Chapter 165: The Great Blunder
Without stopping by the Guild in Tanza, I headed straight for my house in the Royal Capital.
When I returned home, Marks rushed over and asked, “Has the compulsory summons been lifted? Do you know where Lucian is?”
“Lucian should be in Deelgo Village, west of Tanza,” I said.
“Isn’t that the village rumored to have Dragons?”
“Papa-san, there’s no need to worry so much. Deelgo Village is the headquarters for the subjugation base, and the defense line is further west. The Dragon subjugation site is a four-day journey west from there, so they won’t be easily attacked by Dragons.”
After downing a glass of ale, I wrote a letter addressed to Prime Minister Brighton.
I wrote about heading to the remote western area from Deelgo Village with a part of the Magic Squad for Dragon Subjugation.
About how, from the established base, we patrolled the northern area clockwise for 11 days, returned to base, then patrolled the southern area clockwise for 10 days, subjugating numerous Dragons.
I also noted that the selected Magicians admirably fulfilled their roles and are first-rate Magicians.
However, I noted that since the Royal Family’s Magician training focuses on combat for war, if they are to be sent on Dragon Subjugations in the future, their training methods need to be changed so they become accustomed to Beast subjugation.
Finally, I recorded the results of the subjugation expedition.
I noted the base as being four days west of Deelgo Village, west of Tanza.
Northern Area:
Long Dragon: 2.
Terrano Dragon: 4.
Armored Dragon: 3.
Whip Dragon: 8.
Green Snake: 1.
Crimson Snake: 2.
Southern Area:
Terrano Dragon: 2.
Armored Dragon: 3.
Whip Dragon: 2.
Turtle Dragon: 1.
Green Snake: 1.
Total: Dragon-type, 25; Snake-type, 4.
As a postscript, I detailed the Dragons subjugated during a deep Search mission requested by the Tanza Adventurers Guild.
Tanza Adventurers Guild Request Portion:
Long Dragon: 1.
Terrano Dragon: 1.
Armored Dragon: 1.
Whip Dragon: 4.
Crimson Snake: 1.
Scorpion: 1.
I concluded by stating that once the Tanza Adventurers Guild’s portion was dealt with, I would hand over the Royal Family’s requested portion.
It was good that I had also taken back the three Whip Dragons Fran had in her Magic Bag.
If I had kept those separate, it would have created more trouble.
I entrusted the letter to the steward, Murado, and had him deliver it to Milene-sama.
Earl Moran, upon receiving Murado’s visit, confirmed the addressee and sender on the letter, immediately ordered a carriage, and headed to the Royal Castle.
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Prime Minister Brighton, hearing that Earl Moran had brought a letter from Shinya and was requesting a meeting, immediately invited him into his office.
“A letter from him is quite rare, isn’t it? He should be out on a Dragon Subjugation,” he said.
As he said this, he received the letter from his aide and opened it.
Earl Moran, who didn’t know the contents, could see Prime Minister Brighton’s face gradually stiffen as he read, and silently waited for the Prime Minister to speak.
The letter, titled “Dragon Subjugation Report from Deelgo Village, West of Tanza in Florence Territory,” was concise but contained terrifying news.
He seemed to reread it two or three times before finally speaking.
“When did he arrive in the Royal Capital?”
“According to his steward, Murado, it was yesterday.”
“As you may know, the Royal Family’s Magic Squad has also been dispatched to Hyulzass, Tanza, and Klyunza to prepare for Dragons. The Magic Squad sent to Tanza, in particular, is composed of the Royal Family’s elite. We knew he was engaged in a subjugation mission in Tanza due to a compulsory summons from the Adventurers Guild, so we entrusted the Magic Squad to him and requested he undertake the Dragon Subjugation.”
“Then, like before…”
“That’s right. The only ones who can reliably defeat Dragons are likely him, the few Magicians he has trained, and their companions. Accepting the Royal Family’s request, he went on the subjugation with a few selected members from the Magic Squad and his fellow Adventurer party. This is the report of those results.”
Saying so, he handed the letter from Shinya to Earl Moran.
Earl Moran read the letter he received and was astonished by the sheer numbers, but he recalled Fran, who had been with him before.
Lucian and Nina became special-grade Healing Magicians under his guidance, and he had heard that Shinya himself had created a house of Earth Magic to protect Mina and Hanna back then.
He hadn’t thought it strange that a boy who had just become an Adventurer could use such magic, but he was certain Shinya must have taught them.
After asking Earl Moran to relay a message to Shinya, Prime Minister Brighton said he would report to His Majesty, and hastily left the office with the letter.
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“Your Majesty, this is a letter from him. He has subjugated numerous Dragons and has had members of the Magic Squad subjugate a few Dragons as well.”
“I see. It was worthwhile entrusting it to him. So, no Dragons have approached the Tanza area, then?”
“We have not received any such reports since the previous one.”
“However… even with him and the Magicians he trained, this is a tremendous achievement.”
“As per his suggestion, I believe it would be best to change the training methods for the Magicians. We will ask him for the detailed methods, along with the head of the Magic Squad.”
“Mmm, if their offensive magic capabilities improve and the number of Dragon subjugators increases, have it taught to the nobles’ Magic Squads as well. If that happens, coordinating subjugations with the Adventurers Guild will also become easier.”
“Yes, we should be able to avoid panicking just because Dragons appear. And about the postscript…”
“It will cause another uproar, but… couldn’t we give him Royal Family Magic Squad attire and ask him to deliver them directly to the Adventurers Guild?”
“Have you forgotten, Your Majesty? He frequents the Royal Capital Adventurers Guild as well, and he is one of the few Gold-rank Adventurers.”
“Ah, that’s right. But transporting this many Dragons from the Royal Castle will be a huge undertaking.”
“Indeed. Other than the Whip Dragons, they probably won’t fit in a Magic Bag. I will consult with him.”
Thirty-two Dragons, five Snakes, and a Scorpion?
Even excluding the 14 Whip Dragons, how many days would it take to transport 18 Dragons and 5 Snakes from the Royal Castle?
I’ll be in trouble if he and Brighton don’t come up with a way to deliver them directly to the Adventurers Guild.
I must also have Brighton keep the envoys from other countries in check; if things get noisy around him, another incident could occur.
The measures against Dragons he reported were implemented just in time, but this is a new source of headaches. My worries are endless.
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An advance messenger from Prime Minister Brighton arrived seeking an audience with me, so I replied that I would await him at my home the next day.
The following day, the Prime Minister visited with a small escort, and I received him in the drawing-room.
“His Majesty says he has nothing but gratitude for you. He wished to meet you directly, but knowing you wouldn’t want that, I came in his stead. We considered your proposal, but with that many Dragons, transporting them one by one from the Royal Castle is impractical. So, I have a suggestion. I think it would also be problematic for you to go to the Guild directly, so could you disguise yourself?”
“Disguise?”
“That’s right. When delivering the Dragons to the Royal Capital Adventurers Guild, we’d like you to act as a Royal Family’s storage Magician. You’ll hide your face, wear a hood, and go with several others of similar build. A representative of the Royal Family will handle all negotiations; you just need to hand over the Dragons when you receive the signal.”
I see. I won’t be able to leave the Royal Capital for a while, but this might be the best way.
“Very well. However, I will hand over 10 Whip Dragons and the Beasts to the Royal Family. Please dispose of them after the Dragons entrusted by the Tanza Guild have been delivered.”
“Understood. We shall do so.”
“Also, regarding the Dragon Subjugation request, it wasn’t a formal request through the Adventurers Guild. I also asked an acquaintance’s party to help. There were no agreements regarding the request fee or ownership of the spoils, so I will take two-thirds of the sales profit. Please feel free to use one-third as the share for the Dragons defeated by the Royal Family’s Magicians.”
For the Tanza Adventurers Guild portion, one-third of the sale price is the Tanza Adventurers Guild’s share, and the remainder after deducting fees is my share, so the Royal Family will receive it on my behalf.
It was agreed that the Royal Family would also receive subsequent payments and hand them over to me after everything has been disposed of.
Since it was accepted so readily, it was decided that they would inform me once the schedule for delivering the Tanza portion to the Royal Capital Guild was set.
Just when I thought that was settled, they bowed their heads and asked me to supervise the revision of the Magic Squad’s training content so they could counter Dragons.
Although I wouldn’t be providing instruction in magic, I did intend to teach the selection method for those capable of Dragon Subjugation, so I went along with it.
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The day after Prime Minister Brighton’s visit, I received a visit from the Guild Master of the Royal Capital Adventurers Guild, and I cursed my own stupidity.
In the previous Dragon Subjugation, the Adventurers Guild hadn’t been involved; everything had been handed over to the Royal Family, who managed it all.
This time, the Tanza Adventurers Guild has been involved from the very beginning. It wasn’t a case of me just hiding my head while leaving my tail exposed; everything was completely out in the open.
I was the fool who had covered my own eyes, feeling relieved thinking I wasn’t being watched.
Since trying to avoid him or feigning ignorance would be pointless, I reluctantly met the Guild Master in the drawing-room.
“Yo, Dragon Slayer. You really pulled a fast one on us, didn’t you?”
“Did you come here just to mock me? If you spill the beans about me, I’ll never hand over another Dragon to the Guild again.”
“It’s too late for that. You went out on a Search and subjugated multiple Dragons. The guys who saw it in Deelgo Village have been spreading it around. Plenty of people know, especially those in Tanza due to the compulsory summons. It won’t be long before it’s known throughout the entire Royal Capital.”
What a disaster… This is a blunder so huge I can’t even laugh at that useless god.
“And so, an order came from Guild headquarters to promote you to S-Rank.”
Just as I thought.
Until now, even when I ranked up and got a new card, the ‘Tamer, Magical Power: 10’ part never changed.
If I get a new card, and it lists ‘Seven Types of Magic’ and ‘Magical Power: 710’ on it, that would really cause a massive uproar.