Chapter 81 - Pets & Beasts

"I'll feed her to my pet."

There were several seconds of silence as if Ara was absorbing his words before she spoke again.

"Kou, I'm not joking okay? I'm serious. If she does something there and you retaliate, it would affect your reputation."

It would appear as if the heir of the Homura House was so petty to punish a mere high school girl for something so trivial as having a crush on him. With Okada's personality, none of those who truly knew her nature would be surprised if she created drama out of it.

"Are you worried about my reputation?"

"Of course, "Ara answered without hesitation that satisfied Ryuu. "And I don't want her to appear as if she was the victim. She's very good at that."

He stretched on his futon like a lazy cat and transferred the phone to his other ear. "Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself – and she honestly can't lie in case she does something in my house."

In spite of being a hundred and fifty years old, and looking totally traditional, the Cedar Palace was actually installed with state of the art security system. The house had no blind spot with the surveillance except the restrooms and his room. However, all places leading to those chambers were all visible and heavily guarded. People couldn't go in or out there without being seen and recorded. After all, the Cedar Palace housed the most expensive historical treasures in the country.

"If you say so, "Ara conceded, albeit still sounding reluctant. "Don't feed anyone to your pet. What's your pet by the way?" she asked, and Ryuu's lips twitched.

"A dragon," he answered, but his voice was not serious so he was sure Ara would misunderstand, which she did.

"Ha-ha Mister Dragon Homura,'' Ara retorted, her voice ringing with sarcasm as expected. After all, Ryuu's name meant "dragon" in English.

By this time, Ryuu let out another chuckle. He seemed to be always laughing with this woman. He reckoned the servants stationed outside his room would already be frozen in shock.

"What kind of pet do you think I have?" He was curious to know. He really didn't have any normal pet though, unless the koi fishes in the pond in his garden counted.

"A Siberian husky!"

Ha? Ryuu cleared his throat. "I look like I have a husky?" he inquired, but she didn't answer immediately. Ara seemed to be laughing on the other end, and he felt like he walked into an internal joke only she could understand.

Well… A Siberian Husky huh?

"I do have a husky," he told her, and Ara seemed to become excited.

"Really?"

"Yeah, but he's a little guy." A pup. He didn't have that dog, but if his wife wanted him to have one then he'd get one.

"A white and black one with blue eyes?" she asked, sounding totally hopeful, and Ryuu coughed to cover his lie before answering. "Y-yeah…"

"What's his name?"

"He doesn't have a name. He's a puppy. You can give him one when you come here," he told her, and he was glad he did because she sounded happy.

In a few minutes, Ara said goodbye because they were being called for dinner. "I'll talk to you again tomorrow," she told him before hanging up.

As soon as the call ended, he ordered his servant to come in. "Get me a black and white Siberian husky puppy with blue eyes. I want it here before Thursday," he ordered, and he lay back down.

As soon as he did, he caught his reflection on the mirror and saw Mavara resting on his face. "Don't be jealous you damn dragon," he told the moody elemental.

After being scolded, Mavara moved again, this time, settling somewhere hidden by his clothes like he usually did.

"Good boy, "Ryuu murmured.

He reached out for another book on his table. It was a new one also about human relationships he had been enjoying reading recently. He was so bored he decided to just spend the night reading. He had no idea how long time had passed, but when he felt Mavara had started acting up again, he had already almost finished the book he was reading

"What's wrong, Mavara?"

He watched as the dragon emerged from where he was hidden underneath his shirt and started slithering all over his owner restlessly.

The Koutaishidenka became instantly alert. He stood up and went to his wardrobe to find his clothes similar to a ninja's and changed into it. As soon as he finished, footsteps echoed on the corridor outside his room.

"Young Master," the servants called out in urgency, and Ryuu knew the situation was as bad as he thought it was.

"What kind this time?" he demanded. If his men were this nervous then it must be something strong and aggressive.

"It's an arachnid-type monster – a giant spider," the man behind the sliding door answered, and Ryuu frowned. He walked across the room and opened the screen to reveal two servants kneeling on the wooden floor.

"And you cannot deal with it?" Spider monsters, even giant ones were easy to deal with. After all, they were a clan with several fire-casters.

"Y-young Master," one of them stammered. "There are several of them this time."

Several?

"How many?" he snarled. These idiots should have told him sooner. "Around thirty, and they scattered in several directions. Some went towards here, some ran away towards Hakone."

WHAT?

Ice filled his chest. Spiders moved fast, and they usually left a trail of savagery behind, binding all living things they came across with their webs to keep them for nutrition. Victims died from suffocation almost instantaneously.

And those monsters were heading to Hakone...

An image of his fiancée's laughing face and her sultry look after he kissed her appeared in his mind and he boiled with rage. She was in danger and he had to move. He swiftly stomped outside the room as he shouted orders left and right.

"Bring everyone to the hunt. Make sure you kill all of those monsters!"

Technically, if he used Mavara, he could fly and intercept the beasts even before they reached Hakone. But by doing so, people would see a flying dragon and create a public uproar. He had to go there in some other way.

It's not a certainty that those monsters would go to the ryokan where Ara was staying. But Ryuu wouldn't leave anything to chance. Hakone was not big for those arachnids. They could envelop a very large area with their web in a matter of minutes.

"Call Gin-nii!"

Kazehaya Gin was busy preparing for the International Business and Economy Conference, but Ara's life was more important than the company. Kazehaya's a wind caster; flying was like breathing to him. He could take him there faster than a bullet train could.