Chapter 5
A few days after the bandit attack, we arrived in the capital, ‘Gaia.’
“Wow. If you hadn’t been there, Lady El, we’d all have died back there! I’ve added a generous bonus to your payment, so I hope we can work together again!”
“Of course, Caravan Master.”
The caravan master’s ‘generous’ bonus really was generous. I never expected him to pay me three times the agreed-upon reward.
Then again, they’d all have died if I hadn’t been there, so I suppose it was only fair.
“Welcome! How may I help you?”
“I’d like to know the date of the entrance ceremony at Gaia Academy.”
The reason I’d come all the way to the capital. I was here to enroll in the academy!
I was going to enroll in the academy anyway, so this was killing two birds with one stone.
I’d escaped the threat of marriage and could get into the academy I’d always wanted to attend!
“You mean the academy’s entrance ceremony? It’s next week. Exactly seven days from now!”
A week. Not too long, not too short.
“Then, is there a major commission I could take in the meantime?”
“A commission? If you’re planning to enroll in the academy, you’d be better off getting some rest… Ah!”
When I showed my Adventurer Card to the pretty blonde receptionist, she let out an exclamation. She’d been worried about me.
A B-rank Adventurer Card. Since it had only just been issued, she must have realized I’d started at B-rank.
How could she tell it had just been issued? The issue date was written on the Adventurer Card.
Besides, Adventurer Cards had surprisingly powerful magic woven into them, making it impossible to pass off someone else’s card as your own or forge one.
“As a B-rank adventurer, you can build up a record through commissions!”
Exactly. That was why I was taking commissions instead of resting.
The academy was fundamentally a meritocracy. A good record from commissions like these would improve my chances of getting in. Kind of like special commendations on your academic record?
Of course, the commission had to be at least high C-rank, and I needed proof that I’d made a significant contribution to completing it.
Well, it wasn’t as if I’d fail to get in. This was just insurance in case something went wrong.
“In that case, we happen to have a good commission. It’s an A-rank request to exterminate a wandering yong, and I heard they’re recruiting B-rank adventurers for the party, too.”
“A wandering yong?”
Dragons. One of the strongest creatures in the world. The same ones you’re thinking of.
Ordinary dragons lived in groups and wouldn’t attack unless you trespassed on their territory. But a wandering yong was exactly what the name suggested: a wanderer that roamed the world and attacked people.
Most of them had become wanderers because they’d been driven out of their villages in the first place, or so I’d heard.
And usually, those wanderers were more manageable than you’d expect. Why? Because they were kind of weak.
Not extremely weak, but they were still growing—young dragons. They were slow to assess situations and improvise, and their raw power was nowhere near that of the ancient dragons.
They’d still be at the low end of S-rank, but an A-rank party could take one down.
If they were recruiting B-ranks, they must be determined to make sure they killed it.
“Sounds good. I’ll take that commission. Could you sign me up right away?”
“Of course! Just so you know, the gathering time is one hour from now!”
“One hour?”
Somehow, this feels familiar.
“Anyway, thank you. I’ll be off.”
“Of course! Take care out there!”
…
When I arrived at the meeting place, a lot of adventurers had gathered.
An A-rank party of ten, four B-ranks, and a few porters.
So there were fifteen combatants including me. Looking closer, all the B-ranks except me were ranged support types, like mages and archers.
Maybe they’d left out melee fighters because they thought they wouldn’t be useful? Even a wandering yong was still a dragon. If you approached carelessly, it could send you flying like a scrap of paper.
“Are you the last one? Glad you made it.”
“Yes.”
Just then, a man who looked like the leader of the A-rank party approached me.
“I’m Ken, leader of this ‘Dragon Hunters’ party. Just like our name says, we mainly hunt wandering yong.”
“I’m El. I haven’t been an adventurer for long, but I’m confident in my skills.”
“I thought so. It’s rare for a swordsman to start at B-rank, so I assumed you were around the level of an A-rank adventurer. Now that I’ve met you, I guess my instincts weren’t wrong.”
Ah, so that was why I’d been picked despite being a B-rank swordsman.
Well, someone as skilled as Ken could probably get a decent read on my abilities.
I doubt he’d guessed I was a Swordmaster, though.
“Since everyone’s here, let’s set out right away.”
“Understood.”
A dragon… It felt like such a classic fantasy thing. I’d always wanted to see one at least once.
Besides, hunting a wandering yong would probably help me build up a good record.
Following Ken, the entire party set out for the place where the wandering yong was.
But they didn’t have much in the way of supplies, did they?
“Um… Is the wandering yong nearby?”
“Yeah. It’s a day’s walk from here.”
“A day? By dragon standards, isn’t that less than an hour?”
It was that close, yet instead of the Royal Knights setting out, the commission had gone to adventurers?
“Well, this wandering yong’s a bit unusual. It settled on the plains near the capital and hasn’t moved.”
When I asked in surprise, the Mohawk-haired man beside Ken answered.
A Mohawk… They have post-apocalyptic hairstyles like that here, too?
“I’m Huben! You’re the B-rank who just joined us, right? What’s your name?”
“El. My name’s El.”
“El, huh… You’ll be A-rank in no time, just looking at you.”
“Haha…”
Looking closer, I saw the other members of the Dragon Hunters beside him nodding, too.
Right. They must be pretty high-ranking even among A-ranks.
“El. Your job, of course, is to guard the rear. You don’t need to attack directly.”
“Is that so…”
I answered Ken a little gloomily. I’d wanted to go toe-to-toe with a dragon at least once.
“Haha! Don’t be disappointed! In a way, guarding the rear is even more important than being a front-line attacker or shield-bearer!”
“I know that much. It’s just…”
“I know. You want to try fighting one, right?”
Sure enough, Ken was a veteran. He’d guessed what I wanted right away.
Then, maybe…?
“But that doesn’t mean I can put you on the front line and coordinate with you when I don’t know your strength or fighting style yet. The whole formation could fall apart if something goes wrong.”
He had a point. It’d be hard to coordinate with someone I’d never fought alongside before.
Of course, I could adjust to them, but there was no way they could know that.
“With that in mind, I think guarding the rear is the perfect role for you. I’m counting on you.”
“Phew. Fine. I won’t let a single fragment fly toward the rear.”
“That’s reassuring.”
After chatting as we traveled, a full day passed, and we arrived at the place where the wandering yong had settled.
…
Ken, the leader of the ‘Dragon Hunters’ party, found Flia quite intriguing.
Her strength was impossible to gauge completely, even with his own eyes. She was eager to fight a dragon, even if it was only a wanderer. And she looked like she’d only just turned twenty.
Normally, if someone said they wanted to fight a dragon, you might think they were arrogant and overconfident. But for some reason, Flia didn’t give him that impression.
Her confidence had a strange, bewitching charm to it that didn’t feel arrogant at all. Honestly, he wanted to put her on the front line and watch her fight.
‘Even so, I can’t do that.’
But Ken was the party leader, so he valued reason over his own feelings.
‘I can’t put her on the front line without knowing her exact strength. But…’
Maybe he could arrange for her to face off against the dragon once and see how she did.
A mischievous grin spread across Ken’s face.
…
The first dragon I’d ever seen was… incredibly cool.
At a glance, it looked about fifteen meters in size.
Glossy black scales.
And a cool-looking appearance!
Didn’t that just stir a man’s fantasies?!
-GRAAAAAAAAH!
It would’ve been nice if it hadn’t roared at us, though.
And why wasn’t it roaring ‘Krrrraaaaraaa’ or something?! Wasn’t that how dragons were supposed to sound?!
“A Black Dragon. Just as we were told.”
Black Dragons were the most intelligent and ferocious of all dragon species. What did that mean?
Black Dragons were extremely vicious and aggressive when young—from the time they were hatchlings until they reached a certain level of maturity. But once they grew up and came to their senses(?), they became highly intelligent.
Maybe that was why most wandering yong people came across were Black Dragons.
Ah. As for why they were called dragons despite being wandering ‘yong’…
‘Wandering yong aren’t cool! The yong race isn’t cool, either! So we’ll call them yong, and distinguish their species as dragons!’
That was a pretty uncool reason, actually.
Apparently, it was the dying wish of a legendary adventurer from the past, and people had been calling them that ever since.
“Everyone, prepare for battle. We’re starting the dragon hunt now.”
-Yes!
The adventurers moved to their assigned positions in perfect order.
I went to my assigned spot and drew my sword.
The sword I’d bought from a blacksmith in the capital!
It couldn’t compare to the one I’d received from my family, but it was still considered a famed blade, and it felt good in my hand.
When I channeled mana into it, I could feel it drawing the mana in very smoothly.
At least I didn’t have to worry about it breaking under my strength.
“Begin the battle!”
-GROOOOOAR!
At Ken’s shout, the Black Dragon roared.
It was a roar that heralded the start of battle.