CHAPTER 57: SOLAR CHARGERS AND SLANDER

The bag practically lunged, and it took everything in Riley not to topple into the nearest shelf like an amateur shoplifter.

But really, how was the baby dragon supposed to stay still when, before him, was a literal trove of wonder?

Left and right, the world was exploding with things to see. For someone who had been confined in the nest and only read about trade in dusty old books, this was an overload he could never have imagined.

The ancient scrolls he was forced to review painted a completely different picture. They depicted dignified dragon-kind receiving offerings from various races in exchange for blessings or protection—grand, glittering tributes in gold, rare beasts, or treasures fit for legends.

But this?

This was nothing like that.

There were so many sizes of those strange rectangular devices with little people inside them.

Some were just a bit bigger, but still—there were even more tiny people!

Orien didn’t know where to look first. If he had known it would be like this, he would have demanded they cut more holes into the bag. How was he supposed to see everything through this pathetic two-eye-slot view?!

Meanwhile, while a certain dragon was on the verge of a retail-induced breakdown, one tall woman and her very eye-catching guard were parked right in the middle of the store’s display wall of televisions.

Riley belatedly realized those were the standard display models, each running a different show. That explained Orien’s excited squirming—he was basically watching a dozen moving storybooks at once.

And as it turns out, even as a baby, reining in a dragon is... not happening.

Riley was just about to ask Kael to take the bag before it burst open when the screens suddenly shifted, all in sync, to scrolling news and gossip headlines.

They didn’t have sound, but Riley didn’t need it. Especially not when their faces were suddenly plastered across every single display.

"From Notetaker to Notable: The Lap Legend Begins"

By Vellura Vane, Senior Gossip Correspondent, The Drakemont Daily Whisper

Council meetings are normally all stiff collars and colder stares, but this week’s Ministry session gave attendees something far juicier than budget disputes. According to three highly placed sources (and one enchanted chair), Lord Kael Dravaryn, Golden Dragon and Head of the Ministry, attended multiple back-to-back meetings with his human aide, Riley Hale, seated firmly on his lap—and not budging for the entire duration.

"That wasn’t a seating arrangement," one witness whispered, fanning themselves with the agenda packet. "That was possession."

The Ministry refused to comment, but sources noted that Hale appeared "comfortable... maybe too comfortable," occasionally leaning back to murmur in Kael’s ear. Whether those whispers were about policy or pillow talk is anyone’s guess.

And what about that sudden absence?

Officially, the Ministry says nothing more than "urgent personal matters" kept the aide away from his desk. But the timing—right after an intense string of high-level meetings—and the fact that Riley Hale had never skipped a day without being dragged half-conscious to work, has the rumor mill in overdrive.

Some say he was on an off-the-books diplomatic errand. Others whisper about a private retreat with the Dragon Lord himself. A few more dramatic voices claim he’s "recuperating" from something they can’t print without legal protection.

Whatever the truth, one thing’s certain: the combination of a sudden no-show, a suspiciously quiet Ministry, and Kael Dravaryn’s uncharacteristically good mood has the capital talking—and not about policy.

Riley’s mouth fell open. They didn’t even have a photo of the actual moment—just illustrated depictions complete with disclaimers.

Also, what was this nonsense about him being "comfortable" and "murmuring"? How could anyone be comfortable sitting on something akin to an actual atomic bomb?!

And these "sources"—did they need their eyesight checked? No, scratch that. Did they need an entirely new set of eyes?

He was about to whirl on Kael and demand they set the record straight when he noticed the Dragon Lord was still staring at the screens.

Then Riley looked.

Maybe he shouldn’t have.

It was one thing to know people were talking about you. It was another thing to see, in glorious oversized clarity, exactly what they were saying.

While he’d assumed there had been some unusual chatter floating around, he hadn’t had the time to check what had actually been posted. So imagine his shock when the headlines kept rolling in—each one more absurd than the last.

Because displayed on the screens were posts under a ridiculous thread titled: DRAGON LORD’S AIDE SAT IN HIS LAP THE ENTIRE MEETING WTH??

FireBreathFan92: I was in that meeting. I swear on my grandmother’s mana-bonded broom, he didn’t move. Not once. Sat there like it was his personal throne.

ElfEyes4Days: Plot twist: It was his personal throne. Ever seen a golden dragon share a seat with ANYONE? Nah. That’s a claim.

GossipKraken: Ok, but WHY? Was it security? Was the chair cursed? Was he cursed?

FireBreathFan92:

Security, my ass. They were whispering to each other. And not "work" whispering. The smirking kind.

RuneTea: Guys. I heard from my cousin’s ex’s healer that they took a "private retreat" last week. Came back all glowy. Connect the dots.

DrgnThighHighs: CONNECT THE DOTS?? BABE THEY ARE THE DOTS.

QuillnChill: Not me imagining Riley like: "Sir, is it ok if I sit here?" and Kael going, "You’re not leaving for the next six hours."

ElfEyes4Days: Also, Kael’s hands?? Were on the armrest. And sometimes Riley. And sometimes... the armrest and Riley. You do the math.

MirrorHexed: Is this the first recorded case of Lap Diplomacy in the Ministry? Should we be writing this down for the archives?

WyvernWatcher: Plot twist 2: It’s a dominance thing. Dragons sit on gold. Riley’s wearing gold somewhere. Boom. Mystery solved.

HoneyedScandal: LMAO imagine all the policy changes being signed while Riley’s in his lap. Imagine the leverage.

LegalLurker: Pretty sure that counts as "mutual seating arrangement" under Ministry workplace policy. But no one’s filing complaints, huh?

ElfEyes4Days: Complaint?? The only complaint is that WE DIDN’T GET PHOTOS.

DrgnThighHighs: Petition to make it Ministry law that Riley stays in the lap for all meetings. For morale.

RuneTea: +1 for morale. +1 for fashion. +1 for chaos.

"!!!"

Now even Orien was trying to read from the closest screen, the bag shaking wildly as one baby dragon giggled without a care in the world.

Meanwhile, Riley silently counted down from ten to one and swore he was going to take the little guy around the shops later so he could smell everything he was not allowed to buy.

Because how could he giggle about THIS?

Private retreat? Does acting as a disguised trader who could not even sleep well because the rocky ground kept stabbing his butt count as a retreat?

Riley wanted to bludgeon every single screen in the place. Honestly, he should probably be more concerned about Kael destroying the store entirely.

Sure enough, Kael’s currently dark eyes were narrowed, and Riley figured he needed to do something before the entire place fell apart.

He did not expect him to speak first.

"That FireBreathFan92 is lying."

"!!!" Of course he is, thought Riley, who wanted to yell that in fact, every single one of them was lying.

But then Kael added, "You moved. A lot. Even drooled. They must correct that mistake." He said it sternly, as though this was the only factual error worth addressing.

The stunned aide could only gape. Before he could argue about the entire farce, Kael said, "Let’s get what we need from this store. I reckon you need to go elsewhere?"

Riley grumbled as he stalked toward the aisle he wanted. "Sir, the drool was accidental. In fact, everything was accidental."

"Semantics. In the end, it ended up like this." Kael’s voice was maddeningly serious. Riley scoffed in disbelief.

He was about to fire back when a saleslady approached. Riley immediately diverted her attention to himself before Kael decided she was an interruption worth incinerating.

"Miss, would you have solar chargers? Or solar power banks? I’ll need your biggest ones, please."

"Oh! We do, however, they’re quite big, ma’am. So we usually offer to haul and deliver them to your address."

She was not kidding. They were the size of a suitcase.

"Um, ma’am, are you interested in buying one?"

More than interested, because the moment Orien heard the familiar words, he went into full signalling mode, nearly kicking Riley off his feet.

If Riley asked him, he would probably say he wanted all of the chargers. But that would draw every pair of eyes in the store.

"We’ll take three if possible?"

"Ma’am, would you like us to assist you with this?"

"Oh no, it’s alright. My husband should be able to deal with it." Riley smiled sweetly, still nursing a petty desire to get back at Kael for the earlier comments.

Perhaps he should have thought twice, because the Dragon Lord ended up looking unfairly hunky as he casually hefted their purchases like they were feather pillows.

Dammit. Why is life so unfair?