C148: GUARDIAN GARMENTS

I am Olba, a regular soldier of the Demon King’s army.

The Lesser Dragon’s infamy is well known even among the army.

It is a fallen, inferior dragon that’s also not a dragon, so you can consider it the remnants of one.

We demons are no match to the original dragons, and we would inevitably perish if they were ever hostile.
However, dragons have wisdom as well as overwhelming strength. They do not attack without reason and are willing to talk in some cases.

Lesser Dragons, on the other hand, are mere beasts deprived of such intelligence.
Why this happens remains a perennial mystery, but once dragons lose their magic and ego, they become a violent Lesser Dragon, which is much worse than their original counterparts.
Even if they lose their magic and intelligence, they still have their huge, strong bodies, making them more troublesome than any monster out there.

Moreover, since they have no reasoning power, they indiscriminately go on a rampage, and whenever a Lesser Dragon is sighted, we have no choice but to fight and kill them.
If we leave it alone, it will only cause more damage around us.

But a dragon is a dragon. Defeating them will prove extremely difficult.

Catastrophic beings free from the restraints of one’s senses.
Such were Lesser Dragons.

Balaam and I ride our horses side-by-side at max speed without minding our horses’ welfare.

A formidable threat is approaching from behind us at a terrifying speed.

“That stupid dragon is still chasing us!”
“It is what it is. Of course, it would notice us, especially considering our number.”

We were only informed of a monster’s trace, but I wasn’t expecting to find a Lesser Dragon upon arriving here.

Neither of our squadrons can handle it. We have to contact the main force at the capital.

Facing the dragon head-on would only result in a foolish suicide attempt, so Balaam immediately ordered the troops to retreat.

He decided that fleeing in all directions would confuse the dragon and decrease the chances of us being totally wiped out, but…

“Why are you with me?! There’s no point if we don’t split up!”
“I know what you’re thinking! You’re going to make yourself a decoy so the rest of the soldiers can escape unscathed, aren’t you?!”

Otherwise, he wouldn’t be zigzagging in his tracks and provoke the dragon on purpose.
Balaam is a veteran aide who also worked his way up from being a commoner, just like that girl!

“…I have to do what’s needed at times like this; otherwise, the infantry won’t be able to escape from that brainless dragon with the pace they’re at right now. They’re just going to get eaten alive.”
“I’ll go with you then! I’m also an aide permitted to ride a horse! I can’t just run away here!”
“Watch out!!!”

My horse abruptly turns to the side after I heard Balaam’s shout.
We barely missed getting snagged by the dragon’s claw.

“It has already caught up to us!”

Even our horses are at their limit.
We can’t expect them to run at top speed now.

“I know we mustn’t lose our men, but that means their commander must also survive! What are you charging yourself towards danger for?!”
“I could say the same to you!”
“That’s exactly why the two of us came here! Either one of us must survive to inform Lord Belphgamilia of danger! An aristocrat like you should survive for more reasons than one! Just go already!”
“But-”

Hesitating was a mistake.
My horse and I are sent flying in the air by the strong impact behind.

“Olba?!”

I knew after the direct hit that I had been mowed by the Lesser Dragon’s arm.
I gradually got separated from my horse mid-air as the world spun around me.

The dragon’s mouth is wide open right under me, awaiting my fall.

“OLBAAAAAAA!!!” shouts my colleague in a strained voice.

I heard a loud clang echo throughout my body.
The Lesser Dragon failed to catch my entire body as my upper half poked from the dragon’s mouth.
This meant that I was going to be bitten in half, feeling the sensation of his sharp fangs crushing my spine down to my torso.

And at that moment, I could feel the dragon’s jaw slowly crushing me…

I’m sorry, Mother. It seems I won’t be able to succeed as the heir.
I won’t be able to see her again, either…

“Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

The painful screech of the Lesser Dragon almost ruptured my eardrums.
At the same time, a shock struck my entire body.

…Did I fall to the ground?

Does that mean I’m still alive?
But I was just bitten by the dragon!
Wait, my upper and lower halves are still connected.
I won’t part from this world with just half my body!

“Hey, are you okay? Are you still there?!”

As Balaam rushes over in a panic, I look up at the head of the Lesser Dragon.

“Its fangs are broken?!”

Is it suffering from the pain?!

“Snap out of it! Now’s our chance while it’s writhing in pain! Run!!!”

After barely getting away from the Lesser Dragon for our dear lives, we called out to the other soldiers and regrouped.
We sent an express messenger to the capital and waited for the main force led by the Demon King.

There is a set procedure when it comes to exterminating Lesser Dragons.

First, you must fire long-range magic from a certain distance.
This is done not by one or two people but by thousands. It is carried out while alternating turns, hence becoming a massively scaled attack.

As Lesser Dragons are bereft of intelligence and judgment, they try to fight back head-on, only to exhaust themselves.

If this were the original dragon, it would plan its moves or might as well wipe out our race with its almighty dragon magic.

But Lesser Dragons don’t use their heads.
While it exhausts itself in vain, His Majesty will deliver the finishing blow with Furious-Holy Sword Einrot.

A dragon’s scales that are invulnerable to any normal weapon are no match for a holy sword. If everything goes as planned, the inferior dragon will fall without us having to suffer any casualties.

“You’ve done exceptionally well.”

I received a word of praise from Demon King Zedan with the dead Lesser Dragon in front of us.
What an honor.
This is the greatest merit a demon soldier could ever hope for, so much that my body quivers.

“Aides Olba and Balaam’s quick-wittedness from the discovery of the Lesser Dragon to their report was absolutely brilliant. They lost zero soldiers by deciding to evade a futile battle. You have fine aides, Sir Belphgamilia.”
“Oh, no. Those two deserve all the credit,” says Lord Belphgamilia, who came with the Demon King.

As expected, he didn’t do anything significant and just watched the scene unfold.

“Olba is an eager chap, and Balaam is already experienced in the ways of the world. How about you fire me now and make them the next Heavenly Kings? Then, I’ll be able to enjoy my pensioned life without any worries.”
“I’m afraid not, Sir Belphgamilia. We still need you around.”

Demon King Zedan surprisingly thinks highly of Lord Belphgamilia.

“You are the only general to whom I can safely entrust my absence. We still require your presence, so you can’t retire just yet, Sir Belphgamilia.”
“Good grief, you can be so rough with your men,” says Lord Belphgamilia as he lets out a big yawn.

I can’t believe he can still act like that in front of the king.

“Granted, the report sent to me had rather concerning details. Are you really all right, Olba?”
“…Pardon, Your Majesty?”

I didn’t expect the king to be considerate of me!
A-Anyway, putting my emotions aside, I must give him an accurate and brief report!

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty. I was indeed trapped in between the fangs of the dragon, but strangely enough, I don’t have a single scratch on me!”
“Strange things really do happen, don’t they? When I heard the situation from the express messenger, I thought my heart was going to burst out of my chest.”

That’s unexpected, coming from Lord Belphgamilia.
Lesser or not, any demon body wouldn’t be able to withstand a dragon’s fangs.
I was already prepared to die when I was caught between the jaws of the dragon, but just how in the world am I still alive?

“If I were to guess…”

I look at my own armor underwear.
Its fabric, faintly shimmering, is too elegant to be used in battle.

Is this what protected me?

“Immediately after escaping the dragon’s fangs, my armor got pierced with a large hole. Yet, not a single tear or hole can be seen on my armor underwear.”
“Your metal armor was easily pierced by the dragon’s fangs but not the cloth underneath it? Impossible!” says Balaam in shock, but I’m honestly just as surprised as him.

Just where did Mother buy these mysterious clothes?!

“…I heard adamantine silk has the durability to repel all dragon magic as well as their fangs.”
“Huh?!”

The Demon King’s expression appears as if he has seen through everything.

“Does His Majesty know the origins of this armor underwear?”
“Nope. Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

He knows!
Man, the Demon King’s terrible at lying!!!

“But there is one thing I can tell you… It’s that love is great.”