The Demon King's Country II-4

Before Taro could interject, the dragon rose up with a thunderous roar that shook the very air, then vanished into the sea without a trace.

Though we didn't succeed in toppling it, at least the immediate difficulty seems to have passed.

Continuing to stay on guard, they descend toward the ground.

I feel a dense cluster of magic energy receding into the distance. Eventually, tracking it becomes impossible.

It worked out somehow...

Taro-nii.

William, are you alright?

Yes, there are no wounds... I couldn't make any progress at all.

"He was quite the formidable opponent. Attacks that had worked before were completely ineffective... This is going to be tough."

I... I'll become stronger. No matter how many dragons come, I'll defeat them all.

I don't like it when so many people come, but thank you anyway.

I feel worried about my serious younger brother-in-law, yet also find him dependable.

"First, let's assess the damage. Please report back."

Following my command, everyone began moving into action.

In short, the dragon-related damage was mostly material, with no casualties.

The decision to focus intensely on recovery and defense paid off.

Even though the possibility was low, the value of our steady, consistent preparations became evident.

We'll immediately share these results with the other nations.

It will probably spread nationwide within a few days.

A few days after the battle with the dragon, the country had regained its composure, returning to its usual state.

I had received a report from the research institute.

The sudden increase in black spots was likely reacting to a powerful magical beast possessing a high concentration of mana.

Apparently, the beast was absorbing the mana from the magical creature.

His mind reels from one new revelation after another.

This analysis will likely take a long time. It might even be impossible to resolve the phenomenon within my lifetime.

Of course, there's also the matter of how to return to the original world...

A faint, hazy emotion flickers through him, but suddenly the door bursts open.

A child who's recently started walking rushes in with energy, followed closely by Noelle.

The child is carried out of the room.

We have to play a lot when we get back...

A short while later, the office door opens once again.

"Reporting. A dragon has appeared in another country."

"I understand. I'm listening. You did report the previous dragon incident to the Empire, didn't you?"

"Yes, I'd like to include that matter in my report as well."

The report contained shocking information.

Dragon-related damage has been confirmed all over the world, with the Empire particularly hard hit—its capital city directly affected and destroyed.

Viewing a painting depicting the cityscape.

Smoke rises from what was once a magnificent castle, now half-destroyed.

Fires are visible from the city as well. Everywhere is in ruins.

It was a scene of utter devastation.

The people living in the Empire are deeply worried.

The envoy sent to report was able to meet with the Empress and relay the situation in our country.

The Empress called for participation in the World Conference.

Given her nature, she must be furious about the Empire’s destruction.

Naturally, the agenda was the formation of a unified army to defeat the Dragon.

But I can't possibly leave the country at this critical moment.

I decide to send William in my place.

I have no fundamental objection to the formation of a unified army.

I will cooperate in the extermination of the Dragon.

I entrust these messages to William, and he departs for the Empire.

While waiting for William, I repair the nation's damaged infrastructure and continue analyzing the limited samples we managed to collect.

A few weeks later... William returns, weeping.

"Zumi mazen..."

"What happened!?"

According to William, talks among representatives from various nations took place, resulting in the formation of a unified military force due to the Empress's overwhelming power.

However, there was an imbalance in military funding and personnel.

My country ended up bearing the majority of the burden. The reasons were our relatively low damage levels so far and our prior experience in repelling attacks.

Furthermore, command authority was assigned to me.

In short, it seems William lost the negotiations.

The only advantages we have are the high level of command authority and operational freedom, along with some military expenses being borne by other countries.

Negotiations are where experience counts. I suppose I can learn gradually as we go.

Now, the immediate challenge is having been assigned the task of slaying the dragon.

From fighting it, I've realized that having ordinary soldiers is pointless.

That massive body—ordinary attacks simply won't make a dent.

Even the Empire couldn't withstand a sweeping area-of-effect breath attack—it would have been half-destroyed.

It's overwhelmingly powerful, to the point where I can't even figure out how to deal with it.

Even my strongest attacks couldn't break through its defenses. Even if I kept up that assault, would it really fall...?

And yet, I sense it still has even stronger abilities left.

My thoughts won't stop, but no matter how much I ponder, there are things I simply cannot understand. I must force myself to stop overthinking and act.

First things first—gathering allies. I’ve identified strong combatants and sent them letters.

Next, I must focus on investigating the dragon.

Where exactly does that dragon appear? What are its weaknesses? And above all, just what *is* it?

I’ll lock myself away in the research facility I built within my castle to ponder.

According to past research, it tends to appear in areas with dungeons and large concentrations of black spots.

Based on actual observations, it appears to feed on the monsters that emerge in dungeons.

An increase in black spots occurs when magical energy concentration rises sharply.

It seems to absorb magical energy from the surrounding area, reconnecting with the original world and facilitating the exchange between magical energy and matter.

The underlying principle remains unknown, and it cannot be controlled.

Is the dragon causing those black spots? No, I think it's just a natural phenomenon. Even if dragons are the supreme beings, they couldn't possibly manipulate natural phenomena themselves.

After all, I'm not even a mage...

As I pondered, a knock came from the door. One of my subordinates.

It seems they managed to recover the remains of the magical beast devoured by the dragon during the recent battle. I immediately head to the scene.

When I arrived at the harbor, a marine-type monster lay sprawled out.

It was completely dead, posing no immediate threat. Its belly had been torn open entirely by a dragon's jaws—was it eaten?

Yet, aside from that, no other significant injuries were visible. The wound was large, but it seemed implausible that such a massive monster would perish from such a single injury. Was it for food? Or perhaps not?

There must be some other factor at play...

"Please thoroughly investigate this corpse—everything from its structure to its magical essence. I'm counting on you."

I entrusted the remaining investigation to my assigned researcher and began formulating hypotheses.

If it wasn't for food, then why target magical beasts?

As I compiled the information coming in one after another, I started considering ways to defeat the dragon.

Directly confronting it head-on would be difficult. Yet, this world has faced dragons before and overcome them in the past.

Then...