I did not need a book to recount the experiences that I had lived through myself. Battles that were victorious needed no further explanation. The same went for lost fights. After all, nothing could be properly rationalized in clear defeat in that brutal world. I skipped through the first half of the collected documents, not needing to read about old battles.

Instead, I flipped near the back of the book. Skimming along till I was able to find the records of my miserable defeat on the east encampment. My shoulder radiated in pain from the mere remembrance. It was all too familiar. As I read along the faded inking of the paper, each word describing the same scene that was etched in my mind so clearly. Each word transported my mind to that time as if I could close my eyes and be there once again. The popping of human gunfire, the whizzing bullets, and the screams of dying soldiers. I remembered it all. It was unforgettable.

How could I? A soldier’s pride was fragile. Even with the most experienced like myself, a loss was something that would never be redeemed. In most cases, it was an experience that you’d die in. I was less likely to earn that privilege of dying in battle. Dragons were more resistant to attacks from humans. Although, light magic was the general weakness towards demonic blood. Dark and light never mixed. Never.

The book was told from one side of the story. Obviously. Still, I’ll admit that it was strange to read about yourself from another perspective. There was no author of these documents. They were collected from a variety of sources. Each of them retold several aspects of the battles, making my defeat more explainable as I read on. There was a report from a human scout that managed to seek into demon-occupied areas of the battlefield.

“[Scouts managed to discover the planning of incoming attacks from the Demon General. Messengers have been deployed on horseback to travel the 60-mile trek to the nearest stronghold.]”

The next report was marked hours before the attack started. I remembered this moment as it was dated two hours before the actual attack. Dagon and Adbeel had moved the forces towards separate sides of the encampment. I had been stationed near the front, waiting to charge first with some of the frontline demons.

We had no idea that this was occurring. It was laughable and pathetic to think that the humans were able to pull it off. But my words were only ones of a loser. Did I deserve to undermine those humans? I couldn’t help but continue reading the page in pensiveness, learning to accept these humiliating realizations.

“[Battle Mage organization called ARC has responded to SOS pleas. The returning messenger dies alongside the horse after traveling nonstop for days. Generals are to hold out till help arrives.]”

Another entry of the record had been documented merely two hours later.

“[Troops exhausted. The front lines have been slaughtered by the demonic forces led by the Dragon general.]”

It continued onto the next page.

“[ARC arrives with Dragon Knights. The tides turned to war. The dragon general shot down with light magic. Main commanders of the demon troop flee.]”

That was it. After that, Dagon and Adbeel rushed to my side. All that I could remember from that moment was the blinding pain from my wings. Then I woke up in the medical center at Hellion’s castle, only able to rest briefly before facing the music with my father.

I loomed, disheartened by the reminder of the battle that ended everything. My territory, role, identity, and my home. Even as a dragon, it was still a tough truth to swallow. I had lost everything and had been thrown into the same well of humans that plotted that downfall. Surely, the sisters of fate were laughing at me.

“Do I even want to read on?” I sighed under my breath, willing my hand to turn the old pages to the next.

Blank. I flipped again.

Blank. Again. No. That can’t be right…

Ripped. The remaining pages were ripped. I combed through what would have been the rest of the book to find nothing but missing papers. This couldn’t be right. Everything detailing the events after had been torn from the documents.

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“Excuse me?” I called the librarian across the space. He perked up from behind a stack of books, his dark hair covered in dust, “Do you happen to have the ripped pages stored somewhere? The last pages of the book are gone.”

The young man got up, swiping the dirt from his attire, and walked over. He grabbed the book, flipping to the back of the same ripped pages.

He shook his head, “I’m sorry, but we only get books that are about to be thrown out from noble estates or old documents like this one. I can barely preserve the books as it is, but if it has missing pages that’s because we received it like that.”

The librarian turned the book over to read the title, before he smiled, “...But if you have any questions about this topic, I may be able to help. I studied war history in the academy, so we learned a good portion about the Dragon general.”

If only he knew that he was speaking to the actual dragon. Heh.

The offer was too tempting to throw away. I wanted to gain more insight into my missed time. Of course, I could ask permission to look at old documents on the estate or request to visit the library in the main castle. But that request would be more of a burden to fulfill.

If there was anything I wanted to avoid, it was to reveal my interest in what could have been common knowledge. There was a disconnection from my understanding of the world versus the time that had passed. Even with my position, I could never be too careful. And my wing was in no shape to destroy an entire kingdom. Not yet at least. Shamelessly, I took the human’s offer, not planning to ask too much.

“What happened to the Dragon general after this?” I asked, pointing to the book.

What happened in the hundred years that I was sleeping? How was my disappearance overseen? What were the rumors?

“I can see why you’re interested. I remember being curious when I learned about this in the academy,” The librarian explained, placing the book on a nearby table, “The demon army pulled back after that. ARC and the dragon knights were able to take back most of the encampments because the main three generals disappeared.”

I fought back an urge to wince. Disappeared? I didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter. Dagon and Adbeel were put into a difficult position. It was no wonder. And I’m sure it took some convincing to lure the first prince out of his territory to continue the war like he was now. It was disappointing, to be honest.

“...But” The young human continued, “After what most people assumed to be the death of the Demon King’s dragon, the human territories were able to focus on cultivating their arts. Trane itself is an example of that. After the return of the Dragon Knights, the monarchy was able to receive huge capital from the victory. Hence the academy!”

Well.

That explained the overall emphasis on education here. Compared to human kingdoms in the past, Trane was ahead in various aspects. Education, potion making, magic training - all these things were unheard of to this degree a hundred years ago. Most humans then focused on surviving.

“So, what happened to the demon race after that? Were they still aggressive on the frontlines?” I questioned, thinking back to the news of the internal conflict that Dagon had explained to me.

My father banished his third son, destroyed my territory, and kicked the eldest out to clean up the mess. Father of the century. Still, a man of his pride wouldn’t be quiet in battle even while facing a civil one.

The librarian paused to think, before tilting his head in debate, “...Well. Hm. I mean demons are always aggressive,” He reasoned.

Ain’t that the truth…

“However, it took them a while after the dragon’s death to recover their position in the war. It wasn’t till recently that they started to retake the outer towns and kingdoms.” He explained.

“Outer kingdoms? Which ones?” I asked, my tone coming off more alert than I intended it to be.

Whether the librarian regarded my tone as alert or curious, I wasn’t sure. Instead, he walked over to his desk and reached over to pull out a small map.

He laid it out on the table, pointing to two marked areas on the west side of the human territories, “Beloder and Florence are the two outermost kingdoms under attack. Since the last attacks a hundred years ago, the east is more defended.”

I took the opportunity to note Trane’s position on the map. The kingdom was located the near center, between the borderlines of what could be considered southeast. Leaning over the map, I studied the areas and focused on the location of the two kingdoms. It was a logical plan by my first and second brothers.

I’ll admit that. However, … I couldn’t help clicking my tongue as I grabbed the map from the table, gripping it in my hand.

“I can keep this, right?” I declared more than I asked.

The librarian waved it off, simply nodding, “Take it as payment for the disappointment of the torn pages. I have several old maps anyway.”

“Perfect.”

With that, I marched out of the store with my eyes glued to the map as I walked out of the library without another word.

I don’t know why it irked me. It wasn’t my duty anymore to worry about this type of thing. Still, my general mindset couldn’t help but question the intentions of these targets. What were they thinking? The location was more troubling. If Dagon had been stationed with my second brother in strategies, then I couldn’t help but question the reason for such a situation. He could have avoided his. So why? Before I came to realize it, my hand was already clutched around the mana stone and the connection had gone through.

A disheveled voice on the other side called with the same hushed whisper, “Prince Arslym, why are you calling so soon…”

I cut him off.

“What the fuck are you doing attacking the West side? Are you trying to get killed?” I hissed, my eyes scanning the map.

“...Oh. You found out.” Dagon exhaled loudly, “I should have told you about our movements earlier.”

He said that like it’s his job still. It’s not. He owed me nothing now.

“The west side of the human territory is dangerously close to the angelic tribes. You know that.” I nearly choked on air when I heard about where the demon troops were attacking.

“...Prince Arslym,” My former general began cautiously, “The neutrality with the angelic race revoked itself a hundred years ago. Where do you think humans learned light magic?”

Impossible. Demons and angels remained neutral for a thousand years after the last holy war.

“Your father was the one that found out. Since then, we’ve been at war from both sides.” My former general revealed.

It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t.

I froze, trying to take in the massive piece of information that was just revealed to me. But more importantly, how did I not know about this sooner? Just how much had changed after my disappearance? That’s what I needed to find out by any means possible.

Anything.