[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-saya-and-the-dragon":3,"chapter-saya-and-the-dragon-saya-and-the-dragon-chapter-96":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Saya and the Dragon",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1705083,2177,"Chapter 93: Did You Eat People","saya-and-the-dragon-chapter-96",96,"\u003Cp>We were walking a dusty ridge trail that overlooked nothing in particular. Just scrubland, a few sunburnt boulders, and the vague threat of bandits who hadn’t realized yet that a girl and her dragon might be more trouble than treasure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I picked a pebble from my sandal and squinted up at him. “Did you really eat people?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t even look down. Just kept walking, tail swaying like a lazy whip. “I prefer beef.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh-huh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mutton, if it’s seasoned. Sheep if they’ve been massaged.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I frowned. “You’re dodging.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sighed. “Anything but ape.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Youknowwhat I’m asking.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused. Just a moment. Then: “Only well-roasted people.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I blinked. “Oh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tilted his head, theatrically casual. “Why waste good fire?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I mulled that over. “So… how do we taste?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave a slow, thoughtful exhale, like he was savoring a memory—or faking one. “Chicken.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Liar.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine. Depends on the region.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I raised an eyebrow. “Do tell.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well,” he said, “Delivdans are my favorite. Crunchy. Always well-dressed. Taste of spice and defiance. Probably that cuisine of theirs. Everything marinated, even the personalities.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I snorted. “Okay. What about Tanagrans?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He made a so-so gesture with one claw. “Earthy. Notes of pumpkin. Occasionally chestnut. Would go well with wine, if I drank anything made by monks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And Seebulbans?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t hesitate. “Too much iodine aftertaste.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stopped walking. “What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seaweed in everything,” he said, shrugging. “You people salt your fish, your rice, your lovers.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stared. “You’re saying I’d taste… briny?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brackish,” he said helpfully. “Like pickled mischief.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I punched his flank. He laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We walked on, the breeze carrying the scent of wild thyme and the vague possibility of cannibalism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I squinted up at him, suspicious. “Is that why you didn’t eat me that first day?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave me a long, unreadable glance. “Who says I’m not going to eat you eventually?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I blinked. “Wait, what?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He smirked. “I’m saving you for dessert.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh great. Briny dessert?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sniffed. “Please. With the amount of honey cakes and glazed figs you shovel into that pretty little face, you must taste like candy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I made a face. “Gutter candy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The best kind,” he said cheerfully. “Sticky, indecent, vaguely illegal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I kicked a rock at him. “So what, one day you’ll just toast me up and nibble me with coffee and cognac?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He nodded solemnly. “A civilized ending.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I rolled my eyes. “You’re disgusting.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And you’re chewy,” he said with a wink.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried not to smile. I failed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He flicked his tail idly, knocking dust off the trail. “Also, you’re scrawny.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Excuse me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I said scrawny. Wiry. All sharp elbows and stubbornness. You know how many of you get tossed at dragons? Skinny little maidens raised on goat yoghurt and false hopes of womanhood.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stared. “Falsewhat?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You heard me,” he said, puffing smoke out of one nostril. “The whole ritual’s a sham. Virgins. Pfft. Barely edible. All bone and insecurity.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I gagged on a laugh. “So what, dragons want curvier sacrifices now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Most dragons,” he said, “would much rather eat a fat merchant. Or a chubby tax collector. Marbled. Tender. Seasoned by guilt and soft living.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s revolting.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shrugged. “Better for nutrition. Better for society. Frankly? Better for the economy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eat the rich,” I muttered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Exactly,” he said. “You, meanwhile, are like chewing on a salted twig.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I threw a pebble at him. He caught it in his mouth, crunched it like candy, and winked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Still saving you for dessert, though.”\u003C\u002Fp>",577,"2026-06-06T14:39:25.620Z",1,"novelbin.me","e3527a4828645c36eeb364f91189af159eb4bbd1f2c7d28d34831864bfedd7df","saya-and-the-dragon-chapter-97","saya-and-the-dragon-chapter-95",228,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsaya-and-the-dragon-cover.jpg"]