[V10C22] With Certainty

Dunning, the captain of the 7th Investigation Division of Ridill’s Dragon Knights, believed that there was nothing ‘certain’ in this world. The concept of ‘certainty’ was an ideal, and one that he would probably never reach.

Thus, he constantly uttered the word, like a mantra, to get closer to his ideal.

——There is nothing I love more than certainty.

——We must eliminate the dragon with certainty.

——Certainty, certainty, certainty…

Dunning had honed his skills to kill dragons with certainty. He devised numerous strategies and even contributed to anti-dragon weapon development.

And yet, those efforts fell short, and he ended up getting gutted by a dragon’s claws. Humans were always powerless before the immense might of dragons.

The injury damaged several of his organs, turning his well-honed body into a complete waste. Moreover, he had already lost his family and countless subordinates.

——Further injustices must not be allowed to pass.

Dunning did not spare any means to ensure a subjugation. It was the same for the event eight years ago.

“Please, wait! He isn’t a bad dragon, and he would never harm anyone. I’ll convince him to return to dragon territory, I promise! So please!”

That was what the magical creature biologist had claimed as he stood in front of Dunning’s unit and obstructed their mission. The man was foolish enough to side with dragons over humans.

Thus, to ensure the dragon’s subjugation, Dunning had…

“Captain Dunning.”

Hearing his name called by a subordinate, Dunning switched his focus.

“…Have you found something?” Dunning asked.

The young subordinate pointed to a base of a certain tree.

Most of the trees were coniferous, aka softwoods, but there were a few hardwoods sprinkled throughout. And the one the subordinate pointed at was a hardwood, more specifically an oak tree.

There were noticeable claw marks at the base of the oak tree, and judging by their width, they had been left by a small creature, perhaps about the size of a rabbit. And yet, the marks were remarkably sharp and deep.

Hardwood trees were generally denser than softwood trees, so the creature responsible for the marks purposely chose a sturdy oak tree to sharpen its claws.

Dunning crouched down and observed the ground. Atop the reddish-brown and rain-soaked soil, he found a small scale, about the size of a thumbnail.

Dunning picked up the scale and wiped off the dirt with his sleeve. At first, it appeared dark brown. But after tilting it, the scale turned black, red, orange, and yellow depending on the play of light.

(Judging by the size of the claw marks and the softness of this scale, the dragon must still be very young…)

Once they learned the presence of a dragonling, the reason for the red dragon’s appearance became obvious: the mother dragon was searching for her child.

(A perfect opportunity to decisively slay a dragon before it can harm humans…)

Dunning twisted the corners of his lips into a smile, then gave the order to his subordinates.

“Inform all unit members. There are traces of a dragonling in the vicinity. Find and capture it as soon as possible.”

＊　＊　＊

“…I see smoke signals. Three green ones.”

Silas, who was leading the way, paused and looked up at the sky. Monica also looked in the same direction.

The smoke signals were coming from a position relatively close to the base of the investigation team.

“Um, won’t the other Dragon Knights be able to see that signal…?”

“Nah, a line of three smoke signals means ‘ignore that, it’s a mistake’ in the Dragon Knights.”

Apparently, before joining the Seven Sages, Silas had collaborated with the Dragon Knights on hunts, so he knew how their signals worked.

Three smoke signals were generally used to indicate a mistake, which was why Robson could use it as a signal that only Monica and Silas understood. If the other Dragon Knights questioned him about it, then he could simply dismiss it as an accident.

“Have they found my child?”

The tanuki’s question was answered by Silas with a stern expression.

“Can’t say for sure, it might just be a reported sighting. For now, let’s go back and meet up with Robson. Nee-san, I’ll pick up the pace a bit, so tell me if you can’t keep up.”

“R-Right!”

Monica wanted to avoid slowing down her junior, so she pumped herself up to make it back quickly. Fortunately, they were not too far from base, and Silas’s flight magic allowed them to bypass most of the terrain.

After walking briskly for about an hour, the base became visible in the distance, and Monica heard someone calling her name. She turned to see Robson beckoning for her from behind the shadow of a tree.

The three approached Robson, but Monica was already out of breath and leaning on her staff. In contrast to the exhausted Monica, Silas and the tanuki still seemed energetic.

While keeping an eye out to make sure no one overheard their conversation, Silas asked Robson, “Were there any sightings of the dragonling?”

“No, but they found some traces. Unfortunately, it seems the captain was one of the first to learn about it. The news has already been communicated to everyone.”

Robson glanced awkwardly at the tanuki, before averting his eyes. He was likely choosing his words carefully to avoid angering the red dragon. His hesitance made it easy to imagine what instructions Dunning had given.

Robson said that Dunning intended to use the child as bait to lure out the mother, which meant he must have ordered his men to capture the dragonling.

Silas clicked his tongue and glared at his magical tool for detecting dragons. It was currently set with the dragonling scale that had popped out of the tanuki’s fluffy belly. However, there was still no reaction.

While catching her breath, Monica contemplated to herself.

(We have to find and protect the dragonling before Captain Dunning…)

Dunning was currently investigating the area to the northeast, which had rugged terrain with steep height differences. If they continued on foot, Monica’s slow pace would likely allow Dunning to find the dragonling first.

Monica quickly drew a mental map of the area before suggesting a solution.

“Silas-san, can you carry me while using flight magic?”

“Yeah, but not for too long…”

Silas did not look too thrilled about Monica’s proposal.

Flight magic may be extremely convenient, but it also consumes a great deal of mana, making it impossible for humans to fly for an extended duration. This was why Silas had only used it to skip past obstacles during today’s investigation.

But now, the situation had turned urgent. They needed to find the dragonling before Dunning.

“Let’s use flight magic to investigate the area Captain Dunning is in before him. Due to the rough terrain, flight magic will give us the advantage. Combined with your tool for locating dragons, we should be able to catch up.”

“Nee-san, you want to find the dragonling without Captain Dunning noticing, right? In that case, flying higher than the trees will attract too much attention. And it’ll be pretty hard to navigate without knowledge of the terrain…”

Flying through a forest at low altitude required careful attention to avoid colliding with trees. Moreover, speeding through an unfamiliar forest while avoiding obstacles was likely to get them lost.

However, Monica had a solution.

“Don’t worry, I’ve already memorized the maps. As long as I keep track of our speed and direction, I can cross-reference our location with the results of your detection tool.”

Silas and Robson stared at Monica with surprised looks, until she prompted them with a, “We need to hurry.”

Monica was using an unusually strong tone of voice. In response, Silas nodded and handed her the magical tool.

She climbed onto Silas’s back in the piggyback position with her staff in her right hand and the tool in her left. Meanwhile, the tanuki used her small hands to climb up Monica’s shoulders and slip into her hood.

“Woops, did I choke you? Sorry. Does it hurt anywhere?”

The tanuki, nestled in Monica’s hood, began speaking to Monica with concern. The weight in her hood made her feel a bit tight around the neck, but it was bearable, so Monica gave a small nod.

“I-I’m fine. But, um, Silas-san…”

“Don’t worry,” Silas replied. “One tanuki doesn’t weigh enough to make a difference.”

“Oh my goodness, you sure know how to smooth-talk a lady. Auntie is going to blush.”

The tanuki reached out her short forelegs to pat Silas’s shoulders.

Silas furrowed his brow. “…Why did that make you happy?”

It was then that Silas remembered the urgency of the situation. He immediately began the incantation for flight magic. A whirlwind began to form around him, fluttering the hem of his robe.

“I’ll be going pretty fast! Hang on tight, Nee-san! Auntie Tanuki!”

“Got it!”

“Okay!”

Silas blasted forward with great momentum, while still making sure to stay below the surrounding trees.

＊　＊　＊

After watching Silas and Monica fly off into the distance, Robson stroked the stubble on his chin as he whispered, “…Take care.”

Then, he circled around to the other side of a large tree, pulling out a tattered bundle of cloth from his backpack.

This was something he discovered almost immediately after parting ways with the Silent Witch. The cloth was dirty and worn out to the point where its original color was indistinguishable, but it had probably once been a knapsack.

He rummaged through the remnants of the knapsack to find a folder containing a bundle of papers.

(Probably belonged to that magical biologist from eight years ago… Now then, who should I give this to?)

Captain Dunning, the Silent Witch, or perhaps…

(It’ll probably fetch a pretty penny if I sell it to him.)

After making up his mind, Robson put on his backpack again.

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