I Married the Dragon I Killed

Several days later, a Dragon Spawn from Lorga’s side arrived.

“Greetings. I am Isabella Lorga, assigned here by appointment. Starting today, I will work at Castle Valdrova as an administrator.”

As befitted a descendant of Lorga, the pair of horns protruding from her forehead were rounded and not threatening at all.

Her sharp eyes and disciplined movements made her look like a strict supervisor at a glance.

He had heard that a Spawn would arrive, but there was one incorrect part in the documents.

“I heard about this, but they told me the one coming would be a Spawn named Yuria.”

“I took Yuria’s place of my own will. You may rest assured, as Leader Erika’s chief secretary, I dare say my capabilities are far superior to Yuria’s. Within the tower they call me the merciless secretary.”

Isabella adjusted her glasses while adopting a solemn expression.

It was obvious she had great confidence in herself, though there was no way to know whether she was truly that competent.

After all, Perda already knew the pride of the Dragon Spawn well.

“Very well, understood.”

“The alliance declaration ceremony will be held in one week. It will be carried out with documents personally signed by Lord Blancaros and will be announced throughout the continent of Serdes. Do you have any questions?”

“I already received a written explanation from Leader Erika, so I do not have too many doubts.”

“Understood. Please review the contents of the alliance agreement intended for our leader and place the seal here.”

Since they were important documents, Perda reviewed every word before placing the official seal.

It seemed finished, but another document appeared before him.

“This is the authority consent required to act as administrator. Here, judicial and tax collection authority are delegated to me, as well as the right to make decisions when it becomes necessary to subcontract administrative matters and…”

In summary, the contents were simple.

Perda would personally handle approval of important matters such as tax collection, law enforcement, or diplomacy, while Isabella would directly manage minor matters, small disputes, and the supervision system for tax collectors.

“We have finished all delegation documents.”

“That’s all?”

“Now the important part begins. We must carefully review the security levels within the castle. Except for resident personnel, all temporary workers and people without rank will be expelled. And furthermore…”

After that, they spoke about the castle’s internal administration.

Isabella analyzed the changes Perda had implemented after speaking with Morida, fluently explaining how they would function in practice and convincing him through arguments of efficiency and appearance.

As the discussion about administration was ending, Isabella discreetly looked out the window.

What stretched below was a silent forest without the sounds of beasts.

“I had heard rumors, but it seems there truly is no city beneath Castle Valdrova.”

“They say it is too harsh for civilians to live here.”

“Where do you intend to house the adventurers?”

“Wouldn’t Count Consilus’s territory be enough?”

“That is not a good idea.”

Isabella answered coldly.

“To form the power of a nation, the priority is neither capital nor food, but population. We must begin designing a city around this place so we can house adventurers.”

“I have the impression that you are ignoring the fact that it is difficult for civilians to live near here.”

“That would be true if there were no specialists capable of using magic. I will request that Blue Eye send mages responsible for maintaining the magic formations. Of course, that will be under a contract concept, so I will prepare a budget to form a magic squad and submit it for approval. If we eliminate the fear caused by Dragon Fear, this city would have nothing to envy a capital.”

A capital…?

Olivia Arken had said something similar.

She wished for this place to become a second capital.

It would happen someday, but wasn’t it too soon?

“And the pressure from the Empire?”

“That is like being afraid of worms and therefore not making soybean paste. They will not be able to act recklessly. Adventurers will begin gathering in the Demon Land, and that concentration will naturally form a city. If they attempt to block it under the pretext of the eastern conquest, Lorga’s side will show its opposition.”

Until now, the Empire had viewed Valdrova as little more than a watchdog.

But Lorga was a group of mages with influence across the entire continent.

Perda felt satisfied knowing they would truly support them.

“We must also contact commercial companies. You already managed to attract one, correct? The Pascal Trading Company.”

“Correct.”

“One large company alone is not enough. Even if we cannot attract merchants from the west, we must actively encourage trade with the north and south.”

“Then I will have to speak with Stephan.”

“I will handle that as administrator. We will also be able to reach satisfactory agreements with the Pascal Trading Company.”

“Do it.”

After that, more and more topics continued appearing.

Road restructuring, investment funds, donations, urban planning strategies.

Perda believed he had studied quite a bit, but before Isabella he was nothing more than a drop in the ocean.

She proposed new ideas fluently, linking strategy after strategy and making perfect use of the resources Perda already possessed.

‘She certainly deserves to be called chief secretary.’

She did not use sophisticated wordplay, instead summarizing only the essentials and conveying only what was necessary.

She was firm with important matters and flexible with trivial ones, always emphasizing pragmatism.

‘I thought I would receive a chicken as a substitute, but a phoenix ended up arriving.’

She was definitely a competent person.

So competent that it was even frightening.

‘Why would someone like her come to this castle?’

That was what intrigued Perda.

If the Spawn named Yuria had come, he would have simply thought Erika had sent her.

But Isabella had volunteered herself.

Lorga’s descendants were Dragon Spawn.

And all of them shared an absolute pride based on the idea that they were different beings.

Especially the pride they felt for Blue Eye, the tower created by Lorga, was enormous, so they hated leaving the tower.

Being sent to Castle Valdrova was practically exile.

Then why would such a talented secretary willingly come to a place like this?

While he was thinking that, Isabella organized the scattered documents.

“For now, we will leave the general summary here and create the roadmap together later. We will finish today’s work lightly. Good work.”

“Yes, good work.”

“May I ask a question?”

Isabella asked with a solemn expression.

“Does the regent enjoy drinking alcohol?”

“I do not touch it.”

Perda answered bluntly, and Isabella’s body trembled slightly.

The woman who had spoken so fluently showed signs of confusion.

“I should have confirmed this earlier… Is there perhaps a complete prohibition on alcohol in this castle?”

“It is not that. I simply do not drink.”

“I see. Understood.”

Her expression immediately showed relief.

For some reason, that reaction irritated Perda, and he ended up asking her.

“You like drinking?”

“Only a little. Alcohol after work is something very special.”

“Hmm, I see.”

Even if they were different races, a mage was still a mage.

A mage’s friends were alcohol and women.

Even if one had both, nobody would say anything, so having only one was perfectly tolerable.

Knock knock.

Someone knocked on the door and entered the office.

It was a girl in a maid uniform, Ruri.

“Lord Perda, in front of the castle gates… Hm?”

She had entered to speak about something, but upon discovering Isabella, her attention was absorbed by her.

“So you are the person sent this time to assist Lady Valdrova.”

Ruri frowned as she walked toward Isabella.

When they were about three steps apart, the height difference between them became obvious at a glance.

Even so, Ruri was not intimidated and directly launched a battle of presence.

“As today is your first day here, I will make this clear. The person who has served this castle the longest is me. If you move or replace anything without my consent, you will not be able to avoid conflict.”

The atmosphere was truly serious.

If someone touched her things, she seemed ready to start a war.

Though to Perda, it looked different.

‘She looks like a dog marking territory.’

Prejudice was truly terrifying.

To him, Ruri looked nothing more than a small chihuahua barking fiercely.

Isabella looked down at her.

Her rational eyes gleamed as she opened her mouth.

“How small and adorable.”

“Huh?”

Adjusting her glasses with her middle finger, she spoke coldly, as if what she had just said had been an illusion.

“I heard that you, Ruri Silverwind, handle all administrative duties within this castle.”

“That is correct.”

“From now on, I will call you Miss Ruri. I confirmed that the level of cleanliness exceeds even the standards of our magic tower. However, the administrative work is one step away from absolute disaster. There are far too many things that do not align with efficiency or practicality.”

“Worrying about such things does not suit the dignity of a dragon.”

“You will have to worry about them. Among all confirmed dragons, Lady Valdrova possesses the least wealth. To the point of frustrating originally planned budgets.”

Ruri’s expression hardened when she heard that Valdrova possessed little wealth, but she could not refute it.

After all, Valdrova had always lived without any interest in rare treasures.

“Then do you have some complaint?”

“It is not a complaint. I am only saying that proper financial administration is necessary.”

“……”

“There will be changes within the castle due to the administrative reorganization, but before that, I will personally come to ask for your permission, Miss Ruri. Does proceeding that way sound acceptable to you?”

“As long as you do that, I have no objections.”

“Understood. Then I will take my leave for today. We will meet again tomorrow, Regent Perda.”

“Very well.”

The sound of her shoes echoed across the marble floor.

Just as befitted the chief secretary of Lorga, a magic tower filled with refinement, she departed with elegant steps.

Ruri watched her back while showing an expression full of displeasure.

“I do not like that woman.”

“Are you jealous?”

“No. Why would I feel jealous of those aquatic lizards? I simply dislike her.”

When Isabella looked at her, Ruri had felt a strange sensation.

Even though she had clearly won, it did not feel like she had truly won.

It was all because of the unpleasant feeling behind that gaze hidden behind the glasses.

Of course, Perda was not interested in that.

He only thought she was jealous.

“Then did you come to mark your territory?”

“Do not compare me to a stray dog wandering around the neighborhood. Rector Escolea has come to see you.”

Rector Escolea.

As a reward for saving his life, he was supposed to hand over the blueprints for the demon appearance prediction device.

Many things had happened, and Perda had not wanted to pressure him, but it seemed the man had not forgotten.

“He must have come from very far away, so receive him properly first. Tell him I will see him in two hours.”

“Understood.”

Ruri left like that.

Although he wanted to take a short break, there was also another pending matter.

A crystal sphere rested on Perda’s desk.

The sphere, engraved with communication magic, was blinking.

That meant someone was trying to contact him.

Perda placed his hand on the crystal and accepted the transmission.

— Hello, Regent Perda.

It was Erika Lorga.

“Yes, Leader Lorga.”

— You are not going to cut the transmission this time, are you?

“If that is what you wish, I can cut it right now.”

— Do not be so cold. After all, we will soon become allies, will we not? I received the documents confirming the alliance agreement.

“Did you contact me only for that?”

— Let us say it is also an excuse. The one who went was not Yuria, correct?

“Yes. She said her name was Isabella.”

— Yes, that is correct. What do you think? If you do not like her or something like that, I can send Yuria again.

For some reason, that sounded as though she wanted to take back her chief secretary, and Perda immediately felt rejection.

“That will not be necessary. I think she is exactly the kind of competent person we needed.”

— Yes, she does her work very well. After all, she is my chief secretary. She is so interested in administrative practice that she even secretly went to Escolea under a false identity and earned a doctorate. But…

She let out a long sigh.

“Is there some problem?”

— No. It is better to leave that subject alone. It would be better if you discover it little by little. That girl is not bad or anything similar.

Because at work she is perfect.

Precisely because she muttered something like that, it only awakened even more curiosity.

What kind of problem could that woman have?

She was surely the type who was troublesome personally but flawless at work.

— Just as I said, the official announcement will be in one week. You will have plenty of time, so prepare well.

“Understood.”

— Then, for the sake of our alliance, I hope we continue staying in frequent contact.

With a voice that sounded as though she were smiling, Erika cut the transmission.

‘The announcement will be in one week…’

They said starting was half the work.

Perda could already foresee mountains of documents.

It would be troublesome, but it was not bad.

Because all of this was also for Valdrova.

Perda looked outside.

For now, there was only a forest densely covered with trees.

But someday it would be filled with buildings and people.

The streets would overflow with crowds and carriages constantly moving, and everyone would sing Valdrova’s name while praising her.

That was why Perda would endure this suffering.

For his one and only fiancée.