Chapter 43: You’re going to take responsibility for what you did to me back there, right?

“And that’s how I formed the alliance.”

“You’re a damn diplomatic time bomb!”

When I explained how I got the Yaiban army to agree to send reinforcements,

Jikei-aniki held his head and shouted in disbelief.

“But still, well done. You pulled it off.”

“I’m glad I could be of service.”

“Yeah. I owe you one.”

Jikei actually praised me—something that rarely happened.

But the stern look on his face didn’t go away.

“…So, how’s the situation on the battlefield?”

“Not good. We’re being pushed harder than expected.”

His answer made me uneasy. Turns out, the front lines were struggling against the earth golem tactics.

They hadn’t even been able to fight back properly until Levi showed up.

“Even with that girl’s help, it’s uncertain whether we can turn this around.”

“It’s that bad?”

“Deken’s navy has reportedly arrived at the port town of Anat.”

Jikei-aniki’s voice trembled slightly as he explained.

When I heard Deken’s navy had shown up at the port town of Anat, my face turned pale.

“No way… the port where Sister Lululu is?!”

“Yes. If we don’t send reinforcements immediately, our supply lines will be cut off.”

“Th-then, wh-what should we do?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll go myself.”

Anat was a vital logistics hub. If we lost it, the entire Saripa army would starve to death.

Even if Jikei-aniki was a genius, could he really protect the port without a navy?

“Rishali, sorry, but I need you to return to the capital and rally troops.”

“…So I just need to gather soldiers?”

“Use your influence and draw reinforcements. Please.”

The situation for the Saripa army was far more dire than I thought.

Even with reinforcements from Yaiban, it was like pouring water on a burning stone.

“We’re severely short on troops… combat strength, resources—everything is lacking—”

Saripa was on the brink of destruction.

The only place where Saripa’s forces had won was at Byuredesto.

Lured into Deken’s earth golem tactics, our main force had suffered crushing defeats.

Even though we’d formed an alliance with Yaiban, our hopes were barely hanging by a thread.

“…Lord Jikei, a report. The earth golems have vanished, and General Agaron of Deken has begun advancing.”

“So, he’s finally coming.”

While I was speaking with my brother, a Saripa soldier came to report.

It seemed the main force of Deken—the great nation—had finally begun to move.

“The Deken army outnumbers us thirty to one. And leading that force is one of the Seven Heroes of Deken—‘Agaron,’ the man who slew a dragon.”

“…Right.”

“If we lose here, we won’t be able to send reinforcements to the port. Takeru can beat him, right?”

“Yes, he can. Don’t worry, Aniki.”

The difference in strength was about thirtyfold. If we fought head-on, we’d be crushed.

Our only hope rested on the two ‘monsters’—Takeru and Levi.

“The guy’s a ‘dragon slayer.’ I doubt there’s much difference in power, is there?”

“No. If it’s Takeru, he’ll definitely—”

Deken’s hero, Agaron the Dragon Slayer.

I didn’t know how strong he truly was.

“But Takeru’s going to blow him away in one hit!”

Still, I couldn’t even imagine Takeru losing.

---

“Pathetic.”

The light-blue girl blew a mist toward the forest where the earth golems emerged, sounding thoroughly bored.

The trees, the forest, the soil—all shimmered with rainbow light as they were touched by dew.

“I’ll take care of the earth golem problem, so Takeru, you can rest.”

“Ah, th-thanks.”

“No need to thank me.”

The thick mist spewing from Levi melted the earth golems into sludge.

Since the moment she’d arrived at the front, most of the golems had already been wiped out.

“More importantly, can you even protect that princess like this?”

“L-Levi?”

“I’m really angry, you know.”

The light-blue girl narrowed her eyes with a sharp glint.

Countless blades of water slashed through the trees—one lightly grazing Takeru’s cheek.

“You blew me away back there. Don’t you dare struggle with these things. I’ll kill you.”

“W-wait, I—”

“You’re going to show me, aren’t you? Show me your strength.”

Levi was visibly annoyed.

Seeing Takeru all beat up and covered in mud from fighting golems had made her furious.

“You’re going to take responsibility for injuring me so badly, right?”

“Y-yes!!”

She had expected Takeru to be doing far better than this.

To Levi, Takeru was a monster who had surpassed even her monstrous self.

For someone like Levi, who had lived her whole life in solitude, Takeru’s inhuman strength had been a beacon of joy.

Fighting side-by-side with him, trampling over the Deken army together—just imagining it filled her with excitement.

That fantasy was why she volunteered to reinforce Saripa.

But what she saw upon arriving was Takeru, out of breath and caked in mud, barely holding his ground.

“────If you lose, I will kill you.”

“Eek!?”

The earth golems were weak. Just a breath of mist had melted them away.

She simply couldn’t understand why Takeru had struggled with enemies this pathetic.

That was what soured her mood completely.

“This is bad! The enemy…! Deken’s main force has begun advancing!”

“What?!”

Just as the argument was heating up, a Saripa soldier rushed over, shouting a report.

Apparently the golem units had vanished, and now the Deken army was starting its main assault.

“Can you see the enemy’s banner!?”

“Yes! It’s the Deken Empire’s own one of the Seven Heroes—General Agaron the ‘Dragon Slayer’!”

“The Dragon Slayer?!”

The Deken Empire was powerful—both in military might and in talent. It overwhelmed Saripa in every aspect.

Agaron, a hero who defeated a dragon—albeit with the help of four others—and emerged unscathed.

And now, that very man was charging in, leading a massive army.

“Paulie, stay close to me!”

“Got it! …All units, brace for impact! Block formation!!”

Takeru and Paulie, who knew firsthand how terrifying a dragon could be, wasted no time.

They ordered all Saripa soldiers to drop and brace for the worst, readying for any shockwave that might come.

“Levi! Get ready too!!”

“Me? …Yeah, yeah, fine.”

Responding to Takeru’s yell, Levi donned her water armor.

Though she obeyed, her attitude was half-hearted. She looked like she couldn’t care less.

“Where’s Agaron…!?”

“He’s at the front of the enemy ranks! All five of the Dragon Slayer squad—Faiz Dragon Killer—are charging straight at us!”

“That’s them!”

At the head of the Deken army, roaring out loud, stood the hero of Deken—Agaron the Dragon Slayer.

Those who fought beside him, the Four Heavenly Kings, along with Agaron, were honored with the name Faiz Dragon Killer—the five Dragon Slayers.

“A knight clad in full dragon-scale armor is charging in solo!!”

“What insane magic power is that!?”

And before Paulie’s exclamation even finished—

“Gwahahahahahaha!!”

A tremendous roar and a rumbling quake shook the forest.

A knight nearly two meters tall appeared before Takeru, spinning a massive lance.

“So you finally drove off those earth golems, you Saripa dogs!!”

His booming voice cut through the rallying cries of the soldiers, bold and commanding.

The sheer force of his voice made both Takeru and Paulie flinch instinctively.

“This is war! Battle! Advance! We’ll crush Saripa—follow meee!!”

Around the knight clad in dragon armor, four warriors knelt respectfully.

Behind them, a teeming mass of Deken soldiers writhed all the way to the horizon.

“I’m Agaron, the ‘Dragon Slayer’!”

Among them, Takeru spotted the one who radiated overwhelming magical energy—Agaron himself.

A knight clad in armor forged from dragon scales, wielding a massive obsidian-tipped lance.

He looked to be in his thirties—a tall, broad-shouldered, big-brother type of man.

“Is there no warrior bold enough to raise their weapon against me!?”

Faced with this towering presence, the Saripa soldiers froze in fear.

They were overwhelmed by his confidence—and the raw force that backed it.

“It’s a shame Paulik and Levigard aren’t here, but surely there’s someone with a little fight in ‘em!?”

Agaron was the kind of warlord who found meaning in battle itself.

In truth, the current state of the war—where they were advancing just with earth golem tactics—left him dissatisfied.

Deep down, he’d been grumbling the whole time, thinking, Hurry up and send out that water mage already, Saripa.

“Take me down, and you’ll earn yourself quite the glory! Come on—anyone with guts, step up!!”

He’d been stuck in a long, frustrating holding pattern, so when he heard that Saripa had neutralized the golems, he charged in with glee.

“Go on, Takeru.”

“Levi?”

“It’s your turn, isn’t it?”

Gazing quietly at the fierce and fearless enemy commander Agaron,

The light-blue girl gently urged Takeru forward.

“You’re going to show me what you’ve got, right?”

“…Yeah.”

“Then I’ll pretend I didn’t see that pathetic display earlier.”

Levi gave Takeru a terrifying smile.

Takeru could only answer it with a strained, wry one of his own.

“Be sure to announce yourself. Sneak attacks only hurt ally morale.”

“Got it. Thanks.”

“You can win fair and square, can’t you?”

“Of course.”

Following Levi's advice, Takeru stepped forward.

He strode boldly toward Agaron, the hero of Deken.

Raising a fist to the sky, he shouted at the top of his lungs:

"I'm Takeru! A warrior of Saripa—the one who slew the dragon!"

"Oh? You're a dragon slayer too, boy!"

Seeing Takeru come out alone, Agaron narrowed his eyes with delight.

He seemed genuinely eager for a blood-pumping, flesh-clashing duel.

"Face me in fair combat, Agaron!"

"Not bad! So Saripa's got some spirited ones too, huh?"

—And thus, on the battlefield, two dragon slayers stood face to face.

If Takeru couldn’t stop Agaron here, the fall of Saripa would be inevitable.

The outcome of this duel would decide whether they could send reinforcements to the harbor.

"Faiz Dragon Killers, the five dragon slayers—stay out of this. This is a one-on-one fight!"

"Understood, General Agaron."

"Now, Takeru! Show me what you've got!"

Agaron, known as the “Dragon Slayer,” spread his arms wide before Takeru with fearless bravado.

As if to say, Come at me. I'll lend you my chest.

"I won’t lose."

"Hm?"

"I can’t afford to hold back. If I go easy on you and someone gets hurt, I’d never forgive myself."

On the other hand, Takeru had steeled his resolve in silence. There was no arrogance, no carelessness in his stance.

He already understood—there were opponents out there he couldn’t bring down, even when he fought with everything he had.

"That’s why I’ll kill you. No mercy, no restraint. I’ll strike with all my strength—for the people who matter to me."

He knew full well that holding back could lead to allies getting hurt.

With everything he had, he prepared to decide this fight with a single blow.

"General Agaron, the Dragon Slayer—please take the full force of my resolve."

"By all means. Unleash it."

And so, with all of Saripa’s hopes resting on his shoulders—

Takeru stood directly in front of the laughing Agaron.

"But it’s a shame, Takeru."

"...What?"

—At that moment, Saripa had no extra forces to spare.

To send reinforcements to the harbor town of Anat, they’d have to mobilize the main army.

And that main force couldn’t afford to be worn down.

"You went and killed a dragon, and they didn’t even give you dragon armor?"

"......"

"Ah—I get it. Saripa doesn’t have the technology to craft dragon armor, does it?"

They had to drive back an enemy with thirty times their numbers while still conserving their strength.

Which meant Takeru had to demonstrate overwhelming might—and crush the Deken army’s morale.

"Dragon armor has the same level of defense as a dragon’s own scales."

"...!"

"Come at me as if I were a dragon."

Takeru focused to the utmost, facing off against a fellow "Dragon Slayer."

Calm and silent, he took a composed stance, fists raised without a single stray thought in his mind.

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"GYAAAHHHH!!"

But at that moment—

No one present on the battlefield had realized it yet.

"Wh-Wh-What the hell is this!?"

"That’s, um... most likely—"

—A massive incident was unfolding at the same time in the port town of Anat.

All stemming from a single, critical mistake made by Saripa.

"Y-Y-Y-YOU IDIOT!! You absolute moron, Rishali!!"

At that very moment, in the port town of Anat—

Lululu was clutching her head and screaming in despair.