Chapter 374: Let Me Poke You!

Right now, Mika was in no mood to play hero.

After everything he’d gone through with Anya and Fauna—the mind games, the manipulation, the lies, the endless scheming—he’d promised himself a few days of peace.

A break, a few peaceful days to rest, maybe spend time organizing artifacts back home, take things slow after the chaos with Anya and Fauna.

Things had just started to stabilize after all.

Everything was moving at a smooth, comfortable pace. He’d earned a breather.

But of course, fate hated him.

Now he was smack in the middle of another absurd crisis, one involving two factions that, by all logic, should never have crossed paths under his supervision.

Both groups had more firepower than common sense, and both included women who could level a city if they sneezed too hard.

And to make matters worse, one of them was someone Mika really didn’t know how to handle yet.

Unlike Charlotte and Anya who would follow his lead—or, at the very least, listen when he told them to stop blowing things up—this one was different.

Wild. Unrestrained. The kind of girl who pulled him along for the ride instead of the other way around.

And no matter what he said, she was never letting go.

He had no plan for taming her. No strategy. No mental blueprint. He wasn’t ready for this.

And just as that realization hit him, a familiar voice shattered the air.

"MIKA! How dare you come here! How dare you show your face in front of me?!"

Mika’s head snapped up—just in time to see a small, furious black blur diving at him from the sky.

"Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me—"

Before he could even finish, Nuri came plummeting down like an arrow, her tiny dragon wings spread wide, horns gleaming under the sunlight as she aimed straight for his head.

"Take this!" She yelled, her horns pointed like spears.

Mika clicked his tongue and sidestepped effortlessly.

Whoosh!

Nuri’s horns sliced through the air where his chest had been a moment ago, and she shot past him like a raging comet, crashing into the ground and kicking up a small dust cloud

But she wasn’t done.

She whipped around, wings flaring, and shouted,

"Don’t dodge, Mika! Don’t you dare dodge! Let me stab you properly!"

She swooped again, horns forward like a charging bull.

But Mika ducked, letting her sail overhead.

"You’re crazy, Nuri!" He yelled. "Why would I just stand still and let you stab me?!"

"Because it’ll make me feel better!"

She dived at him again.

"Yeah, it’ll make me dead too, you lunatic!"

And Mika too dodged easily.

"I don’t care! Just stop running away, Mika!" She screeched. "Let me poke your butt atleast once or else I won’t stop!"

He groaned, dragging his hand down his face as he said,

"You’re actually stupid, Nuri. Those horns look sharper than a bull’s! If you stab me with those, they’ll go in one side and come out the other!"

"I’d be a damn kebab!"

That made her freeze midair. Then, her eyes went wide with outrage.

"Did you just—"

She pointed an accusing finger at him.

"—compare my beautiful dragon horns to a cow’s?!"

"...Yeah?"

Her jaw dropped.

"HOW DARE YOU?! That’s the most disgraceful insult I’ve ever heard in my entire life!"

"Do you know what cows do?!"

"They make milk! MILK, Mika! You just compared me to something that secretes milk for a living!"

She puffed out her cheeks in fury, her wings buzzing like a furious bee.

"I’ll make you pay for that! I’ll poke your butt extra hard!"

She dove again, charging straight at him like a tiny, angry bull.

But this time, Mika didn’t move.

As she came in close, he calmly reached up and actually caught her by her horns mid-charge!

The impact stopped her dead and the look on her face went from smug triumph to pure horror in half a second.

"W-Wait—hey! Let go!"

But Mika didn’t let go. Instead, he started pulling—just enough to make her squirm.

"Hey—ow—ow! Stop! Stop! That hurts!" She yelped, kicking her legs wildly. "No, Mika, please! My horns! My precious horns!"

"Oh really?" Mika said dryly, smirking. "I thought Dragons were supposed to be tough. Don’t tell me your horns are fragile like glass."

"They’re not!" She whimpered. "But I’m still a young dragon! My armor hasn’t hardened yet! If you pull too hard, they’ll bend the wrong way and I’ll look stupid forever! Everyone will laugh at me!"

Her lip trembled, her eyes watering.

"So, please stop, Mika...I’ll cry! I’ll really cry! My father will hear about this, and he’ll be so mad!"

For a second, she really did look like she might burst into tears.

Her eyes shimmered, her lip trembled—the whole act was way too convincing.

Mika sighed, "Goddammit...." He muttered, and gently released her.

But the moment he let her horns go, she zipped backward and her teary expression instantly flipped into a smug grin.

"Ha!" She laughed proudly, hands on her hips. "See? This is why you humans are dumb! You totally fell for my act! I wasn’t gonna cry at all!"

She puffed her chest out proudly.

"I’m way smarter than you, Mika! Smarter than any human! You should learn your place before trying to touch me!"

Down below, several dragon girls groaned, shaking their heads.

One muttered. "She’s doing it again..."

Another sighed. "Why does she always embarrass us in public..."

But Mika didn’t look offended—in fact, he smiled faintly, lifting a hand.

"You know what, Princess Nuri?" He said mildly. "You’re right."

She blinked. "Huh?"

"Humans really are dumb." He said with a smirk. "Especially compared to someone as great as you."

Her eyes sparkled with delight.

"Finally! Someone who understands! You’re learning, Mika! Around me, you’re just a small brained mammal, and I’m—"

"—a dragon." Mika finished for her. "Right. Speaking of which, you might want to turn around."

She blinked. "Huh? Why?"

"There’s a bumblebee behind you."

The effect was immediate.

Nuri froze completely. Her eyes trembled, her entire body stiffening in horror.

Then she shrieked.

"WHERE?! WHERE IS IT?!"

She spun in circles midair, flapping her wings frantically.

"NO! NO, STOP IT, MIKA! WHERE IS IT?! I HATE BEES! I HATE THEM!"

Mika leaned casually to the side, pretending to look behind her.

"It’s right there. Flying closer. Yeah, it’s right behind you, Nuri."

"NOOOOO!"

She screamed and shot forward—straight at Mika.

But instead of attacking, she grabbed onto him tightly, hugging him like a terrified child hiding from a monster.

"Mika! Protect me! Please! It’s going to sting me again!" She wailed, shaking him. "Last time it stung me, my face puffed up for a week! Everyone laughed at me, even my father! You have to save me this time!"

Mika smirked faintly as Nuri clung to him, trembling and muttering something about swollen cheeks and sting marks.

"Oh, what should I do now?" He said teasingly, looking down at her with mock concern. "After all, I’m not as smart as you. I’ve got a tiny human brain, remember?"

"So if you, the great and mighty dragon princess, can’t handle a little bumblebee, what can a small-brained human like me possibly do?"

Nuri’s panicked face shot up toward him.

"No, no! You’re wrong! You’re definitely smarter than me!"

She shouted, shaking her head violently.

"You have a much bigger brain than me! So much bigger!"

Mika raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? So what you’re saying is..." He leaned closer, smirking. "You’re admitting that you’re dumber than me? That you’re the stupid one here, not me?"

Nuri froze. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish, her pride clearly waging war with her fear.

For a moment, she looked ready to snap back with something arrogant—until she remembered the terrifying image of a bumblebee buzzing toward her.

Her face went pale, and she immediately nodded rapidly.

"Yes, Mika! Yes! I’m the dumb one! The stupid one! I don’t have a brain at all!" She cried desperately. "Just please save me from the bumblebee! I’ll admit everything!"

"I’ll call myself the biggest idiot alive—just make it go away!"

Mika chuckled softly at the sight, finding her flustered, red-faced panic far too adorable.

"Fine, fine." He said, shaking his head. "You’re hopeless. I’ll help you out."

He lifted his hand into the air and grabbed something in the air.

"Alright, calm down. I’ve got it."

Nuri peeked from behind his arm, her claws clutching his sleeve.

"R-Really? You...you caught it?"

"Yep." Mika said with a small grin. "It’s fine now. You’re safe."

Her whole body relaxed, and she let out a long sigh of relief.

"Thank the Heavens." She murmured dramatically. "You have no idea how awful those things are. Ever since I was little, bumblebees and I have been at war! They always come after me! Always!"

She pouted, crossing her arms with a faint sniff.

"I don’t know why, but they hate me. Maybe it’s my beautiful scales...or maybe they’re jealous of my horns. Either way, I can’t stand them."

Then her smug expression returned as she gave a victorious laugh.

"But this one’s been defeated now, thanks to you! And in one way are another, you are one my loyal soldiers, so technically, I’ve won!"

"Because any victory achieved through my subordinates is still my victory!"

From the sidelines, Ursula facepalmed, muttering something under her breath in Draconic that was probably not very polite.

Meanwhile, Nuri puffed her chest again.

"Now then, Mika—open your palm!" She commanded.

"Let me see the mighty warrior you’ve just captured! If it can scare me, the future Dragon Queen, then it must be a fearsome foe indeed. I shall honor it before its demise!"

Mika smiled faintly and slowly opened his hand.

Nuri leaned forward eagerly—only for her to have a look of confusion on her face.

Because sitting harmlessly on Mika’s palm...was not a bumblebee.

It was a tiny, red ladybug.

Still alive.

And the moment Mika opened his palm, it fluttered its delicate wings and calmly flew away.

For several seconds, Nuri just stared, her mind struggling to process what she’d just seen.

Then, finally—

"MIKA!!!"

She screamed, pointing at him in disbelief.

"You said it was a bumblebee! You said it was a new with those scary pointy stingers! How could you mistake that for a ladybug?!"

"Oh? Was it?" Mika tilted his head innocently. "Huh. My bad. Guess I mistook it for one."

Her jaw dropped.

"You—you—how could you mix up something like that?! Ladybugs don’t even sting!"

He shrugged, smiling lazily.

"Sorry, Nuri. It’s been a long day. I must’ve gotten confused. Bumblebee, ladybug...they both buzz, right?"

"They do not! You big dummy!" She yelled, stamping her foot in midair before lunging at him.

But this time it wasn’t an attack.

But rather she grabbed onto his arm and to everyone watchings surprise—she started biting into it with her sharp but tiny fangs.

"Take this! Take this! Feel the power of the great dragon queen!" She yelled between small bites. "This is what you get for tricking me, you stupid human!"

But Mika didn’t even flinch. He just sighed, while putting his other hand in his pocket.

"Sure, sure." He said tiredly. "Bite me all you want, as long as it keeps you from just yelling in my ear."

And seeing this sight, the entire crowd gawked in disbelief.

To them, this was surreal.

The Princess of the Infernal Black Dragons, the future queen of her race, one of the most powerful demi-humans alive—

—was clinging to a human’s arm, biting it like a sulking child while he stood there unfazed.

No one dared to laugh, but disbelief rippled through the field like wildfire.

Everyone knew what would happen if someone insulted or harmed Nuri Arcadia.

The Black Dragon Army would raze their existence to ashes.

Her father alone was said to be powerful enough to destroy entire countries if enraged.

Yet Mika—a supposed support-class cursed human had just pulled her horns, mocked her intelligence, and tricked her into admitting she was dumber than him.

And she wasn’t angry—she was pouting.

Ursula covered her face in shame. The other dragon girls looked like they wanted to sink into the ground.

Meanwhile, murmurs rippled through the onlookers.

"Is she...biting him?"

"She’s actually biting him."

"Isn’t that the Black Dragon Princess?!"

"Damn...I wish she’d bite me like that."a