Chapter 19
At first, the dragon Gari was only the size of a fist, but it didn’t take long for it to grow large enough to fill the entire room.
When I climbed onto Gari’s back, it let out a low growl and grabbed Karun by the scruff of his neck, who was trembling in fear, lifting him into the air.
Karun was dangling helplessly in midair in an instant.
“Ah! Monster, it’s a monster!”
“I told you it’s a dragon.”
“P-please! Spare my life! I’ll do anything if you just let me live!”
The same Karun who had glared at me like he wanted to kill me just moments ago was now in a completely submissive position.
“Hmm, really? You’ll do anything?”
I held up the contract I had written in one hand, letting it flap, and offered the contract pen to Karun with the other hand.
“Then sign here.”
He looked at me in disbelief, but there was no mercy to be found.
“Hurry.”
With a resigned expression, Karun signed his name at the bottom of the contract.
“Karun Davis.”
I smiled faintly and added my own signature beneath his.
With this, Karun officially became my subordinate.
He stared at the contract as if half his soul had left his body.
“I’ll be waiting. I have some urgent matters to handle, but I’ll come back to see you soon.”
I left Karun, who could only nod blankly, behind me.
“I’m sorry for disappearing without a word.”
“Where on earth did you go? My… sea maiden has an amazing talent for making people’s hearts stop.”
When I returned to the Bellethin, the duke, pale and scanning the surroundings, spotted me and grabbed my arm.
“You weren’t visible, neither was that dragon. No one saw you, huh? You didn’t even think I would search for you?”
“Hey, why am I a dragon?”
“You said it yourself. That you were like a little dragon that needs care.”
“Not a little dragon, a baby dragon!”
“Yes, a little dragon.”
As soon as Gari and the duke saw each other, they immediately started bickering again.
I shoved the chattering Gari deep into my bag.
“I’m not a child. I can handle myself. You’re worrying too much.”
“I’m not worried. With a hero like you, you’ll survive anywhere on your own, right?”
“Somehow, that sounded sarcastic, didn’t it?”
“Sharp as ever. Yes, it was sarcastic.”
He muttered that as he walked ahead, past me.
‘What, is he sulking?’
But after only a few steps, he stopped abruptly and turned his back to me, casually asking,
“So, where did you go?”
I recounted to the duke what had just happened.
“I went to meet Karun.”
“Wha—Karun? That guy is dangerous, isn’t he?”
At the mention of Karun’s name, the duke immediately spun around and stared at me, jumping in shock.
“And that dark Victor guy, where was he while you went alone? Aren’t you supposed to be protected by your mercenary?”
“Wow, flipping your words around. You told me not to meet him before.”
“I didn’t like it. Still don’t. But isn’t your safety the top priority? That clumsy guy isn’t fit to be your mercenary.”
“Are you jealous of Victor right now?”
“Honestly, it’s infuriating that a useless guy is guarding my sea maiden. Look, he hasn’t even shown his face since then.”
“Excuse me, who kidnapped me straight onto a dragon-hunting ship? Thanks to that, I couldn’t even greet Victor properly!”
“A true mercenary should account for even situations like that, shouldn’t they?”
Their argument continued until we arrived at the palace.
At the palace, a grand feast was held to celebrate the victory of the Bellethin.
Naturally, the guest of honor was me, Giana Hertin.
“Hero, welcome! You’ve dealt with that troublesome dragon. The name of Hero Giana will be remembered in the history of the Tian Kingdom! Come, take a seat here.”
King of Tian welcomed me with a beaming smile, completely absorbed in celebrating me.
“Hmm, and Duke Lupellen is here as well. You may sit in that empty spot.”
…Hmm. Somehow, the duke seemed to be treated rather poorly.
Although the duke’s expression was not great, the Tian king continued to lavish praise on me without concern.
“Thanks to your efforts, we have been saved from the threat of the tidal wave. Not only that, but the voyage to the Astria Empire will be drastically shorter!”
The blue dragon, Gari, lived between the Tian Kingdom and the Astria Empire.
Previously, to travel from Tian to Astria, one had to detour far to avoid Gari, making the journey more than twice as long.
‘But now, with Gari gone, we can travel straight across the sea.’
Moreover, the stormy weather and dark clouds that used to fill the dragon’s territory were gone.
The Tian king, forgetting all protocol, could not hide his joy and beamed brightly.
“Not only in the Tian Kingdom but also in the Astria Empire, the northern Snowd Kingdom, and the southern Kincia Continent, you shall be recognized as a hero. And a female hero, no less! What a highly auspicious sign!”
The Tian king’s praise continued, and with so many people watching me, my face kept heating up with embarrassment.
“A reward of 10,000 gold coins will be given. This is the expression of the Tian Kingdom’s gratitude, please accept it.”
“10,000 coins?”
“Too little? Then I shall reallocate from another department’s budget…”
“No, this is more than enough. Thank you so much.”
I was grinning from ear to ear at the unexpected reward.
‘10,000 gold coins! That’s more than enough to enroll in the academy once I return to the Astria Empire.’
Even the regular gold Duke Lupellen gave me was decent, but receiving a lump sum after winning a battle cannot be compared.
Now, it felt as though a smooth path had opened before me.
Since the feast served both as a victory celebration and a hero appointment ceremony, there were plenty of people looking at me with admiration.
“Hero, I am Count Klein. I heard rumors that you brought a dragon. May I see it?”
“I am Hofmann, the Marquis! If possible, I’d like to see the dragon as well.”
The nobles who had been hovering around me cautiously approached.
The rumor had already spread throughout the capital that I carried Gari, reduced to the size of a palm.
People were astonished that the fearsome dragon who ruled the seas had become my obedient pet, or rather, companion.
But I could not show my dragon to people.
‘What? They want me to bring Gari to the hero’s appointment ceremony? Isn’t that just a celebration of the fact that I was captured?’
‘Something like that.’
‘No way! I can’t let my magnificent self become a spectacle for everyone!’
Gari despised the idea of attending the feast.
So I tried to leave Gari behind for a while.
‘Then, Gari, you stay at the inn and rest while I attend the feast, okay?’
But Gari looked at me with pitiful eyes and spoke in a sad voice.
‘Have you forgotten that we are bound as companions…?’
From Gari’s transparent eyes, a single tear seemed ready to fall at any moment.
‘How… can you even think of leaving me behind after I’ve become your companion… I am still young, a dragon that needs care, and yet…’
Pueeeng.
Gari puffed up its cheeks and pouted… it was kind of cute.
In the end, I hid Gari safely in my bag and brought him to the feast.
I promised that he would never become a spectacle for anyone.
“I’m sorry. My dragon is still shy around strangers.”
I lightly tapped the bag where Gari was sleeping and smiled.
“Ah, I see. Then perhaps next time!”
The nobles immediately stepped back at my gesture.
Being a hero is nice. With a single gesture, I could make nobles come and go.
‘By the way, where is the princess? Hasn’t she come to the feast?’
The original story, Song of the Sad Sea, was supposed to end with the Margrave sealing the dragon in the sea, not with Duke Lupellen.
The love triangle between Princess Tian, Duke Lupellen, and the Margrave who had long harbored feelings for the princess was supposed to be very interesting.
‘But since I tamed the dragon as my companion…’
The ending where the Margrave seals the dragon was now impossible. Moreover, the princess still hadn’t shown up.
In a setting like this, she should have attended.
So I approached the Tian King and asked quietly,
“Your Majesty.”
“Oh, Hero. Speak.”
“I’m curious, will Princess Tian attend the feast?”
At the mention of the princess, the Tian King’s expression instantly darkened.
