The Royal Guards charged the lesser dragons in groups, each group clearly used to each others’ skills. The lesser dragons rallied, and soon blasts of magic shot in all directions. Ray directed the Royal Guard while standing close to Prince Alphonse’s side, twitching every time the True Dragon raised a claw.

Falling back, Gideon caught his breath. He raised his tome and frowned at Jet. The book swung pitifully shut, the front and rear cover all but touching. A thousand pages had become a dozen. “I’m almost burned up. I have another handful of shots left, and that’s it.”

Jet’s chest seized. He frowned. “What then?”

“Then… then I have nothing. Without my tome, I can’t critical-cast. I’ve been critting every shot—I’ve even started to burn more pages per shot—but it hasn’t done a thing. I’ve injured the True Dragon, but that’s about it.”

“You don’t have nothing. You’re still a lightning dragon,” Jet pointed out.

“Who can’t critical-cast. It’s the same as nothing,” Gideon argued. He shook his head. “Even critical-casting, I’m barely able to scratch the thing’s hide. Without that, I—”

Jet looked at him. “Gideon, why can’t you critical-cast in dragon form?”

Gideon gave him a look like he’d asked the most obvious question in the world. “Because I don’t have a tome.”

“No, I mean… what is it about a tome that allows you to critical-cast?”

“I can burn spells. I can burn more pages… well, for anyone else, it’d be four or even ten pages, but with me, I can burn just two, because I’m just that good,” Gideon said, managing a smirk at the end of it.

Jet nodded. “If you’re so powerful… can’t you critical-cast with a single page?”

“Of course I…” Gideon fell silent.

“After all, what’s the difference between two pages and one?” Jet mused.

“Everything, but…” Gideon bit his lip. He looked at the tome, then at his hand.

Jet nodded. “You can call up lightning without the book, can’t you? Since you’re a dragon. Then… what does that book have to do with your strength at all? Even if you can burn multiple pages to critical-cast… if your strength does not originate from the tome at all, then what keeps you beholden to that book? What keeps you from critical-casting without it?”

“I… don’t want to be a dragon. I don’t want to use that strength,” Gideon muttered.

“Why not?” Jet asked.

“It’s too easy. It’s cheating. It’s boring, Jet. I’ve lived for so long… I just want some fun. A challenge.”

Jet gestured at the True Dragon. “Not challenge enough for you?”

Gideon laughed. He looked up at the True Dragon, then down at his tome. His hand shook. Dragon. Tome. Dragon.

He threw the tome aside. “You’re right. You’re right! You know what I like more than challenges, Jet?”

“Is it killing dragons?” Jet asked.

“Damn straight!” Gideon replied. He rolled up his baggy sleeves and spread his bare hands wide. “This scaly bastard is going down.”

“But even your critical-casting wasn’t enough to kill it,” Jet pointed out.

Gideon whirled on him. “Alright, are you trying to psyche me up or kill my vibe? Come on! One or the other!”

Jet shook his head. He pointed at the dragon’s hand, where his ice shoved its scales out of place. “Try critical-casting there. I think… that should have weakened its magical resistance!”

Gideon shook his head and rolled up his sleeves again. “Talk about burying the lede.”

The True Dragon narrowed his eyes. “You won’t get the chance.” His uninjured claw slammed down from the sky toward Jet and Gideon.

Shit, he heard that? Jet thrust his sword at the sky, summoning a pillar of ice blocks.

The True Dragon’s claw shattered the blocks even as they materialized. Jet braced for impact. Gideon really is our only hope. Even if I have to die… dammit, I don’t want to die for Gideon!

Leo threw himself at the two of them. He reared up and caught the True Dragon’s claw with both of his. Momentarily, the claw stopped descending.

The True Dragon laughed. “Mere lesser dragon, do you think a weakling water dragon like yourself could stop me?” He pushed harder.

Leo strained. His muscles stood out against his scales. He hissed, and a cloud of water vapor spread from his jaws and descended over Jet and Gideon. Jet jabbed his sword upward again. A block of ice surged upward, assisting Leo in holding the claw.

“Gross, dragon spit,” Gideon muttered.

“Leo! Spread more water vapor!” Jet shouted.

Leo hissed in reply, then took a deep breath. Baring his teeth, he let out a cloud of water again. Jaws practically pressed up against the dragon’s claw, the water swirled around the scales. Jet swirled his sword, aiming his enchantment at the scales. Ice burst out from behind the scales, opening a gap in the True Dragon’s defenses.

The True Dragon snarled. He pressed his claw downward. Leo slipped and fell backward. The claw plummeted toward Jet and Gideon.

“Gideon! Now!” Jet shouted.

Gideon rubbed his hands together. Lightning flickered all around. “Angel!”

“On it!” Angel twisted around, sending a bolt of mana at Gideon.

“Elly!”

“Yes!” A golden aura materialized around Gideon, strengthening his magic.

Scales blocked out the sky. Wicked claws curled in on Jet and Gideon.

Gideon slammed his palm upward. His bare human hand slapped the dragon’s claw.

A huge bolt of lightning jolted up from Gideon’s hand. It struck into the sky, surging up the True Dragon’s claw, searing into his arm. The True Dragon let out a pained roar and fell back.

“Oh, that’s not all. Angel, again!” Gideon threw his other hand up, double-handed casting.

“Again!” Angel pushed on, dancing more quickly than Jet had ever seen anyone dance. Another ball of energy sunk into Gideon.

Lightning surged from his other hand. It crackled over the True Dragon’s body. His eyes flickered, and his body convulsed.

All around, the other dragons stopped fighting the Royal Guards. They turned toward the True Dragon, one after another. A strange light glittered in the depths of their eyes.

“No! Fight! You are my servants!” the True Dragon snarled, fighting against the lightning that coursed over his body.

The dragons exchanged glances. Their jaws began to move, and they murmured to one another.

“The King is weak.”

“Weak. So weak.”

“The King cannot be weak.”

“Why follow a weak King?”

“He’s… no king!”

The True Dragon fell back. “Don’t you dare!”

The lesser dragons charged the True Dragon as one. The True Dragon rounded on them, but the dozens of lesser dragons outnumbered him. Working together, they harried him across the ballroom. He backed into a corner, hissing and snarling.

As the other dragons attacked him, the True Dragon grew smaller and smaller, until he, too, was the same size as a lesser dragon. He fought wildly, biting and scratching, but against dozens of other dragons, he stood no chance. He vanished in the flashing scales and flapping wings.

Jet blinked. “Lesser dragons can talk?”

Gideon shook his head. “Not usually. Only when there’s a chance to become the next king.”

Jet looked at Gideon from the corner of his eye. “You aren’t going to become the Dragon King?”

Gideon paused, then shook his head. “I like the idea of being king… but Dragon King is useless. It’s a bunch of work and no authority. No one treats you any better, and you have to prove you’re the strongest all the time? It’s so boring.”

“Ah, but now… will the new Dragon King dare to attack your precious country?” Ravenna asked, sauntering out of some corner, her dress still pristine.

Jet glanced at Ravenna. “Didn’t you want Gideon to…”

“Become King? Naturally. But any mother wants her precious eggs to be happy, more than anything. There’s no rush. I can always have another child,” Ravenna purred. She gave Jet a slow look up and down and fluttered her eyelashes.

Oh, fuck no. Jet coughed into his fist. “A…anyways, er… is that it? The True Dragon defeated, and all that?”

Ravenna glanced at the scrum of blood and flying scales from the Dragon King’s corner. “Indeed. I doubt the newly-crowned Dragon King will dare attack this country in your lifetime. In fact, they ought to cut a wide berth around this country that spawns mages who can kill their king.”

Jet took a deep breath. He nodded. “That, at least…”

“Die, dragon, die! Die! Die! All you dragons, die!” Gideon shouted, firing thunderbolt after lightning bolt into the dragon melee. The dragons scattered like startled pigeons, crashing through the ballroom’s roof and windows. A few dragon bodies slumped to the ground, the unlucky few caught in Gideon’s wild shots. Gideon cackled and fired a parting shot at their vanishing tails. Lightning seared into the sky. “Remember that, you flying lizards! Come back any time! I’m here to kill you, whenever you like!”

Among the bodies, a slightly overgrown red dragon laid dead, body blackened from lightning strikes. At the sight, Jet breathed a long overdue sigh of relief. He’s dead. He can never hurt anyone, ever again. We did it.

The Royal Guard circled around Prince Alphonse, defending him. Ray stood at his side, carefully checking him over. Jet tossed him a nod, and Ray nodded back.

Gideon sauntered over, hands on his hips. He grinned at Jet. “Quest over. True Dragon, killed. Let’s go collect my reward.”

“Oh, that’s right.” Jet drew the pendant out of his shirt and tapped it against Gideon’s collar. The collar fell open and clanked to the floor. “You’re free to go.” More like, please leave. I’ve had enough of you! Whatever it takes to get you cleared of your crimes, I’ll do it, as long as you go.

“Free to go? Don’t be ridiculous, Jet. We’ve done the country a great service. Driven all the dragons away! Won the war! We’ll be rewarded with riches, titles… women!” Gideon said excitedly.

“Yeah, come on. We’re heroes! Where’s our reward?” Angel added, nodding.

Leo ducked clumsily behind a pillar. There was a light, and he emerged from the other side in human form. He glanced at the Palace Guards, only to find them all looking the other way, fiercely interested in the far wall. Ducking his head slightly, he ran to Jet and Gideon’s side and nodded.

Ray glanced over, then jogged to them. “You should leave. We’ll ensure you’re rewarded later, but for now—”

“I refuse. Until I’m given my due, I refuse to leave,” Gideon declared, planting his feet.

“You don’t understand. The King loves this ballroom. It was built by one of the greatest architects to ever live. Half the techniques are forgotten. When he sees the state it’s in…” Ray glanced nervously at the hole in the roof and the shattered windows.

“What’s a ballroom against so many dead dragons?” Gideon asked, waving his hand.

“Right? He surely cares about the dragon war more, right?” Angel asked, glancing around.

Elly’s brows furrowed slightly. Delicately, she added, “The King… is fond of the finer things.”

Ray nodded. “Prince Alphonse gives his word. You will be rewarded. However, it’s in your best interest to vanish now.”

Jet frowned. He glanced over his shoulder, only to find Ravenna already vanished. A sudden chill ran down his spine. He grabbed Gideon by the arm. “We should go.”

“I’m not going. Not until I have my money!” Gideon insisted, wiggling free.

From the far end of the ballroom, the first nobles wandered back in, weapons at the ready. Some of the Royal Guard who hadn’t entered came with them, guiding them in. At the rear of the first wave stood the king, his crown askew and his royal cape flung over one shoulder. He stared wide-eyed at the ruined ballroom, the broken pillars, the shattered marble, the tattered curtain, the giant hole in the roof.

“My… my ballroom,” the king murmured, eyes wide.

Careless of the king’s shock, Gideon strode blithely forward. “There you are, Your Majesty! We killed that terrible dragon. Slayed it on this very floor. Where is our reward?”

“Slayed it… on the floor?” The king’s eyes sunk to the carpet beneath his feet, now dyed a different tone of red. His eyes widened again.

“Indeed. So… money?” Gideon asked, making a grabby gesture with his hand.

The king’s face turned as red as the floor. His cheeks puffed, and a vein stood out on his forehead.

“Many apologies, Your Majesty. Please forgive us. This man is an uncouth commoner, he knows not what he says,” Jet interjected, dragging Gideon back.

“Hey, let me go. I’m not done yet!” Gideon insisted, fighting.

This time, Jet refused to let go. Leo hurried over and joined him, and the two of them dragged Gideon.

“Guards. Guards! Arrest those men!” the king shouted, jabbing his finger at the three of them.

Leo instantly released Gideon to turn and run. Jet let go a second later, fleeing across the ballroom toward the broken windows.

Gideon dusted himself off and stood upright. “So, about my reward…”

An arrow streaked past him, cutting a thin line in his cheek.

Gideon raised a hand to his cheek. Trembling fingers pulled back, crimson dappled over them. “You… you…”

Another arrow slammed into the ground at his feet.

Gideon turned and ran, chasing after the other two. “Cheapskate! Penniless! Everyone, do you see this? The king refuses to pay the heroes who saved him! The country must be so out of money they can’t even afford my services!”

“Kill him! Kill the slanderer!” the king boomed, furious.

The guards glanced at Elly and Angel. Angel shrugged back, putting her hands up. “I don’t know those guys.”

Elly licked her lips. “I am but a Priestess.”

“Quick, escape with your money before he taxes it all away!” Gideon shouted over his shoulder.

“A thousand gold for his head!” the king raged.

Leo made it to the window first, diving through it without hesitation. Jet followed a moment later, putting a gloved hand on a glassless part of the frame and vaulting through. Gideon reached it last and clumsily climbed up and over, hopping down into the bushes outside. He rolled out and clambered to his feet, scrambling up to give chase after Leo and Jet yet again.

“Guys, wait up! Guys, I’m a mage, I can’t run that fast… hey, Leo, come here and give me a ride!”