[No title provided]
Kamara was an idiot.
“How’s the situation?”
“The damage isn’t as bad as we feared, thanks to the blast hitting the edge of the palace.”
Mary sighed as she looked at Steven, the captain of the Imperial Guard, delivering his report. She’d bolted straight to the throne room after being jolted awake by the sudden explosion, but all she found were the soldiers guarding it and Steven.
“And Father?”
“His Majesty has probably evacuated by now.”
Mary’s brow furrowed at Steven’s words. In the midst of an attack on the Imperial Palace, the Emperor of the Empire had chosen to save his own skin. At least he’d left behind his favored captain of the guard—that was something to be grateful for, if anything. Of course, given the Emperor’s position, it wasn’t an unreasonable choice, but his absence left the palace in chaos.
“And my brother… no, never mind.”
Mary started to bring up Aaron but stopped, sighing at the reactions from Steven and the other soldiers. Given the crown prince’s usual temperament, it was no surprise he’d fled the palace even faster than the Emperor.
Thanks to that, Mary had taken command of the palace. She tried to prepare for another dragon strike, but she couldn’t fathom why the sudden attack had come out of nowhere.
“Where’s the dragon now?”
“That’s… it vanished.”
“What?”
Mary’s face twisted as she saw Steven struggling to hide his bewilderment.
“So, it fired one blast of breath at the imperial capital and just… disappeared?”
“Yes.”
Already baffled by why a dragon had targeted the palace, Mary sank deeper into confusion.
“Any word from the Carshian Kingdom?”
Mary mentioned Carshian for a simple reason. Everyone on the continent knew there was only one known dragon—a red dragon dwelling in the mountains near the kingdom—and it coexisted with Carshian in a symbiotic relationship.
“We tried magical communication, but no response from the kingdom.”
“So there’s a good chance something’s happened in Carshian?”
“…Probably.”
Steven, the guard captain, was quietly impressed by how quickly Mary was piecing things together. Unlike the Emperor, who’d fled underground in a panic the moment the attack hit, or the crown prince, who’d scurried off like a rat, Mary was at least trying to protect the empire and its capital.
“Prepare for another attack—we don’t know when it might return. Station as many archers and mages capable of long-range strikes as possible, and find the Hero and his party.”
“No need to look for me.”
Mary turned as a voice echoed from inside the throne room. The Hero strolled in with a bored expression, scratching his head. Beside him were Saintess Marian and Holy Knight Captain Jena von Darius.
In this chaos, Mary trusted only the Hero’s party. She gazed at him with heartfelt gratitude, but he scowled, clearly displeased about something.
“Please… help the empire.”
“Nah, there won’t be a second attack anyway.”
Mary pleaded, but the Hero replied nonchalantly, eyeing her coolly.
‘This chicken-headed bitch.’
I scowled at Mary’s grim-faced plea. No doubt the Emperor and that crown prince bastard had bolted like their tails were on fire, leaving her to fill in. I’d already figured she’d end up in charge.
But she couldn’t afford this kind of spotlight yet. Her quick thinking might impress the nobles and imperials, but she hadn’t solidified her power base. Stepping up in the Emperor’s absence was commendable, sure. But that greedy Emperor fucker wouldn’t praise her efforts—he’d probably resent her for it.
Of course, only those inside the palace knew he’d fled, but rumors spread like wildfire.
“No second attack? On what basis?”
“…If it really meant to attack, it would’ve blasted the center of the palace, not the roof.”
Mary’s expression hardened at my words, seeming to concede the logic.
“You’re basing that on such flimsy evidence?”
Unlike Mary, the guard captain didn’t buy it. I shrugged at Steven, who was yelling at me.
“Long time no see. That’s just my take. Don’t believe me? Your call.”
I wasn’t offended by Steven’s suspicious glare. Hell, if you didn’t know Kamara—that idiot—he had every right to doubt me more than Mary did.
“…Hero, then why do you think the dragon did this?”
“Your Highness, there’s no need to listen to him!”
Steven jumped in as Mary asked, but she silenced him with a gesture and stared at me intently.
I knew exactly why Kamara had opened with a breath blast, but I couldn’t say it out loud.
‘How the hell do I tell her it was just for dramatic effect?’
I smacked my lips awkwardly at Mary. Having adventured with Kamara to defeat the Demon King, I knew that dragon better than anyone. She didn’t match the wise, majestic image humans had. She was pure dumb muscle, using magic on instinct alone—Karen would sigh at her lack of creativity.
Of course, Kamara hadn’t always been like that. Few knew, but this world was ruled by a goddess who reclaimed even the Hero’s power if it upset the balance. Overwhelming forces like dragons were thorns in her side, so long ago, she’d made them an offer.
‘Take an intelligence nerf, or GTFO to another world?’
Not in those exact words, but close enough. Proud dragons mostly chose exile, but lazy-ass Kamara took the nerf.
Or so she claimed—I’d never verified it. The funny part? She admitted she was dumb and fucking loved it. Blasting a breath for “impact” was her version of a hello. Then she’d feel refreshed, and humans would bring her tribute.
Anyway, her ridiculous entrance was giving me a headache. In the first timeline, she didn’t show up yet, and unlike before when I’d built rapport the hard way, now I had to start over kissing up to that crazy dragon bitch.
“Greetings, imperial humans! How’re you all doing?”
As I mulled over Kamara, a tall redhead strode boldly into the throne room. Imperial soldiers and even my party tensed at the stranger, but she didn’t bat an eye. To her, humans were ants—reactions didn’t matter.
“Are you… the dragon that attacked the empire?”
Mary cut straight to it upon seeing her. The red hair and otherworldly vibe screamed dragon. My party had guessed too, but Kamara tilted her head curiously at Mary.
“How’d you know? Kid, you’re smart!”
Kamara grinned and said it sweetly. Steven and the soldiers drew weapons in response.
No reason for me to intervene yet, so I signaled my party to stay put. Kamara eyed only Mary, intrigued.
“…What’s your goal?”
“Goal? Oh, that. Simple—troops!”
Kamara declared it to Mary, who tilted her head in confusion.