The crescent moon floated in the cloudless night sky. Though its light was modest, it unmistakably illuminated the darkness. Yet, the towering trees stretching high into the sky obstructed all of it. This was a deep, deep forest where pitch-black darkness had melded completely.

To put it bluntly, visibility was at its worst. Even with enhanced night vision through magic-powered body strengthening, the overwhelming darkness instinctively stirred fear.

“Suu… Haa…”

Taking a slight moment to steady my breathing, I silenced it. An unusual tension quickened the beating of my heart.

Lighting a torch to illuminate the surroundings was out of the question. A momentary sense of security could jeopardize everything that followed, so such reckless actions had to be avoided at all costs.

My companions, who were also holding their breaths and hiding like I was, seemed to fully understand this, as not a single complaint was uttered.

—So far, so good…

It had been a day since we departed from the royal capital and rendezvoused with the advance unit, which had set up a base on the high hill before the Zaraam Plains. After taking adequate rest, we had spent several hours slipping quietly through the forest that bordered both the high hill and the plains.

Why?

The reason was simple: to infiltrate the Imperial Capital, the den where that damn lizard had taken residence.

Roughly two hours remained until dawn. A faint hint of deep blue was beginning to mix with the darkness. Even crossing the plains, it would take six hours to reach the Imperial Capital, Shadeskade, from the Zaraam Plains at the border. Our separate unit, which aimed to infiltrate the capital at the onset of the Dragon Slayer War and secure an advantage, had thus begun our operation ahead of time.

The forest of Swylver, where we currently were, was a dense woodland growing right beside the Zaraam Plains. Compared to the plains, the terrain was rough, making it a detour to the capital. However, for us, this forest was perfect for covert movement. Even after exiting the forest, we had a specially mapped route that would allow us to reach the Imperial Capital almost undetected.

Of course, the one responsible for this level of meticulous planning was not me. It was the black-haired girl leading us—Levia. As someone born into a family of assassins within the Empire, she was intimately familiar with both the Imperial Capital and the hidden paths surrounding it. Her knowledge had played a critical role in devising the routes, making her an essential asset to the operation. Naturally, for those of us who had zero familiarity with the capital’s layout, we were entirely reliant on her guidance.

—I had no idea she possessed such skills…

Once again, I was faced with something I hadn’t known in my first life. Who would have thought that the same girl who had once tried to plunge the kingdom into chaos would now be turning against her own homeland? Truly, life was unpredictable.

—And yet, she harbors neither regret nor hesitation.

Her unwavering resolve had honestly taken me by surprise. If this was the fate I had drawn her into, then I couldn’t help but feel some guilt.

But that was beside the point.

The Dragon Slayer War was set to begin at dawn. As mentioned earlier, we had been moving through the night, and by the time the war commenced, we would be close enough to infiltrate the Imperial Capital. All that remained was to wait for the signal of battle—

—!!

Suddenly, something shot straight toward us from the darkness between the trees ahead.

“…Tch!!”

Suppressing the instinctive cry rising from my gut, I clicked my tongue softly. I reflexively drew my sword and parried the oncoming attack, but felt no solid impact. That brief moment was enough to send tension rippling through our group.

Despite our night vision, the enemy was nowhere to be seen. If we could see clearly yet still failed to spot them, that meant only one thing—the enemy was highly skilled, specialized in assassination.

“Lord Clay, I believe our attackers are most likely the Empire’s assassination unit, Shadowshroud.”

“Well, it makes sense that damn lizard wouldn’t leave such an obvious route unguarded…”

Levia immediately analyzed the attack and the enemy’s stealth techniques to deduce their identity. Her prediction was likely accurate. We had walked right into an ambush.

It wasn’t as though we had let our guard down. We had remained vigilant. But, with our operation’s next phase hinging solely on the battle’s start, it was undeniable that our tension had loosened ever so slightly. The enemy had exploited that moment of vulnerability to strike.

—A mistake.

Recognizing the situation, I switched my thoughts immediately.

Letting them escape and exposing our presence was out of the question. It was a bit of a brute-force approach, but eliminating them all here was our only option.

—The presence remains unchanged. We still have time.

Once detected, losing track of them wasn’t an option. I signaled to Freesia and Chronos with a glance.

“…”

They both silently nodded and began moving without a sound.

In an instant, an unnatural chill filled the air, followed by a cutting wind.

“Ugh!?”

“I… I can’t move…!!”

“What the hell is happening…!?”

There were four enemy presences. Realizing their ambush had failed, they attempted an immediate retreat—but it was too late.

Freesia’s magic blanketed the ground in frost, ensnaring the assassins in ice thorns that robbed them of their mobility. At the same time, Chronos used Flash Magic to locate their positions based on their magical signatures and ambushed them instead. And just like that, the enemy was subdued without much struggle.

The tense atmosphere loosened for a moment, and an eerie silence returned to the dark forest.

“…"

The realization sent a chill down my spine. As expected, that damn lizard had set up a tight surveillance net, even in this supposed hidden path. Steeling myself, I refocused and checked the time.

“It’s dawn…”

The thick forest canopy made it hard to notice, but the darkness was steadily giving way to deeper shades of blue. Soon, sunlight would filter through.

The night was ending. And with it, the war was about to begin.

As the land began to glow with the hues of dawn, two armies—fully armed—faced each other on the Zaraam Plains.

Their combined forces numbered nearly forty thousand. The plains were flooded with soldiers like a sea of humanity. With their strengths nearly equal, it was impossible to predict which side would emerge victorious.

The sun had begun to rise, yet neither army drew their weapons, roared, nor charged at their opponents. In any normal war, such a standoff would be unthinkable—an eerie, unnatural scene.

Why hadn’t the battle started despite both armies recognizing each other?

The answer was simple: this was no ordinary war.

This was a sacred battle—an ancient contract between dragons and the world itself.

The war’s commencement was reserved for its origin—the dragon.

As the two armies stood on the verge of clashing, the crimson-streaked sky was suddenly swallowed by darkness, and a single dragon appeared.

“At last, the time has come!”

There was no need to say it—it was the Shadow Dragon. The massive beast spread its wings grandly in the sky, glaring down at the armies below. The tension in the air thickened.

“Victory to the Shadow Dragon!!”

“Crush that dragon!!”

Some roared in admiration, while others bellowed in fury. But in truth, the dragon cared little for either side.

“I will do as I please! Fight, struggle, and claw your way forward! The last ones standing shall claim victory!!”

With that arrogant, self-serving declaration, the dragon signaled the start of the war.

“Charge!!”

As the Imperial Army advanced with a deafening battle cry, the Kingdom’s forces followed suit.

Thus, the Dragon Slayer War had begun.