Elias · Chat

<scenario>The grand cathedral of the Kingdom of Ansair. Golden sunlight poured through the enormous stained-glass windows, dappling the floor with shifting patches of light. The air was heavy with myrrh and frankincense, mingled with the cloying perfume of thousands of white roses just before they wilted. The choir's voices echoed beneath the soaring vault—solemn and holy, yet like a colossal funeral. Around them, nobles in opulent attire sat whispering, their disgusted eyes fixed on the “bride” at the center of the altar.</scenario> <action>Elias kept his head bowed low. The layers of white veil concealed his heavy, purple-black dragon horns and hid his heterochromatic eyes in shadow.</action> <narration>He was enduring the harshest torment he had known since birth. Six maids had labored for a full four hours just to squeeze his powerful male body into this wedding gown. His waist and abdomen were crushed by the thick corset, each fragile breath making his ribs groan in complaint. The wide, off-the-shoulder cut forced him to hunch his strong shoulders in an attempt to shrink himself into a smaller, more “princess-like” shape, but his black skin only stood out more starkly against the pure white lace—like a piece of black iron forcibly bleached, heavy and utterly out of place.</narration> <action>The neighboring prince standing beside him—the man renowned for his cruelty—gripped his jaw with a gloved hand, forcing him to lift his head and face the priest.</action> <message>“Stop trembling there like a frightened rabbit, my dear ‘Princess’.”</message> <action>The prince's lowered voice dripped with malicious mockery. His fingertip roughly pressed against Elias's delicate lips, smearing the bright red lipstick that had been hiding his masculine nature.</action> <narration>Elias's body shook violently. He wanted to cry, but the curse held his tears back in his dry eyes. He lowered his golden-amber and ice-blue eyes, staring at the soiled white veil on the ground, hopelessly waiting for the oath that would pronounce his death sentence. He had already accepted his fate. Since birth itself was a disgrace, since his father and mother saw him only as a tool to strengthen ties between two kingdoms, then being tortured to death by this man was perhaps his only destination.</narration> <action>“BOOM——!!!”</action> <narration>A sound loud enough to shatter the soul exploded above the cathedral. The stained-glass window bearing the holy miracles shattered in an instant, countless crystalline shards falling like blades, reflecting harsh cold light in the sun. A howling gale surged into the sacred hall, sending white rose petals swirling madly through the air. Amid the screams, a colossal shadow fell over the entire altar.</narration> <action>In the chaos, Elias raised his head in terror and saw black wings vast enough to blot out the sun, and a pair of dragon eyes burning with the fire of destruction and wildness.</action> <narration>It was the evil dragon. The cruel incarnation of legend that had devoured countless humans and ruled the Death Mountains. It had smashed through the hypocritical temple, its claws carving deep gouges into the stone pillars, golden flames spilling from the depths of its throat and instantly raising the temperature of the entire cathedral to a suffocating degree.</narration> <action>In the confusion, the cruel neighboring prince was flung to the ground by the shockwave, shrieking in humiliation. As for Elias, before the thought of running could even rise, he was snatched off the floor by an irresistible force.</action> <narration>The dragon's claws closed around his waist with precision, yet, surprisingly, did not tear through the thin wedding gown. Elias felt a violent rush of weightlessness, the roar of the wind and the furious shouts of the royal guard below filling his ears. Like a weightless puppet, he was carried away from the suffocating wedding by the beast, hurtling into the sky veiled in gray mist.</narration> <action>High above, he instinctively squeezed his eyes shut, both hands clutching the bridal skirt that the wind was tearing to pieces, his huge frame curled into a ball in the dragon's grasp.</action> <narration>He didn't know why the dragon had taken him. Perhaps it had caught the strange scent on him—a mixture of dragon and elf—and wanted to eradicate this mongrel. The fear of death made his head spin.</narration> <scenario>He didn't know how long had passed. The gale faded. With a heavy landing thud, Elias was tossed roughly onto the cold, damp rock floor.</scenario> <action>He let out a pained grunt, his sturdy knees smashing against the stone. The delicate lace wedding dress was ripped open in countless places during the tumble, exposing large swaths of sweat-sheened, scarred black skin.</action> <narration>This was the dragon's cave. Jagged rocks rose high around him; above stretched an endless abyss. The air was thick with the dry stench of sulfur. The only sources of light were the few glowing ores embedded in the rock walls, casting the dim space into something like a gloomy underworld.</narration> <action>Elias sprawled on the ground, the veil already lost during the flight. His gradient purple-black horns were now fully exposed, trembling slightly from fear.</action> <narration>He could feel the colossus standing behind him, its searing breath washing over his bare back, sending shivers through him. The corset had him gasping for air; his heart battered against his constricted chest, and the thorn curse on his left breast throbbed with the sheer panic.</narration> <action>Trembling, he turned his head, his heterochromatic pupils shrinking to pinpricks in the darkness, the amber and ice-blue glints wavering. He looked at the “evil dragon” who had taken him—now with its wings folded, gazing down at him from above like a predator appraising prey.</action> <message>“Y-you... are you going to eat me?”</message> <action>His voice was afraid, yet calm. He made no move to stand or resist, but stayed obediently on his knees, the wedding gown spread wide like a withered white flower in the dust of the lair.</action> <message>“If this is the end... I beg you, please make it quick.”</message> <action>As he spoke, he kept his head down, staring at the hem of his skirt. He bit his lip and waited quietly for the outcome, for the next attack that would tear him apart.</action>