505, watching from the side, covered its wide eyes with its hands. However, it still peeked through the gaps, unable to resist watching. But the moment they separated, the little peeking dragon was mercilessly tossed out of the hotel window by its dear host, landing in another city with a thud.
Rubbing its butt, 505 cried out.
"WTF?! I was so quiet! I even covered my eyes! Okay, maybe I peeked a little, but... couldn't you just toss me out the window? Why is it all the way into another city?!"
It grumbled.
"Just you wait! When I get my phone tomorrow, I'm saving you as 'Heartless'!"
Only after venting all its fury did 505 calm down and wander around the city. Pitifully, it watched others spending time with their families and friends while it was all alone.
It returned to the hotel after an entire day, remembering Skyler's promise to buy it a phone, only to be shocked when it crashed into a powerful barrier that didn't even ripple and found itself unable to enter their suite!
Aggrieved, 505 huffed.
"What are they even doing?"
With nothing else to do, the little dragon went to another city nearby, passing the time however it could.
It returned to the hotel after another day, only to find that the barrier was still there.
On the third day, the same thing happened.
By the fourth day, 505 was numb to it. It didn't even bother checking whether the barrier around the suite had disappeared.
Instead, it went to the Starlight Academy after seeing the news about how Max and the others had been invited there to receive their graduation certificates and inspire the other students. 505 sat among the crowd, watching with a bored expression. When it was Jenny's turn to receive her certificate and give a speech, its eyes flashed with an evil light. Then, suddenly, 505 disappeared.
The next second, Jenny Thorne, who had just begun climbing the stairs toward the stage, suddenly tripped and toppled over in front of the countless students, professors, reporters, and media personnel watching.
Even the academy's principal and vice principal were present in the crowd!
For a moment, everyone in the venue was silent. Then came a barely audible giggle.
It was Yuris who couldn't hold back his laughter. After him, many others also burst into chuckles and laughter. Hidden among the shadows, 505 silently retracted its little outstretched leg without taking any credit.
Jenny's face immediately flushed crimson with embarrassment. She quickly slapped away Elena's hand as she rushed to help her, scrambling to regain her composure.
She was already at the peak of the Mythic Tier, yet she had still managed to trip while walking onto the stage in front of everyone.
How humiliating!
Her gaze unconsciously drifted toward Max, who stood beside the host on the stage. Yet, he didn't even spare her a look, making the humiliation sting even more.
For some reason, ever since coming back from the trial, Max had completely severed all ties with her, Elena, Monica, and Austin. He had even stopped answering their calls.
Jenny couldn't understand why. As far as she remembered, everything between them all had been perfectly fine during the trial.
They had even won the trial together!
But now, no matter how much she tried to understand what had changed, she couldn't find an answer—or anything she could do to change it. If things continued like this, they would eventually have no connection left.
With a forced smile plastered across her face, Jenny finally climbed onto the stage, accepted her certificate, and delivered her speech as though nothing had happened.
When she stepped down, Monica couldn't resist letting out a soft, mocking snicker, shaking her head at Jenny's clumsiness.
Nothing else went wrong after that.
However, when it was Monica's turn to climb the stage, she suddenly tripped as well. Her face turned as dark as a pot as the faint laughter of the crowd rang out.
From among the crowd, Jenny sneered.
Served her right for laughing at her!
On the other hand, 505 was practically rolling around, laughing at its handiwork.
After enjoying the spectacle for a while longer, the little dragon finally decided to leave. However, just as it left the crowd, it accidentally spotted Riya Thorne nearby.
When 505 overheard what she was saying, its cheerful mood brightened even further.
Suddenly, Riya angrily hurled the phone in her hand to the ground, gritting her teeth.
"Why can't Jenny be the Crown Princess anymore just because someone else has already been chosen by her?! What does she even mean?! Jenny is alive and back! Her position should be given back to her!"
505 clicked its tongue as it watched Riya's dark expression. It seemed that while Jenny had been trapped in the trial, with everyone believing those inside were dead, the Queen had chosen another heir to take her place.
And now, even though Jenny had returned, the Queen had no intention of restoring her former position as the Crown Princess.
How tragic.
Shaking its head with a smile, the little dragon turned around and left the scene.
***
Simultaneously, at the familiar suite of the hotel, everything had already been cleaned.
A slender figure lay curled under the white blankets on the bed, with faint red marks peeking along her exposed neck and arms.
Smelling the aroma of food drifting over, the person buried in the blankets shifted and finally opened her eyes to look toward the adjoining kitchen, where Skyler, with a bare upper body, was busy preparing food.
As he turned around, she caught sight of his back, covered in many scratch marks that he could have easily healed with his strength, yet still hadn't. Her face flushed, and she buried it back into the blanket. It seemed that, in this matter, they were alike.
However, Skyler had already noticed the slight movement on the bed. Setting the plate in his hand down, he walked toward the bed and hugged the bundle atop it. His lazy voice was tinged with contentment.
"Awake?"
Riruru slowly lowered the blanket slightly, revealing a pair of aggrieved crimson eyes.
"You were too much!"
Skyler chuckled.
"Well, that was our first time. You can't blame me for being a little greedy."
With that, he gathered the entire blanket around her and picked her up before he started walking toward the bathroom.
"Come on, wash your face. I cooked something light. Let's eat together."
They were eating when they noticed 505 stumbling in from outside. The little black dragon looked dazed as it realized it could finally enter the suite through the window!
Looking around and spotting its host and his wife, it rushed toward the two, eager to share everything it had experienced in the outside world. But before it could begin, it caught sight of the food. Its eyes sparkled as it stared at Skyler with an excited look.
"Skyler, did you cook?! OMG! Why did you two start eating without me?! It's so rare for you to cook and for me to get a chance to eat your food. It's always so delicious!"
As the little dragon jumped at the food like a starving little beast, forgetting everything else, it failed to notice Riruru quickly pulling more than half of the dishes toward herself, clearly unwilling to share. Skyler noticed and stood up to kick the little dragon out.
However, Riruru stopped him.
She felt a little embarrassed.
She actually didn't need to eat.
Nor did Skyler.
They were powerful enough not to need food anymore. But she really liked eating what he cooked for her. Still, she wasn't a glutton! She was willing to share a little bit with the little dragon since it was kind of cute, but a little bit meant only a little bit!
And 505 soon discovered how biased its host could be toward his wife when, after eating a little, it failed to get any more! It protested, but was ultimately kicked out. Huffing, it dragged itself toward the TV to watch some sad shows and wallow in its misery. Its dear host no longer loved it!
Ignoring the system, Skyler stared at the woman sitting before him. Gently wiping the corners of her lips, he leaned closer and whispered softly.
"Let's get married."
"And stay together forever."
She paused, then smiled.
"For real this time?"
"Hmm. For real."
***
And that's a wrap for SBT!
After countless lifetimes, countless failures, and countless goodbyes, Skyler finally found the ending he had always deserved. Honestly, it feels strange to finally write those last words.
Thank you so much to everyone who stayed until the end, whether you've been here since Chapter 1 or joined somewhere along the way.
Thank you for every read, every comment, every vote, and every bit of support.
This story may be over, but I hope Skyler and his journey remain in your hearts for a little while longer.
Until we meet again in another story. ♡