Punish Them for Me (11)
The wingbeats of a fully grown adult dragon unleashed tremendous power. A single flap could span an entire kingdom, or carry it from one end of the continent to the other without rest. And the airflow generated by that absurdly massive body hurtling through the sky at unbelievable speeds carried overwhelming destructive force.
As Lurtjog crossed the skies over Rosens, the roofs of every building lining his flight path shattered to pieces, sending debris swirling upward in a vortex.
Captain Lambert of the guard headquarters burst outside at the ear-splitting roar.
"Captain! Up in the sky!"
At someone's shout, Lambert looked up—and went pale with shock.
At first, he mistook it for a nearby lord's castle streaking across the heavens. But as the colossal shape blotted out the sun, plunging the surroundings into sudden night, he realized it was a dragon.
Could it be the dragon from Myanfeld followed us all the way here?!
"Gahhh! Everyone, run!"
Lambert snapped back to his senses at the sight of guards screaming, throwing themselves to the ground, or huddling with hands over their heads, trembling.
He grabbed the collar of a guard dashing past him and bellowed.
"Full deployment—now!!"
The guards froze at their captain's absurd order, staring at him.
"Are you deaf? I said full deployment!"
"B-but... that's a dragon, sir!"
"And? You got a rule saying we don't fight dragons?!"
Lambert shoved the guard in his grip aside and drew his sword.
"Anyone who doesn't obey gets summarily executed! Unless you want your head rolling on the ground right here, arm up and mount your horses!"
His thunderous command left no room for second thoughts—the guards bolted into the barracks.
If that thing was the dragon that attacked Myanfeld, then Rosens was next. No guard force could beat a dragon, but they couldn't just stand by either. Whether they ended up as pulp or stew, they had to hold the line. Even if it meant total annihilation—that was the duty of soldiers who ate the kingdom's coin.
Moments later, the fully armed guards mounted up. Lambert, at the forefront, kicked his horse's flank and shot forward. Tense-faced guards followed in a thunderous charge.
The guard company pursued the lightning-spewing dragon northward.
Lurtjog flew swiftly through the canyons, keeping Aterugar in sight. She zigzagged desperately, straining to escape him.
「Stop right now! Good kids listen to their elders!」
Despite his roar, Aterugar showed no sign of slowing her wingbeats.
Lurtjog gaped his jaws wide. Sparks swirled fiercely between his massive teeth, coalescing into a blinding bolt that shot straight ahead.
The blue dragon's lightning breath grazed Aterugar's tail just as she twisted her wings in opposite directions. The bolt barely missed her sharply banking form in midair.
It slammed into a peak of the Vurn Mountains. The mountaintop struck dead-on by Lurtjog's breath crumbled away like sand.
Flipping midair, Aterugar unleashed a flame breath at him. But the juvenile's weak exhalation shredded harmlessly against his body and fizzled out.
Her failed attack sent her whipping her wings erratically, diving into the Vurn Mountains. The knife-edged rocky spires were perfect for a smaller dragon like her to hide among.
「Come on out. I'm not here to do anything bad.」
Lurtjog cooed softly, swiveling his head in search of her.
「You psycho creep! You're a disgrace to dragons! Go die!」
Aterugar's shrill insult echoed off peak after peak.
「Let's both feel good, okay? So come out and...」
「Loser who can't even talk to females! Coward who only bullies the weak!」
Her nonstop barrage pushed Lurtjog's rage to a boiling point. How dare some worthless brat disrespect me? Unforgivable...!
「I was going to make it painless!」
As he spewed breath in all directions, Vurn Mountains' peaks collapsed in avalanches. A little damage won't ruin the flavor.
Aterugar, hiding in one such spot, flapped frantically and fled. Lurtjog pursued with his enormous wings.
Each brush of his wings scarred the range indelibly. Before that terrifying power, she was just a fragile subadult dragon.
She desperately dodged breaths, swinging wide through the mountains toward the opposite side. But Lurtjog was far faster—the gap closed until he could almost snap at her tail.
As he reared back to bite, Aterugar thrust her wings forward and rocketed upward. Tucking them tight, she shot into the clouds at breakneck speed.
Lurtjog beat his wings to follow—when she plummeted back through like a falling stone.
「That's it, come to papa. I'll show you something nice...」
Just before collision, Aterugar beat her wings with all her might for an emergency stop.
Lambert and the guards, chasing the dragon up the northern road from Rosens, reined in at the road's center.
Mouths agape, they stared blankly at the surreal scene unfolding before them.
A blue dragon and red dragon chased each other across the sky, blasting breaths and indiscriminately toppling mountains.
"Captain... what... what the hell is going on...?"
"Beats me..."
It was dragon versus dragon, but the smaller red one seemed gravely outmatched.
She was probably that Aterugar the royals had classified top secret. But what was the blue one...?
He'd thought a dragon was attacking the city at first, but now another had appeared. If they were fighting over a nest, it was dire— a dragon nest next to the city meant its doom.
The red dragon, tail constantly nipped, finally shot up into the clouds over the peaks in desperation.
As the blue one moved to pursue, Lambert pondered his best course. But not for long.
"Captain! There!"
The vanished red dragon plunged vertically at the blue one.
"Wh-whoa! They're gonna crash!"
As collision loomed, the red dragon banked her wings and halted.
The guards screamed in unison.
"No way!"
"Impossible!"
Suddenly, the blue dragon's head severed from its neck. The massive body began plummeting.
From such altitude, it seemed slow—but the speed was horrifying.
A beat later, blood gushed from the stump like rain over the guards' heads.
"Gaaahhh!!"
Drenched guards frantically wiped their faces.
The blue dragon's corpse crashed beyond a nearby peak off the northern road. The earth-shaking boom and tremor sent horses rearing wildly.
Calming his mount, Lambert roughly gauged the crash site from memory. The military maps he'd pored over hundreds of times since arriving in Rosens unfolded in his mind.
If he was right, it had landed near an abandoned castle midway up those mountains. There was a path nearby.
He led his company along it toward the ruins.
As they neared the open field by the ruins, Lambert halted his men.
"Hold position until I signal. I'm going in alone."
Born the fourth son of a prestigious marquis house, he'd forsaken wealth and land early to enlist. He wasn't some seasoned adventurer or mercenary—dragons were new to him. Same for his men.
And this tied into top-secret intel, so the captain had to confirm personally.
Dismounting, he gripped his crossbow tight and pushed through the brush.
The thicker it got, the stronger the cloying stench of blood stung his nose. Sweat slicked his palms; he nearly dropped the weapon several times.
Reaching the clearing, he hunkered behind a tree and peeked out.