1. Dragona>
“Wow… just as I thought… heh heh heh.”
Sian had moved into the quarters prepared beside the 3rd Royal Guard Knights’ barracks for Dragona’s residence and training.
A few days earlier, Viscount Talin had come to see Sian and proposed that he join Dragona.
After pondering this and that, Sian accepted the offer.
There were exactly two reasons he accepted Dragona.
First, he had heard that his brother was joining this Dragona, and second, the work seemed like it would be far easier.
When he asked Count Kerbel, he was told that Dragona was an organization that normally did nothing and only acted in emergencies or during war.
In this peaceful era, there was no way there would be a war, so judging that there was a very high chance he could laze around and eat for free, Sian accepted the offer—and his judgment proved exactly right.
It had been nearly a month since he moved here, and there was absolutely nothing to do!
On top of that, his salary came in faithfully, nearly ten times what he had earned back in his Garan-Tia days, so this was a huge success.
Dragona’s current members numbered three: himself, his brother, and Karagul.
Karagul, the commander, had entered into a contract to lend them his martial power in exchange for support in adapting to this world.
Afterward, grumbling that the memories absorbed from the previous ritual were far too lacking in knowledge, he had been going in and out of the royal library practically every day in order to adapt.
At first, Count Roman had been concerned because the image of a Kuntarian was far too poor, and because reaching the realm of Grand-Bander at the age of seventeen was absurd, but Karagul summoned Exar and instantly changed his appearance into that of an unremarkable middle-aged man.
After that, everything proceeded smoothly.
To the high-ranking nobles, Karagul was introduced as a hidden Grand-Bander of the Tian Kingdom, and the existence of the Kuntarian was buried by King Narasha’s maneuvering.
There had been a brief uproar, but since news of the existence of a new Grand-Bander had swept across all of Tian, it soon died down.
His brother, the vice commander, was diligently training in the practice yard behind the quarters.
The wounds he had gained in the tournament had been fully healed without aftereffects thanks to Sian protecting him, and if anything, that incident had become his motivation to devote himself even more earnestly to training.
The vacant position of commander of the 3rd Royal Guard Knights was taken by Sir Kal-Tian, a Returnee. Even before becoming a Returnee, he had belonged to the Royal Guard Knights, and since he was highly respected and trusted by many, he would be able to carry out the duties of commander of the 3rd Knights without issue.
And Sian, who had taken on the role of commander’s aide…
was lying in a hammock strung between trees, swaying it back and forth as he gazed at the sunlight.
As soon as he joined, he had been hooked by the proposal of Viscount Talin, who had come under King Narasha’s special order to minimize Sian’s dissatisfaction, and had taken the position of commander’s aide without hesitation.
“If you remain as a regular member, you will have to mix with the other members, train with them, and handle every kind of miscellaneous chore. Even your brother won’t be able to stop that. If only you are exempted from work, what do you think the other members will think of your brother? They will think he is showing favoritism, won’t they? So take the position of commander’s aide. I swear to you, no one will make you work. I am saying this entirely for your sake…”
It was such an enticing, reasonable, rational, and beautiful proposal that Sian accepted it immediately.
As a result, Dragona currently had not a single ordinary member and was composed of one commander, one vice commander, and one commander’s aide.
And Viscount Talin kept his promise. He assigned a separate administrative aide to handle matters and made things as convenient as possible.
To begin with, the unnecessary position of commander’s aide had only been created as a way to keep Sian, who would run away if bothered, tied down.
Not a single piece of work came to Sian.
Moreover, there was no one who could give him orders. In rank, he was the commander’s aide, but Karagul had no reason to make Sian work, and the vice commander had no authority to command the commander’s aide.
Satisfied with his exceedingly peaceful life and wondering what to do, Sian decided to go home for a meal for the first time in a while.
“I should go home for dinner tonight, since it has been so long. I can see Mother too.”
Since it had been a while since he had seen his mother, Sian decided to go home and visit her as well, and began thinking about what gift to buy for her. He had plenty of money saved up anyway, since he had nowhere to spend it.
☆ ☆ ☆
During the family meal they had not had in a long time, Count Roman suddenly spoke in a heavy atmosphere.
“The mood is ominous. I hear that the Usharan Kingdom has declared war on the Kon Kingdom. A full-scale war has not begun, but localized battles are taking place now.”
At those words, Sian wore an expression that said, So that was it.
For the past few days, the interior of the royal palace had grown busy, and he had sensed many nobles coming and going. It seemed this was what had caused the commotion.
After hearing his father’s words, Rian spoke with an expression of disbelief.
“How could that be… The Usharan Kingdom may be powerful, but to wage war while leaving the Taran Kingdom at its side… They shouldn’t have the capacity to split their forces between two fronts.”
The Usharan Kingdom shared a border with the Taran Kingdom, the strongest of the seven kingdoms. Though they were temporarily in an alliance, they were by no means close enough to leave at their backs while waging war.
The Kon Kingdom and the Usharan Kingdom were evenly matched in military strength. In other words, while waging all-out war against the Kon Kingdom, they should not have the spare capacity to keep the Taran Kingdom in check as well—yet war, and a declaration of war at that?
“The Usharan Kingdom has not withdrawn a single soldier from the forces deployed toward the Taran Kingdom. In that state, they are conducting localized battles against the Kon Kingdom… and currently, the Kon Kingdom is being pushed back.”
The Kon Kingdom was allied with the Tian Kingdom. It was not particularly because they were close, but because their enemies, Taran and Usharan, had allied, and so they too had allied in response.
If things turned out like this, Tian would also have to support the Kon Kingdom. If the Kon Kingdom’s power weakened, or if it was pushed back by Usharan, that would not be good for Tian.
“Since there is no room to deploy a large force… they will go with a small elite force.”
“That is right. It seems this is why His Majesty the King created Dragona in the first place. Of course, other mobile forces besides Dragona will also be deployed, but Dragona will be the greatest force among them.”
They could not move a large army to provide support.
The fact that the Usharan Kingdom had entered a war meant that the Taran Kingdom, which had been keeping the Usharan Kingdom in check, would also gain room to move. In truth, the Taran Kingdom was also showing suspicious movements.
In reality, King Narasha, the nobles, the military officers, and the administrators were tirelessly redeploying the kingdom’s troops.
They had to watch Taran and reinforce their forces, while at the same time they could not neglect the border with the Karan Kingdom. On top of that, they had to organize reinforcements to send to the Kon Kingdom.
Under ordinary circumstances, they would never have had the spare capacity to send anyone.
But now, the situation was different. They had a new Grand-Bander, Karagul.
If they said they were sending a Grand-Bander as support, the Kon Kingdom would gladly welcome him even if the additional troops were lacking.
A Grand-Bander was such an existence. A strategic weapon that determined the course of war.
It would be good if they could use Karagul to expand the Tian Kingdom’s influence, but they could not expand their borders or entrust them to an existence whose thoughts they did not know and who might leave at any moment.
To begin with, Karagul and Sian, Dragona’s main forces, were not beings that could be stably controlled.
King Narasha had judged that it would be better to use this opportunity to make the Kon Kingdom owe a debt to Dragona.
And Count Roman and Rian also vaguely sensed King Narasha’s intention.
“…Tsk.”
Sian did not understand any of that at all, but he did vaguely realize that his peace had now been shattered to pieces.
Sian did not want this peace to be broken, but as he looked at his brother, who was radiating the will to fight for the nation, he realized he had no choice.
And well… if he went along, there would be no danger. Karagul would be there too.
It was not difficult for him, and since he had been lazing around and eating for free until now, the time had come to earn his keep.
Since he did not want to use his power to kill people, Sian decided to make protecting his brother and returning safely his goal, and thought that starting tomorrow, he should enjoy his remaining peace even more actively.
☆ ☆ ☆
“So you are the people newly added to Dragona this time.”
“Greetings, sir!”
New additional personnel had been assigned to Dragona. Until now, they had not recruited more people because there had been no missions, but the situation had changed.
“Sir Selin, you have come as well. It is good to see you again.”
“Yes, Sir Rian.”
Selin had been assigned in consideration of the fact that she had served alongside Rian as commander and vice commander in the 3rd Royal Guard Knights.
She was to help Sir Rian command the new talents, but the fact that she had volunteered to make up for her own lack of experience was also taken into account, and she was assigned as Dragona’s second vice commander.
Among the newly reinforced personnel in Dragona, Selin was the only Master. The other Masters had to be stationed at the borders, the Royal Guard Knights, and armed organizations to prepare for the repercussions that might affect Tian.
Instead, Dragona was composed mainly of talents who had achieved respectable results in this Haron.
All of them looked at one another with slightly nervous expressions while at the same time gazing with respect at Karagul, Rian, and Selin standing before them.
“Mm… but where is Sian?”
As everyone was exchanging greetings, Selin noticed that Sian was nowhere to be seen and asked Sir Rian with a puzzled expression.
Sian was nowhere in the practice yard.
At that, Rian spoke with an awkward expression.
“Mm… that child is…”
☆ ☆ ☆
Panollan, the runner-up of this Haron, looked competitively over the surrounding talents.
They were all talents who had achieved respectable results in this Haron.
To think they had gathered all these people… This group called Dragona might be newly created, but it was undoubtedly an extremely important organization.
One could tell just by looking at the people leading Dragona.
The commander was a Grand-Bander, and the vice commanders were the famous Sir Rian of the Roman family and Sir Selin of the Kirain Sword Family.
Panollan was already feeling good, as if the nation called Tian had recognized his worth.
Their mission this time, as Dragona, was said to be to support the Kon Kingdom.
Just by looking at the mission, he could tell how grave it was, so Panollan resolved to do his utmost in this mission and prove his worth.
After everyone finished introducing themselves in the practice yard and competitively assessed one another, Panollan moved to the lodging assigned to him, unpacked his belongings, and since there was time left until dinner, decided to look around the quarters.
Since they would spend two weeks here before departing for the Kon Kingdom, he planned to familiarize himself with the place in advance.
The quarters were very well arranged. There was a dining hall, and a small study and lounge were also furnished simply but neatly.
When he went around to the back of the quarters, there was an auxiliary practice yard and a small garden.
After stepping on the flagstones of the practice yard and looking around the garden, Panollan discovered something strange in the garden.
“…A hammock?”
A hammock was set between two tall trees.
And what was more, that hammock was swaying violently from side to side.
Curiosity stirred in Panollan, and he sharpened his eyesight to examine the hammock.
Inside the hammock, some pale young man was diligently rocking his body from side to side while staring up at the sky.
“…Who is that? An administrator here?”
Seeing the man with fair skin and a slender build, Panollan decided to identify him first.
As far as he knew, administrators were supposed to work until quitting time, not slack off here.
“Who are you?”
At Panollan’s question, the hammock’s side-to-side swaying gradually died down, and soon the man lying on it raised his upper body and looked toward Panollan.
“Mm… are you one of the people newly assigned this time?”
“That is correct. I am Panollan, newly entering Dragona this time.”
“Nice to meet you. I also belong to Dragona. I am Sian, the commander’s aide.”
“……?”
When he said he was the commander’s aide, his appearance and the fact that he was here made some sense.
But Panollan still had one question left.
“Mm… earlier in the practice yard, everyone exchanged greetings, but I do not think I saw you there, Sir Sian.”
“Ah… when I asked, they said there was no particular need for me to attend, so I didn’t go. Haha. We’ll all be seeing each other anyway.”
Strictly speaking, Rian had said, “If at all possible, attend and exchange greetings with the newly arrived talents,” but Sian had interpreted that to mean he did not absolutely have to come, and so he was resting in a hammock.
Panollan found himself wondering just what in the world the fellow before his eyes was supposed to be.
He did not want to meddle needlessly, but they were about to be dispatched to war.
If some half-witted fool ended up serving as the commander’s aide, the commander’s judgment might be clouded and they could all die. He could not simply leave him be, saying, “You go live your own life.”
If it came down to it, he would have to beat some sense into him.
Though he could not judge hastily, Panollan decided he would have to keep a close eye on this fellow named Sian.☆ ☆ ☆‘Heh heh heh… Narasha, this old man couldn’t possibly be…….’ Sian gave a hollow laugh as he watched the man called Panollan disappear into the distance.
Seeing that friend named Panollan greet him and leave, Sian thought this expedition was going to become quite difficult.
They should have put in some stronger people so everyone could protect their own lives and come back, but instead they had shoved in nothing but chicks in droves.
If not for himself, Karagul, and his brother, it would not be strange for this composition to be completely wiped out in a single day. ‘Wasn’t that old man aiming for this from the start?’ No matter how oblivious Sian might be, when he was being sent to a battlefield with such an unbalanced group, he could not help but find King Narasha’s intentions suspicious. ‘Well… let’s do what we can. If I have some strength left after protecting my brother…….’ Realizing that knowing the intention would not change much, Sian once again gazed up at the sky and began rocking the hammock, only to stop it again at the sound of approaching footsteps.
“Hey, Sian! Why are you here? Everyone’s greeting each other and getting acquainted. Aren’t you the commander’s aide?”
It was Sir Celine.
Sian looked at Celine with a peculiar gaze, then let out a small sigh.
“Don’t tell me Sir Celine is coming along this time too?”
“Coming along? I’m the second vice-commander here. I’m leading them, leading!”
“Well… same thing either way. In any case, that means I’ll have to add one more besides my brother… Hrrm…….”
“Hm? What do you mean by that?”
Though she did not know what he meant, it somehow made her feel good, so Celine asked back.
“Nothing. By the way, they say departure is in two weeks, so why have you already gathered everyone?”
“This is already terribly late. We’re going to war, so shouldn’t we gather, coordinate, and adjust?”
“…
Are you sure those people were gathered to actually fight?”
“Oh?”
Seeing Celine’s expression, which seemed to say he was sharper than expected, Sian sighed. Unfortunately, it seemed his prediction was correct.
“We’re going to help in a war. If we gather people like that and take them, won’t the Kon Kingdom have something to say?”
“That old man Karagul is going, isn’t he? A Grand-Bander is going, so what could they say? Honestly, when else would those kids get to build experience if not for an opportunity like this?”
“Haa…….”
King Narasha intended to take this opportunity to properly polish talents on the level of Haron.
If Karagul and Sian went along, it would not be very dangerous, and since it was someone else’s war, if things truly seemed dangerous, they could pull out and avoid annihilation. That was why he had placed the fledglings into Dragona. Opportunities like this were rare.
From the beginning, Dragona’s current composition had been structured under the premise that Karagul and Sian would be the main force, and that it was meant to educate the fledglings of Haron’s level.
The Kon Kingdom would also be able to guess to some extent by looking at the personnel composition, but since a Grand-Bander had been included, they would not be able to complain loudly.
In the first place, even if they were allies, sending a Grand-Bander—the pillar of the nation—to another country’s war was already an extremely exceptional matter.
“Anyway… that old m— His Majesty’s mind is truly… sharp… His insight is remarkable.”
“Either commit lèse-majesté or show respect. Pick one. In any case, I’m counting on you, Sian. Hahaha!”
“Hrruaaaah…….”
Sian instinctively felt that this expedition would become far more exhausting than he had expected.
Having thought that far, Sian decided he should enjoy his rest even more fiercely and hurriedly lay back down in the hammock, while Celine turned back toward the lodgings as if there was no helping him.☆ ☆ ☆There were only two weeks left until Dragona departed for the Kon Kingdom.
Even if they underwent individual training during this time, there was no way they would become significantly stronger. What the talents gathered in Dragona would train in over those two weeks was joint training.
The different talents, each of whom had trained in their own way within their own families, knew each other well as opponents, but did not know each other well as comrades.
Since they would soon be deployed into localized battles, they had to learn how to coordinate with one another.
They were all talents who had trained in basic tactics, front-line command, and combined attacks within their respective families, but two weeks was far too short a time to display proper teamwork.
With no trust or camaraderie between them at all, there was no way such a thing would be possible in just two weeks.
For professional armed groups, living together for at least several years was the norm.
If Dragona’s current composition had been based not on the concept of “cultivation” but on that of a “combat unit,” even keeping them together for two years, let alone two weeks, would not have been enough.
For now, they would do their best to provide education and real combat experience, and after this matter ended, they would filter out the children with potential and create a separate Dragona as an elite unit.
They could not raise youngsters forever among flowers. Even if it was a little rough, this was an opportunity.
Rian and Celine would be in charge of commanding and evaluating this.
And Karagul would be in charge of actual military power. Education was education… but they also had to achieve the purpose of support itself.
A Grand-Bander was enough to achieve the original purpose of support.
If Karagul or Sian had not been there, they would never have gathered only fledglings like that and sent them abroad.
It was obvious they would die meaningless deaths due to lack of experience, and on top of that, it would disgrace the nation.
And Sian, who had come to know this very well, looked at the training ground with a pitiful expression.
“Oh dear… I’ll have to pay some attention and keep that friend alive. Hm… that one is somewhat decent. Uh… can’t that kid just stay here…….”
As the commander’s aide, Sian did not participate in training separately, so he was able to watch everyone’s joint training from a distance.
If he had given an objective evaluation, it would not have been bad.
They lacked real combat experience, but because they were all talents who had achieved high results at Haron, their individual control of power was not bad.
Unfortunately, however, Sian’s standards had become far too high because of the people he had met recently.
Most of the beings he had recently gotten involved with—meaning beaten up—were either Grand-Banders or Masters, so Sian could not help but feel pity at the wretched spectacle of Experts unfolding before his eyes.
He had no intention whatsoever of acting superior just because he was a bit good at swordplay.
Perhaps the only thing he did better than them was swordplay.
The problem was that in two weeks, they would be heading to a place where that swordplay would be valued above all else, and where anyone bad at it would lose their head.
“Uuuuugh… Right. Still, once this trip is over, it’ll be fine…….”
While Sian was hypnotizing himself, Karagul was calculating the probability of survival for the human youngsters before his eyes.
“25 percent… 23 percent… 35 percent… 12 percent…….”
Those were the probabilities when viewing the human called Rian as 100 percent. Celine was 78 percent.
Because his species’ minds and souls were connected, the whole was one, and one was the whole.
The concepts of camaraderie, trust, and teamwork themselves did not exist among their species.
Such things were concepts that existed only when the idea of division fundamentally existed, and they were unnecessary for his species, who all moved together as one body and one mind.
Yet for humans, it seemed such things took a long time to form.
Moreover, the humans over there had too strong a sense of rivalry.
The children called Rian and Celine were emphasizing teamwork and leading them, but it did not seem easy.
However, Karagul did not care much. It was not as though he would be the one dying.
Most likely, the one called King Narasha, who seemed to be the leader of the humans, had not expected such things from him either.
Thinking that, Karagul focused on the book he had been reading.
Grasping the surrounding environment for survival was basic, and human books were of great help in acquiring information.
The owner of this body, a fellow named Kuntarian, knew absolutely nothing, so there was almost nothing to gain from his memories about the current era.
He had to learn and adapt quickly. Otherwise, he would be weeded out.☆ ☆ ☆When Rasion entered the lodgings, he was in an unpleasant mood after having to undergo joint training with fellows he had only ever thought of as rivals.
He had to form camaraderie, trust, and friendship with that Panollan fellow he disliked so much!
The vice-commanders, Sir Rian and Sir Celine, emphasized teamwork endlessly, but trying to coordinate with opponents he had competed against until now was merely uncomfortable and unhelpful.
Wasn’t the problem happening in the first place because those fellows could not keep up with his movements?
He kept thinking it would be better to use this time for individual training and adjust his condition. ‘But what is that guy?’ Rasion recalled the fellow who had stood on the balcony above the training ground during their training, staring intently at them. ‘Was his name… Sian…….’ That pale fellow who was Commander Karagul’s aide did absolutely nothing.
He loafed around, watched them train for a moment, then loafed around again… and he was leaving all the duties he should be doing as the commander’s aide to other administrators.
On top of that, seeing him flirt with the beautiful Sir Celine despite doing nothing made rage surge within him.
He could hardly believe that such a person was Sir Rian’s younger brother.
It had been strange that there had been no rumors about him despite his being the second young master of the Roman family, but there was a reason for it.
Since he was a young master of the Roman family, he would have something up his sleeve, and that was why he was the commander’s aide, but what could he possibly do with an attitude like that?
It probably was not only his opinion.
In fact, the members of Dragona who had joined this time were also thoroughly excluding and ignoring the fellow called Sian. The fellow oddly seemed pleased by that situation, but that had to be a misunderstanding. ‘Youngster… you had better take proper care of yourself on the battlefield.’ If the fellow fell into danger, Rasion intended to watch him suffer a bit. He would not leave him to die, of course.
Having thought that far, Rasion began reading the materials distributed by the Intelligence Department about the Kon Kingdom’s localized battle conditions and the places where they would be deployed.
Information was power. He had to put it into his head as soon as possible so that his own probability of survival would rise even a little.☆ ☆ ☆The two weeks truly passed in the blink of an eye.
Rian and Celine wanted to train them even more before going, but the war situation was growing increasingly urgent.
The localized battles that had been breaking out sporadically in several places were gradually expanding their area, and now fighting was taking place at major military strategic points from which they could no longer retreat. ‘Hoo… I have no choice but to trust Sir Karagul and Sian…….’ He had submitted his opinion to His Majesty the King, saying it seemed dangerous, but seeing His Majesty indirectly say that if they were in danger even in a place like this, it would be better for a few of them to die, he seemed to have no intention at all of withdrawing this decision.
Rian forced himself to steady his uneasy heart as he watched La-Shar-Roa slowly open in the air, then strode into it.
And behind him, the members of Dragona, one by one, moved their feet toward the hole in the air.☆ ☆ ☆“Huhu. They have departed, you say?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. They are said to have departed today through La-Shar-Roa. It seems they will move by La-Shar-Roa to a point one day’s distance away, then proceed on foot.”
“Good, good. Things are going well. Viscount Tallin, we will soon be getting busy too.”
“Preparations are already underway.”
“Excellent. Make haste.”
King Narasha and Viscount Tallin wore strange smiles.
Volume 3