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A huge banquet was held in Doneiks to celebrate the slaying of the dragon. While everyone else was partying, I was busy listening to Kurtz’s report.
“The other nations’ technologies have developed far beyond what we expected, Veight.”
“Yeah. We need to be particularly wary of Wa’s cannons and Rolmund’s mana-absorbing magesteel. I never realized unsaturated magesteel could be used to absorb bullets from Blast Rifles. Not only that, but those absorbed bullets then become mana for the enemy.”
Rolmund had already begun developing anti-Blast Cane technologies, now that their usage was spreading out across the world. Unsurprisingly, it was Eleora who had come up with the idea. She was the mother of Blast Canes and our derivative Blast Rifle, so it stood to reason that she would best understand how to counter them too.
Kurtz adjusted his glasses and said, “Empress Eleora said in her letter that she came up with the idea after observing a certain ‘mana-absorbing werewolf.’”
Wait, this is my fault? It was true that Blast Rifles didn’t work on me since I could absorb the mana in the bullets, but Eleora was quite the genius for finding a natural material that could do the same thing. If she was able to mass-produce armor incorporating that magesteel, all of Rolmund’s soldiers would have the same power as me. Well, they wouldn’t be able to absorb bullets indefinitely the way I could, but even being able to fend off a few shots was a huge boon. Blast Rifles had an insane amount of destructive power, so each shot blocked was a life saved. However, it seemed that wasn’t what Kurtz took issue with.
“I cannot believe you told our soldiers to fire that mana-absorbing magesteel into the dragon. You understand that new technologies are meant to be treated delicately, don’t you?”
“I’m sorry. As a scholar, I realize how foolish a decision that was.”
After hitting the dragon, the cannonballs had exploded, so we couldn’t even recover the mana-absorbing magesteel.
Kurtz gave me a small smile. “That being said, I’m impressed you were able to immediately devise such a practical use for that magesteel. It was thanks to your novel idea that we were able to put a dent in the dragon’s mana stores and bring the battle to a swift conclusion. Only you would find a way to use defensive technology for offense.”
“Thanks for the praise, I guess. By the way, was anyone in Doneiks hurt?”
Just as I said that, Master floated over.
“Thanks to me, not a single one of the dragon’s breaths had hit the city. Some came close, but I was able to absorb them before they did any damage.”
“Thank goodness. And thank you for cleaning up after Friede’s mess.”
The fact that Friede had let the dragon shoot off breath attacks near the end was proof that she still had a ways to go.
However, Master grinned and shook her head. “You shouldn’t phrase it as such. She did a splendid job. Everyone is proud of how well she did, despite her youth.”
“If you say so...” I shrugged.
Asking Master to serve as our rear guard had proven to be a smart choice. It was because she’d stayed behind at Doneiks that she’d immediately been able to teleport Friede over the moment she reached Bahen, and protect the city from stray attacks.
“Does Friede realize how much she worries me every time she pulls a stunt like that? I’m scared of what the future might bring now.”
“My, my, as if you have any right to talk.” Master exchanged glances with Kurtz, and the two of them smiled wryly at me.
Come to think of it, Master’s been saying the same things to me for twenty years, hasn’t she? I thought.
“I was only able to focus on defending the city because you all were able to bring down the dragon on your own. And the one who contributed most to that effort was Friede. Isn’t it about time you acknowledged her skills, Veight?”
“Yeah...I guess you’re right.”
A few years ago, Friede wouldn’t have been able to figure out how to bring down a flying dragon. She would have panicked and started attacking recklessly. But now, Friede was able to live up to the responsibilities of her station. That was why everyone trusted her.
Kurtz flipped through the battle plan I’d drawn up before the hunt and let out a long sigh. “You were only supposed to scout the forest...but instead, you ended up being the one to lure the dragon out of it. After that, Friede was only supposed to help cover your retreat...but instead, she brought the dragon down to the hunting grounds. The two of you cause us nothing but headaches, you know that?”
Master smiled at Kurtz. “Perhaps so. But in the end, we know we can always trust them. Ultimately, we ended up following the plan. We weakened the dragon with mana-absorbing magesteel cannonballs, then the demon army moved in for the coup de grâce.”
“It’s because you’re so soft on the two of them that they— Oh, very well. I admit that I was hoping they would handle things by themselves too, once the situation got out of hand.”
Kurtz looked back down at the plan and wrote, “Thanks to Veight and Friede, we succeeded with an abridged version of the operation.” then drew a slash through the last few pages.
I’m sorry. In an attempt to lighten the mood, I said, “It wasn’t just Friede. All of the promising members of the young generation performed well above our expectations. Ryuunie, especially, did an amazing job, considering he had just become viceroy.”
Master nodded happily. “These are the rewards you reap when one puts in the effort to properly instruct younger generations. There is nothing more important to a nation’s continued prosperity than that. After all, we may not be here in a hundred years, but our descendants certainly will... Although, I suppose I will still be around then.”
“As long as you’re here, Meraldia’s future is secured, Master. Please take care of this country after we’re gone.”
Fortunately, Master’s ultimate calling was teaching, so she’d be here to lead new generations for centuries to come.
She smiled and said, “Fear not. Even if I am not around, the coming generation will take care of raising the generation after them just fine.”
Are you sure about that? I thought.