I watched them go, a small sense of relief washing over me. Klara’s persistence was exactly what Liam needed—a force of nature that wouldn't let him fade into the background.

  "Where's Noree?" I asked, looking around the circle. "I haven't seen her since we struck camp."

  Monica shook her head. "She wasn't at the meal. I thought she was with Yvette."

  "I saw the mergirl," Petal chimed in, gesturing toward the darkness where the sound of the water was loudest. "She and her dragon were walking toward the stream. She looked... restless. Like she was looking for something she lost."

  I stood up, my concern spiking. Noree was a creature of the coast; being this far inland, surrounded by nothing but dry stone and dust, had to be wearing on her.

  "I'm going to find her," I said.

  "I’ll come with you," Monica said instantly, her spear already in hand.

  "No, I will go," Petal countered, stepping in front of her. "I know how to track in these hills better than anyone."

  Monica’s eyes narrowed. "I am his guard. My duty doesn't end because the sun went down."

  "Enough," I cut in, holding up a hand before the bickering could escalate into a sparring match. "You’re both coming. If Noree is in trouble, I’ll need both your spear and your mace. If she isn’t, then we can all enjoy the night air. Move."

  The two women exchanged one final, sharp glance before falling in behind me as we headed toward the treeline, the sound of the rushing water growing louder with every step.

  42

  Chapter Forty-Two

  The sound of the stream shifted from a distant murmur to a persistent, rhythmic chatter as we pushed through the treeline. Here, the banks were crowded with willow and silver birch, their roots drinking deep from the cold mountain runoff. Looking downstream, I could see the orange flickers of the campfires reflected in the water, but upstream, the land rose gently into a world of silver and shadow.

  I had a feeling that Noree had gone upstream, away from the noise and bustle of the camp. I picked my way along the bank, paralleling the path the water had cut as it flowed down the sloping hill.

  The scent of damp earth and old leaves was thick in the air, a sharp contrast to the smoke and roasted meat of the camp. Above us, the moon cast a steady, ethereal glow, turning the leaves into jagged shards of obsidian. The moonlight was sufficient to pick our way around the trees and fallen logs.

  "The ground is soft here," Petal whispered, her mace held low at her side. Her boots crunched softly on the gravelly bank. "Good for ambush, bad for a fast retreat."

  "Then let us ensure we don't need a retreat," Monica countered, her spear held horizontally as she ducked under a low-hanging branch.

  We crested a small rise where the land leveled out. The rushing sound of the water changed, softening into a gentle, melodic splashing. A beaver dam had been meticulously constructed across a narrow bend, a tangle of heavy logs and mud that had carved out a wide, mirror-like pond.

  In the center of the pool, half-submerged in the dark water, lay Kiyomari. The sea dragon’s scales, usually a vibrant aquamarine, looked like hammered indigo in the moonlight.

  Noree was perched on a flat, lichen-covered rock at the water's edge. She had discarded her clothing, and her webbed feet were dangling into the pool, sending small, shimmering ripples toward the dam. I shouldn’t be surprised that my little mergirl wife had snuck off to find water.

  I felt the tension drain from my shoulders when I saw Kiyomari relaxing near her. "I think we were needlessly worrying," I said softly to the women behind me. "I doubt many things in these hills would be foolish enough to bother a sea dragon."

  “We didn’t expect to meet an ogre the day we found you,” Monica reminded me.

  I flashed her a grin. “Found me? As I recall, I rescued you from the ogre.”

  “And I am grateful for it.” Monica’s eyes continued scanning the area around the pool.

  “Are you saying Roman defeated an ogre?” Petal asked as she stepped closer to me.

  Monica gave her a nod. “Barehanded.”

  Petal’s mouth dropped open. Then her chest swelled with pride and her eyes glinted with emotion in the moonlight. “I am even more honored that a warrior such as you chose me as his woman.”

  I reached my hand out and squeezed her arm. “And I am honored that you are part of my family now.”

  “Come join us children of the ground, come join the children of the water in this lovely pool,” Kiyomari’s voice interrupted our little conversation. The dragon’s keen senses had noticed us as we stood in the nearby trees.

  "You miss the water," I said, stepping into the clearing.

  Noree didn't jump. She simply turned her head, a radiant smile breaking across her face as she saw me. "I do, Roman. It is not the salt spray of the harbor, but it is cold and it is honest."

  Kiyomari let out a bubbling, resonant laugh from the pond, a small plume of mist rising from her nostrils. "The King is perceptive, Noree. While this pond is no ocean, and I can barely stretch my wings without hitting a mud-bank, the press of the water against my hide is a pleasant change from the dry dust of the road."

  I walked over and sat down beside Noree on the cool stone. Little drops of water shimmered on her bare skin as she shifted her body closer to mine. She looked so beautiful in the moonlight. I was torn between desire for her and the need to admonish her for wandering off in hostile territory.

  Monica and Petal lingered a few paces back, fanning out with a synchronized grace that suggested they had reached a silent truce for the sake of the mission. They stood like bookends at the edge of the clearing, their eyes constantly moving.

  "You two can relax," I called out over my shoulder. "We have a dragon for a guardian. I don't think a bear is going to come knocking with Kiyomari watching over us."

  "Wild beasts are the least of our concerns, my Lord," Monica replied without turning. "The woods have ears."

  "And those ears might belong to a goblin scout," Petal added, her voice low and focused. "We will stay vigilant."

  “We are still many days’ journey from Haltrock,” I countered.

  Monica looked over her shoulder at me. “Remember Nander’s Pass. The goblins sent raiders around the besieged fortress, my lord.” I noticed Monica added the ‘my lord’ as a subtle reminder of my duties as king and her duty as my guard and advisor.

  “I bow to your judgement, Lady Monica.”

  A smile flashed briefly across her lips before she turned her attention back to the perimeter of the clearing.

  I shook my head with a faint smile and turned back to Noree. "Are you sad, Noree? I know we've been marching further and further from the coast. This must feel like a desert to you."

  Noree leaned her head against my shoulder, her damp skin cool through my tunic. She gave me a bittersweet smile, her sea-green eyes reflecting the stars. "I do miss the sea, Roman. I miss the weight of the depths and the way the sun looks from beneath the waves. But I am not sad."

  She gestured toward the dark treeline and the sprawling camp beyond. "I am happy to be with you. I like seeing the white stone of Crossroads and the rugged hills of Penwyn. Every town is a new story. This little pond... it is enough for tonight. It brings me even more joy now that you are here to enjoy it with me."

  “I understand. But I need you to promise me something, Noree.”

  She turned her eyes towards me and waited.

  “It is dangerous to leave the camp when we are in hostile territory. Promise you will tell me if you need to go exploring to find water for you and Kiyomari. I will make sure that you have sufficient guards with you.”

  Noree tilted her head to the side. “But Kiyomari will protect me.”

  “I am sure Kiyomari will do her best, but goblin warriors, armored trolls or the Duchess’s troops may be nearby the next time you wander off. I want to know that you are safe.”

  Noree frowned for a moment, and then her face lit up as she smiled. She reached her hand up and caressed my cheek. “Roman–you were worried about me.”

  “Of course I was worried about you. You are my wife. I would be devastated if something happened to you.”

  Her eyes filled with emotion. “Roman… you make me feel so… so special.”

  “You are special, Noree.” I reached out, tilting her chin up so the moonlight caught the delicate features of her face. "Have I told you how beautiful you look under the stars?"

  She didn't answer with words. She leaned into me, her lips meeting mine in a kiss that tasted of cold spring water and fiery emotion.

  My arm wrapped around her waist as she ran her hand down the length of my thigh. Her fingers found the bulge in my leather pants, pressing and rubbing with a slow, deliberate pressure that made my breath hitch.

  "Make love to me, Roman," she whispered, her voice a sultry tide. "Here, under the gaze of the moons. My body burns for you."

  My fingers traced the line of her jaw before gently brushing against her neck and skimming the top of her pert breasts. "Noree... I want you. More than I can say. But Monica and Petal... they’re right there." I glanced over my shoulder at the two shadows standing guard at the edge of the clearing.

  Noree gave me a mischievous, predator’s smile. "But you are a mighty King, are you not? And a mighty King does what he wants, where he wants, whenever he wants." She increased the pressure of her palm, her thumb tracing the crown of my cock through the leather. "I can feel you, Roman. I know you want me. You want me right now."

  "But Kiyomari..." I glanced toward the massive sea dragon currently lounging in the pond.

  Kiyomari let out a low, vibrating laugh that sent ripples across the surface of the water. "Why should it bother me, King? I feel Noree’s desire for you every time you enter a room. And I sense the soaring heights of her pleasure when you are within her. It is like the rising of the tide."

  "Kiyomari! Don’t tell him all my secrets!" Noree admonished, though her eyes never left mine.

  I leaned in, my voice a conspiratorial whisper. "Doesn't it bother you? That they can watch?"

  Noree leaned closer, her tongue flicking out to lick and tease the shell of my ear. "Why should it bother me? Or Petal? She is your concubine; she already knows how amazing it is to be your lover. She will understand. And as for Monica..." Noree paused, her gaze flicking toward the spear wielding warrior. "I see how she watches you when your attention is elsewhere. I see the hunger in her eyes. She wants to be more than an advisor or a guard, Roman. Perhaps watching us will embolden her to show you her true feelings."

  I was taken aback by Noree’s keen observation of Monica. The way the brunette acted when I teased her already had me thinking that she might be interested in me. That maybe, underneath her serious exterior, a passionate fire was hiding.

  Noree brought my attention back to her as she nuzzled against my air and began to softly hum. It was the low, magical resonance of a Merfolk Ocean Singer—a sound that vibrated straight into the blood. My desire flared into an inferno. I stopped overthinking and pulled her into a fierce kiss, my hands sliding over her supple body as I caressed and squeezed her silky smooth skin.

  Noree tugged at my pants, trying to pull them down. I broke off our kiss and within moments, we were both bare to the night air. I leaned back against the lichen-covered rock, and Noree climbed into my lap, straddling my hips. The moonlight played across her naked skin, making her look like a creature of pure light and seafoam. Her breasts were full and firm in my hands. My thumbs flicked across her nipples. They were peaked from the chill of the air and the heat of our contact.

  Sliding my hands down her sides, I gripped her waist, lifting her slightly. Noree reached her hand down between her thighs and guided me to her slick opening as I lowered her onto me. She let out a long, shuddering gasp as I filled her, her internal muscles clenching around me with a desperate, wet warmth.

  Noree began to move, a slow and agonizingly perfect grind. The gentle, rhythmic slap-splash of the water spilling over the beaver dam, provided a perfect echo to the cadence of her hips moving against my thighs.

  I ran my hands up her flat belly before cupping her perfect breasts again. I massaged her firm flesh as she threw her head back, her eyes half closed and her lips parted as her breathing grew faster.

  My grip shifted, my palms sliding down to squeeze the firm, cool curves of her ass cheeks. With every upward thrust, I pulled her down harder against me, driving my cock deeper and deeper into her hot, tight pussy.

  The humming in her throat grew louder, more frantic. Noree increased the pace. I watched her face as her eyes fluttered shut and her pretty lips parted from the pleasure and pain of my cock stretching and filling her passage.

  The friction and the magic of her voice pushed me over the edge. I felt the surge building in my gut, a tidal wave that couldn't be stopped. Noree’s pace turned into a frantic gallop, her body bucking against mine as she hit a powerful, moaning climax. I followed her instantly, grunting into the night as I shot load after hot load deep inside her.

  The noise of our pleasure startled the birds nesting in the nearby trees. A few chirped angrily as they flew away. Noree collapsed on top of me. Having sex in enemy territory might not be the smartest move, but at the moment I didn’t care. I wrapped my arms around my wife, savoring the moment.

  We stayed tangled together for a time, the silence of the woods returning as the magic of the hum faded. Eventually, the chill of the night began to bite, and we reluctantly dressed.

  As we walked back toward the edge of the clearing, I caught Monica’s silhouette. She had an awkward, embarrassed set to her shoulders and refused to meet my eyes, her gaze fixed firmly on a distant, unimportant tree. Her face, usually a mask of stoic duty, looked flustered in the moonlight.

  Petal, on the other hand, was breathing heavily, her chest heaving as if she had been running. Her reddish-brown eyes were dark with a smoldering heat as she watched us approach.

  "We’re heading back to camp," I said, my voice still slightly raspy from the impromptu sex.

  Monica simply nodded, her jaw tight, and began to lead the way without a word. Petal fell in beside me, her shoulder brushing mine with a deliberate, lingering pressure.

  Kiyomari heaved herself out of the pond with a wet squelch, shaking her massive wings and spraying us with a fine mist of cold water. She let out a contented hum as she followed us down the stream, leaving the quiet pond and the beaver dam behind in the shadows.

  43

  Chapter Forty-Three

  The afternoon sun hung low and golden over the horizon as my army reached the outskirts of Knocklong. The march had been unexpectedly swift, a testament to the infrastructure of Tallwyn.

  The road had gently climbed upwards as it zigzagged up hillsides. The Dukedom’s elevation rose from the hills in the south before pausing across a large central plain. Then it rose sharply into the mountains to the north.

  Unlike the rutted, muddy tracks we’d navigated in Mersylvan, the North Road here was a marvel of engineering. It was broad, and the surface was hard packed gravel. Drainage ditches helped keep water off the road, and areas that passed through low-lying areas were surfaced with cobblestones.

  "The Duchess certainly knows the value of a good road," Yvette noted, her gaze following the perfectly straight line of the path ahead. "It has cut hours off our travel time. The wagons haven't bogged down once."

  Countess Sizuna, riding nearby on her blue dragon, stiffened visibly. "The Duchess does not have the burden of maintaining a major international harbor or repairing a fleet of trade ships, Yvette. It is easy to pave a road when your gold isn't being poured into the sea."

  I shared a quick, amused glance with Yvette. The rivalry between the high ladies of Avalon ran deep.

  As we drew closer to the city, the landscape changed. The outlying farms, which should have been bustling with the late-season harvest, were eerily silent. Barn doors hung open, and half-tended fields lay abandoned, just like Crossroads when we first approached Baron Simon's city. The residents of Knocklong had fled in haste, likely at the first sight of our dragons.

  "See?" Bakaan rumbled from above, his dark scales catching the light as he circled above. "The commoners know true majesty when they see it. They hide in terror as I approach."

  "It is more likely they are hiding to escape your jokes, Bakaan," Graxion countered from the head of the column. "A black dragon’s wit is often as dry and unpleasant as an ogre’s hide."

  Bakaan let out a low rumble of laughter. "Jealousy is unbecoming of an elderly red like yourself, Graxion."

  “Jealous? The people of Tallwyn are used to the sight of a black dragon. I worry that your pride will be wounded when you see the duchess’s bond mate, Tiranna. She is truly a magnificent dragon.”

  “We shall see, Graxion. Perhaps this Tiranna will be amazed when she sees me.”

  The dragons fell silent as we crested a small rise, revealing the city ahead. Knocklong stood upon the high plains like a lone guardian watching over the land.

  It was a sturdy, practical settlement. Knocklong was larger than the town of Blackbird Forks but lacked the sprawling elegance of Crossroads. Its grey granite walls were punctuated by two massive, square gatehouses: one facing the south and our approaching army, and another leading north toward the high passes.

  The North Road passed through those gates. We would waste many hours if we had to take the supply wagons through the fields to bypass the city.

  Above the battlements, the banners of Tallwyn snapped in the breeze. They featured a crowned mountain lion in gold set against a field of deep royal blue. It was a proud crest, suited for a land that valued the strength of the mountains.

  As we neared the South Gate, I signaled for the main body of the army to halt. The seven dragons behind us remained grounded but visible—a terrifying display of wings, teeth, and claws. I rode forward, accompanied by Monica and Yvette.