His reward was a spurt of blood.
The dragon howled, and Oliver laughed, racing across the cavern, looking for a better ring for himself. If there was a fight to be had, then he would have it on his terms, and he would enjoy every second of it.
The dragon recovered itself, and came racing after it. Anger in its eyes, but a kind of love there too. Oliver had the sense that it was enjoying itself almost as much as he. It had to, did it not? To come up with the sort of strategies that the creature did, tinged with playfulness as they were – though the game did result irreparably in death.
"Come now," Oliver said. "Let us enjoy this all the way through. I'm willing to put my life on the line for it, if you are?"
