“The magic circle from that spear prevents the dragons in the city from movin’. And since that whippersnapper of a Dragon King will order all the beasties to target the Arks, they can’t undo the seal until they retreat.”
Shrubs became more abundant around the winding, rugged path. That indicated their higher elevation. When Jill looked up from the map, she noticed she could now gaze down at the city.
She stopped when she noticed the black spear once more. It possessed enough magical power to maintain a magic circle on such a grand scale for long hours. Rolf and the others had mentioned that a magic seal and a dragon killer seal had been applied. Thanks to Raw, the dragons only slumbered under the dragon killer seal, but that also meant he couldn’t suppress the seal entirely.
It likely affected Dragon Emperor Hadis and Dragon God Rave as well; only Goddess Kratos should’ve been capable of such a destructive feat. That black spear stood in the center of the massive magic circle and emanated magical energy unlike anything Jill had ever felt before—she could only attribute it to some sort of divine power at play. And yet, something felt…off. The spear felt devoid of life.
“What’s wrong, whippersnapper?” Rolf asked. “We’re short on time, better walk as fast as your legs can take ye.”
“S-Sorry,” Jill stammered as she folded the map up and returned it to him. “We have to prioritize protecting the border, don’t we? But will we be enough to prevent their attack?”
Rolf shoved the map back into his chest pocket, faced forward, and marched ahead. The trail up the mountain was a bit of a detour, and the city quickly receded into the distance.
“The Arks had no choice but to enact this plan quick because a certain young lass went around destroyin’ their bases one after another,” Rolf said. “I reckon their security’s full of holes, and they don’t have many they can mobilize. Or maybe this plan itself is a big experiment.”
“An experiment? Is the spear and the magic circle a part of it too?” Jill asked.
“And the dragons. Come, take a look. Bullseye.”
Rolf turned off the light and stopped atop a tiny hill. Beyond the steep hill was a rolling plain, illuminated by moonlight. White petals danced beneath, indicating that a field of flowers may have been there. But the delicate flora had been violently stomped by a dragon surrounded in black mist, making it a wretched sight. The students clapped their hands over their mouths, and some even inched back.
Jill clenched her fist as she muttered, “That’s the…”
It was the dragon that had appeared during the Dragon Flower Crown Festival. The beast didn’t obey the orders of the Dragon God and emanated thick miasma.
Rolf chuckled. “Bingo. What an absurd sight.”
“Did the Arks make that dragon?” Jill asked.
“Hell if I know.”
Rolf didn’t seem at all surprised. He crouched as he gazed down at the flight of fake dragons cloaked in dark mist.
“I’m guessin’ that the Draco Flute and the magic theory of Kratos to call forth beasts were meshed together,” he said. “If ye ask who exactly made it, I’m sure it’s via collective intelligence. The Arks probably got the idea when Minerd arrived on a dragon. The only thing I’m sure of is that it’s made from Kratos, that is, it’s made from magic. The Sacred Spear was stolen to create these dragons that won’t listen to Dragon God Rave.”
“U-Um, can we defeat them?” a student asked gingerly.
Rolf smiled. “I told ye, they’re made from magic. We can burn ’em away with the fire of dragons.” He stood up with a grunt. “So, if we’ve got a real dragon on our side, victory should be easy to attain. Prepare ’em for me.”
“Wait, you don’t have any?!” Jill yelped. “I didn’t expect you to suddenly become so reckless!”
“You’re a Dragon Consort, ain’t ye? Don’t sound so pathetic! If all’s lost, we’ve got this.” Rolf swiftly pulled out a scale around the size of a thumbnail from the bag on his waist. “This is the scale of that whippersnapper dragon,” he said.
When did he get something like that? Jill was slightly taken aback, but Rolf didn’t seem to feel guilty as he snickered and took out a match.
“Light this fella on fire and throw it into the enemies,” he cackled. “That barrier has isolated the Dragon King’s thoughts from the dragons of the empire. If those beasties can sense the smell of the Dragon King’s scale burnin’, they’ll misunderstand the situation and angrily rain fire upon the enemy! It’ll be the dragon brawl of the ages!”
“That’s pure chaos! Pandemonium!” Jill cried.
“Ye won’t get to see such a sight so easily. Now then, we don’t have time. Let’s split into teams. Hey, former imperial prince!” Rolf pointed to Roger, who sternly gazed down the cliff. He looked up as Rolf said, “Wear the mantle of the Arks. Jump off the cliff and mosey on down to them. Grab the one in charge of the teleportation device and communication, then take the kids who can’t ride on dragons alone to head back to the city. Tell everyone that the commander of the Arks has left as planned, so they’ll willingly retreat from the city. Are we clear, lad?”
“You tell me to jump off a cliff like it’s so easy. How unreasonable,” Roger said. “Will the ones in the city trust my words?”
“Of course. Only the Arks have a teleportation device in Rave, and they probably know where their communicator will be. Besides, they likely believe that their location here ain’t leaked to outsiders—take a good look, lad. No one’s really guardin’ the area.”
The Arks could be seen between the dragons and had weapons, but they were laughing around a bonfire. None of them seemed tense or vigilant, and the guard who stood outside the largest tent even let out a wide yawn.
“The Arks are adept at workin’ behind the scenes,” Rolf said. “It’s very rare for them to face enemies head-on, meanin’ that with the change of generation, they changed their tactics, too. But that doesn’t mean the Arks can magically turn into refined soldiers in a day.”
Roger sighed and turned to the students. “All right, let’s get ready. Those who can ride dragons will stay behind, and those who can’t will slide down the cliff while wearing the Arks’ uniform. It’ll be fun.”
“Whippersnapper, there’s your target,” Rolf said as he sat cross-legged atop the cliff. He left the planning to Roger.
Jill stood next to her knight and stared at the enemies who left the tent. One was wearing a scarlet mantle—Canis. Another was a girl with braided hair affixed to either side of her head to form loops. She was none other than Millay, the empress candidate.
“That man I know,” Jill said. “But is there any chance the girl is being threatened?”
Rolf let out a low chuckle. “None. The lass is wearing a purple mantle, proof that she’s the commander of the Arks.”
Jill widened her eyes with surprise when she saw Millay grip the black spear in her hand. The Dragon Consort didn’t feel any magical energy from it, and the lifeless spear looked completely normal, but she never forgot an opponent she had once faced.
“I see… This is a bit of a problem,” Jill mumbled.
The promise was to never use her as bait, never rush into the enemies alone, never change jobs, never test Jill, never ingest poison, and never cheat on her.