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THE Knights of the Dragon Consort had just dropped off their dragons at the stables. Rolf gazed down at Camila and Zeke, who sat on the ground, looking completely exhausted. They wouldn’t budge an inch and were left behind by the bear plush and bird that carried the Dragon King in a sack on its back.
“Pathetic,” Rolf snorted. “How can the Knights of the Dragon Consort be spent after riding a dragon?”
“Hey, Grandpa, you also whined about how you hated riding dragons, didn’t you?” Camila replied.
“I said that I didn’t like riding ’em. Didn’t say that I couldn’t.”
“That’s what I call being scammed,” Zeke muttered. “Ugh, my world’s still spinning.”
Zeke leaned his back against a fence that surrounded the square as he drank some water. Camila placed her weight against a wooden box and couldn’t raise her head.
“The Dragon Consort’s o’er there receivin’ a lesson on how to control a dragon from the imperial army,” Rolf said. “Why don’t ye both get one too?”
“Her Highness Elentzia hammered that stuff into us, so we’re good,” Zeke muttered.
“Yeah,” Camila added. “Knowledge isn’t enough to dispel our sense of dislike anymore. In fact, you should praise us for being able to ride dragons by ourselves, Grandpa. We don’t think dragons should be ridden—if we need transportation, we use horses. Jill’s so quick to adapt! I suppose she’s the Dragon Consort, through and through.”
Rolf suddenly sat beside them with a loud thud. “Youse guys are from the Rave Empire, yeah?”
“Yep. Wait, are you the type who can’t forgive Rave citizens for disliking dragons, Grandpa?”
“In the Rave Empire, horses are the main form of transportation in the mountains between the Verrat and Lehrsatz duchies. I reckon youse guys are from the Hohboe region or somewhere close to there. That area’s got a lotta plateaus, but not many mountains that the dragons claim as their home. It’s a region that’s devoid of dragons. Ye don’t have the luxury of a port, and railroads don’t pass by either. It’s way out in the boonies and has a terrible transportation system. There’re so many nomads there.”
“You’re absolutely right, and that pisses me off,” Zeke grumbled.
“But all the more reason for dragons to be highly prized,” Rolf continued. “I’m willin’ to bet that ye had a beasty or two called a ‘guardian dragon.’ They’re usually yellow or orange, or if you’re really lucky, red.”
“Oh yeah… There totally was! We had an elderly orange dragon,” Camila nodded. “When I was a kid, I approached it and received a harsh scolding from my parents!”
“Ah, so you were familiar with dragons since you were young’uns,” Rolf said, the tone and mannerism of his speech shifting. “So then why have you grown to dislike them?”
Zeke and Camila looked up in surprise, and they exchanged a glance. Whenever Rolf became so solemn, Camila always spoke up to break the silence.
“We left our hometown because of a few…disagreements,” Camila divulged. “Dragons were usually the property of someone important in our village, and so, we grew to dislike them.”
“Even so, surely, controlling dragons was hammered into yer heads,” Rolf went on simply. “It’s the kids’ job to take care of ’em, yeah? Precisely because villages are so small, they ensure to educate each and every single one of youse so that ye can all ride a dragon if needed. Dukes Verrat and Lehrsatz are keepin’ close watch so these villages don’t get their hands on more of those dragons. If a village gets enough of ’em dragons, they’d turn into a group of elite Dragon Knights, wouldn’t ye think?”
“Yeah… We did take care of dragons when we were kids…” Camila admitted.
“I’d imagine so. Youse guys held yer reins splendidly, befitting of a Dragon Knight. And the dragons soarin’ through the skies happily’s proof of that. And yet, ye claim to dislike dragons. Ain’t that a bit odd?”
“How so? We dislike them, and that bit’s true,” Zeke replied.
“Argh! You’re both denser than a brick!” Rolf exclaimed. “Why don’t I change my question? What exactly triggered ye to dislike dragons?”
Zeke and Camila exchanged another look as Rolf clicked his tongue with annoyance.
“Youse guys took care of the dragons before ye left the village, right?” Rolf pressed.
“Well…yeah,” Camila replied. “We took turns doing so. But we never rode one before.”
“When did ye leave your village? If there was any trigger, it was probably after ye left.”
“Uhh…six years ago, I think? We became mercenaries for a year or two before we entered the Northern Division.”
“Beilburg, huh? The current Dragon Emperor made the Northern Division, didn’t he? Must’ve been a few of ’em dragons stationed there.”
For a man who’d been holed up within the Dragon Consort’s Palace for the past two decades, Rolf was awfully knowledgeable about current events and affairs.
“We just became mercenaries,” Zeke said. “We weren’t given dragons to ride or anything. Besides, the Northern Division was a mess since everyone was subservient to Marquess Beil. We didn’t even catch a glimpse of a dragon.”
Rolf fell silent for a few moments. “So, while you were away from your hometown, you lost touch with dragons and grew to dislike ’em. I suppose…it all adds up.”
“What gives?” Camila asked. “Is it something to be so bothered about? I get that it might not be ideal for Knights of a Dragon Consort to dislike dragons, but…”
“When ye both saw the enigmatic dragon that the previous emperor called, ye knew that ye couldn’t win, but ye never said that ye couldn’t fight against it. Hmm, so ye don’t like to be near dragons, but ye can fight ’em, eh? Sounds to me like you were once mercenaries in Kratos or somethin’.”
“We don’t have any ties or relations to the Kratos Kingdom,” she said.
Rolf had grown suspicious of the other two knights. Camila hastily refuted those claims; she didn’t expect to be suspected of such a thing.
“Yeah, Hohboe is isolated even within Rave,” Rolf easily agreed. It seemed he’d already thought so himself. “But ye gotta be aware that the Dragon Consort is from Kratos. And from House Cervel, no less. Since she’s only got a few knights right now, ye should be more wary of how ye act.”
“How kind of you to point it out,” Zeke replied. “You’re all fired up and ready to work, huh, fellow Knight of the Dragon Consort?”
“I just don’t like troublesome quarrels,” Rolf grunted. “C’mon, young’uns shouldn’t be loafin’ around. Stand up!” Rolf kicked the ground to encourage the other two knights to stand, and Zeke frowned as dirt was kicked onto him.
“What gives?” Zeke grumbled. “All we have left today is to eat and sleep. Taking care of my body is part of my work.”
“I heard some rumors from the innkeeper,” Rolf said. “Apparently, there’s been some sightings of Crown Prince Gerald around this neck o’ the woods.”
“What?!”
“Ask around, just to be safe. I’m guessin’ it’s a trap, but worth a shot. I’ll head back and get some rest.” Rolf didn’t wait for a reply. He patted off the dirt from his pants as he turned around and walked into the inn. Camila and Zeke swiftly looked at each other.
“Crown Prince Gerald was spotted around here?!” Camila cried. “He should tell us important stuff like that first!”
“What’s that geezer up to?” Zeke mumbled. “He kept asking about when we began to dislike dragons and other nonsense like that…”
The two fell silent. They couldn’t change the fact that they weren’t fond of the beasts, and they’d never been Kratos mercenaries before.
“Let’s go ask around,” Zeke said.
“It’s the order of our old strategist, after all,” Camila replied.
They knew it’d do them no good to dwell upon these questions and set them aside as they stood up. The setting sun dyed the mountain ridge a bright scarlet, and it was soon time for the cafeteria to become crowded with people.