The Dragon Lord's Aide Wants to Quit [BL] - Chapter 229

Chapter 229: The Guardian’s Silence
But maybe Riley was mistaken in thinking the guardians would be any better.

Because when he remembered how they had looked at him before—like they were deciding whether to eat him whole or just nibble a bit—he realized something unpleasant.

They still looked like that.

Like right now.

Thyrran, the giant serpent guardian, slithered forward with the grace of a nightmare. Its scales were a glossy, pitch-black sheen that seemed to swallow light, and the way it circled Riley was far too reminiscent of a king cobra eyeing a particularly confused mouse. It was just that this guy was far, far bigger than just a king cobra, and Riley didn’t happen to have the audacity of a mouse.

The unfortunate semi-mouse stood completely still.

Completely.

He had been in this situation before. He had faced Thyrran. He had survived Thyrran. But back then, he had not volunteered. Back then, he had not raised his hand like a delusional overachiever and said he wanted to meet the guardians early.

And back then, he had not needed to endure a massive, ancient snake examining him this long like he was about to be graded.

Thyrran’s head hovered close, tongue flicking out as if tasting the air around Riley’s face.

Riley stiffened. “Hello, my lord,” he whispered, voice embarrassingly small.

Obviously, Kael was the scarier one between the two, but Kael was at least his scary. The serpent was a whole different category. And after learning that magic really could not be used inside the archives, Riley’s brain had immediately started hoping and praying that his dragon could outwrestle this creature physically if it ever came down to it.

Hopefully, it would not come down to it.

Right?

It did not.

Not actually.

But Riley could have sworn something worse could have happened if he had not quickly placed a hand on Kael’s arm to stop what was very clearly about to be an outburst.

Thyrran blinked its huge, unblinking eyes. Kael’s golden ones narrowed dangerously.

Riley stood trapped between a dragon ready to pounce and a snake ready to perform whatever snakes consider due diligence.

He breathed in.

He breathed out.

And prayed he would not end up as guardian snack of the day.

But why were they even in this position in the first place?

Simple.

Kael was frustrated. Very frustrated.

And the reason was currently coiled in front of them like a shadowy mountain of scales, refusing to speak.

Thyrran.

The guardian who had recently reduced itself to being the world’s largest, most ominous mute.

“Thyrran,” Kael said, voice tight with irritation. “You seem to know what he is, or at least what is wrong with him, so what is it?”

Riley really wanted to whisper something like maybe try adding a please, but he could not get a single word out when both beings in front of him looked like they were ready to murder each other.

The serpent did not answer.

Not a flick of the tongue. Not a blink. Just silence.

Kael’s jaw twitched. “You said I would know when it is enough blood. Did you mean he would wake up? Because even now he still needs blood, so that cannot be it, right?”

More silence.

Not even a tail twitch.

Kael clicked his tongue in frustration, eyes narrowing sharply.

Great.

Now they could not even get a response from this one.

But it wasn’t like the frustration stopped with the two visitors. Because in such a situation, wouldn’t it be more frustrating to be on the other end of such pointless questioning?

Thyrran stared at the dragon lord with cold, reptilian patience. His long body shifted, scales scraping softly across the floor as he circled them again, his tongue flicking out to sample the air.

The air tasted of irritation. Mostly Kael’s.

The serpent lowered his head, unblinking eyes shifting between the hotheaded dragon and the small being beside him. Both noisy. Both demanding. Both troublesome.

He could hear the questions. All of them.

And yes, he knew some answers. Some.

But knowing was different from being able to say.

He hissed quietly.

What would this young dragon lord even understand? If he used that head of his instead of roaring for answers, perhaps he would not be in such a state.

Tsk.

The problem with young dragon lords. It always took a long time before they grew into sensible dragons.

His gaze shifted to the smaller one.

That one.

What should be done with him? Was it even worth the trouble now?

Although what was the point of considering anything? None of this could ever be up to any of them. The guardians could only watch. In that state, they couldn’t choose.

Thyrran coiled slowly, silently.

The dragon glared.

The mortal waited.

And then—

A hesitant voice broke the tension.

“My lord, for my condition… is the blood letting just a stop-gap?”

Thyrran froze.

The serpent turned his great head, tongue flicking out once as he stared directly into Riley’s eyes.

A response came.

Not aloud. Not spoken.

Yes and No.

Riley sucked in a sharp breath.

Kael’s head whipped to him instantly.

“You heard something?” the dragon asked.

Riley could not answer yet. He was too busy scrambling to shape his next question before the guardian’s attention faded.

“My lord… what am I?”

Silence.

Thyrran only stared. Long. Heavy. Knowing.

Riley swallowed nervously. But he pushed forward.

“Am I actually sick?”

No.

Riley blinked, surprised by the clarity.

He exhaled, steadied himself, and dared one step further.

“Then… am I going to die?”

A long hiss.

All mortals die.

Riley’s eyebrows twitched. That… was technically true but also technically useless.

Thyrran straightened his neck proudly, as if he had given a perfectly satisfying answer.

But Riley pushed again, choosing to try a different angle.

“My lord… are you the guardian of this archive?”

Yes.

“Then…” Riley drew a breath. “Am I human?”

Silence.

No movement.

No sound.

Just stillness, thick enough to choke on.

Riley narrowed his eyes.

“Is your name Thyrran?”

Yes.

The human blinked. So he could answer. He just would not answer some questions.

What’s common with all the ignored ones?

Riley was not that stupid. Not today, at least.

The guardian was not ignoring them. He was selective. Precise. He answered Riley freely, but nothing related to Riley’s identity, and he refused entirely to answer Kael.

But why?

Or… did he not know the answers, so he was electing to keep quiet?

Before Riley could form another question about testing the weather, Kael stepped forward, voice cold.

“Is he sealed?”

Thyrran did not answer.

The serpent did not even move. At least not right away, because after a pointed pause, he turned his massive head and looked straight at Riley.

Riley felt it like a weight pressing into his bones.

Sealed?

As in sealed like the elves kind of sealed?

He looked at Kael, then back at the guardian. If the dragon asked, he wouldn’t get an answer.

Hmm…

The thought hit him hard enough to make his heart stutter. If the guardian was looking at him like that…

Maybe. Maybe they had been approaching this the wrong way.

His pulse pounded in his ears.

His mouth opened.

Instead of asking, Am I sealed?

He said—

“I want to break my seal.”

The words echoed.

Hung there.

Sank into the air like a command more than a request.

Thyrran stilled.

A long pause followed—so heavy it felt like the world held its breath.

Then the guardian rose, tall and towering, and in Riley’s mind came a single word:

Okay.

“!!!”