Chapter 2

They walked through the busy streets, with carriages, and horses storming past, and the air was filled with the smell of baked goods and the noises of the passersby.

Their eyes stopped on a beautiful young lady with white and black hair, noticing the lace wrapped around her eyes and the dog guiding her. Their expression flashed with pity.

Ariella wasn't bothered by the emotions she could glimpse from their auras; she took in deep breaths, enjoying being surrounded by sounds and colours.

"Ella, we should buy this balm. Smell, doesn't it smell like flowers." Mary called her attention, bringing the balm to her nose to sniff.

Ariella sniffed it and sensed the fragrance was not as good as the ones she made. "We can not. You know Duke Alaric gave us a tight budget. We have not purchased food and other necessities yet." Her calm words poured cold water on Mary's emotions.

Mary's mood sank a little, but she knew Ella was right. She looked longingly at the balm and dropped it under the dissatisfaction of the seller's gaze.

The seller snorted in her mind; she saw a pair of beautiful high-born ladies, thinking she had business, not knowing they were too poor to even buy a balm.

She snorted loudly at their leaving backs, making Mary flush with embarrassment. Ariella didn't have much of a reaction to the woman's rudeness, she consoled her friend.

"I can make you a better-scented balm than that one; you only need to get me your favourite flowers and tell me the type you want," Ariella suggested warmly, and Mary looked at her in suspicion, not believing she do the work of a skilled apothecary.

"Forget about it, I know you are trying to console me. Don't force yourself." Mary said in a light tone, waving her request off.

"Let go buy some pants, I heard from the Duke's daughter's discussion with the maid that the terrain was rough, with hills and mountains. So we have to forgo our normal way of dressing.'' Mary said calmly, but her face was a mask of pain, having to let all her gowns go to waste. A depressed sigh left her lips.

Ariella almost smiled from joy as she thought, 'Finally, I will be free from this cursed gown.' she missed the trousers of her past life; the gowns here were so confiding, and it made walking normally an exhausting affair.

"Let's go." Her voice barely hid the joy as she urged Mary to move faster.

They walked around the market, their hands filled with things they bought, the sun was setting by the time they returned to the Duke's house.

Before they could retire to their quarters, a maid stopped them.

"His Grace requests your presence." The maid's tone was flat, with no form of respect to be found. In her mind, they were strays picked up to help Lady Liora in the Dragon realm.

Ariella's expression cooled, but outwardly she remained calm. She followed along she could feel Mary tense at the mention of that perverted lord.

If they were not to be sent as a dragon's bride, the man would have had his way with them as early as eighteen. But that didn't stop him from making uncomfortable advances at them.

If it was the old her, he would have found his lower half cut off and served to him as a dish.

She could only hold off on her anger; it would be disadvantageous to attack him; having no power with her blindness, it would be hard to survive this world with Mary brought along.

She released the dog.

They arrived in a study; this time, Ariella saw another aura beside him and knew instantly who it was.

"Your wings had hardened to keep me waiting. I won't punish your disrespect I am in a very good mood. Sit." A stern, authoritative tone filled the room, and Ariella felt around for the chair with Liora giggling softly under her pale fingers.

She had purposely asked the maid to push the chair against the wall, she wanted to watch Ariella's joke.

But she lost interest when she didn't see Ariella's losing her composure but she stood with an air of otherworldliness, making her feel her pity actions were beneath her.

Liora frowned; she glared at Ariella with jealousy and turned her head away. Mary snapped out of her fear and brought the chair closer for Ariella to sit.

Ariella nodded gratefully at her and sat slowly. Aleric gaze was on Ariella as she entered the room. His gaze almost undresses her silk gown, he shakes his head internally from regret.

If she was not one of the selected few, he would have claimed since he was tempted but he dared not bring dragon's wrath on him.

His expression turned serious, "You will be leaving for the dragon's realm tomorrow." He stared at three of them making sure they focused on his words before he continued.

"The house of Magsworth has poured resources into your growths all these years. It is now you pay it back. Marry a high-ranking Dragonlords, if not the kings. I trust all of you would comply.'' His ambitious gaze stared at the beautiful women before him, and he was confident in their success.

He pictured his rise in wealth and the power he would gain when any of them succeeded.

Ariella could feel his greed dripping from his dark green aura; it was because the dragon laid a rule that the dragons who married a lady would have to pay a huge amount of their wealth to her family.

A dragon's wealth was a point of desire for the nobles in this kingdom and beyond because what the dragon had hoarded all his life was enough to buy a high-grade country an infinite number of times.

After the resources agreed upon for the dragons to bring, it was the next thing the families of the selected looked forward to, not caring if their daughter would survive long enough in such a harsh realm.

Ella nodded along, but she thought otherwise in her mind. As soon as she left for the dragon's realm she would cut off everything to do with this Duke family.

The chest of all her savings from selling her balm can pay for her and Mary's debt of upbringing.