It is nearly sunset and I am munching on some bread the Overseer gave me as I watch endless rows of fields, swaths of plains, and dense trees. Other than a quick bathroom break, there hasn't been much to do. The knights eventually got bored enough to start talking to each other about training and the last time they had been to the capital, excluding me from the conversation of course. I'm practically about to fall asleep when something catches my eye and I abruptly sit up in my seat. The knights notice it too and become quiet as they also look out the window.

What was once no doubt beautiful forests and villages is now just smoldering and burning wreckage. Most villages are far from the main road, but even from here I can tell many battles have taken place in the area. There are pits in the ground from magic battles and as I'm watching I see what looks to be a dirty Echidna male missing the end of his tail with a small crying child kneeling by a mound of dirt marked with a broken piece of wood. The tails of both are skinny and you can see their spines through their scales.

We quickly pass the road branching off towards the village and I look back towards the knights, wondering if they will say anything, but they simply look on in cold indifference, probably used to seeing such sights hundreds or even thousands of times. I am about to do the same as I realize this must be a common occurrence, but aren't I supposed to be the Great Hero? Symbol of hope and protector of the people?!

I get angry at myself for even considering ignoring them and lean between the knights, telling the driver, "Turn around, go back to that village we just passed."

He turns back to me with a confused expression on his face, "Great Hero, there are hundreds of villages in this area in similar condition, we can't stop for all of them." he states.

I shake my head, "But they are right there! If I can't even help one person despite them being right in front of me, what kind of Hero am I? Turn back, Now!" I say, mustering a sternness and level of command in my voice I didn't know I was capable of.

The other knights sit up straight, intimidated by me as we turn around. Quickly, Shyvea's head appears in the window, "Why are we turning around?" she asks angrily, the rumbling undertones making her voice downright scary. I stare at her unflinchingly and say calmly, "We are going back to that village to help those people. I will leave you if you refuse to come with me."

She stares at me with an expression that could frighten even the most veteran of soldiers, but my mind is made up and I daringly stare back at her despite trembling inside. She scoffs, a little smoke coming out of her mouth, and leans back upright in her seat. We arrive and the male echidna is slowly approaching the autobox while his daughter hurriedly slithers up to us. I open the door and she falls back a little at my height and armor, noticing the Hero's token at the same time. Before I can do anything she hurries back to her father and hides behind him, "Daddy, that's the Hero!" she says, eyes wide.

He smiles tiredly at her and finally gets close enough to us to address us, managing a short bow. "Great Hero, I do not know why you are here, but as you can see we have nottthing to give." he says softly, his voice scratchy and dry.

I walk behind him and kneel, inspecting his bloody tail, "I don't want anything, I'm here to help any way I can." I say, pulling the Magistrate's wrapped bread gift out and taking the outside cloth off. I offer a piece of bread to the girl and after a moment she gently takes it, eating it ravenously as I continue to prepare to treat the dad's tail. I ask one of the soldiers for alcohol and before I pour it on the wound I ask, "May I?"

The dad nods and I pour it over the end, cleaning off the dirt and sterilizing it as the dad softly hisses at the sting. I then wrap the cloth tightly around the end and stand up, sighing. I offer him the bread and make the soldiers give him a flask of water as well. His eyes have been wide with confusion and hopefulness the whole time and I finally ask, "Is it just you two here?" He nods and I continue, "We are heading to the capital, I can't take you the entire way but we are pretty close to the next city and can give you a ride." I say.

He replies, "Are you sure? You've already done enough." I shake my head sadly, "No, I haven't, and I wish I could do more but this should at least keep you guys alive and get you somewhere safe."

He holds back tears welling up and says with a broken voice, "Tttthank you Great Hero, if you are truly ok witttth it, we would be eternally grateful to get a ride witttth you to ttthe next city."

I nod and head back to the autobox. Shyvea pulls me aside roughly and asks with a growl, "What are you doing? We can't have them inside the magistrate's autobox! They do not have permission and besides, what will he say when it arrives all covered in dirt?!"

I reply calmly, "The girl can sit on her dad's lap in my seat, there's already dirt from my armor on it anyway. You can fly right? It's just until the next town, how could you even think about leaving them behind?" I gesture towards them behind us. The knights were unable to help themselves and are entertaining the little girl as they wait for us, one talking to the dad as they look at the wreckage of the village.

She looks over at them and her gaze softens. She looks back at me and glares a bit before sighing, "Fine. But we've already wasted enough time as-is. As soon as we reach the city, they're gone and we are staying at the closest inn to the gates. We are still leaving at the crack of dawn and I'll make sure to let the knights know you are the cause of their lack of sleep tonight. You better keep a good lookout while you are back there too, I can't see through the trees from the sky." She says sternly and walks back towards the group.

I can't help but smile at how happy the dad and daughter look, knowing they'll have a real chance now.

I help the dad into the autobox, picking him up with ease, and lift the daughter, who is hesitant but less scared of me now, onto his lap. I sit on the back seat open to the now-night air and we start moving as Shyvea takes flight ahead of us, her massive wings that are more than twice the size of Aluli's beating powerfully, staying low enough to not be seen too far away but high enough to catch the wind currents.

I hear chatter and laughter behind me in the autobox and I sigh, resting my chin on my hand on my knee. I mess with my helmet, lifting it slightly and dropping it back down repeatedly in boredom as I stare at the empty road behind us and the wreckage of the village and forest fade into the distance. A good portion of the forest is still in-tact, it just got spotty near the village from the fighting.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

My helmet suddenly won't lift no matter how hard I push and I sit up, looking back up towards Shyvea. She isn't looking at me right now, so someone else must be. I have had a bit of a feeling that I was being watched ever since Thelian Town, but I had no conclusive evidence until now. My eyes are good, but even they can't penetrate the moonless night too far. I stay alert until we reach the city regardless.

We pull up to the gates of the city, called Hylen, and let the Dad and his daughter off so they can be properly entered as refugees. The little girl waves to me as we are let inside and I wave back.

The next morning we set out early, the knights tired but surprisingly not complaining about the early start. I don't particularly mind because of my hunting experience. The rest of the trip continues without incident, but despite our increasing proximity to the Capital there are still signs of fighting here and there. As we approach the Capital's main gates, there seems to be a commotion and we stop just outside. Shyvea hops down and I get out, not sure what is going on.

There are a row of guards at the gate who all salute me as we walk by, and an even stranger sight awaits inside. There are throngs of people lined up along the main road all shouting and cheering. Some are waving the flag of the realm while others have children on their backs and confetti rains down from windows. I stand just inside the entrance for a moment in confusion and surprise before Shyvea pushes me forwards and says quietly, "This is all for you Great Hero, get moving! The Magistrate is waiting." She seems to be smiling and I horrifying realize she must have kept the purpose of our visit a secret despite probably being told to inform me. She's getting a kick out of my reaction!

I snap out of my shock and start walking, immediately regretting not washing my armor before arriving as I awkwardly wave to the people on each side. There must be hundreds, if not thousands of people here. Before long I can see the central building and the Magistrate waiting in front of it. To my surprise, and who was actually the person I saw first, a huge yellow dragon in their original form is sitting next to the magistrate. He is wearing ceremonial armor on his claws and legs/shoulders and a large golden crest rests just above his eyes.

I realize he must be the new Dragon Emperor and swallow nervously. Just a few days ago I was a nobody and now I'm being congratulated for a major defeat I didn't even contribute to and meeting not just the Magistrate but the Dragon Emperor. I swallow hard and my heart rate is through the roof as we approach them. Shyvea kneels next to me and I hurriedly do the same, too scared to even think about speaking.

The roar of the crowd quiets down and the Magistrate addresses me with an amplifying buff so everyone present can hear.

"Great Hero, the people of Opalia welcome you back to the capital after so long of fighting the Spectral Sorcerer's forces! Even though it has only been 3 months since your summoning from the other world, you have accomplished many incredible feats. Of these, you managed to permanently lay to rest the former Dragon Emperor turned Specter, a threat that could have killed millions, despite your limited training. On behalf of the entire realm, I, Magistrate Juliani, and Dragon Emperor Xerxion," He gestures to the Dragon next to him who closes his eyes in approval and nods, "wish to bestow upon you the second highest honor in this kingdom, the Crescent Star of Valor." he says, gesturing for me to approach them. I hesitantly rise and walk up the steps to where the two are standing.

The presence of these two individuals is insane! I'm only standing next to them and I feel like a child compared to them. Each of the Dragon Emperor's claws is bigger than my head! And the Magistrate is impressive in his own right. He obviously is a ruler of action as what little I can see of his arms under his royal gown is covered in muscle and scars. Even thought I, as someone of taller stature, further heightened by the Hero's armor, still only match him in height. Magistrate Juliani lifts the 7-pointed star medal and I lower my head as he places it around my neck. A million thoughts are racing through my mind, things like, is this really ok to be receiving credit for something I didn't do, but the fate of the world is resting on my disguise and I'm more concerned about not looking suspicious to two people who could wipe my existence from the realm.

The magistrate continues as we face the crowd, "Let us all congratulate you on your triumph over the Spectral Dragon Emperor and wish you further success against the Spectral Sorcerer's dark forces!" He says with an enthusiastic shout. The crowd roars and I stare nervously at the thousands of faces filling every square inch of the streets and windows of the houses lining it. Featherfallen fly acrobatics from their perches in the air and naiads in the pools jump out of the water in excitement.

The fanfare dies down after a moment and the mood becomes more somber as the magistrate shifts tones, "This victory did not come without great cost however, and it is only right to remember those who have fallen in service to our nation in order to achieve this great feat." He gestures to a large item covered in cloth among the people below. The crowd parts and knights slowly remove the cloth as he continues, "A statue of the brave party will remain in this courtyard dedicated to the 4 great citizens of our nation who died in battle with the Spectral Dragon Emperor, led by the Great Hero to their last breath. May they forever rest in peace knowing they contributed greatly towards the safety of this realm and its people."

The statue is unveiled and shows the 4 party members of the hero raising their respective weapons/items with the Hero and his sword at the front. Each have the pieces of their armor that I brought back embedding in the center of their statues' chests. I stare remorsefully at the sight, as they have no idea they just immortalized not just 4, but 5 fallen warriors. Levi's face is shown as he is holding the helmet I'm wearing in one arm.

The Dragon Emperor finally speaks, his deep reverberating voice in no need of anything other than translation magic, "I would also like to thank the Opalia Realm on behalf of my people, and apologize to the Great Hero for my father's role in the deaths of your team members and the loss of your memory." He says, looking at me with his large green eyes as I look up at him, greatly intimidated and too scared to move. "I am greatly embarassed that the Spectral Sorcerer was able to summon him after his recent death, an oversight and terrible mistake on our part. As further show of our gratitude and sorrow we would like to personally offer supplies as well as Dragonite warriors for you to choose from to take the place of one of your fallen comrades. I hope you can forgive us for our grave sin." he says sorrowfully, bowing so low to me that his head nearly touches the ground.

There are gasps from behind me and I take it that this is not an action done lightly. I somehow convince myself to move and bow as low as I can to him as I say with a voice I hope isn't shaking, casting amplifier magic as well on Levi's voice that I've somewhat come to consider my own, "Apology accepted Great Dragon Emperor, I would be honored to have one of your people serve beside me."

There is another roar from the crowd and the Magistrate addresses them once more on the grounds of me being tired and inviting me to the Magistrate's residence. I am only half listening as I stare at the statue though, looking back as we begin to walk out of sight at the true hero's face as he stands valiantly at the front of his team.

We walk out of sight and I quickly look back towards the Magistrate, Shyvea following close by and the Dragon Emperor having flown over the narrow streets to meet us at the residence. The magistrate makes small talk with Shyvea and I, about the road here and such, but I'm not really listening. This whole situation is more than overwhelming.

We enter his residence and Xerxion is already sitting one of three seats at a large round table adorned with food in his smaller form, dressed in extravagant clothing. I hesitantly stand next to the table and the Magistrate gestures for me to sit, which I do, before taking his own seat. He dismisses Shyvea and the knights that accompanied me, as well as his servants and guards.

He waits until they leave before resting his elbows on the table and looking at me with a serious look contrasting the kind face he had before. He sits there for a moment and then states with a stern voice, "Now. Let's talk."