A little later.
Enid an Gleanna, also known as Francesca Findabair.
Making her way along forest and plain paths to the palace, Enid looked at her companions once again.
They really did look like elves…
Except that Merlin himself was of a more impressive build, with a slightly different type of face that bore coarser features than most other elves.
Or rather, his face was more…
Substantial?
Stocky?..
Enid couldn’t find the exact word, though she was known for her large vocabulary.
Nevertheless, such an appearance was probably natural for someone who was only masquerading as some young Elder, but in reality was a creature of a completely different breed.
However, what most betrayed the dragon in this form were the unnaturally golden eyes, which could not belong to an elf, nor even to a human.
His companion, this Nimue, looked very…
Open.
The Elders would definitely have a stroke if she showed up in the company of such a person…
And where did she get such huge…
Upper assets?
Just like humans…
Good thing her clothes pulled her chest in, creating the effect during walking that it wasn’t as big as it actually was.
But sitting down…
Enid would never admit it even to herself, but the Elder’s daughter experienced something akin to envy for the first time in a long while.
At that moment, the girl recalled the transformation of the huge but beautiful golden reptiles into elves.
It wasn’t a gradual, blurry transformation, nor a hazy, pulsating shimmer like even the most perfect illusion.
It was like the blink of an eye.
Where a sizable sentient flying reptile had just been, an elf or elf woman now stood.
“In this form, you look like some important Elder,” the elf girl finally couldn’t help but remark aloud as she walked along the elven path.
“Good.
That means our little game won’t be discovered right away,” Merlin tilted his head in a dragon-like manner, his golden eyes flashing with momentarily elongated pupils.
“They won’t take me for a servant, but for a potential suitor candidate…
The main thing is that your old men are genuinely surprised, and don’t see this as a real opportunity to marry you off to such a respectable-looking me.”
At this point, Nimue gave him a strange look, but Enid took it in her own way — as a small victory for the golden dragon’s attention.
Not that she actually had any plans for a representative of another race, but…
It was still nice to spend time like this and compete?
After all, who and with whom would she compete in the palace?
No one would dare refuse or oppose her.
Any unmarried elf would want the Elder’s daughter as a wife, and any elf woman wouldn’t dare go against her respected father.
So it turned out there was absolutely nothing to do!
“You certainly don’t lack self-confidence,” an Gleanna smiled her usual smile.
“But no.
They know all the high-ranking elves by sight.
So they’ll definitely be shocked!”
“You know…” the dragon who had turned into an elf blinked.
“Looking at your smile, I’m starting to doubt that I’m the reptile here…”
“What do you mean?” the elf didn’t understand, looking at her interlocutor in confusion.
“You really do look like one of us,” the golden dragoness with the prominent assets nodded in agreement, causing even more confusion in Enid.
“Has no one ever told you?” it was the dragon’s turn to look confused.
“Oh-ho-ho…
Then I’ll keep quiet.”
“Merlin!” the Elder’s daughter exclaimed in displeasure, fixing a demanding look on her companion.
“For many years now,” he replied readily, clearly not intending to elaborate.
…So, they passed through a small mountain tunnel separating the valley with the fortress from the rest of the coastal lands of the continent.
There, an old friend of Enid’s, and also her riding animal, the noble tiger Amurzin, was obediently waiting for them.
“What a beauty,” Merlin suddenly said, looking at the huge striped cat with interest.
“Not as much as me…” the dragon’s voice held proud and joking notes.
“But still…”
“A funny beast,” Nimue agreed with him, tilting her head.
“You bet!
The best of tigers!” coming to her senses, the elf quickly agreed with her acquaintance’s opinion.
“Come here…” In a completely un-aristocratic manner, she began to ruffle the huge beast, completely unafraid of its enormous mouth.
The tiger itself looked at this with condescension emanating from its clear blue eyes, unusual for wild tigers and characteristic only of the breed tamed by elves.
“Will he let us ride him, or will I have to run on two legs?” the dragon asked with a chuckle as the huge cat looked at Enid’s companion with clear suspicion on its furry face.
“He will.
If you, respected dragons, promise him not to turn into your true forms.
He’s smarter than any beast or human!” the elf girl lifted her nose, pleased with how her words sounded.
“Well…
Tigers are in many ways definitely better than people,” the golden dragon agreed with her, also joining in stroking the now relaxed and contented Amurzin.
“However…
Isn’t it time we got going?
Will you give a couple…
even three reptiles a ride, you little fluffy one?”
Letting the mention of reptiles pass by her slightly twitching ears, the elf girl stared skeptically at the enormous tiger.
Little?
In what sense…
And then she remembered the size of this so-called elf…
Well, for a dragon, everyone would seem small.
Nevertheless, in his elven form, his weight was much less, and the tiger calmly carried them to Shaerrawedd, the greatest elven palace and at the same time the settlement of her people, stopping only a couple of times for a snack.
The palace itself was long familiar to Enid, and now she was more interested in the reaction of Merlin, and partly Nimue, to this masterpiece of elven architecture, located in the middle of a plain.
“Beautiful…
You certainly know how to build beautifully, no argument there.
But there’s no defense at all,” the golden dragon said after a few seconds, thoughtfully scratching his chin.
“Agreed.
Not even one of our or Merlin’s kin, even Dwarves could break through here…” the golden dragoness supported him.
“We have no conflicts with them,” the elf responded, slightly stung by such an assessment…
But she couldn’t argue — how do you argue with the truth?
Only by lying…
Lying to dragons?
Especially golden ones?
What a stupid joke?!
“And humans wouldn’t dare to evict us from the palace.
There are too many of us here.”
“Sure, sure,” Merlin, disguised as an elf, clearly disagreed with this assessment, but like the dragoness, he didn’t argue.
“Shall we go on then?..”
The tiger quickly carried them to the main gates, where the guards openly gawked, not daring to stop the Elder’s daughter and the clearly high-ranking elf behind her.
Enid noticed how they exchanged stunned glances — how could this be, she had never let any potential suitor near her before, and now this!
And the looks on their faces when they saw Nimue looking at them indifferently — simply magnificent!
This openly amused her, forcing her to suppress a very wide smile that would definitely arouse suspicion in those old farts who had come out to meet her in a whole delegation.
Her father…
And the other Elders, against whom even the highest-ranking rangers didn’t stand a chance.
Not at all embarrassed by such attention, Enid jumped off her tiger and headed straight for the greeters.
And if her father looked quite calm, to Enid’s disappointment, the other Elders actively began whispering among themselves, discussing the situation.
They had long wanted to marry her off to someone from their circle, and now this…
In their conjectures, the girl caught the most popular theory about an Elder or his son from a distant enclave in the South, forgotten even by their fellow elves…
And about the fact that morals in that enclave had clearly declined, given the appearance of the dragoness Nimue.
Although, her father again didn’t fall for these conjectures, clearly guessing the true nature of his daughter’s companions.
Or even — knowing.
Merlin’s clothes looked suspiciously familiar.
That’s why he greeted them with hospitality.
“Daughter…
Merinelteratsin…
And his companion,” Simlas nodded to each, clearly deciding not to reveal his guesses for now.
“Glad to see you in Shaerrawedd…
And if it’s clear why Enid came here…
But why have you come?
I’d prefer to keep my guesses to myself, since I have the opportunity to ask.”
“A bit of everything,” Merlin spread his hands.
“By the way, my companion’s name is Nimue.” He pointed to the mentioned one, who only thoughtfully looked over the Elder.
“To admire the beauties of the most beautiful elven palace…
To see the surprised mugs…
faces of your kin…
To learn magic from the greatest mage and seer of the present time.”
“I’ve also heard that among the two-leg…
elves, you are the most powerful in sorcery,” the golden dragoness confirmed what was said, placing her hands on her hips.
“Honest.
Ambitious…
Befitting representatives of your…
people.” A thin smile appeared on the father’s face, signaling his interest.
And he didn’t say anything to Enid herself about teaching magic…
She would have taught him, even as payment for the dragon simply spending time with her all this time.
“I see no reason to hide my intentions.
Magic interests me more than anything else.
After all, I am a magical being,” the golden-haired so-called elf chuckled, narrowing his eyes, which instantly became cat-like.
“And what do I get out of this?” the elf girl gave her father his due.
She herself wouldn’t have been able to say that to creatures that could leave only an elf’s feet with one bite.
“Besides the fact that Nimue and I won’t hide our teacher’s identity?
Besides such an interesting point in your biography as teaching representatives of our…
people?” Merlin tilted his head in a dragon-like manner again.
“Besides that…
I’ve heard you’re having problems with humans…
I think you could really use some aerial reconnaissance and a good scarecrow to cool the ardor of human rulers dreaming of seizing as much of your land as possible…
To ward them off from you.
Especially in double the size.”
“In the highest degree, a most fascinating proposal.
Follow me, Merinel…
Merlin, Nimue.
Let us discuss this in a calmer, more secluded place.” Turning his head, the elf, along with his daughter, surveyed the utterly bewildered Elders, who had not yet grasped that their colleague had acquired contacts — possibly even a friendship — with two genuine golden dragons among his assets.
With a final smirk at the insolent old men, Enid followed her friend and father.
Her life was starting to look up.
If only this Nimue weren’t around…