Things got worse and worse for the count as the day wore on. He mustered the guardsmen, but most of them outright refused to investigate the mountain. (“We'll be eaten for sure!”) A few said they would do it, but only with a reasonably large company, and there weren't enough of these folk.
“Bother,” Tregor growled by the end of the meeting. “What do I pay you for, if you won't even protect the city?”
“We're trained to fight miscreants and vagabonds, sir! An excursion like this would be foolhardy.”
“Pish-posh,” said Tregor. “If you won't do it, there must be someone who will. It's just a shame I'll have to pay them, too. Bother. Go search the taverns for bounty hunters and traveling knights; they'll have thicker hides than you blunderbusses.”
“Does he mean dunderheads?” the scrawny guard giggled, but was quickly shushed.
“Go on, begin your search! We've no time to waste. Five hundred golden doohickies* and a barony to the man who slays the dragon!”
“Yessir!” The guards saluted and left.
“Hmph,” said Tregor. “I did mean dunderheads, didn't I?”
“I'm afraid so, sir,” said Numnir.
“Bother.”

To be continued!

*This universe is fairly underdeveloped as of yet, so the currency was being called "doohickies" for lack of a better name. We won't leave it like that when we continue worldbuilding! Promise!