“Well done.”
“I was just imitating Lady Romelia.”
Helen admitted the truth to Baines.
Her words were a reenactment of a scene from one of her novels. She didn’t know if Romelia had ever said the same thing, but she assumed the sentiment was what they needed. The rest was just acting.
“Even so, you were magnificent, Princess Helen. Truly splendid.”
General Gamb, who had overheard, stroked his long beard approvingly.
Helen knew the old general doted on her like a granddaughter but held no real expectations for her as a royal. Yet now, it seemed he had reconsidered.
“Is that so?”
Helen tilted her head. She believed she had done her best—but not enough to deserve such praise.
“Soldiers fight for various reasons—for their country, for honor, or even for money. What matters is whether they can convince themselves that their reason is worth risking their lives for. At the very least, it seems some of our soldiers found meaning in laying down their lives here today.”
General Gamb looked at the soldiers raising their battle cries.
Helen was glad she had fulfilled her role, but she hadn’t expected to shoulder such a heavy burden. Her expression stiffened.
She turned her gaze back toward the Demon King’s army. She couldn’t even begin to guess their numbers, but the war was about to begin.
“Approximately one hundred fifty thousand,” Baines informed her of the enemy’s forces.
She felt some relief knowing their numbers were smaller than the Allied Forces, but she had also heard that each soldier of the Demon King’s army was worth two human soldiers. Even if she doubled their numbers, the Allied Forces still had the advantage—but that didn’t guarantee absolute safety.
“Are you uneasy, Princess Helen?”
“N-No, not at all—”
General Gamb saw right through her. But with the battle looming, she couldn’t admit her fear in front of the general.
“Rest assured. This battle is in our favor. First, look behind us—the Gangaruga Fortress.”
General Gamb pointed toward the towering fortress at their backs.
“Thanks to Lady Romelia, there’s no chance the enemy will sally forth from Gangaruga. We won’t have to worry about a pincer attack. Moreover, since we knew the Demon King’s forces would come from the west, we’ve already constructed defensive positions along the western side of the circular hills.”
When the general gestured toward the soldiers forming ranks, she could indeed see barricades and earthen walls built up ahead.
“Once we fortify our defenses, they won’t break through easily unless something extraordinary happens.”
General Gamb nodded confidently.
“As for our formation—the Hamiel Kingdom holds the far-left flank, followed by the Lionel Kingdom. The Hovos Federation and our own Heirent Kingdom take the center, while the Fulgus Empire and the Hurion Kingdom’s forces hold the right flank. The left flank’s outcome is uncertain, but the right will surely prevail.”
Following his gaze toward the right wing, Helen saw the legendary Sun Knights of Hurion and the Moonlight Knights of the Fulgus Empire—renowned as the continent’s mightiest.
“We just need to hold our ground, use the terrain to our advantage, and endure the enemy’s assaults. Once the Hurion Kingdom and Fulgus Empire break through, victory will be ours.”
Helen nodded in understanding.
Ahead, the Demon King’s army had also concentrated more forces on their left flank—the side facing the Allied Forces’ right. Clearly, both sides saw the right wing as decisive.
Helen was beginning to feel reassured—until a thunderous sound shattered the calm. A tremor shook the earth, birds fled the western forest, and the snapping of trees echoed through the air.
“Wh-What is this?!”
The unfamiliar sound and vibrations drained the color from Helen’s face.
The rhythmic footsteps grew louder, closer.
Something was coming.
Clenching her fists, she watched as the footsteps reached the edge of the forest.
Everyone held their breath, staring intently—until a massive reptilian head emerged from the trees.
Its enormous skull was armored in rocky scales, its gaping maw lined with rows of fangs large enough to swallow her whole. It was a nightmare made flesh—but Helen knew what it was.
“A dragon!”
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Her cry of shock silenced the once-cheering soldiers, freezing them like statues.
This was unmistakably a creature known as a dragon—but the dragons Helen knew were no larger than horses. The one before her now was tall enough to scrape rooftops.
The beast advanced, its thunderous steps shaking the ground. Its long, thick neck led to a massive body, its disproportionately small forelimbs contrasting with its powerful hind legs, which supported its colossal weight.
“That form—it’s the Tyrant Dragon, Tyrano!”
Her trembling voice named the monster.
Ancient myths tell that in the distant past, many dragons once dwelled upon this land where Helen and her people now live. However, the gods grew wrathful at the dragons’ arrogance and rained down stars to drive them to extinction.
Until now, Helen had dismissed those myths as mere fairy tales. But the dragon before her was the very image of the Tyrant Dragon Tyrano, as depicted in the legends.
The massive Tyrano shuddered its entire body and unleashed a thunderous roar—louder than the screams of a thousand men. Helen froze, her voice stolen by terror.
As she stood trembling, another set of footsteps echoed in her ears.
Treetops snapped as the three-horned dragon Tricera emerged, its three great horns raised high. From the forest burst the sword-backed Stego, followed by the monstrous-armed Deino, swinging its long, massive limbs and mowing down foliage. Elsewhere in the woods, the sail-finned Spino charged forth. And then, as if to crown it all, the canopy shattered as an enormous dragon’s neck rose above the trees. With an impossibly long neck and tail, and a body as massive as a ship, the beast stomped the earth with its thick legs, shaking the ground like thunder.
“The Thunder Dragon Brachio! Damn you, Demonkin… So you’ve brought dragons from the Demon Continent!”
General Gamb’s face twisted in disgust as he beheld the dragons, exactly as they appeared in the myths.
The Demonkin’s realm was said to lie across the sea, on another continent. There, dragons still lived and thrived.
Six great dragons crawled from the forest, chains coiled around their necks, with Demonkin riders mounted upon their backs.
A massive Demonkin sat astride Tyrano, holding a bow at his side, a large club strapped to the saddle.
Upon Tricera rode a Demonkin wielding a staff that shimmered in white, green, and yellow. On Spino’s back, a spear-wielding Demonkin roared triumphantly. The Deino rider brandished twin swords high, while the Stego rider menacingly swung a double-headed spear with blades at both ends.
As for the colossal Brachio, not only did a bow-wielding Demonkin sit at the base of its neck with a spear on his back, but a massive cage was also mounted upon its broad spine. Inside, four more Demonkin stood ready with drawn bows.
Behind the dragons marched even more Demonkin—towering figures clad head-to-toe in armor. Their reinforced frames made them less like soldiers and more like Armored Giant Troops.
But the Demon King’s army did not stop there. After the armored giants came yet more dragons—though unlike the six great ones, these were far smaller.
“Small” was relative, of course, for each was still the size of a horse, standing on two powerful hind legs tipped with deadly sickle claws, their maws lined with vicious fangs.
“Those are Raptors—Beastclaw Dragons!”
Helen had seen their preserved specimens before. These mid-sized dragons were said to inhabit rocky regions and were never known to bond with humans. Yet here, the Demonkin rode them as if they were mere steeds. Dragon cavalry, perhaps? Their numbers neared a thousand.
The great dragons moved into position, each taking their place before the allied forces.
Before the Kingdom of Hamiel stood Stego, its sword-like spines bristling. Before Lionel Kingdom loomed Deino, its massive claws and elongated arms poised for destruction. The Hovos Federation faced Brachio, whose footsteps rumbled like distant thunder. The Fulgus Empire was met by Tricera, its three enormous horns gleaming as it moved with surprising agility for its size. The Huerion Kingdom found Spino before them, its sail-like fin cutting through the air. And before Helen’s own Heylent Kingdom… of all possible foes, the Tyrant Dragon Tyrano strode forward.
“G-General Gamb…!”
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