The White Dragon's Assault

“Princess Patricia, please! Take us with you to Baldia Mountain!”

“H-hey, hey…”

The two, who had been waiting at the forest entrance for Patricia’s imperial army, prostrated themselves before the perplexed princess and pleaded.

If it were only Jonah, now that he knew the location, he could teleport immediately by confirming Baldia Mountain’s position on the map, but with Henrik accompanying him, he could not use ancient magic.

In that case, the only option was to accompany Patricia, who was heading to Baldia Mountain to subjugate the White Dragon.

“…I’m sorry, but I cannot take two mere children along. We are not going on a leisure trip.”

Naturally, Patricia refused the request immediately with a stern expression.

Even so, the fact that she glanced over to check if the two were saddened or disheartened showed that she was surprisingly kind-hearted.

“I-I have Kuu with me, so I’m sure I can be useful! And this forest is like my backyard. I can guide you safely to Baldia Mountain!”

“Haa…”

Henrik refused to back down, so Patricia groaned.

“When you introduced yourself, Princess Patricia, you said: ‘At the request of our ally, the Karelia Kingdom, I have come to subjugate the White Dragon nesting in Baldia Mountain.’”

“…Yes. And what of it?”

At Jonah’s words, Patricia looked suspicious.

Though his appearance was refined, Jonah was supposed to be a commoner. Yet his speech and demeanor suggested nobility, which intrigued Patricia.

But more pressing than that was persuading the two. Patricia deliberately directed a sharp, killing-intent-laden gaze at Jonah.

Yet.

“Then, to conserve the soldiers’ stamina—including Your Highness’s—as much as possible before fighting the White Dragon, we must approach in perfect condition. The imperial army is already in an unfamiliar environment.”

“Th-that’s…”

What Jonah said was correct.

The soldiers were already exhausted from the long expedition, and the opponent was the legendary White Dragon. Since they were challenging it with human strength, any uncertainty should be eliminated.

“When considering the battle with the White Dragon, having Henrik—who knows the geography and is intimately familiar with the forest—would be extremely useful. And as Your Highness saw, he commands the wolf mystical beast Kuu. He can be expected to contribute as a fighting force as well.”

“Hmm…“

Overwhelmed by Jonah’s logical argument, Patricia groaned.

In truth, Patricia had asked villagers to guide them through the forest, but upon hearing the purpose, everyone refused out of fear.

She had some accompaniment from the Karelia Kingdom side, but they were far inferior to locals.

She could not force the villagers, and above all, Patricia herself did not want to do so.

In that case, having Jonah and Henrik accompany them was the best option, but she still did not want to expose children to danger.

Then.

“Please rest assured, Princess Patricia. We know our limits, so we will only guide you to the foot of Baldia Mountain. Once there, we will pray for Your Highness’s victory.”

Jonah stated this respectfully, but in his mind he thought that once they reached that point, things would somehow work out.

Henrik’s purpose was to settle things with his missing father, not out of interest in the legendary Paired Dragons.

“What do you say…?”

“…………………………”

Patricia folded her arms and fell silent.

And then.

“…It can’t be helped.”

“…! Th-thank you very much!”

“But! Only to the foot of the mountain! I will absolutely not let you go any farther!”

“Of course! Right, Henrik?”

“Y-yeah!”

Patricia firmly warned the excited Jonah and Henrik, but the two were overjoyed and frolicked wildly.

Seeing Jonah, who had negotiated like an adult moments ago, now joyfully acting like a boy, Patricia couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“Very well, then. I leave it to you.”

“Yes!”
“Yes!”

Mounting Kuu, the two took the lead alongside Patricia, guiding the imperial army.

As expected from someone who knew the forest well, Henrik’s guidance was precise, and whenever danger approached, Kuu detected it with the proud nose of a wolf mystical beast.

The group continued marching smoothly toward Baldia Mountain.

Meanwhile.

“Um… By the way, Princess Patricia, why are you subjugating the White Dragon? Or rather, why did the Karelia Kingdom request the Empire to subjugate the White Dragon in the first place?”

Jonah asked Patricia the question that had been on his mind.

To put it bluntly, legends are just legends—their existence is uncertain.

The legends Jonah had encountered so far had fortunately been true, but there was no guarantee the Paired Dragons legend was as well.

Yet Patricia believed the legend was true… that the White Dragon existed without a doubt. That puzzled Jonah.

Then.

“It’s simple. Two weeks ago, the White Dragon descended upon the capital of Karelia Kingdom, Helsing, and destroyed half the city.”