Chapter 396: Alright then, get to work.

“Then what else can we do?”

Morvain questioned.

The Table turned silent—until finally—

“Just tell the truth.”

Lavinia spoke up. The elders turned towards her, waiting for her to explain.

“Yes, we have an advantage, but it doesn’t mean we have to force ourselves to make a decision in a limited time. The very fact that we are able to control the information the enemy will have about us is a much bigger advantage than most people believe.

As they say, half-knowledge is much more harmful than no knowledge at all. For now, since there are so many varying factors, we will feed them this half-knowledge, controlling what they know about us.

And once we have a better chance, we will feed them false information in a way that will give us a strong advantage.”

Lavinia explained. She then looked at Aelindra, and with a confident and assured look on her face, she nodded,

“An advantage that is not limited to mere resources.”

Aelindra, however, chuckled dryly at those words,

“You are no longer a foreign girl in these lands, Lady Lavinia. You now represent the Seventh Vein of Velmourn, a role that is far more important than ours. It is essential for someone like you to understand our situation.

Resources are never ’mere’ in our eyes. You may not realize it since you have never experienced it yourself, but putting food on our people’s table is and always will be our greatest priority.”

The rest of the Elders nodded lightly as well. They weren’t overly harsh, they knew both Kael and Lavinia hadn’t experienced winters in the Heights.

They knew how difficult it was about to get. They knew that once again, they and their people would need to give their all just to survive.

And then, and only then, would they finally realize the value of ’mere’ resources.

“I have been starved for three years, Elder. I do understand the value of resources.”

Lavinia answered, her eyes staring right at Aelindra.

“I am not denying it. Getting Drakthar’s resources that would help us survive the winters would be great, but as the Seventh Vein, survival is not my goal.

My goal is advancement.

And we cannot advance when even the food we eat belongs to the enemy.”

“We cannot advance if we do not survive.”

Aelindra shot back, and this time, Lavinia turned silent.

“We cannot get resources from Drakthar anyway, not unless you are willing to give me and Lavinia away.”

Kael jumped in, looking at Aelindra.

“Zephyr planned all this because he wanted to put you and your people into a desperate situation—desperate enough for you to be willing to give us up.

No matter what you say, his first demand will be us, or at least—her.”

Kael spoke, pointing at Lavinia. Then, a determined look appeared on his face and—

“And I will make this clear if, for some reason, it isn’t already—

Wherever Lavinia goes, I will follow her.”

Kael declared without hesitation.

“You do not need to go that far. We are not planning on abandoning you or her. The responsibilities I gave you today are too essential, and no one but you can fulfill them.

The two of you are indispensable.”

Morvain spoke up. Aelindra too nodded at those words, agreeing with the Matriarch.

“If resources are out of the question, then do we truly not have something else?”

Tarevian questioned again, bringing the topic back to the table.

The table turned silent.

Everyone tried to think of how to use the situation. Lavinia was no exception—she wanted to take immediate advantage of the lead they had as well, but her mind just couldn’t come up with anything.

There were too many factors to consider, and the time was extremely limited.

Some of the elders did come up with a few ideas, but just like Aelindra’s, all ideas were rejected. And in the end—

“Alright, we shouldn’t keep Roan awake for too long.”

Morvain spoke up.

“He is still a child. He has already sacrificed a lot, it is time we give him an answer.”

“What do we tell him?”

Draksis questioned.

Morvain turned towards Lavinia and—

“We tell him to write the truth.”

She repeated what the Mage had said.

The Matriarch then nodded at the Mage and—

“Explain your plan, Seventh Vein.”

Lavinia nodded and began explaining,

“We will tell them the truth from a child’s perspective.

Roan, in his own words, will talk about the celebration he attended today. He will talk about how much fun he had, how excitedly he danced. Most of the message will be filled with this useless information, and by the end, Roan will finally mention the Dragon God.”

Lavinia spoke, momentarily looking at Kael.

“He will tell how the Dragon God saved them.

In a way, the message will tell them how their carefully thought plan was crushed, and that there is nothing they can do about it.”

“Won’t it only provoke them further?”

Tarevian frowned.

“That’s the goal.”

Lavinia nodded, making his frown deepen.

“Drakthar’s presence here is far greater than I initially expected.”

The Seventh Vein began—

“I knew we constantly sent people to keep an eye on your people. There are even reports about how the Velmourns now are different from Velmourns twelve hundred years ago, but most of the information I read was superficial—mostly about how you survived, how you traded with our merchants, and everything else. I did not know there was a family of ’spies’ that gave us such accurate information.

So before we begin any of our plans,

I need to understand the scope of power Drakthar holds here—not just among the Velmourns, but in the entirety of Ashen Heights.”

“Not just Velmourns…? Are you saying… Drakthar has spies in… other tribes as well?”

Tarevian questioned, and this time, instead of Lavinia—

“I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case.”

Korvath nodded.

“The way everything happened was too convenient for Drakthar for it not to be suspicious. Drakthar’s influence here is indeed stronger than what we all thought.”

Lavinia stared at the Commander of Watch and nodded.

“This is why we provoke him. According to their recent actions, it is clear that no matter how bold Drakthar becomes, they are not planning to break the Treaty of Vorgath.

Dragons are prideful beings. The treaty was signed under their watch. If Drakthar went against it, the Dragons would not support them and they would lose power.

It is too big of a risk for an opponent that barely has a five-hundred-man army.

Drakthar might play all these tricks, but they will never move their own forces.

So these tricks are what we need to keep an eye out for. We need to understand how strong their influence around us is and one by one…

We need to remove that influence.”

Lavinia then looked into Aelindra’s eyes and—

“And I firmly believe that once we remove all of Drakthar’s influence, our situation will become significantly better than before.”

“What do you mean?”

Aelindra narrowed her eyes.

“Everything in this world has a Cycle.

Day after night and night after day is the simplest example of this.

Seasons can be considered another example.

Even Life itself is a cycle—birth, childhood, youth, adulthood, old age, death, and then the new generation begins.

A couple forms a family, children grow, leave, and form their own families.

Forgotten truths are rediscovered, reinterpreted, and re-lost through generations.

It happens so often that it could be considered the very Law of this World.

Everything—every single thing—goes through this cycle.

Power is no exception.

Twelve hundred years ago, the Velmourns were in power. They controlled the entirety of Nerathis in a way that no one would have believed such power could ever decline.

But it happened.

The Velmourns fell.

The Dragonborns rose.

And in these twelve hundred years, there were times when even the Dragonborns were weakened.

It is only natural—the Dragonborns cannot escape the Cycle, but…

The Velmourns are different.”

Lavinia paused, looking into the Elders’ eyes.

“Throughout history, in these past twelve hundred years, your people have never once experienced even the faintest prosperity.

More than twelve generations of your people have struggled to survive. You have struggled and struggled so much that it feels… unnatural.

Almost as if…

Someone is influencing your surroundings to unnaturally hinder your Cycle, throwing troubles at your people the moment the Cycle tries to lift you up.”

“…so you are saying Drakthar has been… hindering our growth by changing our surroundings?”

Tarevian questioned, his hands shaking at this possibility.

“With the amount of information they have, it wouldn’t be impossible.”

Korvath spoke in a solemn tone.

Draksis and Morvain nodded as well.

“Of course, I have no way to prove any of this. All of this could very well be my imagination. But whatever it is,

I do believe provoking Drakthar into doing their worst, to find out the extent of their influence over us, and destroying that influence is indeed our strongest option.

After all, the Cycle is on our side.

The current Velmourn is at its strongest.

Whatever they throw at us,

I believe we will be prepared to take it head-on.”

Lavinia said confidently, and for an instant, the entire council turned silent, considering Lavinia’s words.

And finally, after a minute-long silence—

“Do we let Roan say whatever he wants, or do we still stay beside him to know what he said and guide him along the way?”

Morvain questioned, showing that she agreed with Lavinia’s words.

The Mage smiled at those words,

“We stay beside him.”

She nodded.

And in an instant, Morvain turned towards Kael and—

“Alright then, get to work.”

“Me?”

Kael tilted his head, confused.

“You are the Warden of Vigilance. This comes under your duties.”

Morvain shrugged.

Then, a slight grin appeared on her face and—

“Also, assigning this task to you would give me twice the manpower, wouldn’t it?”

She laughed, staring at Lavinia, who she knew was going to follow this man.

After all, the two were practically inseparable.

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