Escape Duty!

yay!

This is awkward, I mean, it's not that there haven't been knights before, but what is Nayeon supposed to do when one shows up with a duffel bag and not a single piece of metal in sight. No armor, no sword, no shield, not even a spellbook, not a single potion either! Fine, this girl was very pretty, dressed in nice linen and looking very clean for someone who has just come all the way to her castle. This girl also didn't have a horse, for crying out loud! The dragon could hear her princess giggling at her predicament from inside the castle, this form always heightened her senses and Sana wasn't the least bit restrained about her laughter.

Jihyo stood there, a bit sheepish but her eyes shined with hope. She was just wishing this dragon would hear her out before burning her to a crisp. Thinking back on it, though, even being burned down would be better than what was waiting for her back home. You see, Jihyo was the youngest of four, born to a family of wheat farmers, she was only destined to work to support her eldest brother, who was the one to inherit everything their father had, then be married off to some lord or something. Despite being what they were, the Parks were considered nobles, as they were the primary supplier to the king's castle, the title never meant much though.

Once the second daughter of the king was kidnapped by the terrible dragon, the man offered a handsome reward and the princess' hand in marriage for anyone able to slay the beast. There had already been six others sent by their families to try and gain prestige with the royal family. It wasn't really about necessity, Princess Jeongyeon had already been wedded to a very influential noble woman, preparing to take the throne once their father stepped down. Sana was supposed to marry and get them some advantage, until the damn beast took her, that was. Jihyo knew she would be the first choice when it came her family's turn to send someone, she was the most disposable one among them, so she took off on her own before that.

"I salute you, your dragoness." The young girl said nervously.

"I'm not dragoness, we are all dragon." Nayeon squints and slithers a bit further down.

"I-I *ahem* I meant it as 'highness'." Jihyo explains.

Sana's laughter got louder and the dragon made her way halfway down the wall, jaw clenching to not snap at the princess and keep herself as menacing as possible.

"Oh, I like that. I am, indeed, the noblest of creatures." Nayeon never failed to enjoy all praise to her greatness.

"I came to humbly ask to be allowed to join your glorious household." Jihyo took the chance to ask.

"You didn't come to try and slay me to take the princess?"

"No."

"Why?" Nayeon squints a bit more, this can't be right.

"Well, I'm the disposable one in my family. As we are nobles in title, it's expected of my parents to send someone too. Since I knew it would be me, I decided to escape before my father had the brilliant idea."

"And you came here?"

"You live in a magnificent castle, in the middle of nowhere, with a princess I'm sure is lovely, though I've never met her." Jihyo lists. "So I decided to try my luck and hope for the best."

"So you don't want to kill me and marry the princess?"

"I don't want to marry anyone!" The young lady whines. "I certainly don't want to die just so the king can be satisfied! And if I left saying I was coming to your castle, my parents can look good to the royal family for sending one of their children, and I can beg you to allow me to stay here."

"Okay, I don't buy it."

"Look, ma'am. Can I call you ma'am? I'll call you ma'am." The girl starts to ramble. "If I didn't come here, i'd be forced to try and slay you, I know I won't make a difference in my family, and i'd have to come and die because that old fool of a king can't just accept his daughters never wanted to do his bidding and his youngest took the chance to escape."