I was up and around within three days. On the first morning I attended Jowy and Jillia's wedding, performed by a South Window priest named Gantetsu. Immediately following that, Jowy formally adopted Pilika, much to the little girl's delight.

The next two days were mercifully uneventful; I may have been up and around, but I was still rather weak. The only exercise I was capable of was my daily sparring match with Jowy. Aside from that, my only activities were reading and helping Shu plan our next move.

I wandered into the officer's quarters on the first floor, looking for a certain hard-boiled spook. "Richmond, I have a job for you."

The P.I. flipped his ever-present coin. "What kind of job?"

"I want you to investigate something called the Black Dragon Group. It's a secret society of chefs that Hai Yo used to belong to."

Richmond nodded. "That gives me a place to start. What are you after them for?"

I sighed. "You heard about our most recent cooking contest, right?" Richmond nodded again. "Well, the guy we beat said something about wanting the 'thing'. Then, right after the contest, he committed suicide by poison. I tried to ask Hai Yo about it, but he clammed up on me. I think he's afraid."

"No problem. I'd hate to see him hurt. He's the best cook I've seen in a long time." The P.I. smiled. "I'll give you a discount. 100 potch for the investigation."

"Done." I paid him, and off he went.

Nothing more of interest happened until after lunch that day, when Shin caught up with me. "Lord Julian."

"What's up, Shin?" I asked.

"Lord Shu has called a meeting. It is time to retake Greenhill," Shin said.

That got my full attention, as Shin knew it would. "Greenhill? Excellent." Finally, we were going to take the offensive. "Find my sister and tell her to head for the war room. I'll be there shortly."

Before going to see Shu, I went to Jowy and Jillia's room. "Jowy, Jillia, come on. Shu thinks it's time for us to hit Greenhill."

Jowy perked up. "Great! We'll be right there."

By the time I got there, the war room was packed. All the Dragon Army's top people were there, plus a man who I assumed was an agent from what passed for a resistance movement in Greenhill. "Okay, Shu, spit it out. Why do you think it's time for an attack?"

Shu looked up. "Ah, Lord Julian." He began his briefing. "As you all know, Greenhill has been under Highland occupation since the death of Solon Jhee. Since Lord Julian succeeded in rescuing Lady Teresa, we have been content to wait, gathering our strength."

"So, why now?" Culgan asked. "I was there for the initial strike, and I can tell you that it will be a very tough nut to crack."

Shu sighed. "Unfortunately, the situation in Greenhill has worsened dramatically in the past week. Leon Silverburg has chosen a new commander for the Greenhill occupation force, one that Lord McDohl should be unpleasantly familiar with: the Black Knight, Yuber."

Tir cursed. "I'm familiar with him, all right. He gave us a lot of grief during the war with the Scarlet Moon Empire."

"Then you know why we must move quickly," Shu said. "Lady Teresa will command the lead force, as she knows the area best."

Teresa took the floor. "My force will attack Greenhill from the front, to draw Yuber's attention to the main gate. Viktor, Flik, and Luc will advance from the southeast, cutting off any Highland force from Muse." The Mayor of Greenhill gave one of her rare smiles. "Meanwhile, Lords Julian and Jowy will take a small group into Greenhill itself, via the secret paths behind the New Leaf Academy."

I nodded. "Agreed. Jowy, I think you and I should take two separate parties until we reach the Academy. That way we'll have a better chance of survival."

"Alright." Jowy thought for a moment. "I'll take Culgan, Seed, Viktor, Flik, and Khan."

"And you, my lord?" Klaus prompted me.

"Nanami, Camus, Miklotov, Sierra, and Luc." I grinned. "Better make it three parties, just to be safe. Tir?"

"Shin, Humphrey, Futch, Kasumi, and Viki," McDohl said firmly. "Shin knows the area, so he should be a big help."

"Good. Let's get going."

I hate covert operations. Indeed, "hate" was a major understatement; the last time I'd gone somewhere in secret was my previous trip to Greenhill, and that hadn't turned out well at all. My only comfort was the knowledge that Teresa's attack would be giving this Yuber more problems than he could handle.

"Lord Julian, I believe we are about to have company," Camus murmured.

Nanami followed his gaze. "There's a woman, and five soldiers. Any idea who it is?"

"Her name is Lucia," Miklotov said. "She shouldn't be too much of a threat."

"Be that as it may, I'm going to give her a chance to surrender," I replied. "I don't want to fight if I don't have to." I raised my voice. "Lucia! I am Julian Genkaku, leader of the Dragon Army and holder of the Bright Shield Rune. The liberation of Greenhill has begun. Surrender, and you will be spared."

Lucia gazed at me with contempt. "Lovely titles," she sneered, "but you're overmatched. Prepare to die!"

I rolled my eyes. "You had your chance. Everyone attack!"

Luc smirked, holding up the True Wind Rune. "Eat this! The Shredding!" One wind spell, and Lucia's lackeys were blown away.

"Knight Attack!" Camus and Miklotov caught Lucia in a pincer, followed by a spell from Sierra.

"Family Attack!" My sister and I fought together, using the skills we learned from Genkaku.

Lucia sprawled on the ground, glaring in outrage. "You little bastard! Why can't you admit defeat!?"

I laughed. "You can ask that when we just clobbered you? Fine. I can't admit defeat because to do so would be to betray those who trust me to lead them in battle. Your master, Luca Blight, is evil on a scale that hasn't been seen since the days of Melbu Frahma."

"A kid like you can't defeat King Luca!" she spat.

"Perhaps I was just a kid when this war began," I conceded. "No longer. I am Lord Julian, the son of Lord Genkaku, holder of the Bright Shield Rune, and Dragoon of the Violet Dragon." Normally, I don't use such flowery language, but under the circumstances I decided to twit my downed opponent. "Lay there, or run, I don't care which." With that, we resumed our advance to the Academy.

"I must say, Lord Julian, I have never seen you in quite that mood before," Camus said, laughing. Since the events at Rockaxe Castle, he and Miklotov had become two of my most loyal comrades, and the Red Knight had bristled when Lucia called me a "little bastard".

Nanami chuckled. "When Julian starts talking like that, it means he's really sick of you."

"Who's he sick of?"

The voice belonged to Jowy Atreides. We'd just arrived at the rear entrance of the New Leaf Academy. "We ran into a Highland officer named Lucia," Miklotov explained. "We defeated her, and the Lord Julian gave her something to think about."

Jowy laughed. "I can imagine. Any news of the battle outside?"

I shook my head. "None so far. We'll have to wait for Tir before we do anything else." I glanced west. "Speaking of whom….Hey Tir. How goes the battle at the gate?"

McDohl grinned. "Very well. Teresa carried the main gate in ten minutes. Last I heard Kiba and Ridley were mopping up some stragglers from Rowd's unit. Inside the city is another story. We've got our work cut out for us, my friend."

"Then let's get going!" Nanami squeaked.

Eighteen warriors charged through the Academy, and wound up in a huge melee. Highland soldiers were everywhere, most of them engaged in a futile effort at crowd control. When we plunged into the fray, it went from partial chaos to total chaos. My first sight was Shin impaling a soldier on Tarantula, then throwing the body at another pair.

"Nice move, Shin!" I yelled. "Alright, let's do it!"

I can't remember anything concrete from the ensuing fight, only that it was closer to a close-quarters, in-your-face street brawl than a normal battle. We didn't dare use magic, aside from an occasional healing spell, for fear of hitting an ally, or worse, yet, an innocent bystander. Thus, it was punch, kick, chop, smash-the-other-guy's-face-in, pure, unadulterated mayhem. Luc, Kahn, Sierra, and Viki stayed out of it; they weren't much use close up.

At least an hour later I stood up, wiping blood from my tonfa and sweat from my forehead. "Well, that's that. Greenhill is safe at last."

Jowy was swabbing a cut on his right arm. "Yeah. It was tough, but definitely worth it."

Tir, on the other hand gazed numbly down the street. "Uh-oh. Guy's, we're not finished yet."

I looked that way, too. "'Uh-oh', indeed." Yuber had left us something nasty to play with, a Bone Dragon to be exact. "Anybody know how to deal with it?"

"It reminds me of a zombie dragon we had to take out to gain control of Toran Castle. As such, it should be undead, and I think Wind spells should work well, too," Tir said. "Just watch out for its fire breath."

"Whoa!" I jumped to the side, just barely in time. "No kidding. Go all out, everyone!"

"Charm Arrow!"

"Cross Attack!"

"Knight Attack!"

"The Shredding!"

Seeing the effect of Luc's spell, Jowy transformed. "Gaspless!"

Nanami stayed back as a healer, while I sent a Shining Light spell into the dragon. Viki's magic was of little use, but McDohl's Soul Eater was another matter entirely. Shin stabbed repeatedly with Tarantula, flanked by Humphrey and Futch. Sierra worked from the rear, guarded by Kasumi and Culgan. Seed's main contribution was in the form of his magic blocker.

It took twice as long as the fight with the soldiers had, but we were victorious in the end.

Teresa stood before a cheering crowd, truly happy for the first time since we had met. "Thank you, all of you. I am delighted to stand in Greenhill once again. I wish I could stay, but that time has not yet come. The war continues, and I must still fight." The people looked very understanding, at least to me. "Before I leave, allow me to introduce the people who made this victory possible." She beckoned Tir, Jowy, and me forward. "These are Julian Genkaku, Jowy Atreides, and Tir McDohl, the heart and soul of the Dragon Army. Without them, Greenhill would still be under Highland rule, and I would be in prison, or dead. Julian, Jowy, Tir, thank you."

The mayor led the applause; Jowy smiled at the look on my face. "You're beet-red, Julian," he whispered. I silenced him with a glance; Tir stoic as ever, didn't seem to notice. To my relief, we weren't asked to make any speeches, which I would have been certain to bungle.

For the first time, the entire journey home was made in the open. With Greenhill safe, the only parts of the City-State not friendly to us were Muse and Matilda, and those would soon be taken care of. Two more recruits joined us in Greenhill: a sculptor named Jude, and a younger man named Pico. Less welcome, at least from Jowy's perspective, was a pair from Radat: Simone, and his ( yes, his, he's a guy despite the name) friend Vincent.

"Two narcissists for the price of one," Jowy muttered.

No one else cared, everyone was delighted at our victory. My fame had spread through the entire region, much to my embarrassment, and that resulted in more friends waiting for us: Genshu the swordsman, from Coronet; Alberto, from Tinto; Mazus, a mage who lived in the Tinto Mines; and Pesmerga, a mysterious man with a grudge against Yuber.

The biggest surprise, however, was when we found Leknaat waiting for us in the war room. "Julian, you have done well. The Stars of Destiny have gathered together. The Stone Tablet of Promise is filled."

"Thank you, Lady Leknaat," I said. "I presume you have come to do more than just congratulate me?"

She nodded. "Yes. Hold out your right hand." I did so, and she broke some kind of seal on my rune. "You now have the ultimate Bright Shield spell, the Forgiver Sign. It will both heal your friends and do great harm to your foes."

"Leknaat…thank you," I whispered.

"The war shall soon enter its final stages. Good luck." Leknaat vanished.

Author's note: Fairly short, I know, but it gets the job done. Two, three more chapters at most, and this story should be finished. That does not, however mean that I intend to stop posting when I'm done with this one, far from it. I'm just not sure which story to post next. By the way, does the game ever explain what the "thing" is that Hai Yo's so nervous about? Thanks. D.S.