My Dragon King System-Chapter 245: Awkward Hall Moment

The next day brought with it one of Thamoryn’s magic classes, held within the large hall of the Arcane Spire.

The space was wide, with high arched ceilings and rows of tall windows.

The mages of the kingdom who were ranked as Magic Apprentices from various guilds were gathered there, with their attention fixed on the Grand Magus as she taught them of the summoning technique.

The same summoning method she had once shown Aiden.

Out of all the students present, Laela and Arianna could already summon their messengers, thanks to Aiden who had taught them during their journey to Dellheim.

Now they stood off to one side, playing around with their summons.

A few others did well with understanding it quickly and getting it right the first time. One of those mages was Lysandra Crowley.

Yes, the crowleys had decided to remain in dragonhold, their true home. Helena had returned to the house of her parents for the mean time, and her children head back into the academy.

Both Lucas and Lysandra were with the Grey Demons Guild

Some others tried and failed a few times before getting it, and some others hadn’t gotten it right at all.

Aeris stood apart from the rest of the group near one of the stone pillars, watching from a distance instead of participating.

She wasn’t exactly considered a mage, but Thamoryn had still welcomed her to join any class she fancied.

She watched as Laela and Arianna laughed together, with their summons responding to playful commands.

That was when Aiden arrived.

He stepped into the hall, with his eyes moving across the room briefly before landing on Thamoryn, who was currently guiding a struggling student.

The Grand Magus was who he had come here looking for.

His wives noticed him almost immediately and turned to wave with bright smiles. He waved back, and they returned to whatever had been holding their attention.

Then his gaze shifted, and he noticed Aeris standing alone by the pillar closest to the entrance. Aiden then walked toward her.

"I guess Amazons can’t cast that sort of magic," he said casually.

Aeris turned her head toward him, and a small, almost sad smile appeared on her face.

"No," she replied. "We cannot."

There was a pause, and then Aiden’s expression shifted a bit, as though an idea had just occurred to him.

He tilted his head and activated his Dragon’s Sight, focusing directly on Aeris.

His vision was aimed at revealing the flow of mana within her body.

But what he saw was... strange.

There were no mana pathways.

In a normal human mage, mana flowed through a network of channels that spread throughout the body like veins, connecting through different points and allowing magic to be channeled and cast.

But Aeris had nothing like that.

Her body was completely devoid of the standard mana pathway system.

The only trace of mana Aiden could detect was a single, concentrated glow located deep within her chest, right at her heart.

It was a warm, golden light, distinctly different from the mana he’d seen in other mages.

Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly in curiosity.

"The only trace of mana you have is in your heart," he said, still staring at the faint glow. "And it feels more closely to divinity too."

Aeris’s eyes widened immediately, and her face flushed red at once.

"Wait—Aiden, did you just look into me?" she asked.

She took a small step back, with her hands coming up instinctively to cross over her chest.

"Isn’t that... inappropriate?!"

Aiden blinked, suddenly realizing how his words might have sounded.

"Yeah—no—wait, no, it’s not like that!" he stammered, raising both hands defensively.

He shook his head quickly, trying to clarify.

"My sight wasn’t targeted at seeing through your... your clothes or anything like that! I was looking at your internal pathways! Your mana system!"

Aeris stared at him, her face still red, though now there was a flicker of confusion mixed with the embarrassment.

"You were... looking inside me?" she repeated slowly.

"Yes! But not in a weird way!" Aiden insisted, gesturing awkwardly with his hands. "I was just curious about how Amazons channel mana, and—look, it’s a dragon thing, alright? I can see through layers of matter to understand how things work internally, and I thought—"

He trailed off, realizing he was only making it worse.

Aeris’s lips pressed together, and for a moment she looked like she wasn’t sure whether to be angry or amused.

There was an awkward silence between them.

Aeris glanced away, her arms still crossed loosely over her chest.

Aiden stood there, shifting his weight slightly from one foot to the other, unsure of what to say next.

Then, thankfully, a voice called out from across the hall.

"Aiden."

Both of them turned toward the source.

Thamoryn had noticed him standing near the pillar and was now walking toward them.

Aiden let out a quiet breath of relief. He was Saved.

He turned fully toward Thamoryn as she approached, grateful for the interruption.

When she reached them, Thamoryn glanced briefly at Aeris before focusing her attention on Aiden.

"I am not sure you came here for classes, so I assume something is the matter?"

Aiden nodded. "Actually, yes. I need to talk to you about something."

Thamoryn then gestured toward another corner of the hall.

"Let’s step aside, then."

Aiden followed her, and Aeris remained by the pillar watching the mages.

When they reached the corner, Thamoryn stopped and turned to face him.

"What is it?" she asked.

Aiden began.

"You remember the demon woman?"

Thamoryn nodded. "Yes."

"She’s been under my custody this whole time," Aiden continued. " I wasn’t sure what to do with her at first, but now I’ve decided that I’m going to bring her out. Let her normalize with everyone else."

Thamoryn was clearly taken aback. "That’s... a surprising turn of events," she said. "I assumed you’d decided to do away with the half-demon, like you originally intended."

Aiden shook his head slowly and said, "Not anymore."

Thamoryn was quiet for a moment before speaking.

"I know I cannot change your mind when it’s made up, but have you really considered what this means?"

"I have," Aiden replied. "And part of what I’m trying to put into place is a healthy environment for her. One where she can adjust without feeling like a prisoner."

He paused, then added:

"And to begin with that, I’m going to need you to do something."

Thamoryn then asked. "What?"

"I need you to tender an apology to her," Aiden said. "Once I bring her out."

Thamoryn’s expression turned into more surprise, then discomfort. "An apology," she repeated slowly.

"Yes," Aiden said firmly. "For the experiments. For holding her prisoner. You know how the rest of it should go"

Thamoryn was silent for another moment. Then, finally, she let out a sigh and looked back at him.

"Alright," she said. "If that’s what you believe is necessary... then I’ll do it."

Aiden nodded satisfyingly at that.