On his first day of duty, Sancaka was assigned to assist with surveillance at the border gate. This was the first time he could contribute directly to guarding the barrier that kept monsters from attacking the village. Standing at the exit gate, Sancaka watched horses pulling carts going in and out one by one. So far, his first task was fairly simple—he only needed to monitor, ensure that every cart leaving Demak Village was escorted by knights, and confirm that the cargo matched what was written in the scroll.
The escort was required to prevent the carts from being attacked by Kurawa during the journey. Occasionally, Sancaka tried to guess what each passing cart contained. For carts leaving the village, it was easy to assume they carried harvested crops, since Demak Village was an agrarian village whose people relied heavily on agriculture.
Meanwhile, carts entering the village could contain anything except crops, as Demak needed goods that were not locally available. Several times, Sancaka stopped carts for inspection. Every incoming cart was checked by three knights.
Sancaka's role was to inspect the contents directly. One knight would dictate the approved cargo from the list, while another circled the cart to ensure the condition of the horse, driver, and cart were all in good shape. Various carts passed under Sancaka's watch—some carried fish from fishermen, fabrics made from sheep's wool, and milk from goats.
However, while inspecting the fifth cart, Sancaka was surprised by what he heard from the scroll.
"What did you say? Dragon eggs?" Sancaka asked.
He stepped further into the cart to find the object. There, he saw eggs as tall as his stomach. It was the first time he had ever seen such large eggs, as he was used to seeing only normal-sized ones.
"Do you see them? The eggs should be larger than poultry eggs, about the height of your torso."
"Yes, I see them—and there are two," Sancaka replied after finding them.
"Next, four crates of dragon hide," said the knight.
"Huh? Dragon hide?" Sancaka repeated in disbelief.
He examined the cart again. Besides the two large eggs, there were four wooden crates. He opened each one and found thick, scaly hides inside. At first, he thought they were crocodile skins because of their texture, but upon closer inspection, the color was different.
The scales were a dark red. *This must be dragon hide,* Sancaka thought.
After checking all the crates and confirming they contained the same material, the inspection was complete.
"That's all the listed cargo. Your cart may proceed," said the knight.
The cart moved on after Sancaka stepped down.
"This is my first time seeing dragon eggs and dragon hide. That's why I was surprised," Sancaka said.
"I also rarely see materials sourced from dragons," said the knight who had been circling the cart.
"That's because our village doesn't raise dragons as livestock," said the knight holding the cargo list. "If people need dragon materials, they have to get them from outside the village."
"Aren't dragons dangerous creatures that should be driven away?" Sancaka asked.
"In the past, people believed that. But now, someone—no one knows who—has discovered a way to tame dragons and turn them into livestock. The method has been spread to several cities and villages so people can adopt it."
"What if there are no dragons in a city or village?" Sancaka asked.
"Then they simply can't raise dragons—just like our village."
"By the way, what will those dragon eggs and hides be used for?" asked another knight.
"The eggs are for consumption—they're said to be highly nutritious. As for the hides, they can be used to make armor."
"What? Dragon hide can be made into armor?" Sancaka asked in surprise.
"Yes. Dragon hide is extremely tough, making it ideal for armor, shields, and helmets."
"You seem to know a lot about dragons," Sancaka said.
"Not really. I only learned about them because my father often travels outside the village to trade. Every time he returns, he tells stories about people interacting with dragons."
Hearing the word *father* reminded Sancaka that he still hadn't told his own father about becoming a knight. While guarding the gate, he hadn't seen his father return from his assignment outside the village. He had hoped they would cross paths there.
As evening approached, four horsemen rode through the gate. They were all knights of Demak Village. Three of them stopped and dismounted, while one remained on horseback. Sancaka overheard a higher-ranking knight giving orders to the one still mounted.
He heard that the knight was assigned to guard the *stone granary*.
*A stone granary? Since when does our village have that?* Sancaka thought.
In his mind, all granaries in the village were used to store harvest goods. The mention of a "stone granary" reminded him of his childhood, when he and his friends once encountered three dharma searching for bloodstones in the village—Bima, Arjuna, and Karna.
He remembered how they had gone together to the haunted cave rumored to contain bloodstones, only to find nothing. When Arjuna failed to find what he was looking for, he accused Abas of lying. He scolded Abas harshly, leaving him terrified. Then Bima gave Sancaka coffee beans that turned out to be poisoned. Karna intervened, snatching the coffee away and stopping Arjuna.
Sancaka still remembered Karna striking Arjuna down. After that, Karna escorted Sancaka and his friends home, keeping them away from Arjuna and Bima. When they arrived, Karna even spoke briefly with Sancaka's father.
"All knights guarding the gate, listen carefully!" the oldest knight shouted. "Our village will be attacked soon. All knights, take defensive positions immediately. Archers, move to the upper positions."
"Sir, will we be attacked by a large number of Kurawa?" one knight asked.
"No. We are not being attacked by monsters."
"Then who is attacking our village?" another knight asked.
"You don't need to know who we are facing," the commanding knight said as he mounted his horse. "Whatever appears before you—attack immediately."
Sancaka moved with the others to take defensive positions. Suddenly, something caught his attention.
"I need one knight to accompany me to guard the stone granary. Who is willing?" called the mounted knight.
Sancaka turned and saw that it was the same knight who had just received orders from the senior officer.
"I can go, sir!" Sancaka immediately raised his hand without hesitation. He volunteered because he wanted to see what the stone granary actually looked like.