Chapter 963: These Are My Friends
"What is the meaning of this?" the heroes demanded, their voices a blend of anger and confusion.
Archer's gaze remained cold and unyielding. "He's a loyalist of the Novgorodians and a puppet of the Church. I'm sorry, but Jason is not stepping foot in Draconia. I don't welcome spies or enemies into our realm."
Following that, he quickly ate the shocked young man with a swift chomp, causing the three women to throw up as his harem laughed at their reaction. The heroes didn't know what to think, and even Tim was second-guessing his choice to join his little brother.
"Arch. What has happened to you?" Tim questioned while holding onto one of Archer's scales to secure himself with three women.
"A lot, big brother," Archer answered with a fed-up voice. "I got murdered, then I was reincarnated into a family who abused me until I lost my mind until I found another one of my wives named Seraphina."
He remembered the redhead and smiled to himself before continuing, "She brought me back from the abyss, and following that, I met the other women who helped me in their own way."
Olivia quickly spoke with a beaming smile, "To be honest, I could sense his hostility for all of us."
When Emily, Tammy, and Natsumi heard this, they grew curious as the mature woman continued speaking, "If I were to guess, he wanted you three to himself, but Tim here was in the way, and now Miss Japanese and grey eyes are staring at my husband."
Archer could hear everything but pretended not to as Tammy spoke up, "How can he have five women? Isn't that greedy?"
This caused the women in question to start laughing as Nala revealed with a knowing smile, "There are twenty-something of us, and he still manages to tend to all our needs."
Tammy and Natsumi looked completely flabbergasted, which caused Archer to laugh as they reached the sea. The sea looked like chaos as waves the size of mountains crashed all over the place, forcing him to fly higher.
It took him a few hours to slowly fly north until he spotted the Death Mist, which caused Emily to question, "What is that violet fog?"
"It's our protection from the Alliance," Maeve answered while examining the enemy fleet below. "If we didn't have that, the billions of soldiers would have invaded our kingdom."
Emily nodded, but Tim said in a concerned tone, "If I'm honest, most people on Verdantia hate you and your woman, little brother."
"They've always hated me," Archer answered. "It's nothing new to me, but when we get to the capital, I will have Aisha help you find a place. I need to sleep for a while."
Following that, Archer dodged the Alliance's attack before passing through the Death Mist to see several Deep Sea Mining Platforms littering the surface, with transport ships traveling back and forth to deliver their cargo.
"It's nice to take a step back and appreciate the small things, isn't it?" she asked in a happy
tone.
Archer nodded, his expression softening. "It is. Thank you for sharing this moment with me,
Sofia."
She looked at him, her smile widening. "Anytime, Archer. I'm glad we could find a bit of peace together. Even though most of my family hates you passionately, I find you interesting."
As the sun finally vanished into the distance, leaving a twilight sky painted in deepening shades of blue, the two stood in companionable silence, the gentle murmur of the river and the soft evening breeze their only company.
He smiled when hearing this before Sofia continued, "A dragon who cares for the common people and has spent a great fortune on ensuring they are well looked after? I have never met one of your kind that isn't hot-headed or greedy."
Archer laughed as he answered, "What is the point of having power and wealth if I don't help my people? Because I've done that, generations will be born in a stable kingdom; they won't
starve or be abused."
He looked across the river and spotted a farming village before continuing, "Plus, I love kingdom building, which is fun."
Sofia started laughing, which sounded like music to Archer's ears, and he found himself charmed by the Pope's granddaughter as she spoke, "Grandfather and Uncle Anatoly have got you all wrong. From what I've seen and learned, you're very kindhearted and generous while they make you out to be a devil trying to corrupt the world."
The two laughed before Archer invited Sofia back to the palace for dinner, to which she agreed. The Church Princess grabbed his arm with an innocent smile as the two walked silently while admiring the stars above.
After twenty more minutes, they returned to the palace, and Archer led Sofia through the corridors until reaching the kitchen. When the duo stepped inside, the cooks and maids jumped up to bow, causing him to smile.
Archer waved them away before he started cooking Spaghetti Bolognese, which he knew she loved. Sofia sat and watched as he cooked the minced meat and added the pasta. The burgundy-haired girl commented with a beaming smile, "I can't believe you can cook; it's shocking as most men in your position would hate doing that."
"I love making food, it calms me down and it is relaxing," Archer answered while ensuring
the meat was cooked.
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