AGG: Sorcerer’s Apprentice Interlude: Dragon’s Counsel.

AGG: Sorcerer’s Apprentice Interlude: Dragon’s Counsel.

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Commissioned by Daedalous’ Muse

Word Count: 2098

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Counselor’s Report

Subject: Kiri.

Counselor: Arai.

Topic: Kiri’s 1st Practical.

The whole of Asia has been the Ivory Empire’s for centuries. When the Demon Lord left for the New World and allied with Zipangu, the monstergirls of the Old World rallied beneath the Undead. The strict order between Undead, with the strongest being nobility who have practiced ruling for decades before their newfound immortality and the weakest being subservient, immortal serfs, allowed a massive Empire to be born from the ashes of the Old World based on the principles of a civilization where monstergirls ruled over all of humanity.

The Order, finally recovering after decades of war against the Demon Lord, attacked the fledgling empire a generation later through the 23rd Holy Crusade. The host had been a mighty one, armed with gunpowder, immense levies, and supplied with two decades of carefully-prepared equipment and foodstuffs. It was led by seven heroines, each one blessed by the Chief Goddess, and was meant to crush the fledgling empire in its infancy.

And crush the 23rd Holy Crusade did. 

The massive army smashed through the empire from Europe and reached the Pacific. Like a spear held firm, it pushed fully through the Undead Empire. When the Crusade reached the Pacific, the whole of the Order celebrated. The kings of Europe held feasts so lavish that even those who scrounged the leftovers had enough food for weeks. Churches proclaimed that the Chief Goddess was pleased, despite her arduous struggle to stay alive. Those who stayed behind to man the borders cursed their ill fortunes at being held back, instead of being given a chance of glory.

Then, the Crusade made to return, only to find their way barred by the armies they defeated, strongholds erected over the marchlands they’d strode over, and an army led by Vampires, Necromancers, Phantoms, and Lich at the doorstep of their homes thousands of miles away. The Ivory Empire, for the first time, showed their true strength to the world by swallowing whole a Crusade, then ousting the Order from Europe into Africa, where all the Kings fought one another for supremacy until the New Order arose headed by an Empress, the Voice of the Goddess. 

The Ivory Empire, since its formation, has never lost a battle on an open field. Their armies are innumerable. Those who lead the masses are all singular entities with centuries of experience in battle. Any woman or monstergirl who falls in battle will become Undead. Every man enslaved and used solely for pleasure and power their whole lives, or made to breed more humans for continued, passive growth of the Empire. The Ivory Empire is a godless, merciless machine composed of magic and might whose sole goal is the conquest of the whole world.

One would think that Kiri’s choice in a undergoing a practical against the Ivory Empire would be a sign of growth. Against such a powerful, incredible foe, an individual, who is afraid of the dangers of the outside world, would surely be showing progress in treatment upon choosing to fight them. However, for Kiri, that is the farthest from the case.

It merely proves that, when given the opportunity, she’ll lock herself away behind the strongest defenses imaginable and kill whoever attempts to fight her. 

My evidence to this conclusion is simple: she is needlessly prolonging her mission of assisting the takeover of a military installation by erecting a magic-based, arcane construct on its doorstep, proceeding to destroy whatever attacks, turning away allies, and chipping away at the enemy with intermittent, hourly fire, which barely harms the enemy defenses.

She has not communicated with her supporting elements since their first meeting. Any attempt by her assigned commander to establish dialogue is ignored. All who attempt to approach her sanctuary are simply blasted to pieces, with allies being given warning shots. The enemy base is Not only that, but within her enclosed space, she has spent the weeks of her Practical doing nothing besides sleeping, eating, and reading from the pocket-library her mother gifted her on her birthday. Having accepted the offer to peruse it and locate something to read for the interim, which took me an over an hour to accomplish, I can safely say that she intends to stay put, blast away, and not move a muscle for the rest of her practical.

Without a doubt, if the current situation continues, she will regress back to her earlier state of isolationism.

A grave error, given the new opportunities arising for her back home.

As her counselor, I will attempt to have her strike out, ravage the countryside, and be as a dragon ought to be. 

I can only hope that I will be successful.

…

“Kiri, we’re leaving today.” I spoke to my patient carefully, but confidently. Asking is an effort in futility. Only demands would be considered, and only because I happened to match her strength. Being a Dragon, dominance and control is key. Naturally, since Kiri was a budding Sorcerer, my trick wouldn’t work in the future. For the interim, however, I was confident in my ability to soundly trash the whelp if she didn’t comply. “This is unacceptable.”

As a response to my words, I received a muffled groan, a slight wiggle, and the slightest upturning of a blanket. A relatively favorable response, middling in nature, but it wasn’t a direct refusal. Good, despite the current circumstances, she hasn’t completely regressed back to her regular state. She’s only halfway back, after a day without oversight. Some part of me regretted not being firmer with her, but I’d hoped she’d show some progress during her practical. I regretted that choice, now. 

“No complaints. You’ve stayed in your bed for over eighteen hours. Though you’re accomplishing your mission, you’re failing your practical.” That was a lie. For a first practical, with the chosen length of only three weeks, erecting a magical castle outside an enemy base and pummeling it into submission is considered a success. However, she didn’t know that, so I used her ignorance to my benefit. That was simply the way of things. “Get yourself dressed, cleaned up, and ready to go outside. Or, I’ll be throwing you out to the Undead as you are.”

The only answer to my threat was the sudden rustling of clothing. It was a predatory gesture, not acquiesce. Her refusals have yet to run rampant, whilst backed with ludicrous amounts of power. No, she was preparing for a possible loss, so that she can fight with all her might. A wise course of action for any Dragon, especially for a whelp.

However, not only was I more experienced and older than her, I knew better than to give a Sorcerer any amount of time to prepare.

So, I acted upon my threat mind-preparation, and threw her along with her bed through her magical enclosure with a kick.

Seeing a bed, along with its occupant, burst through several arcane walls was a sight. However, seeing said bed smash into a horde of deadbeat Undead was more gratifying. Seeing Zombies, Ghouls, and Jiangshan topple over, or lose their limbs, was always a sight to see. Their scramble for their limbs, heads, and various body parts never ceased to amuse. Having my recalcitrant, uncooperative patient be the projectile, that inflicted said damage, was just icing on the cake. 

…

Our ancestors would’ve wept at the sight of Kiri. Dragons have always been venerable monsters, even before they were converted from base beasts who wished only for treasure and flesh. However, those who propped up the Demon Lord were ladies of grand vision and status. They were not only powerful, but also learned and skilled, and even now their families, or the individuals themselves, continue to be a cornerstone of the Coalition. Now, after centuries, there is a Dragon amongst Dragons, a Sorcerer not just with Dragon’s blood, but who is truly a true Dragon. 

Yet, she strides across the battlefield covered with a blanket, tripping over it every-so-often, and screams at every attack sent her way. 

“I-it’s too scary, nee-sama!” Being the whelp’s elder, I did not palm my face. That would hurt, given that I had my scales and claws out. Such lowly mistakes were to be expected of the inexperienced. Instead, I used a wing to hide my embarrassment, while using my tail to smash a few Ghouls into one another. Why? Why did she have to act like this? Why must she ruin even battles? “P-please, let me make my castle again!”

I nearly relented to the idea.

The thought of more Undead seeing Kiri cry, hide, and run away made me want to cry, hide, and run away. Truly, I didn’t understand how she could simultaneously be the dream and nightmare of our species. The first Dragon to loathe the outside world, but also be the one who can make the most change. An unstoppable powerhouse who can wreak havoc across whole continents, who instead chooses to create fortresses for enemies to die upon. A myth made reality, yet incapable of doing anything by her own volition.

Why?

Why must my little sister be like this!?

“N-nee-sama? W-what are you doing, nee-sama? Why are you picking me up?” Blanket and all, I hoist her upward. The feat is nothing noteworthy. She is a slight whelp. Her scales have yet to even form, with only a slight tail, golden eyes, and a tail to speak of ancestry. However, that did not mean she was without a Dragon’s physical abilities. Knowing that, trusting that, I rear her on my shoulder. If she insists on making herself rigid and unmovable, then my national trophy for shot put shall be put to use! “P-please, don’t!”

My answer to her statement was to launch her at the enemy base, as precisely, and speedily, as I could. 

Frontline Sorcerer! What a joke for a Dragon! A Dragon, who is a Sorcerer, has only two places on the battlefield! As an Artillerist, raining down untold devastation, or a Blitzer, who joins her companions in battle as she is similarly enhanced! Instead, despite having the finest Blitz Sorcerer as her teacher, she chooses to be a Frontline Sorcerer! A defensive Dragon!? Area Denial!? Fortifications!? A Dragon is offense incarnate! Living weapons of mass destruction! Fortifications fall to Dragons, not made by them!

If she wishes to surround herself in arcane armor, weapons, and sensors, I’ll ensure she doesn’t waste her sorcerous strength in the least!

So, in essence, I did not throw a small whelp at the Ivory Empire base.

I threw a castle that formed in mid-air.

The results were to be expected. The whelp was talented, thus, in mere seconds, her fortifications were all around her. I threw her straight at enemy base, so there wasn’t much time for the automated attacks to wreak havoc upon the army. However, the sheer, magical bulk of the massive construct did the majority of the work. While they lacked weight, arcane constructs were firm, and those meant to defend against sustained attacks more so. Naturally, Kiri’s arcane defenses would take offense with all the objects colliding with it due to its trajectory.

The Ivory Empire base was soundly flattened by an arcane, shimmering castle that steadily continued to shoot at it. There were munitions explosions, and perhaps a mounted assault by the elite elements of the base, but the attack was suitably impressive. The Undead thralls were scampering away, even as their commander tried to get a hold of them, and the base’s defenses, which were steadily and slowly being worn down, was soundly overcome in an instant. 

Kiri will undoubtedly try to make several excuses once I retrieve her. She will say a multitude of things with teary eyes, quivering lips, and bawling lungs. She will say that she wants to go home, that her Practical is complete, and what she’s done is enough. 

However, I did not think the same. 

Not only did she intend to prolong her mission to her own benefit, but she also ignored regional commands, and dishonored our family’s martial history. Not to mention the fact that her classmates, two ordinary human sorcerers, were wreaking havoc on their practical lessons and gaining immense amounts of renown! The most slothful boy to ever exist, and the a wheelchair-bound pervert, was outdoing my little sister, the first Dragon Sorceress to exist!

Extra credit is effectively mandatory, now.

So, while I strode to fetch Kiri, I contacted the local, regional commander for the Coalition.

One base? Bah.

Five sounded much, much better.