Interlude: The Hero’s Epic Tale Act 2

Interlude:
The Hero’s Epic Tale Act 2

 

Part 1

 

“ITS INSTINCTS were so sharp for a wild animal. It charged right at me.” I shook the blood off my sword and sheathed it. Letting out a sigh, I sat down on a nearby boulder and shot a glance at the garpanther I’d just slain.

It did have the skill Animal Instinct. I really wanted to test out my new cursed sword, Vampire Princess, but it would’ve been overkill on such a low-level monster. No sense in dragging the battle out. Watching animals suffer bored me.

Why was I still waiting for those idiots, anyway? I was beginning to think the rumor of an encroaching Plague Dragon was just that—a rumor. Chances were the men would return to tell me that big, evil, rank-C dragon

was just some giant lizard. In that case, I would no longer have a viable excuse to take poor former Knight Commander Adoff out of jail. When I’d asked the bishop for permission, he kicked me out, saying he wouldn’t release a prisoner just for some idiot merchant’s delusions.

He’d always been a thorn in my side, but recently he’d begun to actively undermine me. Didn’t he realize who he had to thank for the sweet life he enjoyed?

I’d managed to convince him to send a scouting party, and if there was a Plague Dragon, then and only then would he allow me to take the former Knight Commander on a field trip. The bishop had probably only agreed because he knew there was nothing to the rumor after all.

As I stared at the horizon, I saw movement. Finally, the scouting regiment was back.

Five, six…seven of them? Eight had set out. Probably couldn’t fill out the party with experienced soldiers. Some rookie must have gotten his head crunched off by a Giant Sand Centipede. Hang on a second…the commander isn’t here. Hagen’s gone.

I fully expected glowing looks of triumph, but instead I was met with tears and straining horseflesh. There wasn’t anything chasing them, but whatever was out there must have frightened them so badly it didn’t matter. But a Plague Dragon wouldn’t leave seven survivors. There were a few injuries, but nothing serious.

Maybe after they realized there was no Plague Dragon, they simply refused to come back empty-handed and picked a fight with another monster.

I stood up and called out to them. “Hey, what happened? Where’s Hagen?” The scouting regiment rode in close, and the soldier in front dismounted.

“I-Illusia! What are you doing here?!”

“My curiosity got the best of me. I wanted to know if the merchant made a mistake. I thought Hagen would keep you all safe.”

Two men toward the back were practically crying. “Illusia, it’s terrible! There really is a Plague Dragon out there!”

“It ate Hagen!”

“H-his horse threw him and he ran away, but then…”

Huh. There really was a Plague Dragon? Wild. And in the Harunae Desert too. I’d only seen them in books. And it ate Hagen? Well, he always had been impulsive. He claimed to have fought a dragon before, but those subpar skills of his made me doubtful.

“Hmm…how did so many of you get away alive? Pretty generous of the Plague Dragon.” Was it just low level? It was entirely possible that these idiots just didn’t know what they were looking at. The church might not even believe them. This wasn’t enough evidence for the bishop to let Adoff go. I needed Harunae’s gentry far more terrified than one devoured captain could make them.

“It was definitely a Plague Dragon. It defeated Hagen as easy as breathing!”

Well, I’d never found Hagen particularly impressive—I could defeat him in the span of a breath or two myself. A Plague Dragon was more than a match for him. Those who went into battle without the View Status ability were just…tragically amusing. They had no concept of their own powers or the power of the enemy. It was almost sad. To me, this group of soldiers was about as useful as a pile of rocks.

“That wasn’t what I was asking, was it?”

The men stared at me. “Huh?”

“The more believable scenario would be…hmm…the dragon killing seven of you, with only one left to stumble back to me. Trembling and flailing and gasping out your story. That I could believe. But now you’re saying it ate Hagen, but it left the rest of you with only sprains and scratches? Don’t make me laugh.”

“I-I’m sorry, Illusia! We…we didn’t mean to let you down—”

I drew my sword and sliced him across the chest before he could even get the words out. He collapsed silently. Whoops. I’d only wanted to test the cursed sword—I didn’t expect just a scratch to kill him. Pathetic. With soldiers like these, Harunae would be in dire straits if a monster ever made it past those magic circles. What was the point of a standing army if they went down like punks?

I felt the cursed sword pulsing in my hand, absorbing the blood of the fallen soldier. I could regain HP this way if I had to, but I rarely incurred damage. I just wanted to see its status effect.

Gained 76 Experience Points.

Heh. I’d have a better time hunting ants. Besides, killing people made it harder to level up Title Skills.

“I-Illusia?”

“Wh-what just happened?”

“Wh-why did he…?”

Six left. Too many to let them scamper away unscathed.

“Like I said, not enough casualties. I’ve explained it several times now.”

I swung my sword with a grin. The color drained from six faces. They screamed, all of them racing off toward the city.

“I-It’s a monster!” one of them called as they ran.

Well, that’s not very nice. I’m the monster slayer. But I understand the confusion. It happens a lot. Once I finished off these fools, I would return to the bishop and secure Adoff’s release. Then I’d humiliate him. Being falsely imprisoned for murdering his fiancée wasn’t remotely good enough.

“Quick.” I intoned the magic spell and swung my cursed sword. “Should I give you a thirty-second head start?” I said. No response, of course. And when I’d offered to go easy on them. Idiots. No reason to wait, I supposed. I didn’t need them anymore.

Part 2

 

“TRAGICALLY, the entirety of the scouting regiment was defeated in battle. I knew it was my duty to return home to report as soon as I could. Doubtless their bodies have already been savaged by wild animals. Once I have assured the city’s safety, I will of course personally apologize to each of their families and return what remains I can find.” It was just a simple gesture, but I hated bowing my head, especially to this prick of a bishop. All he did was mooch off my hard work. He should be the one groveling to me.

But as they said, “Where might is master, justice is servant.” I just needed to be patient. Dealing with him the way I wanted wasn’t worth the trouble of finding myself on the church’s bad side. Still, when the bishop’s usefulness dried up, I’d just kill him.

“It’s been so long since you were last home, Illusia,” said the bishop. “I thought I told you to take this time to rest.”

“Despite claims that the rumors of a dragon are false, I couldn’t relax until I knew the truth. When I risk myself, I risk the world, but I had to know. And now I do. So there are no problems, are there?”

“Did you…do this?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” He had warned me not to get involved, and I’d noticed some strange men following me—no doubt put up to it by the bishop himself. Still, he would never dare to act against me directly, and I didn’t respond well to empty threats. It would take more than this to stop me.

“I am going to slay the Plague Dragon tomorrow. You will allow Former Knight Commander Adoff to be released temporarily into my care to accompany me. As promised.”

“I’ve told you, I can’t do that. Surely there is someone equally capable you could take with you. Why are you so insistent that it be him?!”

“Because he’s the only person who has ever held me to account for my atrocious behavior. What sort of hero would I be if I didn’t repay him in kind? Once he proves himself by slaying the dragon, I will reopen the investigation into the murder of his fiancée.”

“This is no time to be airing personal grievances!”

“There’s no one else suitable for the job. This Plague Dragon mowed down eight soldiers of the scouting regiment like they were toys. More cannon fodder will do nothing. I can hear the Divine Voice, and it’s telling me Sir Adoff is the only choice.”

A lie. Plenty of people had Adoff’s rank. But the bishop couldn’t see stats or hear the Divine Voice.

“U-ugh…”

“I’ll be fine whatever happens, but anyone along for the ride must be prepared to fight to the death. Would you rather put brave soldiers at risk, when we could just send a prisoner?”

“But…but…!”

“Denying my request makes no sense. In fact, it makes me wonder whether you seized an opportunity to rid yourself of an irritant. Sir Adoff has raised concerns over the church’s methods, hasn’t he? If I bring this to the public, the people will always side with me, you know that.”

“Are you threatening me, Illusia?”

“No, not at all. But this is very important to me. I must be allowed to do it. And I guarantee it won’t bring you any trouble.”

“Could you just take on the Plague Dragon by yourself?”

“I still have quite a bit of training left; I’m in the middle of my quest, after all. Best case scenario, we’re evenly matched. Dragons are clever creatures. It very well could make it past the magic circle. It’s best that we take care of it right away.”

“Impudent brat…” the bishop muttered, gritting his teeth.

“Is something the matter, Your Excellency?”

“Fine,” he snapped. “I grant you special permission to take Adoff into protective custody. Under no circumstances allow him to escape you. Get rid of him yourself, if you must.”

“Bishop, it almost sounds like you want me to kill him.”

“…”

“Only joking, Your Excellency. Thank you for your assistance.” I bowed politely and left the room.

I’d have Adoff out of jail by tomorrow. Everything was going according to plan. A rather more convoluted means of revenge than I would have liked, but I intended to enjoy every second of it. I couldn’t wait to watch his reaction.

The Plague Dragon shouldn’t give us much trouble, no more than a Giant Sand Centipede. It couldn’t be higher than rank C if it let all those pathetic soldiers get away. I wouldn’t even need my holy blade; I’d use this chance for more practice with the cursed sword.

A Plague Dragon meant a fat payday without a doubt. Though that idiot bishop would create some excuse to take the money from me. Fine. I got him to give me Adoff, and it wasn’t like I was hard up for cash. I could just let him have it, butter him up for future use. Couldn’t let the man get too greedy, though.

Dragons were useful from the tops of their heads to the tips of their tails. They were huge, and with a large, high-rank dragon’s body, you could make enough money to float the economy of a small country. Its skin could be made into armor, clothes, and ceremonial robes. Its bones and claws could be turned into magical weapons, or even musical instruments. In good condition, items like that would fetch a high price.

You didn’t get enough dead dragons for there to be traditional ways to cook them, but they were certainly edible. In Harunae, dragon meat was used in curses or as offerings.

If the dragon had high Magic, its eyeballs could be used to see long distances, or even into the future, although mileage varied. Their magic waned quickly; they were impractical in proportion to their value.

Dragon armor and weapons were so rare that I’d love to add them to my collection, barring any weird curses or status effects. Although even those would be interesting. I’d have to ask the Divine Voice. I could always test them on a few people before I used them myself—standing at a safe distance, and laughing the whole time.