Searching for the Black Dragon (1)

The next morning, I woke up earlier than usual.

Of course, I was so excited to explore the Starfall Forest under the pretext of searching for the Black Dragon that I woke up all on my own.

As with the last subjugation, I was a rookie knight and not considered a fighting asset. But since Commander Quentin of the Fourth Monster Knight Order had specifically requested me, I doubted anyone would object to my joining.

Training within the knight order and taking care of monsters are important, too, but knights belong out in the field!

Since the search had been decided on at the last minute, there hadn’t been time to ask the church to send a Saint, so they’d have someone come from inside the royal castle instead.

The Monster Knight Order was sending fifteen knights, each with one of their fifteen familiars. I could hardly wait to see familiars fight for the first time.

In my previous life, monsters were nothing but enemies to defeat. I honestly admired the idea of making them allies and fighting alongside them.

Once I’d finished getting ready, it was time to get Zabiria ready.

After all, Zabiria was the star of the show today, so I had to make him look even more stylish than usual.

“...Hey, Fia. I don’t mind the ribbon around my neck, but what do you think about putting flowers on my head? What exactly are you trying to turn me into?”

“A number-one cute-and-strong familiar, of course! The Monster Knight Order has picked the best fifteen familiars to bring along today, so we can’t let anyone take us lightly!”

“If that’s what you want, I can scatter fifteen or so monsters in an instant, you know?”

“Ah—no, that won’t do. Then you’d just be a strong monster. You have to show off your cute side, too.”

“...I see. There are a lot of things to consider.”

Then I put a bright red ribbon around Zabiria’s neck, set a yellow flower crown on his head, and placed him on my shoulder before leaving my room.

Even though I arrived at the meeting place well ahead of the scheduled time, several knights were already gathered there.

I spotted some familiar faces from the Sixth Knight Order and called out to them.

“Good morning! I look forward to working with you today!”

“Fia! Ha ha, it’s reassuring to have you with us. We look forward to working with you, too.”

As I chatted with the knights I’d known for a while, almost everyone had gathered before I knew it.

Knights were big in every way, but Commander Zachary of the Sixth Knight Order and Commander Quentin of the Fourth Monster Knight Order were especially huge, radiating an overwhelming presence.

Hmm, they say to hide a tree in a forest, but that wouldn’t work here. These enormous trees would stand out in any forest.

I realized that hiding among your own kind only works if you’re closer to average. When you stand out this much, the difference is even more obvious.

I was glad to be just a little tree, and breathed a sigh of relief. Then Commander Quentin pushed through the gathered knights and came straight over to me.

“Good morning, Fia-sama, familiar-sama. I’m sorry to trouble you so early in the morning.”

“Good morning, Commander Quentin. How did you know where I was from so far away? Surrounded by all these tall knights, I shouldn’t be visible or noticeable from a distance.”

When I asked out of curiosity, Commander Quentin burst into laughter, as if he’d just heard a strange joke.

“Ha ha ha, that’s a funny joke! Your presence is so overwhelming that I can recognize you from any distance. If you don’t mind, could we have a brief strategy discussion later?”

After making sure I’d nodded, Commander Quentin returned to Commander Zachary.

As soon as Commander Quentin left, the knights around me asked in surprise,

“Fia, you know Commander Quentin, too?! I mean, isn’t he only interested in monsters? I’ve never seen him talk to a knight from another order before!”

“More importantly, didn’t he call you Fia-sama?! What on earth...?”

“Fia’s Commander Quentin’s queen!”

Commander Zachary butted into the conversation in the most unpleasant way.

What is with these Knight Commanders’ powers of expression?!

“I-I see. His queen, huh...”

“Commander Quentin’s huge, strong, and overwhelming. I guess he likes someone who’s the complete opposite of you...”

I was annoyed that the knights accepted Commander Zachary’s nonsensical remark without question.

Still grumbling about the injustices of the rigid hierarchy, I followed Commander Zachary, who led me to Commander Quentin. Deputy Commander Gidion of the Fourth Monster Knight Order was standing nearby, too.

“Why, Fia-sama! If you’d called for me, I would have come to you myself. You shouldn’t have had to trouble yourself by coming here!”

...Now that I heard him again, Commander Quentin’s way of speaking was strange.

Already annoyed by the injustices of the rigid hierarchy, I’d begun to resent Commander Quentin, who was near its top. Now, his way of speaking—which normally wouldn’t have bothered me—was starting to get on my nerves.

To begin with...

I’d let it slide because it would be presumptuous for an ordinary knight like me to comment on the conduct of a Knight Commander, someone so far above me. But isn’t Commander Quentin’s behavior the root cause of all this?

I’d assumed he spoke politely to everyone, like Commander Cyril of the First Knight Order, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

...Oh, right. When I first met Commander Quentin, Commander Cyril said something to him about a new game, didn’t he?

Is this one of Commander Quentin’s games?

...Honestly, Commander Quentin and I have such different sensibilities that I can hardly understand him.

I sighed softly, but Commander Zachary’s loud voice drowned it out.

“Quentin, are you still talking weirdly to Fia—and only to Fia? I could understand Cyril doing it, but it’s downright creepy when you talk that way to anyone but the Commander-in-Chief. It gives me the chills, like something bad is about to happen!”

“Hmph! You’re insensitive too, Zachary! Why can’t anyone see how magnificent Fia-sama is?!”

“A-ah... You’re right. I guess I am insensitive. I can’t see anything magnificent about Fia.”

As he agreed with Commander Quentin, Commander Zachary beckoned to Deputy Commander Gidion.

Then he asked him in a low voice,

“Hey, Gidion. Is Quentin serious? Should I shake him hard enough to wake him up, or is it better to pretend I haven’t noticed and leave him alone?”

“I don’t think shaking him would wake him up. I’ve never seen a commander like this before either, so I have no idea how to handle him.”

Even Deputy Commander Gidion replied in a polite tone.

Commander Zachary shook his head and spoke in a resigned voice.

“...All right, leave him alone! You lot, sit down for now! It’s time for a strategy meeting.”

Pointing to a simple table and chairs set up in one corner of the meeting place, Commander Zachary sat down in one of them.

The strategy meeting began with Commander Zachary, Commander Quentin, Deputy Commander Gidion, and me in attendance.

Commander Zachary got things started.

“We’ve prepared supplies for about a week in the field. The thirty-five knights selected from the Sixth are all elites. Even if we run into the Black King, they should be able to handle themselves, so don’t worry.”

“I see. I selected the knights based on their familiars. Ten of the familiars have wings, and five don’t. I decided it would be better to have more winged familiars to lead the Black King back to its lair.”

“Makes sense. By your estimate, what are the odds we’ll run into the Black King? Ten percent? ...No, probably less than that. Finding a single monster in that enormous forest is like looking for a needle in a haystack. The Black King may have already left the forest, for all we know.”

Commander Zachary stroked his chin as he asked Commander Quentin.

“One hundred percent.”

“...Huh?”

“There’s a one hundred percent chance we’ll encounter the Black King.”

Commander Quentin stated it with complete confidence.

“Come on, I know how badly you want to meet the Black King you’ve been pining for! But, well, don’t get your hopes up too much. If your dream doesn’t come true, don’t get depressed!”

Commander Zachary gave Commander Quentin a hearty slap on the shoulder, then continued.

“All right, if we do encounter the Black King, we’ll face it from a distance where it can’t attack us. In this case, we shouldn’t surround it, so it won’t think we’re hostile. Once we’re all in position, you’ll convince the Black King to return to its lair. A monster as powerful as the Black King can obviously understand human speech, right? If it understands your sincerity, then one of our familiars will carry a stone from its lair—or a fragment of the Black King’s remains—and fly off toward sacred Mount Kurodake. Does that sound like a workable plan? Well, things probably won’t go exactly like this, so we’ll adjust as we go...”

“I have no objections.”

Commander Quentin replied briefly, then looked at Commander Zachary.

“We should avoid contact with any monsters other than the Black King as much as possible. The Black King’s sudden appearance must have disrupted the territories of the monsters living there, changing their ranges. Monsters from the Abyss that we don’t normally see might appear. Things should return to normal once the Black King leaves, so avoiding unnecessary conflict is the best course.”

“Right. I’ll tell the scouts.”

As he spoke, Commander Zachary stood up and ruffled my hair.

“That said, we won’t be able to avoid all encounters with monsters, so let’s get in a few fights and fine-tune how the Fourth and Sixth knights handle themselves. ...Fia, you did well in the last subjugation, but stay out of trouble today. We might run into some powerful monsters you wouldn’t normally get to see.”

...He’s right. My swordsmanship isn’t anything special.

Yes, I’ll stay out of trouble.

I nodded obediently, but Zabiria on my shoulder gave a small sigh.

...Well, what am I supposed to make of that attitude? You don’t believe me at all from the start, do you?