Punish Him For Me (10)
I opened the door to Kosa's room on the third floor, but Atergar was nowhere in sight. Startled, I dashed inside and spotted the blanket on the bed heaped up like a small hill. I yanked it back, and there was Atergar, curled into a ball, letting out a shriek.
"Eek!"
"It's me."
Seeing my face, Atergar heaved a massive sigh of relief and slowly sat up.
"Has Lurtjog gone...?"
"Yeah. But he'll be back. He booked a room at the inn."
"What...?!"
Atergar's eyes went wide as saucers, and she roughly snatched the blanket from my hands.
"G-Get... Get rid of him...! If he finds out Atergar's here, it'll be total chaos!"
"Got it. I'll chase him off. But first, lemme ask you something."
I shut the door and dragged a chair over to sit. Atergar was trembling under the blanket draped over her head like a hood.
"I chatted with him a bit earlier. But... he was kinda weird."
"Weird how? Didn't that demon tell you? He's a dragon! The blue dragon that attacked Myanfeld!"
"I know, I believe you. So quit yelling. Hurts my ears."
Atergar clamped her mouth shut and glanced anxiously between me and the door.
"Talked to him, and he just didn't seem like a dragon. Kinda like... a timid human guy with zero social skills?"
"You confirmed he's really Lurtjog, right?"
"He said it himself. Came all the way from Myanfeld looking for his 'little sister.'"
"Lies! Total bullshit! Dragons don't have siblings! They lay one egg at a time! Even if they're from the same dragon, they don't even recognize each other's faces!"
"I know, I get it. It's a lie."
I soothed Atergar as she worked herself up into a frenzy.
"What I'm wondering is if he's always been like that. Doesn't seem anything like your savage dragon kind."
"Haa... you dumb hero. Does he gotta be all loud and boisterous to be a lolicon dragon? Huh?"
"What're you talking about?"
Atergar spilled it all out in exasperation.
"A normal dragon would chase after adult dragons of the same species. But he can't! No guts to hit on an adult female dragon, so it festers inside him, rots him to the core, and he ends up obsessing over young dragons like Atergar!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah! And that bastard's insanely violent. Can't stand up to other dragons but shows no mercy to the young ones! That blind fortune teller confirmed it! He turned Myanfeld to ashes! To catch me!"
That cleared up the ambiguity...
"Alright. I get the picture. Even know he's a bastard who deserves to die."
"Then kill him quick! Please... I beg you..."
Atergar finally let a single tear roll down her cheek.
"I will. But there's a snag."
I explained to her why I couldn't just beat Lurtjog down right then and there. To avoid damaging the city, he'd need to be killed instantly. But there was no safe method among the options. So we'd have to lure him far from the city to do it. But he wouldn't leave the city at all while hunting for Atergar.
Despair washed over Atergar's face at my words.
"Then... what do we do... If he finds me hiding like this... I'll end up like those hatchlings and juveniles who got caught and never came back..."
"Don't worry. I've got your back. But I need a little help from you."
"How the hell am I supposed to help... I can't beat him..."
Atergar muttered in total defeat.
I scooted my chair forward and tugged her ear.
"Ow! That hurts!"
"So... listen up, you rude little red lizard. My plan is this."
The blue dragon Lurtjog trudged toward the refugee camp, shoulders hunched. His steps were listless, his gaze fixed on the ground.
The patrolling guards called him over.
"Hey, you there. Come here."
"Y-Yes... sir...? M-Me...?"
"Who else would we be talking to?"
Lurtjog shuffled meekly over to the guards.
"Don't recognize you. Let's see some ID."
"ID...? You mean...?"
Lurtjog panicked but quickly spun a plausible excuse.
"I... I fled Myanfeld in a hurry and didn't grab anything..."
The guards exchanged awkward glances.
"Oh... sorry about that, sir. We didn't realize. What brings you here, then?"
"Sorry... the camp felt too stuffy, so I went for a walk and ended up here... My apologies, truly..."
As Lurtjog bowed repeatedly in apology, the guards apologized back and let him go.
Once they were gone, Lurtjog slunk back into the refugee camp with his usual limp gait.
The camp buzzed with people. Endless rows of tents, smoke rising from campfires everywhere, shouts from guards and cries from children.
Lurtjog paused to survey the scene. How the hell am I supposed to find Atergar here...? Check every tent one by one? Or just blast it with breath like last time...? Nah. Might lose her in the chaos again...
Then his eyes caught some little girls running and laughing innocently. His gaze sharpened, tracking their every move. He fixated on their slender necks, delicate wrists, sweat-matted hair clinging from play—and his crotch began to swell. Even in polymorph form, it mimicked his true draconic physiology all too faithfully.
As he unconsciously reached for his pants, Lurtjog snapped out of it and shook his head vigorously. I need to find Atergar. That young red dragon. I have to take her in, all alone and scared without her kin.
His erection strained against his pants again. He hunched over, weaving through the crowds and tents to avoid people.
"Um... excuse me... could I ask you something...?"
Lurtjog approached a woman sitting on a wooden crate by a tent.
"I'm looking for my little sister... about this tall, red hair..."
"Who?"
Then a burly man—likely her husband—emerged from the tent. Lurtjog froze stiff, speechless.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Uh-uh... sorry...!"
Lurtjog bolted in a panic, fleeing blindly. After running far, he panted and glanced back. The man hadn't followed.
Brawny males made Lurtjog's breath catch and his mind go blank. Same with alluring females. He lacked the confidence for mating, the guts to charm them—or the belief they'd accept him. So in the end...
"Eeeek! Uncles! Big trouble!"
A shrill voice cried out from the camp entrance. He turned to see the pint-sized red-haired half-elf from the inn, yanking at the guards and yelling.
The moment he spotted her, sticky fluid began leaking from Lurtjog's crotch.
"Ain't that the kid from the inn? What's up?"
"Not the time! North road! North road!"
The half-elf stomped her feet, pointing north.
"What? Spit it out!"
"North road...! A red dragon showed up!"
"What?!"
Lurtjog's eyes snapped north. Amid the bright sky flanked by towering mountains, a red dragon unfurled its wings and took flight. Barely the size of the inn building where he'd eaten, the small red dragon beat its wings and soared northward the instant it lifted off.
Lurtjog roared at the sight.
The thunderous bellow—impossible from a human throat—sent everyone screaming flat to the ground. The sheer vibration toppled tents and snuffed out campfires.
The guards tackled Marim to shield her as she fell.
The dragon's fury summoned lightning from the clear sky. Dozens of bolts converged into a massive pillar that slammed down on Lurtjog. The impact scattered nearby debris in all directions.
When the cataclysm cleared, Lurtjog's true form emerged. His body was a fortress of scales, wings crackling endlessly with electricity. His elongated neck was an arrow of certain death, his massive head, horns, and sparking maw inevitable punishment.
As his wings beat slowly, grass flattened en masse and branches snapped to the ground. With just two flaps, the colossal beast lifted into the air and opened wide.
Lurtjog shot northward like a quarrel from a crossbow.