The Evil Emperor's Fragile Heart

Mana sat down next to Raven and patted his arm comfortingly. The gesture didn't go unnoticed by the visitors from the Pearl Kingdom and the Obsidian Kingdom. They had already witnessed with their own eyes how protective King Jaren was about Raven, and now it seemed that the little Princess Mana was quite enamoured with the boy, too!

King Jaren and Mana exchanged a glance. Mana held Raven's hand, which was cold and clammy, in her own warm ones. She nodded and King Jaren; she knew Papa was aware of the boy's anxiety as much as she was. Azar curled up on Raven's lap and glared fiercely at the new people in the room. How dare they upset his dear Daddy?

Unfortunately, the little dragon's glare made him look even more adorable, Mana thought.

"Greet your mother-in-law and your father-in-law, Mana," King Jaren said with a mischievous smile. "Can you guess who they are?"

Mana nodded cheerfully. "Since Raven is so beautiful, his parents must be the best-looking people in both the groups!" she declared and proceeded to greet Crown Princess Pica and Head Sage Yue.

Crown Princess Pica returned Mana's greetings courteously and eyed Raven speculatively. The boy really had become quite beautiful during his time in the Emerald Kingdom, she thought, and she could see traces of herself in his dark curls and in his face. She wondered how she had never noticed it before…perhaps she had been blinded by her disgust at the boy's father.

Raven squirmed uncomfortably under his mother's scrutinising look. Mana squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"You are very clever, Princess Mana," Crown Princess Pica remarked.

Mana smiled at her. "I'm only clever compared to normal people. Compared to Raven, I'm hardly more than a village idiot!" she said lightly.

"Don't say that," Raven told her with a frown. "You're very smart. Without you and your brilliant ideas, we wouldn't have been able to make the communication device at all!"

Mana grinned. "I do suppose Azar and I have nicely coordinated snores that's conducive to your concentration. And Big Brother and Bella and Fox."

Raven finally showed an amused smile.

King Jaren gave Mana a mental thumbs up. Look how easily she comforted Raven and made him smile.

Head Sage Yue, on the other hand, had his eyes fixed on the ring on Mana's finger. He recognised the bloodstone immediately. It had been his mother's and she had given it to Raven, telling him that it would glow when he found his perfect match…but what Raven didn't know was that there was much more to the stone than that. The bloodstone was a family heirloom that had been their family for generations and it would glow only when it found its destined master. It was also supposed to bring immense fame and fortune to its master…but it had never glowed for anyone in a thousand years. Head Sage Yue's mother had been a prophet, and she had been the one to save Raven when the sages of the Moon Temple had declared him to be a calamity and wanted to kill him. She had told her son at the time that Raven was destined for greatness – whether he grew into a hero or a villain would depend on whether he found his soulmate or not.

And it seemed that he had found his soulmate now…but he needed to confirm it.

"Is that…is that your grandmother's bloodstone?" Head Sage Yue asked Raven, pointing at the ring on Mana's finger.

Ren met his eyes steadily. "It is," he replied.

"Did it glow for her?" Head Sage Yue asked.

"It did," Raven said. He smiled at Mana. "It glowed the very first time I saw Mana."

Mana returned his smile and patted his hand.

Head Sage Yue looked at the Mana's emerald green eyes flecked with amber and silver, just like the bloodstone. Then his eyes turned to the little dragon in Raven's lap and he was startled. He hadn't paid much attention to the dragon until now, but now he could see that the creature's eyes were the exact same shade as Mana's, emerald green with amber and silver flecks. He also noticed the round patch on Azar's throat – opalescent rainbow, just like Raven's eyes and the ring on his finger. The dragon's black scales also matched Raven's inky black hair…

Was it possible that this dragon was awakened by the bloodstone's power…?

Seeing his father's avaricious eyes land on Azar, Raven moved his arm protectively, shielding the little dragon from the greedy gaze. Mana, too, shifted closer instinctively, feeling the unwanted attention centred on their little Azar.

King Jaren sensed it as well. He patted Raven, Mana and Azar one by one, making his protectiveness of his little ones clear to everyone in the room.

Mana cleared her throat. "What were you discussing with Raven's parents, Papa? Do they also want to host a banquet like Queen Carolina and King Orion?"

King Jaren nodded. "They do," he said.

Mana turned to Raven. "What do you think? Do you want to go?"

Raven was conflicted. Part of him wanted to go, to show off his new family, to let everyone who had ridiculed him know that he was now loved and cherished. Part of him, however, didn't want those awful people to cast their eyes on Mana and Azar and Papa…what if they heard something that made them hate him…?

"Papa and I will support your decision, no matter what it is," Mana whispered softly. "Don't be afraid, Raven. We are always with you."

Raven nodded gratefully and his heart settled. He looked up at Papa. "We should go," he said quietly.

King Jaren ruffled his hair, pride shining in his emerald eyes. "Very well, then," he said to Raven. "You children run along, I'll discuss the details with our friends from the Pearl Kingdom and the Obsidian Kingdom.

Mana and Raven stood up obediently, grateful to Papa for letting them have a way out.

However, Head Sage Yue spoke up immediately. "Please wait!" he said. "I haven't had a chance to meet my son for a very long time. I should very much like to speak with him in private later. May we set up a meeting?"

King Jaren looked at Raven, indicating with his demeanour that he would absolutely support Raven's decision on this. If he didn't want to speak to the father who abandoned him, he didn't have to. Papa would take care of it.

Mana, too, squeezed Raven's hand in support. She'd never let Raven face the duplicitous man alone! Hmph! He called himself Raven's father just now, but had he ever behaved like a father in the last twelve years? Mana was very clear that Head Sage Yue's sudden attention to Raven stemmed from the bloodstone she wore and the presence of Azar.

Raven nodded at Papa. "I could meet him this evening," he said.

King Jaren smiled proudly at the child. "Very well, little Raven. I'll arrange it for you," he said.

Crown Princess Pica was rather unhappy with this. She glared at Head Sage Yue. "You didn't spare him a glance all these years, and you wanted to kill him when he was born. And now you suddenly want to claim him as your son and speak with him? Have you no shame?!"

Head Sage Yue sneered at her. "No matter what, he is still my flesh and blood. I can meet him whenever I want. Besides, Raven just agreed to meet me, so what's your problem?"

Crown Princess Pica huffed angrily. She looked at Raven and Mana. "I'd like to invite Raven and Mana for dinner tonight," she declared. "I have some gifts for my future daughter-in-law and I should also appreciate a chance to catch up with my eldest son."

Head Sage Yue, who had initially planned to meet Raven in the evening and then keep him for dinner, frowned.

"That should be fine," Raven said quickly. He had always been afraid of his mother's temper, having been at the receiving end of it many times.

Crown Princess Pica shot Head Sage Yue a gloating smile.

Before the two acrimonious parents of Raven could create even more unpleasantness for the children, King Jaren sent them out.

Raven heaved a sigh of relief as soon as he stepped out of the stifling atmosphere in the meeting room. Mana gave him a big hug and dragged him to the kitchen. Raven and Azar stood by, watching excitedly as Mana rapidly whipped up a large jug of their favourite vanilla milkshake and another large jug of their equally favourite chocolate milkshake. Mana had just received a small token of the fresh items from Vanilla, after all.

Armed with the milkshakes and a large plate of cookies, Mana led Raven and Azar to her own room.

"How did you find us so soon? Hadn't you gone out of the imperial palace?" Raven asked curiously, downing his third glass of milkshake, and starting Azar on his fourth one.

Azar insisted that he was a big boy these days, so Mana had gotten a metal straw made for him. They'd simply thrust the straw in the glass or bottle he wanted to drink from, and the little dragon could slurp away happily.

"Azar sensed that you were upset when we were on our way back," Mana replied. "He led me to you."

Azar looked up at them. "Azar good boy," he said proudly.

"You're the best," Mana and Raven agreed promptly.