everything about them that he wanted, and his bizarre white hair that was even more of a mess than Evlin's.

”It's so good to finally meet your little group!” Knucker commented, ”I've been waiting for this moment for a while now!”

The man took a look at everyone there present and seemed to almost flinch a little when his gaze stopped on Marcus.

He noticed that Evlin wouldn't stop glaring at him and gave a few steps forward towards her until he was standing right in front of Ashley.

”How about we have a little chat? You and I?” he suggested, followed by looking at her situation and how she was still unable to walk without Ashley, ”You can bring your legs too if you want! She's probably gonna want to hear this too!”

”What...!!??” Evlin gasped, ”Why would I-”

Knucker then came closer and whispered in her ear, ”Unlike that spoiled brat, I don't need to shout to showcase my superiority... Say 'yes'... Or I'll destroy this entire city and all of those living in here...”

”...”

”E- Evlin...?” Ashley whispered.

The mage looked at her team and noticed that they all were ready to fight their way out if they needed to. She considered that option for a second but thinking about what Knucker did to the temples, she knew his threat was to be taken seriously.

[Everyone... Calm down... ] she said while using Gustav's telepathy, [I'll handle this...]

[Evlin, are you sure??] Gustav asked, [This is probably a trap! We should get out of here!]

[But you can't even move right now!! You're defenseless!]

[ ... Guess I'll just have to gamble on my luck... My horrible, horrible luck... ] Evlin replied.

Knucker noticed that they were done with their little chat and made a small bow while raising his arm to a room.

”Shall we go?”

”Lead the way...”

”Hey!!” the king shouted, ”I didn't give my permission yet!”

”Apologies, my king... I just need to make sure this woman is the real crossbow mage... She is a master of transformation, after all, I need to find out if this isn't some impostor...”

”What...? Didn't you say she was going to come here yourself?” the king questioned.

”Indeed... But I'll not take the risk and let some fraud get close to you without being sure she is the one we are looking for... I just ask for a couple of minutes to confirm it...”

”Mmm...” the ruler of the land mumbled while holding his chin, ”very well... make sure she is the one who I want as my wife or some fake that needs to be executed!”

”As you command, my liege!”

Knucker walked in front of Ashley as he guided her and Evlin to a small room while Daren and the others waited for them in the throne room.

Once the three arrived, Knucker showed them a pair of sofas, much to Evlin's surprise, where they could sit while looking at each other. A small table was placed on their left with a jar of water resting on top of it.

Knucker took his seat and Evlin noticed a large painting on the wall behind him very similar to the one on the entrance gates.

”Ah... Here we are... Now we can talk without any restraint...” the white-haired man commented.

”Cool... I'll go first...” Evlin whispered, ”F*#% you!”

”Evlin!!??” Ashley gasped.

”Ah! Not wasting any time, I see...” Knucker said with a smile while resting his cheek on his fist.

”You were the one that brought me to this world, right?? And you were the one that corrupted Mia and destroyed the temples of the gods... So yeah... F%$# you and everything you stand for...”

”Lovely...” Knucker whispered, ”So, shall we talk business then?”