Ruan He stormed over to the neighboring estate, bringing along his granddaughter with an air of determined vigor, only to be informed that His Majesty had left and was no longer there.
The entire estate seemed deserted, with only a single butler present—a man sent from the palace, responsible for attending to His Majesty’s daily needs.
Ruan He blurted out, “Did he run off on purpose?”
Almer’s Butler: “…”
Well, he wouldn’t exactly say that’s untrue?
After His Majesty returned yesterday, he had indeed left again. The butler had even asked him where he was headed, and how did he respond?
“Afraid the Ruan family might come to settle scores and return things. Best to avoid it for now.”
And now, as expected, the Ruan family had come knocking. It seemed His Majesty was quite self-aware.
Ruan Shu glanced at the bracelet on her wrist and asked, “So, what should I do about this?”
Following her gaze, the butler’s eyes landed on the bracelet, and his pupils visibly contracted. He even took a deep breath.
“This… this was given to you by His Majesty?”
Ruan Shu nodded, “I wanted to return it to him.”
But who knew he’d flee the scene?
Butler: “…”
He was already well aware of His Majesty’s capricious ways, but he didn’t expect him to be so reckless as to casually hand over an ancestral space bracelet meant for future generations.
“Well, I suppose you’ll have to wait until His Majesty returns.”
With a courteous smile, the Almer family’s butler saw off the grandfather and granddaughter of the Ruan family, but as soon as they were gone, he hastily sent messages to both His Majesty and the previous emperor.
The message to Almer was to ask what on earth he was thinking, and the message to the former emperor was to report him.
This was absurd—His Majesty was truly going too far!
When Ruan Shu got back home, she also sent a message to Almer, who quickly responded with a video call.
The moment she answered, her grandfather’s face, full of indignation, appeared on the screen, his gaze fixed resentfully on Almer.
Almer chuckled, “Mr. Ruan, I hope you’re doing well.”
Ruan He went straight to the point, “Your Majesty, when do you plan on coming to reclaim your belongings?”
Almer feigned ignorance, “What belongings? Once given, it’s no longer mine.”
His voice was full of righteous assurance, with a hint of roguishness that only served to frustrate Ruan He further.
“Your Majesty, that bracelet is one of the treasures meant to be passed down in the dragon clan. You just gave it to Shushu—aren’t you afraid that if the former emperor finds out, he’ll chase you down?”
Almer replied, “No need to worry, Mr. Ruan. As you said, it’s a treasure meant for future generations. Given my age, I’m barely considered an adult among the dragon clan. Who knows when the next generation will arrive anyway?”
“That bracelet is of no use to me now. Shushu can keep it for now, and besides, it carries my dragon scales. Little Lucky—no, I mean, Shushu—is still quite weak, with barely any ability to protect herself. This way, if anything happens to her, I’ll be able to sense it.”
Ruan Shu: “…”
Just say what you want—why do you have to throw me under the bus like that!
Ruan He had to admit, Almer had a point… or not!
“Shushu has me, her father, and her brother; she doesn’t need—”
“Oh, sorry, Mr. Ruan. My father’s calling, gotta go. Little Lucky Charm, I’ll catch up with you later.”
With that, Almer vanished from the call.
Ruan He: “…”
The last person who managed to irritate him this much has probably had trees growing over their grave by now.
This was their emperor, the most distinguished figure of the Star Beast Empire—their prodigy ruler. Breathe in, breathe out; getting angry wasn’t worth it.
“With him in charge, it’s only a matter of time before this country’s doomed!”
Ruan He slapped the table in frustration.
Ruan Shu: … I thought you said you weren’t going to get angry?
“Grandpa’s calm now. I’ll return it to Almer when he gets back,” Ruan Shu reassured him sweetly.
Just then, a thought crossed Ruan He’s mind, and he sat back with a knowing smile.
“No problem. Someone else can teach him a lesson for me.”
After all, he vividly remembered the time when their young emperor had caused a commotion and ended up being chased across half the star system by the former emperor.
Ruan Shu didn’t fully understand, but that didn’t stop her from dutifully massaging her grandfather’s shoulders, like a diligent little bee.
Ruan He thought to himself: Ah, nothing beats a well-behaved granddaughter!
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the galaxy, Almer was aboard a space cruiser when he received a video call from his father. On the other end came an onslaught of thunderous rage.
“Almer, you little rascal! You think you’re so smart now, don’t you? That bracelet, the Holy Light Space Bracelet, and you just hand it to some child you barely know? Do you want me to come over there and break your legs?!”
His father’s furious roars were punctuated by the occasional draconic growl, powerful enough to make the sturdy cruiser tremble slightly.
Unfazed, Almer casually scratched his ear, clearly accustomed to these tirades.
“Get that bracelet back now! If you’re that desperate for a kid, go find a woman and lay an egg. You’re the emperor, for crying out loud, and here you are breaking rules left and right. Are you trying to anger me into an early grave just to inherit my jewels?”
Almer sneered. “Oh, esteemed former emperor, how gracious of you to finally reach out! I was beginning to think you’d disappeared through a wormhole. I almost forgot I even had a father!”
The previous emperor, Reynold, who had abdicated to go on a galactic honeymoon with his wife and promptly blocked all contact with his son: “…”
Feeling a bit guilty.jpg
Almer continued, his tone dripping with sarcasm, “So impressive—cutting me off and then digging my number out of the ‘trash pile’ just to get back one measly bracelet. You’ve really gone out of your way for this, haven’t you?”
Reynold: “…”
“But no matter what, you can’t just go giving away the Holy Light Bracelet. If the dragon clan elders find out, you’ll be in for quite the punishment!”
Almer sneered, fearless. “What do I have to be afraid of? Right now, I’m the only young one left in the dragon clan. When the time comes, let’s see if they’ll punish me or go after you, the irresponsible father!”
Reynold was nearly driven mad by this ungrateful son of his. As Almer pointed out, in the last ten thousand years, his was the only dragon egg to be born. It’s only been a century, and those old geezers still treasured him, each presenting him with rare artifacts when he hatched. If they ever found out he’d abdicated, left his son in charge, and ran off with his wife, they wouldn’t vent their fury on Almer—they’d make Reynold pay the price.
Knowing this was one thing, but having his son call him out on it was outright humiliating.
“Just wait! If they don’t punish you, you better believe I will!”
Just as Reynold finished his rant, a fan flew out of nowhere and hit him squarely on the head.
“Reynold, can you act like a proper father for once? He’s still just a kid!”
Reynold’s expression shifted to one of aggrieved compliance, mixed with a hint of sycophantic charm as he looked at the newcomer.
“My dear wife, it’s not that I want to be hard on him, it’s just that this rascal is too reckless! He went and gave away the Holy Light Bracelet!”
In Almer’s video feed, a stunning woman in a flowing red dress appeared, exuding elegance and charm.
“Son, did you miss your mom? Oh my, you look so thin.”
Almer’s face remained expressionless. “Of course, handling all these responsibilities every day.”
At this, both parents looked distinctly sheepish.