CHAPTER 78

"Lift up your face."

Vlad made a disapproving expression as Dorothea's hand forcibly lifted his face, but there was nothing he could do.

"Don't make faces at me."

"You want to be a headless corpse?"

"That's why I'm wearing a helmet."

"I told you not to use informal language with you."

The red engravings etched densely on the armor.

As if that wasn't enough, Dorothea made a small brush to Vlad's face.

Just as the knights of the Iron Duke hold magic torches, it was Dorothea's measure to block the cold that Lindwurm would emit.

"Why are you doing this only to me?"

"Because you'll be running the longest."

The knights of Rutger, who were watching Vlad from the side, could only shrug their shoulders as if there was nothing they could do.

"There's nothing we can do. Your horse is the fastest."

"You are the best dragon herder in Bayezid, so you should be able to handle this much."

The knights next to him seemed to find it amusing to see the boy's increasingly reddening features making jokes.

"I'll say it again. Look at this map here."

While Dorothea was engraving on the boy's face, Rutger's adjutant unfolded a crumpled map and pointed forcefully at the marked points with his finger.

"The Iron Duke's knights and we will drive the beast up to this point. So from here on out, it's up to you."

The map was covered with countless lines.

Traces left by those who had pondered on how to lure the dragon.

"Until then, dodge the wind while staying behind the knights. Preserve your strength."

"Got it."

It was the operational overview they had been discussing, but Rutger's adjutant didn't seem satisfied with just that.

"If we only manage to lure it up to this point, then Lord Rutger will come charging out of hiding. At the same time, Bolcorp's spears will rain down from above."

Vlad turned his gaze to the knights standing ahead as the adjutant spoke.

Iron Duke's knight laden with short spears on his backs. Bolcorp of the spear throw.

He knew through Larmund that aura could be used in various ways, but it was the first time he had seen someone actually infuse aura into thrown weapons.

Truly, the world was vast, and there were many talents.

"So your role is the most important in this plan."

"I feel like I've heard that a hundred times already."

The terrain suddenly narrowed like a bottleneck on both sides.

The plan was Vlad had led Lindworm to a point where retreat was impossible, and Rutger to block Lindworm's advance on the ground while Bolcorp rained spears from the hilltop.

If Vlad could lure Lindworm to the designated point in the plan, then the subjugation would succeed.

"Okay, question."

"I don't have any."

"Do something. Anything."

Seeing the boy maintain a bold attitude despite being at the center of the operation, Rutger's adjutant felt rather worn out himself.

"....If we succeed, those people won't have to die, right?"

"Of course not. Absolutely."

The adjutant nodded emphatically at Vlad's question.

At the end of Vlad's line of sight, there were barbarians lying on the ground due to the cruel hands of the Dragon Slayer Knights.

Bait is not something you get and use when you need it.

The proper way to use bait would be to catch it in advance and then use it.

That's why Mirshea prepared the bait to lure Lindworm in advance.

Vlad looked at the furious Aage behind him, gnashing his teeth in anger.

The son of the tribal chief who followed the spiritual horse, yet attacked Bayezid's people recklessly.

But his actions were driven by the intention to save his tribesmen.

"....Things always seem to get this tangled, huh?"

And the bait, now held captive by the Dragon Slayer Knights, weakly sat on the cold snowy ground. They identified themselves as members of the Budart tribe.

If the people of the north were to fail, their blood and screams would become a trap to lure Lindworm.

Roarrrr!

In the distance, beyond the horizon tinted white, the roaring of the falling dragon could be heard.

"Alright. Look here!"

Rutger's adjutant, clapping his hands, turned to face his lord, gathering the attention of the knights around him.

At his signal, the young man with black hair nodded.

"Go!"

With the signal to depart, the dragon herders turned their horse.

...

Vlad lowered the visor of his helmet, locking eyes with those around him, each bearing their own engravings.

Dorothea began to pray.

Rutger and Larmund nodded at him.

And even from afar, Mirshea of the Dragon Slayer Knights looked upon him with a faint smile.

"Let's go, Noir."

The black horse named by the girl began pounding its hooves.

As the horse galloped, leaving behind a flurry of white snow in the wake of its black tail.

※※※※

Two days ago, Bernhem Fortress.

There was a white piece of paper illuminated by flickering candlelight.

"The name is Vlad. He is 17 years old. His place of birth is Shoara in the County of Bayezid. The special thing is that he is said to be from the slums."

"Hmm. Is that so?"

Mirshea frowned as he listened to the report conveyed through the crystal ball.

"Shoara. Shoara, huh."

Blonde hair and blue eyes.

And the heartbeat that could be felt as soon as their eyes met.

At the moment their eyes locked, Mirshea could sense an instinctual premonition, but the circumstances surrounding the boy subtly disturbed his judgment.

"He was born too far away."

"That's correct."

"And he was born in a very low place."

"..."

A promising seed is supposed to bloom anywhere, but the background surrounding the boy seemed harsh to the point of cruelty.

Could such a noble seed have been scattered to a place like this?

"I don't know."

The map of the north laid out on the desk.

And the piece of paper spread out on top of the map.

Mirshea furrowed and taped the paper with Vlad's personal information written on it.

However, no matter how much he urged with his finger, the ink-written report couldn't provide any further information about the boy.

"This isn't enough to be certain. I want to know more."

As Mirshea expressed his desire for more definitive information, the expression of the adjutant began to darken.

"...That's..."

The adjutant, who hesitated for a moment, had no choice but to give his hesitant answer as he looked at Mirshea's eyes that were colder than ice.

"We were able to find out what the boy named Vlad was doing outside, but we couldn't find out his movements inside Shoara."

"Why is that? They should have deployed the most spies in the north."

Mirshea wore a puzzled expression at the adjutant's report.

Although it was currently a time when figures in the western regions were running rampant, traditionally, the area of greatest concern for the royal family and the central authority was the north. 

With Tymur Baranov, the Iron Duke, at its center, the tightly knit northern region had always been establishing its own territory to the extent that it wouldn't be strange if it fell outside the empire's jurisdiction at any time.

"After a new mayor took office in Shoara, our surveillance was all but blinded. It seems they've succeeded in firmly controlling the city under the pretext of recent disappearance incidents."

Though Josef couldn't wield a sword, he understood it better than anyone else.

The tip of a sword must be sharp, and it must be flexible enough to reach anywhere.

Using a single incident as a pretext, Josef's influence was constantly dominating and consuming Shoara.

"....Bayezid's two brothers are both very capable."

"I apologize."

As he looked at the bowing adjutant, Mirshea took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it with the candle flame.

Soon, the thick smoke he exhaled began to fill the room.

"They're both capable, but there's only one place for them to rise..."

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Only the sound of Mirshea tapping on the desk echoed in the room.

The winner gets what they want, and the loser loses everything.

Especially in the competition for succession among nobles, this was even more true.

Rutger and Josef were people placed on a battlefield they couldn't avoid from birth.

"I wonder if this can be shaken up a bit."

Even if the north was tightly knit, there were always cracks to slip through.

And to Mirshea, it seemed like he could see those cracks.

Puff-

The map of the north on the desk appeared hazy, enveloped in the smoke emitted by Mirshea's cigarette.

※※※※

"In our time, we ended up giving up on people. It wasn't intentional, but..."

Recalling memories from long ago, Larmund crossed his arms and spat out a sigh.

"In the end, we caught the one who was attacking the village. So, in terms of method, it's not much different from using the barbarians as bait, just like the Dragon Slayer Knights."

Decades ago, during the harsh winters, there was once a Lindworm that came down.

At that time, Larmund, who was a young knight, along with the Bayezid knights, barely managed to succeed in subjugating the creature during the chaos when Lindworm was preoccupied with tearing apart the villagers.

Ultimately, there wouldn't be much difference in the approach taken by the current Dragon Slayer Knights, who achieved their goals through the sacrifice of someone.

"... If we can't catch it, eventually we'll have to set traps ourselves."

Rutger began to sink into contemplation, his hands wrapped around his head.

"If we fail to capture the dragon, they might use that as an excuse to establish a foothold here."

Dorothea began to infer the movements of the Dragon Slayer Knights in a quiet tone, as expected from a mage and Rutger's advisor.

As she suggested, predicting how the accumulation of reasons would unfold if the Dragon Slayer Knights were deprived of the opportunity to eliminate the threat was an unpredictable task.

The Dragon Slayer Knights were a group that moved with the pretext of the dragon, after all.

"Setting traps now would take a long time, right?"

"Indeed, if we plan to herd cattle or sheep from nearby cities."

Seeing Rutger pondering, the adjutant cautiously spoke up.

"... Should we capture the barbarians now? Or perhaps there's a way to confiscate the barbarians captured by Dragon Slayer Knights."

"Damn it."

Rutger muttered a curse under his breath at the adjutant's suggestion.

Whichever option they chose, the aftermath wouldn't be easy to handle.

The idea of using the barbarians and northerners as bait would ultimately disrupt the delicate peace that had been subtly maintained between the two sides.

Perhaps Rutger thought this could be the intended outcome by the central authority.

"Let's leave that as a last resort."

However, Rutger had to consider all options.

That was the obligation of someone in charge.

"Blad's words seem hasty, but..."

"Don't even entertain the idea of escape."

In response to the subtly offered suggestion, Larmund shook his head vigorously.

"Everyone in Shoara knows that he's someone who doesn't listen to words."

"Hmm, is that so?"

"It's beyond your imagination."

Rutger had intended to cut down Lindworm with a short-term sword using Vlad's words, which were well-known, but he had no choice but to relent due to Larmund's strong restraint.

"Then there's no way."

Lindworm is too fast to catch.

To catch such a Lindworm, it's not about catching it, but rather about luring it in, and the most suitable way to do that is to use bait.

"Indeed, they have the qualifications to bear the name of Dragon Slayer."

Rutger sighed with a perplexed feeling.

The Dragon Slayer Knights were forcing him into awkward choices just by their existence.

It was as if they were saying, "Do it like this."

"Lord Rutger."

As there seemed to be no viable solution, a knock echoed in the quiet study, accompanied by urgent footsteps.

"What's the matter?"

After receiving permission, the knight swiftly opened the door and began to report to Rutger.

"There are people outside the castle requesting to open the gates."

"...Who are they?"

Rutger frowned, wondering if this was another uninvited guest, but the knight reporting to him had a strangely flushed expression.

※※※※

In the snowy fields of the north, where the sun was quickly setting, there were men knocking on the gates of Bernhem Fortress.

"Reveal your identity!"

Accompanied by the gatekeeper's words, the men raised their flags high, displaying a symbol engraved on them: a gauntlet tightly gripping something made of iron.

"Deliver this message to the commander of Bernhem Fortress."

A man who seemed to be the leader of the group calmly spoke to the gatekeeper in a commanding tone.

Just from his demeanor, one could tell that he was an exceptional individual.

"Tell him that the Knights of the Iron Duke have arrived."

The knights of the Baranov family of the Iron Duke.

They came to Rutger, who was worried because he had no cards in his hand. 

And Bolcorp's spears glimmering in the twilight.