The 7th Prince of Kingdom

They started casting circles and chanting spells, all to strengthen their leadership and weaken the dragon. The Authority of Bonas was borrowed to prevent the dragon from moving. Lightning and water attacks were thrown at the dragon while the wind sped up Cristina's movement. A huge explosion occurred when all the attacks connected, creating a loud boom, and a lot of smoke followed it. There was silence where everyone focussed on the center of the ashy clearing, where the dragon stood seemingly unharmed, with Christina in his mouth, fighting to not get chomped down by holding his mouth open. next thing we knew, the whole forest floor was covered in a magical circle, who cast it? the dragon of course. It was an instinctual response to the upcoming attack on his already injured body. a huge amount of mana was consumed by that circle, and it released a wave of plasma that scorched everything in the area. The trees were carbonized in the instant, and the only reason for the survival of both teams was their quick reflexes and specially-made clothes.

Team 12 was in a worse state, they managed to escape the plasma wave, but the heat it brought burned their skin. Lucian moved towards the dragon at once and as if this was a command to the team, each remaining member jumped in to save or help the hurt members of the opposing team. For the first time in a while, Lucian pulled out his sword with the intention to kill. The blade touched the neck and went through it like a sickle through grass, slicing through it without any effort. Lucian crashed on the other side of the dragon because of the momentum that carried him across. His sword, despite moving through so smoothly, was chipped and had cracks in it. blood started gushing out from the severed neck like a fountain, drenching Lucian until his hair turned red.

Christina recovered from the head of the dragon, after which she had a talk with Lucian while everyone else talked with her team.

"Say, Christina, why do you want to win so badly?" Lucian asked her.

"You know my reasons." She replied in a defeated tone, "I wanted to make the children free from that association, and I need support from all the states to officially remove it. but I don't think I have enough strength to lead the team and win any more."

"Don't worry." Lucian lightly patted her head, "I understand your situation, and I am gonna take care of it all. Leave it to your brother."

"I am not your sister, so stop calling me that" She swung her arm at Lucian. He leaned back, and Christina missed and lost her balance.

"Alright, as you wish." he helped her sit back, "Your personality has gotten worse in the last five years, you know that? You still jump in alone… at least you have some comrades that you rely on."

"How do you do that? it took me years to find people that I could take with me."

"Trust goes both ways." Lucian got up, "you have to trust them before they trust you. you have a good team, make them your friend next. you will get there slowly, be patient."

Both of their team members were surrounding the dragon's corpse, looking at it up close before it started to decompose. Some talked about their experiences and exchanged names. It was a light atmosphere, even with the dragon blood soaking into the ground. Everyone was done fighting for the day, so the afternoon was spent resting. By sunset, team 12 was retired and left promptly. Team Sceptre had won, fair and square.

"Only one team remains as of this minute. The test has come to an earlier end." announcement was aired on the tv, "Team Sceptre, led by candidate Lucian Witlock, is declared the winner. In addition to their win against all other teams, they have also successfully hunted down a Byoder Dragon while in the middle of the competition. The dragon was injured and unable to migrate due, as the authorities have reported. They state that it was 'too weak to attack and harm anybody' in response to the complaints against them regarding the deaths. Although there are no conditions that prevent the participants from killing each other, none of the teams resorted to such tactics in this selection. more on this at 8."

A new prince was now part of the royal family, and he had single taken down a dragon in a single swoop. This was bound to be in the news for several days, which meant that all members of his team were getting royal treatment for the interviews that they had to attend. All this also came with rewards such as cash and scholarships, and one spoil of war, the corpse of the Dragon.

As per the rules, each hunt needed to be consumed properly. which meant that leaving the corpse in the forest wasn't an option. it wasn't every day that people came across a dragon to salvage. and with their bodies being the way they were, there was a lot to use. Their bones were very dense and hard, in order to support their body weight. their muscles are even stronger, with enough strength to help them fly despite their mass. These animals should not have evolved to live this way, but the gods had some experiments in their minds and created a beast made of all kinds of materials.

Bones stronger than forged steel, skin akin to a thin armor, their claws, and teeth strong enough to make blades out of, these creatures were equal to war machines. and with their nerves of steel, literal steel, they didn't care about being hurt. Maybe that was the reason that an international treaty prevented the use of these animals in the army. No one was out to hunt these animals, their ferocity and protective nature made them hard to kill. And for the people of this world, it was just a waste of time and effort to build greater means of destruction. I wish I could say the same about my world, where humans had built means to destroy entire cities in mere seconds.

anyway, the dragon was properly skinned and the edible parts were used to prepare a feast, and the rest was used to fertilize the soil of the forest, then came the bones and claws, which were fashioned into weapons for the entire team.

The team was called into the court by the king for the award ceremony. I can introduce the king right now, but that won't be the right description of him, as he has to act a certain way in front of the audience, that isn't the actual him.

He called out each member, presented them with their weapons, and at last, they were asked to name their weapons. This was a custom that was meant to represent the bond between the weapon and its bearer. When a name is given to the weapon, it gets harder to view them as mere weapons anymore, and the bearer takes more care of it.

"Lucian Witlock." the king called, "The 7th prince of the Kingdom of Lageth. I present to you, a sword made from the bones of the dragon. Please announce its name to the citizens, who will live under its protection from this day forth."

"I prefer to not draw a sword unless I need it to protect someone. So unless the people are in danger, I hope to never draw this sword at anyone. the only time this sword shall be drawn is when the rage of my people demands it and for that reason, I will call this sword Ragespike." Lucian announced to the public. he sheathed the sword, got his crown, and was escorted out.

The king started to call the other members one by one. Each member got their own weapon made from different parts of the dragon. They had names decided for their weapons if they had requested one.

"Aisha Fox, you get this bow made from dragon ribs, and the bowstring made of blood vessels. You have named it Chimera, a fitting name indeed."

"Anya Francis, your weapon is the scythe built with bones of the dragon. The name you gave it, Ivory, fits it quite well."

"Cerene West, you have chosen to use the claws of the dragon as your own. with their strength that can cut through rocks, the Onyx Ripper will lead you forward."

"Evan Elrod, you have a strong will to cut through problems that you face. this battle axe, named Omega, will be your partner in your journey ahead."

"Eve Finch, you chose to have a weapon made not from his bones, but the scales. This pistol, namely Eveningstar, is symbolic of your ability to bend things to your will."

"Finley Dash, you show great restraint despite your aggressive approach. This attitude requires nerves of steel, and hence the nerves of dragons have been forged into these chains, now called Cataclysm."

"Issac Boone, for you, the hammer built from the clotted blood from the dragon's heart. It's a little ironic that you chose the name Oxheart for this weapon, but it represents your humor quite well."

"Jin Kami, for you, the spear made from the wing bones of the dragon. you have picked the name Eclipse for this weapon, may the weapon be used only as frequently as its name."

"Ray Lightfoot, you stated that you need your story to be unique and known. may this staff made from the wing-bones of the dragon be the Lorekeeper that helps you achieve that vision."

"Robin Langston, you excel in close-quarter combat, at which your knuckle duster has shown to excel. So for you, the knuckle dusters made from the knuckle bones of the dragon, become the Checkpoint of your life."

"Rose Ashford, you don't pick a weapon to use and tend to rely on your body. To strengthen that resolve, the boots were made from the scales of the dragon, currently still not considered a weapon by definition, and hence unnamed. I hope you use them well."

"Sarah Hendrix, You have taken twin daggers made from the teeth of the dragon, named Bonescraper and Heartseeker, for their dangerous nature still carries over even after the dragon is dead."

"Seraphina Katz, your blunt nature is clear in your weapon of choice. made from the tailbone of the dragon, the mace Crash."

"Sylph Francis, you had a special request to not have any special weapons forged for you from the remains of the dragon. we honor your request, and have this knife-carrying bag made from the hide for you."

"Terrence Duke, your aim has been fixed since a long time ago. to help you reach for the target, even if it is in the sky, is the crossbow made from the ribs of the dragon, Meteor."

"Tom Pierce, your skills are exceptional and might still grow. may these shortswords show you a path ahead, made from the jaws of the dragon, Spark & Glimmer."

The ceremony was aired on news all over the nation, and even internationally. The Kingdom of Lageth had a new Prince, comparatively younger than any other prospective leader. His first feat of taking down a dragon was being advertised, and along with it came the support of the people. There were people analyzing the routes and strategy on the news, trying to see how each team performed and whose loss was for what reason.

Other team leaders were interviewed as well, they had their own thoughts and hopes that they wished to convey. Surprisingly, most of them gave their support to Lucian and said that he will be the kind of king they'd like to see lead the nation. There were some that were critical of him of course, saying that he doesn't make strong decisions and needs to be more aggressive in his approach.

all this went on for several weeks, during which Ray's life was in chaos. The year was about to end, which meant that exams were coming up. There was a slight problem with that, which was the fact that he wasn't prepared for it.