Chapter 40: Vivian’s Escort – 7

To hunt a dragon, preparation is essential.

First, you need to know where it lives, what colour it is, and how big it is.

Only then can you prepare the weapons needed for dragon hunting.

Especially bows, javelins, and grappling hooks — these must be in ample supply.

But we weren’t prepared.

After a gruelling ten-day expedition, we were drained of all resources, and exhaustion had set deeply into our bones.

Yet, there was no way out; we couldn’t avoid the fight.

“Raise your bows!”

At my command, the young soldiers, frozen in fear, scrambled to retrieve bows and the remaining javelins from the cart.

I, too, received a bow and a grappling hook from them, fastening them to my body.

In the distance, Vergor hurriedly rode toward us, calling out.

“Lady Vivian! Over here!”

Behind him rode the patrol unit, Vergor’s Knights.

I urgently handed Vivian her horse’s reins and shouted,

“Go that way.”

“But…”

“Hurry!”

I tried to send her off to Vergor, but then… a tremendous roar from the dragon echoed, and someone yelled.

“Get down!”

Before we could react, the dragon swooped down, breathing fire between Vergor and us.

In an instant, the patrol unit vanished behind a wall of flame.

It was an attack that split our penal unit in half.

“Argh!”

Screams came from those caught in the blaze, and seeing this, the young soldiers went pale with fear.

Even Vivian’s hands began to tremble.

As fear took over, I could feel their gazes on me.

Not just Vivian, but my own men were looking to me for answers, seeking someone to rely on.

I swallowed and spoke to them.

“Ignore the dragon. It’s not our fight.”

Martin gave me a confused look.

“…Kailo?”

“Our only job is to protect Vivian.”

When I reminded them, one by one, they gathered their composure and nodded.

They seemed to hold back their fear, knowing their mission was clear.

“If you can’t protect her, none of you will be safe either. So, make sure she stays safe, above all.”

Thanks to Vivian’s actions over the past few days, there wasn’t much resistance to my order.

In fact, knowing they were protecting her seemed to solidify their resolve.

Vivian looked surprised by their determination, blinking in disbelief before looking at me directly.

The tension between us over the past few days disappeared, and now, for the first time, we locked eyes without a hint of hostility.

I grabbed her reins and mounted her horse behind her, thinking it would be better if I guided her escape directly.

“K-Kailo?”

Vivian seemed puzzled, but there was no time to explain.

The dragon was glaring at us, its attention entirely fixed on her.

I spoke to the young soldiers of the punishment unit.

“Scatter! Spread out as much as you can and shoot from different directions! Aim for the eyes! They’re the weak point, as we’ve always been taught!”

The blue dragon circled around and flew toward us again.

It felt as if it was targeting Vivian.

There was no more time to talk.

“Break formation!”

At my shout, the soldiers abandoned the cart and scattered.

I yanked the reins, urging our horse to sprint.

“Yah!”

The horse rapidly picked up speed, carrying us away just as another blast of fire erupted where we had been.

The spoils of our ten-day endeavour burst into flames and turned to ash.

“Ah!”

Vivian gasped, knowing what we’d sacrificed to collect those spoils.

But there was no time to linger on it; even from a distance, we could feel the scorching heat of the flames.

Riding so close to her, with the heat surrounding us, brought back memories from a few months ago.

“It feels like we’re back in the Castle of Rondor.”

I said.

“You can joke at a time like this?”

She replied, exasperated.

I tightened my grip on the reins, increasing the horse’s speed.

I placed a steadying hand under her chin to keep her mouth shut.

“Stay silent. You might bite your tongue.”

This pace was probably new for her, judging by the way she struggled to keep up, repeatedly bouncing in the saddle.

Her legs seemed weak, swaying unsteadily, so I wrapped an arm around her waist to keep her steady.

“…!!!”

Vivian flinched but eventually relaxed into my grip.

I held her even tighter.

It felt a bit hypocritical that I was allowed to do this but wasn’t allowed to warm her when she was cold.

Glancing back, I kept an eye on the dragon.

“What… is this?”

I felt something strange.

The dragon was still targeting Vivian, flying straight toward her.

Even though we’d scattered, it only followed us.

It was impossible to outrun it.

The knights accompanying Vergor, who had escaped the flames, began closing in around us.

Vergor rode up beside us, lifting his visor to check on Vivian.

“Lady Vivian, are you alright?”

Now that we’d slowed, Vivian found her voice.

“Y-yes… thanks to Kailo…”

My eyes never left the dragon.

It was getting closer by the second.

I turned to Vergor and voiced my suspicion.

“That dragon… it’s after Vivian.”

“What?”

“It’s specifically targeting her. Yah!”

With that, I spurred the horse onward again, and the knights did the same.

There was no time to discuss it further; the dragon was too close.

It opened its mouth, and a torrent of flames divided us.

During the brief separation, Vergor hurled a javelin at the dragon’s underbelly, but it bounced off its scales with a dull thud.

I clicked my tongue in frustration.

We’d prioritized escape, but would it even be possible if it kept chasing her?

Could Vivian make it out alive if she was its target?

“Kailo… are you sure… it’s after me?”

“Didn’t I tell you to stay quiet? You’ll bite your tongue.”

Vivian, trembling, gripped my arm around her waist, but instead of despairing, she lifted her head, deep in thought.

We were effectively baiting the dragon.

Leading from the front, it followed us, with Vergor’s knights alongside, firing arrows at its wings.

Despite the hits, it showed no signs of slowing down.

This was crazy.

“Not only do you have trouble with people, but even the dragons of Loctana seem to hate you.”

I yelled.

“Ugh…!”

Vivian twisted slightly, visibly annoyed.

We raced across a plain, reaching a downhill slope that sped up the horse, creating some distance from the dragon.

Yet, it relentlessly pursued, gliding close to the ground until its massive face was nearly level with us.

Seeing an opportunity, I handed Vivian the reins.

“Guide the horse.”

“What?”

Ignoring her confusion, I quickly drew my bow.

I wasn’t an expert, but there was no other choice.

I only had five arrows left.

If just one could hit the dragon’s eye, we might have a chance.

Especially with me in front, facing it directly, our chances were higher.

I knocked an arrow, drew back the string, and aimed carefully.

Thunk!

The arrow whistled through the air, grazing the dragon’s jaw and snapping uselessly.

My heart pounded.

Firing while riding was no simple task.

The dragon’s glaring eyes fixed on me with deadly intent, its fierce gaze paralyzing me with a primal fear.

My hand was shaking; even the knights who hunted these creatures earned admiration for a reason.

Three more arrows flew, each shattering upon impact, none hitting the dragon’s eye.

Only one arrow left.

My hands trembled more with each failed shot.

Sensing my nerves, Vivian looked back at me with concern.

We were back on open plains, speeding away, but the dragon only had eyes for us, ignoring the knights’ attempts to distract it.

“Haa… haa…”

I readied the final arrow, focusing intently on the dragon’s eye.

My hands still shook.

What if I missed this shot?

I didn’t want to find out.

Then, I felt Vivian’s hand rest on my thigh.

In that moment, my erratic heartbeat calmed, my hands stilled, and I saw my target clearly.

Thunk!

The arrow flew through the air, striking the dragon’s eye directly.

It bellowed in agony, mouth wide open, emitting a deafening roar that shook us.

Our horse stumbled in terror, its speed slowing abruptly as the enraged dragon closed the distance.

With a powerful swipe, its enormous, blade-like claws grazed over our heads.

The blind dragon flailed its legs, desperately trying to grab us.

A massive rock was caught in the dragon’s claws and shattered in an instant.

—Boom!

Fragments of stone scattered toward us.

“Ahh!”

I instinctively tried to shield Vivian with my body, but a sharp fragment cut deep into her arm.

“Vivian!!”

“Ugh…!”

Her speech grew sluggish, eventually stopping.

The dragon, having lost one of its eyes, thrashed in agony before soaring back up into the sky.

In that brief but intense moment, we stood still, feeling the cold wind and a fleeting silence.

I grabbed Vivian’s arm and examined her wound.

Blood, the same colour as her hair, slowly trickled down.

This wasn’t a shallow cut that you’d get from a kitchen knife.

It was a long wound, the kind that could only be made by a real blade, marring her once porcelain-like skin.

Seeing that blood, I felt my heart, which had briefly calmed, start racing again.

I couldn’t say much and only asked the obvious question.

“…Does it hurt?”

“…K-Kailo…”

I clenched my fists tightly.

I looked up at the dragon.

The knights of Vergor, who had been trailing behind us, had managed to pierce the dragon’s wings with holes, slowing it down.

Vivian must have seen something in my expression.

She grabbed me and asked.

“…Are you… okay?”

I didn’t answer and undid the hook I’d wrapped around my chest.

For some reason, my goal felt clearer than ever.

“Vivian, drive the horse again.”

I spoke to Vivian, keeping my gaze locked on the dragon, as if my reason was slipping.

Vivian, too, looked at the dragon and obediently gripped the reins.

Vergor, who had come close to us, shouted.

“Kailo, well done!! You hit its eye with an arrow. If we keep up the pressure a bit more, the dragon will surely retreat—”

“No.”

I told Vergor.

“It’s not.”

It won’t get away.

I’d already resolved to slay the dragon one day to stand against Baelor.

There was no reason to postpone it.

Now that an arrow was lodged in its eye, this was the time to finish it.

The dragon charged straight toward us.

We also charged straight toward the dragon.

On the galloping horse, I swung my hook with the rope attached and said.

“Vivian, you just need to dodge one last time. Got it?”

“Y-Yes.”

Vergor, looking at me, shouted.

“Kailo…! You can’t hold down the dragon with just one hook! We’re not even prepared for this!”

“I don’t care! Just keep shooting your arrows!”

Vergor didn’t have time to worry about me and shot his arrows at the charging dragon.

His knights did the same.

Dozens of arrows flew toward its remaining eye.

The dragon, irritated by the arrows flying at its face, kept shaking its head side to side.

At the same time, its mouth opened.

“Now!”

Vivian made the horse dodge to the side one last time.

—Whoosh!

At the same time, I threw my hook into the dragon’s mouth.

—Clang!

Hearing something catch, I gripped the rope tightly.

At that moment, I felt my body soar into the sky.

The ground quickly grew distant.

Far below, Vivian called out my name.

The sound of the wind filled my ears.

The hook was caught in the dragon’s mouth, and I, holding onto it, was flying through the air.

“Ugh…!”

But I didn’t have time to worry about that.

Hanging onto the dragon, I started pulling myself up the rope.

The hook could come loose at any moment.

I had to stay focused.

Using all my strength, I climbed the rope, hand over hand.

It was my first time soaring so high that the ground looked like a tiny speck.

It felt as if I could see the entire realm of Loctana from up here.

In one corner of my vision, I felt like I could even see the distant castle of Rondor.

“Hah… hah…”

The closer I got to the top of the rope, the louder the dragon’s roar became, and blood splattered onto my face from its injured eye.

The dragon, with one eye closed, seemed unaware that I was climbing up its side.

There could not have been a better opportunity.

Below me, hundreds of punishment unit troops looked on in amazement, shouting my name.

“Kailo!!”

“Hey!! What are you doing?!”

“Stop shooting arrows!! Kailo is up there!!”

—Clang!

Reaching the edge of the dragon’s mouth, I looked at its face.

Seeing the fierce creature breathing heavily made me gulp.

I grabbed the arrow embedded in its eye and pulled myself up.

The dragon, finally aware that something was attached to it, thrashed violently.

But it was too late.

I had already wrapped my thigh around its neck and unsheathed my two-handed sword.

As the situation settled in, I felt a strange sense of relief.

Taking a deep breath, I muttered.

“Got you, you bastard.”

I gripped the sword’s hilt with both hands, aiming the blade at the dragon’s neck.

“Take this!”

With all my strength, I drove the sword down as if to execute the dragon.

Thud!

The blade met tough resistance but cut into the dragon’s neck.

Instead of roaring, the dragon now only gurgled out blood, and it began to descend, struggling as it did.

The overwhelming speed left me dazed.

If we hit the ground like this, I wouldn’t survive either.

Plains, forests, and lakes spread out beneath me.

From up here, everything was in full view.

I quickly calculated and, gripping the sword lodged in the dragon’s neck, adjusted its direction.

Turning the blade toward the lake, I maneuverer the dragon in that direction.

The ground grew closer with each passing second.

Taking a deep breath, I braced myself for the impact.

—Crash!!