Romancing a Kuudere Dragon [M4M] [Fantasy] [Kuudere] [First Encounter]

Transcript

Hold there. I hear your heartbeat, visitor. Do you know where you are? Good.

This is the Valley of the Dragon, Rohnak, and I am he. Have you business here? You come to offer tribute? Is that so? I have made no demands, nor have I received any request for my aid or counsel.

So for what do you offer this tribute? Yes, there must be reason for tribute. I might demand it as recompense for a slight against me.

More often, however, the chieftains of the nearby villages offer it in hopes of gaining my favor. The fact that I must explain this to you implies you are not from this region. I thought as much.

You do not have the smell of these fields and valleys about you, nor do you speak with any dialect I am familiar with. So stranger, on whose behalf do you offer tribute, and what for? Your own behalf.

And who are you? The prince of a distant kingdom. I see.

Then, prince, I believe I have the answer to my second question. You have come to curry my favor for your realm. You are at war and seek an advantage, I take it? No? Is that so? I have been approached by royalty before, and their aim has always been to further one of two things, their kingdom's power or their own.

If you are not here for your kingdom, you must be here for yourself, and that, prince, is more suspicious to me. What do you want? Come again.

Talk. Talk about what? Hmm.

This must be a custom I am unfamiliar with. Am I to understand that you have traveled so far to meet a dragon, and all you desire is to get to know him? To what end? A being whose majesty and wisdom are unmatched in this realm, yet who wields his power and influence fairly, and who is able to take the form of a regal man with radiant violet eyes and flowing golden locks.

And who has told you this? Am I so widely known, and am I truly to believe that you have come only to hear my wisdom for the sake of your own curiosity? So much effort for such a trivial end.

You are a strange young man, but I must admit, you do have my curiosity. I will see your tribute. Hmm, golden trinkets, as expected, and what is this? A rose and a bottle of wine.

Hmm, I do not know what you expect me to do with the rose, and frankly, I am not much inclined toward drinks, but I suppose the surprise is appreciated. I accept your tribute, young prince. What do you wish to know first? Oh, the story of how I came to this valley? Have you heard of Tiamat's duty? Well, it is a belief held by many dragons.

Essentially, we are among the most powerful and long-lived beings in this world. With that power comes equal responsibility. We should use the power and wisdom we collect over our long lives for the benefit of smaller races.

Now, what exactly that means and how to go about it has been hotly debated. Some dragons become tyrants and cite the Tiamat duty as justification. Others are more benevolent, or at least less direct.

Others still reject the duty altogether and seek the most remote reaches of the world to inhabit so they might have peace. This may surprise you, young prince, given my current position, but I once rejected the duty. I sought to live my own life on my own terms, free of obligations.

When I found this valley centuries ago, it was very remote, untouched by civilization, a perfect place to settle. So I thought. But over time, you smaller beings innovated and spread.

One by one, outposts sprang up in and near my territory. This grew into hamlets, then into villages. I tried to avoid them, wanting no trouble.

Yet, I soon realized they were just as aware and mindful of me. It dawned on me that no matter what I did, no matter how remote and neutral I tried to remain, my actions would in some way shape the world. There was no avoiding it.

There is an equilibrium to the world, and all creatures play a part in affecting it. A wolf does not realize that. By weeding out the old and sick elk, it makes the rest of the herd stronger, and maintains the health of the land at large.

Yet, it does all the same. So, while I endeavored to involve myself in their lives as little as possible, I strove also to be just when I did. It seems unfair that one's life should be so shaped by an external power.

But even so, it sometimes becomes so tiresome. Your people sow conflict like wheat. One could mark the turning of the seasons by how often the village heathens come to me.

All seeking an edge in some spat between them. Once the king of this land approached me to request that I join his invasion of a rival realm, of these I reject. If they wish to fight, that is their burden to bear.

Yet, I do reserve my right to choose where and how I intervene. I suppose you can't relate being royalty yourself. Are you perhaps next in line to the throne? Or, you have an older sibling who might take it first? Hmm.

I sense you do not look forward to being a king. I see. That certainly is a heavy responsibility.

Hmm. What is it, young prince? You seem nervous.

Well, the future will come whether we are comfortable with it or not. But very well, we can discuss something else. My humanoid form, yes.

It is rather an advanced shapeshifting magic. What with the drastic changes in mass and anatomy and so on. It is so advanced that most dragons take centuries to learn the spell.

I personally have not even fully mastered it. Hence why I do retain some draconic feature in human shape. It is a costume, so to speak, which we can don so smaller beings might be more comparable in our presence.

No, it is no more difficult to maintain than our natural form. Only casting the spell itself is taxing. It is, hmm, this is somewhat reductive, but it is like changing one's shirt.

Changing the shirt requires effort. But changing one's shirt or the other does not. I see you are a wizard as well.

If it pleases you, feel free. I see. Well, more than anything, magic does take patience and dedication.

As so with most skills. Do keep at it, young prince. Where do I? Hmm.

Dear prince, something you must know about dragons is that we tend to be private. I believe I have already made it clear that I am such. If a stranger asks where my lair is, what else am I to assume but that they are after my treasure? You do have riches enough of your own, dear prince.

The treasure serves both as nutrition, providing minerals essential to a dragon's health, and a status symbol. So yes, it is important to have a large horde. Lest you wish other dragons to take you for a malnourished failure.

You wish to add to my horde? Treasure gained through charity is as good as no treasure at all. The dragon must earn it somehow.

Either through conquest or valid tribute. And what would you offer your riches as tribute for? Conversation? Hmm.

Dear prince, if I may be so blunt as you say, I am getting the impression that you are trying to court me. Ah, you are? No, it does not bother me that we are both male.

I will concede that you are quite handsome, charming in your own way. I have not disliked speaking to you, however, even though I can assume a human form, I am still a dragon. And you are still human.

Surely you can imagine how such a relationship might be, um, complicated. Besides, do you not have your kingdom to return to? Your younger brother can have the throne, can he? You are trying to escape your crown, I see.

I must grant you, playing to another nation and attempting to court a dragon is a bold way to do so. You would no doubt find a great success pursuing a human man. Dragons are well suited to lonesomeness.

We are too large, too powerful, and too proud for communal living.