“So, red dragons are suited for solo missions. But I saw Princess Elentzia’s Rosa and Prince Risteard’s Brynhild properly taking charge of the Dragon Knights,” Jill pointed out.
“Why don’t we change our way of thinking for a bit? Red dragons can only be leaders, and nothing else.”
Jill raised her head with realization. Finn smiled back.
“You cannot force Meine to act similarly to other dragons,” he continued. “There may be some outliers because of personalities, but in general, it doesn’t suit the natures of red dragons. Then what can you do?”
“Have Meine defend the flight,” Jill answered.
“Precisely. Usually, lower-ranking dragons will defer to those of higher rank. In turn, higher-ranking dragons will be considerate toward those below them. It’s the logic of the strong and the weak, and you must utilize this aspect cunningly.”
Before Jill knew it, a small crowd of soldiers had gathered around, and it had turned into a lesson of sorts.
“Now then, why don’t I reveal my trick?” Finn said. “We purposefully raised our altitude and left Meine behind. Meine had wanted to use the wind and fly higher anyway, and when it spotted the dragons of lower rank soaring higher above, a fire was lit in its rebellious spirit. Meine chased after us and tried to surpass our formation. Then I acted like I’d lost my balance because of the wind from the red dragon’s wings.”
“The green dragon swiftly changed its position to keep you in the air,” Jill said.
“These dragons have undergone strict training. Usually, they’ll wait until I regain my balance or follow their rider’s orders. But this time, none of us gave a single order, and the Dragon King graciously watched on as well. Inevitably, the other dragons have no choice but to follow Meine, the highest-ranking dragon present. Red dragons are smart. It’ll quickly realize that its own actions would cause the downfall of the flight of green dragons.”
“Some yellow dragons don’t even notice that the green dragons are flying to their cue,” a soldier remarked. “Red dragons are smart.”
“The red dragon probably also noticed that the other dragons were desperately trying to catch up to it,” another added.
“Which is why Meine became considerate and flew in formation after that incident,” Jill muttered.
Finn, who had helped Meine realize that it was the leader and a higher-ranking dragon, nodded. “Meine found the dragons flying all around it to be nothing more than a nuisance that blocked its path. The red dragon was probably also annoyed at you, Dragon Consort, and wondered why you weren’t flying at the helm. Even so, Meine was obedient at first because the Dragon King was in front.”
Once again, ranks proved important. If the Dragon King was in the mix, the red dragon had to swallow its pride and act obediently.
“Is that why you had Zeke, who had Raw, fly in front?” Jill asked.
“That’s right,” Finn replied. “But during our trip, Meine likely realized that the Dragon King wasn’t taking command. The red dragon had agreed to carry you to Lehrsatz, and it probably knows the way. Meine wanted to take the shortest route and fly as quickly as possible.”
“And the green dragons would try to follow.”
“Exactly. Meine isn’t aware of the specifics, but it intuited that the green dragons received orders from humans to follow it. If the red dragon pushed its limits, the green dragons would be troubled. Meine swiftly decided that it should follow formation for now. That kind of quick thinking is difficult to do unless you’re a red dragon. Meine questioned its situation, analyzed its circumstances, and carefully decided to keep its decision on hold. Only higher-ranking dragons have such mental leeway and dignity.”
Jill sighed and gazed up. Amid the reddening sky, she spotted shadows of dragons flying to their hearts’ content. Meine flapped its wings as it liked and flew off the moment its saddle was removed. Is it among the other dragons?
“When Meine returns, I have to praise it to bits,” Jill said.
“Please do so,” Finn replied.
“I’m still amazed. You thought so far ahead and purposefully almost fell.”
Unlike Jill, Finn would surely die if he fell from such a high altitude. He couldn’t have done such a courageous act had he not understood and trusted his dragon and the others, including Meine.
“I heard that Meine challenged you to a battle to protect the other dragons, Your Highness,” Finn said. “I knew that it would be considerate toward others, and above all, my dragon will never allow me to fall.”
This is what it means to be the Rave Empire’s Dragon Knight. Jill couldn’t help but give a round of applause.
“You just sounded so cool!” she cried.
“Thank you,” Finn replied. “But it’s a bit embarrassing to hear such praise from you, Dragon Consort. You looked very cool when you fought in Radia.”
“You were there?”
“To tell you the truth, we fought with the baker.”
Hadis had personally selected this squad of soldiers to guard Jill. The Dragon Consort had found this curious; Hadis normally hated anyone who attempted to get close to his wife. Jill smiled.
“So you’re His Majesty’s comrade in arms from Radia,” she said. “He trusts you all very much.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Finn replied. “He probably thinks that he can kill us without holding back should anything happen to you, Your Highness. We’d once thrown our lives away in Radia anyway.”
“I’m so sad! I can’t choose any of you to become my knights, then.”
Since these soldiers had fought with Hadis during the internal conflict of Radia, they likely wouldn’t direct their loyalty toward Jill. The Dragon Emperor, who controlled the military, glimmered brighter than the stars in the night sky. Even enemies would gaze on with awe and wonder, entranced by the spectacle.
“Please don’t say that,” Finn said. “Should His Majesty hear your words, he’d shoot daggers at us.”
Some of the soldiers gave a forced chuckle while others frowned. But each soldier seemed to understand Hadis, which only made Jill feel even more pitiful. As her gaze shifted to the ground, her gloves entered her field of view. The insignias of the Dragon Emperor and Dragon Consort were embroidered alongside each other.
“I want to be able to control dragons better,” she mumbled. “I am the Dragon Consort, after all.” She recalled Millay gallantly soaring through the skies and her spirits sank. “If I remain this way, I’d feel bad for Meine, too.”
“Until now, Meine was allowed to fly wherever and whenever it wanted, and flew as fast as it pleased. It threw away its freedom to carry you, Your Highness,” Finn said. He kneeled and gazed up at Jill before he gently slapped her knee. “First, you must trust Meine. It’s your personal dragon, isn’t it?”
Don’t ever forget that a dragon is allowing you to ride on its back. Jill had heard that phrase many times before, but those words were finally sinking in.
“You’re right. I want to study more about dragons!” Jill declared. “I want to be able to welcome His Majesty while riding my dragon as if it were effortless!”
“We’ll help you out, of course,” Finn replied. “But please don’t tell Meine that I purposefully lost my balance. As I’ve said before, red dragons are very smart. It might become infuriated with me if it learns that it was tricked.”
“You got it!”
Jill hopped off her box and struck a neat salute. Finn and the other soldiers saluted beautifully in response.