Preparations for the hunt were in full swing.

That was Najin’s impression as he looked around Cambria, the City of Opportunity, upon his return. Nothing was obvious on the surface, of course, but knowing what was happening behind the scenes, he could pick out subtle movements.

The flow of merchants, supplies being transported somewhere, Central Guild employees hurrying about...

They seemed busy preparing for the approaching red and white dragon hunt. The Central Guild had ordered the White Horn adventurers to keep silent, but that did not mean they alone possessed this information.

‘They must have told the trading companies they work with, too.’

A large-scale hunt naturally required enormous quantities of supplies. This one would involve five White Horn adventurers and even the imperial family’s knight order, so preparations could not afford to fall short.

And trading companies, not guilds, were the experts in that field. They had probably brought one aboard.

"..."

After silently surveying his surroundings, Najin let out a small chuckle. He could guess which company they had enlisted. A certain merchant whose eyes sparkled like gold coins came to mind.

Come to think of it, it had been nearly a month since he last saw her. Dieta’s voice, whining that he should visit more often, echoed in his ears, and he headed toward her trading company.

‘It’s almost time.’

"Yes. About three days left?"

Merlin folded down the fingers of her outstretched hand one by one, then waved three fingers in front of Najin’s eyes.

"By my calculations, about three days remain. Until the sealing formula reaches its weakest point, that is."

The date was roughly in line with the Central Guild’s and the imperial court’s predictions. Najin fingered the chain stake Gillette had given him and murmured inwardly.

‘Should I have told them?’

That the red and white dragons would revive completely. That they would be far stronger enemies than everyone expected. Only Najin and Merlin knew that.

"Well, I doubt it would do much good."

Merlin shook her head at his question of whether he should have warned them beforehand.

"Even if you told them, there’s no guarantee they’d believe you. You have no proof. You could try playing prophet, but that would only make them suspicious, wouldn’t it?"

That was true.

It was also why he had not told them.

"And even if they believed you, how many more reinforcements would the Empire send? No one who knows how terrifying those dragons are remains in this age. You’d only find people like that in the Outer Lands."

Merlin’s tone suggested that they would never commit Master-level personnel to something like this. At most, they would send a few additional members of the knight order.

In fact, the Empire did not rate the threat posed by the red and white dragons particularly highly. They most likely regarded it as nothing more than an incident that recurred every few centuries.

‘That’s true, too.’

"Besides, what are you worried about?"

Merlin grinned and squared her shoulders.

"They have you with them, and you learned how to hunt dragons directly from the great archmage who burned the sky, brought down countless dragons, and pinned the Dragon of the Abyss to the earth. There’s nothing to worry about. Right?"

Najin shrugged at the sight of Merlin snorting with her shoulders proudly squared. To be fair, over the past few months, she had talked about dragons’ traits whenever she had the chance. Thanks to her, his knowledge of dragons surpassed that of most scholars.

‘If you say so, Merlin.’

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

Letting her now-familiar grumbling go in one ear and out the other, Najin continued on his way.

2.

"You really are hard to get hold of, aren’t you?"

"... I’m sorry about that."

"No, well, there’s nothing to apologize for. You’ve been busy, haven’t you? So have I. It’s just, you could have found time for a quick meal, perhaps? I’m not saying I particularly missed you or anything. It’s purely from a business perspective that disappearing for a whole month without so much as a word..."

Twisting her hair around her fingers and avoiding Najin’s gaze, Dieta launched into a lengthy speech. Beside her, her bodyguard knight Pasion had to bite his lip hard to keep from laughing.

For the past month, she had stared out the window and sighed deeply. He really is hard to get hold of. Isn’t he going to visit sometime? He lives right next door—isn’t this a bit much? She had muttered those complaints over and over.

Then, when she heard that Najin had left for the Outer Lands, Dieta had widened her eyes and stamped her foot. Still, she knew he would return within a month, so she had waited with a sigh. It was now the twenty-seventh day.

‘He’s finally here!’

At the news of Najin’s arrival, she had brightened and sprung to her feet. Then she forced herself to regain her composure and agonized. Wasn’t she being too obvious? Wasn’t she letting him sway her too much? Dieta had learned from books that once you lost the upper hand in a romantic relationship, you got nowhere.

"It’s not as though I was waiting or anything. I may have thought you could at least have sent a letter. Or perhaps I didn’t..."

Of course, learning something from a book and putting it into practice were entirely different matters. Seeing Najin’s face for the first time in a month made her heart pound and her cheeks grow hot. He seemed somehow more mature than a month ago. Well, at eighteen, he was still growing...?

Entertaining such pointless thoughts, Dieta fanned her face and tried her hardest to keep up the act. Naturally, to Pasion standing beside her, it looked utterly futile.

"I’ll at least send letters from now on."

Najin could not know what was going on inside her head, but he had noticed how hurt she seemed. He answered with a rueful smile.

"... You mean it?"

"Yes. Writing a letter isn’t difficult."

"It would be even better if you visited."

"I’ll try."

"That’s a promise."

Only then did Dieta brighten and tap the table in her office, signaling for him to come closer and sit. Opposite her stood a top-quality chair she had brought in about a month ago, supposedly for entertaining guests. Only Pasion knew that it was reserved for Najin.

‘She has it put away whenever another guest comes.’

Upon hearing that Najin was coming, she had hurriedly ordered Pasion to put it back. Naturally, Najin had no way of knowing that. As he sat down, all he thought was that it was comfortable.

"By the way, Dieta."

Seated in the chair, Najin asked a question.

"You know about the upcoming hunt, don’t you? The people from the Dieta Trading Company seemed busy."

"Of course. Our company secured the supply distribution contract and priority rights to winning bids on the materials after the hunt."

Dieta had not spent the past month idling, either. As soon as she noticed the flurry of activity at the Central Guild, she had approached them and secured several contracts.

"A hunt naturally requires supplies, and afterward, they’ll need a trading company’s help even more. Especially since we’re hunting dragons this time. It goes without saying that dragon materials fetch astronomical prices."

Her bright yellow eyes sparkled.

"It’s an opportunity. An opportunity to earn a mountain of gold."

True to her uncanny nose for gold, Dieta was already putting out bait. She had even finished preparing the goods she would sell to the imperial knight order arriving in the city tomorrow.

"Najin, this is a major opportunity for you, too, isn’t it?"

Dieta smiled at him.

"Dragons have always symbolized great feats. If you distinguish yourself in this hunt, perhaps you could earn a star? Not that I know much about it."

"Simply distinguishing myself won’t be enough. I intend to take the leading role. The most conspicuous, most spectacular role."

Great feats always fell to those who went furthest ahead. Their achievements would shine in proportion to the risks they took.

"That sounds like you. Then this hunt is a major opportunity for both of us... to move closer to our dreams, isn’t it?"

An opportunity.

"Our company is going to snap up every material this hunt produces. At the highest prices. That’s why I secured those priority bidding rights."

A plan she had shared with no one.

Dieta shared it with Najin.

"I’m going to monopolize the dragon materials. These are goods that haven’t been available in decades. That’s more than enough reason to corner the market. Of course, plenty of trading companies will try to compete... but can any of them match ours in the amount of gold we have in circulation? I’ve amassed gold for this deal even at the cost of taking losses."

She flipped a platinum coin.

"Once I have that monopoly, I’ll make my full-fledged move into the imperial capital."

Into a larger market.

Beyond Cambria, into the heart of the Empire.

"With dragon materials as my main offering, I’ll establish trade with the capital’s mage towers and sign contracts. Once I’ve opened the way, the rest will be easy. Our company can swiftly distribute all sorts of materials through Cambria. We’ll be able to bring them whatever they need quickly."

That, she said, would be the beginning.

With a scheming smile, Dieta caught the coin she had tossed into the air.

"It’s a chance to make our name known in the capital. Establishing a name is where it all begins. This is the first step."

"It’s the same for me."

Najin looked at Dieta as he spoke.

"If I want to reach the highest heights, I must begin by inscribing a single star. This will be my first step, too."

For both Najin and Dieta, this dragon hunt held profound meaning. The two were still frogs in a well, and this would give them the chance to venture beyond it.

"Then, to wish each other well for the future..."

Dieta glanced at Najin, her lips moving hesitantly. After a moment’s indecision, she spoke with an air of throwing caution to the wind.

"Shall we have a meal together? It’s been so long. One meal won’t hurt, right? It would be nice to have some tea, too."

"Let’s do that."

At Najin’s answer, Dieta clenched her fists, looking so delighted she might scream. Pasion laughed inwardly.

A merchant making plans to take the imperial capital by storm. His mistress was a born merchant who seized the flow of gold and could even create that flow herself...

Yet in front of this boy, she was an ordinary girl.

An ordinary girl her age, smiling with innocent joy, blushing at the smallest things, and growing bashful. When Dieta called, "Pasion, get ready to go, quickly," he nodded and set off.

In any case, this was a good thing.

Watching the sweet, tentative exchange between the boy and girl, Pasion smiled fondly.

3.

Time passed, and the day of the hunt arrived.

The participants assembled at Stonehenge near Cambria. The White Horn adventurers, hailed as the pinnacle of Cambria, gathered in one place.

Former inquisitor, Bashen Corte.

Former commander, Richard Paulsen.

Red-Eyed Roselin Ascalo.

Unknown, Grizel Paramelt.

And...

Nova, Najin.

The hunting force, built around the five White Horn adventurers at Cambria’s pinnacle, surrounded Stonehenge. The knight orders sent by the imperial court began positioning artifacts and equipment, while trading company employees hurried about laying out supplies.

The sealing formula would break late at night.

Mineral lamps and flares procured by the trading company lit the night and dotted the sky. Spare equipment and supplies were placed at the rear, and top-quality potions for restoring mana and stamina were distributed.

And Najin walked to the position he had agreed to take.

A low hill rose from the vast grassland. Stone pillars encircled the hill, which resembled a grave. It was the sealing formula Merlin had erected a thousand years ago.

Stonehenge.

A sealing formula, and the Dragons’ Grave.

Najin stood upright in a spot that gave him a clear view of the stone pillars. He had volunteered for this position, and there was only one reason he had requested it: Merlin had told him that Arthur had stood here.

Najin drew his sword.

The same place as Arthur. The same stage. The same circumstances.

Here today, he would write the first chapter of a new myth. That was what Najin had decided. No one else—Najin himself had made that decision.

High above, in the night sky.

In that place which still felt so distant because no star of his yet resided there.

Tonight, Najin would inscribe his star.