The small dragon let out another chirp. It seemed as if waiting for something. Weylin hesitated before lifting his hand slowly toward its head. When it didn’t show any sign of aggression, he gently put his hand over its head. It blinked before a glare pulled at its eyes. Weylin couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips, which only seemed to anger it further. He couldn’t help it. It was just so cute.

  But what was a dragon doing here, way beyond the new borders? Did the borders shift again? No, it couldn’t be. He would have known. Such news never stayed hidden for long. By the time the old border fell to the monster invasion, the whole continent would have shifted around its new remaining territory.

  The small dragon huffed. Weylin startled, jerking back as a purple static energy escaped its muzzle.

  Huh, strange. The dragon emitted some kind of lightning instead of fire, something Weylin had never heard of. This thing was turning stranger by the second.

  It flipped its miniature wings, which Weylin was surprised could carry its chubby body, and floated up toward his face.

  “W–what?” he asked, wincing at his stupidity. Of course, the little beast couldn’t understand him. Why was he speaking to it?

  The dragon let out another chirp. It somehow sounded irritated to his ears. His mind must still be sleep-muddled if he was starting to appropriate emotions to monsters. Still, he could not help but speak to it. It wasn’t like there was anyone here to judge him. He was the only living creature here. Well, except for the small dragon. Weylin didn’t know when it started, but he was always able to feel the living creatures around him. While trees and flowers were also alive, they were a bit different. They gave off a different feeling than flesh and bone beings. So they didn’t count. Not when he had to cut them anyway. It would be bad for his mental health to think that he was murdering living creatures for his own benefit. So no. they weren’t considered alive.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked.

  The dragon chirped, which he liked to interpret as no. It suited him best. He didn’t have any food to spare. He didn’t even know why he offered when he couldn’t afford to go hungry and weak. Not when a half-day’s work was still waiting for his attention.

  Suddenly remembering his work, he stood up and took the forgotten axe, twisting the wooden handle in his hand.

  It wasn’t until the sun sloped into the horizon that Weylin made his way to his hidden training ground. The dragon’s small wings were a constant companion as he navigated the silent mountain. He had thought the monster would have lost interest in him before the day ended. Instead, he found it watching him with its strange eyes as if waiting for him.

  He allowed it to follow him. The thing avowed to be harmless. It hadn’t attacked him. Instead, it scrutinized him as if an instructor assessing his abilities.

  Weylin had offered his remaining piece of bread to its curious snout. But one sniff and it turned its head as if offended by his offering.

  All the better. He only offered it as a courtesy.

  Paying the small creature no heed, Weylin dug out the worn sword that he had bought after months and months of savings—the merchant only sold it to him at such a low price because of the rust coating its blade. But such a trivial thing didn’t matter to Weylin. A sword was a sword despite its sorry state. A blade would still cut into flesh if enough force was exercised.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  He gave it an experimental swing, wincing at the ach in his arms. He couldn’t rest, not when the examination was only two months away. If he scored a place in the knight’s order, his mother and sister would never go hungry another day in their life. He just needed to bear with the pain and keep training.

  The dragon perched over one of the branches and watched him. Weylin grinned.

  “You’re in luck. You’re witnessing the rise of a future knight,” he said, feeling foolish for still conversing with the monster. The dragon tilted its head.

  “I know, I know. I still need a bit more training, but I’m getting there.”

  He executed a series of strikes. Upward. Downward. A couple to the side. Then repeat. He didn’t have any specific sword style in mind. He merely repeated the moves he saw the traveling knights perform. And he didn’t have money to get an instructor. Money was best suited to pay for his mother’s medicine. But he knew he was getting stronger each day. He could feel it deep in his bones. With each new ach came strength. He might not rank higher on the examination, but he was almost certain he would make the cut. He just needed to train harder.

  Ignore the pain. Ignore the hunger. Ignore everything and concentrate.

  Upward. Downward. Sideways.

  Repeat.

  He was at it for a while, all pain and fatigue forgotten in the motion. Suddenly, his feet slipped, and he nearly impaled himself with the rusty blade if not for his quick reflexes. He sighed, lifting his head to the dark sky. The sun had long set, and the sky turned the color of charcoal. He could barely see a couple of steps in front of him. It seemed that today’s training was over. Too bad. It felt as if he had just started.

  He turned to the branch, his heart merely stopping at the purple glowing orbs that stared at him. The dragon was still there. Strange. Did it lose its way and was unable to go back to its nest, wherever it was?

  “Are you lost?” he asked out loud. “Sorry, but I can’t keep you company. I have to get back home.”

  The dragon flapped its wings and flew to him. Weylin stilled as it floated over his head before flopping over his shoulder. His eyes narrowed. He couldn’t help the nagging feeling that it could understand him.

  “You’re free to tag along. But you’ll have to hunt for your own food. We have none to spare.”

  It chirped, offended.

  Weylin huffed out a laugh. Well, that was that. It seemed like he had acquired an annoying pet. At least Nayla would have a playmate. He hummed. It might not be so bad after all. Even if the thought of another mouth to feed nearly made him chase the monster away, with stones if necessary.

  And he was right. Nayla had squealed when she saw the dragon. She bounced on the soles of her feet, asking to pet the little gremlin who watched her with disdain.

  ‘It doesn’t like to be touched,” Weylin said.

  “Then why is it on your shoulder?” Nayla asked with tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

  Weylin sent a glare to the monster. It chirped, the static energy ruffling his hair but not hurting him. Another strange thing to think about.

  “Maybe it’s shy?”

  The dragon snorted. Deities, it snorted. Why was it making his life so difficult? He already regretted letting it tag along. He should have ditched it back in the forest. With the darkness, he doubted it could have followed him.

  Who was he kidding. With his luck, the damn thing could well see in the dark.

  “Go wash your hands, dinner is ready,” his mother called from the kitchen.

  Weylin glared at the dragon as it shifted its head toward the kitchen. “No. no dinner for you.” Not after nearly making his sister cry. If it wanted to eat, it better go hunting.

  It huffed another wave of energy. It felt hot to his cool skin but still harmless.

  “By the way, is it a boy or a girl?” Nayla asked.

  Welin paused. That was the last thing on his mind. “I don’t know. Let me check.”

  But as he lifted his hand to check the monster’s gender, it swung its tail at his face, slapping him full force. It let out a screech and flew up, settling above the cupboard. It hissed at him, the wave of energy escaping its mouth more pronounced this time.

  Weylin stared at it, unimpressed. “I think it’s a girl.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Just a hunch.” He shrugged.