After you left to go play video games, Rema was so angry she was unable to concentrate on the search.
She eventually found Taryd, but rather than try to outwit him to find the dragon, she found in him a sympathetic ear while she detailed your shortcomings as a human being.
Discovering that you quit the quest, Taryd lost some of his competitive drive to find the dragon. The dragon heard their voices and ran further away from a water source, and, well...