The king sure knew how to treat guests. The room he had given us was more like several interconnecting ones. A mini apartment basically with a kitchen area, living room, bedroom area and a small washroom.
Indoor plumbing sadly didn't exist here either, so if we wanted water we had to go to fetch from a nearby well. Still it was an improvement from the village. It was no wonder everyone wanted to live here.
Not only was it safer, but the quality of life was better here.
I was ready to sleep after a long day, but before that there was a conversation I needed to have. Thus, Xavier Ahi and I were all sitting at a table similar to the one in the room we'd been in earlier.
The two males were sitting opposite me, arms crossed like this was about to be a police interrogation. Of course, I couldn't really blame them seeing as I made a stupid choice thanks to a stupid system.
Sighing at the awkward silence, I finally spoke, "I have my reasons for agreeing to that courting arrangement... We can't exactly say no to that dragon. Here we have the king's protection, but if we leave because we refused, then who knows what will happen."
Not to mention, that system has me in a chokehold about the whole courting thing. But I couldn't exactly tell them that nor do I know how I would even begin to explain the whole system to them.
"Besides, it's just courting on my terms. If the dragon doesn't like my conditions, he's not forced to court me. And I'll make sure it's clear that both parties can end the courting at any stage. If he pulls something like earlier today again, I will end things right there."
"I'm not worried about that part." Xavier stated. "More the fact you're somehow fated to this dragon. I think there's been some mistake. You don't even have a marking on you. Not to mention the fact the king is forcing your hand on this one."
Ahi nodded in agreement. "I can understand the other conditions, but the king should've stayed out of this matter. He shouldn't have forced you into this after what that dragon did."
"I guess so..." I paused for a moment. "Do you think the whole fated mate thing is true? Maybe he got excited about seeing me and forgot his manners?"
I wasn't trying to excuse Atlas' behavior, but more so try to understand it now that I had the chance to think it over calmly. Perhaps, the excitement of seeing his fated mate made him grab me without thinking.
Of course, he also had to be weird about it too.
Still there was the whole fated mate thing that didn't really make sense. Could my tattoo really be confused for a marking here? Ahi had thought so when we first met and then there was that whole scent thing.
Suddenly a thought came to me. Could it be the system's doing? It was clearly pushing me towards the path of making Altas my mate. It had strange powers that I couldn't even understand.
Godlike powers almost. Perhaps tricking the universe into thinking that Altas and I were meant to be. But that was the Beast God's job... unless the Beast God was the one controlling the system.
I almost let out a manic laugh. If the Beast God was truly the one behind this stupid system, he and I were going to have words if we ever met.
"It could be..." Ahi mused, bringing me back to reality. "Maybe that ta-"
He suddenly stopped speaking, eye glancing over at Xavier. But I got what he meant. Perhaps the tattoo had become a marking. Seemed I was going to have to tell Xavier about the tattoo.
"That what?" Xavier asked, looking confused.
"Actually Xavier there's something I've been hiding from you." I said. "I won't make excuses about why I hid this from you. I did it because I was scared about anyone seeing it... Ahi knows... well because he's seen my body."
A blush creeped over my face at those words before I shook my head and got up. It would be better to show the marking than explain it.
"Don't freak out, but I have this." I said, turning around and removing my dress' strap to show my tattooed shoulder. "It's a tattoo, a special type of marking drawn on your body, that I had gotten with my father a few years back. I have another one, so I didn't think it'd become a mate marking."
"That's a-" Xavier gasped out in shock.
"That's a dragon marking yes." Ahi murmured calmly. "I too thought it was just a tattoo like Elisa described since she has a flower one too. But perhaps it has become a marking now."
"If that's true, then that bastard might really be fated to you." Xavier paled as I sat back down.
"You're not upset I hid this from you?" I asked.
"Well, I'm a little sad you didn't tell me, I won't lie." Xavier answered. "But I know why you hid it. Anyone could mistake it for a mate marking... Well, it could be a mate marking now... But yeah, it could've caused trouble for you. I am curious about one thing though... Why draw markings on your body?"
"Well it's kind of a thing my tribe does..." I mused. "Everyone does it for different reasons, but they normally get a marking that means something. For my father and I, we got dragons to show everyone how close we were."
"I see..." Xavier mused. "Well, I guess the Beast God must've turned it into a mate marking then."
"Yeah probably..." I nodded in agreement. "Anyway, now that's sorted, I think it's time for bed. We have to meet with your mother tomorrow and I want to explore the city."
"Don't remind me." Xavier rolled his eyes before he added, "Seeing the city would be fun though. We can also pick up some stuff. Start preparing for the cold season."
[Quest 3: Prepare For The Cold Season]
[The cold season is coming, a time when food and other resources are scarce. Prepare enough resources to last you the whole cold season. You have three months to prepare. Bonus rewards for stocking up enough for the palace too.]
[Reward: System Shop Unlocked] [Penalty: Death During The Cold Season]
[Time Remaining: 29 Days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, 50 seconds]
I gazed at the notification that popped up, a little surprised by the sudden new quest. Still, this one was much better and something I planned to do anyway. But I would start tomorrow.
Right now, I just wanted to rest.