Kept You Waiting!

Viktor’s face went pale as he desperately thought about something.

Well, yeah… the nation’s core existed in a place where a dragon could attack at any time.

He was probably thinking something like: Was it really right to entrust the future to a country like this…? Was it a mistake to offer surrender so quickly…? Einheria would cause catastrophic damage to the people living nearby… that sort of thing.

So, how should I convince him…? Honestly, even Karmos and the others probably hadn’t fully accepted it either… so maybe I should just act tough and let the rest play out…?

As I was thinking that and about to speak, Ururu suddenly appeared near the entrance of the audience chamber.

She should’ve been behind the Lumoria Kingdom delegation, so I didn’t think they’d noticed… but could she not endure the serious atmosphere?

No, no—Ururu spoke in a laid-back way, but she was an extremely serious and capable Minister of Foreign Affairs.

There had to be a reason… ah, I could use Hawk Ear.

I couldn’t exactly call out to her from here… so while meeting Ururu’s eyes, I activated Hawk Ear so I could hear her voice.

‘Fels-sama… can you hear me?’

After giving a small nod to Ururu’s voice as it came through, I returned my gaze to Viktor.

‘I report… a dragon is flying toward Einheria Castle… at its speed, it will arrive here in about thirty minutes.’

It came!

At the long-awaited report, I couldn’t help but break into a huge grin—even though we were in the middle of an audience.

Naturally, Viktor, who had been watching me, noticed and his face shifted to a startled expression.

Yeah… that was suddenly way too creepy.

‘Its body surface is covered in dark brown scales… total length is a bit over thirty meters. It is flying with a pair of wings spread… and with both wings extended… it is roughly forty meters… I confirmed the features with Gusco, and he said… it had to be a Ground Dragon…’

Without noticing what was going on in my head, Ururu kept reporting.

Good, good… so it was basically confirmed as a Ground Dragon.

It might not be enough that only Gusco confirmed it… but Karmos was in the capital, and the others were scattered all over, so Gusco was probably the only one he could check with right away.

Perfect timing—might as well confirm with Viktor too.

“Viktor. The dragon said to be in this land… do you know anything about what the Ground Dragon looks like?”

“I have never seen it myself, but I have heard some stories. Scales of a murky, dark red; a body larger than several houses stacked together. The beating of its enormous wings was said to be strong enough to topple trees, and despite that massive body, it flew so fast that from afar it vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.”

“I see…”

Murky dark red… Ururu said dark brown… that sounded close enough… probably fine?

The size description was too vague to know… could I standardize length, weight, and time into units I knew? Everyone in Einheria would understand… maybe I could push it as a unified national standard?

Not now—this wasn’t the time… though I did want to put it on the “things I want to do later” list.

“Viktor—and all of you in the delegation—listen calmly. I have just received word. It seems the Ground Dragon in question is flying toward this castle.”

“What!?”

What!?

Viktor shouted with eyes wide open like he’d seen the end of the world.

The delegation behind him didn’t cry out, but several of them reflexively tried to stand, half-rising.

“Your Majesty! Is that true!?”

“It is. I feel like a small bone stuck in my throat has finally come loose.”

When I said that with a laugh, Viktor’s complexion shifted through blue, white, and red as he shouted.

“Your Majesty! This is no time for such words! You must flee at once! If possible, evacuate the nearby residents immediately!”

Even as he shouted, he didn’t stand—he bowed his head deeply.

What surprised me a little was that he told me to run too, not just the local residents. If anything, it sounded like he meant me first.

Did that mean Viktor didn’t want me to die? That was kind of nice.

…No, that wasn’t it.

If I died here, there would be no one left to protect the people of the Lumoria Kingdom… right. I was getting ahead of myself.

It wasn’t like I’d be happy even if some old man liked me or anything!

“Flee? Don’t be ridiculous, Viktor. The dragon came all this way on its own. Shall we not give it a proper welcome?”

“Your Majesty! The legends say dragons can understand human speech… but that only means it can understand words—it does not mean you can reason with it!”

Viktor tried to stop me with desperate urgency in response to my joke.

Hmm… so it might be possible to talk with a dragon… if I tamed it, could it become a good message to neighboring countries?

Anyway, time was short, and before Viktor died of rage, I decided to be serious.

“Viktor. I am grateful for your loyal counsel. But leave this to us. I will dispel your fears without fail. In the name of this Overlord, Fels!”

I rose as I declared it.

“Kiriku! Ilmitt!”

“Yes!” “Yes!”

“Escort Viktor’s delegation to the aerial garden. I will put on a show from a position they can see.”

“Understood!”

“Understood!”

“Saria! You will be the delegation’s guard.”

“Yes!”

“Eisha! Marie! Rods! Head to the castle town! Evacuate the residents inside the castle gate!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

I wasn’t letting the little ones participate in war for now, but I’d make sure they carried out orders like this so they wouldn’t feel like they were never entrusted with work.

Rods wasn’t exactly one of the little ones… but leaving only the little ones made me a bit uneasy, so he was there to keep an eye on things. I didn’t think Eisha and the others would have trouble, but we needed hands anyway.

“Lynferia! Kamila! Jōsen!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“You three, come with me. Even if our guest arrived without an appointment, it has finally shown its face. We must entertain it properly.”

“I will beat ‘manners’ into it.”

“Hee-hee… I’ve been shut inside this castle for so long because of that thing. I’ll have to thank it properly.”

“This will be enjoyable, indeed.”

“Jōsen, I want to defeat the dragon without hurting it too much—can you do it?”

When I asked Jōsen, who was stroking his chin a short distance away, his expression immediately turned sour.

“…Is this not ill-suited to this one?”

Well, close-range attacks… with a sword, it was basically impossible to win without injuring the target, right? Humans were one thing, but it was a dragon.

“You can do it easily, can’t you, Jōsen?”

“If my lord says so, then I shall do it.”

Jōsen answered my unreasonable demand with a fearless grin.

“Good. You three, assemble at the front of the gate in ten minutes. We will intercept the dragon beyond the castle town!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“Anyone whose name wasn’t called, follow Kiriku! We have a little over twenty minutes until contact—there isn’t much time!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

At my declaration, my people in the audience chamber all moved at once.

“Y-Your Majesty! Please wait! What in the world are you…!?”

But Viktor and the others weren’t keeping up.

“Hm, you didn’t understand? We are about to defeat the dragon. I thought I would let you watch from premium seats… but if you’re uneasy, would you like to transfer to the former Yōntsu capital or somewhere around former Assen Territory? Once we settle things, I’ll send someone to fetch you.”

“Y-You truly mean to fight a dragon…?”

“Yes. I am a king, you know? There is no reason for me to lie.”

Kings probably lied all the time, but… I’d push through with the idea that an Overlord didn’t lie.

“…Had you already prepared your forces?”

“No. The ones fighting the dragon will be four people, including me. It’s a bit overkill, but it’s our first dragon, so I want to be cautious.”

“…”

At my words, Viktor and the delegation all went completely blank.

I understood the feeling, but there was no time, so I’d leave the rest to them.

“Viktor, sorry, but we don’t have time before the dragon arrives. The rest is in the hands of my right arm, Kiriku—and Ilmitt, who went to receive you. Whether you watch or evacuate is up to you. I won’t change how we negotiate later based on your choice, but I will recommend watching—because you will probably see something interesting.”

After giving Viktor one last smile, I took the Overlord Sword Verdia that had been set beside me and left the throne.

It was the dragon battle I’d been waiting for… it sounded fun, and it was scary too… no, I was pretty scared…

But I was Overlord Fels.

If I couldn’t handle an opponent like this, there was no way I could keep living as an Overlord.

I wanted to slap my cheeks to psych myself up, but that didn’t feel very Overlord-like.

After gripping the Overlord Sword tightly, I headed off to prepare my armor and potions.

I said assemble in ten minutes, but I wasted a few minutes dealing with Viktor and the others… I might not make it in time.