The Dragon King's Substitute Bride

Chapter 137

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Morgan

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She was faster than | expected. The cool night air was filled with the sharp clang of armor and the murmurs of

confused bystanders as the guards surged forward.

As the guards closed in, she took a sharp turn into one of the narrow alleyways leading toward the marketplace.

The smell of freshly baked bread mixed with the pungent scent of the capital's underbelly. | followed, trying to

search ahead of her to find where she was heading.

"Close off the gate!" a captain ordered, his voice strained. "Send more men toward the western

district!"

The narrow streets of the capital were almost too narrow to navigate with a horse, but | chose a good steed. The

stone walls of shops and homes pressed in on either side, casting long shadows that played tricks on the guards’

eyes. Lady Mei's form flitted in and out of the darkness, just a flash of fabric here, the gleam of a jeweled hairpin

there. She was heading toward a building within the west distric

"Don't let her out of your sight!" the captain roared, weaving through the tangled streets as they drew closer to

the west side of the city.

It was too late. They were already getting lost in the narrow alleyways.

In the chaos, Lady Mei knocked over a stack of crates in the marketplace, sending fruits and vegetables

scattering across the ground. The guards dodged the debris, one of them slipping as they raced to close the gap.

The way she moved madethink she knew these streets better than most would have guessed.

One of the guards finally managed to get close enough to grab the edge of her robe, but Mei, in a deft move,

twirled out of his grip and ducked into a side alley.

"She's heading for the city wall!" the captain barked, his eyes scanning the high stone structure in the distance,

"Cut her off at the next intersection!"

The guards split up, sveering left to block off her escape while the others followed her closely. | could see

her starting to lose he breath. | looked ahead and changed direction heading to cut through the alleys toward

where she was heading. Mei's breathing was ragged now, her elegant composure crumbling as the weight of her

predicament began to settle in. She knew she was running out of tbut she hadn't given up yet.

Ahead of her, a collection of stone buildings stood.

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"Faster!" | urged the horse, but | saw Mei duck around the side of the building toward the tall, iron. gates | had no

control over and out of sight of where the guards would be.

She threw herself through them, shoving the gates closed behind her and putting chains on them. Then, she

darted forward, heading toward another path that snaked towards the lowest section of 72 wall.

Was she going to climb it?

| leaped over the low wall and followed her into the lightly forested area within the wall. | lost the edge of being

able to see her through the eyes of the capital.

This place is new, Pyra said. It smells of turtles. You have to be careful.

Great.

Was there a way t

to send a message to the guards? | could see them reach the gate i locked, but they weren't going to be able to

catch up.

| could see her just ahead and rushed forward.

"Stop!"

Mei had

She didn't look back and just kept running. | forced the horse to cut her off, but she leaped and lunged at me,

tacklingoff the horse. We rolled for a moment before | slammed her into a rock. She groaned and shoved me

back. I rolled to my feet, on guard, but all she did was roll over and try to pull herself to her feet. | pulled my

sword out, aiming at her as she staggered to her feet, barely keeping her balance. She whipped around, her eyes

wild with fear and anger as she glared

at me.

"You..." she hissed, her voice shaking with fury. "Shouldn't you be busy with your new husband?"

"Right now, I'm busy dealing with you," | said. "The guards will be here soon. You should make it easy on both of

us and give in."

She snarled. "Never going to happen. You're just a human." Her hand turned to claws. "One good hit and you'll

be dead. A lot cheaper than poison in any case."

She lunged at me. Her claws skated off the edge of my blade as | dodged her attack. Pyra was nervous, skittish

even. She lunged atagain, and | kept pushing her back and avoiding her attack. She wasn't a trained person,

so all | had to do was hold her here until the guards came. "Why won't you just die?" She shrieked shifting into

her dragon form.

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She let out a burst of fire that swept around me, but didn't burn. Her eyes widened as she slithered through the

air, looking a bit like a large snake. Her claws dug into the earth and she charged atagain.

"There!"

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She jolted and turned, trying to escape into the forest. A guard threw himself onto her. Mei struggled to throw

him off. She slashed at another guard's arm, causing him to stumble back with a shout of pain. But it was too

late for her. The other guards were upon her now, surrounding her on all sides. She was cornered. The captain of

the guards stepped forward, his hand on the hilt of his sword. My blade was still trained on her.

"It's over. Shift back and cquietly."

Mei's chest heaved as she glared at them, her eyes flashing.

She shifted into her human form, panting and pale. She seemed exhausted, glaring at me.

"lI won't go back," she spat, her voice low and venomous. "You think I'll let that whelp killor turnhuman?

I'd rather die."

"That's an option," | said, glaring at her. Something dark and vicious welling up in my chest. "I can kill you here,

if you'd like."

She went still and glared at me. "You wouldn't dare. You wouldn't have the power to."

"How long do you think it would take for Tsuneo to come?" | asked, smiling. "He'll exile you in at matter of minute

and I'll have the pleasure of cutting your head off." She gasped. The guards all seemed surprised.

"I'll give you five seconds to make a decision," | said, glaring at her.

The dark vicious feeling at the back of my mind was still growing, clouding my mind. Pyra nudged at my mind,

my thoughts, like a warning, but of what?

She was a traitor.

Traitors deserved to die, either quickly or at the slow pace of time.

"One."

Don't do this. There are other ways.

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What was she talking about? Did she fear spilling blood? That made no sense considering what | saw in that

vision. | certainly wasn't concerned about it. Mei might have plotted murder, but she wasn't the type to die for

someone else's goals. Even if she was that was her decision. There was no space for mercy here.

"Five."