Chapter 6: The Broken Young Dragon.

Restel’s dark crimson vertical pupils locked tightly onto Perth’s small chest, which rose and fell slightly from anger and exertion. Inside them surged a heart-shaking interest, as though he had just discovered a brand-new, fascinating toy.

“Little one, you’re the first to dare do something like that. This kind of audacity… I actually quite like it.”

Restel’s voice was low and hoarse, carrying a trace of strange appreciation—yet it felt far more chilling than any outright threat.

His gaze swept over Perth’s current form like something tangible: beneath that disheveled silver hair lay a small face still carrying traces of childish softness, yet undeniably delicate and refined. The frail little body was wrapped in broken fragments of eggshell, appearing utterly fragile.

Restel gave a slight shake of his head, as though appraising a precious work-in-progress. His tone carried a condescending kind of “consideration”:

“However…”

His fingertip traced the slender line of Perth’s neck in the air, finally pausing over her thin, pale lips that still bore a faint smear of blood. His eyes darkened with depth.

“Your current appearance is still far too small. The Demon Core inside you hasn’t fully stabilized or completely fused with you yet. In this state…”

His gaze deliberately slid across Perth’s flat abdomen. The corner of his mouth curved into a deeply meaningful smile.

“…rushing to have you bear offspring right now would be too hasty—and far too unfair to you. My little one deserves to be in a much better condition.”

As he spoke, he very naturally extended his hand, seemingly intending to wipe the blood from Perth’s lips with the pad of his thumb. Deep in those dark crimson eyes burned a fanatical anticipation for the future.

“Be patient.”

Restel’s voice carried the weight of an indisputable declaration. Instead of withdrawing, his hand continued its motion, intending to caress Perth’s cheek.

“Once the Demon Core inside you has fully settled and achieved perfect symbiosis with you, then we can carefully plan the matter of our future offspring.”

He pronounced “our” and “offspring” with special emphasis, saturated with possessive desire.

“Get lost! Stay away! Go die! Don’t touch me! You fucking homosexual!”

These words—loaded with extreme insult and rejection—ignited like a spark in a powder keg. Perth exploded instantly.

She swung her arm with all her might, slapping Restel’s approaching hand away with ferocious force.

Her slender body erupted with astonishing speed. She scrambled backward on hands and feet several steps until her back slammed hard against the cold headboard. Only then did she stop, gasping desperately for air, frantically widening the distance between herself and the demon.

Fear, rage, and inescapable humiliation made her entire body tremble.

She looked around in panic, desperate to find anything to cover her current wretched, exposed state.

Her eyes landed on a relatively thick velvet blanket lying not far away on the floor.

She practically lunged for it, snatched it up, and wrapped it haphazardly around herself, trying to hide every inch from head to toe.

But an even deeper despair instantly overwhelmed her.

The moment the blanket touched her skin, a familiar, overpowering scent—Restel’s draconic aura—assaulted her senses.

The aura was everywhere, inescapable, as though the demon’s tentacles were still coiled tightly around her.

“Urgh…!”

Perth’s stomach roiled violently with nausea. This was salt rubbed directly into the wound—another form of humiliation.

Restel took in every one of Perth’s intense reactions. Far from being angered, the interest in his crimson eyes only deepened, as though he were watching a meticulously staged performance.

He elegantly crossed his legs and leaned back in a lazy yet overwhelmingly oppressive posture. Speaking at his leisure, his voice dripped with cruel, all-knowing mockery:

“Why get so worked up? In my eyes, the only creature here that fits the definition of ‘male’… is me.”

He paused briefly. His gaze pierced through the blanket’s cover, landing on Perth’s chest—which rose and fell dramatically from emotional turmoil—and the faintly flushed skin along the side of her neck. The malicious curve of his lips deepened:

“Besides, little one… you may say ‘I don’t like it’ and ‘it’s disgusting’ with your mouth, but your body is being very honest, isn’t it? Look at how fast your heart is racing, how chaotic your breathing has become…”

His words carried clear innuendo. His gaze finally settled on Perth’s silver eyes, now visibly moist and reddened from rage and shame. He added meaningfully:

“Your body’s reactions can’t lie.”

“!!?”

It was as though a bolt of lightning had struck her. Perth froze completely.

Only now did she horrifiedly become aware of the abnormality in her own body. Her heart pounded so violently in her chest it felt ready to burst.

Perth breathed hard. Only at this moment did the strange sensation from deep within her body become painfully, unmistakably clear.

Her cheeks and the tips of her ears burned scorching hot. Tears of physiological response had unknowingly gathered at the corners of her eyes from sheer humiliation.

This unfamiliar, unspeakable feeling left her speechless.

It was all because of the transformation.

It was over… completely over…

Not only had her body been twisted and reshaped into this powerless juvenile dragon form, but now even her instinctive reactions—her physiological desires—were being toyed with by this damned Demon Core, by the demon right in front of her!

Her dignity, her pride, everything that once made her “Perth”… was being crushed and defiled by this man from the inside out, thoroughly and utterly!

“No saving me… I’m… completely beyond saving…”

Perth’s voice shattered, thick with nasal congestion and trembling despair.

Restel quietly savored her collapse, as though tasting the finest vintage wine.

Only when the last flicker of resistance seemed about to extinguish from her eyes did he slowly rise to his feet.

His tall, upright figure once again completely enveloped Perth—huddled against the headboard, wrapped in the blanket, trembling uncontrollably—in deep shadow.

“Don’t be afraid, little one.”

Understanding that newborn young would naturally feel panicked in an unfamiliar environment, Restel spoke reassuringly to the silver-haired juvenile dragon:

“Starting today, this is your home. No matter what happens, I will protect you.”

To prove his words, his voice returned to its previous calm—yet now carried an even more irresistible force:

“By the years you spent as a human, your actual age has long since reached adulthood. You are fully capable of deciding your future life—including who you will be with.”

He leaned down slightly. Those dark crimson vertical pupils stared at close range into Perth’s unfocused silver eyes. He spoke each word clearly and distinctly:

“In the social contracts of you humans, marriage is a lifelong vow. Entering into marriage means eternal belonging—an unbreakable bond. It also signifies that you belong solely to me, Restel.”

He extended a finger and, through the blanket, gently brushed Perth’s cold, trembling cheek. The gesture carried a bone-chilling “tenderness” laced with possessive desire:

“In order to have the fact that ‘you belong to me and me alone forever’ recognized and protected by contract…”

The corners of Restel’s mouth lifted in an arc of absolute certainty as he delivered his final verdict:

“Little one… let’s get married first.”