“I just had a thought, but Lutiya, you’ve been keeping an eye on your onii-chan.”
“Haa!?  It’s not like that!  I don’t think of him as my aniki and never will!”
“Still, Lutiya is right.  The fact that Noin and the others are acting like usual already makes them formidable opponents.”

Everyone nodded in agreement, saying, “Yep, yep,” at Jill’s words.

“Yeah, lately they haven’t been all that spirited.  Like they were just putting on a brave face.”
“Their stuck-up attitudes disappeared, too.  That’s great and all, but you know?”
“Somehow, their usual energy was missing.  Like, there was no enthusiasm.”

Although the time had been short, the intense period they had spent surviving real combat had shortened the distance among the students.  Despite that, Jill also felt that the Gold Dragon Class still carried a certain sense of inferiority.

After having lost to the Blue Dragon Class, and then having that happen with the instructor who had guided them, the pride and confidence Noin and his classmates held was shattered.  Despite that, they didn’t let themselves rot, they simply did what they could.  They reflected on what needed reflection, and corrected what needed correction.  For children, it was an almost too-admirable attitude.

Yet, in a way, it was painful to watch.  It was like they were standing while trying to hide a sprained foot.  They carried that sort of fragility.

Someday, they would they would turn that defeat and broken trust into nourishment, find new aspirations, and support one another.  The only thing Jill could really do for them was to help train their bodies.  If she, the one who had taken all that from them, were to carelessly reach out to help them, the act might only drive them deeper into self-reproach.

Having such thoughts, she had chosen to quietly watch over them, but then that painful fragility disappeared after only one night.  She had hoped this “memory-making” event might become a turning point for them, and apparently, it had worked.

“Maybe being led by the Dragon Emperor actually soothed their pride instead.”
“Eh?  Isn’t that even scarier?”
“Hence, the Dragon Emperor successfully comforted them, right?”

“That could be,” someone agreed.

“Fufu,” Jill let out a soft laugh.

As expected of My Majesty.
But that didn’t mean she could afford to lose.

“In that case, they’re formidable opponents.  Stay sharp.”

The audience was already beginning to gather.

“Understood,” her students answered in unison.

“Yo, how are the preparations going, Jill-sensei?  Roger-aniue— Roger-sensei hasn’t arrived yet, has he?”

Raising one hand, Elynsia came over.  Both the Gold Dragon Class and the Blue Dragon Class stirred at that.

Elynsia was a general of the Rave Empire, but also the famed captain of the Notriol Knight Order who was a target of admiration.  Compared to someone as distant as the Dragon Emperor, admiration for the more familiar seemed stronger.

“Looks like Roger-sensei isn’t watching.”
“So he ran off.  Then, what about Hades-sensei?”
“His Majesty stepped out to take off his apron, I think.”

Elynsia’s eyes blinked rapidly.

“How unusual, for that child.  I thought he’d be cheering them with a ‘team banner’ while wearing an apron.”
“He isn’t the Gold Dragon Class’ guardian.  His Majesty is still the Dragon Emperor, technically.”
“Except he’s Hades?”
“Hi-His Majesty can do it when he needs to!”

Jill hesitated slightly because she herself still couldn’t completely shake off that suspicion.  Elynsia, who nodded with an, “I see…” also seemed doubtful.

“This is an unofficial match, and as an older sister, I also wanted to give some encouragement.  So, how’s the Blue Dragon Class?  All set?”
“Of course!”
“This time’s match, even members of my Dragon Knight Order are looking forward to it.”
“You mean… as in scouting!?”

One of the Blue Dragon Class students cut into the conversation.  Jill scolded the student with a “Hey,” but Elynsia laughed without taking offense.

“Of course, outstanding talent is always welcome at any time.”
“Whoa, great! Ah, but when it comes to riding a dragon…”
“What?  Strength isn’t only about being able to ride a dragon. You can be like your Jill-sensei, for example—”

Jill let out a small, wry smile as her students quietly listened to her talk.  Elynsia looks much more suited to being an instructor than Hades or myself.  That was when she noticed the gazes of the Gold Dragon Class directed their way.  Their restless, fidgeting eyes showed they were still children, yet their inability to casually speak up represented the polite decorum of the Gold Dragon Class.

Gently, Jill tugged on Elynsia’s sleeve.

“If you wouldn’t mind, please say a few words to the Gold Dragon Class as well.  The Notriol Dragon Knights are targets of admiration for them.”
“Hm?  Right, except—”

Elynsia looked around and was the first to spot a certain figure.  In an instant, every single gaze had been drawn that way.  The one returning with unhurried steps was His Majesty Hades.  Jill held her breath without meaning to.  She couldn’t even blink.

He wore the instructor’s uniform of the La Baia Military Academy.  It was a shade of blue deeper than the students’, using navy and white as its base colors.  Draped over a shoulder was a black cloak, embroidered in gold thread with the school emblem and probably indicating the Gold Dragon Class.  It was the same type of cloak Gunter had worn.  The presence, however, was entirely different.

Perhaps it was his manner of walking, people naturally parted to make way for him.  The way he advanced, taking that for granted, was not unnatural in the slightest.  Even though this was a place where dust rose from the ground, No, maybe it’s precisely because of that, it made him stand out all the more.

“…I don’t believe it’s needed, for the Gold Dragon Class.”  Elynsia shrugged her shoulders with a faint smile.  “There is no greater honor for a soldier in Rave than to be led by the Dragon Emperor.”

Jill glanced over, and as if to affirm Elynsia’s words, saw that the students of the Gold Dragon Class had lifted their heads and stood with backs perfectly straight, waiting for His Majesty Hades with proud expressions.

“Hey, Jill-sensei.”  His Majesty Hades, who had come up right before her, smiled and extended his right hand.  “Go easy on us.”

In truth, up until that very moment, Jill had suspected that Hades might hold back.  Now that she could clearly tell he wouldn’t, her lips curved upward.  Stepping forward, she took his hand into her own and gripped it firmly in return.

“I should be the one asking you to go easy on me.  That outfit suits you.  It’s almost a shame that I’ll be making you kneel.”
“The only one I bend my knee to is my wife.  —Although, I must admit, trampling on a girl as cute as you does feel a bit wrong.”

Despite those words, neither the golden eyes looking down on her nor the smile playing upon his lips showed the slightest hint of hesitation.  She recalled the time when they had once faced each other as enemies.  A shiver, she couldn’t tell if it came from fear or the thrill of battle, ran down her spin.  The blasphemous joy of challenging a god was surging through her once again.

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