I Married the Dragon I Killed

Inside Castle Valdrova.

The young ladies remained gathered in a room, waiting for the situation to calm down.

The young nobles, meanwhile, organized a competition to select the Supreme Commander.

Perda decided to simply observe.

It was more natural for him to excel in the tactical field than in designing overall strategies.

Among the participants were descendants of war hero families who had come from various places to build connections with Perda.

The most striking was a large, burly man.

‘Jonathan Sina.’

Jonathan Sina, descendant of Jonathan Sina the Iron Wall, one of the Twelve Expeditionaries sent to defeat the Demon King.

He bore exactly the same name as his ancestor and, in fact, resembled Jonathan Sina’s statue so closely that anyone would think he was his reincarnation.

Of all the descendants of the expeditionaries, Jonathan Sina was probably the most well-known to the public.

As he watched him, Perda became curious and asked Isabella,

“If I remember correctly, Jonathan Sina was rather slow-witted, wasn’t he?”

“That’s right.”

“And his descendant?”

“He is excellent at tactics, but in strategy he is exactly the same.”

Then what the hell was he doing participating?

But Sina’s descendant was not the only surprise.

There was a completely unexpected person among the participants.

Olivia Arken.

The Imperial Princess was also participating in the competition.

She was the only woman present.

Normally she wore those dresses that exposed part of her chest.

But today she wore armor made of Altrium, a rare metal that was light and durable.

There were no ornaments or unnecessary curves.

It was armor designed solely for combat and practicality.

Her long hair was tied back, and her face was free of makeup.

They said that seeing a woman’s natural face could shatter the illusion.

But with Olivia, the opposite was true.

Her appearance radiated a refreshing purity that made the men around her glance at her from the corners of their eyes.

She walked a fine line between that pure image and that of a military commander.

“Since this competition is being held during a wartime situation, the evaluation will be swift. There will be ten questions, each worth one hundred points.”

The evaluation was overseen by Isabella.

Though only nominally.

In reality, the one doing the assessment was Morida, seated beside her.

She listened to every answer, compared them against her knowledge, and graded them with absolute objectivity.

If some noble started arguing about why a mere little girl had the right to judge him, everything would become troublesome.

That was why it was more convenient to rely on the authority of a dragon.

“Administrator, may I ask a question?”

Although Isabella was only the administrator of a village, the young nobles spoke to her respectfully because of her dragon horns.

“Go ahead.”

“Where is that legendary adventurer called Eri?”

“That’s right. I believe it would be more appropriate for her to take command of this situation rather than holding a competition.”

Even among nobles, Eri was a famous figure.

They had tried to grant her noble titles countless times.

She would pretend to accept them and then disappear.

It was disrespectful.

But even that was tolerated because of her extraordinary achievements.

If someone managed to befriend her, they would gain an invaluable ally.

“That person will operate independently. She has been assigned a special elite operation for this crisis. She will share strategic information with the Supreme Commander chosen today.”

The possibility of working alongside a legendary adventurer further fueled the young nobles’ enthusiasm.

“The first question. How to manage limited resources.”

Use of war supplies.

How to respond to desertions.

And other topics that any knight educated in military affairs should know.

“Final question. Suppose you are about to enter direct combat against monsters…”

They were presented with a combat scenario against monsters and had to propose a strategy.

“We would demonstrate knightly spirit by launching a charge to break their momentum…”

“If we pierce their waist and cut off their vital flow…”

The answers were disastrous.

Everyone spoke from the perspective of human warfare or conventional battles.

They did not understand how to fight monsters.

More than one received a zero.

“Monsters must be fought differently. This is not about the valor of knights. You must adopt a defensive stance and rely on magical forces.”

Surprisingly, Olivia achieved a crushing score.

Ninety-eight points out of one hundred.

That meant she not only knew the theory.

She also understood how to apply it in real combat and achieve results.

After several more questions, the results were announced.

“I will announce the results. The Chief of Staff will be Olivia Arken.”

Naturally, the scores were not revealed.

If they knew Olivia had overwhelmingly surpassed them, their pride would be shattered.

“I accept the result, Administrator. But could you tell me where I failed?”

He said he accepted it.

But in reality, it was a protest born of pride.

What he did not know was that he was arguing against a wise slave who contained the Library of All Phenomena.

Through Morida, Isabella knew every one of his mistakes perfectly and pointed them out one by one.

After that, they could no longer continue protesting.

Olivia received the insignia of Chief of Staff and delivered her acceptance speech.

“Although I have been appointed Chief of Staff, I have no intention of ignoring any of you. What we need now is a unified will. Let us work together to achieve that.”

Many admired her abilities.

But some still felt uncomfortable.

That was natural.

The position they had dreamed of attaining all their lives had been taken by the Imperial Princess.

No matter how much they admired her, seeing her step into their territory wounded their pride.

Perhaps some of those who idolized her would begin to see her differently after today.

‘But I also understand why she stepped in personally.’

If she had left the reins in the hands of those incompetents, they would have crashed before they even began.

Trusting Olivia’s judgment, Perda approached to congratulate her.

“Congratulations on becoming Chief of Staff.”

“No. This is only the beginning.”

Perda read something in her gaze.

She seemed to want something.

“Lord Regent, we are allies, aren’t we?”

“We share the same goal, so I suppose we are.”

“Then let me phrase it another way. How much do you trust me?”

The question was so sudden that he could not answer immediately.

When she taught him to dance and proposed a solution to the rumors, she had been a reliable ally.

But from the moment she unexpectedly broke the script, he began to have doubts.

Could he really trust her?

“What is it that you want?”

“You plan to use the magitech rifles to deploy troops, correct? And you intend to implement them seriously for this extermination campaign.”

“That’s right.”

“Then give me command of those troops.”

After becoming Chief of Staff, she now wanted military command as well.

“Why?”

“The reason is obvious. I just proved that I am superior to the other men present and secured this position. This is not the time to move forward halfway. It is time to accelerate.”

She tapped the table with a slender finger.

“I want to prove my capability as Chief of Staff and as a commander. I want to return from this crisis having earned achievements.”

She was expressing without reservation the same ambition as all the young nobles who had participated in the competition.

“Do you know what both of us can gain from this? If I achieve great results in this campaign, even the Empire will not be able to ignore me.”

“A political career?”

“That’s right.”

Olivia smiled faintly.

But Perda was not entirely convinced.

“Wasn’t your plan to become a Saint and enter politics?”

“Of course, that is also one path. But this is still an excellent opportunity, don’t you think? Opportunities should be seized.”

Like everyone else, she too expressed her desire to turn this crisis into an opportunity.

However, those words gave Perda a strange sense of impatience.

And he knew why.

‘Becoming a Saint is not exactly easy.’

Achieving the Fifth Enlightenment was a goal that even many nuns who dedicated their entire lives to the convent failed to reach.

‘And Olivia never became a Saint.’

She never even reached the Fourth Enlightenment.

In other words, she never reached the Fourth Circle.

In her final desperate act, she became a femme fatale who dragged the Empire into chaos.

Perhaps it would be better for her to enter politics as a commander.

She truly possessed extensive tactical knowledge.

Even Erika had been impressed by her power of persuasion.

But he wished it were as easy as accepting all those abilities at face value.

She herself had once said she was like a jewel displayed in an auction house.

And if that jewel developed legs of its own, there would be more people who hated it than people who appreciated it.

‘Even so…’

Her abilities exceeded anything Perda could imagine.

He had the feeling she would find a way to influence others and make use of her talents.

If the Imperial Princess gained influence and Perda earned merit, it would benefit them both.

And even if she failed to obtain what she desired, it would not be a loss for him.

“It won’t be easy.”

“I know. When has anything in my life ever been easy?”

Olivia smiled.

Perda decided to give her command.

“William, the captain of the guard, is currently investigating troop deployment. I will appoint him as your aide. Speak with him.”

“The knight cadet of House Yurei? Understood. Now that you mention it…”

Olivia casually asked a question.

“I haven’t seen the young lord of House Yurei. Considering he comes from a family with a tradition of commanders, I thought he would certainly participate.”

Why bring up that subject right now?

Though uncomfortable, Perda answered naturally.

“I don’t know either.”

“I suppose he may have fled or traveled to another territory.”

Sensing that it was a sensitive topic, she left the conversation there.

Perda trusted Olivia’s abilities, but he still considered it too early to speak about Marcus Yurei’s death.

After saying goodbye, Olivia departed to prepare for the war.

“What did you do with Yurei?”

Perda asked Ruri, who was standing beside him.

“What did you do with him?”

“I buried him. I thought it would be better to preserve the body with preservation magic and bury it rather than make it disappear and create unnecessary problems.”

“And his troops?”

“I asked about them. It seems they are preparing to defend Consilus County together with the other forces.”

“I see.”

“By the way…”

Ruri glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

“You are aware of how beautiful Princess Olivia is?”

“I am.”

Just because he was not interested did not mean he was blind.

“Not everyone is as insensitive as you are, Lord Perda.”

“I know that too.”

“Then you have also considered the possibility that Olivia may attract those troops and make them swear loyalty to the Empire, right?”

“Yes.”

It was not as though he had never imagined William being captivated by Olivia’s eloquence and beauty and ending up as an Imperial knight.

“If he falls for something like that, it will only mean he was a man of that level.”

Perda could only hope that William would not betray the convictions that had been placed in him.

***

After appointing the Chief of Staff, Olivia began developing various scenarios through simulations and strategic exercises.

In the midst of all that, Erika came looking for Perda.

“Lord Regent Perda. Do you have a moment?”

Perda nodded.

“How are things going on the adventurers’ side?”

“Fine. We are forming an elite unit for a special operation. That is precisely why I came.”

“How can I help?”

“It’s nothing complicated. There is a person I’ve been looking for and cannot find. Isabella doesn’t know where he is either. I thought perhaps you might know.”

“Who is it?”

“The Armored Knight.”

The Armored Knight.

The man who had been one of the greatest contributors to the construction of Hestia Village.

“I heard that during the monster attacks he demonstrated incredible strength and speed. Is that true?”

“It is.”

“His reputation seems quite useful. I would like to place him on the front lines and request his cooperation.”

“Hmm…”

The Armored Knight.

Although he seemed somewhat awkward, Perda had always considered him a good person.

As Erika said, if that man participated, he would be a great help to the special operation.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t speak with him much either. Only once. If anyone knows where he is, it would be the administrator.”

“Really?”

From what he understood, about a week before preparations for the Spring Beginning Festival began, the man had gone somewhere.

When they asked Hanson, his closest associate, he said the man had probably gone to visit his homeland.

But since the man barely spoke, that was nothing more than speculation.

“I suppose there’s no helping it. Then I’ll leave it for later and ask Jonathan the Iron Wall’s descendant whether he is willing to participate.”

“Do so.”

Although they had already finished speaking, Erika did not leave.

At last, she said what she had been holding back.

“Vernell told me.”

“Yes?”

“About the potable water supply problem…”

“That’s right.”

“Do you really not need our help?”

The village’s situation was growing worse and worse.

“I’ll give Vernell three days.”

“And four have already passed.”

Vernell had failed to meet the deadline.

He was still locked in his room, handling books and communication spheres.

“If you’re thinking about the people’s morale, this is the last possible moment. People aren’t stupid. They’ll realize that water is becoming scarce. And when resources diminish, morale falls as well.”

It was a completely reasonable argument.

It was always better to prevent problems than to try to fix them after they exploded.

He would be lying if he said he was not anxious.

He was moving forward without knowing whether the road led to an exit or an even deeper labyrinth.

At times, he even thought that perhaps it would have been better to choose the safe path and accept a small loss.

What an adventure requires is hope and courage.

And Perda was a person who considered both of those things useless.

“Even so, I will wait.”

Yet he continued moving forward.

“Do you truly believe Vernell will succeed?”

“I don’t know.”

Perda did not know what Vernell was doing.

Nor what he was trying to accomplish.

But he did know one thing.

“He hasn’t said that he failed.”

Vernell had not given up.

“And as long as he hasn’t given up, this isn’t over yet.”

As long as the person carrying the fate of that land on his shoulders continued fighting, Perda could do nothing but trust him.

“If you stubbornly persist in an uncertain situation, the damage will only increase. Even right now—”

“Hahahahahaha!”

A deranged burst of laughter interrupted Erika’s words and echoed throughout the corridor.

Erika turned her head toward the open doorway.

There stood a naked man with greasy, disheveled hair, running like a madman.

And he shouted at the top of his lungs.

“Eureka!”