Not long after me and Grodell regrouped with the 4th division…… a bloodied Azalea, and the beastman who is shorter than me, Nell, have returned.
The clothes on Azalea’s shoulder are ripped, and he’s bleeding.
Seeing him in that state made me even more infuriated

“A-, Azalea-sama was, hurt by a monster…… someone, heal him with magic……”

Nell asks the other men as he puts Azalea down.
That pure and non-malicious tone of his, for some reason, irritates me.
I could feel my brows wrinkling in anger.

“Azalea! Explain to me what I’m seeing right now! You boasted about subjugating that dragon, but look at you now! You’re all beat up against a measly undead! What happened to the other two? Are they dead? Don’t tell me you even let that undead escape!”

While screaming, I unsheathe my sword and thrust it into the ground out of impulse.
It rings with a vibrant sound and fragments of rocks crumbled.
I pick up the sword and walk angrily towards Azalea.
Nell is unsure of what to do, but when Azalea signals him with his eyes, he leaves Azalea alone and steps back.

“Forgive me, Your Excellency. I have no excuse over my failure. Instead of an excuse, I ask that I continue the plan……”

“You’re saying you still want to take charge over subjugating that dragon?! Even with all the losses we suffered, you have the nerve to say that…… with your arm like that, you won’t be able to swing your sword properly! What exactly can you still do right now?! I had high expectations in you, but when it mattered the most, you couldn’t even handle a mere lower monster! Don’t you get it! This is my one chance to become the next king! The honor of my Tallvenitz name is at stake here! You said to leave the dragon subjugation to you…… but, look at you now!”

I swing my sword in a rage.
Nell, who was watching at a distance, breaks in and attempts to step in between us.
But then, Azalea takes the sword of a nearby soldier, points it at Nell to stop him in his tracks, and receives my blade with his left hand.

There’s no way blocking a direct hit from a sword with your bare hands will leave you unscathed.
I was blinded with rage, so the force I used to swing the sword shouldn’t be that strong, but even so, the blade penetrated deep into Azalea’s left palm and his index finger was cut off.
His hand was awfully bleeding a lot.

“What…… what were you thinking?”

If Azalea hadn’t stopped Nell, he would’ve easily defended or avoided my hit.
No, with his top-notch skills, he could even avoid the hit while stopping Nell.
Azalea is left-handed. It’s common knowledge for a swordsman to take care of their dominant arm.
There have been many skilled sword masters who became unable to get on with their lives after their dominant arms became dysfunctional from too many injuries.
It’s true that I swung my sword because I was fuming with anger, but it wasn’t my intention to cut Azalea’s finger.

“…… Swords, are not needed to subdue that dragon. Not even someone of my caliber can take that dragon head on. That is why…… this level of injury, won’t be a problem at all if we intend to defeat that dragon.”

“And, to show that, you deliberately……”

Azalea drops the sword and kneels on the spot.

“I will, continue to work hard to ensure that Your Excellency becomes the next king. For this sole reason, I will gladly lay down my body and soul. Please, I implore you to order me to subdue that dragon one last time…… Lord Tallmann, you should just focus on staying alive.”

I was at a loss of words for a while there.
I didn’t expect Azalea to speak such good words to me like that.

“…… Mhm, then I’ll just leave this matter to you. Don’t screw this up again”

“Certainly! Even if it means offering up my life, I will make sure to bring the two heads of that dragon to Your Excellency.”

My anger has finally dissipated and I can think calmly again.

“…… I may have gotten too full of myself there. What’s wrong with you lot! Hurry and tend to Azalea’s arm this instant!”

When I called out the 4th Division, several white mages nervously walked past me and began Azalea’s treatment.

“So Azalea, how exactly do you plan on taking out that dragon?”

Azalea, who’s currently surrounded by white mages from the 4th Division, faces up and locks onto my eyes.

“…… By trapping a Lithuvar child inside a cave, and leading the dragon there. If that dragon really cares about the Lithuvar Tribe…… then, it will most likely attempt to save the child to fulfill its role as their Guardian Deity”

“Is there even a cave nearby that’s large enough to fit a dragon of that size?”

“No, I don’t think so. That is why…… it will be forced to use it. If it is indeed a high-ranked dragon, then it is bound to have the skill〖Human Transformation〗…… it will use that skill to enter the cave and save the hostage. However, that skill is nothing but a cluster of open weaknesses…… with its stats halved and its magic power slowly depleting, a direct hit from a selected swordsman should deal massive amounts of damage. This is the only way to defeat the dragon, by lowering its stats to average and dwindling down its magic”

“…… At first glance, it doesn’t seem to be a bad plan, however, this is highly dependent on the 2nd party’s actions. And besides, we aren’t too sure that it will really come and save the child……”

“Regardless, it is the only way to turn the tides of the battle.

After all…… our opponent is the legendary evil dragon, Ouroboros”

“D-, Did you say Ouroboros?!”

I unintentionally raised my voice.
Everyone heard me and were also in shock.

An Ouroboros has a threat level of A.
But, despite the high threat level, there were also instances where countries would ally with an Ouroboros, and that country would remain prosperous throughout the centuries, overwhelmingly defeating their rival nations with the dragon’s help.

I know next to nothing regarding the Ouroboros other than from tales or legends.
Although, I’ve heard that they’re quite undeniably tough for their appearance.

“Precisely. And, if word spreads that it has been taken down under your leadership…… then, you will undoubtedly become the next king without question. The gifts from the other nobles will be nothing compared to your marvelous achievement”

“T-, That sounds like a far-fetched dream! How can you say that with a straight face! If what you say is true and that was an Ouroboros, can you really kill it?! It’s said to be the symbol of immortality……!”

“The only problem is the amount of magic and vitality it has. Legends are often exaggerated…… if it is a living creature, it’s life is bound to extinguish at some point. There is no such thing as eternal life. If we just get it to use〖Human Transformation〗…… we will have plenty of advantages. Before it can leave the cave, we should seize the opportunity and strike it down while its physical and magical reserves are lowered”

It’s a tightrope… but, if it succeeds, my route to become king will be certain.
Considering that the neighboring countries see it as a threat, they will indefinitely come to appreciate my triumph.
And, as an added bonus, we can make use of the Ouroboros’s eyes, flesh, and bones to further advance the development of magic tools.
It won’t take long for my name to spread across the world.
We’ve suffered too many losses…… but, the benefits we’ll gain if this succeeds is far greater.

“B-, but still…… with your arm like that, you’ll be in no condition to swing a sword!”

“I will disguise myself with magic…… When the Ouroboros leaves the cave, before it can release its〖Human Transformation〗, I will shoot it with a barrage of〖Flare〗at full power. If I hit its body while in its human state, unprotected by its scales, even the Ouroboros should be significantly damaged after multiple shots of〖Flare〗”

“T-, That may be true…… with that much firepower, it should be enough to kill even an Ouroboros”

“This plan will rely heavily on you…… Nell. Whatever it takes, hold off the humanized Ouroboros for even one second longer and make it count. Your speed should be able to keep it in check.”

Azalea turns to Nell and tells him that.
Nell gulps and faces down.

“That means that…… you’re going to take advantage of its status as the Lithuvar Tribe’s Guardian Deity by laying down the life of one of their kind…… right?”

The atmosphere then became morbid.
We’re about to face off against a legendary monster with a chance of killing it, what rubbish is he spouting now?
This is why I despise that brat.
The only reason why I haven’t kicked him out of his position yet is because Azalea highly praises his skills, but honestly, I’m not the least bit interested about it.

“And here I was wondering what you were gonna say! Do you know how much Azalea had to……”

Azalea reaches out and grabs me.

“My Lord, Nell is more than capable of confronting the humanized Ouroboros. He is a valuable asset. Even if humanizing lowers its stats to half, it may still be powerful enough to fend off at least ten ordinary soldiers. And, with my arm in this pitiful state, I doubt even I can last long against it……”

“You seem to regard Nell with high standards! In case you’ve forgotten, he’s the type of person who cowers when dealing the final blow on the enemy because he keeps pitying them!”

Azalea stayed silent for a while, then he opens his mouth.

“Nell…… it’s not that I don’t understand your sympathy towards the Lithuvar Tribe. After all, they have customs, cultures…… children, and their parents too. I judged that you were too kindhearted to be involved in their slaughter, that’s why I suggested you to be transferred to another squad on standby”

What is Azalea talking about now.
Without knowing, I was already looking at Azalea with discontent. Despite my judgmental stare at him, he kept his eyes glued at Nell and continued talking.

“Higher-ranked dragons are smart. And among them, those classified under ‘evil dragons’ are the most cunning and cruel of them all. They might bear interest in humans, but they never show affection to them. Never.”

“Eh? I-If that’s true, then why would you think that it would come and save the hostage……?”

“It isn’t uncommon for higher-ranked demons and dragons to use humans in order to raise more followers. You should’ve seen it too. That undead child. The Ouroboros have the ability to create powerful undead. And, the Lithuvar Tribe has been offering lost travelers as sacrifices to it. The reason for that is… well, you probably get the gist of it by now”

“………… But, that’s……”

“If that Ouroboros gets any more powerful, soon Ardezia, and even the neighbouring countries, will perish with no one to spare. Thousands and thousands will die. Even your life that Lord Tallmann saved, despite being a Ferris Huma, will be wasted. Or, do you want to see for yourself if that Ouroboros will really, unconditionally, save the child out of the goodness of its heart?”

“…………”

“Are you not in favor of using a child as a hostage? That sort of mindset will only increase the casualties. You should know that eliminating the Ouroboros is also a good thing. Once its gone, the Lithuvar Tribe will no longer have any reason to continue with their sacrifices”

The usually tepid Nell became quiet.
As expected of Azalea. I have me a fine subordinate.

“…… If you choose to participate in this plan, then not only will you be rewarded, but you will also be relieved of your duties as a member of the “Hungry Hunters” like you’ve always wanted. You”ll be free to go wherever you wish.”

After saying that, Azalea gives me an eye signal.
In the first place, it was Azalea who recommended Nell into our ranks. Since I’m going to become king anyways, such trivial matters should be nothing to me.
I can reward Nell as much as he wants to, if it means dismissing him from my army of elites.

“I under, stand…… I’ll take the crucial role of leading the Ouroboros astray”

“Well said. I’ll be looking forward to it, Nell”

Azalea says as he roughly pats Nell’s head.
After Azalea lets go of his hand, Nell timidly looks up at him.

“If you think you can no longer hold your ground, retreat to the forest immedia-……”

Azalea suddenly cut his words.
Nell looks at Azalea worriedly.

“…… No, don’t leave the cave. If you reach your limit, create a diversion and stay back”

“R-, Right……”

It’s rather uncommon for Azalea to rephrase himself.
Did he notice something off?
As I think of that, a voice is heard in the distance.

“Tallmann-sama~a! We extracted a whole bunch of information from the children! The Carbuncle is as good as ours! And, I was thinking of slowly tormenting the children to cheer everyone up, how about you?”

It’s just Grodell.
Azalea starts moving and stands before him.

“…… I’m sorry to say that the children will be coming with me. You should go with Lord Tallmann and run along to safety”

“What was that?! We finally got information about the Carbuncle! I’m not leaving until we get our hands on it. What’s with you, did that dragon turn you into a scaredy-ca-……”

Azalea puts a finger to Grodell’s neck and scratches it. Grodell then fell on his knees.

“W-Why you……”

“I don’t trust you…… but unfortunately, there are no better commanders to take on the task. Listen to me now, don’t push your luck. Or, I will kill you without a second thought. If you understand that, prepare to withdraw”

“How dare you… don’t mess with me!”

Grodell bends his back, pulls out a knife from under his sleeve, and moves to stab Azalea.
Azalea effortlessly knocks away the knife with his right arm and elbows Grodell’s face.

“Buh!”

Then, Azalea follows it up with a punch to the face.
Pieces of Grodel’s teeth fly in the air and he falls on the ground.
Azalea grabs him by the neck and lifts him up to eye level.

“I’ll say it again. I don’t trust you. Don’t push your luck. Do you understand?”

After Grodell weakly nods in agreement, Azalea places him down and calls more white mages to heal him.
Grodell is a pretty good fighter, but Azalea is just something else.
Even if he wasn’t using his dominant arm as a handicap, I never thought the differences in strength would be this huge.
It is also uncommon for Azalea to move without me ordering him to.
Grodell’s upbeat mood must’ve stressed him out.

In the end, Grodell ended up following what Azalea said, and together with most of the 4th Division members, we retreat further back outside the forest.

“Azalea, make sure you bring to me the head of that Ouroboros!”

“I will make it happen. It’ll be like walking on a tightrope, but I will make sure to cross it.”