It was like talking to a wall.
Because the guy before him was so self-absorbed, he was muttering about elasticity, softness, and hardness.
Kael’s brow twitched. Surely the twig had gone crazy?
The muttering only continued, Riley’s face oddly serious as though he were cataloging a rare specimen.. "Normal, abnormal, resilient in some spots. Hard wall one second, normal human skin the next. Fascinating."
Kael actually had to wake him up, because he wasn’t sure how he’d react if instinct suddenly kicked in.
What if Riley startled him and he ended up tossing Riley into the wall out of sheer surprise? What if—no, worse—what if the idiot kept squeezing?
Except... who was he kidding? The dragon lord couldn’t even move under the human’s odd ministrations.
"Hey! I asked if you’re done?"
That snapped Riley out of his trance. His eyes went wide as it finally dawned on him—it was as if he had been kneading dough. Dough.
He yanked his hands back like they’d burned him, raised them high into the air, and his face flamed. "Ah, sorry! I was just checking something! Yes! Checking something!"
"Checking something?" Kael repeated, arching a brow.
Riley nodded so fast his head looked like it might detach.
"So after that, what did you find out?" Kael asked smoothly, daring him to commit to his ridiculous science experiment.
Riley cleared his throat. "Ehem! Well, it’s that your body seems to react when it senses danger!"
"Danger?"
"Yes! Like if it’s a punch, to me it would be like hitting steel. But if it’s just a touch, then it’s like any human skin."
"So what are you saying?"
"Nothing." Riley shook his head furiously. It wasn’t like he could say out loud what he’d really figured out: that, provided Kael’s body didn’t register something as an attack, he was actually very vulnerable. And that naturally led to another thought...
Would that place below be like that, too?
If they wanted to test pain properly, maybe Riley could just ask if he could kick him there.
The horrifying part was that Riley was so deep in concentration, he didn’t realize his gaze had actually sought out the area in question.
Kael noticed. Of course, he noticed.
Because who wouldn’t notice someone threatening their family jewels?
In an instant, the dragon lord bolted upright from his lying position. Riley, still straddling his lap, nearly toppled backward but got caught against Kael’s chest. Now they were face-to-face—well, in Riley’s case, more like face to neck.
Riley blinked, startled, because Kael’s expression looked like it was ready for a fight. Or worse, a challenge.
"Try anything there," Kael said lowly, "and I will make sure to return the favor."
It was a smile. Or maybe it wasn’t. Whatever it was, it was definitely a threat.
Riley pouted, cheeks puffing as he abandoned the idea, sulking like a kid who’d been told no candy. But who could blame him when the premise really seemed promising?
"Then what do you expect me to do?" It was supposed to stay in his head, but the words slipped out in a mutter anyway.
"Anything but that," Kael said calmly. "Unless you have a death wish."
As a matter of fact, Riley had none.
None of this had been his idea. He hadn’t even wanted to do this in the first place. So didn’t he have every right to complain?
"Sir, I don’t, but it’s you who insisted on this," Riley muttered, raising his aching hands like evidence in court. "While it would be helpful to learn more about this predicament, I never signed up for something that would hurt like this."
He flexed his sore fingers for emphasis. "Also, my hands hurt already, so how come you’re perfectly fine?"
"I could feel it," Kael said evenly.
Riley gawked. "Then if you could feel something, why don’t we stop?"
"Because we already know about that. We know that if you get hurt, I get hurt. But what I want to know is whether you’d feel something if I’m the one who’s hurt."
Riley blinked at him, momentarily thrown by the sudden seriousness on Kael’s face. But then he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "But why? Do you... have plans of getting hurt?"
The dragon lord gave him a look. That look. The kind that silently asked if Riley was straight in the head. But instead of voicing what was clearly shown on his face, Kael said, "I need to know your pain tolerance."
"You claimed nearly dying because of what you felt the other time," Kael continued calmly, "but I was alright."
Oh.
Oh, shit.
"So what if a mere punch on me could actually kill you by rebound?"
Riley’s throat went dry. That was a point fucking made, alright.
He stared at Kael in dawning horror, because sure enough—if Kael had been fine the last time while Riley was nearly on death’s door, then what would happen if Kael encountered something he could normally take without issue?
A pinch on Riley was annoying enough to Kael. A slap left the dragon lord twitching, but likely in anger or annoyance. But what if Kael were hit by a truck? The dragon lord would walk away. Riley? He’d be flattened, reincarnated, and maybe even triple-dead.
"So now does it make sense?" Kael asked, voice annoyingly calm.
Riley didn’t want to admit it. But yeah. It really did.
"I will heal your hands," Kael said, holding one out. "So give them here, then try your best, because clearly, all of this effort is pretty much for yourself. In the first place, why would I want to waste my time doing this? And if I asked outside and we overestimate it, who knows what would happen to you? Twigs snap too easily."
Riley shivered as Kael spoke so casually about snapping twigs. But at least, blessedly, his hands were returning to top shape under the dragon’s magic.
Still, his mind ran away with him. Maybe this was why Kael didn’t want to injure himself. Because if he did—and he definitely could—Riley might really suffer for it. And Kael, great lizard that he was, might not even have the chance to stop it.
Or maybe Riley was imagining a whole lot of bullshit. Because that would mean Kael actually cared about his oh-so-little human life.
He sniffled and shook himself back to reality.
"So what now, Sir?"
"What now?" Kael tilted his head, golden eyes sharp. "Don’t you need to answer that for yourself? Still not planning on telling me what you discovered?"
But it wasn’t like Riley didn’t want to tell him.
Okay—well—yeah, maybe it was exactly that. Maybe he wanted a little something he could hold on to against the golden dragon. Just one tiny scrap of leverage.
But... if what he was thinking was true, then it would mean Kael’s usual range of movements would be limited. That instead of tanking every hit like the arrogant wall of muscle he was, he might actually have to make sure he didn’t get hit at all.
Because what if the feeling of being struck was enough? Not the pain, not the injury, just the sheer sensation of being hit. That was dangerous.
But these were still speculations, and Riley knew it. If he said it out loud, Kael might instinctively guard against it. And if that happened, Riley would lose his only chance of testing it properly.
"Hmm..."
"Well, Sir, there is something."