The atmosphere was suffocating in the room where the defense meeting was about to begin. Five men sat around the round table. There was His Majesty, of course, and Rigel, the dragon riders’ captain. Also attending was Herbert, who led Dragonjaw’s garrison. Then there was Fargas—an unfamiliar face—the new captain of the Knights Templar. The fifth man at the table was yours truly, the hero-slash-field marshal. While the captain of the royal guard was also present, he stood directly behind His Majesty—a guard rather than a participant.
Officially, this meeting was being overseen by the field marshal. I was supposed to invite the main lords, but given the circumstances, it would take time for them to arrive from their territories. And honestly, would they even come on my summons? Meg was still out swinging around the sword with my crest on it, rallying the lords in her domain.
“In this offensive, the orcs unveiled cannons bigger than any we have ever seen. They stationed them around here.”
Herbert indicated a point on the map that was spread out on the table. It was about midway up the valley and two kilometers from the gate.
“They had roughly ten cannons. It took half a day to ready them. The bombardment began around noon, and while the gate’s magic barrier withstood the first volley, it was shattered on the second. Our walls have taken some damage. There appears to be a one-hour window between their shots.”
“In just two volleys?!”
Fargas sounded like he could hardly believe it. I’d arrived early thanks to my dragon and received a report in advance, but he had only just arrived with His Majesty, so this was news to him.
“Determining that it was a national crisis, I immediately opened the floodgates. The water managed to sweep away all the orcs in the valley, as well as a portion of the encampment outside. Since then, the orcs have shown no signs of preparing for another attack.”
“Herbert, can I assume that we’ve succeeded in our defense?” Despite his words, Fargas’s expression was not optimistic.
“Yes, against yesterday’s attack, at least. However, Dragonjaw Gate is still in a critical state.” The look on Herbert’s face turned grim. “We used more than half of our stored water in the discharge. The level won’t recover until snowmelt season. Perhaps we’ll be able to wash away the enemy one more time, but after that, we’ll be forced to protect ourselves with arrows. The barrier has yet to recover, and it will be a harsh battle even without their cannons.”
There were several problems. In the first place, there weren’t many soldiers stationed at the gate, since the orcs hadn’t attacked it for the past two hundred years. Then, the orc cannons were buried, not destroyed, and could possibly be restored. Even those massive walls wouldn’t come out unscathed if they were fired upon without their magic barrier.
“How long until the barrier can be deployed again?” My question prompted Herbert to glance at Fargas. Magic fell under the temple’s jurisdiction.
“Through repeated investigations, the scholars do have a fairly firm grasp on the workings of the magic circle,” Fargas answered. “We believe it might be possible to reactivate it, but we would have to gather over two thousand priests to do so. That will take some time.”
“Might?”
“Yes, the procedure is still highly speculative. It would be our first time conducting the ceremony.”
Are we going to be all right? Come to think of it, they said that was the first time the barriers had ever been broken since a magician built the fortress in the distant past. I should be grateful they even studied it.
“We’ll need to force them to retreat before they can prepare for the next attack,” Rigel said. They all nodded, but did any of them really know how they would do that? “A frontal assault would be…reckless.” Again, nods all around.
But wait. We had forces that hadn’t been available last time around.
“What about the dragons?” I said. “Can’t we burn them from the sky?”
“Hero, it appears your appraisal of our dragon riders is a bit unrealistic,” Fargas said with a snort. “Indeed, they may be able to easily burn our own armies to the ground. But they are useless against orcs. At most, they can do menial tasks—scouting and carrying messages.”
“Silence! Are you making light of the dragon riders?!” Rigel bellowed, jumping to his feet. His clenched fists were quivering, and the veins on his temples throbbed.
“Now, now. Calm down. Scouting and communication are some of the most important roles in the army,” I said.
My attempt to soothe him seemed to have little effect on his rage, and Fargas poured fuel on the flames.
“If you want to prove me wrong, go ahead, show us some evidence,” he said. “I know you’ve got nothing.” This man must really hate Rigel, I thought.
“Then what about you?! How about you show me how useful your bald greenhorns can be!”
“Don’t be an idiot. The situation is different for our Knights Templar. Had Liana not recklessly charged and expended them, they would still be doing their part as the hero’s trump card.”
“Now you’re insulting the princess too! Have you no shame?!” Rigel drew his sword. “Take up your blade! You’ll pay for those words!”
That sword was Rigel’s pride. I’d heard that it was made of pure silver from tip to pommel, but did that really make it any better as a blade? Fargas grinned as he reached for his own weapon. They’re really going to do it!
“Cease this! Both of you!” the king roared. “How dare you hold such trifling personal squabbles in my presence!” His voice was far louder than what I thought possible from someone so small.
“My apologies, Sire.” Fargas bowed and then took his seat again. “You too, dragon man. Sheathe your weapon.”
Rigel glared at Fargas for a moment, and then, clearly reluctant, tucked away his blade. With some urging from His Majesty, he took his seat.
“Uh, so why are dragon riders useless against orcs?” I asked timidly. I knew it was a bad idea to bring it up again, but I simply had to know.
With a gleeful expression, Fargas opened his mouth to speak, but His Highness silenced him with a glance. “Rigel,” the king said. “Please explain it to him.”
“Certainly, sir.” Vexation flitted across his face, but he quickly composed himself. Looking me straight in the eye, he said, “The reason is simple. The orcs have advanced the might of their guns to the point where their range just exceeds that of a dragon’s fiery breath. With their close-knit formations, an approach from the sky amounts to suicide.”
“I see. Then that rules out a dragon rider charge.”
Well, anyone could have thought of that. There’d be no point in the king calling this meeting if that was all it took.
“Please, Hero, don’t think that the dragon riders are completely useless!” Rigel’s eyes were bloodshot. “If we attack with our entire force, a third of them may be able to get close enough to rain fire! Those who fall will crash into the enemy formation and create a gap that we can take advantage of! Send our horses in through there, and we can tear the enemy formation apart!”
“Y-yes, I’ll…keep that in mind.” I stammered. There are plenty of ways to use dragons. Why waste them as disposable missiles?
“Easy now, Rigel,” Herbert said. The room was silent as Rigel caught his breath.
So no one even had anything else to suggest? No, I did have one idea. The problem was, I didn’t know how effective it would be, and I didn’t even want to think about what would happen afterward. Still, we had to do something about the crisis we were facing.
“I have a plan.” All eyes turned to me. “Please place the dragon riders under my command. I guarantee that I will drive the enemy away.”
I didn’t know if it would work, but it was better than doing nothing. A disheartened Rigel looked at me, eyes filled with expectation. Fargas, in contrast, stared at me doubtfully.
“Is that all right, Rigel?” His Majesty asked.
“Yes, sire! Please use us however you see fit! We will certainly prove our worth!”