A message from the system showed up.
[Quest Update: Return to Riverhold]
[Corvus Blackthorn has escaped, but primary dragon threat investigation complete]
[Rewards pending: 5,000 gold, A-rank recommendation letter]
[Recommendation: Report findings to village authorities]
[Time-sensitive: Other settlements may still be under threat]
As night fell, the three of them sat in a triangle around the campfire. There were stars in the sky, and the banner made them feel safe.
Both of them were surprised when Marshal started talking to them. "Rookie, I need to know something about you before we start training tomorrow."
"Hm? Sure."
"What's your actual goal? And why do you want strength?"
There's a small pause for Lucian where he starts to think differently this time, and then he speaks from the heart and is honest.
"In my last life, I was a nobody... I had a dead-end job with no future and no purpose other than to escape into games."
"I wasted everything I had on gacha, hoping for luck I never had."
"And now... I don't want to waste this second chance by being weak and useless again. It's everything I never deserved."
He looked at each of the two fighters. "I want to be someone who MATTERS... someone who can keep the people who trust me safe."
"Someone who is also worthy of this prophecy, even though I don't fully understand it yet."
Marshal nodded slowly, which was the first real sign that she understood. "Acceptable answer."
"Many recruits want strength for their own glory or to get back at someone, but strength FOR others? That's what makes real leaders, not just strong people."
She bent over. "Remember this feeling, rookie..."
"When training gets really hard and you want to quit, remember WHY you're doing this. That's what makes warriors different from corpses on the battlefield."
"Master has already shown us his heart." Glacielle added her own ideas. "He fought beyond his limits to protect strangers and took a dragon's attack meant for me."
"What he needs isn't more courage; he needs the skills to back it up."
Marshal's answer was typical of him, and it was very direct. "Then we'll make him competent. Or we'll kill him trying."
"Please don't actually kill me," Lucian said.
"No promises," Marshal said, and he said it with a completely blank face.
It was the first time she had actually made him laugh, and it made him smile even though he didn't want to.
Marshal outlined the next day's schedule. "0500 hours, physical conditioning."
"0700 hours, combat fundamentals."
"0900 hours: tactical theory."
"1100 hours, magic control practice."
"1300 hours of sparring sessions."
"1500 hours, scenario training."
"1700 hours: cool down and review."
Lucian said, "That's a FULL twelve hours of training."
And then he thought to himself. "I'm basically cooked here, but no matter...! As long as I can change and be the better version of my past self! That's what makes it count!"
"No! That's basic training. We'll make it harder every week as your body gets used to it."
"I'll train with you too, Master." Glacielle held his hand for a short time. "So that together we'll get stronger."
Lucian said, "You don't have to do that."
"I want to. We're partners, don't you remember?"
[Bond Level Update: Glacielle 4.2 → 4.5 Hearts]
[Party Cohesion forming: Master + Two Warriors working as unit]
In the end, they were too worn out to discuss more. Lucian fell asleep leaning against the tree, and the banner's healing power worked all night.
...
It was too early for dawn. Lucian woke up to Marshal's boot pushing him hard.
"Get the fuck up, rookie! We're leaving in ten minutes."
"But you said training starts at dawn," he said, still half-asleep.
"It does! AFTER we go back to the village and finish our first quest! Duty comes before personal training, and that's lesson one from me!"
As they packed up, Marshal showed him how to break down the camp properly. "Everything was packed well, and there was no sign of it left behind."
"You never know when you'll need to move quickly and quietly."
She looked at everyone's gear very closely. "We have enough gear, but we'll need to upgrade soon."
"Your armor is trash, rookie. We'll fix that after we get the quest reward."
As they started their journey, Marshal told them how to march. "Standard triangle for a three-person party."
"I take the lead as the strongest fighter."
"Rookie, you're in the middle as the weakest, and the ice girl takes the rear guard so that this way, the strongest fighters protect the Master's position."
Lucian asked, "I'm the weak one here...?" even though he already knew the answer.
"You're level 8 and facing threats that are level 30 or higher all the time! Yes, you're fucking weak."
"Accept the fact that you're weak so you can get over it."
"Listen and learn while we walk." Marshal kept teaching them as they walked. "Tell me everything you did wrong in yesterday's battle."
She made Lucian look at his own mistakes and fixed his evaluation when it was missing parts.
"You didn't just rush in without thinking... you also failed to properly scout the enemy's strength."
"You didn't set up any escape routes, and you didn't accurately assess how strong your party was compared to the threat level."
"Every mistake made the others worse, and that's how new adventurers die in their first month."
Lucian listened carefully to every word, determined to learn from the harsh truth.
...
Although Riverhold was visible in the distance, there was an immediate sense of distress. Smoke was coming out of many buildings.
It was not the damage from yesterday but new damage.
"Ready your combat stance." Marshal's hand went straight to her blade. "Something's not right."
There were new marks on the town walls that were different from the ones left by dragon attacks. People left or destroyed guard posts.
There were no normal town sounds, and the whole place was very quiet.
There was no screaming either, which was somehow worse than hearing panic.
A guard from the town came out of the gate, injured and bleeding. When he saw their group, his face lit up with relief.
"Adventurers! Thank the gods you're here! We really need your help!"
"What happened?" Lucian asked angrily. "Did the drakes come back already?"
"No, these are completely different dragons!"
"These ones aren't being controlled, but they're HUNTING with a purpose! They've taken hostages into the town hall and are making demands!"
"Smart dragons." Marshal's judgment was quick. "They're rare but very dangerous."
"They're not just mindless beasts or puppets. They're enemies with their own plans."
With amber eyes, she looked carefully at Lucian. "Orders, Master?"
It was clear that the test was going to happen. She wanted to know if he had learned anything.
Lucian looked at the injured guard, the burning town, and his team. He remembered what Marshal had taught him about weighing capability against threat.
"Guard, how many dragons are we talking about? And what kinds?"
"Three in all, and they're smaller than the ones from yesterday, but they're smart!"
"One of them is even talking and making demands... I think it's their leader."
Three dragons, but being smart meant that they acted in ways that were hard to predict. Lucian thought quickly.
"We help, but this time we do it SMART," he turned to Marshal. "I need tactical options before we fight."
Marshal nodded in agreement. "Finally asking the right questions."
She gave orders. "Glacielle, check the edges and look for other ways in."
"Also, check where the dragons are."
"Rookie, you're with me... we need to get more information before we do anything."
"Nobody does anything until we have a full plan."
[Quest Activated: Dragon Hostage Crisis]
[Difficulty: B-Rank]
[Objective: Rescue hostages, neutralize dragon threat]
[Reward: Unknown]
[Warning: Intelligent enemies are highly unpredictable]
The party moved into town with military precision, and Marshal's influence was already clear in how well they worked together. While Lucian and Marshal walked toward the town square, Glacielle quietly split off to scout.
There was a lot of chaos in the square. Buildings were damaged, people were hiding in cellars and back rooms, and blood stains showed where people had already died.
And at the entrance to the town hall was a dragon they had never seen before.
Medium-sized with scales that were a beautiful sapphire blue color. Not huge or too much, but graceful and royal in how it looks.
It sat on its haunches like a patient guard, clearly WAITING for something.
When it saw them coming, it spoke in a smooth, cultured voice that was clearly smart.
"Ah, more heroes have finally come... This world has become so predictable."
The dragon's voice didn't sound like an animal at all. This was a PERSON, but they were in dragon form.
"Oh, wait... where are my manners?"
"I am Azurath the Sapphire Sage." The dragon went on with a formal introduction. "Your village has something that belongs to my kind."
"Give it back right away, or your people will die... and you have one hour to do as I say."
"What are you talking about?" Lucian asked, clearly confused. "What did we even take?"
"The EGGS, human." Azurath's eyes glowed with controlled anger. "Dragon eggs that were stolen from our sacred nesting grounds."
"Your adventurer's guild keeps them as trophies in their vault."
"Huh...? What?" Lucian looked confused.
The accusation was still in the air. Maybe the village aren't really innocent victims after all.
"This makes things a lot more complicated." Marshal leaned in to speak softly. "If the village really did steal from them, we might be protecting thieves."
"But hostages are still hostages, no matter what. It's up to you, Master."
The countdown for Azurath started. "You have fifty-nine minutes left."
"Make a choice quickly, young human."
"Will you stand by your own kind, no matter what crimes they commit? Or will you seek justice, even if it means killing people?"
The dragon's smart eyes watched Lucian closely to see how he would react.
[Hidden Quest Unlocked: Dragon's Justice]
[Moral Choice Detected: Truth vs Loyalty to your species]
[Your decision will have SIGNIFICANT CONSEQUENCES]
[Choose wisely, Master Lucian]
Lucian felt the weight of leadership on his shoulders as he looked at the smart dragon and thought about what to do next.