Read Online The Dragon Hunter and the Mage by V. R. Cardoso - Free Book Online Page A

a carriage at the crossing in front of him. A wheel had broken and its cargo of green apples was spilling over the ground. The escort stopped.
    “Fire take my luck!” the Sergeant cursed. “Belba, go see what’s the matter.”
    The Legionary spurred his horse with a ‘Yes, Sergeant,’ and advanced ten paces until he reached the carriage, but a curious crowd had enveloped the accident and the Legionary found himself blocked.
    Doric saw the owner of the apple cart yelling and waving his arms. Then, someone pushed someone and someone else replied with a punch. Some spectators decided to intervene and a brawl began.
    “Look at these idiots,” one Legionary sneered.
    Doric rubbed his horse’s neck to calm him down as the Sergeant exhaled impatiently next to him.
    “We can’t leave Lord Auron waiting here all day,” he said. “Clear the way.”
    The Legionary horsemen advanced, opening a path, but the fight was spreading and the advance lost its momentum quickly. The horses got nervous, and soon the Legionaries were part of the brawl as well.
    Two men, entangled in a fight, fell over the Sergeants horse and Doric saw him struggling not to fall off. His own ride squirmed beneath him, circling.
    Then, a hand hugged Doric’s horse’s neck and it froze. A pair of blue eyes looked up. It was a woman, covered in a dark cloak. The hood over her head did a poor job of hiding a mischievous smile.
    “Welcome back to Augusta, Doric Auron.”
    Doric was confused.
    “Hum…  Do I know you?”
    The woman offered him an apple.
    “A welcoming gift,” she said. “Just don’t open it until you are alone.” Her voice was as sweet as a lullaby.
    Doric grabbed the apple, trying to decide if the woman was insane.
    “A gift?” He studied the fruit. It was indeed just an apple. “Hum… Thank you.”
    The mischievous smile on the woman’s face turned into a satisfied chuckle, and without another word, she disappeared into the middle of the crowd.
     

    The carriage rattled down Mount Capitol. Through the slit between the curtain and the window, Aric saw a parade of annoyed faces. People were squeezing themselves against the houses to make room for the carriage and had no problem showing how much they were enjoying it. Some yelled insults, others spat. However, after five years without leaving the Citadel, it didn’t bother Aric one bit. He laughed when a flower saleswoman slapped a man who had taken the chance to put his hand on her bottom.
    “That was probably worth it,” said the escort Captain sitting beside Aric.
    “What?” Aric asked.
    “The slap. It was probably worth it.”
    Aric disagreed. Maybe it had been worth it for the man, but he thought the woman was too old. Not that he could brag on that regard. Aric didn’t even remember talking to a girl of his age. At least, not since he had started liking girls. The next chance he would have to meet one would be his mother’s birthday in a few days. Every great family would bring their daughters to the Empress’s Ball, but of course, they would all be hoping to get a dance with Fadan. Heck, he was the Crown Prince, a single glance from him would make any girl’s day. Aric, on the other hand, would be lucky if he could even get close to the main hall. In all likelihood, to him, the Ball would consist of eating a cake sent by his mother in secret, and he would have to eat it alone, locked away in his room.
    He shook his head. Today was not one of those days. Today, Aric was a normal boy. A boy that could go out and be with his dad. Well, most normal boys probably remembered their father’s faces…. But besides that, today he was a normal boy.
    The carriage stopped and the cabin door opened. They were at an old inn. The rotten wood tablet hanging over the door was shaped like a barrel, and if you tried really hard, you could still read – The Rusty Barrel – in washed out letters.
    There were Legionaries everywhere, and several civilians were peeking, trying to