The Dragon's Pact: A Princess for the Flame

Chapter 14 – How to unlock the shackles

The shackles were specially made; the king used a very dense material to keep her restrained. Compared to ordinary shackles, the ones on Anna's limbs were much heavier.

How much does Anna weigh?

Probably no more than sixty pounds, but with these shackles, when she lay on his stomach, he felt she weighed at least ninety pounds.

In other words, these shackles were almost half of Anna's weight. It was clear how insidious the king's method was to slow down her escape.

But now, Anna was suffering terribly.

Wearing such shackles, forget about moving freely; even lifting her arms or legs was torture.

He suddenly realized why Anna's lifespan was only one day after using the recovery card to wake up. She must have struggled to find a way to save him, exhausting herself in the process.

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from "p𝑎wread.com".

Thinking of this, Su Nian felt even more heartache. He carefully examined the shackles and found that they had keyholes.

If there were keyholes, they could be unlocked.

The mechanical level of this world was still very backward, so locks like these wouldn't be too complicated.

As an advanced soul reincarnated from Earth, Su Nian didn't know how to pick locks, but he had seen it done.

Games like Skyrim, Dying Light, and Fallout all had lockpicking processes, and Su Nian found that the keyhole on Anna's shackles was very similar to those in The Elder Scrolls V.

Next was the lockpicking tool.

If it were any other dragon, they might have already started to rage or simply gone to sleep, but Su Nian was different. He had the Self-Modification System.

Calling up the Self-Modification System, Su Nian reshaped one of the claws on his left paw into a flat stick, which was used to hold the lock core. Another claw on his right paw was reshaped into a needle, used to turn the lock core.

"System, how many System Points does it take to modify my dragon claws like this?"

[Ding! Calculating free modification... Dragon deviation 80%, this modification requires 500 System Points.]

"Ah, this," Su Nian couldn't help but click his tongue. Modifying his claws like this was indeed a bit excessive; it didn't look like they belonged to a dragon at all.

"Then, just temporarily? Can it be cheaper?"

[Ding! Temporary solidification modification costs 10% of the total modification fee per minute.]

Looking at his remaining 153 System Points, Su Nian felt a pang of heartache, but he felt even more for the pitiful Anna, so he gritted his teeth and instructed in his heart:

"Temporarily solidify it."

[Ding! Temporary solidification complete, modification complete, starting timer.]

A virtual countdown appeared before Su Nian's eyes; he only had three minutes to pick the lock. After three minutes, his System Points would be depleted.

Time was tight, and Su Nian hesitated no longer.

He pounced in front of Anna, straightening her left hand shackle with his dragon nose under her puzzled gaze, then inserted the flat stick into the keyhole to press the lock core. The needle-shaped lockpick on his other dragon claw was inserted into the keyhole, keeping as close to the bisector of the angle as possible.

He manipulated the lockpick to gently turn the lock core, immediately adjusting the angle of the needle-shaped lockpick whenever it got stuck. After several attempts, he finally turned the lock core halfway, and the shackle clicked open.

Thirty seconds had passed.

Under Anna's shocked gaze, Su Nian began unlocking the shackle on her right hand. With the experience from the first time, his speed increased, and the shackle on Anna's right hand also opened quickly.

Next were the right foot and left foot; all the shackles were unlocked, and one minute and eighteen seconds had passed.

"Cancel temporary modification!"

[Temporary solidification canceled, 59 System Points deducted.]

"Thank goodness, heh heh heh~"

Su Nian grinned with his ferocious dragon mouth, letting out a deafening "roar roar roar."

Anna, now free again, moved her limbs incredulously.

After being shackled for three or four days, her wrists and ankles were bruised and swollen, constantly aching, but this did not affect her admiration and gratitude towards the Black Dragon.

"Mr. Dragon, you... you actually unlocked the shackles? How did you do it? Amazing!"

Hearing this, Su Nian proudly raised his dragon head, his chest puffed out, and his tail stood tall.

Even though Anna wasn't a dragon, she could see how proud the Black Dragon was now.

She giggled, covering her mouth with a smile, blooming like a lotus, with two shallow dimples faintly appearing on her delicate face.

Her slightly enchanting peach blossom eyes stared unblinkingly at the Black Dragon, her stunning beauty already beginning to show.

Su Nian was mesmerized, two drops of dragon saliva dripping from the corner of his mouth, his dragon genes for mate selection starting to stir.

[Anna Hathaway's Affection increased by 10 points, current Affection 32 (Friendly)]

The timely system prompt brought Su Nian back to his senses. The charming fox-eared elf had long been shy under his intense gaze, lowering her head in embarrassment, her bruised hands clasped in front of her abdomen, her pale fingers nervously twisting.

"Hiss—" Hot white steam spewed from his nostrils, the heat from his body making him almost indistinguishable from a Red Dragon.

Reason regained control, and Su Nian gently picked up Anna, placing her on his back. His previous estimate was wrong; Anna might not even weigh sixty pounds, a testament to how much she had suffered and how frail she was.

Anna was a bit at a loss from the Black Dragon's sudden action, but she didn't resist. Instead, she obediently sat on the Black Dragon's broad back, her soft little hands instinctively hugging the Black Dragon's neck tightly.

She was afraid of falling off.

But her worry was unnecessary; the Black Dragon's back was very stable, seemingly taking special care of her feelings while moving, without being too rough.

It was a very novel experience, but it brought Anna a strong sense of security.

Because she knew the Black Dragon wouldn't abandon her.

After all, dragons are very proud creatures, and riding a dragon is ten times harder than slaying one. Some ill-tempered dragons wouldn't let you ride them even if you tortured them to death.

Now, the Black Dragon's actions were undoubtedly an acknowledgment of her, though Anna didn't know why.

Next, she was surprised to find Mr. Dragon processing the carcasses of two Blazing Rabbits. The scene was a bit bloody, but she had been through various hardships and wasn't so delicate as to be unable to watch such a scene.

"Is Mr. Dragon going to cook?"

Anna was dumbfounded, lying quietly on the Black Dragon's back, her big, adorable eyes wide open.

She actually saw a Black Dragon processing the innards of its prey and skillfully skewering the food with branches.

Was he planning to roast meat...

If the dragon before her were an adult dragon who had already learned the Shapeshifting Spell, Anna wouldn't be so surprised, as adult dragons' intelligence is comparable to humans, even surpassing ordinary humans.

But Mr. Dragon's current size was at most that of a Juvenile Dragon, right?

Juvenile Dragons are not particular; eating raw meat and drinking blood is their normal biological behavior.

Anna x2 dropped.