A little early today^^
Rather, the knights he had brought with him were the ones tensing up, readying themselves for battle. They had never imagined that a small nation like Karsel would dare refuse Terbia’s request for an alliance, and so they believed war would almost certainly break out. Perhaps war might begin from this very moment.
But they were not the least bit worried. The force Duke Gelliones had brought consisted of about one hundred paladin royal guards, and they believed that they alone would be more than enough to destroy Karsel. Just then, the door opened and someone came rushing in.
“U-urgent news.”
The man who hurried in was an elderly knight with graying hair. He had a dignified build, and judging by the crest engraved on his breast, he seemed to be the captain of Karsel’s palace guards. Like the soldiers, he wore rough, unadorned armor, but the sharp gleam in his eyes made it clear he was no ordinary fighter, so the Terbian knights who had been preparing to fight grew even more tense.????
‘Impressive. To think a knight of that level exists in a place like Karsel…….’
‘He’s by no means beneath us. It would take at least two of us together to handle him.’
Those who walked the same path were naturally able to recognize one another. The Terbian knights could not hide their surprise at the unexpected skill of Karsel’s palace guard captain. Of course, even if he joined the fight, the result would not change.
Without so much as glancing at the Terbian knights, the guard captain went straight to the king. He was Hales, Mitchell’s father. He had been in charge of Karsel’s palace security for thirty years already, but this was the first time anything like today had happened, and he was extremely flustered.
“Y-Your Majesty. We have a serious problem.”
Since an envoy from another country was present, Hales observed proper etiquette, unlike usual. Ordinarily, they spoke to each other casually as sworn brothers might, but he could not do that even in a place like this. Seeing him, the king of Karsel furrowed his brow. It was not often one could see Hales, who would not blink even if lightning struck, in such a panic.
“What is it?”
“A, a, a…….”
Thinking that he could not allow such an unsightly display in front of the Terbian envoy, the king of Karsel deliberately spoke with irritation.
“Pull yourself together and speak clearly.”
“A, a dragon has come. A white dragon, and he says he wishes to see Your Majesty…….”
This time, it was the king of Karsel’s turn to be shocked. After the envoy of the Crocen Empire, Terbia’s prime minister had come, and as if that were not enough, now even a dragon had appeared……. While his mind was still in utter confusion, someone appeared in the hall behind Hales.
A handsome knight with long white hair flowing down. Surrounded by guards who were clearly terrified, he was walking straight toward the king of Karsel. The white-haired knight was Katroi. Katroi, the white dragon who had lived in the north, had astonishingly appeared in Karsel. Looking at him, the king of Karsel tilted his head.
“Who are you?”
Hales urgently cut in.
“H-he is the dragon. He transformed right in front of me.”
Everyone in the hall grew tense. After all, dragons were beings one could rarely encounter, and it was almost unheard of for one to enter a royal palace.
The Terbian knights, including Duke Gelliones, also tightened their grips on their sword hilts, tense to the limit. They did not know why he had come, but this was by no means something to be taken lightly.
Cold sweat trickled down the faces of the Terbian knights, who were seeing a dragon for the first time in their lives. If the white-haired knight truly was a dragon, then today might be the day they left this world behind. Yet astonishingly, there was no fear on the king of Karsel’s face; instead, deep curiosity had appeared there.
“A dragon…… How astonishing. To think I would see a dragon while I still lived…….”
A faint smile appeared on Katroi’s face.
“Humans do not often have the opportunity to encounter dragons. Dragons rarely show themselves before humans…….”
The curiosity on the king of Karsel’s face deepened even further.
“You look exactly like a human……. Might you be able to show me your true form?”
“I cannot. If I returned to my true form inside such a cramped place, the palace would collapse at once.”
As Katroi shook his head, a regretful expression appeared on the king of Karsel’s face.
“What a pity. It was a rare chance to see the true form of a dragon…….”
At the courage of the king of Karsel, who was chatting casually with a dragon without the slightest fear, Gelliones and the other Terbian knights were left speechless. Even an ordinary king would find it difficult to remain so calm before a dragon. If a dragon cast mind magic, one would have no choice but to become its puppet. And yet the king of Karsel was fearlessly conversing with the dragon as if they were having a pleasant chat…….
Katroi, too, found the king of Karsel’s attitude unexpected.
‘Like daughter, like father indeed.’
He was a dragon who had lived for thousands of years, and up to now, the number of humans who could remain this composed before him could be counted on one hand. Yet in just a few days, he had seen two of them.
It had not been long since Katroi had come to understand Juliana’s true nature. Since the temporary base of the Kasim Mercenary Corps had been set up right beside his lair, Katroi visited whenever he had the chance. They were the people who had utterly defeated him, but a dragon’s unique curiosity was more than enough to make him forget that fact. He had found a lifelong task: to uncover the true nature of the mysterious beings called humans.
There, Katroi learned one more thing he had not known. It was a new side of Juliana, the girl who had saved his life.
Although he had been defeated, Katroi was still a being the mercenaries could not easily approach. A dragon was not an existence to be taken lightly under any circumstances. Because of that, the mercenaries could not help but treat Katroi with great difficulty, and Katroi considered that only natural.
Of course, Damon, the black mage who had hunted him, was an exception. But to Katroi, it could only be surprising that there was another human besides the black mage who did not shy away from a dragon.
‘How curious. She may be worth studying.’
Juliana displayed an astonishing attitude toward Katroi. She treated him without the slightest reservation, as if Katroi were human. As though she had completely forgotten that Katroi was a dragon. She would play pranks on him without hesitation and even smack him from time to time. Katroi took considerable interest in that Juliana. What was especially astonishing was that even after being thoroughly punished by the black mage, she kept provoking him without end. To Katroi, it was truly strange.
‘This organization is truly bizarre. In all the human societies I have studied so far, there has never been an organization like this.’
From Katroi’s perspective, the structure of the Kasim Mercenary Corps was truly peculiar. By common sense, the strongest member, the black mage, ought to be the leader of the group, but this organization was not like that. A mercenary named Kasim, who to Katroi looked like nothing more than a small fry, was the leader of the group, and the black mage obeyed his command without a word of complaint. Moreover, Juliana’s position within the organization was equally incomprehensible.
In Katroi’s eyes, she was an extraordinary little troublemaker. Her only interest seemed to be tormenting the mercenaries who were devoted to sword training, and the sight of a knight named Mitchell suffering at her hands was enough to make even Katroi feel sorry for him. She did not leave him alone just because he was a dragon, either. Occasionally, she would approach with a smiling face and then suddenly jab him in the armpit.
Of course, if Katroi had been human, he would have foamed at the mouth and collapsed, but unfortunately, dragons had different vital points from humans. It did not cause Katroi much pain, but judging by the reactions of the mercenaries who were hit, it seemed to hurt quite a lot.
‘She truly is a peculiar girl. I’ll have to study her for a long time.’
That was how Katroi came to take interest in Juliana. More than anything, he was curious about the fact that she did not fear him at all. Yet when he came to Karsel, he found that her father also did not fear him in the slightest.
‘Can bloodline not be hidden?’
Katroi silently gazed at the king of Karsel’s face.
“But why have you come to our Karsel? What business could you possibly have……?”
Katroi answered without hesitation.
“I have come to grant one of your wishes. Originally, I was supposed to grant your daughter’s wish, but that was what she asked of me. She told me to go to Karsel and grant her father’s wish……. And so I came here.”
“A-a wish, you say?”
When the startled king of Karsel asked in return, Katroi slowly nodded.
“I was able to save my life thanks to her help, and because of that, I promised to grant her one wish. At her request, you have become the beneficiary of that promise. So tell me your wish. However, it must be something I am capable of granting.”
To the king of Karsel, this was completely unexpected news. A dragon had appeared out of nowhere and was offering to grant him a wish……. Trying to think of a wish on the spot could not help but leave him at a loss. Unable to simply watch, Katroi began presenting one by one the wishes he thought humans most commonly desired.
“Do you want gold? It will take a little time to mine, but it will not take very long.”
“I-I do not particularly need gold…….”
At the words that he did not need gold, Katroi’s eyes widened. He had once again seen a human who did not succumb to the temptation of gold.
“If you wish, I can mobilize dwarves to make your palace magnificent. I can also have stone golems guard your palace forever, or make magical arms for your knights.”
“T-the palace is fine as it is. I do not think stone golems or magical arms would be of much use either.”
Realizing that the king of Karsel had little greed, Katroi was put in a difficult position. In the end, he presented the condition he had saved for last.
“In that case, I can become the guardian dragon of your kingdom. Though it would be limited to a single time.”
Having finished speaking, Katroi looked at the Terbian knights, who stood tense and rigid.
“If anyone were to invade Karsel, that nation would incur my wrath. My ice breath would be more than sufficient to punish them.”
To the Terbian knights who had anticipated war, those words could not help but send a chill down their spines. In the worst case, they might have to fight against a dragon. Though they were elites tempered through harsh training, fighting a dragon was by no means a pleasant prospect. To begin with, they could not even imagine how they were supposed to fight a dragon with such an enormous body.
Katroi silently watched the highly tense Terbian knights as if making a show of force. The voice of the king of Karsel reached his ears.
“If you are a white dragon, then you likely live in the north. This place is very far from the north. It will not be easy for you to protect us.”
“That does not matter. If you choose that as your wish, I will install a magic circle here and give you a scroll for contacting me. When you need help, tear it, and I will be able to come here immediately. I intend to come by teleportation, so it will take almost no time at all.”
“Astonishing. To think such a method exists…….”
The king of Karsel’s face brightened somewhat. Though he was a plain-natured man without much greed, there was one matter that was an exception. The safety of the Kingdom of Karsel was something he had always worried about. Since he knew very well that their military power was pathetic, he nodded as if there was no need to hesitate.
“Very well. I shall choose that as my wish.”
“Understood.”
Watching the white dragon nod, Duke Gelliones instinctively realized that things had gone wrong. In the worst case, he had even considered a show of force, but now he could not even attempt that. Fighting a dragon was by no means a wise decision under the current circumstances. Although there was precedent for two dragons being hunted by the black mage’s party, that did not mean a dragon was an opponent who could ever be taken lightly.
After recalling the number of knights who had set out to hunt dragons and never returned, Duke Gelliones gave an order in a dispirited voice.
“We withdraw. Everyone, prepare to return.”
Once the order was given, the Terbian knights, who had been tense to the limit, let out sighs of relief.