"My Lord… I heard the Queen has returned. And Lady Kate was here earlier today."
Elias's voice was calm, but the tension beneath it was impossible to miss.
Dylan's gaze remained fixed on Clover's injured body.
His expression did not change.
But the air in the room grew colder.
"Bring her here," he said.
Elias bowed immediately.
"Yes, my lord."
He left without another word.
For a brief moment, silence fell over the room.
Clover remained frozen where she was, clutching the torn fabric to herself, her breathing uneven.
Dylan looked at her once.
Then he walked to the wardrobe, pulled out a clean white shirt, and returned.
Without a word, he held it out to her.
"Put it on."
Clover stared at him for a second before slowly taking it from his hand.
The shirt was far too big for her, the soft fabric swallowing her frame.
Her fingers trembled as she buttoned it up under Dylan's sharp, unreadable gaze.
The moment she finished the last button, Dylan reached for her wrist.
And pulled her with him.
Downstairs, the entire mansion seemed to hold its breath.
Dylan walked into the grand living room like a king entering his throne hall.
He sat down on the master cushion with cold, effortless authority.
Clover stood beside him, stiff and uneasy.
Her pulse was racing.
This felt wrong.
Dangerously wrong.
"Dylan…" she started quietly, trying one last time. "It's seriously nothing—"
A scream from outside cut through her words.
The sound sent a chill down her spine.
A second later, Elias entered.
Kate was in his grip, dragged inside with no dignity left to her.
Once they reached the center of the room, Elias released her and stepped aside.
Kate stumbled, then straightened instantly, her face twisted with fury and humiliation.
"Are you just going to sit there and watch your guard humiliate me like this?" she snapped.
Dylan leaned back lazily.
A slow smirk curved his lips.
"You should know better than to lay a hand on what does not belong to you, Lady Kate."
The words were quiet.
Flat.
Terrifying.
Kate's eyes blazed.
"I touched her. So what?" she spat. "I only disciplined the maid. Isn't that all she is? Your little plaything?"
Clover stiffened.
Kate's voice rose with bitter madness.
"Everyone knows who you truly loved was Lady Ellen. She is nothing but a substitute!"
The slap cracked across the room like thunder.
Kate gasped.
Her head snapped to the side.
Clover's eyes widened.
Elias stood there, expression cold.
"Watch your mouth, Lady Kate," he said.
Kate slowly lifted a hand to her lip, shock and hatred warring in her eyes.
Then she laughed bitterly.
"Are you really doing this because of her?" she demanded, glaring at Dylan. "Because of a maid? A substitute?"
She took a shaky step forward.
"I am your fiancée, Dylan."
Dylan's smirk vanished.
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Kate swallowed.
Then, more quickly, she added—
"I only disciplined her on the Queen's order."
Dylan's eyes narrowed.
"The Queen?"
"Yes," Kate said, seizing the chance. "The Queen gave the order."
For a second, Dylan said nothing.
Then he smiled.
It was not a pleasant smile.
"Too bad," he said softly, "the Queen won't save you now."
The doors opened.
Two guards entered.
One carried chains.
The other… a scalpel.
The moment Kate saw the blade, the color drained from her face.
Her earlier arrogance cracked.
"What are you trying to do?" she asked, her voice suddenly unsteady.
"Scared?" Dylan asked.
He rose to his feet.
Slowly.
Gracefully.
Like a predator finally standing to claim its prey.
He walked toward her and stopped close enough to make her flinch.
Then he lifted her chin.
Forced her to look at him.
"Humans value their bodies," he said softly.
His fingers slipped away from her jaw.
"And dragons value what?"
Kate's eyes widened.
"No."
Her voice shook.
"No…"
The guards seized her arms before she could retreat.
Panic exploded across her face.
"No! Dylan, don't—!"
They dragged her toward the prepared restraints.
Clover stood rooted in place, horror flooding her chest.
She knew exactly what was about to happen.
Dragons treasured their scales.
More than beauty.
More than status.
It was pride.
Identity.
Power.
And Clover had seen Kate's scales before—sparkling emerald beneath the curve of her shoulder, beautiful and luminous like living jewels.
The thought of them being ripped away made her stomach twist.
"Please!" Kate sobbed now, all pride gone. "Please, Dylan! Please!"
No one moved to help her.
No one dared.
The maids stood frozen at the edges of the room, pale and silent.
Even Clover could barely breathe.
Then footsteps echoed.
Everyone turned.
Queen Emily entered the room.
Elegant as always.
Two men followed at her side.
One looked older than Dylan, broad-shouldered and stern.
The other younger, sharp-eyed and watchful.
For the first time, Clover realized how crowded the living room had become.
It had never felt this full before.
It had never felt this dangerous.
Queen Emily's gaze swept over the scene.
"And what," she asked coolly, "is going on here?"
Kate burst into louder tears.
"My Queen! Please save me!" she cried. "He's a monster!"
Queen Emily's face hardened.
"Unchain her." Queen Emily instructed.
"Let me see," Dylan said quietly, "who dares."
The room instantly tensed.
Even the air felt heavy.
The guards who had moved instinctively to obey the Queen froze in place and stepped back.
Clover's throat went dry.
She was surrounded by creatures far more dangerous than anything she had ever known.
The older man looked at him sharply.
"What did Kate do that you intend to strip her of her scale?"
Dylan turned his head slightly.
"Why don't you ask your dear mother," he said, his voice void of all warmth, "who gave them the right to touch what belongs to me, Sebastian?"
The older man—Sebastian—went still.
His eyes shifted to Queen Emily.
The Queen's face tightened.
"She is a common human," Queen Emily said coldly. "You shouldn't go this far for her?"
Dylan gave a low, humorless scoff.
"It seems all of you have grown too comfortable lately."
He reached out and took the scalpel from the guard.
The metal gleamed in his hand.
"Perhaps I should refresh your memory."
Kate began to shake violently.
"My Lord, please…" she cried. "Please, I won't do it again."
She looked desperately at Queen Emily.
"My Queen! Please save me!"
Queen Emily remained silent.
And in that silence, Kate finally understood.
No one was going to save her.
Dylan stepped closer.
Then—
He drove the blade beneath the edge of one emerald scale.
Kate screamed.
The sound was so sharp it made Clover flinch.
Her hands instinctively clenched at her sides.
Dylan did not stop.
Slowly.
Piece by piece.
He stripped the scales from Kate's shoulder while her screams filled the room.
Her body thrashed against the restraints.
Tears and sweat streaked down her face.
Blood glistened where the beautiful green scales had once shimmered.
No one moved.
No one spoke.
The entire room stood in frozen horror.
Even Sebastian's jaw had tightened.
Matthew stood there amused.
By the time Dylan stepped back, Kate was sobbing uncontrollably, broken beyond recognition.
He wiped the blade clean with a cloth handed to him by one of the guards.
Then he dropped the cloth as if it disgusted him.
As if this had all meant nothing.
He turned.
Walked straight to Clover.
And without a word, pulled her against his side.
Clover's breath caught.
Her body was still tense, still trembling from what she had just witnessed.
Dylan didn't care.
He held her there as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Then he looked at Queen Emily.
He leaned in just enough for his voice to carry only to her.
"I spared you today," he murmured.
Queen Emily's face went rigid.
"Take it as a warning."
His eyes turned colder.
"If you ever cross the line again…"
He paused.
The silence around his words was more terrifying than any shout.
"Do not blame me for what happens next, stepmother."
Queen Emily's fingers tightened at her side.
For the first time since Clover had met her—
The Queen looked afraid.
And then Dylan turned away.
He walked out with Clover at his side, leaving the room buried in terror.
Behind them, Kate's broken sobs still echoed.
A whisper moved through the servants like a curse.
Lord Dylan is indeed a monster.
Back in the master's room, the silence felt heavier than before.
Clover stood near the bed, head lowered, her hands clenched in the oversized white shirt.
Her heart was still pounding.
She had seen cruelty before.
But nothing like that.
Nothing so calm.
Nothing so terrifying.
Dylan moved past her and poured himself a drink.
His expression was unreadable.
"You should bathe again," he said at last.
Clover swallowed and nodded.
"Yes…"
Her voice sounded small even to her own ears.
She turned and walked into the bathroom.
The moment the door closed behind her, she exhaled shakily.
Her hands moved to the buttons of the shirt.
One by one, she undid them.
The fabric slipped from her shoulders and pooled at her feet.
She stepped carefully into the bath, hissing softly as the water touched the tender marks across her skin.
The warmth eased some of the sting.
But not the tension in her chest.
Her mind replayed the scene downstairs.
Everything was so terrifying.
Clover sank a little deeper into the water.
Her cheeks warmed.
Why did those words keep echoing in her head?
Why did they frighten her…
and do something else she didn't want to name?
The bathroom door opened.
Clover's eyes flew wide.
She turned sharply—
And froze.
Dylan stepped inside.
He was without clothe